The new TV superhero action-drama, ״Superman & Lois״ was shot for the small screen, but with standards that meet the huge canvas. Shot on Panavision DXL2 and RED Monstro with true anamorphic lenses (B series), this new TV series aims to bring the ‘Zack Snyder’ look into our living room. How does it compare to the features? Read on. 

Superman & Lois: Full Epicness

Superman & Lois is an American superhero drama television series developed for The CW by Todd Helbing and Greg Berlanti and directed by Lee Toland Krieger, James Bamford, and Rachel Talalay. Follow the world’s most famous superhero and comic books’ most famous journalist as they deal with all the stress, pressures, and complexities that come with being working parents in today’s society. The series was shot on Panavision DXL2 and RED Monstro by cinematographer Gavin Struthers ASC, BSC (The Witcher). Using true anamorphic lenses (and approach) was mandatory in order to achieve the “epic (and mysterious) look” that is characterized by Zack Snyder’s superhero films. In fact, when watching the trailer, we can clearly notice the same imagery, flares, and color, showed on Man of Steel.

Utilizing Panavision’s rare anamorphic lenses

Superman & Lois was shot on a very special glass, which is the Panavision B-series Anamorphic lenses that were designed in the early 1960s. As a result, the creators wanted to preserve the aspect ratio (2.2:1 vs traditional 1.78:1 for TV), which is quite unusual for TV. So they convinced The CW to let them preserve this widescreen aspect ratio. “This is Superman. We needed a canvas that has great scope and scale, which is why we shot it with anamorphic lenses,” says Krieger to Entertainment .“Something we talked about is that there needed to be a bit of a gear change in the superhero landscape, I think, largely because look at where television is. You have television as superb as The Crown, Mindhunter, and Escape at Dannemora. The list goes on and on and on, just superb feature-level filmmaking in television. “

Preserving the look of Superman

As explained, Superman & Lois looks very similar (from a cinematographic point of view) to the big screen projects: Man of Steel (2013), and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). The dark, epic serious look accompanied by heavy flaring, is also dominant in the TV series. However, Superman & Lois was shot on digital, compared to Snyder’s films that were shot purely on film. Explore the tech spec and slides below:

1. Superman & Lois. Cameras: Panavision Millennium DXL2, Red Monstro. Lenses: Panavision B-, D-Series
2. Man of Steel (2013). Cameras: ARRIFLEX 235, 435, Panaflex Millennium XL2. Lenses: Panavision C- and E-Series
3. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). Cameras: ARRIFLEX 416, 435, IMAX MSM, Panaflex Millennium XL2, Panaflex System 65 Studio. Lenses: Panavision C- and E-Series

Initial insights

More and more TV series creators, choose to invest in the big-screen look. Adding COVID to the equation, our living-room has just turned into a movie theater. Thus, streaming services are trying to set high standards regarding imagery acquisition. Superman & Lois belongs to an expanding list of TV projects that are being filmed to meet the high criteria of a movie theater. Finally, we’d like to thank one of our readers, Terry Herrin, which drew our attention to the unique cinematography executed on Superman & Lois. Have you seen Superman & Lois? Let’s know your thoughts about the cinematography behind it.