ARNOLD DEBUTS
ON NETFLIX WITH
A COHESIVE
VISUAL APPROACH

Documentary film is enjoying a renaissance, due in part to the proliferation of outlets. But the form itself is evolving, too, with greater use of cinematic visual and storytelling techniques. Arnold, a three-part Netflix doc directed by Lesley Chilcott, is one recent example. Director of photography Logan Schneider approached the project as he would a high-end narrative film, using the best quality cameras, lights and lenses. In addition to interviews, some done at Arnold Schwarzenegger’s spartan childhood home, Schneider shot verité footage and depictions of memories from the star’s early life as well as from his subsequent incarnations as a bodybuilder, actor, and politician.

“I often feel that the greatest challenge of documentary is to create a consistent work,” says Schneider. “We had to approach each scene with an ambitious cinematic eye, and to not let the constraints of documentary hold back our visual goals. Lesley was absolutely critical, giving me the freedom and support to push things as far as possible. We never felt hamstrung by the limitations of our gear.”

Director of photography Logan Schneider on location in Vienna

Schneider, who brings a rich and varied experience in nonfiction filmmaking to his work, shot the project with ARRI Mini LF cameras, ARRI Signature Prime lenses and Lite Gear Spectrum Litemats, which he triple-diffused, subtly blending nuanced color from multiple units to capture natural skin tones. The ARRI LF Mini uses CODEX Compact Drives to capture images in either ARRIRAW or Apple ProRes formats and is a standard tool on many of the biggest feature film productions – recent examples include Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, shot by Phedon Papamichael, ASC, GSC, and John Wick: Chapter 4, shot by Dan Laustsen, ASC.

“We wanted a cohesive feeling throughout the project,” says Schneider. “Obviously, we could only control the archival images to a degree, but otherwise we used the same camera and lenses for the whole project so there would a visual through-line. In documentary, you’re often playing between the highest image quality and the limits of your data, and one of the advantages of CODEX was that we could shoot with the ProRes setting. But if there was a low light or mixed color reason, I could switch to ARRIRAW without thinking twice. I never had to question that I was getting the highest resolution, with the maximum flexibility, when I needed them. And that’s a real creative advantage.”

"TO ME, A REAL FEATURE FILM FEEL COMES FROM THE COMBINATION OF SUBJECT MATTER, LIGHTING, CAMERA AND APPROACH. IF YOU DON’T HAVE TOP-END GEAR, YOU’RE FIGHTING YOURSELF THE WHOLE TIME"

As in a feature film, various LUTs were developed for different situations, including a master LUT for interviews, and others for scenes addressing movies from particular eras – The Sound of Music, for example, or Schwarzenegger’s early landmark Pumping Iron, shot on Super 16 color stock.

“We wanted to echo the popping colors and cool shadows of The Red Balloon, for example, and also the limitations of the film stock of that time, keeping the color and light in the middle of the exposure and burning out and losing detail at the bottom,” says Schneider. “Together with the sharp, clean lenses, the combination created a hybrid feeling. We weren’t trying to go with vintage lenses and make it feel like real footage.”

Logan Schneider and Director Lesley Chilcott on location

That sounds like the thought process of a feature film director of photography approaching a narrative film.

“I really enjoy the blend,” says Schneider. “I love documentaries and I often think of them for structure or story reasons. But in terms of how I approach something visually, with few exceptions, all my influences tend to be narrative feature films. Obviously, photos and paintings factor in. But when I make a film, I want to approach it like a feature film. We had a basic lighting approach with the same key light that we could bring or source anywhere in the world, with the same lenses and the same camera. Of course, we adapt and elaborate from there, depending on the scene and the content. 

"WITH THE MINI LF AND CODEX, I’M ABLE TO RECORD AT WHATEVER FORMAT AND AT WHATEVER SPEED THAT CAMERA CAN HANDLE WITHOUT THINKING TWICE. THE DOWNLOADS ARE FAST"

“That consistency of approach can be difficult,” he says. “Every documentary camera person is different, and you’re often editing as you shoot, in a way. This was only the second documentary I’ve been on where I had the opportunity to shoot every single day of the show and keep it all through one point of view. I’m thankful that this scheduling miracle happened to work out!”

Director of photography Logan Schneider on location

Another similarity to narrative filmmaking was the extensive use of post techniques to finesse the images. “There’s only so much you can do with a LUT,” says Schneider. “When you want to add grain, or refine subtractive color to make it feel more filmic, those are things that LUTs struggle with. Especially with archival or drone footage – those lenses can be so boring.  I spent a lot of time ‘building a lens,’ where you vignette and create edge softness and add grain to roll off the highlights more smoothly, and then mess with the color to make it feel like something heavier and more organic. The rich file formats were helpful there as well. 

"CODEX IS JUST AN EXCEPTIONAL SYSTEM, FAST AND RELIABLE... THERE’S NO POTENTIAL CROSSFIRE FOR MAKING A NONSTANDARD CHOICE. EVERYONE ACCEPTS THAT YOU’RE USING THE BEST CHOICE POSSIBLE"

“To me, a real feature film feel comes from the combination of subject matter, lighting, camera and approach,” says Schneider. “If you don’t have top-end gear, you’re fighting yourself the whole time. With the Mini LF and CODEX, I’m able to record at whatever format and at whatever speed that camera can handle without thinking twice. The downloads are fast. I don’t have to carry a horrendous amount of media and I don’t have to think about it, which is where I like to be. I can nerd out all day long before I shoot. But on the shoot day the last thing I want to be focused on is media or a technical issue with the camera. It’s just an exceptional system, fast and reliable. The current system has been rock-solid. There are no complaints from the DIT or from post. Everyone trusts it and accepts it. There’s no potential crossfire for making a nonstandard choice. Everyone accepts that you’re using the best choice possible.”

Images courtesy of Netflix.

Images courtesy of Netflix.