Chester Law - Filmmaker

Chester Law

Based in Tokyo, I am a cinematographer and editor who previously worked in New York City.

Cinematographer alumnus of Kyoto Filmmakers Lab by Toei Studios, Shochiku Studios, and the Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF).

My films have screened at various international film festivals, including Short Shorts Film Festival in Tokyo.

Coming from an international background, I speak English, Japanese, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

With a computer engineering background, I'm always interested in how to use the latest technologies to improve film production. Specifically in the arena of previs, I've found that reviewing camera angle options in the days or weeks ahead of production through 3D models allows for smoother days on set. See below for a video showcase.

@annocinema

Instagram: 37K followers Twitter: 41K followers

Community and crowdfunding success.

Hideaki Anno is my filmmaking inspiration. His use of limited animation in the 1997 anime “His and Her Circumstances” made a huge impression on me and is the reason I became interested in film in the first place.

To better understand his method and to keep my findings organized, I posted onto Instagram analyses of his compositions and his editing. Over time people discovered my work, growing the account into the following today.

With said following I was also able to crowdfund English subtitles for many of Anno's Japanese interviews. To date $10,000, these funds have allowed people in the West greater insight into the popular director.

Portfolio

Before the End

Role: Director of Photography

Director: TJ Kayama/Takumi Matsumoto

Continued collaboration between TJ Kayama and I brought forth "Before the End", a short film that was produced with the Hachioji Short Film Festival.

Shot over 3 days, access to ballrooms and churches elevated the scale of the project.

The Cyclist

Role: Director/Director of Photography/Editor

The unique aspect of this short film is in that the camera is mounted to the titular cyclist's iPhone for the entire 6-minute runtime.

Regardless to whether he's holding the phone or it's on his bike or otherwise, we're looking squarely at the device.

The Kiss

Role: Director of Photography

Director: Haruka Yamakawa

Really enjoyed his opportunity to finally shoot a short film in the 4:3 aspect ratio.

While the story is straightforward, I think the experimental editing style paired well with my style of cinematography.

Pieces of Her Dream

Role: Director of Photography

Director: Cailee Oliver

A near-future sci-fi story from the mind of Cailee Oliver.

A larger scale project that tested the limits of my use of previs technology.

Father and Son

Role: Director of Photography

Director: Ryosuke Sugawara

A Japanese period short film (jidaigeki) shot in Kyoto at Shochiku's soundstages for the Kyoto Filmmakers Lab.

Working with an old-school Japanese lighting team was an interesting experience, both in the communication aspect and seeing their unique methods.

Synthetic Love

Role: Director of Photography

Director: Yoko Higuchi

This short film served as my testbed for previs. Actors' heights were taken during pre-production and put into the 3D computer model, upon which compositions were mulled over and decided. Knowing where to set the camera and at what focal lengths saved the shoot which was wrought with adverse weather conditions.

Dreams of an Everyman

Role: Director/Director of Photography/Editor

Inspired by the films of Terrence Malick, I took a break from my usual tripod style of cinematography and ventured into the handheld realm. Such was the perfect fit with the documentary setting, with the fluid nature of handheld allowing me to be more reactive to what was going on.

Unlike most documentaries that rely on interviews to drive the narrative, "Dreams of an Everyman" uses moments and events, much like a traditional scripted film would.

Screened at the Tokyo Art Tank in Shibuya.

Kohaku

Role: Director of Photography/Editor

Director: TJ Kayama

For this short film, every shot other than the B-roll wides were previs'd. Knowing we had a limited amount of time at each location, deciding during pre-production on the type of coverage we wanted was crucial to the shoot's success.

With faster setup times, more angles and takes were achieved than on non-previsualized projects.

STEALZ PV

Role: Director/Director of Photography/Editor

Client: Tailwalk

Product release promotional video for Tailwalk's STEALZ fishing reel.

Other than the drone shots, shot everything from the on-location boat shots to the the product shots of the reel with a rear LED wall to create interesting reflections and contrasts with the product.

A Colored Capsule

Role: Director of Photography/Editor

Director/Writer: Calvin Keisuke Shimohira

A short film on the pressures of the Japanese education system.

This ended up being the last scripted film I did not do previs on.