The Cinematography Podcast Episode 97: Ángel Manuel Soto

When director Ángel Manuel Soto received the script for Charm City Kings, he found a connection in the story of disenfranchised youth growing up in a marginalized community like Baltimore- he himself grew up on the streets of Santurce in Puerto Rico. The movie is a coming of age story centered on a young teen named Mouse and his two buddies, who are determined to join the subculture of dirt bike stunt riders. The film, with a story by Barry Jenkins, is based on a documentary called 12 O'Clock Boys. Ángel wanted the film to be authentic to this rider culture. The bikers in the movie were all real and did their own stunts, which look amazing. His biggest inspiration for the film was Baltimore: shooting on location, working with locals as extras, and keeping it authentic. Ángel worked with cinematographer Katelin Arizmendi to create a raw and naturalistic look. He found it a pleasure to be able to work with such talented actors like Teyonah Parris, Will Catlett, and hip hop artist Meek Mill, who were proactive and prepared with what they wanted to bring to the characters. Ángel had to work within the limited hours for the young cast, but Jahi Di'Allo Winston as Mouse was very natural and intuitive, and all three child actors had chemistry from day one, which is hard to find.

You can watch Charm City Kings streaming now on HBO Max

Find Ángel Manuel Soto

Instagram: @alohemingway

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Close Focus: Star Trek: Discovery is the first TV series to do post production entirely from home, which is something that has been possible for a long time but has only become a real possibility with today's reality and our current technology. Our interview with past guest Jeff Sengpiehl goes into great detail about this.

Illya's short end: Wireless video can now stream from your camera to your phone or tablet without a lot of delay, with the Accsoon CineEye 2 Pro Wireless Video Transmitter & Receiver Set. You can buy one at Hot Rod Cameras.

Ben's short end: In an episode of the web series, 20 Seconds To Live called “Astaroth,” Ben wanted to create a swarm of flies, but lacked the ability to do it at the time. He finally found a company called Creation Effects that has a plug-in called Swarms that can create swarms of different insects, birds, or fish.