ZEISS Supreme Primes Shine in Star-Driven Short “Dr. Sam”

DP Chloe Smolkin (“The Late Show,” “Kidz Bop”) joins director Danielle Beckmann and writer/actor Raji Ahsan behind the camera for the heartfelt short comedy “Dr. Sam.” Ahsan shines on screen with celebrity co-stars Alec Baldwin and Lucie Arnaz, in a story that favors small victories over grand conclusions. To capture the vibrant yet pressurized world of an aspiring New York jazz singer, Smolkin paired Zeiss Supreme Prime lenses with the Alexa Mini LF.

“‘Dr. Sam’ is about a down-on-his-luck millennial,” explains Smolkin. Pestered by his concerned mother (Arnaz) and encumbered with an apathetic therapist (Baldwin), Sam, played by Ahsan, finds himself nearing rock-bottom, until he’s mistaken for a therapist himself. Running out of options, he embraces the role, helping others as a way to help himself. The film grew out of an idea Ahsan had shared with Baldwin while in school.

“Raji Ahsan, our writer and star, was Alec Baldwin’s student at NYU. Raji made a short iPhone sketch where he played the therapist for Apple’s Siri. He sent it to Alec, who loved it and told him, ‘You should write something else about a therapist.’” Raji took that seriously, wrote ‘Dr. Sam,’ and asked Baldwin to play the therapist. “Alec said yes. And on set he was very easy to work with and incredibly generous with his time,” explains Smolkin.

With a background in storyboarding, bicoastal cinematographer Smolkin brings a strong compositional sensibility to her work across television, commercials, and narrative features. While working with first time director Beckmann, this emphasis on preparation guided the pre-production process. “There were several shots that Danielle had in mind from the beginning,” Smolkin says. “One of them was a very tight close-up with the background totally out of focus and the character looking just past the lens. The other was a confrontation, with Sam and the therapist facing off in a small office. I knew we would need a high-quality rectilinear lens so that the perspective lines would be pointing straight at the two actors.”

With these two requirements established, Smolkin and Beckmann conducted an extensive lens test at TCS in Brooklyn. “You can measure the resolution of a lens, but not how it renders a face, which to me is the most important part. And we wanted the film to feel glossy but still grounded.” After much consideration, the team decided on Zeiss Supreme Primes. “The Supremes render faces beautifully without distortion, and they render architecture with clean, straight perspective lines.”

Smolkin chose five focal lengths: 18, 25, 40, 100, and 135mm. “We landed on the Zeiss 18mm as the perfect lens for shooting in the therapist’s office,” she explains. The small office space feels full and dimensional without being cramped on screen, convincingly conveying the tense proximity between Baldwin and Ahsan without claustrophobia. “Meanwhile the 135mm was perfect for that tight close-up.”

The lenses also play an important role in an early scene that involves a striking sequence in a dimly lit restaurant. “A Steadicam rig follows Sam as he works as a waiter, weaving through the dining room,” explains Smolkin. “That was a big one. My Steadicam operator Ryan Toussieng, SOC did that shot beautifully. The Supremes were great there—they open very wide, so we didn’t have to re-light for a higher exposure; we could light purely for emotion. The shot itself was a huge dance between the camera, the actors, and a ton of extras. It took a lot of coordinating.” The result is a fun kinetic introduction to Sam’s world and struggles.

For a film built around small victories and human connection, the visuals needed to convey both honesty and polish. Smolkin’s use of the Supreme Primes delivered exactly that. “The Supreme Primes gave us that heightened reality without ever pulling you out of the world,” she says. Looking back, Smolkin credits the strong team dynamic and thoughtful preparation: “It was just a great shoot with a great team that already had strong working relationships and a foundation of trust in each other. The extensive prep—especially our lens tests—really set us up for success.”

The film premiered at Cinequest Film Festival in San Jose this March. For future screenings: www.ldrcreativellc.com/dr-sam/

Read the full interview with Chloe Smolkin: www.zeiss.com/photonics-and-optics/en/cinematography/blog/zeiss-supreme-primes-shine-in-star-driven-short-dr–sam.html