
Written and directed by Miles Warren, the feature Bruiser takes an unflinching look at the role that hand-to-hand combat plays in a boys maturation into manhood. The movie, available to stream on Hulu, follows 14-year-old Darious (Jalyn Hall), who struggles to reconcile the non-violent values of his upbringing with the painful reality of recurring bullying at school. Darious suddenly finds himself on solid ground after building a bond with Porter (Trevante Rhodes), a maligned newcomer to town who's working through his own history with violence.
Cinematographer Justin Derrys intimate understanding of Bruiser's visual storytelling stems from his collaboration with Warren on the story's first iteration as a short film, which premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival (and which Panavision featured here). Derry credits Marni Zimmeran at Panavision New York and Steve Krul at Panavision New Orleans for helping to see Bruisers visual refinement from prep on the short through the wrap of the feature. From his love for vintage Panavision optics, Gordon Parks' photography and the collaborative process, Derry retells the making of Bruiser through the lens of inspiration.
We wanted to embrace the different and opposing character traits between the two father figures in Darious' life by allowing our camera to embody their personalities, Derry explains. For Porter, we used Steadicam and a loose tripod head when operating his scenes with Darious so that they would feel fluid and relaxed and in contrast to the scenes with Darious' father, Malcolm [Shamier Anderson]. Malcolm was framed with very static and rigid compositions and only subtle dolly moves, but as he begins to unwind, the camera becomes frantic and loose.
Thanks to having served as cinematographer and executive producer of the short version of the movie, Derry was able to help Warren build the look of Bruiser from a formidable visual framework. We wanted to take the blueprint we established in the short film we shot two years prior, Derry says, but with the texture and warmth of the rural South ingrained throughout.
We mixed a lot of color temperatures and utilized green fluorescents as well as sodium-vapor and mercury-vapor streetlights, Derry continues. Sometimes I would choose a cooler streetlight look to make the audience feel lost and alone, or I would use warm sodium-vapor streetlights to evoke a sense of aggression and violence. I like using color to portray emotion, but it always has to be grounded in the reality of the environment.
The filmmakers also found visual inspiration in a considered selection of films and photographs. Some of our key references were Ali: Fear Eats the Soul, Cold War, George Washington and The Place Beyond the Pines, Derry says, but we also spent a lot of time looking at Gordon Parks' photography of the rural South. Parks often isolated his subjects in a way that made them feel like they are the sole individual in an expansive world. You can feel a gravity in his images that draws you in and makes you feel like nothing outside of this intimate moment matters.
I love to look at many references throughout the prep process, Derry adds. The more references I take in, the more I develop instincts that don't necessarily directly copy anything specific, but instead form a subtle alchemy that defines our look.
For the short version of Bruiser, the filmmakers had worked out of Panavision New York, but for the feature, they went south to source their package from Panavision New Orleans. I've worked with Marni Zimmerman at Panavision New York for almost 10 years now, and she's always supported my vision, the cinematographer says. On this film, she connected me with Steve Krul out of Panavision New Orleans. Our prep was very rushed because we lost some time due to the pandemic, but Steve was very supportive and set up a last-minute camera test for me that was instrumental in discovering the look of the film.
Panavision is always my first call when I'm starting to prep a film, Derry continues. I love that over the years, I've developed a relationship with Panavision that feels like family. They support filmmakers and prioritize the creative choices we make when choosing equipment for a film.
Derry's lens package for the feature included Panavision's vintage Super Speed and Ultra Speed optics, which, he shares, are probably my favorite spherical lenses of all time! They have the perfect blend of soft, bloomy highlights and beautiful flares while maintaining decent contrast and sharpness. They're also very fast, so I can make a lot of creative choices about depth of field. For me, they also go back to Gordon Parks, reflecting the character in his photographs. If you look at a lot of his photography, there's a soft creaminess to the highlights and shadows and often a very shallow, creamy depth of field.
Reflecting on the years he spent working on Bruiser across the story's short and feature-length versions, Derry notes, This is the first feature I've shot where my collaboration with the director was developed over several years of working together. I've shot all of Miles' short films. We know what stories inspire each other, so discussing the look felt organic. It's always my goal to support the director's vision, so I usually react and adapt my style to create a look that I'm excited about while also reflecting what the director envisions for the film. With Miles, I know that we always share the same vision, so it was just a seamless, fluid way of working.
All images courtesy of the filmmakers.
Learn more about Justin Derry's work on the short-film version of Bruiser in this article: A Question of Strength
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
27/07/2026
The Audio Engineering Society Educational Foundation has named its scholarship and grant recipients for the 2026/2027 academic year. The awards support students...
27/07/2026
ESPN and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) have signed a multi-year media rights agreement covering basketball championships and select football and ba...
27/07/2026
Yahoo Sports and Cameo have partnered to allow fantasy football users to book personalized celebrity videos directly within the Yahoo Fantasy app and website. T...
27/07/2026
Eutelsat has welcomed the FCC's order establishing the regulatory framework for the transition of Upper C-band spectrum in the United States. Under the orde...
27/07/2026
ESPN and the International Dance League (IDL) have signed a global rights agreement for the 2026 season. Events will air bi-weekly on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. ET beginni...
27/07/2026
NBCUniversal and YouTube have signed a multi-year global partnership that includes bundling Peacock with YouTube Premium, extending NBCUniversal's distribut...
27/07/2026
Agenda includes presentations from the Miami Heat, Inter Miami, Florida Panthers...
27/07/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, including new deals, departures, and assignments compiled from press releases and repo...
27/07/2026
Ten one-minute shorts will roll out across CBS, The CW, Paramount+ during the 2026 PBR Teams season
PBR is officially moving into scripted animation. The Profe...
27/07/2026
Today the nonprofit Sundance Institute shared the names of this year's cohor...
27/07/2026
New app turns vocal percussion into polished loops
Vochlea, the company behind the voice-to-MIDI instrument Dubler 2, have just announced the launch of a ne...
27/07/2026
Latest MPE-capable instrument completes Pure Trilogy line-up
Sonora Cinematic have just released the third and final instalment in their series of acoustic ...
27/07/2026
Emulates four varieties of optical compression
The latest addition to the fedDSP line-up has just been announced, and packs four distinct optical compressor...
27/07/2026
Optical & FET compressors join 500-series line-up
At our recent GearExpo UK show, we heard from Drawmer that they would soon be launching a pair of new 500-...
27/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/07/2026
Lightware announces SNMPv3-based monitoring support for selected Taurus devices, available from firmware v1.20.0. The update enables IT administrators and AV in...
27/07/2026
Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions to profitably connect the right content to the right audience, will showcase its vision for the Real-Time...
27/07/2026
All episodes available Thursday 6 August on Sky and streaming service NOWMonday ...
27/07/2026
Why Confidence MattersIn this series, we explore the technologies, architectures and operational realities shaping modern media operations. Along the way, we ex...
27/07/2026
Apple today announced AppleCare One - a new way for customers to protect multipl...
27/07/2026
Yesterday witnessed truly memorable scenes in Croke Park, bringing the curtain d...
27/07/2026
Luxembourg, July 27, 2026 - SES, a leading space solutions company, issued the following statement following the U.S. Federal Communications Commission approval...
27/07/2026
Open source software is a critical pillar of the global economy. It underpins cloud computing, financial services, manufacturing, telecommunications, government...
26/07/2026
What is Audio Vivid? A New Destination for Immersive Audio Over the past several years, immersive audio has evolved from a niche production consideration into a...
26/07/2026
The complexity of modern chip design continues to grow as engineering teams work to develop increasingly sophisticated CPUs, GPUs and AI systems. To help meet t...
25/07/2026
New app turns vocal percussion into polished loops
Vochlea, the company behind the voice-to-MIDI instrument Dubler 2, have just announced the launch of a ne...
25/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
25/07/2026
Export FCP7 to XML Without Needing FCP7 Installed
Dave Rice July 24, 2026
0 Comments
I've created an open source tool that allows you to export FC...
25/07/2026
Documentary Sell Your House Edited with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton July 24, 2026
0 Comments
Filmmakers post feature documentary from opposite...
25/07/2026
Time to Act: Bringing a New Opera to Life Boston Conservatory at Berklee vocal arts students played a vital role in shaping the opera's creative developme...
25/07/2026
Beyond the Score For Dean of Music Kevin Haden, the boundless possibilities of classical music begin with process.
July 24, 2026
By
Kevin Haden
Michelle ...
25/07/2026
Reading the Room As music director of two major orchestras, conductor Jonathon Heyward aims to make the concert hall a space for everyone.
July 24, 2026
By
...
25/07/2026
Saturday 25 July 2026
First look revealed for YAGA, a seductive mystery thrille...
24/07/2026
Referee hat cameras, player/coach mics, and virtual graphics will be deployed at the three-day event for the first time
The NFL FLAG Championships return to ES...
24/07/2026
Qvest, Ateme, and Scaleway have partnered to offer broadcasters, media organizat...
24/07/2026
LTN has completed satellite-to-IP migrations for more than 3,000 broadcaster, MVPD (Multi-Channel Video Programming Distributor), head-end, and content owner si...
24/07/2026
Chyron has released Virtual Placement 8.1, an update to its live sports virtual graphics platform. The release adds workflow and graphics changes across chroma ...
24/07/2026
Riedel's RefCam Live was used for the first time at an international soccer match during a friendly between the German men's national team and Ghana in ...
24/07/2026
USSI Global said it is prepared to help broadcasters, satellite network operators, and media organizations manage the next phase of C-band spectrum clearing, fo...
24/07/2026
FuboTV and The Athletic have launched The Athletic Video Hub on Fubo, bringing The Athletic's sports video content to connected TV (CTV) for the first time....