: Leading colorist Ben Perez has rejoined the expanding Mega Playground post-production complex. Extensive credits on such feature films as Michael Clayton, Duplicity, Spider Man 2,and Mona Lisa Smile, and for hit TV series including Ugly Betty, Homicide and OZ, have earned Perez a reputation as one of New York’s go-to colorists. Most recently with Technicolor NY, he previously worked with Riot Manhattan, Post Logic, Manhattan Transfer and Windsor Video.
In welcoming Perez back to west Village-based Mega Playground, company principal Eitan Hakami remarked, “During his initial tenure as our head colorist from 2001 to 2004, our clients trusted his creative and technical judgment. He’s a team player who thrives on collaborating with DP’s and directors, and he exemplifies the role colorists can play in the story-telling process. We are very pleased to have him back.”
Perez considers color correction a powerful tool for artistic expression, and many top filmmakers have taken advantage of his skills. “Writer/director Tony Gilroy used color correction to help establish moods on Michael Clayton and Duplicity, and he was deeply involved with the look of the HD previews of those films,” Perez says. “The colorist can be as effective as the music composer on the emotional range of a scene. Working with Gilroy and Oscar-winning cinematographer Robert Elswit on those films was a terrific opportunity to maximize my creative input. Their screenings were extremely successful, and the final DI’s were almost identical to the HD’s.
“Mega Playground is arguably one of the most innovative post facilities serving NY’s film/TV community,” Perez concludes. “Their revolutionary DP Dailies process breaks entirely new ground in terms of fast, cost-effective, high-quality dailies-through-DI workflow. This is one of the few large companies that has retained a true boutique feel. There’s a genuine family vibe, and no ‘business-as-usual’ attitude. Eitan Hakami and CTO Terry Brown are committed to developing new ways of making the post-production process more flexible, efficient and affordable. I look forward to collaborating with co-colorist Mike Smollin and the entire Mega team. I’ve missed the Playground. This is a great place to work.”
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