Kommer Kleijn SBC awarded

Kommer Kleijn SBC was the recipient of the prestigious BSC Bert Easey Technical Achievement Award at the Annual Operators night of the Society in Pinewood. The American director and guest of honour, John Landis on the 60th Anniversary of the founding of British Society of Cinematographers, presented the Award.
The Bert Easey Technical Achievement Award is only given to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution in the way of endeavour or equipment. It is not an Annual Award and is given at the discretion of the BSC Board.

Kommer himself is a popular contributor to many Imago events and is a valued member of the Imago Technical Committee. He is also an inventor and innovator in his own right particularly in the field of 3D. However it was for his outstanding endeavour and his dogged determination in the face of bitter opposition in America and the ultimate success of his battle that the Award was given. Kommers’ determination was supported by Imago and its’ technical committee and in particular by Joe Dunton who could see the sense of his proposal for a 60 frame projection rate as an International standard. Imago and Joe financed his journeys to the USA to argue the case for an addition to the new digital cinema frame rate specifications. There were other individuals both in the United Kingdom and further afield who also gave great support to this Imago campaign.

After several years, success came earlier this summer when the SMPTE published the 60-frame rate proposal as a World Standard specification. One man and his determination not to take “no” for an answer when he knew he was right, had won the battle.

Thus the dream of a new standard, which will improve the quality of the projected image, was realised. This achievement will have considerable importance for cinematographers in the future!

This is not the first time this Award has been given outside the United Kingdom. Garrett Brown, Fritz Gabriel Bauer, R E Gottschalk and Jean Pierre Beauviala have also been honoured. It is however the first time the BSC has awarded it to a Dutch member of the Belgian Society of Cinematographers.