
With the fourth season of Greenleaf, the enthralling saga set in an African American megachurch that premiered on OWN this month, James Chressanthis, ASC, GSC explains how the show's creatives wanted to take the show to new heights.
From a story perspective we wanted to strongly advance the character arcs of our large ensemble cast and aesthetically we wanted to continue to revitalize the show's look, albeit in subtle ways.
Writer/executive producer Craig Wright and executive producers Clement Virgo, Kriss Turner Towner and Oprah Winfrey are behind the series, which stars Merle Dandridge, Keith David and Lynn Whitfield.
Chressanthis boarded the show in early 2018 for Season 3, at which time he paired the RED DSMC2 camera with the 8K HELIUM sensor and Cooke i5 lenses.
I shot the first DXL camera, which shared the same RED sensor architecture, and I loved the natural look that could be achieved, he explains. Greenleaf is essentially about the conflict between the flesh and the spirit, characters trying to be good and failing. There is the whole range of human goodness: deceit, frailty, bravery, and joy and visually I wanted to capture more of that in this new season of the series.
As a colorist it is refreshing to be involved early on... Jim and I were able to collaborate on the look of the show before dailies began. Nick Hasson, Senior Colorist, Light Iron
In approaching Season 4, that meant a greater lens palette, to which Chressanthis turned to Panavision's Dan Sasaki. With the encouragement of Virgo to push the look even further, Chressanthis took the prototype Panavision DXL-M camera kit which is a proprietary module and a Panavised DSMC2 camera with HELIUM sensor, that extends the DXL2 ecosystem into the smaller form factor and paired it with Panavision special optics.
It's a slimmer version of the DXL2, very light, with terrific balance when handheld. I know my Steadicam operators like it although they said, don't make it any lighter!' Ergonomically it reminded me of all the great handling qualities of Super 16.
Chressanthis with Greenleaf Director Crystle Roberson (Photo: Guy DAlema/OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network/Lionsgate Films)
He adds, One of the reasons I went to Panavision was not only because of my previous experience on dozens of projects but also shooting The Family for ABC, he adds. It was a show with a similar vibe to Greenleaf and I knew I would get great support from Dan Sasaki and his team, creating custom optics.
In December 2018, Chressanthis put a range of lenses through an extensive two-day test at Panavision in Woodland Hills. While digital has its merits, it can easily look too sharp, so I was looking for something softer, more natural and even imperfect. I looked at lots of different glass before settling on the classic Primo Primes.
With the producer's blessing in Season 3, the DP brought in a lighting design which echoed the Renaissance paintings of Caravaggio and Rembrandt and deliberately referenced centuries old religious art not just in lighting but in compositions.
In my photography I wanted to use light to embed iconographic imagery very subtly into the show, Chressanthis says. I wanted to craft halos around characters, add delicate glowing sources of light and flare in the frame. With that in mind for S4, I asked Dan and his team to push the halation aspect of the lens much more than I'd done in the past.
On an exterior set for Greenleaf. (Photo: Guy DAlema/OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network/Lionsgate Films)
In addition to a static camera to compare the different looks and lenses, with and without filtration, I shot Steadicam in daylight, going through the fluorescent-lit hallways of Panavision, then traveling into a darkened studio toward an actor looking at an exposed light bulb and finally going 360 degrees around the subject. A real-world camera challenge!
Having settled on a modified set of Primo Primes from 14.5mm-150mm and everything in between, the artist also wanted the ability to enhance certain scenes with more crispness and contrast. Sasaki also modified a 35mm prime converting it to 32mm which is a lens that Virgo loved in Season 3.
I wanted the flexibility to use a conventional lens and put a light filter on it, the DP relates. For this show I tend to shoot two cameras perpendicular to each other (not sharing the same axis), one often with a different lighting background to the main camera. Ninety percent of the time I am shooting special optic glass but for thematic reasons I might use unmodified glass as an option to render a really difficult contrast or to not have too much flare or just for a cleaner or more clinical feel.
A set of Classic Primos (21mm, 27mm, 35mm, 40mm, 50mm); a Primo 19 - 90mm zoom modified to a 21-100mm for Technocrane work, and a conventional 11:1 zoom 24-275mm (with 1.4X extender) completed the lens package.
Light Iron handled the entire post workflow including dailies, beginning with a bespoke adaptation of the DXL film LUT.
I went back to Michael (Cioni, Panavision and Light Iron SVP, Innovation) and requested he apply the DXL film LUT to the HELIUM. I had some other looks for flashbacks which came into play occasionally, but our secret sauce was the DXL2 Film for HELIUM LUT, which I tweaked with Light Iron Colorist Nick Hasson.
As a colorist it is refreshing to be involved early on, notes Hasson. Jim and I were able to collaborate on the look of the show before dailies began. This helped us in the final grade because we were able to focus on the fine details and not the overall look.
I felt I got the best skin tones. Many African-American cast members said they had never looked so good, adds Chressanthis. In Season 3, we were developing these LUTs and in Season 4 we further refined it so that what I was seeing on set was as close as you c
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
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...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
07/04/2026
Ikegami USA will launch a refinement to the UHK-X700 and UHK-X750 3-CMOS -in. UHD cameras in the UNICAM XE series plus two new 7-in. viewfinders at NAB 2026 in...
07/04/2026
The NAB Leadership Foundation and NAB PILOT will host a career mixer for technology students at NAB Show 2026 on April 18, 5-6:30 p.m., North Hall, Room N225/22...
07/04/2026
Audinate Group Limited and Futuresource Consulting have published results from a...
07/04/2026
Eluvio has announced the commercial availability of its Content Fabric Bucharest...
07/04/2026
Eluvio has unveiled a new architecture for video AI and an updated Eluvio Video Intelligence Editor (EVIE) ahead of NAB Show 2026. Eluvio AI runs analysis and i...
07/04/2026
The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has announced a deal with Sky New Zealand...
07/04/2026
The NBA and Enjoy Basketball, the digital media company co-founded by YouTube cr...
07/04/2026
The 4,000-sq.-ft. space in Frisco, TX, has produced live and packaged programmin...
07/04/2026
What began as a referee training tool is evolving into a powerful production ass...
07/04/2026
Manifold Technologies will announce at NAB Show 2026 (Booth C.1808) that its manifold CLOUD platform will be available as a deployable application within NEP Pl...
07/04/2026
Shaquille O'Neal, Authentic Brands Group, and TNT Sports, in partnership wit...
07/04/2026
Telos Alliance will debut the Omnia XII, a new FM/HD/DAB audio processor, at NAB Show 2026 in Las Vegas.
Built on a 2RU hardware platform, Omnia XII features a...
07/04/2026
Amazon Web Services (AWS) will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (April 18-22, Las Vegas Convention Center, Booth W1701), with demonstrations, speaking sessions, and int...
07/04/2026
Synamedia will demonstrate AI by Quortex at NAB Show 2026, a framework that applies AI capabilities to video workflows on demand rather than continuously. The s...
07/04/2026
TVNewsCheck will present its 15th annual Women in Technology Awards on Tuesday, April 21, at 5 p.m. PT at NAB Show, in the Media and Entertainment Theater (W146...
07/04/2026
Akta will demonstrate its AI video platform at NAB Show 2026, highlighting new capabilities in media processing and vertical video formatting alongside its exis...
07/04/2026
ESPN and Disney have announced the launch of ESPN on Disney in Europe and select Asia-Pacific markets, bringing the offering to 53 countries and territories a...
07/04/2026
LOS ANGELES, CA, April 7, 2026 - The nonprofit Sundance Institute announced today the fellows selected for the 2026 Native Lab, the signature initiative of the ...
07/04/2026
Starting today, Prompted Playlist is expanding beyond music to now include podca...
07/04/2026
Launched alongside piano promotion
The latest instalment in VSL's Synchron Series line-up captures the sound of a faithful copy of a Fran ois tienne Bl...
07/04/2026
Flagship sampling pad gets an update
Roland's flagship sampling pad has just received a major update that kits it out with an array of new features and ...
07/04/2026
Popular compact wireless system upgraded
Sound Devices have recently introduced a new and improved version of their compact wireless transmitter bodypacks, ...
07/04/2026
The November 2025 YEP Newsletter highlights a recent YEP Coffee Chat, offering members the chance to connect with industry professionals in an informal setting ...
07/04/2026
The December 2025 YEP Newsletter includes a Spotlight on Emily Vail, showcasing her career journey and work in the industry, alongside Mentorship Reflections by...
07/04/2026
Ground-Based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance (GEODSS) telescope operated...
07/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/04/2026
Catgut Sound Owner and Production Sound Mixer Chris Welcker, CAS, has built a career at the intersection of music and film. A former musician and composer, Welc...
07/04/2026
SDVI Corporation today announced the next generation of its Rally media supply chain management platform, introducing a redesigned orchestration engine that rep...
07/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/04/2026
Frequency, the engine behind many of the world's leading streaming television channels, at NAB 2026 will be launching new Studio services to help content ow...
07/04/2026
Ikegami USA has chosen NAB 2026 in Las Vegas as the launch platform for new additions to its range of broadcast-quality television production equipment. These w...
07/04/2026
April 19, 2026, Las Vegas Kiloview, an innovative provider of AV-over-IP technologies, will showcase its latest broadcast IP solutions at NAB 2026, presenting...
07/04/2026
Bitmovin has announced support for Server-Guided Ad Insertion (SGAI) across its playback products using HLS interstitials, enabling more advanced ad-supported s...
07/04/2026
Synamedia is unveiling AI by Quortex at The NAB show, a just-in-time AI plugin framework that applies intelligence only when needed across video processing, dis...
07/04/2026
Cuez will showcase four additions to its cloud-based newsroom, rundown and automation platform at NAB Show 2026 (April 18 22, Las Vegas, Booth N1867):
Cuez ...
07/04/2026
CueScript to Showcase Innovations at NAB that Add Mobility Options, Ease Editing...
07/04/2026
Barix Extends Transport Options for Multi-Engine IP Encoder
Brie Clayton April 7, 2026
0 Comments
New for NAB, Barix adds SRT and RIST support to Mult...
07/04/2026
Elite Media Technologies Selects Interra Systems' BATON File-Based QC Soluti...
07/04/2026
Tightrope Media Systems to Debut Cablecast LiveBridge for Simultaneous Streaming...
07/04/2026
Cuez Brings Four New Innovations to NAB 2026: From Story-Centric Newsroom to Ope...
07/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/04/2026
Designed for synchronized multi-stream playback, low-latency delivery, and real-time analytics, MATCH introduces a unified viewing experience for sports broadca...