Chris T.J. McGuire, SOC – “True Detective”

I started as a Camera Operator with a documentary Cameraman in the UK by the name of Mike Turnbull.  He gave me the opportunity to shoot for a plethora of documentaries in the UK on flagship shows like; BBC’s “Panorama,” ITV’s “World in Action” and CH4’s “Dispatches” amongst many more – this gave me great grounding to shoot with a narrative in mind.

I have always had a passion for the industry as a whole, my first career choice was animation, but realized I didn’t quite have the patience for stop start animation after I spent a summer locked in my bedroom, bringing clay and toys to life.  The camera I was using was one of the original portable Sony Betamax cameras which my Dad had gotten for filming weddings and me, running in cross country races around muddy fields whilst I was at school.

Mixed with my Dad’s love of watching movies the flame of the movie industry set alight in my soul very early on, I just had to find a way in.  And — that way in came in the form of being an Autocue Operator for the BBC.  With this opportunity I was able to make contacts, steadily make right decisions, and learn from everything I saw – especially, all the amazing personalities of the numerous technicians I would meet along the way.

My big break would come in the form of “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” I was asked to 360 around each of the main characters in the underground city to eventually reveal the character Voldemort.  This was an amazing opportunity and I will always remember the huge satisfaction I felt after a day and a half of incredibly physically draining work.

My nomination for my work on HBO’s True Detective includes a head nod of respect to ALL those involved in the show.
Especially all of the hard working Departments that made ‘The Stash House’ Six minute shot, possible in Episode 4.
There were so many visual aspects that came together so well over the course of the show, not only the amazing talent that was Matthew and Woody, but the confidence of the Director Cary Fukunaga and his amazing vision.

One of my favorite setups in the show was a long Dolly shot outside the Burnt out church on the Causeway in New Orleans.

Matthew and Woody arrive in their Vehicle and as Matthew gets out he turns to see a flock of starlings in the sky which form together to make the spiral symbol that is synonymous with the cult the guys are investigating.

The cinematography of that scene was tremendous and thanks to Adam Arkapaw for giving me the opportunity to work some outstanding shots throughout the show.