Following an exhaustive worldwide search Digital Pictures is delighted to announce the appointment of Brett Manson, an internationally renowned colourist with an impressive list of credits including the Academy Award-winning Tsotsi.
Wasting no time, Brett has joined up with two of Australia’s leading directors, Brendan Maher (Spooks, Silent Witness, The Society Murders, MDA) and Grant Brown (Underbelly, McLeod’s Daughters, Blue Heelers) to work on the six-part HD series "Dirt Game". For his next project, we’ll see him pick up Robert Connolly’s new film Balibo starring Anthony LaPaglia (Without A Trace). A powerful true-to-life political thriller which details the events of the Indonesian invasion of East Timor in 1975, the film will be shot in Darwin, Australia and East Timor.
“It’s fantastic to have Brett on board” said Digital Pictures Head of Post-Production Pamela Hammond. “He’s got a great eye and his work is just fabulous. We’re so excited to have a colourist of his calibre and we’re thrilled at the prospect of him working with our local DOP’s and Directors”.
A devotee of Autodesk’s Lustre system, Brett began his career in South Africa working in visual effects before his passion drifted towards digital grading and colour correction. Now having worked as a colourist on 14 feature films, Brett sites his uniquely creative approach on the Lustre, to his background in visual effects. “Starting my career in design has given me a different way of manipulating the toolset. I suppose I see things in an individual way which allows me to be creative with the visual storytelling”.
Brett comes highly recommended from Tsotsi director, Gavin Hood who is currently directing Wolverine, “Brett Manson is a remarkably talented colourist who I had the privilege to work with on Tsotsi. His feeling for film, light and colour is exceptional and he has a really great work ethic and a warm, engaging personality”.
Brett’s expertise using the Lustre toolset impressed Autodesk so much that he became an ambassador for the product, demonstrating its use in London, Amsterdam and Toronto. “For me the Lustre gives me access to virtually infinite numbers of power windows and I enjoy the non-linear workflow. It also works better for me than traditional telecine because I’m able to view the shots within the context of the edit”.
Brett spent the last nine years working for VideoLab in Johannesburg. Previous to that he had various freelance roles and ran his own business.
[release from Digital Pictures]