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Joseph White Aims and Shoots for Repo! Men
Arriving in theaters on November 7th, Repo! The Genetic Opera is a true original—a “science fiction horror rock opera” that is sure to be unlike any other musical you’ve ever seen. Directed by the Saw series stalwart Darren Lynn Bousman (he helmed the second, third and fourth entries in the horror series) and based on a play by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich (who also wrote the script), the movie takes place in the not-so-distant future, when an epidemic of organ failures devastates the planet. Biotech company GeneCo emerges, offering organ transplants for a price. Those who miss their payments are hunted by villainous, cold-blooded repo men who will stop at nothing to recover GeneCo’s property. With a quirky concept and wildly eclectic cast that includes Paul Sorvino, Paris Hilton, Bill Moseley (The Devil’s Rejects), Anthony Head ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer") and Alexa Vega (Spy Kids), Repo! The Genetic Opera looks likely to become the latest cult sensation.
MM caught up with the movie’s cinematographer, Joseph White, to talk about his burgeoning career and this truly original musical.
Kyle Rupprecht (MM): When did you first discover you wanted to become a cinematographer?
Joseph White (JW): I have loved movies since as long as I can remember, and the fact that my mother is quite the cinephile certainly helped. I got into photography when all of my friends who were skateboarders needed someone to take pictures, and since I could barely stand up on a board and I owned my mother’s old Nikon, I became the resident photographer. When I arrived at college, the two interests melded in a strong way, and as soon as I learned what a cinematographer actually was, I knew I wanted to be one!
MM: How did you get involved with Repo! The Genetic Opera?
JW: The director, Darren Bousman, and I had been friends for years and had collaborated on some commercials and short films several years back, before his Saw days. When this project came about and it seemed like he was actually going to be able to make the movie he had been dreaming about for years, it was the perfect opportunity for us to finally team up on a feature. Repo! was a dream come true for me as a cinematographer since it was a movie with the potential to create whole new worlds and images, with no boundaries except for the limits of our imagination.
MM: What are some of the struggles you faced during the filming of Repo!?
JW: The obvious struggle of the time constraints we had to shoot the movie was an obstacle, but at every turn we were forced to think on our feet and some of our best work on the film was the product of having to rely on nothing else other than our passion and ability to problem solve on a moment’s notice. Truthfully, that’s the struggle with every film, but I sincerely believe that on Repo! we were at our best when things were at their most dire. We shot this film in roughly 30 days, and anyone who sees it will understand how many songs we had to film (remember this is an opera in the truest sense—there are no dialogue scenes and “standard” coverage) and do the math and realize how nearly impossible the task at hand was. I’d often joke that there are no “problems,” only “opportunities for creative solutions,” but even when the schedule seemed daunting and you’d look at tomorrow’s call-sheet and have a miniature coronary, we used the “problems” as ways in which to do things differently, often in ways we had never imagined in prep. Those moments define you as a filmmaker, and I feel that even during our toughest days—and we certainly had our share—the less we focused on the negatives, the better our work was.
Another challenge was that this movie was so unlike anything anyone had ever seen, so we didn’t have any genre conventions to fall back on. But that challenge was liberating in a way, and even though we referenced many films, like Blade Runner, Phantom of the Paradise, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Jesus Christ Superstar (to this day Darren’s favorite film), we were met with the task of filming things day-to-day that were truly original and only based in our collective imagination. I’ve never heard a cinematographer say that he or she had “enough” time and money to shoot anything, so as soon as you stop focusing on your boundaries the sooner you can surpass them.
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COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT 
- Comment by Thorsten on 11/12/08 at 2:56 am
I helped produce the film and we sourced a lot of our local crew from ProCrewBook. Their site is http://www.ProCrewBook.com and they have quite a lot of talented professionals on there.
- Comment by free g1 on 12/27/08 at 7:24 pm
Pro Crew looks like they have a lot of great stuff!
- Comment by designer clothing on 1/05/09 at 7:47 pm
I missed “The Genetic Opera” I will definitely watch it some time!
- Comment by Sport on 1/07/09 at 9:37 am
I saw The Genetic Opera and i don’t think is good - but this is only my opinion
- Comment by Turnkey Websites on 1/17/09 at 9:25 pm
great read kyle! keep those great articles coming. thanks again and happy new years.
- Comment by Young Writers on 1/18/09 at 9:25 am
Awesome stuff mate. I have seen this stuff in one of the canadian site..
really thanks for sharing.
regards,
Young- Comment by Devon Cottages on 1/20/09 at 11:16 am
This is really cool. Nice educational article and great site.
- Comment by wow account on 1/20/09 at 12:20 pm
Many of friends praised “Genetic Opera”.Its a nice script it seems.I should watch it sometime.
Thank you.- Comment by London Sightseeing Tours on 1/20/09 at 3:34 pm
I loved the genetic opera. Inspiring.
- Comment by Holland Blinds on 1/25/09 at 10:19 pm
Tell me, do people who only shoot on video still call themselves cinematographers?
- Comment by Ferienwohnung Bayerischer Wald on 2/02/09 at 8:26 pm
Awesome stuff mate. I have seen this stuff in one of the canadian site..
really thanks for sharing.
Best Regards Ferienwohnung Bayerischer Wald- Comment by Wellness on 2/02/09 at 8:28 pm
This was very inspirational to me. As far as cinematography goes. Thanks for providing me with guidance.
Greets Wellness- Comment by Landlords Insurance on 2/07/09 at 12:09 am
Sometimes I could see lots of science fictions making sensational effects in human minds.Among those types I got to watch some movies of stunning bank robbing related to businesses..That is where movie maker is outstanding.Your sharing is extraordinary for bigger encouragement.
- Comment by Landhotel Bayerischer Wald on 2/13/09 at 11:59 am
We love the genetic opera, too.
Greets Landhotel Bayerischer Wald- Comment by Travel Insurance Guy on 2/13/09 at 4:48 pm
The introduction of cheap video camera and the growing number of free video distribution sites like Youtube means that anyone can try to become a film maker. There are some amazingly good instructional videos about cinematography on the internet availble for free. Thanks for the post.
- Comment by ESL on 2/14/09 at 11:37 am
I read about that hero. He saw as he is hero while he is dreaming. He took that dream very serious and he became the real hero :)
- Comment by Web design Brisbane on 2/14/09 at 11:59 am
Yes, everyone can be a film maker, but what about the quality? In the old days, pre-youtube, the costs of equipment and training was a good filter as to what got on the screen. These days anyone with a cheap camera and an internet connection can call themselves a film maker.
- Comment by xexy man on 2/24/09 at 8:08 pm
I agree that quality is a most important thing fo a moviemaker!
- Comment by Betclic on 2/26/09 at 6:53 am
Such a good movie, i see it yesterday in a private room, so amazing, i enjoy it, thx to him !
- Comment by Blogshot on 2/26/09 at 7:06 am
The development of very cheap and very high quality video recorders plus free education on video sharing sites, means that anyone can become a movie-maker and do a reasonable job. The technology is the easy part. The script and acting is what counts.
- Comment by SEO training on 2/26/09 at 7:10 am
The script is where it’s at. It’s a good script that makes unknown actors famous. There’s a statistics company in the USA that can predict the success of a movie based only on the script. Sme actors use this company to work out which scripts they will accept :)
- Comment by Ile malte on 3/04/09 at 1:41 pm
Amazing movie ! I loved this kind of opera.
- Comment by test on 3/22/09 at 11:40 am
The script is where it’s at. It’s a good script that makes unknown actors famous. There’s a statistics company in the USA that can predict the success of a movie based only on the script. Sme actors use this company to work out which scripts they will accept :) yahoo yahoo
- Comment by Авто фото обои on 3/31/09 at 10:42 am
There are some amazingly good instructional videos about cinematography on the internet availble for free.
- Comment by Free Ads on 5/19/09 at 9:11 pm
I didn’t thought I’d like any movies with Paris Hilton in it, but it was surprisingly good.
- Comment by kopirovanie pezinok on 5/25/09 at 3:29 am
Quite good movie!
- Comment by Urlaub Bayerischer Wald on 7/18/09 at 6:56 am
The development of very cheap and very high quality video recorders plus free education on video sharing sites, means that anyone can become a movie-maker and do a reasonable job. The technology is the easy part. The script and acting is what counts.
Greets Urlaub Bayerischer Wald- Comment by bonus betclick on 8/23/09 at 6:28 pm
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Great and nice post, thank you.
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- Comment by Malaika on 2/07/10 at 8:12 am
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placemat- Comment by Migul on 11/24/10 at 8:34 pm
Repo Man is awesome, can’t what for the next series. Joseph is so talented his best work so far to date.
The people who brought you perfume fragrances in a box.
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