Film screening of “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada” at Billy Wilder Theater honors cinematographer Chris Menges
By Mariel Martinez
Feb. 23, 2010 9:01 p.m.
While a good film is composed of great acting, moving performances and exceptional writing, the film itself would not physically exist without the cinematography. Oddly enough, though cinematographers bring the visuals to life, their work and recognition tend to be the first things to blend away into the background.
The UCLA Film & Television Archive joins the American Society of Cinematographers for the sixth year to honor exceptional work in cinematography. In conjunction with the 24th Annual American Society of Cinematographers awards, the 2009 honorees Caleb Deschanel (Lifetime Achievement Award) and Chris Menges (International Achievement Award) will have a film of their choice screened at the Billy Wilder Theater.
Chris Menges’s choice, the film “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada,” will be screened at the Billy Wilder Theater tonight at 7:30 p.m. He will be there to discuss with the audience his work within the film as well as his career in cinematography.
“It’s a little different from the usual awards season program because we’re not showing films that are necessarily up for an award this year. The focus is more on the person,” said Shannon Kelley, head of public programs at the UCLA Film & Television Archive.
Chris Menges is a two-time Academy Award winning cinematographer whose career has spanned over four decades. His varying body of work includes films such as “The Mission,” “Michael Collins,” “Dirty Pretty Things” and “The Reader.”
“He came out of documentaries,” said Bob Fisher, honorary society member and moderator of the event’s discussion. “He learned doing these documentaries what real life is really like. That is characteristic to the films that he does, they always have terrific reality.”
While friends, colleagues and fans acclaim Menges for his unique style and his ability to bring forth the reality of the characters and the themes within the script, he attributes his style to a simple mantra.
“If you’re wise, you try to work in films that you can learn from, so you’re trying to capture the performance, and you’re trying to make it as real as possible,” Menges said. “You’re trying to work with natural and realistic lighting so that the characters have some resonance for the audience.”
Menges’ distinctive filmmaking is in the forefront of “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada.” The film was based on a true story about the unjust murder of a Mexican farm worker and a Texas rancher’s quest for justice, one which leads him down a road of defiance against the law and the land.
Though not as well-known by audiences, the film was actor Tommy Lee Jones’s directorial debut, one which was well-received by the critics.
“It’s very, very beautifully shot, and it was celebrated because of the timeliness of its story and the fact that Mr. Jones was directing it,” Kelley said. “The quality of the cinematography helps evoke a sense of a specific place, a specific dramatic mood. It’s kind of fast, savage, dry, (and it sets up) a land where these political battles are being fought out.”
Menges chose to screen this film specifically because of its anonymity. It is a film he said he considers to have a lot of heart, as well as issues that audiences need to be exposed to.
Interestingly enough, Menges’ intentions for screening this film have a strong correlation with the UCLA Film & Television Archive’s motives for putting this event together.
“We do this program that salutes cinematography so that people will go away with an appreciation of the work that (cinematographers) do, who don’t often walk away with as much credit as the director,” Kelley said. “But who in some cases made the film the kind of film that you remember, the kind that affects you deeply. That’s what we’re trying to do along with ASC, celebrate the fact that these are unsung heroes.”
Menges is well-aware of these heroes and even with a trajectory of work as fulfilling as his, this award by the society means a lot to him not just as a cinematographer but as an admirer of those who came before him.
“I’m surprised and shocked that I’m being chosen, the people who won this particular award before me are, so to speak, my heroes. They’re the people who have made the impossible possible,” Menges said.
While many students might not be well-acquainted with the art of cinematography, the event presents them not only with the opportunity to become more familiarized with it, but also to be part of an important moment within the visual arts.
“It’s very much analogous to having the opportunity to hear Picasso speak, or Renoir or Vermeer. It’s really somebody of that significance,” said William McDonald, associate member of the society and head of cinematography at UCLA. “It’s just really a wonderful and unique opportunity and something that we are very lucky to have at UCLA. We’re one of the few universities in the world that can even offer this opportunity to our students.”
