The
American Society of Cinematographers
(
ASC) is an educational, cultural, and
professional organization. It is not a
labor
union, and it is not a
guild. Membership
is by invitation and is extended only to
directors of photography and
special effects experts with distinguished
credits in the film industry. Not all cinematographers can place
the initials ASC after their names. ASC membership has become one
of the highest honors that can be bestowed upon a professional
cinematographer, a mark of prestige and distinction. The ASC
currently has approximately 340 members.
Origins
Its
history goes back to the Cinema
Camera Club in New York
City
founded by Phil Rosen,
Frank Kugler, and Lewis W. Physioc and the Static Club in Los Angeles
founded by Charles
Rosher and Harry H.
Harris.
Both were created in
1913, and were united into a national organization when Rosher and
Rosen moved to Los Angeles
in 1918. The ASC was chartered in California
in January 1919, and claims to be the "oldest
continuously operating motion picture society in the world".
The following year, the
William S.
Hart film
Sand! was released on
June 27, bearing to
Joe
August the first cinematographer credit followed by the letters
"ASC".
Publications
1920 also marked the beginning of
American Cinematographer
magazine, still in print today. The magazine focuses on the
cinematography of current motion picture releases, including
interviews with cinematographers and technical information.
Back-issues remain in high demand among film makers, seeking to
discover how a particular film's look was achieved. In the 1990s
the magazine received a make-over, courtesy of the current editor,
Stephen Pizzello. The previously restrained, technical journal
style of the magazine gave way to the current format, broadening
appeal and increasing circulation.
Other than the magazine, the most well-known publication of the ASC
is the
American
Cinematographer Manual. The first edition was published in 1935
by
Jackson J. Rose as
The American Cinematographer
Hand Book and Reference Guide. The Hand Book evolved from the
Cinematographic Annual only published twice, in 1930 and
1931. Rose's handbook went through nine editions by the middle of
the 1950s, and it was from this book that the modern American
Cinematographer Manual originated. The first edition of the new
manual was published in 1960, and is now in its ninth edition
(2004).
Founding members
Award categories
Film
Television
- Best Cinematography in Movies of the Week, Miniseries, or Pilot
Episodes
- Best Cinematography in Episodic TV Series
Lifetime Achievement
- Lifetime Achievement Award
- Television Career Achievement Award
See also
References
External links
Wikis
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