Actor Rob Corddry is framed by DP Daryn Okada, ASC on the set of Harold & Kumar 2. © New Line Cinema 2007 / Jaimie Trueblood

Daryn Okada, ASC explored a new frontier during production of Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. He inaugurated the use of LaserPacific's accurateIMAGE^TM (aIM) system, which calibrates all digital devices used for viewing dailies, editing, digital intermediate (DI) timing and preview presentations.

The film is the sequel to Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, a 2004 New Line Cinema feature release. Both films feature John Cho as Harold and Kal Penn as Kumar. In the original film, Harold and Kumar are twenty-something roommates traveling across the United States searching for White Castle hamburger restaurants to satisfy a weed-induced case of the munchies.

In the sequel, law enforcement officers discover a bong they snuck on-board an airplane flying to Amsterdam, and jump to the conclusion that Harold and Kumar are terrorists. That sets in motion a hot pursuit by government agents, as the two friends journey across the United States, living the good-life while trying to prove their innocence.

Both scripts were written by Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg, who took their first turns at the helm as co-directors of Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. They brought veteran cinematographer Daryn Okada, ASC onboard as their collaborator. Okada has earned some 40 narrative feature credits since 1981.

DP Daryn Okada, ASC is flanked by writer/directors Jon Hurwitz (left) and Hayden Schlossberg (right) on the set of Harold & Kumar 2.© New Line Cinema 2007 / Jaimie Trueblood

"I was intrigued by the script, which was politically poignant and humorous at the same time," Okada says. "In our first conversations, Jon and Hayden explained their vision for a road film that takes the audience on a journey with Harold and Kumar from Amsterdam to Cuba and various places around the United States as they try to clear their names. There is a much larger cast of supporting characters than in the first film."

The sequel was produced in Shreveport, Louisiana, and other locations around the state, which offers a generous incentive program for moviemakers. During their first scouting trip, the directors and Okada found terrain that could pass for places Harold and Kumar travel through while they are on the road.

"The directors wanted this film to look and feel larger in scope from the first Harold & Kumar movie," Okada says. "It has elements of comedy, but it also has serious drama with many action and suspenseful scenes."

An early decision was made to produce Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay in 35mm format in Academy aperture 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Okada and the co-directors anticipated timing the film optically at a lab.

DP Daryn Okada, ASC prepares to shoot a scene for Harold & Kumar 2. © New Line Cinema 2007 / Jaimie Trueblood

After the initial scouting trip, Okada visited LaserPacific, the Kodak post-production facility in Los Angeles, where he learned they were developing a calibrated digital dailies system. The aIM system incorporates proprietary Kodak color science and technology, and it utilizes the Color Decision List (CDL) developed by the American Society of Cinematographers Technology Committee.

"Glenn Kennel and Leon Silverman (at LaserPacific) suggested that I shoot a test with a couple hundred feet of negative," Okada recalls. "I asked, 'How about trying this system on a whole movie?' That was about six weeks before we went into production."

He established a relationship with dailies timer Bruce Goodman during that interval, including verbalizing descriptions of his intentions for each new setting. For example, he told Goodman that characters in the Guantanamo Bay sequence would be wearing orange jumpsuits to augment a dusky, tropical look and feeling.

(Far right) DP Daryn Okada, ASC on the set of Harold & Kumar 2. © New Line Cinema 2007 / Jaimie Trueblood

LaserPacific developed and provided the production company with a self-contained digital projection system with a drive loaded on the Kodak Cinema Server that is used with a calibrated projector and a 6 ½-foot wide screen. The system was calibrated to be a perfect match for the monitor Goodman used to time dailies.

"I told Bruce about the looks that were planned for each part of the movie, and that we designed the gradual move towards warmer tonalities and more saturated images with contrasting oranges and blues as they travel from place to place," says Okada. "The look evolves towards golden tonalities as they travel through Miami and other Southern locations. When they get to Texas, the colors become slightly more neutral. Those conversations enabled him to anticipate nuances in looks that we wanted. I also sent him daily emails and voice mail messages while we were shooting."

The cinematographer explains that subtleties in darkness, brightness, contrast and colors speak to audiences in a non-verbal language that influences their perceptions of time, place and the emotional flow of the story in a non-intrusive way.

(L-R) Actors Neil Patrick Harris, Kal Penn and John Cho in a scene from Harold & Kumar 2, shot by DP Daryn Okada, ASC. © New Line Cinema 2007 / Jaimie Trueblood

The exposed negative, KODAK VISION2 250D 5205 and 500T 5218 films, was shipped to the LaserPacific lab daily. After it was processed, the negative was scanned at HDSR 4:4:4 resolution in a telecine suite where Goodman timed dailies.

"We discussed the possibility of transmitting dailies over the internet, but the files were so rich with information that it wasn't practical," Okada says. "They were shipped instead by air. We had a packed house for dailies every day, including myself and the directors, the entire crew, people from other departments, producers and actors. Everyone wanted to see dailies because we were looking at them in a way that felt cinematic. It was a communal experience that got everybody energized. We felt it was important for everyone involved in making creative decisions to be looking at the same colors, contrast and other subtleties in images so that we were all on the same page."

In part, because the aIM dailies and conformed previews accurately reflected his vision for the visuals, a decision was made during post-production to enable Okada to put final cinematic touches on the look during DI timing sessions with LaserPacific Senior Colorist David Cole.

New Line Cinema is releasing the film worldwide this spring.