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Breaking Down The Cinematography of Beasts Of The Southern Wild

Cinematographer Ben Richardson delves into how he shot the film.

“The whole universe depends on the universe fitting together just right,” says Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis), the young star in Beasts of the Southern Wild.

The same principle could be applied to the film’s cinematography, which Ben Richardson discusses in our exclusive behind-the-scenes video above. Using primarily a Arriflex 416 camera, his modus operandi was to capture the feel of the Southern Louisiana bayou, concocting a visual story that captured small details like bugs and the humidity balanced out with enough wide shots to avoid suffocating the viewer. “I tried to be [Hushpuppy’s] sense, if not literally her eyes,” says Richardson.

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Find out how Richardson pulled off his receptive technique—ultimately winning him a Excellence in Cinematography Award at Sundance 2012—in the video above.

If you missed them, watch the rest of our behind-the-scenes series on Beasts of the Southern Wild below.

@CreatorsProject