Clubhouse Conversations — Ballad of a Small Player

In-depth coverage of cinematographer James Friend, ASC, BSC's work on Ballad of a Small Player is featured in American Cinematographer's November 2025 issue. Learn more here about how to subscribe to the industry's leading journal of motion-picture production techniques.

In this episode, cinematographer James Friend, ASC, BSC is joined by interviewer Suki Medenčević, ASC, ASBiH, SAS to discuss his work on Ballad of a Small Player — a dark-comedic psychological thriller from director Edward Berger that follows a high-stakes card player's strange journey in Macau.

Ballad of a Small Player tells the story of Lord Doyle (Colin Farrell), a gambler contending with rising debts, whose encounter with a mysterious casino employee presents an opportunity to be freed of his financial woes. The film marks the second feature collaboration between Friend and Berger — their first being the war epic All Quiet On the Western Front, which earned Friend the Academy Award for Best Cinematography in 2023.

Conversation Highlights

Friend's conversation with Medenčević explores a range of strategies, as well as the creative and practical challenges he encountered, including:

• Reconstructing real casino interiors as fully controllable lighting environments
• Developing a cyan-blue palette to complement the film's nocturnal world
• Shooting in the 2.2:1 aspect ratio to emphasize Macau's vertical scale
• How his choice of camera and lenses enabled shooting in low-light situations

• Crafting shots using macro and probe lenses to immerse viewers in the psychological state of a gambler

James Friend, ASC, BSC is a cinematographer whose credits include the features Enemy of Man, Breakdown and Lords of London, as well as numerous TV series and commercials. For his work on the Showtime miniseries Patrick Melrose, he was recognized with the 2019 ASC Award for Motion Picture, Miniseries, or Pilot Made for Television; the BSC Silver Camera Award for Best Cinematography in a TV Drama; the 2018 Camerimage award for First Look — TV Pilots; and BAFTA and Emmy nominations. For his work on All Quiet on the Western Front, he earned the Academy Award for Best Cinematography in 2023.

Suki Medenčević, ASC, ASBiH, SAS is a cinematographer whose credits include the Camerimage Golden Frog nominee The Great Water and the series The Big Cigar, Shining Vale and Surfside Girls.

You’ll find all episodes in our ASC Clubhouse Conversations discussion series here.

Images courtesy of Netflix.