v2 Chapter 904： Prime time

"I love the natural rhythm of this shooting,"

In front of Los Angeles International Airport, the crew was busy transporting the packed packages to the charter plane. Duke was interviewed by reporters, “After shooting a scene, clean the floor and move back the lights. The actors can drink a glass of water.? wshu·1ka?n You need to be more involved in the role of the director, rather than checking emails—because the assistant is helping you do it; you have a light meter in your hand to check the effect of light on the face of the actor..."

As in the past, how the shots captured visually appeal to the audience is crucial to Duke’s work. This can be reflected in his love for mobile cameras. Duke avoids extensive static panoramas and freedom during shooting. Top-down shooting, instead relying on Steadicam to design a dynamic panorama, so that a scene can be unfolded on the move and show the main points.

Since the beginning of the filming of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens", the most difficult scenes are sometimes the easiest and most direct on the surface. Two people talking in the room-or in the Millennium Falcon-are always the hardest In the filming, Duke tried to balance the majesty and scale of "Star Wars" as well as the intimacy and heartbeat of each character.

At the same time, I hope to process the film in a more retro style.

This is not to say that there will be no fast-cut action scenes, but that he is trying to shoot longer and more confident shots.

This is a very meaningful job. Duke does not need a lens lacking energy, nor will he accept sloppy work. His eyesight is as good as ever, and he will grasp everything, so when the work of the crew meets his requirements, Others will know that they are doing well.

To end the scene in Warner Studios, Duke wanted to lead the crew out of Burbank’s studio to create a magnificent scale and magnificent spectacle due to the filming of "far away galaxies."

In fact, Duke has never filmed so many locations in a film before. One Facing reporters' questions about location, Duke said, "We are going to the forests of Wales. Skellig Michael Island in Ireland, the frozen forests of Iceland, and the deserts of Abu Dhabi. These places will have an undeniable sense of existence in the film, and their energy will be injected into every scene. Every actor, every crew member. This is a kind of energy that helps the movie."

Of course, for Duke and the crew, after arriving in the UAE, shooting in the desert of Abu Dhabi was the most difficult part. The location was separated by hundreds of miles, but the actual site was constructed in a way that is rarely used nowadays, gathering the power of wind, sand and natural light.

A small team of Ford cars formed a convoy to support this desert expedition. Each camera has its own white pickup truck filled with lenses, like a rickshaw.

Frankly speaking, this is Duke's hardest film. The desert in Abu Dhabi is hotter and drier than expected, but within two days, some people have shown signs of dehydration. Duke had to force an order that everyone must drink a lot of water.

Fortunately, the imax film camera is very reliable in this situation. If the digital camera cannot shoot due to overheating under the same conditions, a large number of tests also ensure that the camera crew will not be affected by the expansion of metal at high temperatures. In extreme environments, Film has also shown its own advantages, and is more like a perfect medium, and this bad environment photography also shows that today's imax shooting technology is very mature.

To ensure the shooting of desert areas. Duke specially hired a team to do the maintenance and maintenance of the film, coupled with the custom rain and dust cover, can fully let the imax camera breathe.

In addition, the crew also contacted a well-known local producer. He was entrusted to buy a large amount of dry ice from Abu Dhabi, and put them in the lid with Velcro close to the fuselage to reduce the heat.

After coming to the UAE, Duke hired a large number of local people to work in the crew to reduce the difficulties encountered. ??w·a?n?

Movie is an international language, but words like "monopod" or "electrical tape" are not international. If you plan to take a shot abroad, come to an unfamiliar environment or even in the wild, and unexpected situations occur, how should the equipment be selected and used? How to save the material? What are the local shooting regulations? What if I break the law accidentally?

This is not just a question of language.

Any Hollywood crew that goes overseas, especially leaving the English-speaking friend zone to shoot, has many problems to pay attention to.

For example, Duke’s crew did a lot of preparation before coming to the UAE.

In terms of equipment alone, in addition to the "Death Star" and "Millennium Falcon" two imax cameras, Duke also specifically asked imax to provide spare cameras. In the past, he did not damage the record of imax cameras. So far, there have been two imax cameras. The camera was scrapped during his shooting.

There are plenty of film, batteries, memory cards, and various connections. No one can predict what damage will happen during shooting.

Just to transport spare items, the crew hired a large cargo plane. This is the result of the crew visiting the desert of Abu Dhabi several times in advance to "weight loss" for the equipment list.

Before the delivery, Duke asked all the equipment to be tested again to ensure that it was foolproof. In the case of foreign languages ​​being unsuccessful, this kind of professional repair shop is very difficult to find; he asked the equipment to be shipped in advance and arrived the day before the crew In the UAE, avoid wasting time in shooting locations abroad. The earlier the equipment arrives, the sooner you can enter the shooting stage.

At the same time, a large number of adapters for plugging in equipment have been prepared-the EU, the UK, the United States, Southeast Asia, Japan and South Korea have different plugs-and a number of local phone numbers have been purchased.

In addition, the most important thing about shooting overseas is the shooting permission.

In the local area, the more filming permits you can apply for, the better. Contact the local film bureau. Although the locals may allow the crew to shoot at will without any permits, the local government may not think so.

I also need to find a local producer, who will get the signatures of all the people who may be filmed in the shooting location, and he is familiar with the local film shooting laws and regulations, and understands the local customs.

How do people greet each other? What actions and words are impolite? What are the local traffic rules?

These seem unimportant, but in fact they will affect the operation of the crew and shooting efficiency.

And hiring a well-known local producer has another advantage, that is, it can effectively prevent theft.

There are criminals everywhere. The first way to prevent theft is to keep the equipment within sight. If you can work with a local producer or filming team, they can tell you the safety of the shooting area. , Which place and time period is not safe.

Find some local people to work with, it will cost extra money, but in the end it will be very worthwhile, they can provide some reasonable suggestions to the crew and save shooting time.

Coming to the desert of Abu Dhabi, the early morning and evening are the busiest moments for Duke and the crew. First, this time period is relatively cool, which is conducive to the actors and other staff in their best working conditions; second, this is also Hollywood The most exquisite golden shooting time.

What is "prime time"? The English name of golden time is "go1denhour", which is also known as "magi pumping r". To describe it as "golden" and "magic", it is enough to show the preciousness and magic of this time period.

It lasts for a short time, and the color is mainly golden. The shooting time is mostly after sunrise in the early morning and before sunset in the evening. If you want to capture it, there are very limited opportunities during the day.

In the desert, the sunlight is on top of people's head at noon, the shadows are very strong and hard, and the light is dazzling. In the early morning after sunrise and before sunset in the evening, when the sun is close to the horizon, the light becomes warmer and richer. The atmosphere through which the light passes through at the time absorbs most of the blue light in the light, leaving the warmer components in the spectrum, showing the charm of golden light. The light of golden time is golden, which can transform the ordinary scenery Show a new look.

Unlike the warm yellow artificial lighting under fluorescent lamps, the outdoor natural light during golden hours is warm and soft and has a sense of hierarchy. At this time, the sun has just exposed the horizon, so the shadows left behind are longer and deeper, visually It can increase the possibility of shooting a lot, and therefore choose a good composition, the more likely the lens will shine.

Soft light is too important for cinematography. It is convenient for photographers to capture changing shooting conditions without losing details and shadows when shooting in this light.

Duke’s shooting requirements for this period of time are extremely strict. Prime time does not mean that there is only a short tens of minutes. In a large sense, it lies in where the shooting is on the earth. Shooting in the polar regions can last 1-2. Hours, but shooting in Abu Dhabi near the equator may only stay a few minutes in prime time.

Many desert shots of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" were shot at sunset, especially the heroine Daisy Ridley's scenes, many of which require sunset or sunrise backgrounds.

Although he did not take the shot himself, Duke still made two requirements for John Schwarzman’s crew. One is not to set the white balance to "automatic white balance"; the other is to arrange the camera position appropriately and specifically Specific analysis of the scene.

For a dialogue scene between Daisy Ridley and bb-8 to be filmed, the golden shooting time was very short. A few hours before the golden time came, Duke led the crew to the venue in advance and prepared all the equipment. Well, this saves a lot of time for making mistakes. If you can't finish shooting at one time, you will waste a lot of time.

Therefore, how to get enough shooting time in the golden shooting time, the key is to prepare for shooting in advance. (To be continued.)

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