DP Jendra Jarnagin on the film Asking For It, tips on working with short prep time, developing a DP/director bond, how to light for women

Jendra Jarnagin returns to The Cinematography Podcast after 7 years
to talk about her latest movie, Asking For It, a female vigilante
revenge thriller, about women who exact revenge on men who have
abused women. First-time director Eamon O'Rourke wanted it to be a
female exploitation-style movie without the exploitation, and he
and Jendra were influenced by films such as Switchblade Sisters,
Belly, True Romance, and Natural Born Killers. Jendra was hired to
work on the low-budget film only three weeks before the shoot, so
she had to hit the ground running with a very short amount of prep
time. O'Rourke had made a look book, so Jendra used what he created
to get herself up to speed. The days were full of casting and
scouts, but the evenings were spent as sacred one-on-one time to
discuss the film and create the DP/director collaborative bond.
O'Rourke was concerned about the fact that he is a white man
telling a story with women of color and their experience with
sexual assault. He was open to handling the material with
sensitivity and listened to Jendra and the female cast and crew
members about how to shoot certain scenes. They gave careful
consideration to what the film wanted to say and how to portray the
feeling of emotional overwhelm visually. Jendra also discusses her
recent work on a 2020 commercial featuring former First Lady
Michelle Obama. It was shot soon after production started returning
after COVID lockdowns, and the directors had to work remotely. One
of Jendra's skills is understanding how to light women, and she is
very proud of her work on this commercial. She had limited time
with Mrs. Obama and knew she would not be able to tweak the
lighting again once they were rolling. Find Jendra Jarnagin:
https://www.jendrajarnagin.com/ Instagram: @jendradp See Asking For
It in select theaters and VOD. Find out even more about this
episode, with extensive show notes and links:
http://camnoir.com//ep165/ Sponsored by Hot Rod Cameras:
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