01-08-2021 - Case Study, Gear, Technology
Filming “Mrs. America” | DP Portrait: Jessica Lee Gagné and Chris Teague
By: SonyCine Team
Directors of Photography, Jessica Lee Gagné and Chris Teague talk about shooting FX on Hulu miniseries, Mrs. America.
The Cinematographers explain how a mix of lenses, the Sony VENICE sensor and LUTs helped them to represent the 70’s feel in the show.
Jessica explains how she shot two conflicted sides of the show using a pastel and bright environment in contrast with a much warmer, more sunny setting. Jessica and Chris also explain how, without switching from digital to film, they achieved similar results in terms of highlights, shadows and film grain with Sony VENICE.
Mrs. America tells the story of the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), and the unexpected backlash led by a conservative woman named Phyllis Schlafly, aka “the sweetheart of the silent majority.”
Through the eyes of the women of the era – both Schlafly and second wave feminists Gloria Steinem, Betty Friedan, Shirley Chisholm, Bella Abzug and Jill Ruckelshaus – the series explores how one of the toughest battlegrounds in the culture wars of the 70s helped give rise to the Moral Majority and forever shifted the political landscape.
Mrs. America features an all-star team in front of and behind the cameras. Two-time Academy Award and Golden Globe Award winner Cate Blanchett headlines as Phyllis Schlafly, leading a stellar cast portraying some of the most iconic women of the era, including Emmy Award nominated Rose Byrne as Gloria Steinem, Emmy Award winner Margo Martindale as Bella Abzug, Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Uzo Aduba as Shirley Chisholm, Emmy Award nominated Elizabeth Banks as Jill Ruckelshaus, and Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Tracey Ullman as Betty Friedan.
The cast also boasts Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Sarah Paulson, Emmy Award nominated John Slattery, Emmy Award nominated Jeanne Tripplehorn, Ari Graynor, Melanie Lynskey and Kayli Carter. Executive Producers are Emmy Award winner Dahvi Waller (Mad Men), who serves as creator and showrunner, Academy Award nominated Stacey Sher (Django Unchained, Erin Brockovich), Coco Francini, Cate Blanchett and Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck (Captain Marvel, Billions), who directed four of the nine episodes, including the first two.
Mrs. America | First Look | FX
How is the story of Mrs. America told visually? Get an Inside Look at the cinematography of the critically-acclaimed FX series.
DP Jessica Lee Gagné on set
