
'Sinners' Cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw
From IndieWire's Filmmaker Toolkit by Chris O'Falt
February 26, 2026 · 53 min
About this episode
Autumn Durald Arkapaw discusses her groundbreaking work on 'Sinners' and the challenges of being a woman in cinematography.
For her masterful work on "Sinners," Autumn became only the fourth woman in history to be nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar. She opened up with IndieWire VP Chris O'Falt about the prospect of becoming the first woman to win that award, and how being a woman in the field affected her early career and her current balance between work and family. And of course we dig into all the nerdy craft details, including a more candid conversation about the decision to use IMAX than you may have heard elsewhere. Revisit our episode with "Elvis" Cinematographer Mandy Walker, the third woman nominee in the category - open.spotify.com/episode/5iPCSArQfCBhCce1HbdsWE?si=CleehbCZTPmF7POubrB9ow Subscribe to Top Of The Line - IndieWire's new newsletter about the craft of film and TV - https://cloud.email.indiewire.com/signup/ 0:00 - Intro 1:53 - Autumn's career and personal live leading to "Sinners." 15:00 - Why the look of "Sinners" is so personal to Autumn. 18:50 - Capturing the authentic harsh sun & muggy nights of Mississippi Delta 23:54 - The challenges and technical details of shooting on IMAX film cameras. 35:13 - Executing the surreal 'I Lied to You' sequence. 40:12 - The challenges of…
People in this episode
Host: Chris O'Falt
Guest: Autumn Durald Arkapaw
Topics covered
- Cinematography
- Women in Film
- IMAX Filming
- Awards Campaign
- Personal Stories
- Technical Challenges
Keywords
- Best Cinematography Oscar
- IMAX
- Mississippi Delta
- VFX
- Awards Campaign
- Cinematographer
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: IndieWire, Top Of The Line, Spotify
Books & works: Sinners, Elvis
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