Art & Crafts LIVE: Making a ‘Brutal, Dirty’ Western in ‘American Primeval’

In this episode recorded live on May 8 at the American Society of Cinematographers Clubhouse in Los Angeles, director Jennifer Arnold speaks with three of the creators behind Netflix’s American Primeval: director of photography Jacques Jouffret, ASC, makeup department head Howard Berger and sound designer Wylie Stateman. The limited series follows the battle for control of the American West in 1857 through the eyes of a mother (Betty Gilpin) and son, on the run with the help of a steely mountain man (Taylor Kitsch). “Brutal, dirty and grimy,” Jouffert says, is what director Peter Berg wanted for the 19th century Western, and the three artisans share how they delivered, shooting in changeable weather and light at 10,000 feet, creating authentic indigenous looks and developing a distinct sonic signature for cold wind.