Marcia Ann Reed (born 1948) was the first unionized female still photographer in the motion picture industry, having joined the

International Cinematographers Guild The International Cinematographers Guild (IATSE Local 600) represents approximately 8,400 members who work throughout the United States, Canada and the rest of the world in film and television as Directors of Photography, Camera Operators, Came ...

in 1973 as a

unit still photographer A unit still photographer (or simply still photographer) creates still photos specifically for use in publicity and marketing of feature films and television productions. In addition to creating photographs for the promotion of a film, the still ...

. She was also the first woman to win a

Society of Operating Cameramen The Society Of Camera Operators was founded in 1979 under the name Society of Operating Cameramen. Its primary mission is to advance the art, craft and creative contribution of the camera operator in the motion picture and television industries. The ...

Lifetime Achievement Award (Still Photographer) in 2000.

Early life

Reed was born in 1948 at

Queen of Angels Hospital The Queen of Angels Hospital was a private hospital complex located at 2301 Bellevue Avenue in the Echo Park, Los Angeles, Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California. The 404-bed hospital was founded in 1926 by the Franciscan S ...

in Los Angeles. She is the only child of Josefina Flores and Paul "Dean" Reed. Her mother was with the

WAVES United States Naval Reserve (Women's Reserve), better known as the WAVES (for Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service), was the women's branch of the United States Naval Reserve during World War II. It was established on July 21, 1942, ...

(Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) based out of Tucson, during World War II. Her father, (who worked as P. Dean Reed) was a television engineer and

unit production manager In the cinema of the United States, a unit production manager (UPM) is the Directors Guild of America–approved title for the top below-the-line staff position, responsible for the administration of a feature film or television production. Non-D ...

on television shows. She attended

Grant High School (Los Angeles) Ulysses S. Grant High School is a public high school located in the Valley Glen neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States, in the east central San Fernando Valley. It is located adjacent to Los Angeles Valley College. It is part ...

in Valley Glen, California and was one of the first female students to take a photography class which led to her interest in becoming a professional photographer. After high school, Marcia applied to the prestigious

Art Center College of Design The ArtCenter College of Design is a private art college in Pasadena, California. It was incorporated in 1930 as a degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both the visual arts and design. ...

and was one of the first women accepted into the Photography Program to graduate. For her final assignment, prior to graduating in 1970, Marcia created a Style Book on behind-the-scenes of a typical television production which led to her being offered a chance to be a non-union production photographer for the local television networks beginning in 1971. At that time, she also began working for Lucille Ball at Desilu Studios on a variety of productions.

Career

By March 2, 1973, Reed had her first movie assignment working on the set of the film ''

Rhinoceros A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

'', starring

Gene Wilder Gene Wilder (born Jerome Silberman; June 11, 1933 – August 29, 2016) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and filmmaker. He was mainly known for his comedic roles, including his portrayal of Willy Wonka in ''Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Fa ...

and

Zero Mostel Samuel Joel "Zero" Mostel (February 28, 1915 – September 8, 1977) was an American actor, comedian, and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of comic characters including Tevye on stage in ''Fiddler on the Roof'', Pseudolus on stage and o ...

. It was to be the first of two films working with Wilder (the other was ''

Another You ''Another You'' is a 1991 American comedy film directed by Maurice Phillips and produced and written by Ziggy Steinberg. It stars Richard Pryor, Gene Wilder, Mercedes Ruehl, Vanessa Williams and Kevin Pollak. It was released in the United State ...

'' with Richard Pryor). ''Rhinoceros,'' released in 1974, was the first film to have a woman as the union still photographer. She has worked on more than fifty motion pictures including: ''Leap of Faith'' (1992), ''LA Story'' (1991), ''Paradise'' (1991), ''Another You'' (1991), ''Maniac Cop 2'' (1990), ''Turner & Hooch'' (1989), ''Pink Cadillac'' (1989), ''The Dead Pool'' (1988), ''Bird'' (1998), ''The Seventh Sign'' (1988), ''Back to the Beach'' (1987), ''Heartbreak Ridge'' (1986), ''Ratboy'' (1986), ''

Pale Rider ''Pale Rider'' is a 1985 American Western film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood, who also stars in the lead role. The title is a reference to the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, as the pale horse's ghost rider (Eastwood) represents D ...

'' (1985), ''Get Crazy'' (1983), ''Kiss Me Goodbye'' (1982), ''Endangered Species'' (1982), ''Heartbeeps'' (1981), ''Ordinary People'' (1980), ''The Muppet Movie'' (1979), ''Comes a Horseman'' (1978), ''The Gauntlet'' (1977), ''The Enforcer'' (1976), ''The Last Tycoon'' (1976) and ''Rhinoceros'' (1974). Reed has one visual effects credit as a still photographer in 1977 on IMDB for ''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' (she spent a month on foot taking the Devil's Tower photographs) where she is listed as Marcia Reid.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Marcia 1948 births Living people American women photographers Movie stills photographers ArtCenter College of Design Grant High School (Los Angeles) alumni 21st-century American women