Set in 1950s France, The Deep Dark (Gueules noires) follows a group of coal miners who are commissioned to escort a professor through dangerous depths to retrieve measurements. After becoming trapped by a series of landslides, the unwitting crew soon discovers the terrifying reason why no one's traversed these caves in a hundred years.
Written and directed by Mathieu Turi, The Deep Dark bears a neo-noir quality skillfully crafted by cinematographer Alain Duplantier, who shot the feature with Primo 70 optics. Here, the cinematographer shines a light on how he and his collaborators captured a story that takes place almost entirely in the dark.
Panavision: How did you become involved in The Deep Dark?
Alain Duplantier: I had already collaborated with Mathieu Turi for his film Meander. Preparation is an important creative stage for Mathieu. He nourishes and enriches his film very early on. He questions the narrative, the strength of the characters, the atmospheres, etc. And of course all these questions inevitably invite a questioning of the image. It is therefore a collaboration which opens quite unusual and particularly interesting fields. Mathieu and I thrive on this approach. The staging draws on the photography, and the photography builds on the narrative and emotional issues of the film. Also, my very expressionistic personal photographic work provided a photographic intention that Mathieu really liked.
How would you describe the look of the project?
Duplantier: The Deep Dark takes place over two periods. Mathieu and I wanted each of these periods to be clearly identifiable.
The first was in 1850. The working conditions for miners then were terrible humidity, dust, darkness, long working days punctuated by explosions, landslides and floods. We wanted to recreate the harshness of these conditions and get as close as possible to what these miners really experienced. The multiple illustrations that we consulted, the testimonials, the site visits, etc. gradually guided our choices. Using the kerosene lamps of the time for our lighting quickly became obvious, but this strong choice did not allow us to convey the full depth of what we had before our eyes. We had to find a way to restore the detail of a completely black universe inhabited by men covered in black. We wet the walls, brought shine, made the skins shine, greased the clothes, and finally used smoke to find depth. We are all very proud of this part, as much for the visual result as for the collective commitment of everyone.
The second part takes place in 1950. The work of the miners is quite similar to that of 1850, but electricity brings a radical change. The coal galleries are then lit by lamps placed on the ceiling every 5 meters, and the miners use headlamps integrated into the helmets and powered by batteries placed in remote boxes, attached to the belt. I suggested to Mathieu that we could use these headlamps as main sources. This was the opportunity to establish a natural and obvious evolution while preserving, once again, the reality of this second period. It was also important that we fully adhered to this choice and understood the issues, because Mathieu's staging would have to integrate the fact that the actors themselves were going to be the carriers of our light sources.
Now we had to find the ideal lamp. With Franck Barrault, my gaffer, we chose caving lamps equipped with two LEDs, one with a wide flood beam and the other a concentrated spot beam. It was necessary to be able to control them remotely to be able to maintain control of the density and mixing of the two beams. Franck collaborated with the company Art Tech Design to equip these lamps with drivers compatible with LED diodes and to design the boxes that the actors would wear on their belts which contained the batteries, the driver and the CRMX device, allowing Franck to manage the lights live' for each actor. The concept worked very well and the actors played the game admirably, being aware of their additional responsibility. The visual effect produced by the headlamps in the coal mine mixed with the ambient lights works wonderfully.
Much of the action in this second period also takes place in a limestone mine with white rock walls. The mere effect of the headlamps is striking in both realism and mystery. The choreography' of the light beams in the darkness, the cast shadows running on the walls almost on its own construct the oppressive atmosphere of this moment in the film. The intensity of the actors could then be fully expressed. Thus, the anxiety, claustrophobia and fear that we experience in the film found their source as much in the action, the interpretation, as the atmosphere that we had imagined.
What brought you to Panavision for this project, and what attracted you to the specific lenses you chose, the Primo 70s?
Duplantier: I have collaborated with Panavision on numerous occasions, and each time I've been able to count on the wise expertise of the technical staff. Of course they know their cameras and their lenses, but above all they understand the emotional issues of the image and how one lens more than another is able to respond to them.
For The Deep Dark, we had to find optics capable of handling extreme highlights without generating flare, or flaring in a very measured way. We tested several series of optics, and quite quickly the Primo 70s satisfied us completely. They remained efficient in all the extreme situations we faced. Very few flares, beautiful substance in the skins, depths in the blacks, very beautiful bokeh, and little chromatic aberration or distortion.
What originally inspired you to become a cinematographer?
Duplantier: I have always liked to bring to life my perspective on things, people, situations. I started with film photography, and the play of distance and proximity has always fascin
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
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...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
18/05/2026
Despite a bumpy start to the year, the provider of event-production support and ...
18/05/2026
Daktronics has partnered with the University of North Carolina to manufacture and install 11 LED displays totaling more than 10,000 square feet and more than 14...
18/05/2026
CBS LA has announced a multi-year partnership with the Los Angeles Rams, covering exclusive local broadcasts of Rams preseason games, weekly year-round programm...
18/05/2026
Skyline Communications has announced an integration between its DataMiner xOps p...
18/05/2026
eCLUTCH, the hybrid esports platform powered by iKOMG, has announced an expansion of its distribution across Europe, MENA, Africa, and Asia, along with new cont...
18/05/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/05/2026
With 22 games this season, the production team looks forward to tweaking and enhancing the coverage
After 8,660 days off the air, the WNBA returned to NBC yest...
18/05/2026
(L-R) Midori Francis and Natalie Erika James attend the Saccharine premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 22, 2026, in ...
18/05/2026
Last night, the Spotify Podcast Awards in Mexico returned to the country's capital. Now in its second year, the evening honors creators whose voices are hel...
18/05/2026
ZEN-Core synth goes mobile
Roland's powerful ZEN-Core software synthesizer has just been introduced to the iPad, offering a convenient entry point into ...
18/05/2026
Versatile new limiter plug-in announced
Based in Sheffield, UK, fedDSP offer a range of plug-ins that span the music production, live sound and high-end med...
18/05/2026
A new use for convolution?
Viiri Audio's debut plug-in aims to do something a little different with convolution processing, allowing users to adjust all...
18/05/2026
Delta Goodrem shines for SBS as more than 3.27 million Australians tune in for E...
18/05/2026
The Australian Defence Force uses L3Harris T4 and T7 robots for explosive ordnan...
18/05/2026
Continued investment across Europe and Germany is expanding local teams and improving access to stock, regional expertise, and specialist broadcast support.
CV...
18/05/2026
18 May 2026
Dubai and New York, May 18, 2026 - VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON), a glob...
18/05/2026
Monday 18 May 2026
Sky News offers ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes for just...
18/05/2026
Comscore March 2026 Consumer AI Chatbot Usage Rankings Show Claude Gaining Share OpenAI's ChatGPT maintains lead while Anthropic's Claude continues to c...
17/05/2026
Delta Goodrem's Eurovision Eclipse marks end of a stellar run
17 May, 2026
Media releases
Bulgaria wins Eurovision 2026
Relive every spellbinding mome...
17/05/2026
Back to All News
Oasis Premieres on Netflix June 19
Entertainment
17 May 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Summer, sunshine, the beach, parties. T...
16/05/2026
Helps to deliver a clean, balanced midrange
Developed alongside Newfangled Audio, the latest plug-in in Eventide's software collection has been designed...
16/05/2026
Brings onboard stem rendering to RANE System One
Engine DJ have just released Engine DJ 5.0, a free update for their Engine DJ OS embedded hardware and Engi...
16/05/2026
Boris FX Continuum Pairs AI Precision and Advanced Creative Controls
Jessie Electa Petrov May 16, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic de...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Seattle Sounders FC and Seattle Reign FC, in partnership with RAVE Foundation an...
15/05/2026
Dan Brumm has served as sound designer on Bluey, the Australian children's t...
15/05/2026
The Professional Audio Manufacturers Alliance (PAMA) and Shure Incorporated are accepting applications for the 6th annual Mark Brunner Professional Audio Schola...
15/05/2026
Netflix has announced an expanded NFL schedule for 2026 and beyond under a four-year partnership extension with the NFL through the 2029-30 season. Each season,...
15/05/2026
Ateme is supporting TVRI (Televisi Republik Indonesia) with a contribution and d...
15/05/2026
Concacaf has announced the launch of a new website and mobile app built on Deltatre's FORGE platform. Concacaf.com and the mobile app, available on iOS and ...
15/05/2026
Eutelsat has announced the launch of QBC Business Economic Channel by Qatar Media Corporation, broadcasting in 4K/UHD via Eutelsat's 7/8 West video neighbo...
15/05/2026
Major League Soccer has announced four original content series timed to the 2026...
15/05/2026
The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) has announced it will exhibit and present at InfoComm 2026, taking place June 13-19 at the Las Vegas Convention Cente...
15/05/2026
InfoComm 2026 will take place June 13-19 (exhibits June 17-19) at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The show will include sessions and exhibits covering broadcas...
15/05/2026
Tracy McGrady's Ones Basketball League (OBL) and FuboTV Inc. have announced ...
15/05/2026
Disguise has partnered with Creative Technology (CT) to deliver visual playback ...
15/05/2026
Sony Electronics has announced two new products for professional imaging: the Alpha 7R VI full-frame mirrorless camera and the FE 100-400mm F4.5 GM OSS super-te...
15/05/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
15/05/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
15/05/2026
For sports organizations, the most valuable assets are often the most sensitive:...
15/05/2026
The NFL's broadcast partners released their 2026 regular season schedules ye...
15/05/2026
Besides drawing on experience with boxing, the production integrates specialty c...
Set in 1950s France, The Deep Dark (Gueules noires) follows a group of coal miners who are commissioned to escort a professor through dangerous depths to retrieve measurements. After becoming trapped by a series of landslides, the unwitting crew soon discovers the terrifying reason why no one's traversed these caves in a hundred years.
