April 01, 2015

Bosch

Bosch is among the group of “OTT” streaming original series being finished by Technicolor, in this case produced by Amazon Studios, under the auspices of their Amazon Prime dramas, in UHD format.

The series is an adaptation of author Michael Connelly’s best-selling Bosch crime novels.  Streamed in early February, the finished episodes were an immediate hit, and the series was recently picked-up for a second season.  Technicolor provided color finishing as well as sound mixing and editorial for the series’ first season.

Bosch stars Titus Welliver as Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch, a grizzled Los Angeles homicide detective. Employing the measured pace of an unfolding novel, the first season introduces Bosch as a native Angelino, whose mother’s murder precipitated a possible life of crime for a young Harry Bosch who was incarcerated in the juvenile detention system in LA – where he unknowingly crossed paths with the series’ first season antagonist, who later became a serial killer.  The narrative reveals the flawed, messy, and complicated world of homicide detectives in LA.  The motif of a mirror image playing across the show’s opening title sequence, something of a “Rorschach test,” serves as a central metaphor for the series’ first season: a cop and a criminal whose past life and current preoccupations play-off one another in a discordant harmony.

Bosch was brought to Technicolor by cinematographer Eric Edwards who wanted to work with senior theatrical digital colorist Michael Hatzer.  Edwards shot the series pilot, which Hatzer graded in advance of the series getting “picked up.”

The first season moved around Los Angeles, shot mostly outdoors and much at night, revealing a city of stark contrasts, beautifully photographed by Edwards, Patrick Cady, ASC and Paul Sommers, shooting on Red Epic Dragon cameras. Subsequent to the series pilot episode, Technicolor’s Scotty Klein provided finishing color (assisted by Jesus Borrego); John Van Wye handled the editorial, while Lindsay Hoppe delivered visual effects. Technicolor’s broadcast sound-team was led by sound supervisor Brad North, dailies mixer Joe De Angelis, and FX mixer Ken Kobett.

“Mood was key to what we were hoping to accomplish with the grading.” commented Scott Klein, “especially towards the end of the season once the audience experiences some the more toxic character situations and environments.”