FilmLight Colour Awards 2024: Jury Insight with Tim Masick

Tim Masick co-founded Company 3 New York in 2002. He graded many iconic music videos released during the golden age of hip-hop for acts such as Missy Elliott and Busta Rhymes. He's also brought his keen eye and technical prowess to a wide variety of commercials for top directors and cinematographers for major global brands, including luxury, fashion and beauty campaigns and projects.  

Tim won the Best Commercial Award at the FilmLight Colour Awards in 2021 (Dior Spring Summer 2021) and 2023 (Zara Man SS23). He has also won or been nominated for numerous AICP, HPA and FilmLight Colour Awards for colour and has worked on multiple Emmy, Cannes Lions, and Clio Award-winning commercials and campaigns.

This year, Tim sits on the jury of the FilmLight Colour Awards. We reached out to him to ask why these awards are so important.

Q> You won the FilmLight Colour Awards for best colour grading on a commercial in 2021 and 2023. Can you share your experience about those wins?

Tim> Definitely. It's great to be acknowledged. The FilmLight Colour Awards are global in scope, and to be recognised on this scale is important.

In 2021, I attended remotely due to covid-19, but I attended the 2023 ceremony in person, and it brought a totally different experience and vibe. It was an honour to go on stage and receive my award, but the panel afterward is what made it feel truly special to me.

Having DP Lawrence Sher (ASC) host the discussions and engage with everybody there created such a magnificent environment. Everybody involved is incredibly knowledgeable and talented, so having all these people in one room was very special – especially at an event as prestigious as EnergaCamerImage.

Q> What was special about the projects that won?

Tim> The Dior Spring Summer 2021 Collection, shot by DP Benoit Delhomme, used chiaroscuro, putting strong skin tones in sharp contrast with the moody settings, very much in the style of Caravaggio. It was heavily influenced by Renaissance paintings, which I think speaks to so many DPs across the world. After all, that's where all of this is born – cinematography comes from photography and photography comes from paintings. Delhomme's use of light to illuminate a scene, as well as the spot's art direction, is spectacular. It was special.

For Zara Man in 2023, I created a fantasy/dream world where the elements are subtly dramatised, recreating the mood and imagery of Red Desert (1964, director: Michelangelo Antonioni, cinematographer Carlo Di Palma), Paris, Texas (1984, Wim Wenders, Robby Müller) and photographer Todd Hido. It was directed by Fabien Baron, who comes up with some of the most creative ideas, and opportunities for colour to be used that amplify the story or idea. It was also an entirely unique project.

Q> You are a judge for the 2024 FilmLight Colour Awards. What are you looking for from the work?

Tim> Colour should correlate, support, and build the idea and concept of the project. That's how I think colour correction best fits into a project. For me, it shouldn't be, "Hey, look at my colour correction!" The colour should really integrate into everything else.

Q> Why is participating in the FilmLight Colour Awards important to you?

Tim> I really applaud the FilmLight Colour Awards for being software agnostic; that's just one facet that makes the whole package really nice. It's also great to get the chance to see other colourists' work.

Last year I got to see and spend time talking to other winners, like Marina Stark, Cem Ozkilicci and Dirk Meier, whose work I find incredibly inspiring. It's refreshing to hear about the methods used and about their team's work. I am sure I will receive an avalanche of this through judging, and I may pick up a thing or two in the process myself.

Q> The 2024 FilmLight Colour Awards include a new 'Emerging Talent' category (open to colourists age 18-35 for commercial or music video projects). What are your thoughts on this?

Tim> I think it's a great category and it makes the awards even more equitable and advantageous to all colourists - whether they are working on high-end or low-budget projects, or if they are well-established or emerging colourists, there is an opportunity to enter. The entire awards show is approached in a way that gives opportunities to everyone, and I think that is really expressed in this new 'Emerging Talent' category, as well as the 'Spotlight' category.

Q> As a prominent Company 3 colourist, do you have any advice for emerging colourists?

Tim> I always recommend that young colourists be flexible and aim to develop a deep understanding of the tools that are accessible to them.

Often, I'll see young colourists take on heavy tasks and try to complete them using one single LUT. My advice is to take on these tasks without using a LUT - instead use every tool imaginable and as many layers/nodes needed to recreate it and really understand where you can go with the tools you have on-hand. This will allow you to use them in unorthodox ways and create something truly unique. As a colourist, you'll get thrown so many different situations along the way, so having that understanding is a powerful tool.

Q> How much involvement do you have in preproduction for commercials and/or music videos?

Tim> For me, it depends on my relationship with the people involved in the project. More so with music videos, if you have worked with that same DP a few times then you can definitely add your input and have more of an influence early on.

Q> How do you like to work with the director and DP?

Tim> The more the director and DP can be involved, the better. They're thinking visually 98-100% of the time, so to be able to build on their idea, bring it together and present another variation or off-shoot of what they have described is always great - you really feel part of the process. If they're not involved it can feel more like you're just checking boxes.

Also, the more you work with someone, the more you develop. It's an ever-evolving relationship - you know them, understand them and have established certain things, but as you continue to collaborate you can really start to push boundaries.

Q> What would you say is the greatest highlight of your career?

Tim> I think the greatest high points of my career have come from working with a director and/or DP on a consistent basis. With Fabien, for example, we have spent so many years making spots together, and it has been really spectacular creating all the material we have.

Another DP I work with a lot is Alexander Dynan, and we have collaborated on many movies and TV shows together. Director Todd Field, as well — working with him and DP Florian Hoffmeister on Tár (2022), which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography, was an incredibly rewarding experience.