The German Society of Cinematographers (bvk) has celebrated last weekend its 25th anniversary at the Bavaria Studios in Munich.
The event took place during all day Saturday. During the day 2 studios were occupied with the celebration. In Studio 2 an exhibition center was established by different film and television manufacturers, showing their new equipment. The environment was pleasant with representatives from the different companies enjoying a day with cinematographers and film people. The atmosphere was friendly between all visitors and exhibitors.
The Symposium took place in Studio nº 1. This was an excellent initiative launched by the German Society. It is organized every 2 years and consists of a group of presentations from manufacturers and cinematographers. Each one has 10 minutes to present a product or a view on the art. This year the title of the symposium was "Film ist Licht" – Film is Light.
At the end of the day there was still time for a Stunt Show organized by the Bavarian Stunt Center in the same area.
To end the day of celebrations several speeches were presented during a dinner party. The honorary members of bvk Jost Vacano and Wolfgang Treu where honored with a beautiful trophy in recognition of their contribution to the Society during its 25 years of existence.
In the symposium room
Wolfgang Treu honorary member with his trophy , Tony Costa – vice-president IMAGO – Falko Ahsendorf - president of bvk and Jost Vacano honorary member bvk at the party.
The German Society of Cinematographers
Formed in 1980, the bvk is the professional association of the German Directors of Photography and Camera – assistants.
Its function is to protect, administer and promote its members’ professional and financial interests in conjunction with allied professional bodies in the audiovisual field.
It seeks recognition for the standing of the profession and promotes its public media image.
The bvk also concerns itself with strengthening the profession’s influence both in the film world and allied spheres. It has broken new ground as far as the recognition and application of cinematographic authorship is concerned.
The bvk aims to promote working conditions which guarantee artistic and creative output.
Working together with the equipment factories throught seminars and workshops it widens its membere’s qualifications while encouraging technical innovation.
The enhanced personal contacts among its members have led to an exchange of ideas and experiences which have done much to reduce competitiveness and open up new perspectives.
The bvk is a founding member of IMAGO/European Federation of Cinematographers and tries to intensify the international cooperation of the DoP’s.
The Camera Guide, published annually, and bvk’s website provide a reliable source of information on members’ qualifications and standing.
In «CameraGuide 2005»
The History of our association
by Wolfgang Treu
Directors of photography traditionally see themselves as being out there all on their own. They invent equipment that does not exist on the market and create new uses for things that have an established function. They communicate their knowledge and experience to the next generation. They negotiate their contracts, fight for more sensible conditions in their projects which will make them work more easily and improve results so that their film will make a deeper impression on its audience. During filming they are the director’s most important co-worker and carry the greatest responsibility for the visual adaptation of the screenplay.
Due to increase competition in the film and television industry it soon became clear that camera people could not achieve these goals over the long run while working on their own. It became necessary to draw together and form a professional association.
Such associations of directors of photography had already existed in Germany: Guido Seeber initiated an association of cameramen in Germany (Club Deutscher Kamaramänner) before the Second World War (at the time there were no camera women, a situation which has luckily changed completely). In the Nazi period the CDK was dissolved and integrated into a workers’ union (Arbeitsfront).
After the war a group centered around Walter Pindter, Franz Koch, Friedl Behm-Grund and Ernst W.Kalinke reformed the CDK. Other film professionals followed soon. An umbrella organization name DACHO emerged which covered virtually all film related professions. At this time the film industry was flourishing, the employment situation in film was booming; every one was busy. The association soon lost its impetus, while many felt it was time to go alone.
Television increasingly usurped the role of the cinema and audience numbers rapidly sank. Those working in production were compelled to adapt to new conditions and comply to new demands as an aesthetics of television emerged. This had an effect on camera people, even though good photography, technical mastery and an understanding of drama and artistic adaptation remained a prerequisite for getting attractive engagements. The production landscape has changed, however and camera people had to react to its demands.
It again became clear that many problems could best be dealt with us as a group. In 1980 the camera association bvk (Bundesverband Kamera) was formed by a small group of camera people in Munich.
Fellow professionals in Hamburg and Berlin soon joined. The board of directors initially carried out the association’s business from home. It soon became clear, however, that a permanent office with regular staff was required if the association was to pursue effectively the goals it had set itself. With member number increasing at a pleasing rate (unlike camera associations in other countries the bvk also takes on operators and assistants as members with equal rights) and with the scope of its activities continually extending, it became possible and necessary to take on a managing director and increase the regular staff.
The association today enjoys a high reputation amongst the professional public. Other associations and government offices increasingly look to the bvk for information on the affairs of the film industry.
The bvk is a founding member of IMAGO. It is on the administrative board of the royalty-collecting-organization VG Bild-Kunst and in the German Council for Culture. It organizes for its members educational and informative events on many subjects. It uses a wide variety of channels to exert its influence on wage agreements, new laws, and the development of new industrial equipment, new editing standards and much more.
The annual Camera Guide has a wide circulation-this reference work set an example for similar guides which various national and international film associations produced after its publication. A copy of Camera-Guide can now be found on virtually every desk in the industry and it’s also available on the internet where it is updated weekly.
bvk is vigorously campaigning for a binding copyright law for directors of photography. One may wonder: if photographers have all rights to their works, why do photographers of moving images 25 per second, have none?
Such problems need to be solved; some require a great deal of endurance. The goals which have been achieved so far give reason for courage and confidence
Wolfgang Treu