TCM Tribute to ASC Centennial — Discussions with Robert D. Yeoman, ASC

Host Ben Mankiewicz welcomed the cinematographer to the studio to discuss their special November screening series, ASC history, how to become a Society member, and his own experiences on the set. 

On November 6, Turner Classic Movies launched a slate of feature film programming honoring exceptional cinematography and the 100th anniversary of the founding of the ASC in 1919. (Complete schedule below.)

Many of the 37 titles in the TCM series are all-time classics that have become creative touchstones for generations of cinematographers and are included in the ASC’s 100 Milestone Films in Cinematography of the 20th Century list, which was voted upon by ASC members and coordinated by Steven Fierberg, ASC.

This first day of TCM programming featured The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), Casablanca (1942), On the Waterfront (1954), North by Northwest (1959), The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Searchers (1956), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), Sunrise (1927) and Metropolis (1927).

Also screening was the new feature-length documentary Image Makers: The Adventures of America’s Pioneer Cinematographers (2019), directed and edited by Daniel Raim, produced by Raim and Curtis Clark, ASC, and narrated by Michael McKean.

This special TCM screening series is hosted by Ben Mankiewicz, who welcomed Robert D. Yeoman, ASC (Rushmore, Bridesmaids, The Grand Budapest Hotel) to the studio to discuss some of the films playing that evening, the history of the ASC and how to become a Society member, as well as his own experiences as a veteran cinematographer working with such directors as Wes Anderson and William Friedkin. 

In case you missed them, we can share these discussions from the evening of Nov. 6 with you here — thanks to TCM:

As noted in the discussion, Mankiewicz has been the host of the ASC Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography Awards show for the past two years. (Coverage of the 2019 program can be found here, featuring numerous photos and videos.)

Note that Yeoman will join Mankiewicz throughout this month on each night of this TCM series honoring the ASC and cinematographers everywhere. The three upcoming days of films will take place on Nov. 13, 20 and 27.

Below is the complete screening schedule for the slate of 37 films:

Wednesday, November 6 
100^th Anniversary of The American Society of Cinematographers – Day One 

6:00 AM         The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) Stanley Cortez, ASC
8:00 AM         Casablanca (1942) Arthur Edeson, ASC
10:00 AM        On the Waterfront (1954) Boris Kaufman, ASC
12:00 PM        North by Northwest (1959) Robert Burks, ASC
2:30 PM          The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
5:30 PM          The Searchers (1956) Winton C. Hoch, ASC
8:00 PM          Image Makers (2019)
9:30 PM          The Grapes of Wrath (1940) Gregg Toland, ASC
12:00 AM        Image Makers (2019)
1:30 AM          Sunrise (1927) Charles Rosher, ASC & Karl Struss, ASC
3:15 AM          Metropolis (1927) Karl Freund, ASC

Wednesday, November 13
100^th Anniversary of The American Society of Cinematographers – Day Two

6:00 AM          Bicycle Thieves (1948) Carlo Montuori
7:45 AM          8 ½ (1963) Gianni Di Venanzo
10:15 AM        I Am Cuba (1964) Sergey Urusevsky
12:45 PM        The Battle of Algiers (1966) Marcello Gatti
2:45 PM          Breathless (1960) Raoul Coutard
4:30 PM          Image Makers (2019)
6:00 PM          Black Narcissus (1947) Jack Cardiff, BSC
8:00 PM          The Red Shoes (1948) Jack Cardiff, BSC
10:30 PM        Dr. Strangelove (1964) Gilbert Taylor, BSC
12:30 AM        Seven Samurai (1954) Asakazu Nakai
4:15 AM          Rashomon (1950) Kazuo Miyagawa

Wednesday, November 20
100^th Anniversary of The American Society of Cinematographers – Day Three

 6:00 AM         Doctor Zhivago (1965) Freddie Young, BSC
9:30 AM          Fanny and Alexander (1982) Sven Nykvist, ASC
1:00 PM          Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) Haskell Wexler, ASC
3:30 PM          Cabaret (1972) Geoffrey Unsworth, BSC
5:30 PM          Cool Hand Luke (1967) Conrad Hall, ASC
8:00 PM          McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971) Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC, HSC
10:15 PM        Klute (1971) Gordon Willis, ASC
12:30 AM        The Last Picture Show (1971) Robert Surtees, ASC
3:00 AM          The Wild Bunch (1969) Lucien Ballard, ASC

Wednesday, November 27 
100^th Anniversary of The American Society of Cinematographers – Day Four

6:00 AM         Three Colors: Blue (1993) Sławomir Idziak, PSC
8:00 AM         Wings of Desire (1987) Henri Alekan
10:30 AM        Paris, Texas (1984) Robby Müller, NSC, BVK
1:00 PM          Being There (1979) Caleb Deschanel, ASC
3:30 PM          Das Boot (1981) Jost Vacano, ASC
6:00 PM          In the Mood for Love (2000) Christopher Doyle, HKSC & Mark Lee Ping Bin
8:00 PM          Lawrence of Arabia (1962) Freddie Young, BSC
12:00 AM        Citizen Kane (1941) Gregg Toland, ASC
2:15 AM          Image Makers (2019)
3:45 AM          2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) Geoffrey Unsworth, BSC