As in years past, varied artists SHOOT interviewed for phase one of its The Road To Emmy Series–as well as prior Guild Awards Preview coverage and our Cinematographers & Cameras features–have gone on to land nominations from TV Academy voters. For example, among those SHOOT connected with were Christopher Ross, BSC for Shōgun (FX), Tobias Schliessler, ASC for All the Light We Cannot See (Netflix), and costume designer Amy Roberts for The Crown (Netflix).
Ross and Schliessler earlier this week garnered their first career Emmy nominations while Roberts earned her fifth–four of which over the years have been for The Crown.
Shōgun topped this year’s Emmy tally with 25 nominations. The Crown scored 18 nods. And All the Light We Cannot See took home four noms.
Christopher Ross, BSC
When Ross got the assignment to lens the first two episodes of Shōgun, he had to tackle history on two distinctly different fronts. For one there was the task of re-creating 17th century feudal Japan. But beyond the challenge of delivering a sprawling epic based on the 1975 novel of the same title by James Clavell, the new Shōgun in a sense also had to live up to significant television history. The book was first famously adapted in a 1980 series on NBC. Critically acclaimed and a major commercial success, it was pivotal in bringing into prominence the international miniseries which has proven viable to this day. The original Shōgun–which set the record as the most viewed piece of television worldwide–was a cultural phenomenon and spawned such ambitious miniseries as The Thorn Birds, The Winds of War and North and South.
Measuring up to that lineage is no small feat. Plus the new Shōgun sought to take a 180-degree narrative turn from its predecessor. The original series was a white savior story. This time around, said Ross, writers/showrunners Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks did not want to depict John Blackthorne (portrayed by Cosmo Jarvis) as a white man arriving on the shores of Japan to civilize the population. “That narrative is tired and not true,” noted Ross. “Although the character of Blackthorne still needs to arrive in Japan with that kind of closeted, bigoted attitude, the audience needs to see the opposite agenda,” armed with “a full knowledge of a complex Japanese civilization that this stranger is infiltrating.” Blackthorne in reality finds a civilization “much more complex and exotic than his own,” observed Ross.
Dealing with such complexities and the weight of history spanning civilizations and television became a little less daunting for Ross thanks to his own history with EP Jonathan van Tulleken, who directed the first two episodes. The two first met around 2010 on Misfits, a series which ran on Channel 4 in the U.K. Ross served as cinematographer for the first two seasons and van Tulleken was fresh out of film school. They worked on teaser trailers for the show and established a rapport. “We got to talking about the camera decisions, the lens decisions and have been friends ever since,” recalled Ross. A couple years later they took on their “first proper project together,” continued Ross, with van Tulleken directing episodes of U.K. series Top Boy. The director and DP then went on to collaborate on another U.K. series, Trust. When van Tulleken was in the running for Shōgun, he gravitated to Ross and they began exploring visual references for the project–before they even got the gig.
In shaping a visual language for Shōgun, particularly given that they would work on the first two episodes which set the tone and feel for the series, Ross and van Tulleken wanted to create a first-person perspective rooted in the protagonists–Blackthorne, Toda Mariko (played by Anna Sawai) and Lord Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada)–so that the audience could see the world, and their worlds, through their eyes. “We came up with a sort of a visceral first person photographic technique where you as an audience member are sitting alongside each of the characters,” related Ross.
Coming at the story visually through the characters and character interactivity was essential, noted Ross who added that at the same time he had the good fortune of collaborating with production designer Helen Jarvis and costume designer Carlos Rosario. Jarvis’ knowledge of the history, the architecture of medieval Japan, and Rosario’s sense of history and style, deploying a stunning array of fabrics and textures, enabled Ross and van Tulleken to attack the script through the lens of both character and design. Additionally, Ross spent much time and energy envisioning the light in the universe they were trying to create. On the lighting score, Jarvis built scale models of the sets. Ross used those models to full advantage, studying how light would bounce around while learning about sources of illumination, such as lanterns, during that historical period. Ross would scale down his lighting to match Jarvis’ models, giving him invaluable practice with and insights into how the major sets and spaces would be transformed by the lighting. Jarvis’ set construction was massive and brilliantly designed, with an Osaka Palace exterior, for example, pretty much the size of the real structure.
Delving into and being driven by character, space and light–creating a tapestry consisting of all these elements–guided the approach to the photography, including when lensing took place in church settings in that “spiritual places” and spirituality contributed in a major way to the tone of the story.
For cinematic impact, Ross opted for the Sony Venice camera in tandem with anamorphic Hawk class-X lenses and deployed a 2:1 widescreen aspect ratio. While locations in Japan had been scouted, Shōgun was ultimately lensed in Canada which is where Ross connected for the first time with Jarvis, a Brit who’s called Vancouver, B.C. home for about 25 years. Upon landing in Vancouver, Ross at first could not come into direct contact with his colleagues. He had to spend two weeks in quarantine due to COVID restrictions before he could join the team. From an apartment, he would meet with his compatriots via Zoom.
For Ross the biggest takeaway from his Shōgun experience was “the power of collaboration,” citing directorial talent, cast and crew who were committed to doing full justice to the story. This ensemble of artists also included the cinematographers Ross passed the baton to after wrapping the first two episodes–Sam McCurdy, ASC, BSC, Marc Laliberte, CSC and Aril Wretblad, FSF.
Ross is a four-time BSC Award nominee, winning twice for Blackout. The other two nods were for the aforementioned Top Boy. He also earned a BAFTA Award nomination for Blackout.
Tobias Schliessler, ASC
The recent Emmy nomination for the limited series All the Light We Cannot See adds to an eventful awards season for Schliessler. On the feature film front, Schliessler shot Rustin, which scored Oscar, BAFTA and Critics Choice Award nominations for lead actor Colman Domingo.
And for All the Light We Cannot See, Schliessler–in tandem with exec producer Shawn Levy, who directed all the episodes–garnered a coveted Golden Frog nomination at Camerimage. Next Schliessler received his first career ASC Award nomination on the strength of the show’s second episode. Schliessler’s first career Emmy nomination came for episode four.
But the common ground between Rustin and All the Light We Cannot See extends beyond the awards show circuit. For one, each project marks the second time Schliessler has shot for the director involved–George C. Wolfe for Rustin, and Shawn Levy for All the Light We Cannot See. Schliessler first lensed Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom for Wolfe while the DP’s initial go-around with Levy was The Adam Project.
Furthermore, Rustin and All the Light We Cannot See–which both premiered in November 2023–carry historical significance. Rustin is based on the life of civil rights activist and Presidential Medal of Freedom winner Bayard Rustin, an often overlooked figure who organized the 1963 March on Washington where Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his world-changing “I Have A Dream” speech. Rustin was also a gay man who personally battled discrimination and alienation on that front as well.
And while All the Light We Cannot See is based on Anthony Doerr’s fictional novel of the same title, winner of a Pulitzer Prize (adapted for film by writer Steven Knight), the series does impart profound lessons from history, following the story of a blind French girl named Marie-Laure (portrayed by Loberti, a first-time performer with limited eyesight in real life), and her father, Daniel LeBlanc (Mark Ruffalo), who flee German-occupied Paris with a legendary diamond to keep it from falling into the hands of the Nazis during World War II. The series explores the worlds of Marie-Laure and Werner (Louis Hofmann), a German soldier, whose paths cross in France. We find that these two characters on opposite sides of the war have a unifying bond–radio broadcasts they listened to as children featuring a professor who inspired them and provided a sort of sanctuary for their hearts and minds during tumultuous times.
For Schliessler, Rustin and All the Light We Cannot See carried a deep and inspiring sense of purpose for all the artists involved, including himself. Both stories, assessed Schliessler, delivered messages that are relevant and timely. It was a privilege, said Schliessler, to get the opportunity to tell Rustin’s story as a gay Black man making history. Similarly the DP was honored to be involved in an All the Light We Cannot See narrative that shed light and generated empathy during a dark period in history marred by Nazi atrocities and the tragedy of war. He also found first-time actress Loberti to be a true inspiration, making her limited eyesight incidental thanks to other attributes such as undeniable acting talent, fearlessness, considerable poise and an incredibly strong work ethic.
When Doerr’s book first came out, Schliessler’s sister turned him onto it, thinking he would connect with and embrace the story. The DP did just that but didn’t think he’d have a realistic opportunity to shoot any film or TV adaptation. He remembered telling his sister at the time that the chances of him shooting the project, if it came to pass, would be akin to the odds of him winning the lottery. But lo and behold while lensing the Netflix feature The Adam Project, Schliessler heard that Levy was going to direct All the Light We Cannot See. Schliessler expressed his interest in the book to Levy and wound up getting the gig. The cinematographer felt lucky to be chosen by Levy, adding that being involved in All the Light We Cannot See was the fulfillment of a dream that began when he first cracked open Doerr’s novel.
From a technical standpoint, Schliessler said that among the prime challenges posed by All the Light We Cannot See was matching the lighting and feel in the scene where Werner runs through Saint-Malo to get to Marie-Laure as a night bombing is taking place. This scene was shot in three different places and two countries- first, in Budapest on an exterior stage set, part on location in Saint-Malo, and lastly in Villefranche-de-rouergue. Making it feel like it’s all happening in one place and in one running sequence was definitely a major challenge, but ultimately it turned out nicely and the audience couldn’t tell.
Schliessler said he deeply valued the collaborative relationships that shaped All the Light We Cannot See. Paradoxically, he contributed visually to a story that was underscored by the power of audio–specifically the transformative impact of radio broadcasts on the protagonists, one of whom was blind which meant the sense of hearing was all the more important to her in terms of connecting with the world at large. Among the many artists who complemented Schliessler’s visual sensibilities as a cinematographer in order to help do justice to this aspect of the story were, of course, Levy, and others with expertise spanning production design, visual effects, music and sound, costume design and editorial, as well as Loberti herself who provided the perspective of a sight-challenged person. Schliessler observed that Loberti made him “think about lighting in a different way, for example keeping my lights as low as possible as her eyes are extremely sensitive. It was these little things that I never had to think about before which were a good lesson for me in adapting my work to meet the needs of others.”
During a SHOOT Chat Room interview in October 2023, Levy talked about the balance of sound and images in All the Light We Cannot See. “The novelist told me this was a story about radio, the power and impact of this medium when it first arose,” recalled Levy. “It’s a two-sided blade with the power to inspire and inform on one hand, with notable outcomes–and on the other hand, the power to spread hate and propaganda. Joseph Goebbels [Hitler’s propaganda minister] said that the Nazi party would never have risen to power without the radio. This tool of technology conveys both information and disinformation. It’s profoundly powerful. Overall sound was important to our story. We wanted our show to have as rich a sonic soundscape as a visual soundscape.”
Two of the four nominations for All the Light We Cannot See come on the sound side–for Original Dramatic Score, and for Sound Editing for a Limited or Anthology Series, Movie or Special.
Amy Roberts
Costume designer Roberts joined The Crown (Netflix) for season three and stayed right through to the concluding sixth season. Her four career Emmy nominations for The Crown include a win in 2020 for Outstanding Period Costumes. Now she’s up for Outstanding Contemporary Costumes for a Series on the strength of The Crown episode “Sleep, Dearie Sleep.” Roberts’ very first Emmy nomination came back in 2011 for her work on the show Upstairs Downstairs.
Helping Roberts get The Crown gig to begin with was director Philippa Lowthorpe. Having directed a couple of season two episodes, Lowthorpe suggested that the powers that be on the series talk to Roberts when the costume designer opening came up for season three. Lowthorpe had worked with Roberts on varied projects–starting with the U.K. TV series Call the Midwife, then the miniseries Jamaica Inn and the feature film Swallows and Amazons–and thought the costume designer would be a good fit for The Crown. This landed Roberts a meeting with creative royalty on The Crown and she was immediately drawn to the show which she described as a sort of “opera about a dysfunctional family. We are all from dysfunctional families and that interested me. I did some drawings and got the job.”
Roberts quipped that she didn’t thank Lowthorpe for the first three months, noting that she was preoccupied with “how can I possibly get out of this job.” It was a bit daunting and it took time for her to get into the swing of things. Ironically, Roberts never collaborated with Lowthorpe on The Crown, who worked on just season two of the show.
Though it took her awhile to find her creative footing during season three, Roberts heard she wasn’t alone. She learned that others had a similar experience the first time around on the show, It wasn’t until their second season that they felt in tune with the show’s DNA, what creator Peter Morgan was trying to do. Over time, observed Roberts, “you get the measure of it. That’s the joy of different seasons–the chance to improve, to gain more understanding. Our whole department gained confidence.” And with such confidence, she continued, you can be a bit more brave about what you do.
Such bravery was facilitated and spurred on by the continuity Roberts enjoyed on The Crown with collaborators such as cinematographer Adriano Goldman, ASC, BSC, ABC, and production designer Martin Childs. “They had been on the series since the beginning,” noted Roberts who came to not only understand what Goldman and Childs were doing so masterfully and why, but also “had become closer to them as people. Their style becomes second nature. I realized how lucky we were really as a group of creative people getting to work together. We jelled brilliantly.”
Building rapport with cast and crew, having the time to better grasp the story’s intricacies are among the advantages of a television show, observed Roberts. For a feature film, you get one shot at it. “Actors feel that too. Actors realize the joy of a series, how they could develop the characters. I felt maybe the same way. Confidence built from one year to the next,” culminating with the final eventful season.
Perhaps the biggest challenge of season six was the “Ritz” episode, assessed Roberts as she had to deal with extraordinary familial relationships, particularly between sisters Margaret and Elizabeth–as well as one’s relationship with the past. The latter dynamic was reflected in the life of a declining Margaret who had endured a series of strokes. She recalls a wild night with her sister at the Ritz in 1945 only to return for a celebration of her 70th birthday there.
Costume design had to capture a young Princess Margaret as Roberts contemplated what colors the character would choose in her youth, and so on. Roberts shared that as she tried to make a creative visual painting of yesteryear in a character’s life, she simultaneously had to be true to Morgan’s overall vision for The Crown, conveying the “truth of two eras.”
Underscoring that Roberts did a great job of that was her receiving BAFTA Award and Costume Designers Guild Award nominations earlier this year for the “Ritz” episode. This fueled speculation that “Ritz,” the eighth episode of season six, might be the one recognized with an Emmy nod. But instead “Sleep, Dearie Sleep,” the series finale, earned Roberts her latest Emmy nomination.
Asked what her biggest takeaway or lesson learned was from her experience on The Crown, Roberts simply said, “That I could do it,” feeling gratified that she had the creative wherewithal and stamina to do justice to Morgan’s vision.
(This is the 11th installment of SHOOT’s weekly 16-part The Road To Emmy Series of feature stories. Creative Arts Emmy winners will be covered on September 7 and 8, and primetime Emmy ceremony winners will be reported on come September 15.)
