Richard Rutkowski (‘Sugar’ cinematographer) on bringing Hollywood’s past into the present: ‘Let’s look backwards to look forwards’ [Exclusive Video Interview]

Cinematographer Richard Rutkowski brought his love of old Hollywood to his work on the Apple TV+ mystery series “Sugar,” starring Colin Farrell as a private detective determined to find a missing girl. “I brought a history of film with me,” he says in a recent interview with Gold Derby (watch the exclusive video above). “But at the same time I wanted to push it forward. Sometimes I call it, let’s look backwards to look forwards.”

Rutkowski came to “Sugar” through his past relationship with actor and director Adam Arkin, who directed three of the show’s eight episodes. The two had previously worked on several episodes of “The Americans,” and the two had been looking for an opportunity to work together again. Rutkowski was also enticed by the fact that the remaining episodes of “Sugar” would be shot by Oscar-nominated director Fernando Meirelles and his longtime cinematographer César Charlone. “Fernando’s a personal hero, and I know that many of the films that him and César have made together are films that I reference when I talk to directors or even crew about things that I admire visually in cinema,” says Rutkowski. “And I knew that their language would be interesting, that it would no longer be a formulaic approach. It would be a much more creative approach, and that proved true times a thousand.”

In describing the different techniques used to create the look of “Sugar,” Rutkowski says that it was Farrell’s performance as the title character that anchored the look of the show. “He’s the linchpin, like Jake in ‘Chinatown,'” he says. “So the camera doesn’t move too far from him when he’s in a scene. You’re following him up to the conclusion of a scene. You’re observing from his position and you’re traveling with him in this story.”

One highlight for Rutkowski occurs in the show’s fourth episode, which features a glitzy retrospective film screening. Rather than use an existing film, the team created their own 1940’s style romantic drama, employing all of the techniques used in movie making during that time period. “We got out film cameras and shot anamorphic for like a few hours one night. I think we had 3000 feet total. We might not have even used all that,” explains Rutkowski. “A couple of days later, they had an answer print for me at photo cam. So it was the old fashioned process to create what I hoped would look like a period color and texture specific and appropriate film. And obviously it worked.”

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