Reed Morano
I started a business with my cousins in Fire Island called 'Wagoneers.' Since there are no cars on the island, we would hustle people at the ferry docks to bring their luggage to their houses in our wagons for a large fee.
In my 20s, I was too shy to reach out to successful DPs and directors for an internship or to shadow them. I see young people nowadays doing that all the time. I think that experience would have been cool.
My dreams are like fuzzy Charlie Kaufman movies, so I love going to sleep.
My biggest wish is that I would have more time with my husband and my boys.
There was a movie that was made about 'The Handmaid's Tale.' And I never watched it on purpose because I didn't want to... I just didn't want to know.
One of the color combos that I really love is the tones of technicolor, which older movies would have, these tones of blue and red in them.
Normally, if I would read in a script that there's mostly flashbacks and mostly voiceover, I would run as far away as possible.
I don't want to come in and do something that's been done before. You know, for me, it's not that I wouldn't come in and do a sequel to something, but it's only if I can bring something new to the table and I'm not following an extremely strict path.
There are a lot of women who direct in a way that is even more masculine sometimes than men - and that's not a bad thing, either.
We have this attitude in America of, 'Someone else is going to fix the problem.' That's what the majority of Americans have. Or, 'I'm just going to go online and sign this petition, and that will take care of it.' That's doesn't do it.
We're too complacent. We let things happen to us. And you don't have to let things happen to you. You can affect change.
When I got on my first set, I watched what the cinematographer was doing, and at that level in film school, the cinematographer has the most control. They're the one looking through the viewfinder, carrying the camera, framing the shots.
Huge studio movies are handed over to a man with less experience before they're handed over to a woman with less experience. That's a fact. But I think it's not just about men not hiring women: it's about women not hiring women, too.
I love strong women like Uma Thurman, Meryl Streep, and Charlize Theron.
I have a playlist for every project that I do. I made one for 'Handmaid' before I got the job.
I actually carried a Panavision Platinum and a G2 when I was seven months pregnant for a film called 'Little Birds,' and the whole movie was handheld. And we were shooting in the desert. That's a 35-millimeter camera. It's huge, probably at least 50, 55 pounds, and I did all my own operating.
There are obviously issues in our industry. That starts at the top with studio execs who - not just men - don't believe a woman could handle a huge franchise or big action movie.
Funny enough, the most discrimination I've ever gotten as a woman in this industry has been from other women.
There are many legendary DPs that I admire, some of whom have a very strong signature, but I'm not sure I want to be the DP where you see my work and say 'Oh, Reed shot that.'
I have a lot of brothers and male cousins. I grew up in an informal, jokey environment.
When 'Frozen River' started to get really big, I was four months pregnant. So when these agents and directors wanted to meet me, I was coming in pregnant, and people didn't really take me seriously. They thought, 'This woman is not going to shoot another movie again. She's going to become a mom, and that's what happens.' But that was not the case.
It's a very tricky job we have as DPs, where you are expected to make something that really is an emotional art but also needs to be technically spot on. You're often given a very small window of time to achieve it. People sometimes expect it to be even quicker and forget that there's a schedule for a reason.
'Meadowland' was the reason I got 'The Handmaid's Tale,' and probably my experience in cinematography helped. Everything was like a stepping stone to the next thing.
The way I'm used to telling a story is by looking through the viewfinder and being really close to the actors.
Ultimately, the idea of being able to escape and lose myself in a new world every time I go to 'work' was too appealing to ignore.
Out of 10 projects I get sent, seven or eight are female protagonists, and that's not the only thing I'm interested in.
I do think it's unfair for women who get pegged with creating fare for other women.
I like movies as a viewer that challenge me to actually think rather than spoon feed everything to me.
A lot of people who are in charge in Hollywood are women, so they have the power. Now, I've met a lot of these amazing women who are offering opportunities to other women, and they're awesome. But for the women who maybe haven't done that yet, it's like, why?
'The Handmaid's Tale' is a very special story.
Sometimes you come up with an idea when you're going out for a job, and then when you actually get into dissecting the world, you end up changing your approach, just because that's the way art goes sometimes.
My advice for other female directors: don't think of your gender as a handicap. Don't think about it at all. Just tell the best story you can, and don't stop until you do.Collection: Thinking
I would rather be hired solely for my talent, not just to fill a quota.Collection: Quota
Definitely the biggest misconception is that it is overly burdensome to be a woman and pursue this line of work. But being a woman gives me a unique perspective and style, which is probably why I get the work that I do.Collection: Unique
It's really the best time to be a woman. And instead it can be an advantage. Think about what you can bring to the table that what you have to offer that makes you unique.Collection: Unique
Don’t get hung up on the female thing. The art is not about that.Collection: Art
I joke around sometimes and say that the DP [director of photography] is like a shrink for the director, but there's some truth in there.Collection: Photography
I want people to think about what and who they have in their lives and then run home to hug them and tell them how much they love them.Collection: Running
You can't expect everything to happen all at once when it's been such a male-dominated world for so long.Collection: Long