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ROBERTO

From Left: Jeffrey Von

Meyer, Roberto Lepe, &
Mark Kirkland
Photo courtesy of R.Lepe,
used with permission

W
By:

Brooke Gomes
September 29, 2014

ith numerous works of photography

and film under his belt, Roberto Lepe
has achieved due recognition for his role as Director
of Photography on the award-winning short film,
The Moving Picture Co. 1914 as winner of the
Jury Award for Best Cinematography at the Big
Bear Lake International Film Festival.
Pre-Production
Production began in 2012 as crew members
from The Simpsons and some of their associates
came together to bring Mark Kirklands script to
life. In addition to contributing the script, Mark
was also Director and Producer of the film. He
brings personal accolades to the project as a 3 time
Emmy winner and recipient of the Pioneer in

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Roberto Lepe behind the camera during a scene.

Courtesy of R. Lepe. Used with permission.

Weird Al, R. Lepe, Adam Celentano, & Jeffrey Von

Meyer. Courtesy of R. Lepe. Used with permission

Behind the scenes on the set of The Moving Picture Co. 1914. Courtesy of R. Lepe.
Used with permission.

Television Animation award from the

Burbank film festival.
On the Set
The film was shot almost entirely in
Kirklands backyard in Burbank, CA. Lepe
took advantage of the plentiful sunlight
available to illuminate the set. A silk
canopy was used overhead to diffuse and
level out the brightness. Artificial lighting
was needed only during a strictly indoor
scene and some of the close-ups of lead
actress Jennifer Starr.
Lepe worked side-by-side during
the busiest shooting days with
cinematographers Helder K. Sun, Clyde
W. Smith, and 2 time Academy Award
winner Haskell Wexler. During Wexlers
day on set, he shot in film while Lepe shot
in digital. In one particularly hilarious and
chaotic scene, Wexler cameos as the
director on the set of a film that has gone
awry with fisticuffs in the typical slapstick
style of the silent film era.
Lending his curly locks to the role
of Jesus Christ is Weird Al Yankovic. His
famliar visage is suddenly spotted during
the aforementioned chaos taking place on
the lot of The Moving Picture Co.s
fictitious studios. Irreverence is his game,
and there is almost nothing more
irreverent than Jesus having a food fight
with his disciples.
Post-Production
After filming was completed in
February of 2013, Lepe began the process
of data wrangling and archiving the
footage. He shared his digital editing
expertise with Mark Kirkland so he could

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Weird Al as Jesus Christ, complete with silly beard!

Courtesy of R. Lepe. Used with permission

edit the film from his home. Color-grading

was then added along with texture and
grain to create the distinctive look and feel
of a century-old film shot with traditional
methods of the era. The result is a dreamlike quality evocative of a bygone moment
in time.

Cinematographer. Its next scheduled

screening will be Saturday, October 28,
2014 at the Indie Spirit Film Awards in
Colorado Springs, CO. Soon after that it
will be featured at the Napa Valley Film
Festival in Napa, CA on Thursday,
November 13, 2014.
When asked about the experience,
Lepe says, It was a very open and happy

Festivals and Awards

The Moving Picture Co. 1914 was
premiered at the Newport Beach Film
It was a very open and
Festival on April 27, 2014. From there it
happy set and I think the fun
was selected for screening at the Topanga
comes through as you watch
Film Festival, Burbank International Film
Festival winning the Presidents
the film
Innovation Award, and Big Bear Lake
International Film Festival where it won
the audience award for Best Short and set and I think the fun comes through as
the
jury
award
for
B e s t you watch the film. Audiences on the

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film festival circuit have experience her story as she

shown their agreement with locks you in with a splitapplause.
second gaze and then turns
slowly away.
Looking Forward
Other
video
Aside from enjoying productions are also in the
the praise of his latest work, works, including a feature
Lepe has many other documenting the creative
projects planned for the process of artist Burton
future. He continues to do Morris. When prodded for
regular photo shoots for information on when we can
friends, colleagues, and expect to see more of his
clients to add to his ever- work, Lepe makes no
expanding portfolio of promises or apologies for
thought
p r o v o k i n g his schedule:
portraiture and textural I plan on making original
landscapes.
productions, but I cant
A teaser trailer of a promise a timetable on these
film titled Zelzah haunts things. I have a lot of ideas
the Future Days website and stories that Id like to
with its whirring white tell
noise, digital artifacts, and
mysterious female figure
who silently invites us to
Clockwise from top right:
Kirkland, Left, and Lepe,
Right, sharing a moment
with an award; Lepe, Left
and Kirkland, Right pose
with their film poster at the
Newport Beach Film Festival; Action shot of the
Boss on set; Jennifer Starr,
lead actress in the Motion
Picture Co. 1914, photographed by R. Lepe.

Photos courtesy of R. Lepe,

used with permission.

Success on the
Festival Circuit
The Motion Picture Co.
1914 has been a crowd pleaser at
every screening. It has even
charmed audiences overseas at
the Cineteca di Bologna film
festival in Bologna, Italy. For
those interested in viewing the
film, updates and information can
be found on the films Facebook
page or the Future Days Studio
website:
http://www.futuredaysstudio.com/