HOW TO BE A NETFLIX CINEMATOGRAPHER with Benedict Spence

This week on the podcast I’m talking to Cinematographer Benedict Spence. Benedict has been working in the industry for over twenty years having started out on reality television, working on the very first series of TOWIE (The Only Way is Essex’) He’s now working as a Cinematographer on big shows, having been Emmy nominated for his work on “The end of the f***ing world” on Netflix, he also worked on medical drama ‘This is going to hurt” starring Ben Whishaw for AMC/the BBC. He most recently worked on Netflix show ‘Eric’ starring Benedict Cumberbatch and a seven foot monster called Eric.

I talked to Ben about his career, how he became a cinematographer, we talked about some of the challenges of being a cinematographer on big budget productions, we talked about Eric, how he achieved the look, utilising lighting and grading techniques. We also chatted about what it was like working with a seven foot puppet on a television set, and he gave me his tips for you to get into the industry. Enjoy!

Find out more about Eric: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt16283824/

Check out Benedict’s IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1824014/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

Topics of conversation:
– Intro and all about Benedict and his career
– How did Benedict get into the industry
– Working on the first series of TOWIE (The only way is Essex)
– Moving from reality TV to narrative
– Whats it like shooting The Inbetweeners Movie?
– What does Ben wish he’d known earlier in his career?
– Does Ben have a style as a DOP?
– What does Benedict dislike on screen?
– Advice for people leaving University now
– Why does Benedict still work on Short Films?
– Does Ben have an agent – how does he get work?
– How did working on Eric come about?
– Budgets go up on every project?
– Tips for pitching to producers
– Achieving the look for Eric – camera test, grading
– Working with a seven foot tall puppet on a major TV series

Want to know more about being a Director of Photography? Having a career in the film industry in London? Check out my chat; How to make a living as a DOP with Andrew Rodger