Accolades
A whopping thanks to Australia’s best and favourite go-to Colourist and Grader Dee McClelland. Over three intense weeks, Dee, Gerald our Cinematographer, my dog Basil and I, sat in the dark and watched Dee turn our entire film from a bunch of off coloured and contrasty shots into a beautiful, vivid and cohesive high-resolution film. Such a master of her craft and a lovely person too. An absolute honour and joy to work together again. You make my films look so much better than I could ever hope.
Dee McClelland CSI, worked with us on our NBCUniversal series ‘La Brea”.
Dee’s professionalism and ability are superior.
We made a series that is centred around time-travel and adventurous lands, so our visual palette is very extensive.
Dee works well with the team at the highest level and is a huge part of bringing our various worlds together, with an excellent balance using her technical skills to compliment and understand where we want to go creatively and emotionally for the audience.
We are excited to know Dee well and to be able to work together on many more projects.
Dee McClelland was the colourist on my recent feature documentary Wild Things. We had a wide range of footage shot on all kinds of formats from mobile phones, HD, 4K as well as archive shot on 16mm, Super 8 and low grade video. On the big screen the film looked seamless thanks to Dee’s deft touch.
For the past seven years I have been working in the US and the UK, my films have mainly been coloured at efilm Hollywood and Warner Bros Motion Picture Imaging in Burbank.
Then came The Whistleblower a $55 million Chinese /Australian feature, which required two units, three countries, four different camera systems, three lens packages and 85 shooting days.
The picture was to be timed at Soundfirm in Melbourne and Deidre McClelland was to be my colourist. This was to be the start of one of the most enjoyable colouring experiences of my life.
Dee is world class, she “gets it”, she understands.
The blending of different mediums and lighting conditions, her ability to understand the drama behind the images along with an enjoyable and cheeky sense of humour delivered a world class product that the Director, Producers and I are so happy with.
I look forward so much to collaborating on another film with Dee and recommend her highly to any Cinematographer who wants to bring that extra special something to their images.
I have worked closely with Dee as colourist on Please Like Me seasons 2, 3 and 4, True Story Seasons 1 and 2, and most recently the ten-part drama series My Life is Murder.
Dee is a great collaborator and an absolute pleasure to work with. Her skill is second to none, and what she does with my pictures is always thrilling. I can safely say Dee has been a key part of my own success as a cinematographer. Thankyou Dee.
I have worked with Dee on Newtons Law and the soon to be released Bad Mothers. Dee instils a quality in her work that belies the extremely tight post schedules these shows have. Dee’s calm demeanour and quiet efficiency make her a joy to work with and I very much look forward to collaborating with Dee in the near future
Dee McClelland is always my first call for a colourist. We’ve worked together for over a decade on eight series and she is The Best. Her business card should read “Magician and Perfectionist.” Always an absolute joy to work with – and the pictures are always stunning. I couldn’t recommend her highly enough.
Dee worked on my feature film The Flip Side for 20th Century Fox. To my mind, her contribution cannot be underestimated in the final analysis. Dee’s collaborative nature and curiosity is genuine, reassuring and sits alongside a true understanding of story and emotion. This work translates to real additional value for your film and its audience. Dee executes her responsibilities with rigour and a determined approach. She is generous with her knowledge and offers many choices allowing you to make confident unhurried decisions. Dee is an ultimate professional, a leader in her field, and I would always be first in any line (it would be long!) to recommend her. Oh, and did I mention she has a fantastic bag of tricks too?
“Conviction” was an emotionally-charged ABC documentary special made under difficult circumstances. Social justice stories, especially those involving police and judiciary, just seem to construct that way. We came to Dee very late in post; still sorting legal issues, music and sound mix mid-stream. Dee had been on my radar for some time: we’d worked on a previous film project with great results. This time we had complex day and night drone sequences, busy street scenes, stills, archive and format issues to integrate and not much time to do it. My preference was for a cool low saturation look, consistent throughout. Dee approached each scene sympathetically and decisions were made quickly with her usual quiet determination and interpretation. Dee is unique I believe in her approach to problem solving. She is always collaborative, professional and a genuinely nice person. I would recommend her every time.
Dee was great to work with. We were on a really tight post schedule and we barely had time for a briefing. However, Dee cheerfully jumped in and delivered exactly what was in my and the director’s heads. We had the significant challenge of matching lots of different camera formats and lenses, but the result was elegant and seamless. She really ‘value-added’ to the range of our locations; from the green jungles of the Amazon to the white peaks of the Himalayas. The result is a beautiful-looking series that resonated with the network and audiences.
Dee is an inspired blend of superb artist and skilled technician. She completely grasps the story-telling work that the images need to achieve and works tirelessly to realise their full potential. DP Steve Arnold and I set out with a very specific vision and Dee listened, interpreted, and delivered time and time again. Whilst performing well within a brief she also brought her own ideas and insights and a number of times during the grading of A Few Less Men made improvements that transcended our hopes and expectations.
Quietly determined to ‘get it right’, Dee seemed to have an endless supply of magic grading tricks up her sleeve. We were delighted and grateful to have someone with such flair and expertise make those crucial visual finishes to the work. She not only worked persistently to solve problems but approached them with gracious good humour. It was a joy and privilege to collaborate with someone of her brilliance. I cannot recommend Dee more highly.
Personally I have been involved in the grading of my own feature films and digital images for over 23 years in laboratories and grading suites on three continents and I have found Dee McClelland’s work to be world class. She is a wonderful, skilful colourist with an eye for detail and a true style that hooked straight into what I was trying to achieve. Her intuitive understanding of what a DOP wants and her working knowledge of an ever evolving industry is a fabulous asset to any production.
Dee has been grading ‘Miss Fishers Murder Mysteries’ for three series for me and is a wonderful collaborator has a great sense of humour and I can’t recommend her more highly.
Dee McClelland graded my feature film ‘Strangerland’ starring Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving and Joseph Fiennes. She did an exquisite job and brought so much to the grade in terms of her ideas and insights and skill. She was an absolute pleasure to work with. And fast! I would highly recommend Dee.
Simon and I were after a rich, glossy look that could effortlessly compete with films twenty times our budget. Dee more than lived up to the challenge. Technically she’s meticulous, emotionally she’s in tune and personally she has a lovely, patient manner. As a colourist and an invaluable collaborator I couldn’t recommend Deidre McClelland more highly.
Deidre McClelland is an exceptional colourist. She is a leader in her field and I have enjoyed working with her on every occasion I’ve had the opportunity to do so. She is a true collaborator, intuitive, creative, fast, positive attitude and above all, listens. I rate Deidre highly and would welcome the chance to work with her again.
Dee was able give each show a consistent grade across each episode, always enhancing the images – even when time, bad weather and inconsistent light threatened to derail us. I will often let things go on set knowing confidently that she will be able to fix them in the grade. She is tireless and a pleasure to work with. She makes good pictures great and great pictures fantastic! Work with her if you can!!
Dee helped me to achieve what I was after for the film with patience and meticulousness. She is fast and an expert in her field, she also has an easy-going personality which made it such a pleasure to work with her.
Having worked with Dee on both feature (‘The Loved Ones’) and television (‘Woodley’) productions, I am always impressed with her ability to tap straight into storytelling through colour grading. A great collaborator with DP’s and directors, Dee always elevates the images without a forceful hand. I feel very confident that the pictures are in great hands when she is involved and couldn’t recommend her highly enough.
Besides being a joy to work with she has a collaborative approach to her job, which make for an exciting and creative end product. I have found Dee to be an extraordinary colourist, her dedication and work ethic is second to none.
Dee has excellent technical knowledge and is constantly striving to master the next innovation. Dee is also an excellent team player and fits into any situation. I would recommend Dee to anybody who wants to work with a dedicated, passionate colourist who understands how to deliver on time and on budget with the added bonus of a big smile!