Alec Hirschfeld '65's new memoir

Alec Hirschfeld '65's memoir titled What the Camera Didn't See shines a light on the action behind the scenes and follows his career as a camera assistant to a director of photography. Click READ MORE to learn more about Alec, his book, and to read a review from his mom.
AlexcHirschfeld is a retired cinematographer, avid sailor, and licensed charter boat captain. His award-winning documentary series Out Here in the Fields has been screened at dozens of film festivals around the country and can be seen on the Vimeo website. 

Book review by Alex's mom:
I want you all to know that my son, Alec, he’s the handsome one, has written a book about his life working in the movie business. I actually don’t understand how he did it, since his memory is nothing to brag about. Anyway, it’s still a pretty good book; even if sometimes I wished it was about someone else’s son. I shouldn’t complain, but he only writes about me in two or three places, and at least one of those is a criticism. I guess I should be happy that he even remembered he has a mother. 
 
What the Camera Didn't See
This memoir of a young filmmaker places the reader on the set of well-known movies like Taxi Driver, The Terminator, Mean Streets, and Jaws 2. We follow the career of the youngest assistant cameraman in New York and share his encounters with cinema luminaries like Robert De Niro, Jody Foster, Ali MacGraw, Martin Sheen, Beau and Lloyd Bridges, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the great Federico Fellini, as well as Grateful Dead founder Jerry Garcia. The book shines a light on the action behind the scenes: the director’s process, celebrity quirks, the jokes, the danger, and even the cruelty.

The author’s career path takes him from camera assistant, to camera operator, and finally to director of photography, including a detour to the Virgin Islands and a new identity as a charter boat captain. Each chapter tells a story behind a particular film; while a personal drama weaves through these movie titled chapters. The young cameraman's coming of age is nearly Oedipal as a casual affair between him and another crew member becomes an intergenerational love triangle.
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