About the Book
Academy Award-winning actor Jeff Bridges is widely adored asa jewel of American cinema, with dozens of leading credits to his name. For more than 30 years, on numerous film sets, Bridges, with his specialized panoramic camera, a Widelux F8, has captured behind-the-scenes views of the creative world of moviemaking. Now, 16 years since his first collection of photography, comesVolume Two.
Taking pictures of coworkers on the job results in compelling photographs, especially when those people include the likes of Meryl Streep, Robert Duvall, Julianne Moore, Olivia Wilde, and Matt Damon, among others. Unique photos from his earlier work were first shared inPictures: Jeff Bridges(powerHouse Books, 2003). Now, drawing on his most recent film work,Jeff Bridges: Pictures Volume 2expands on Bridges' intimate vision of Hollywood behind-the-scenes. Included within are rare looks at the famed actors, top directors, talented costumers and makeup artists, skilled and creative set and art decoration, and the rest of thepassionate crews involved in such memorable movies asTrue Grit,Crazy Heart,The Giver,TRON: Legacy, andHell or High Water. Together, these pictures provide glimpses of the art, craft, and sleight of hand behind the magic of motion pictures.Jeff Bridges:Pictures Volume 2also celebrates Bridges' mastery of the special effects made possible with the distinctive Widelux panoramic camera.
Bridges' proceeds fromJeff Bridges: Pictures Volume Twowill be donated to the Motion Picture & Television Fund, a nonprofit organization that offers charitable care and support to film-industry workers.
About the Author :
One of Hollywood's most successful actors and a seven-time Academy Award nominee, Jeff Bridges garnered his first Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for his performance in Crazy Heart–as Bad Blake, a down-on-his-luck, alcoholic country music singer. Since earning his initial Oscar nomination in 1971 for The Last Picture Show, he has been honored with seven nominations, most recently for Hell or High Water (2016). In a career spanning nearly 50 years, he has appeared in more than 65 films, among them Seabiscuit, The Big Lebowski, True Grit, The Fabulous Baker Boys, Starman, and most recently Bad Times at the El Royale. Through his company, ASIS Productions, he has also produced films and television movies, including the documentary Living in the Future's Pasts as well as The Giver, American Heart, The Only Living Boy in New York, and Hidden in America. Photography and music are two of his passions. Bridges' photographs have been featured in Premiere and Aperture, as well as in gallery exhibitions in New York (at the George Eastman House), Los Angeles, London, Italy, and the Museum of Photographic Arts in San Diego. In 2013, Jeff received an Infinity Award from the International Center of Photography. In February 2015, Jeff released a spoken word/ambient album titled Sleeping Tapes. The collaboration was co-produced with musician Keefus Ciancia who also supplied the music. The album was released by web hosting service Squarespace as part of its Super Bowl advertising campaign, with all proceeds from the album sales going to charity.
Review :
“A stunning achievement. On more than 70 films, spanning over 50 years, Jeff Bridges has kept a photographic journal of his life on set. Using the Widelux camera, with its unique elongated format, rotating lens, and black-and-white film, he has captured behind-the-scenes Hollywood in a way no one has before or since. These photos, often accompanied by hand-written observations and insights, are then sequenced into a limited-edition book, which Bridges gives away to all those participating in the film. What is amazing to me is how good the images are. They are dense with information and gorgeously seen, edge-to-edge. Bridges’ best pictures rival Garry Winogrand’s with a formal and dynamic rigor. Out of the discipline and commitment to produce the work year after year, film after film, a unique photographic oeuvre has come to life.”
“His photographs expose the irrational reality of moviemaking and stand as an homage to that process.”
“Jeff goes wide!”
“Jeff Bridges’ talent is so impressive in so many areas, words cannot express. So let his great photos do that for me.”
"The resulting photographs provide an intimate and rare look into who makes movies and how they do it. They are also well-crafted and beautiful documents in and of themselves. The wide-format photos are almost like small movies within the movies Bridges is chronicling."
"From his images emerges the collaborative spirit that binds the cast during filming, the daily routine on the set and the intense friends and family relationships woven by the actor during his life."
"Although not precisely 'documentary' in style, his images do document life..."
AS SEEN ON: Access Hollywood, B&H Photo podcast, BuzzFeed (Best books of 2019), Creative Review, Hollywood Reporter, Jimmy Kimmel Live and KTLA.
"Jeff has been a master of the Widelux for years and has created an iconic, behind-the-scenes, super-wide, and inside look at the world of movie making"
