Tania Freimuth

A career in a visually creative field was always the likely destination for Canon Ambassador Tania Freimuth. She fell in love with photography as a child before going on to study art at university. Then, fuelled by a passion for the moving image, cinematography became the obvious choice.

It's an industry in which her artistic talents have thrived. Early in her career, she shot music videos that were shown on MTV before making the transition to film. She's now best-known for her work on the critically acclaimed short dramas Kid Gloves and Pitfall and was DoP on Little Darlings, a live-action comedy-drama miniseries for Sky Kids.

"I'm quite concerned with aesthetics," says Tania. "When I'm reading someone else's script, I'm considering all the things that move me. It could be the colours that spring to mind or visual imagery inspired by my favourite artists."

As a cinematographer, it's Tania's role to interpret somebody else's script in the way that she sees it. "It's important for me to put my identity into what I do," she says.

This fascination with photography has continued throughout Tania's life. In early adulthood, taking pictures gave her "something to focus on" and became "a protective barrier" between her and the places she visited as she travelled the world. Cinematography is her craft, but photography is the passion that informs it.

Tania's big break as a cinematographer came when she won the Kodak Student Commercial Awards with some friends at the end of their time at university. "We won equipment, money and processing, which led to me making music videos for a few years," she explains. She made videos for English indie rock band The Mock Turtles, which started out as "scratchy time-lapses of clouds shot on Super 8, transferred to VHS and edited offline". These videos eventually got bigger when the band got signed, and included a shoot in Venice for the track And Then She Smiles, which can still be viewed on YouTube.

When her production team disbanded, Tania found herself seeking a new direction and looked for work on commercials. Starting as a clapper loader on advertising shoots, she worked her way up to become a focus puller (or 1st AC) on drama productions.

"While I was working on television dramas, I'd occasionally get asked to shoot short films for people," she recalls. "My big shift from 1st AC to DoP came because someone I'd worked with on a short film came back to me and said, 'I've got money to shoot a feature.'"

Tania is now highly experienced, with over 50 cinematographer or DoP credits to her name – some examples of which you can see in the showreel above. Though her subjects change and she makes sure she adapts to the unique demands of every script, she keeps certain elements of her approach the same.

"If I'm being subjective, I try to get quite close in on the action, which I do with a wide lens like a 35mm (or sometimes even a 14mm) and with the camera mounted on my shoulder," she says. "I like being able to get closer to the person, and holding the camera has a little bit more of an organic feel to it. If I'm being objective and need to give an overview of a scene, I'll stand further back and use a 50mm, with the camera mounted on a tripod."

Tania has acquired technical knowledge and developed a signature style over the years, but her passion and enthusiasm for adding artistic flair to her work has always been present. Curiosity drives her, and despite having already led a full and varied career, she's excited about new directions and the opportunities that lie ahead.

What inspired you to pursue a career in cinematography?

"It's a marriage of two things I enjoy: photography and motion. As a child, a summer holiday treat for me and my brother was a bus ride to the local cinema in the next village. I took myself there to see Grease five times! At that time I also discovered movies by Billy Wilder – Sunset Boulevard is still in my top ten – and Citizen Kane fascinated me. I'd often stay up late watching them and others on TV when I should've been in bed."



What has been your proudest moment so far?

"Shooting Little Darlings, a TV drama which aired in February 2022, is my proudest moment because it's the culmination of my work on indie films and the beginning of another journey, one that will take me to where I want to be."



Your website bio says, "I aim to work as I like to live; with compassion, passion, humour and style." Could you tell us more about how this translates on and off-set?

"It means that I have an open mind, which allows me to take on new ideas. I'm not holding onto one way of doing things – if there's a new bit of kit or somebody in the team comes along with a fresh idea, I'm open to taking those things on board. Away from set, it means I'm loyal, faithful and a good friend."



What are the unique challenges of filming drama, as opposed to other types of filmmaking?

"It's a fast-paced, intense and demanding environment. As well as liaising with the director, which can result in making on the spot creative decisions, I have a large camera and lighting crew to manage. All of which means one needs to be highly adaptable, responsive, understanding and good at listening."



You're a skilled photographer as well as a cinematographer. How do these two visual forms complement each other creatively? For example, do you carry learnings from a photo project to a film?

"Photography keeps my eye in, and allows me to explore different kinds of framing. I've moved away from street photography, which I used to do obsessively when travelling, and now I'm becoming a bit more project-based. Taking time over my images is changing how I look at light, and that's transmitting through to how I shoot films. I've recently shot a series of flower images, which has taught me that less is ultimately more within the frame."

Tania Freimuth