60 Seconds with Colourist Logan Highlen on his career journey at The Mill and what he is looking forward to in the next chapter

What inspired you to go into the world of Colour?

Being a filmmaker since I was a teenager there were two roles I gravitated towards; cinematography and editing. Colour Grading on professional software became accessible when I was in college and it very quickly became my favourite part of the process. Suddenly I was grading every thesis film in my class and I couldn’t see myself doing anything else to contribute as an artist in the filmmaking process.

Describe your career journey at The Mill from Colour Assist to Colourist.

It’s been like climbing the tallest mountain in the world  but every step of the way someone is there to encourage you to keep pushing, lending a hand to pull you up, advising you on how to take the next step. That’s the legacy of The Mill, I can’t wait to teach the next generation in that manner.

What projects have you been involved in that have been impactful to you and your career?

As an Assist I had my hands in every major job The Mill LA worked on for the last 6 years and every single one of them had an amazing experience collaborating with the Colourists and VFX artists alike. We are always talking, making sure each department has what they need to be the best artist they can be.

The most impactful project for me is our work on the American Crime Story: Impeachment promo. It was a perfect integration of our VFX and Colour teams coming together to create something really spectacular and I was very fortunate to lead Colour on that. It’s one of those projects that exemplifies work I think only The Mill can do.

What’s currently inspiring you? 

Every artist I work with excites and inspires me. Every one has some new perspective to bring to the table. I’ve recently collaborated with some amazing DP’s at AFI (American Film Institute) to complete their thesis films. Their talent has been recognized and as they move into their post-grad careers, some to feature films and episodics, they come back and ask me to join them on their journey. Growing up at The Mill and collaborating with the VFX teams makes me even more excited to start collaborating with these Cinematographers as we move into the present and future of longform Colour Grading at The Mill.

Discover more of Logan’s work here. You can get in contact with our global Colour team via our contact page.