Emilia Perez cinematographer Paul Guilhaume discusses how the film’s unique look was achieved by inventive lighting, Steadicams and lots of blue screens. Watch above.
“We knew we wanted it to be somewhere else in reality,” says Guilhaume, who previously worked with Emilia Perez director Jacques Audiard on Paris, 13th District. “The sun, the sky - everything should be able to switch off on the set so we could just show two faces in the dark - the light was supposed to bring a sense of realism and dynamism to the frame.”
The film was shot almost entirely in a studio and more than 400 shots have a blue screen somewhere, according to Guilhaume. “The operatic look comes from the choice of the studio and not making it too realistic, to keep an element of poetry and stage, but it was on a tightrope,” admits Guilhaume.
Emilia Perez premiered at the Cannes film festival where it won the jury prize and best actress, shared between its three leads, Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón and Selena Gomez.
It was released in France via Pathé and in the US, UK, and Canada by Netflix. It won four Golden Globes, including best motion picture - musical or comedy, and is longlisted for 15 Baftas.
