graphic level." When not taking pictures or developing them, he read
books and studied about light, exposure, and composition, then applied
what he learned to make his photographs better. When he returned to
school, he did not yet know that he wanted to be a cinematographer, but
had decided that if he were going on to graduate school, he should
attend the USC film school.
When he was 16, Schwartzman's parents divorced and his father
married actress Talia Shire, making Francis Ford Coppola his uncle. "So I
hit up my uncle, who is a wonderful guy, for a letter of recommendation
to film school and he said, `No.'" Explaining that he received thousands
of requests from friends of his own and friends of the family, Coppola
had determined to say no to all of them. Undeterred, Schwartzman later
found another way to get a letter of recommendation from Coppola, and
one from George Lucas as well.
During the 1981 Thanksgiving holiday, Schwartzman was one of the
many family and friends who celebrated at Coppola's home and vineyard
in Napa Valley. "Thanksgiving evening, George Lucas was there . . . George
and Francis were bragging about what great Risk players they were. So
around 11:00 at night, we sat down to play a game and made a friendly
wager: If I lost, I would be their slave for the next four days. If I beat them,
they would write me a letter of recommendation to film school." Around
3:30 in the morning, Schwartzman won.
Although he possessed a high GPA and test scores in his own right,
the letters from Lucas and Coppola earned him a personal welcome call
from the dean of the university. But after partnering with director Phil
Joanou to make The Last Chance Dance and breaking too many of the film
school's rules, he was asked to leave. Even though the film was banned
by USC and Schwartzman was given a failing mark in cinematography,
The Last Chance Dance won national recognition and received that year's
Focus Award (now called Student Academy Award) for cinematography.
In the mid-1980s, "behind the scenes" video press kits for feature films
were becoming a popular way for cable outlets like HBO and Showtime
to fill the 15 or 20 minute gaps between when one program ended and
the next started on the hour or the half hour. Supplying this type of pro-
gramming were former USC students Les Mayfield and George Zaloom.
When Schwartzman left USC, they immediately tapped him to shoot the
specials. Just 25 years old, he was making $500 a day as a working cine-
matographer. By living modestly, he could support himself on a few
days' work and continue his education by seeing movies, going to
museums, and reading books.
To supplement his income, Schwartzman often worked as an electrician
on various productions. "I knew I was going to be a cinematographer, but
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