Kayla Lindquist

Back in LA to shoot ‘Art & Soul’ for The Creative Coalition during Oscar Week. Takes me back to where the project started a year ago. HUGE thanks to Kayla Lindquist, director of Sony’s Artisans of Imagery program, for dropping a little 3-day shoot in my lap and then helping every step along the way as it grew into something much, much bigger. In the last year, we’ve now shot 18,563 images of 153 celebrities and counting…

DAY 1 – WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3: Took our usual 8:35am flight to LAX. Love flyin’ Business class in the Triple Seven. Yeah! Just traded seats so I could sit with my wife. The guy I swapped with didn’t mind. He got to sit next to Anna Kournikova. Though my wife is is probably the only woman on the plane who is hotter. Fired out a few more invites for our shoot. Terrill Owens is sitting a few rows behind us.. Oscar-bound T.O.? Mimosas before takeoff…Decide to watch The Blind Side first to get in a Oscar mood followed by Couples Retreat and The Invention of Lying...flight smooth…landing on time. Picked-up our car, circled back for Kayla Linquist landing from JFK. The we all head to the Andaz Hotel on Sunset to check-in and set-up our shoot. Then just enough time for dinner at El Cholo before Wednesday night’s event at our hotel was a party for The Cove so I got to see my college buddy director Louie Psihoyos making his third stop of a busy pre-Oscar evening. Very proud of you, Louie! Then we caught up with The Cove co-director Fisher Stevens and celebrity stylist Phillip Bloch from last year’s Art & Soul shoot. Between drinks, Robin Bronk corralled Evan Handler (Californication) and Domenick Lombardozzi (The Wire) and dragged them down the the studio.

DAY 2 – THURSDAY, MARCH 4:

Our day started off with Joel Warren and Edward Tricomi of Warren-Tricomi Salons who have provided our 20 hair & make-up artists through out this shoot. Brian White, James Kyson Lee of Heros, Adrianna Costa Hollywood 411, Summer Altice, Bitchslap’s Erin Cummings, Grey’s Anatomy McHeartthrob Jesse Williams, Gilles Marini, Melissa Manchester, Aaron Staton of Mad Men, an incredible shoot with the irrepressible Alan Cumming, followed by Iceland Actress Anita Briem.

Grabbed a quick bite at the Hotel the set up again to get ready to catch stars from that night’s party for “Precious” which thanks to great celebrity wrangling by Georgi Page and Dennis St. Rose brought us comedian Eddie Griffin, Jr., Oscar-nominated Costume Designer Sharen Davis, Obama-classmate Hill Harper (a former Iowan…who knew?),”Precious” director Lee Daniels, Elise Neal, 24‘s Best President Dennis Haysbert, we talked about my favorite photographer Irving Penn with J. “Miss J” Alexander sporting rings by Penn’s daughter, Oscar-winning songwriter Siedah Garrett, The Blind Side‘s larger than life Qunitin Aaron looking very dapper and Geoffrey Fletcher, Oscar winner for Best Screenplay for “Precious”

DAY 3 – FRIDAY, MARCH 5:

Feeling drained from the night before when we started the day with Jason “Wee-Man” Acuna of Jackass fame, Desperate Housewives’ Kathy Joosten, 90210‘s Greg Vaughn, Scott Krinsky Chuck, TCC founder Stephen Collins, then just enough time to sit on the couch for an interview with premiere.com‘s Red Carpet Roxi Manning, back to it with CCH Pounder, Charlayne Woodward, Portia Doubleday lovely in Youth in Revolt, then we staged a Wings‘ reunion of Steven Weber and Tim Daly, Nia Verdalos and Ian Gomez My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Camryn Manheim, Richard Kind of A Serious Man, Chazz Palminteri, Dash Mihok, dragged Dana Delany and Rachael Leigh Cook from previous shoots back in for more shots simply because they both looked sooo good, then on to Masi Oka of Heros, Bond villain extraordinaire Rick Yune, Kathy Najimy, Ty Burrell, Richard Schiff, Mekhi Phifer and Aaron Paul

CREDITS:
My Biggest thanks as always goes to my lovely wife, stylist Fazia Ali who makes sure everyone always looks great! Thanks once again to Sony Artisans of Imagery director Kayla Lindquist for finding and supporting this wonderful project and Sony’s Linda Barger and Paine PR’s Krys Grondorf for getting the word out and lining up so many interviews to talk up the project, The Creative Coalition executive director Robin Bronk along with TCC’s Barbara Horvath, Briana Mulherin and Dennis St. Rose, Al Silvestri and Georgi Page of Hachette Filipacchi Media and to David Manning and Gia of A-List Communications once again put together a great lounge.

EQUIPMENT:
Sony a900 Cameras
Sony Zeiss 24-70/2.8 Zoom
Sony Zeiss 85/1.4
Sony 100/2.8 Macro
Sony Zeiss 135/1.8
Profoto Pro 7 – 2400 Packs
Profoto Pro Heads

Tagged as: Aaron Paul, Aaron Staton, Alan Cumming, Anita Briem, Art & Soul, Art and Soul, Artisans of Imagery, Brian White, Camryn Manheim, CCH Pounder, Charlayne Woodward, Chazz Palminteri, Dana Delany, Dash Mihok, Dennis Haysbert, director, Domenick Lombardozzi, Eddie Griffin Jr, Edward Tricomi. Warren-Tricomi, Elise Neal, Erin Cummings, Evan Handler, Gilles Marini, Greg Vaughn, Hill Harper, Ian Gomez, J. Alexander, James Kyson Lee, Jason Acuna, Jesse Williams, Joel Warren, Kathy Joosten, Kathy Najimy, Kayla Lindquist, Lee Daniels, Mad Men, Masi Oka, Mekhi Phifer, Melissa Manchester, Miss J, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Oscar Week, Oscars, Phillip Bloch, Portia Doubleday, Precious, Qunitin Aaron, Rachael Leigh Cook, reunion, Richard Kind, Richard Schiff, Rick Yune, Roxi Manning, Scott Krinsky, Siedah Garrett, Sony, Stephen Collins, Steven Weber, The Blind Side, The Creative Coalition, Tim Daly, Ty Burrell, Wee-Man, Wings

{ 0 comments }

Heading back from Park City, Utah where we took The Creative Coalition’s ‘Art & Soul’ project to the Sundance Film Festival shooting more celebrity portraits for the arts advocacy project which is the cornerstone of a grassroots campaign to focus national attention on the need to ensure that arts in America thrive and flourish. ‘Art & Soul’ has been used to successfully lobby Congress and the White House for increased funding for the arts and arts education. Thanks to the participation of over 40 celebrities at Sundance we have now photographed 160 celebrities to date as part of one of the greatest projects that I’ve ever been involved with. It’s a great thing for those of us lucky enough to make a living from the arts to have an opportunity to show our support and give back. Here is our story…

DAY 1 – January 22:
We started off our Sundance shoots with Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt and Thomas Ian Nicholas from Please Give. Wonderful air guitar rifts from Thomas who brought his vintage Gibson Sunburst guitar to Sundance. Next the lovely Miss Universe 2008 Dayana Mendoza stopped in followed by director Kevin Asch of Holy Rollers, Ryan O’Nan The Dry Land, Jon Prescott from Howl and John Ortiz of Jack Goes Boating, spoke of Al Pacino’s generosity to him as a first film Carlito’s Way.

DAY 2 – January 23:
An amazing start with the lovely Vicky Cristina Barcelona herself Rebecca Hall in town to promote Please Give, Happythankyoumoreplease‘s Kate Mara, Tony Hale and Pablo Schreiber, Noureen DeWulf and Jon Prescott from Howl. The day’s highlight was a very pleasant surprise drop-in by Oscar-winner Adrian Brody – thanks to a big assist from John Ortiz who had such a good time with us the day before he sent his friend our way. I’ve always wanted to meet Adrian – not only because I’m a big fan of his work – but because very early in my career I took a workshop with his mother, renowned photographer Sylvia Plachy.

DAY 3 – January 24
Started with Michael Shannon of The Runaways then a a visit from our sponsor Silvercup Studios head Stuart Match Suna, followed by Emma Bell of Frozen, Justin Bartha of Holy Rollers, Ellen Hollman Skateland, Bellamy Young, model Emme, Nathaniel Parker A Perfect Host, 3 Backyards’ Danai Gurira and Kathryn Erbe – one of my favorite actresses for her work in Oz and Law & Order: Criminal Intent and finally High SchooI‘s Adhir Kalyan who was marvelous in Youth in Revolt and Nip/Tuck.

DAY 4 – January 25:
Our day began rapid fire with Sam Jackson, Jimmy Smits and Josh Radnor and ended with ended with Adrian Grenier. Along the way we ran into lovely Kerry Washington who lobbied Capitol Hill for increased funding for the Arts with me last May. Next was Rikki Lake, High School Musical’s KayCee Stroh, Haley Ramm, of Skateland. After that, we entertained director Joel Schumacher with stories about burlesque legends Tempest Storm and Satan’s Angel. Still laughing from a wonderful laugh-filled shoot of Laura Silverman. High School‘s Nadine Crocker showed up leather-clad and looking like the perfect addition to the cast of Sons of Anarchy. Chris Ashworth of The Wire who showed up with Russian bombshell Natalie Gal, Frozen director Adam Green and Drones Amber Benson, Adam Busch, Samm Levine and Tangi Miller. Before dinner at the The Creative Coalition’s Spotlight Initiative Awards we added Melissa Leo of Welcome to the Rileys, Treat Williams of Howl, Malin Akerman of Happythankyoumoreplease, snapped ‘Art & Soul’ participant Jason Ritter again, Christopher McDonald and Entourage’s own ‘Vinne Chase’ Adrian Grenier picking up his award for Teenage Paparazzo. Then chatted up Creative Coalition President and friend Tim Daly and had dinner with Twitter co-creator Dom Sagolla showing off the next BIG thing, the Square, and yes..I tweeted about it…

CREDITS:
As always, my BIGGEST THANKS goes to my lovely wife Fazia who makes sure everyone always looks great! Returning the thanks to The Creative Coalition executive director Robin Bronk for the kind words at The Creative Coalition’s Spotlight Initiative Awards and to Barbara Horvath, Briana Mulherin, Liviya Kraemer, Dennis St. Rose and Gabrielle Young of TCC and assistance from BYU student Bethany Davis. David Manning of A-List Communications and his staff for put together a great lounge at Sky Lodge. Special thanks to Stuart Match Suna, head of Silvercup Studios for their sponsorship of our shoot and to Sony Artisans of Imagery director Kayla Lindquist for dropping this wonderful project on me and for finding a way to get me to Utah.

EQUIPMENT:
Sony a900 Cameras
Sony Zeiss 24-70/2.8 Zoom
Sony Zeiss 85/1.4
Sony 100/2.8 Macro
Sony Zeiss 135/1.8
Profoto Acute 2 – 2400 Packs
Profoto Acute 2 Heads

Generous support provided by: