Roberto A. Quezada

Roberto A. Quezada (born February 22, 1959 and a.k.a. Roberto Quezada-Dardon) is an American gaffer, cinematographer, and film producer best known for his work with Don Coscarelli including the Phantasm series and The Beastmaster. Quezada is also a film journalist and a Web site producer best known for his pioneering work with Amnesty International-USA and Planned Parenthood Federation of America. His father is the Guatemalan journalist, poet, and fiction writer Roberto P. Quezada.

Roberto A. Quezada was born in Guatemala and raised in the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California. He became interested in film while studying social science and philosophy at Santa Clara University and then transferred to UCLA in 1976 to study film. At UCLA he was the recipient of the Jim Morrison Award for first films in 1977.

In 1977 he was hired by Don Coscarelli and Paul Pepperman as a second camera assistant on Phantasm. One week after the start of production the gaffer resigned and Quezada was promoted to take his place. Responsible for the lighting of Phantasm, finding many of the key locations (cemetery gates, alien planet, etc.) and various visual effects (photography of the silver sphere, the star gate room, door blowing off its hinges, etc.) Quezada was given the title of visual consultant on the finished film. He was also the assistant editor on the film with Dena Roth.

Four years later in 1981, after working on various films as a gaffer and director of photography and on commercials as a producer, he was again hired by Coscarelli and Pepperman as production supervisor on the film The Beastmaster. His responsibilities on this film included finding all the exterior locations; recruiting the production, camera, electric, and grip crews; and supervising the work of various special effects technicians along with the director and producer.

...
Wikipedia