Haskell Wexler at work on Medium Cool, 1969 shooting with a blimped 35mm Panavision Silent Reflex [PSR] Camera. Photograph: Ronald Grant
Haskell Wexler belonged to a key time in the development of the art of cinematography. As we move completely to digital filmmaking, this era is now capped off with all the greats who will have pioneered and achieved great work shooting on film.
In addition to our Cool & Moody Wexler filter, our Warm & Natural Days of Heaven filter owes some debt to Haskell Wexler.
Jeff Wexler:
His cool, uncluttered but visually distinct style grew out of his years as an educational and industrial filmmaker, which led to his photographing of documentaries such as Joseph Strick’s “The Savage Eye” in 1959. He continued to invest his own money in films that promoted causes because he saw them “as an instrument for social change.”
Variety: Haskell Wexler, Oscar-Winning Cinematographer and Documentary Filmmaker, Dies at 93
Good overview of Wexler’s career in The Guardian: Haskell Wexler obituary
American Cinematographer In Memoriam: Haskell Wexler, ASC, 1922-2015
Haskell’s son Mark Wexler’s documentary on his father Tell Them Who You Are
Haskell Wexler at work on one of our favorites Elia Kazan’s America, America. Shooting handheld with a French Éclair Caméflex camera: