Henry Chan – Human Cargo

Vancouver director of photography Henry Chan says that when director Brad Turner approached him to lens the $9.5-million three-part miniseries Human Cargo, it was just an idea on paper. ‘I knew I had to support this Canadian production even though there were budget constraints,’ he says.

The drama explores the struggles of six immigrants seeking refuge in Canada, and to tell the story, the crew created war scenes and a refugee camp in Cape Town and Port St. Johns, South Africa, while Vancouver served as the characters’ ultimate destination. B.C. serves as a sharp contrast to South Africa, where scenes had a warmer look.

‘I wanted to recreate Vancouver to show it through the eyes of a foreign person, an illegal immigrant,’ Chan explains. ‘The look reflects a cold, blue and moody feel, with harsh shadows to emphasize [the refugees’] isolation and loneliness.’

Chan, a landed immigrant from Hong Kong, completed his film studies at the London Film School in England, where he was raised. His career comprised mostly of features for the Asian market before he moved to Vancouver in the early 1980s. He is currently filming season two of the supernatural drama series The Collector. It is Chan’s first Gemini nomination.

Les Erskine – Da Vinci’s Inquest ‘A Man When He’s Down’

Les Erskine is the second lenser from Da Vinci’s Inquest to be nominated this year. He calls himself a pinch hitter on the series, in that he’s usually called upon at the last minute to fill in behind the camera.

For the episode ‘A Man when He’s Down,’ Erskine admits to having been a little nervous coming in on three days’ notice. ‘Luckily I knew the show pretty well, since I had done about 10 episodes before,’ he says.

The cinematographer collaborates with fellow lensing nominee David Frazee on Da Vinci’s when Frazee is directing. ‘We have different styles, but that makes it interesting. David is more hands-on camera, whereas I’m more hands-on lighting,’ Erskine explains.

Their styles might be different, but Erskine shares Frazee’s philosophy for the show.

‘You use what’s there and enhance what you can without drawing too much attention,’ he says. ‘It depends on the scene – if you’re delving into a character, you might go a bit farther, but when they’re conducting their police work it’s pretty gritty.’

It is the first nomination for Erskine, a 30-year industry veteran based out of Vancouver.

David Frazee – Cowboys and Indians – The Killing of J.J. Harper

and Da Vinci’s Inquest ‘Bury My Own Bones’

David Frazee has picked up two noms this year, for an MOW and a popular series.

Cowboys and Indians – The Killing of J.J. Harper, which aired on APTN and CBC, explores the story behind the shooting of Manitoba native leader John Joseph Harper by a Winnipeg policeman.

Frazee says he enjoyed collaborating with director Norma Bailey on the project.

‘We shot it in HD, which is a beautiful-looking format, though a little slower to work with because the equipment is bulky,’ he says. Flashback sequences were shot on Super 8 film for contrast.

The crew shot in -30 degree weather in Winnipeg, but Frazee saw some positives in that. ‘The light in Winnipeg in the winter is outstanding,’ he says. ‘It has this golden look to it. We also shot a lot at night to convey a feeling of bleakness.’

The Vancouver DOP is also nominated for the ‘Bury My Bones’ episode of CBC’s Da Vinci’s Inquest. Frazee, who also directs some eps of the coroner drama, says the makers strive to keep the show naturalistic by shooting on location and using lighting that does not draw attention to itself.

‘We do a lot of long takes and avoid filming everything in close-ups,’ he explains.

Frazee won a Gemini in 2001 for the doc Tokyo Girls.

Rene Ohashi – Shattered City: The Halifax Explosion

Toronto DOP Rene Ohashi is no stranger to the Geminis, with no fewer than nine of the trophies adorning his mantel. His latest nom gives him a shot at double digits.

Since the CBC miniseries Shattered City is based on the real 1917 events triggered by a catastrophic collision between two ships in the Halifax harbor, Ohashi says he took a very realistic approach to the film.

‘We looked at a lot of photographs to piece together the visual elements of the story in order to make it believable and to get the audience on our side,’ he says.

The film became a marriage of art direction, special effects and photography. ‘We had huge challenges, since the two boats that collide and explode in the harbor [no longer] exist,’ Ohashi explains. ‘We used candles and lanterns [for lighting], and I tried to keep it fairly moody once the explosion happened, since we also had a lot of smoke, debris and fire.’

Ohashi says a section of Halifax being demolished at the time was used and dressed accordingly for the film. ‘Because it’s a period film, people don’t really have colorful clothing, so we pretty much kept things muted and de-saturated,’ he adds.

Peter Woeste – Stargate SG-1 ‘Nightwalkers’

‘From a creative standpoint, you can’t beat a sci-fi series,’ says Vancouver cinematographer Peter Woeste. ‘The range of creativity is limited in programs like cop shows, whereas you can explore many different worlds in science fiction.’

Woeste is nominated for the ‘Nightwalkers’ ep of MGM’s Stargate SG-1 series, about a team of explorers that travels through an ancient portal to unfamiliar and often strange planets.

In the episode, most of the action takes place on Earth, where, unbeknownst to them, the residents of a small town are affected by an alien force.

Woeste says they produced the episode in the small B.C. town of Steveston. ‘It was shot more like a standard classic horror piece, where the townspeople are turned into zombies. We used lots of smoke, backlight, disturbingly odd angles and bright neon lights in the foreground,’ he explains.

Woeste says a surreal look for the town was attained by keeping storefronts dark and by using fans to create wind on streets.

A graduate of the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, Woeste has been nominated for Geminis twice before.