The Coop

Brook Lee Karner is a transmasculine individual born and raised in Miami. He grew a love for filmmaking while studying Political Science and Philosophy as an undergrad at Florida International University. Karner continued his studies in film production at Florida State University’s College of Motion Picture Arts, where he specialized in the craft of cinematography under Mark Vargo, ASC. During his capstone project, he worked with director Rita Al Cunha to visualize The Coop. In the early stages of conceptualizing The Coop, Al Cunha and Karner shared many conversations about their ideals, hopes and fears. With themes of youthful escapism, fear of death and the need to remember, Karner felt that 16-mm film was necessary for the story. With The Coop being the director/DP pair’s last production while in film school, and as a result of grieving lost time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they decided to shoot mixed mediums of digital intermediate and 16-mm film. The Coop was shot digitally with a RED Epic Weapon with an 8K Helium sensor paired with a Schneider Kreuznach Xenon 50-mm T/2.1. As for the 16-mm footage, Karner shot Kodak 7219 on a classmate’s Krasnogorsk-3 camera.

After graduating with his MFA from FSU in 2021, Karner moved to Los Angeles to work his way up in the camera department on Union narrative productions. Karner joined Local 600 as a digital utility in late 2022 and has enjoyed working on studio feature films. He looks forward to growing into his career as a visual storyteller and continuing to pave the way for inclusive sets.