“Oppenheimer” cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema will be honored with Variety’s Creative Impact in Cinematography award at the SCAD Savannah Film Festival.
In addition to this summer’s Christopher Nolan blockbuster, the Dutch cinematographer has worked as Nolan’s DP on “Tenet,” “Interstellar” and Dunkirk” along with Jordan Peele for “Nope” and Spike Jonze for “Her.”
“SCAD is proud to partner with Variety on this year’s Creative Impact Award, which will be presented to cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema,” said SCAD Savannah Film Festival executive director Christina Routhier. “Hoyte’s use of IMAX cameras to capture the groundbreaking imagery in this year’s ‘Oppenheimer’ was a cinematic marvel. He is a true master of his craft, and we are thrilled to have him as an honored guest to share his creative insight with our students, alumni, and festival guests.”
Said Variety’s senior artisan’s editor Jazz Tangcay, “I am beyond thrilled to honor the remarkable talent of Hoyte Van Hoytema and his contributions to the craft of cinematography.” She added,”Van Hoytema is an icon and admired. His work is admired by audiences and film lovers the world over. The Creative Impact award celebrates the finest, and Van Hoytema who has worked with Christopher Nolan, Jordan Peele and so many others continues to leave audiences in awe. His work on ‘Oppenheimer’ is a testament to his insane talent and how he continues to break new ground, paving the way for future generations of cinematographers. I can’t wait to celebrate and honor his work.”
The cinematographer took on the ambitious task of capturing an atomic bomb explosion for “Oppenheimer” without the use of VFX all while shooting in IMAX and large format 65mm film stock. Van Hoytema and his team also worked with Kodak to engineer a unique black-and-white IMAX stock specifically for the film.
Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pic
“I do remember when Chris and I were sitting in the cinema and watching the results of our first black-and-white test and it was just freaking amazing. We had never seen anything like it,” the cinematographer previously told Variety about his work on “Oppenheimer”
“The Trinity Test was something that came together and was cobbled from the miniatures of that science experiment,” he added about the team’s creation of atomic bomb footage. “Under the guidance of Chris and my guidance, that we pushed slowly in certain directions in order to serve specific functions in these sequences.”
Van Hoytema will receive his award on Oct. 22 alongside Variety’s 10 Artisans to Watch panel moderated by Tangcay. SCAD Savannah Film Festival will run from Oct. 21 through Oct. 28.
Presented by the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), the SCAD Savannah Film Festival is filled with cinematic creativity from award-winning professionals and emerging student filmmakers. Each year, more than 63,000 people attend the eight-day festival. The SCAD Savannah Film Festival has become a distinguished stop on the road to the Academy Awards, hosting exclusive screenings, competition films, feature films, documentaries, shorts, animated films, panel discussions, and workshops at SCAD’s historic theaters and industry-leading studio spaces. The full festival line-up will be announced on Oct. 6. For additional information and tickets, visit filmfest.scad.edu.
