ASC Elections: Johnson to Serve Second Presidential Term
Society officers remain largely unchanged, but five new Board members and three new Alternates are seated.
The new ASC Board of Governors held elections on Saturday, May 18, to determine officers to serve the 2024-’25 term, with Shelly Johnson, ASC maintaining his position as President of the Society.
“During recent challenging times, the ASC has strived to serve as the glue to keep our community together,” Johnson said in a statement following the elections. “As we are accustomed on-set, cinematographers lead by example and we hope that The ASC’s outreach of support, education and collaborative spirit will continue to set the tone that helps facilitate a positive and rewarding future.
“Cinematographers are an open collective and we are happy to share our knowledge and values for the betterment of the art form — and help fulfill the creation of a healthy and vibrant existence that evolves with the modern movement of our industry.”
Johnson, the 47th ASC member to serve as president since 1919, won his first election in May of 2023. He has been a member of the ASC since 2000 and is also a member the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
A California native, he graduated from the Art Center College of Design in 1980. Inspired in part by the camera crews his father worked with as a director, Johnson focused on cinematography, soon establishing himself with an impressive and diverse array of television series, movies and miniseries, including the 1997 retelling of Stephen King's The Shining. He earned ASC Award nominations for his work in the telefilms Everybody's Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure (1990) and The Inheritance (1997), as well as the series The Others (2000), and the pilot to the series Training Day (2017).
Johnson parlayed this success into the feature realm, his credits including Jurassic Park III, The Last Castle, Hidalgo, Sky High, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. The Wolfman, Captain America: The First Avenger and the World War II drama Greyhound.
Newly seated Board members to serve a three-year term are Natasha Braier, Tommy Maddox-Upshaw, Erik Messerschmidt, M. David Mullen and Cynthia Pusheck.
Pusheck has previously served on the Board, and her election as 3rd Vice President is the only change in officers from the previous year.
Newly elected Alternate members of the Board are Russell Carpenter, Ernest Dickerson and Richard P. Crudo. The Alternates participate in meetings (in the order of their entry) if Board members are absent, in order to ensure that there is always a quorum and Society business can progress. Crudo is a past ASC President.
Here is the complete current ASC leadership structure:
OFFICERS
Shelly Johnson
President
Charlie Lieberman
1st Vice President
Patti Lee
2nd Vice President
Cynthia Pusheck
3rd Vice President
Charles Minsky
Treasurer
Dejan Georgevich
Secretary
Christopher Chomyn
Sargeant at Arms
MEMBERS OF THE BOARD
Natasha Braier
Patrick Cady
Michael Goi
Shelly Johnson
Patti Lee
Charlie Lieberman
Karl-Walter Lindenlaub
Tommy Maddox-Upshaw
Erik Messerschmidt
Charles Minsky
M. David Mullen
Lowell Peterson
Cynthia Pusheck
Eric Steelberg
Mandy Walker
ALTERNATES
Russell Carpenter
Ernest Dickerson
Dejan Georgevich
Christopher Chomyn
Richard P. Crudo
The complete ASC Roster can be found here.
The ASC was founded in 1919. There are 452 members today who have national roots in some 20 countries. There are also 287 associate members from ancillary segments of the industry.
The mission of ASC is to inspire the next generation of cinematographers and to advance the art of filmmaking through many industry events and initiatives. The Society has more than 20 committees leading the organization’s various initiatives, including the award-winning Motion Imaging Technology Council (MITC), formed in 2003 to understand technology’s ongoing impact on the imaging chain in a way that best serves the creative interests of filmmakers; the Vision Committee, which encourages and supports the advancement of underrepresented cinematographers, their crews and other filmmakers; regional and international Master Classes taught by members; Clubhouse Conversations with filmmakers; and the Education & Outreach Committee which engages with film schools.
