Following a spectacular night at the 98th Academy Awards, FotoKem is happy to celebrate both the films and our pivotal role in bringing a few of this year’s biggest Oscar winners to the screen. Warner Bros.’ One Battle After Another (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor, Best Film Editing, and Best Casting) and the epic Sinners (Best Cinematography, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Original Score) dominated the ceremony, taking home a combined ten Academy Awards, including the Best Cinematography award for Autumn Durald Arkapaw, the fourth woman in the Academy’s history to be nominated for Best Cinematography and the first ever to win.
Behind the breathtaking visuals of both great films is FotoKem’s legendary and unparalleled expertise in large-format film processing, scanning, and color grading, as we worked closely with directors Paul Thomas Anderson and Ryan Coogler and cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw to push the boundaries of analog filmmaking.
For Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, lensed by cinematographer Michael Bauman, FotoKem navigated the complex workflow required for the legacy 35mm VistaVision format, handling everything from daily high-resolution scanning and traditional color timing to executing complex optical blow-ups and crafting analog release prints in both 35mm and 70mm formats.
Shooting Sinners on 5-perf 65mm Ultra Panavision and 15-perf IMAX, Coogler and Durald Arkapaw relied on FotoKem’s comprehensive lab and color services from end to end. From early large-format test screenings to processing massive negatives and striking pristine 70mm theatrical prints, FotoKem’s partnership with these visionary filmmakers highlights our ongoing dedication to the beauty and spectacle of celluloid.
And last but definitely not least, FotoKem’s Margarita Mix is incredibly proud to have provided top-tier recording services for Sony Pictures Animation and Netflix’s smash hit, K-Pop Demon Hunters. The genre-bending musical fantasy took home the Oscars for both Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song for the chart-topping anthem, “Golden.” Bringing the dual lives of the demon-hunting K-pop group HUNTR/X to the screen required world-class audio, and the Margarita Mix team was thrilled to help capture the film’s dynamic vocal performances. It was a true honor to partner with visionary directors Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans and to see their groundbreaking, culturally rich story recognized on Hollywood’s biggest stage!
