09/04/2026
“Whatever the source is, whether it's the windows, the practicals, or stage ‘sun’, I try to motivate all of it. The Upshaws is a comedy, but it digs into real issues this family faces, so the light has to feel honest. If it doesn't, the emotional scenes don't land.”
Cinematographer Chuck Ozeas takes us behind the scenes on his tenure on the heartfelt sitcom, for which he’s received multiple Emmy-award nominations, including this year for his work on the Part 7 episode 'Indy Streets.'
“For 'Indy Streets,' taking that multicam discipline out of the studio and onto location at night is not the norm. We shot in a parking lot in Hollywood and embraced the streetlights nearby for ambience. We put two SkyPanel 360s in a Condor and mixed them, one in a steel blue, one in a sodium v***r look. The real puzzle is cross-shooting coverage when you don't have a grid over your head to light in two directions at once. At that point you have to embrace some frontal light and work to keep it feeling motivated and subtle. I also have to credit our producers, Netflix, and our captain of the ship Regina Y. Hicks for being open to ideas about how we could elevate the look of the show.
Our wing cameras carry Panavision Primo 11:1s – they're slightly softer and warmer than our center-cam glass with a little focus & exposure falloff at the edges, which makes them ideal for close-ups. The actors look beautiful on them. The center cams are on Fujinon 20-120s[…] Since those are sharper edge to edge, I worked with David Dodson at Panavision to detune them slightly and introduce some focus falloff at the edges. We shoot SONY Venice in 4K, 2500 base, rated at 1600.
None of what you see on screen happens without my crew. My gaffer Chris Conway and his electricians, my key grip Gerhan ‘G’ Buggs and his grips, my operators and ACs, the whole camera department. They make it happen, FAST, all day long.
What inspires me today is the variety. I feel incredibly fortunate to move between singlecam, multicam, commercials, live stage & music. Each one teaches me something I carry on the next, and I don't think I'd light a sitcom stage the way I do without all of it.”
Click here to read more from this interview: https://pvlink.net/4x25P2l
