by Dr. I. Ilker Er, PhD, CSI I’ve been thinking about this for a while now—especially after seeing a wave of new films at the end of 2024 and throughout 2025. There’s something happening with imagery. Something subtle, but you can feel it the moment the opening shot rolls in a dark theater. Filmmakers are quietly pushing back. Not against digital… but against digital "cleanliness." That sharp, sterile, perfectly-behaved image we all chased for a decade. You can sense the fati

by Dr. I. Ilker Er, PhD, CSI The Revenant (2015) There was a time when color grading was a quiet craft — a conversation between light and story. A film would unfold, and the color would shape emotion without ever drawing attention to itself. The audience wouldn’t say “that’s great color,” they’d simply feel something — the warmth of a late-afternoon memory, the chill of a lonely morning. But in today’s social media world, color has become louder. It’s shinier, brighter, more

Have you ever found yourself marveling at the exquisite beauty of an analog film , the way the grain dances on the screen, giving each...

Discover how cinematic color grading enhances emotion, mood, and story. A colorist’s reflection on crafting subtle, filmic looks that speak volumes.