Daredevil: Born Again is a recent Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project that extremely accentuates the setting in which it takes place. The series’ main setting of New York City, of which Hell’s Kitchen is the stomping grounds for the titular vigilante, feels very realized; for the two episodes shot by cinematographer Pedro Gómez Millán, perhaps that feeling comes across because he and the production team sought to, at times, actually shoot within the city.
Utilizing real locations in New York City led to Millán and the group photographing amongst the hustle-and-bustle of Wall Street, utilizing random alleyways as fight locations and changing flows of traffic. Working on the series was a rewarding process for Millán, and the cinematographer spoke with Immersive via Zoom to discuss shooting the project and the gear he used to bring it together.
[This conversation has been edited for clarity and length.]
Tell me how you initially got involved with this project.
They talked to me about a show before ‘Daredevil.’ I interviewed and had a relationship with some producers, and that didn’t work out, but they came back to me for ‘Daredevil.’ They sent me the pilot for the script, which was the original pilot back then. It turned out to be episode two after the creative haul and everything being changed from a creative perspective. So, I read that script, and I was totally fascinated by it. I was very interested in the story and in the character. My background is in independent filmmaking so I wasn’t too familiar with the MCU, but I know it better now.
Of course, it is an MCU thing, but it’s more grounded in reality, and the city itself is almost a character in it. What do you think they saw in one of your independent films?
I know that when I joined the project, and I started working with the rest of the team, I realized that none of them had done a Marvel show before. We’re all coming from independent filmmaking. I do credit Marvel for being open to including new voices of filmmakers and rebranding their stories, and it just feels refreshing. I feel like Marvel benefits from that, especially from distinctive voices and unique perspectives.
What was it like shooting in New York?
What was so interesting about the show is we wanted to show New York City, so we were pushing ourselves to go outside and find locations… as much as, you know, we love Michael Shaw, the production designer, he’s brilliant, I think there are certain places where you just can’t fake it. You go onto the stage, and it just doesn’t feel the same. So we were out and about, looking for locations that felt authentic for the show.
Talk a little bit about working with the showrunner, who’s very versed in the world of Daredevil and Punisher.
Dario Scardapane came in to rewrite the show and write a new pilot. So basically, he and the new directors, Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson, established the new pilot. They established a new look. Watching Dario develop all these rewrites to make sense of what was shot and take a new direction on Daredevil was fantastic. I mean, I was so impressed to see him in the room, and we were all trying to figure out what needed to be shot and how. They were already shooting the pilot, but he would take time to meet with us. And he’s like, ‘Okay, I gotta write this, ’cause I know you’re in production in five days, so you need answers right now.’ So he’ll leave, and then he will come with new stuff, new material for us the next day. And so it was a very fast-paced, high-stakes situation, and everybody was on their A-game, and I can’t believe we could pull it off.
Any challenges? Were any scenes harder to shoot than others?
I think the bank episode was particularly challenging because of its location. It sits in the middle of Wall Street, and the entire episode takes place there. And because of the logistics of Wall Street, we could not put a lot of lights outside. We only had, like, one day to shoot outside. We were able to close the street, but we needed three. So we had to shoot with the exterior streets with open traffic, which is not ideal. Technically, the lobby of the bank is also very, very dark. You have these very narrow streets with very tall buildings.
Yeah, it is very unique… It has very tall buildings and very narrow streets.
So for us to be able to put lights and shine light through several windows from both sides was very, very hard… So we had to work very, very small. Also accounting for the day, for the night and we had to bring up a lot of lights. Days were packed. It’s a Marvel show, but it’s still a TV schedule, so you had to move really fast, and (we had) a lot of ground to cover. We had a bunch of extras. We had action scenes, explosions, fights. So it was everything you want in a Marvel show packed in one episode. It was a very challenging one but very rewarding as well.
What was the shooting schedule for that? How many days did you have?
I believe we had 21 days per episode, maybe 20 days. We were in tandem with the other unit one day because we were alternating.
Especially considering all the stuff going on, you need more time, but you got it done.
Yeah, we got it done, and it was amazing. There was a fight where Devlin and Matt fought in an alleyway, and we had all the pieces of the schedule for that episode worked out except for that fight. And, you know, trying to do a schedule on TV is just a nightmare. I don’t know how first AD’s do it; it’s just so many pieces. And we had to find that alleyway, and we couldn’t company move somewhere. We couldn’t go to the stage. It had to fall on that specific day. And then we had to find where to do it, right? So we were scouting, and I remember seeing this alleyway, like, ‘Oh, that’s kind of cool,’ but you’re talking to other people. But then when that question came out, I was like, ‘Oh, I remember seeing an alleyway, but I don’t know where it is.’ So we had the team; we were just going around circles (and we) finally found it, and it had all this scaffolding. The scaffolding would be a nightmare if it was a different story in a different location or city. But because it was New York, it felt right.
Any favorite scenes or shots? Any favorites of what you guys did here?
Well, there’s an almost invisible shot that we took our time with the team’s support, we could do it. And I don’t know if many people would notice, but in episode five, when they come out of the club, BB and Daniel, it’s the beginning of the episode. They come out of the club, Daniel goes into a cab, he goes home, and then the camera goes through the cab and finds Leroy on the other side of the street… It’s a very subtle transition. And back then, that was pre-strike. We wanted the camera to move in and out of scenes and transitions. It feels like a nothing move, but it requires so many meetings and so much time… we had to find the right car. We had to cut the roof. We brought a techno crane. We changed to the opposite side of the traffic, where we closed on Bushwick. Many things were moving around for that shot, and I’m glad it made the cut and was great.
How would you contrast working on a series versus some of your independent film work?
TV is very particular. The common ground is that you are still telling a story visually, right? Sometimes producers look at your resume like, ‘Oh, (the) DP has only done movies. I don’t think they can do TV,’ or ‘There’s only TV. It’s hard for them to make movies.’ It’s just like we’re telling a story with a camera, with actors, with lights. Yes, there are different elements, but at its core, I feel like we’re still filmmakers and trying to tell visual stories.
Having said that, the TV schedule is more intense than films, in my experience. And working with several directors also is something that cinematographers need to learn how to do. There are different personalities, different timing, and different voices, right? And a lot of directors also have very strong personalities. So cinematographers have to be able to lead the sheep… and say, ‘Well, this is the visual style of the show, and sometimes it’s better to just stick with some rules to have some visual consistency’ rather than every episode can look the same. So that’s one of the important lessons I’ve learned throughout my career, from transitioning from movies to television.
What’s it like being on the other side of this now? You are officially now part of the MCU. Millions of people watched this the moment it dropped. What’s this experience been like?
It’s been amazing. I feel like when you are growing up and see these Marvel shows and Marvel movies, and as a filmmaker, you’re like, ‘Maybe one day.’ I’m so grateful and so honored to be part of this, especially because, as you’re saying, so many people watch it. I got a message from a kid. He has some sort of handicap, and he was saying in his message that his happiest days were when he would watch ‘Daredevil.’
So, messages like this put things in reality. Especially ‘Daredevil.’ It’s just not like we’re just doing superhero stories. We’re telling stories that get some reaction from people. People are out there, and the show affects their lives in one way or another. And that’s, in the end, the most rewarding thing a filmmaker can have, right? That sort of feedback. So, I feel very honored to be part of it.
Daredevil: Born Again is available to stream on Disney+.
