The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC), founded in Hollywood in 1919, is a cultural,

educational Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Vari ...

, and

professional organization A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) usually seeks to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in that profession, and th ...

that is neither a labor union nor a

guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

. The society was organized to advance the science and art of

cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to foc ...

and gather a wide range of cinematographers to discuss techniques and ideas and to advocate for motion pictures as a type of art form. Currently, the president of the ASC is Stephen Lighthill. Members use the post-nominal letters "ASC". On the 1920 film titled ''Sand'', cinematographer Joseph H. August, who was an original member of the ASC, became the first individual to have the "ASC" appear after his name on the onscreen credit. Only film cinematographers and special effect supervisors can become an ASC member. Basic requirements include being a director of photography for a minimum five out of the last eight years, having a high professional reputation and being recommended by three active or retired ASC members.

History

In the beginning of cinema, directors and photographers in the United States had a similar problem: they had "big, ugly white streaks" that resulted from static electricity discharged from the cameras. Two separate groups in the United States worked together to find a solution to this problem. The two groups were the Cinema Camera Club and the Static Club of America. A precursor to the ASC, the Cinema Camera Club in New York City was founded in 1913 by

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are ''All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

Phil Rosen Philip E. Rosen (May 8, 1888 – October 22, 1951) was an American film director and cinematographer. He directed more than 140 films between 1915 and 1949. He was born in Malbork, Marienburg, German Empire (now, Malbork, Poland), grew up ...

, and

Frank Kugler Frank X. Kugler (March 29, 1879, Germany – July 7, 1952, St. Louis, Missouri) was a German-American wrestler, weightlifter and tug of war competitor who competed in the 1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics (officiall ...

. Arthur and his brother, William Miller, both filmmakers in New York City, worked together and established a union for cinematography workers called the

Motion Picture Industry Union In physics, motion is the phenomenon in which an object changes its position with respect to time. Motion is mathematically described in terms of displacement, distance, velocity, acceleration, speed and frame of reference to an observer and me ...

. Miller left to work in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

, one year after the Motion Picture Industry Union was formed. In 1918, Phil Rosen asked the president of the Cinema Camera Club of California, Charles Rosher, whether he could help reorganize the association by creating a national organization with "membership by invitation and a strong educational component". This reorganisation and the setup of the bylaws occurred on December 21, 1918. The ASC was officially authorized by the State of California on January 8, 1919. In 2014, the ASC admitted its first member with no background in

live action Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ...

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

Pixar Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californ ...

Sharon Calahan Sharon Calahan is an American cinematographer who was director of photography on the Pixar films ''A Bug's Life'' (1998), ''Toy Story 2'' (1999), and ''Finding Nemo'' (2003), and was lighting director for ''Ratatouille'' (2007), ''Cars 2'' (2011 ...

, who had worked entirely in computer animation. The society started the ASC Master Class education program in the same year (2014). This program allows members of the ASC and other professionals to teach students from all walks of life on various subjects including composition, lighting, angles, creating mood among other techniques of visual storytelling. In 2017, John Bailey, an ASC member, was elected as the president of the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motio ...

, making him the first cinematographer to take up such a position.

Publications

In the 1920s, the ASC began printing a four-page newsletter titled ''The American Cinematographer'' in 1920. According to the ASC, "''The American Cinematographer'' covers the technology and artistry of visual storytelling, offering print and digital editions." Within this publication, a wide range of cinematographer and technical information was produced through a variety of means such as interviews, articles, blogs and podcasts. Other than the magazine, the ASC also publishes the ''

American Cinematographer Manual The ''American Cinematographer Manual'' is a filmmaking manual published by the American Society of Cinematographers. Covering lighting, lenses, and film emulsions, it is considered “an authoritative technical reference manual for cinematograp ...

''. The first edition was published in 1935 by Jackson J. Rose as ''The American Cinematographer Hand Book and Reference Guide''. The Hand Book evolved from the ''Cinematographic Annual'' only published twice, in 1930 and 1931. Rose's handbook went through nine editions by the middle of the 1950s, and it was from this book that the modern ''American Cinematographer Manual'' originated. The first edition of the new manual was published in 1960 and is now in its 10th edition, published in 2016.

Founding members

Homer Scott Homer A. Scott (October 1, 1880 – December 23, 1956) was a founding member of the American Society of Cinematographers (A.S.C.) and was their president from 1925-1926. He was also a member and director of its predecessor organization, The S ...

* William C. Foster * L. D. Clawson *

Eugene Gaudio Eugene Gaudio (December 31, 1886 – August 1, 1920) was a cinematographer. Biography Brother of future A.S.C. member Tony Gaudio, Eugene Gaudio was born in Cosenza in Italy on December 31, 1886. He learned photography in his father's portrait ...

* Walter L. Griffin * Roy H. Klaffki *

Charles Rosher Charles G. Rosher, A.S.C. (17 November 1885 – 15 January 1974) was an English-born cinematographer who worked from the early days of silent films through the 1950s. He was Mary Pickford's favourite cinematographer and a personal friend, shoo ...

Victor Milner Victor Milner, A.S.C. (December 15, 1893 – October 29, 1972) (sometimes Victor Miller) was an American cinematographer. He was nominated for ten cinematography Academy Awards, winning once for 1934 ''Cleopatra''. Milner worked on more than 130 ...

* Joe August * Arthur Edeson *

Fred LeRoy Granville Fred LeRoy Granville was born in Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia, in 1896,1917 Motion Picture News Studio Directory and educated in New Zealand. The 1 February 1922, issue of ''American Cinematographer'' stated that he was "a bloody Britisher ...

*J. D. Jennings * Robert S. Newhard *L. Guy Willy

Award categories

Film

* Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases * Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Non-Fiction Filmmaking * Spotlight Award

Television

* Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Episode of a Series for Commercial Television * Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Episode of a Series for Non-Commercial Television * Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Motion Picture, Miniseries, or Pilot Made for Television *Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Episode of a Half Hour Series for Television

Other

* Award of Distinction * Board of the Governors Award * Honorary Membership * International Award * Lifetime Achievement Award * President's Award * Television Career Achievement Award

References

External links

*
American Society of Cinematographers collection
(Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) {{Authority control 1919 establishments in California Cinematography organizations Entertainment industry societies Film organizations in the United States Film-related professional associations Organizations based in Los Angeles Organizations established in 1919