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Millimeter"Woody" Omens Will Receive ASC Presidents Award
Oct 13, 2005 3:08 PM
Sherwood "Woody" Omens, ASC, will receive the 2006 American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Presidents Award, which is reserved for individuals who have made exceptional contributions to advancing the art and craft of filmmaking. The presentation will be made during the 20th Annual ASC Outstanding Achievement Awards gala at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2006.
"Woody Omens has earned the admiration and respect of his peers for both his extraordinary achievements as a cinematographer and his dedication to mentoring the next generation of filmmakers," says Russ Alsobrook, ASC, chair of the organization's Awards Committee. "He has made an indelible impression on the art of filmmaking."
Omen's feature film credits include History of the World: Part I, Coming to America, and Harlem Nights. He earned three consecutive Emmy Awards for An Early Frost (1986), Heart of the City (1987) and I Saw What You Did (1988), as well as nominations for Magnum P.I.: Memories are Forever (1981) and Evergreen (1985). He also shared an Academy Award nomination in 1972 for the short documentary Somebody Waiting.
In 1989, Omens became a full professor at his alma mater, the University of Southern California (USC) School of Cinema-Television, where he mentored hundreds of future cinematographers, directors, writers, and other filmmakers for 15 years. He is now Professor Emeritus.
"When I was a working cinematographer, I had a sample reel of my best films," Omens says. "I was proud of my work. Now, I'm proud of my students who are out there in the world making their films. My students are my new sample reel."
Omens joins a diverse and distinguished list of former recipients of the ASC Presidents Award, including actor Robert Duvall; visual effects pioneers Linwood Dunn, ASC, Hans Koenekamp, ASC, Douglas Trumbull, and Howard Anderson, Jr., ASC; Steadicam inventor Garrett Brown; camera designers Tak Miyagishima and Albert Mayer, Jr.; documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles; archivist Kemp Niver, ASC; and cinematographers William Clothier, ASC, Charles Wheeler, ASC, Guy Green, BSC, Ralph Woolsey, ASC, and Richard Moore, ASC.
"Woody Omens is a talented artist who has made significant contributions to advancing the art and craft of filmmaking," says ASC President Richard Crudo. "He is a role model and a source of inspiration for every filmmaker with unrealized dreams."
Omens was born in Chicago, and raised in Chicago and Los Angeles. He is a graduate of the Art Institute of Chicago (1959). Omens taught art at a junior high school in Oak Park, Ill., and painted during his spare time. When an exhibitor suggested that he take pictures of his paintings, Omens experimented with still photography, which led to his interest in moviemaking.
He enrolled at USC in 1962, and earned a master's degree in filmmaking (1965). After graduation, Omens shot documentaries and television commercials for around a dozen years until the camera Guild finally opened its doors, giving him the opportunity to venture into narrative filmmaking.
"It was an experimental time for commercials," he says. "I was learning my craft and getting to use the best equipment. I would watch my dailies and decide to be a little more daring next time by turning more lights off and letting the shadows go darker."
Omens shot his first television movie, Ishi: The Last of his Tribe, in 1978. His career quickly shifted into high gear. After joining the ASC in 1985, Omens' boyhood friend Michael Margulies, ASC, conceived the idea for an event celebrating the art of cinematography. Omens played a vital role in organizing the inaugural ASC Outstanding Achievement Awards held in 1987. He and Margulies co-chaired the event during its formative years.
"I give Michael a lot of credit for understanding the need for cinematographers to recognize their peers and other people whose work we admire," Omens says. "The annual ASC Awards are designed to recognize and inspire artistic filmmaking."
Omens won an ASC Outstanding Achievement Award in 1987 for his two-hour pilot Heart of the City.
Omens is currently dedicating himself to raising funds and planning programs for the new ASC Technology and Education Center, which will be dedicated to research and education and exploring the possibilities for advancing film and digital art in the future. He was also recently appointed vice chair of the Student Academy Awards Executive Committee of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
"Filmmaking is an important form of artistic expression," he says. "Those of us who have been privileged to work in this industry have an obligation to insure its future."
For an extended conversation with Omens and information about ASC and the 20th Annual Outstanding Achievement Awards, visit www.theasc.com.
Continue the discussion on “Crosstalk” the Millimeter Forum.