Long before its opening date, Ford V Ferrari (alternative title: Le Mans 66 ) was already hailed as an Oscar favorite. Set in the 1960s, the film chronicles the epic battle between the iconic car makers, as they battle to build the fastest car at Le Mans. But the film goes beyond this epic battle to share the story of Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles.
The strength of the movie and the focus of the movie is the relationship between Matt Damon's character, Carroll Shelby, and Christian Bale's character, Ken Miles. It's a movie about friendship and about people that pursue their dreams and passions. People that will go through any risk to accomplish their dreams, explains Director of Photography Phedon Papamichael ASC, who has shot more than fifty films and has been nominated for both a BAFTA and an Academy Award in his career.
While the friendship between Ken Miles and Carroll Shelby drives the story, it's the car racing that has many in the media calling it the greatest racing movie ever made. Papamichael wanted to create a film that immersed the audience in the speed and danger of racing. To do that, he shot on the ARRI ALEXA LF camera.
I had some experience with large format with the ALEXA 65, working on the digital cinematography on the Greatest Showman. I really liked this feeling from this [large] format, the lensing, and the falloff. Just the way the background dissolves and falls off in a very painterly manner. I really liked this format not so much for the greater resolution, but just for the way, the [large] format lenses look. I think the way the optics translate on the sensor is very beautiful, says Papamichael.
We shot with the ALEXA LF when the camera had just come out, and we really put it to the test. We never had any issues with the camera. It worked perfectly from day one.
Papamichael relied on practical effects for most of the movie while VFX was used to recreate crowds or extend racecourses.
For visual inspiration, Papamichael looked to the past and the 1966 film, Grand Prix, starring James Garner. If history is any indication, then Ford V Ferrari may be promising, as Grand Prix would go on to win three Academy Awards for technical achievements.
[Grand Prix] was a classic cinemascope, 70mm Kodak picture, and I just loved the framing and simplicity of it. Back then, they didn't have this technology of tracking cars with fancy cranes and drones It was very important to us to convey that these little machines are just a few nuts and bolts holding together this gigantic engine. Not really having braking ability, and the danger and the intensity of what it's like in a race car.
To convey the danger and intensity of the racing, Papamichael and his crew mounted the ALEXA LF on the outside of the car in temperatures as high as 117 degrees Fahrenheit (42.7 degrees Celsius.)
We had the LF mounted to these chassis of these cars without vibration isolators. We just sent them off. They were going around the track and you're really experiencing all the g-forces of the turns and the changing light on the actor's face. It's great because the actor is performing and acting but to physically experience all that violence really aids the performance. So the cameras were really put through the tests. We shot this in last summer 2018, and the camera hadn't been out that long. We didn't have any technical issues with it. No camera failed, and there was a lot of dust and wind. There was extreme heat and extreme vibration. So, I can't say enough about the reliability but also about the visuals.
Ford V Ferrari is in theaters now.
Ford V Ferrari Trailer
Related Products ALEXA LF Enlarge your vision
ALEXA Mini LF Large format, small camera
Most recent headlines
25/12/2025
Holiday lights are twinkling, hot cocoa's on the stove and gamers are settling in for a well-earned break.
Whether staying in or heading on a winter getawa...
24/12/2025
What is AI good for? Posted by MTI Film on December 24, 2025
What is AI good for?
What is AI good for?
It's been three years since ChatGPT first cap...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
The Boyfriend' Season 2 Unveils Heartwarming Trailer, Key...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
Love, Fights, and Everything in Between: Badly in Love' Returns for Season 2
Entertainment
24 December 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied t...
24/12/2025
Scripps Research study links sleep variability with sleep apnea and hypertension How consumers' digital activity trackers could enable personalized health s...
23/12/2025
How guilas Cibae as Dominican Winter League Games Are Locally Produced for Glob...
23/12/2025
BitFire's Jim Akimchuk on Supplying Scalability and Customization in the Clo...
23/12/2025
CAMB.AI Enables European Athletics to Offer Multi-Language SupportPlan is to eventually offer translation into all languages spoken in EuropeBy Ken Kerschbaumer...
23/12/2025
Analysis: As sports media values trend negative, scarcity and quality are king By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 14:08
Print ...
23/12/2025
ESPN, Disney, and NBA Return to the Animated Altcast Fray With Second Edition of...
23/12/2025
End the Year on a High Note and Donate to the Sports Broadcasting Fund Today! By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 - 12:25 pm
...
23/12/2025
The year is winding down, the weather outside is frightful, and it's the perfect time to escape into a story that warms the heart. For listeners looking for...
23/12/2025
A Zeus motor is hot fire tested at L3Harris' Camden, Arkansas, solid rocket ...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Lightware will exhibit several major product innovations at ISE 2026, including the new USB-C BOOSTER-V1, Google Meet. integration for various Taurus UCX models...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Taking the Stage at Carnegie Hall-On a Global Scale Boston Conservatory Orchestra students reflect on their epic concert marking the 80th session of the UN Gene...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's The Great Flood and Culinary Class Wars 2 Top Gl...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things By the Numbers: How the Global Phenomenon Shap...
23/12/2025
Experience the power of WO Automation for Radio's newest service, the System Effectiveness Review. Designed to help you achieve more, a System Effectiveness...
23/12/2025
23 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan and Rakuten Symphony Collaborate to A...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
How Steamy Can It Get? Single's Inferno' Season 5 Pre...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
33 Million Global Viewers on Netflix Watched Jake Paul vs. Ant...
23/12/2025
New technique lights up where drugs go in the body, cell by cell Scripps Research scientists developed a technique that maps drug binding in individual cells th...
22/12/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Presidio's Neerav Shah on the Role of Its Captiva...
22/12/2025
Hitting the bullseye: Sky Sports readies itself for the biggest PDC World Darts ...
22/12/2025
Unique skillset: Bringing new directors to the world of darts at The Worlds with...
22/12/2025
Gravity Media prepares for a flight of fancy with the PDC World Darts Championsh...
22/12/2025
One hundred and eighty: Gravity Media on hitting the production bullseye at the ...
22/12/2025
The Famous Group's Jon Slusser on Fascinating Fans Through Immersive Content...
22/12/2025
ESPN's Meg Aronowitz on Continuing High-Quality Broadcasts of Collegiate Spo...
22/12/2025
ESPN Takes Data-Driven Storytelling to New Heights with MNF Playbook with Next ...
22/12/2025
For a decade, popular German podcast Fest & Flauschig has hosted an annual Chris...
22/12/2025
Paramount Scores Largest Share Increase Among Distributors as Paramount and CBS...
22/12/2025
New multi-year deal integrates Roku's data to fuel Nielsen's measurement suite
Roku gains access to Nielsen's streaming ratings, showing The Roku C...
22/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
22/12/2025
Berklee Wrapped 2025: Our Top News and Stories A look back at a year highlighted by faculty milestones, major film and television projects, Bob Dylan's ho...
22/12/2025
The works of Plato state that when humans have an experience, some level of change occurs in their brain, which is powered by memory - specifically long-term me...
Long before its opening date, Ford V Ferrari (alternative title: Le Mans 66 ) was already hailed as an Oscar favorite. Set in the 1960s, the film chronicles the epic battle between the iconic car makers, as they battle to build the fastest car at Le Mans. But the film goes beyond this epic battle to share the story of Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles.
