BOISE, Idaho — The Film 'The Godfather' Was Made 50 Years Ago and in Los Angeles, The Academy Museum debuted an exhibit showcasing the artistry that went into making the film, including a camera from a Boise State University professor.
“I collect a lot of old media gear and I had a piece of my collection that somebody chased me down to put on a museum exhibit in Los Angeles,” Nathan Snyder, the director of university television at BSU said.
He told KTVB, the idea was to recreate the set of the Godfather as part of an exhibit, which included the production equipment like the lights, dollies and camera used to make the movie.
“Turns out, they didn't have this specific model of camera anywhere in the Los Angeles area,” Snyder said.
In fact, the curator for the museum told Snyder after scouring the internet for a Mitchell BNCR camera, the same camera cinematographer Gordon Willis used to shoot the Francis Ford Coppola film, Snyder has the only one that is the specific model and type that was used on the film, according to Snyder. He adds, there were only a few hundred of those cameras ever made and even then, many of those have been heavily modified so they don't resemble the original cameras.
So, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures asked to borrow it and now it's on display in Los Angeles.
“It's pretty cool to have to have something like that, that is so old, so historic, but also can technically be brought up to speed and be so relevant,” Snyder said.
He bought the camera back in 2005.
“I’m very fortunate to get to mentor another generation now, my students who are interested in these kinds of things,” Snyder said. “It is cool, it is a little humbling realizing that that some decisions I made a long time ago were kind of the right decisions.”
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