“Truth First, Art Second” — Othello Banaci on Cinematography, Process, and Pressure

Описание: How close should a camera get to feel honest — not staged?

In this episode of The Opening Scene, Cam Lawson sits down with Othello Banaci (DP / director / multi-hyphenate) to break down what it really looks like to build trust on set. Othello runs calm, peaceful productions — meditating before call time, using a project “theme song” to set the tone, and designing interviews for connection first.

From experimenting visually on Sun Ra: Do the Impossible to unique framing for real-time truth on 38 at the Garden, Othello explains how he thinks about camera distance, time, light, and story. He also opens up about directing a dense scholarly project for Yale’s slavery research work — and the discipline it took to meet an institutional standard of truth, knowledge, and excellence.

Produced by Allegory Productions and Will Name This Agency Later.

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Follow Othello Banaci: @othellobanaci
Follow the show: @theopening.scene
Guest inquiries: [email protected]

00:00 — DMV creatives “Voltron” + why collaborators matter
00:38 — Cold open: calm sets, “DP identity = human,” truth by design
01:57 — What it’s like on Othello’s sets: peace + good energy
02:54 — Meditation before call time + using a project theme song
04:41 — “My DP identity is human” (blend vs outlier)
05:36 — The myth: “No one cares what camera you shoot on”
06:21 — Sun Ra approach: visuals must be different
07:10 — “They threw out the Legos” (kaleidoscopes, halos, probes)
08:10 — Multi-cam docs: why 3 cameras is the sweet spot
09:10 — Supporting the director: rules, framing, and restraint
12:08 — Deliberate practice: basketball mindset applied to film
15:08 — 38 at the Garden: origin story + getting involved
18:05 — I-Direct explained: how to make interviews feel real
19:10 — Cut-scenes + first-person doc language
20:09 — Story-first directors + bold lens choices (12mm at MSG)
21:37 — Favorite setups + building interviews in real spaces
23:23 — How he walks into a room: natural light, practicals, flicker
26:36 — “A calm mind is a powerful mind” + timer workflow
28:20 — From photo → DP: why the job is responsibility
30:09 — Craft metaphor: seasoning, marinating, plating the story
32:06 — Critique, trolls, and learning to see what you missed
38:09 — Yale Slavery Research Project: directing (not DP)
41:34 — Pre-interviews, dense material, and higher stakes
42:54 — “We don’t do mistakes” (truth under a microscope)
46:14 — Restructuring life: 8+ hours/day of Yale prep
46:55 — Using an interviewer so the director can be critical
48:44 — The weight of the work + why it changed them
51:19 — Excellence culture: “Working with Yale was like Jordan”
54:11 — Why filmmaking matters (spirit, senses, heart)
55:08 — The question we missed: collaborators + DMV ecosystem
58:00 — Truth first, art second: serving real people and history
59:48 — DP mentorship: learning from directors + long-term goals
01:03:30 — Advice to emerging DPs: live life + deliberate practice
01:05:40 — Closing