A reliable source over at Netflix has confirmed to me that David Fincher’s next feature, “Mank,” has added cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt. Messerschmidt’s credits include both seasons of Fincher’s Netflix’s series “Mindhunter” and FX’s “Legion.”
This will be Fincher’s first movie without his usual cinematographer, Jeff Cronenweth, this decade. The two had previously partnered on “The Social Network,” “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” and “Gone Girl.” However, if “Mindhunter” and “House of Cards” proved anything, it was that Fincher was mostly responsible for the visual style of his films, more specifically his knack for using black and yellow, a sort of dark lighting combined with color overlay and crisp cinematography. That’s the Fincher touch.
Fincher’s upcoming Netflix drama, “Mank,” will be his first feature since 2014’s “Gone Girl,” and is expected to start production this November. The film will be shot entirely in black and white.
Gary Oldman is set to play legendary screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz (who co-wrote “Citizen Kane” with Orson Welles). “Mank” will tackle the contentious pre-production of ‘Kane,’ when Mankiewicz and Welles were developing the project.