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Extreme close ups, long lenses and old school tungsten light. This is how Verity was shot.
Cinematographer Jim Frohna takes us behind the camera on Michael Showalter's psychological thriller.
On this episode of the Kingdom of Dreams Podcast, I sit down with cinematographer Jim Frohna to talk about his work on Verity, the psychological thriller directed by Michael Showalter and starring Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett. Jim walks us through the film's extreme close ups, the split diopter shot, long lenses and winter blue tones, plus the old school tungsten lighting and a house that plays like a character of its own. We also get into how he landed the job, shooting the climax in a single day, and why the script is never really finished.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
• Why Verity leans on crunchy close ups, and the Hitchcock connection
• How long lenses and winter blue tones shape the film's look
• The split diopter shot and the choice of old school tungsten lighting
• Treating the house as a character in the story
• Lessons from shooting the climax in one day, and why the script is never finished
CHAPTERS
0:00 Teaser: Validation and Family
1:25 Why the Cinematography Stood Out
2:31 Crunchy Close Ups and Hitchcock
4:06 Long Lenses and Winter Blue Tones
4:48 The Split Diopter Shot
9:49 Artists and Validation
16:19 How Jim Got the Verity Job
18:46 Old School Tungsten Lighting
21:25 The House as a Character
24:41 Working With Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett
29:11 Anne Hathaway's Many Versions of Verity
34:38 Lessons Learned Under Pressure
38:09 Shooting the Climax in One Day
40:12 The Script Is Never Finished
41:41 Attitude and Positivity on Set
48:01 Next Up: The Altruists and Serendipity
ABOUT THE GUEST
Jim Frohna is an Emmy-nominated American cinematographer and director known for his intimate, naturalistic visual storytelling. His credits include HBO's Big Little Lies, Transparent, Shrinking, The Idea of You, The Chair and I Love Dick. Most recently, he served as Director of Photography on Verity (2026). He has collaborated with directors including Andrea Arnold, Michael Showalter, Jay Duplass and Mike Mills.
Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G712eA8zjwY
Get the Verity novel: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1538780496?tag=skyblueprod0f-20
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
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Watch the feature films I have directed
Citizen of Moria (Amazon & other platforms): https://linktr.ee/citizenofmoriafilm
In Search of My Sister (Amazon & other platforms): https://linktr.ee/insearchofmysisterfilm
Official website: https://jawadmir.com
