ATLANTA, SEPTEMBER 21, 2016 – When Gaffer Jarred Waldron was tasked with providing lighting for “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk,” a film based on the award-winning book about the realities of war as seen through a 19-year-old Iraqi war-veteran’s eyes, both he and cinematographer John Toll, ASC trusted the HS™ digital soft source from Cineo Lighting, a leader in the production of lighting systems available for the motion picture, television and photography industries.
“Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” follows Billy Lynn, a young man on a victory tour after a traumatic battle in Iraq. His company’s tour culminates in Billy Lynn being a centerpiece for the Dallas Cowboys pregame and halftime shows. Much of the movie focuses on the realities of war versus America’s perception of our war heroes. Waldron used upwards of 200 Cineo HS digital soft sources throughout the shoot.
“We shot the film at 120 frames per second, which meant we needed at least 2.5 times the amount of light we would normally need on a picture,” explains Waldron. “Director Ang Lee also liked to keep all eight actors in focus at the same time, so we found ourselves shooting up to a 22 f-stop. That would require another four to five stops of light. Finally, we also had to balance our kelvin temp to the stadium lights in the dome. All of these challenges required a very bright source that could get to 6000K, point straight down and still be photographed in the long concourses of the stadium and locker rooms.”
The HS easily met Waldron’s and Lee’s exacting needs on set. It provides twice the output of a 2K incandescent soft light with an extended CRI over 95. Generating a 160-degree beam spread, the HS manages to still only use less than 500 watts of AC power.
“Having a much more efficient power consumption to light output ratio in a dimmable source that can operate in the higher kelvin range is incredibly useful,” says Waldron. “Overall the HS allows us to work much quicker and more efficiently.”
The HS’ Remote Phosphor Technology (RPT) eliminates the color-accuracy limitations that are more inherent in most LED fixtures. The HS’ independent phosphor panels emit high-quality light when excited by the high-frequency wavelengths from blue LEDs. This is a stark contrast to most LED fixtures that rely on LEDs as the source of illumination. The interchangeable phosphor panels allow users to achieve a variety of color temperatures with a single fixture.
The lamp head of the HS weighs in at 12lbs., with the total dimensions being 12in. x 21in. x 3.8in. The output range is 2700-6500K. This combination proved to be one of the most beneficial features for Waldron: “It’s light weight and brightness are a great combination. Also, I can use it for flashes or lightning due to the quick reaction of the light.”
“Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” stars Kristen Stewart, Vin Diesel, Garrett Hedlund, Steve Martin and Chris Tucker. The movie was shot by two-time ACADEMY AWARD® winning cinematographer John Toll, ASC and was directed by two-time ACADEMY AWARD winner Ang Lee. It will be in theaters November 11.
About Cineo Lighting
Cineo Lighting, LLC was founded to produce the highest quality lighting systems available for the motion picture, television, and photography industries. By pioneering cutting-edge technologies, Cineo creates high-output, compact light sources for image capture, in all power ranges, which exceed the capabilities of traditional lighting tools. For more information, please visit www.cineolighting.com.
