
Director Matthew Heineman on American Symphony, Retrograde, Cartel Land, & More
10/15/24 • 28 min
In this episode, we welcome Matthew Heineman. Matthew is an Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning director of projects including American Symphony, Cartel Land, Retrograde, The First Wave, “The Trade,” “Tiger,” City of Ghosts, and A Private War. In our conversation, he shares all about the origins of his documentary career, his workflow, and experiences working in war zones, pandemic environments, and other hot spots. Matthew also talks about his influences, mentors, and other insights from a life creating some of the best non-fiction films in recent years.
“The Making Of” is presented by AJA:
Uncover exciting new AJA tech for production and post workflows.
From KONA IP25, AJA’s new SMPTE ST 2110 I/O card, to OG-ColorBox, an openGear version of AJA’s ColorBox color management and conversion device, AJA announced exciting developments at IBC 2024. Explore these tools, alongside new AJA Diskover Media Edition plug-ins and enhancements, a Virtual KONA technology preview, and more here.
Masters of Shadow: The Cinematography of Horror
Join Band Pro and "The Making Of" for an evening of chilling insights into the dark side of filmmaking with Mark Irwin CSC, ASC, James Kniest, and Polly Morgan ASC, BSC. Moderated by Mike Valinsky, these three master cinematographers will share their creative approaches to horror filmmaking.
Mark Irwin CSC, ASC is known for his work with director David Cronenberg on iconic horror films such as The Fly, Scanners, Videodrome, and The Dead Zone, as well as Wes Craven on Scream and New Nightmare. James Kniest has terrified theater and streaming audiences alike with Annabelle, "American Horror Stories,” "The Haunting of Bly Manor," and "The Midnight Club.” Polly Morgan ASC, BSC lensed the blockbuster hit A Quiet Place Part II, as well as The Woman King, Back to Black, and Where the Crawdads Sing.
After the panel, Band Pro will host a Halloween-themed happy hour for filmmakers to mingle over food & drink, explore product demos, and a raffle loaded with filmmaking gear and horror memorabilia!
Free passes here
From our Friends at Videoguys...
The Canon EOS C70 offers exceptional cinema capabilities in a compact package. Enjoy stunning images with a 4K Super 35mm DGO Sensor and all the built-in features you could ask for, including ND Filters, mini XLRs, direct touch rotatable LCD screen, Dual Pixel CMOS Autofocus, and excellent battery life. Making the EOS C70 even more powerful is compatibility with Canon's expanding line of high-performance RF Lenses.
Learn more here
Featured Book:
Lessons from American Cinematographer: Sharing Nearly Three Decades of Tips & Techniques from the World's Top Cinematographers — A Shot Craft Companion
For nearly three decades, Jay Holben has a been a contributor for American Cinematographer magazine and has had the opportunity to sit down one-on-one with the top cinematographers in the world. As a cinematographer himself, Holben used this extraordinary privilege to not only discuss the ins-and-outs of a particular movie being covered, but to "pick the brains" of the best cinematographers on the planet. This rather selfish approach to his journalism afforded Holben the chance to fill his creative toolbox with tips and techniques from the true masters of the art. These treasures of movie magic were printed in the pages of American Cinematographer over the past 27 years, but they have now all been collected into a single volume.
Lessons From American Cinematographer brings the reader back to every interview and AC story highlighting those special tips and techniques that Holben learned. It's like opening a secret vault to a secret collection of tips and techniques handed down from the artisans of motion picture photography in your hands. A perfect companion to Holben's extremely popular Shot Craft series, Lessons From American Cinematographer provides the reader a lifetime of masterclasses in a single volume.
Pickup a copy here
Vimeo NYC Event:
October 23rd @ Angelika Film Center
A night of inspiring Vimeo Staff Picks + live filmmaker commentary!
...In this episode, we welcome Matthew Heineman. Matthew is an Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning director of projects including American Symphony, Cartel Land, Retrograde, The First Wave, “The Trade,” “Tiger,” City of Ghosts, and A Private War. In our conversation, he shares all about the origins of his documentary career, his workflow, and experiences working in war zones, pandemic environments, and other hot spots. Matthew also talks about his influences, mentors, and other insights from a life creating some of the best non-fiction films in recent years.
“The Making Of” is presented by AJA:
Uncover exciting new AJA tech for production and post workflows.
From KONA IP25, AJA’s new SMPTE ST 2110 I/O card, to OG-ColorBox, an openGear version of AJA’s ColorBox color management and conversion device, AJA announced exciting developments at IBC 2024. Explore these tools, alongside new AJA Diskover Media Edition plug-ins and enhancements, a Virtual KONA technology preview, and more here.
Masters of Shadow: The Cinematography of Horror
Join Band Pro and "The Making Of" for an evening of chilling insights into the dark side of filmmaking with Mark Irwin CSC, ASC, James Kniest, and Polly Morgan ASC, BSC. Moderated by Mike Valinsky, these three master cinematographers will share their creative approaches to horror filmmaking.
Mark Irwin CSC, ASC is known for his work with director David Cronenberg on iconic horror films such as The Fly, Scanners, Videodrome, and The Dead Zone, as well as Wes Craven on Scream and New Nightmare. James Kniest has terrified theater and streaming audiences alike with Annabelle, "American Horror Stories,” "The Haunting of Bly Manor," and "The Midnight Club.” Polly Morgan ASC, BSC lensed the blockbuster hit A Quiet Place Part II, as well as The Woman King, Back to Black, and Where the Crawdads Sing.
After the panel, Band Pro will host a Halloween-themed happy hour for filmmakers to mingle over food & drink, explore product demos, and a raffle loaded with filmmaking gear and horror memorabilia!
Free passes here
From our Friends at Videoguys...
The Canon EOS C70 offers exceptional cinema capabilities in a compact package. Enjoy stunning images with a 4K Super 35mm DGO Sensor and all the built-in features you could ask for, including ND Filters, mini XLRs, direct touch rotatable LCD screen, Dual Pixel CMOS Autofocus, and excellent battery life. Making the EOS C70 even more powerful is compatibility with Canon's expanding line of high-performance RF Lenses.
Learn more here
Featured Book:
Lessons from American Cinematographer: Sharing Nearly Three Decades of Tips & Techniques from the World's Top Cinematographers — A Shot Craft Companion
For nearly three decades, Jay Holben has a been a contributor for American Cinematographer magazine and has had the opportunity to sit down one-on-one with the top cinematographers in the world. As a cinematographer himself, Holben used this extraordinary privilege to not only discuss the ins-and-outs of a particular movie being covered, but to "pick the brains" of the best cinematographers on the planet. This rather selfish approach to his journalism afforded Holben the chance to fill his creative toolbox with tips and techniques from the true masters of the art. These treasures of movie magic were printed in the pages of American Cinematographer over the past 27 years, but they have now all been collected into a single volume.
Lessons From American Cinematographer brings the reader back to every interview and AC story highlighting those special tips and techniques that Holben learned. It's like opening a secret vault to a secret collection of tips and techniques handed down from the artisans of motion picture photography in your hands. A perfect companion to Holben's extremely popular Shot Craft series, Lessons From American Cinematographer provides the reader a lifetime of masterclasses in a single volume.
Pickup a copy here
Vimeo NYC Event:
October 23rd @ Angelika Film Center
A night of inspiring Vimeo Staff Picks + live filmmaker commentary!
...Previous Episode

Lawrence Sher, ASC on The Making Of "Joker: Folie à Deux" - Live at the ZEISS Showroom
In this 50th episode, we spoke with Lawrence Sher, ASC about the making of Joker: Folie à Deux with a live audience at the ZEISS Showroom in Los Angeles. Larry shared about how he approached creating this sequel, the techniques and technologies used to shoot it, and about his longtime collaboration with director Todd Philips. He also talked about various inspirations that fed his approach to this story and about their post process. In addition, Larry shed light on his company, ShotDeck — and answered a variety of questions from the audience.
Photo by Joel Lipton.
“The Making Of” is presented by AJA:
Uncover exciting new AJA tech for production and post workflows.
From KONA IP25, AJA’s new SMPTE ST 2110 I/O card, to OG-ColorBox, an openGear version of AJA’s ColorBox color management and conversion device, AJA announced exciting developments at IBC 2024. Explore these tools, alongside new AJA Diskover Media Edition plug-ins and enhancements, a Virtual KONA technology preview, and more here.
Masters of Shadow: The Cinematography of Horror
Join Band Pro and "The Making Of" for an evening of chilling insights into the dark side of filmmaking with Mark Irwin CSC, ASC, James Kniest, and Polly Morgan ASC, BSC. Moderated by Mike Valinsky, these three master cinematographers will share their creative approaches to horror filmmaking.
Mark Irwin CSC, ASC is known for his work with director David Cronenberg on iconic horror films such as The Fly, Scanners, Videodrome, and The Dead Zone, as well as Wes Craven on Scream and New Nightmare. James Kniest has terrified theater and streaming audiences alike with Annabelle, "American Horror Stories,” "The Haunting of Bly Manor," and "The Midnight Club.” Polly Morgan ASC, BSC lensed the blockbuster hit A Quiet Place Part II, as well as The Woman King, Back to Black, and Where the Crawdads Sing.
After the panel, Band Pro will host a Halloween-themed happy hour for filmmakers to mingle over food & drink, explore product demos, and a raffle loaded with filmmaking gear and horror memorabilia!
Free passes here
Vimeo NYC Event:
October 23rd @ Angelika Film Center
A night of inspiring Vimeo Staff Picks + live filmmaker commentary!
Join Vimeo curators Meghan Oretsky and Ina Pira as they screen recent Staff Picked films with live, unscripted commentary from some of the best creators on Vimeo.
Founded in 2008, Vimeo Staff Picks has emerged as one of the preeminent channels for online video and one of the most coveted awards for young filmmakers, having helped launch the careers of many celebrated directors. Hear from the next generation of storytellers in a format that’s sure to be eclectic and insightful.
Free tickets here
Featured Book:
On Set with John Carpenter
John Carpenter’s producing partner Debra Hill hired photographer Kim Gottlieb-Walker to be the unit photographer on Halloween, and Kim soon became part of Carpenter’s filmmaking family, going on to shoot stills on the sets of some of his most iconic films: Halloween, The Fog, Escape from New York, Halloween II, Christine.Collected together here for the first time is the best of that on-set photography, with iconic, rare, and previously unseen images. All accompanied by exclusive commentary from those involved, including John Carpenter himself, and other key crew and cast. From production stills, to candids of the stars between takes, and the crew in action, alongside portrait shots of the actors who would eagerly pose for Kim, this book gives an unprecedented glimpse into the action on set with John Carpenter.
Pickup a copy here
Next Episode

Steven Poster, ASC Talks Cinematography, Making "Donnie Darko," & More
In this episode, we welcome cinematographer Steven Poster, ASC. Steven has shot films including Donnie Darko, Strange Brew, Someone to Watch Over Me, Opportunity Knocks, Big Top Pee-Wee, Amityville: The Awakening, Rocky V, and work on Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Blade Runner, Starman, and Unbreakable. He has served as president of the ASC, led the ICG for many years, and launched the Emerging Cinematographer Awards. In our chat, we hear all about Steven’s roots, his creative beginnings, and journey making countless films across many genres. In addition, he shares invaluable advice for filmmakers and creative professionals working today.
“The Making Of” is presented by AJA:
Uncover exciting new AJA tech for production and post workflows.
From KONA IP25, AJA’s new SMPTE ST 2110 I/O card, to OG-ColorBox, an openGear version of AJA’s ColorBox color management and conversion device, AJA announced exciting developments at IBC 2024. Explore these tools, alongside new AJA Diskover Media Edition plug-ins and enhancements, a Virtual KONA technology preview, and more here.
From our Friends at Videoguys...
The Canon EOS C70 offers exceptional cinema capabilities in a compact package. Enjoy stunning images with a 4K Super 35mm DGO Sensor and all the built-in features you could ask for, including ND Filters, mini XLRs, direct touch rotatable LCD screen, Dual Pixel CMOS Autofocus, and excellent battery life. Making the EOS C70 even more powerful is compatibility with Canon's expanding line of high-performance RF Lenses.
Learn more here
Garrett Brown In Episode #1 of DCS Series on The Language of Camera Movement
Garrett Brown, the legendary inventor of the Steadicam, does a deep dive into camera movement and how it should be informed by the processes of human vision. In this interview with James Mathers, Garrett also gives a little background on his invention, the Steadicam. This is the first episode in a Digital Cinema Show series exploring the Language of Camera Movement and Support and how these critical aspects help filmmakers communicate their stories.
Watch it here
OWC Atlas Ultra CFexpress Cards
Experience the unparalleled performance and reliability of Atlas Ultra CFexpress Type B 4.0 cards purpose-built for professional filmmakers and photographers to capture flawlessly and offload files quickly in the most demanding scenarios.
Check them out here
Talking Cinematography with Documentarian Jennifer Cox
Jennifer Cox is a director of photography, documentarian and owner of Moto Films LLC based in New York. Cox procured one of the first sets of ZEISS Nano Prime lenses and used them on three diverse documentary projects. She tested the unique traits across a Beatles Fan Fest feature film shoot, a short form promotion for non-profit Free Arts NYC and as part of the 2024 Courage Awards from PEN America.
Podcast Rewind:
Oct 2024 - Ep. 51...
“The Making Of” is published by Michael Valinsky.
Promote your brand and products to over 100,000 film, TV, video and broadcast professionals reading this newsletter. Email us at [email protected]
Get full access to The Making Of at themakingof.substack.com/subscribe
If you like this episode you’ll love
Episode Comments
Generate a badge
Get a badge for your website that links back to this episode
<a href="https://goodpods.com/podcasts/the-making-of-479042/director-matthew-heineman-on-american-symphony-retrograde-cartel-land-76501696"> <img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/goodpods-images-bucket/badges/generic-badge-1.svg" alt="listen to director matthew heineman on american symphony, retrograde, cartel land, & more on goodpods" style="width: 225px" /> </a>
Copy