Renowned cinematographer Tristan Nyby tells Robert Shepherd about his approach to lighting and capturing the highly anticipated horror sequel, The Nun II
By Contributor
Published: September 11, 2023 Updated: September 12, 2023
Renowned cinematographer Tristan Nyby tells Robert Shepherd about his approach to lighting and capturing the highly anticipated horror sequel, The Nun II
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
Tristan Nyby boasts an impressive horror legacy, having previously worked on notable films like The Dark and the Wicked and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Therefore, it made sense when Australian filmmaker James Wan and director Michael Chaves enlisted him as the cinematographer for the eagerly-awaited The Nun II.
This gothic supernatural horror not only carries forward the storyline that was introduced by its 2018 predecessor, The Nun (stylised as HE NU ), but it's also the ninth instalment in The Conjuring Universe franchise.
The films offer a theatrical portrayal of the actual experiences of Ed and Lorraine Warren, renowned paranormal investigators and authors linked to well-documented, albeit contentious, instances of supernatural phenomena.
The Nun II film showcases the return of familiar faces such as Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet, and Bonnie Aarons, reprising their roles from the first instalment.
Taissa Farmiga as Sister Irene. All photos by Bruno Calvo. Taking place four years after the events of its predecessor, the film delves into the journey of Sister Irene as she encounters the malevolent entity Valak, also known as the Nun, once more. On this occasion, the unsettling confrontation occurs within the confines of a boarding school located in France.
When it came to lighting the film, Nyby aimed for an unfiltered horror experience, free from excessive gimmicks. His practical lighting choices contributed to the movie's grounded and visceral essence, intensifying psychological and emotional terrors with raw authenticity.
I knew I wanted to keep a natural feel to keep the audience grounded in reality, he explains. The more realistic the lighting and more familiar the world is, you can build tension through what you don't see and the scares have a strong impact.
Whenever possible, Nyby would motivate light through windows or use practicals and the team utilised a wide assortment of fixtures. Large HMIs and tungsten units pushed light through windows and smaller led fixtures augmented light from practicals. For night exteriors on the city streets, I often only used sodium vapour practicals and embraced the darkness in between, he continues. We tried to light actors' faces with Tungsten units rather than LED, wherever we could.
To keep the film visually cohesive, it was a modus operandi they adhered to throughout. Our aim was that through the entire film, the lighting should feel natural, he adds. When supernatural forces were at play, we used a slightly more elevated and stylised lighting but still grounded in reality. It felt really important to ensure we didn't go too far with any stylised lighting, so that it didn't feel forced. Just a slight change when the supernatural elements show themselves to enhance the moment.
The Sony Venice 2 was Nyby's choice of camera for the production, primarily because of the low light sensitivity it offers. What's more, he says the kit stood out from the rest because of its great colour rendition with natural skin tones. I often shot at 3200 ISO and was able to rely on low light practicals even candle light which lends itself to the naturalistic feel we aimed for from the start, he adds.
Nyby shot with a mix of Panavision anamorphic lenses, because he and Chaves both love the nostalgic movie feel that anamorphic lenses create as well as the widescreen format. We used G and E series primes and T-series zoom lenses and most of these lenses were fairly sharp but still have a depth of character, he says.
When it came to VFX, Nyby says he felt it was important that it blended in as seamlessly as possible. There are a number of supernatural fire effects throughout the film, he explains. These were done by shooting separate fire elements and compositing them into the scenes. My gaffer Michel Mitch' Bouquerel built a few different fire rigs to simulate a fire effect on our practical sets.
Forging an unsettling atmosphere stands as the very bedrock of any formidable horror production. Nyby divulges that he and Chaves orchestrated protracted, tension-laden sequences throughout moments imbued with the supernatural and spine-chilling elements.
Slow pans and intentional camera movements were used to create a feeling of unease, he continues. In some ways it is like the camera is its own character. In the school, there are a few scenes that take place in a stairway that is four stories tall. The key grip Michel Strasser built a rig that enabled the camera to move vertically through the entire staircase. He used a series of ropes hung from the ceiling to move the camera on a Ronin 2.
There were also key considerations that went into selecting the colour grading for the film, to enhance the story and relationship between Sister Irene and Valak.
We did the colour grading with colourist Alastor Arnold at Fotokem and we tried to stick to the same naturalistic feel that we aimed for when shooting, Nyby continues. We didn't drastically change the colour from what we originally shot. We only used the Sony LUT while shooting and tried to keep the colour grade in line with that.
Sleep tight.
The Nun II was released in cinemas across Europe on 8th September.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
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...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/07/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) has announced the appointment of Kathy Samuels ...
01/07/2026
Shade has announced Custom Objects and Automations, a platform expansion releasing June 29, 2026, that adds database and workflow automation capabilities direct...
01/07/2026
FOR-A America has announced the addition of Jaz Wray and Fernando Cruz to its U.S. sales team. Both report to Ernie Leon, Senior VP and Head of Sales and Strate...
01/07/2026
NBC Sports will air all 15 MLB games nationally on Sunday, July 5, across NBC, P...
01/07/2026
Clear-Com has announced a wireless communications upgrade for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, deploying FreeSpeak II and FreeSpeak Icon systems across both prod...
01/07/2026
England's performance team will use Sony's STATSports APEX GPS tracking system to monitor player physical data in real time during FIFA World Cup 2026 m...
01/07/2026
Adder Technology has announced the appointment of Neil Hillier as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Hillier succeeds Adrian Dickens, who transiti...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. has announced a strategic transaction creating two separate companies. The Production and Playout business will continue as Bitcentral, now own...
01/07/2026
DAZN has announced results from DAZN48, its creator initiative for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Launched in April 2026, the program received thousands of applicatio...
01/07/2026
Sarah Rose, VP, global services, Daktronics (NASDAQ: DAKT), will be inducted into the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame at t...
01/07/2026
Gravity Media and the World Economic Forum's production team provided broadc...
01/07/2026
Insight Productions has announced the launch of Insight Storm, a 53-foot mobile broadcast unit built for esports production. The truck is built around a Ross Vi...
01/07/2026
ESPN has announced several content initiatives marking America's 250th anniversary, as part of The Walt Disney Company's Disney Celebrates America pro...
01/07/2026
Eleven production kits, REMI workflows, and cloud distribution bring 40 World Cu...
01/07/2026
The conference also discussed the opportunities offered an industry that is endu...
01/07/2026
The Mountain West Conference has announced the launch of MW , a direct-to-consumer streaming platform powered by Kiswe. The platform will carry live Mountain We...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Manfrotto Introduces UNCOVER, the new premium camera bag collection for modern h...
01/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Powers Houston Tamil Sangam Literacy Competition
Brie Clayton July 1, 2026
0 Comments
Volunteers use ATEM Mini Pro, Blackmagic Desig...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
PlayBox Technology has published State of Broadcast Infrastructure 2026, an in-depth industry research report examining the technologies, operational challenges...
01/07/2026
LONDON, UK, 1 JULY Jigsaw24 has appointed Alan Henry as Head of Sales for Media and Entertainment, reinforcing its continued investment in helping broadcaster...
01/07/2026
Content Vault, the patent-pending secure content distribution platform protecting high-value media from disclosures, theft and unauthorised access, today announ...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. a leading provider of enterprise software and digital media solutions for news, sports and entertainment broadcasters, as well as streaming pla...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Groundbreaking First Nations Screen Business Accelerator launched through nation...
01/07/2026
Chyron Launches the All-New Chyron Academy: A Reimagined, Hands-On Learning Expe...
01/07/2026
Amplium Captures Kawasaki Brave Thunders Game with Blackmagic URSA Cine Immersiv...
01/07/2026
Boris FX Optics Expands Plugin Support to Apple Photos, Capture One, and Affinit...
01/07/2026
UKTV has today announced the appointment of Matt Berry to the newly created role of General Manager - Marketing, effective 1 July.
Matt will take on this senio...
01/07/2026
Sky Zero Footprint Fund-backed TV campaign featuring Deborah Meaden challenges consumers to rethink everyday bathroom wasteWednesday 1 July 2026
Fussy asks Bri...
01/07/2026
Constituency-level analysis reveals where girls miss out most on sport - and where targeted action could unlock more than £640 million in economic and health be...
01/07/2026
Wuppertal July 1, 2026
Riedel and SKAARHOJ Expand Collaboration With SimplyLive IntegrationRiedel Communications today announced an expanded collaboration wit...
01/07/2026
Apple today introduced power-packed updates to Apple Creator Studio, a groundbre...
Renowned cinematographer Tristan Nyby tells Robert Shepherd about his approach to lighting and capturing the highly anticipated horror sequel, The Nun II 
