Award-winning cinematographer Phedon Papamichael is making his debut as a short film director on “A Beautiful Day”.
Papamichael has directed features in the past, including “Lost Angeles”, “Arcadia Lost”, and “From Within”, but his busy schedule working on major Hollywood productions lately has kept him from dabbling in directing too much.
Currently, he is in between projects as he wrapped up work on “The Huntsman: Winter’s War”, written by Evan Spiliotopoulos, and is preparing himself to work on Alexander Payne‘s “Downsizing”.
Phedon signed on to direct this short film project because he truly believes in its potential. “A Beautiful Day” was written by Angeliki Giannakopoulos, a friend of Papamichael’s, who asked him to read her script and give her his thoughts. Though Phedon initially suggested that Giannakopoulos should direct, Angeliki’s experience in directing lay in the theater world, so she placed the movie in Phedon’s hand.
Phedon is joined on the set of “A Beautiful Day” by his frequent co-workers, key grip Ray Garcia, and cinematographer Cory Geryak.
The short, featuring James Brolin and Frances Fisher, focuses on an old man who is clearly having a somewhat unusual day, as he varies his usual humdrum routine by paying his gardener for the entire year, visiting a prostitute, and writing a check for the total sum in his bank account. However, the short doesn’t reveal the man’s motivations until later on, keeping viewers intrigued in what could be happening in the protagonist’s emotional life.
When asked about what it was like to shoot a short, Phedon said, “I really enjoyed it, even more than I expected….We found the cast had a blast portraying these characters. The economy of the shots — the way the story is told, and the pacing — are all very effective emotionally.”
Phedon and the rest of the crew plan to submit the film to festivals, and for Academy consideration. We will follow along and keep you updated on future news for “A Beautiful Day”, as well as other collaborations between all the talented Greek-Americans working in Hollywood.
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