Rising Stars: Meet Harry Lipnick

Today we’d like to introduce you to Harry Lipnick.

Hi Harry, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
There was always a video camera in my house when I was a kid, and as soon as I figured out how it worked, I completely gravitated towards it. Training the lens of the camera on the world as I wanted to see fascinated me then and still holds my imagination nearly thirty years later. I always knew that I wanted to be a filmmaker when I “grew up”.

I fell into my first job in LA almost by accident. I happened to be in the right place at the right time during a vacation to LA and through friends of friends met a producer who needed to replace their cinematographer last minute. Nine days later, I’d cancelled my flight home and was on set shooting my first feature. That project helped me get the next one, and since then I’ve had the opportunity to shoot five features, lots of short films and work with people I’m humbled to call my colleagues.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Pursuing a career as a cinematographer has certainly been a journey – and continues to be. A bumpy road has its benefits, though. Never being one-hundred percent sure where the next gig is going to come from has helped keep me hungry for work and crystallized my desire to keep telling stories with a camera.

There’s benefits, too, in the open moments of a freelance life. Filling my spare time with creative energy has proven to be a salve to the rockier times. Flipping through photo books or spending an afternoon in a museum helps me stay engaged in an imaginative mindset when I’m not on a project. I also really enjoy woodworking and painting – it’s been important for me to carve out space for creative pursuits that are just about the joy of making.

The film business is full of supportive folks, too. Most of us really want to do this work. It’s just too hard a path if your heart’s not in it. That shared experience engenders a strong camaraderie and a tremendous capacity to boost each other up.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I love being a cinematographer. Storytelling is sacred for me, and I’m both invigorated and filled with deep gratitude to be a filmmaker who gets to join with other storytellers to make art.

I approach my work very seriously but really try to have fun and create a fun environment with my collaborators. A relaxed and easy-going working environment seems to be the most conducive to creativity, even on projects with the most serious of content. Much of my most important work as a cinematographer is in preparation, but I try to show up with an open mind and be a student of the moment on set – to allow space for better ideas than the ones we had in mind that morning.

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
When I was a kid, my grandfather would take us to a little magic-trick shop on the second floor of an old building. The trips were quick but cherished. We’d leave with something small – a plastic thumb and a handkerchief, maybe. When we got home, he’d show us how it was done.

Without having to say anything at all, Pop’s magic tricks would be an invitation: “Come with me, and let me borrow your imagination for a few minutes.” He was not the ultimate master of sleight-of-hand, nor were his tricks terribly complex – but his commitment to the experience was intoxicating. I *wanted* to believe in the magic. The illusions – and the way he performed them – were so enchanting that I hardly had any choice.

I think when I was seven I’d have told you I was going to spend my life performing magic. That’s not precisely how it’s played out, of course. I still try to keep my grandpa’s excitement with me. I want my films to draw the audience in, to invite them into a world, to wrap them up into a story and to say “Hey, let me borrow your imagination for a few minutes.”

Contact Info:

• Website: www.harrylipnick.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hlipnick

Image Credits
Still from “Before You” #1 – Cinematography by Harry Lipnick, Directed by Gia-Rayne Harris Still from “Before You” #2 – Cinematography by Harry Lipnick, Directed by Gia-Rayne Harris Still from “Birthday” #1 – Cinematography by Harry Lipnick, Directed by Daniel J. Egbert Still from “Birthday” #2 – Cinematography by Harry Lipnick, Directed by Daniel J. Egbert Harry Lipnick Photo #1 – Photo by Sara Kinney Harry Lipnick Photo #2 – Photo by Jared Hawkley Harry Lipnick Photo #3 – Photo by Sara Kinney Harry Lipnick Photo #4 – Photo by Julian Park