Based on a book by Martha Ostenso, After the Harvest is the tragic story of the Gares, a Prairie family in the 1920s. Caleb Gare (Sam Shepard), the family patriarch, is the rich farmer who despite his wealth keeps his family in near-poverty.

The Jeremy Podeswa-directed production posed particular problems for Gemini-nominated DOP Gregory Middleton. For one, because of the period in which the film is set, the interiors had to appear as if they were lit by gas lamps.

‘We wanted a softer look for the film so that it did not look like a noir,’ Middleton says. ‘At the same time, I had to use light that would be flattering to the young actresses because they were emotionally sympathetic.’ (The cast includes Liane Balaban, Alberta Watson and Nadia Litz.)

To achieve that effect, Middleton employed a combination of Japanese lanterns and a China ball among other tools. In addition, shooting in and around Calgary provided inspiration. ‘Every place has a particular landscape, how the sun falls,’ Middleton says.

This is Middleton’s fourth project with director Jeremy Podeswa, whom he met while shooting aerial shots for Atom Egoyan’s The Sweet Hereafter. Podeswa was doing publicity for the film. Since his first film, John Poser’s The Grocer’s Wife, Middleton has worked with Lynne Stopkewich on Kissed and Suspicious River, and Anne Wheeler on Better than Chocolate, among other credits.

Better than Chocolate forced the DOP to get creative. ‘There were musical sequences that take place in a club and one of the biggest issues was how to light dance scenes.

‘I used black light and black light-sensitive makeup, which you see in music videos. It was a creative way to make songs and the sequences memorable.’

Working with Wheeler, was the first time Middleton had been part of an experienced director’s crew, and, as he puts it, he wondered if he was ‘good enough.’

‘You hope you meet their expectations…directors are all different and they all have different types of vision. How they communicate, how long they prepare; some are very hands-on, some, like Jeremy, just want to direct.’

Middleton says he is still learning. ‘It takes many years to even understand what you’re doing and develop those skills of what you can bring and how to interpret the material properly. You have to let the esthetics come out of the material.’

Middleton’s latest projects include the Australian production After the Storm, from a short story by Ernest Hemingway, and the upcoming Sophia Loren film Between Strangers. *