Once you have successfully positioned the key light, the subject will be lit only from one angle, illuminating anything in its path, but also creating dark shadows.
Fill light
The principle of the fill light is to counteract and reduce the shadows produced by the key, giving the subject more form. The fill light is generally placed at the opposite angle and side of the subject to the key light.
Again, a fill light does not have to be one single light source; a variety of smaller light sources can be used in various positions. As a general rule the fill light should start off being about half as bright as the key light, but can be adjusted accordingly.
Backlight
Once the key and fill lights are in place, you move on to the last in the trilogy, the backlight. People often think that the backlight illuminates the background scenery. This is not the function of the backlight, but an additional light often referred to as a kicker, which is really another type of fill light, often used to remove shadows created by the key.
The backlight is placed behind the subject and angled directly towards it. The purpose of the backlight is to give the subject an illuminated edge, literally a rim of light which makes them stand out from the background, which is why the backlight is also often referred to as the rim light.
Figure 37. Classic three point lighting. Image from Tom Tykwer’s short film Epilog.
18. GRIP GEAR
TRIPOD
Unless you are shooting entirely handheld then you are going to need a tripod or tripods. It’s easy to think of the tripod as just something to hold the camera up, but a good tripod will do more than simply stabilise your camera and can make a huge difference to the look of your film, whatever format you are making it on. While cheaper domestic models may suffice for lightweight video cameras, they will be limited in what can be achieved with them. Professional tripods, however, will allow you to create well-executed camera moves such as panning and tilting. Most pro tripods will come in two parts.
Fluid head
Fluid heads allow you to create smooth combinations of panning and tilting movements rather than just one or the other; variables such as resistance and direction can be precisely controlled to produce fluid moves at different speeds.
Legs
Pro tripods will have a bowl of a specific size into which the head is inserted. As long as the bowl size matches that of the head then you can use various lengths and weights of legs. When hiring a tripod for a shoot, you often take two sets of legs, tall and short, as well as a high hat for ultra-low shots. The size and weight you will need depends on the nature and format of your shoot; they are also referred to as sticks.
TRACK AND DOLLY
To create tracking shots you need lengths of track and a dolly to go on it. Professional dollies are extremely heavy and run on modular lengths of straight or curved metal track or can have pneumatic tyres put on them and run on the ground. They provide a range of features, from pneumatic jibbing to extra seating for use without track.
Lightweight doorway dollies come in all shapes and sizes; they are ideal for lightweight formats and quick to set up. The quality of the shots you can achieve with them is significantly less than with a heavyweight version, but they are still extremely effective. You can even make a homemade version from skateboard wheels that run on lengths of drainpipe. Wheelchairs are often used, with the cameraman being pushed around to achieve a similar, if slightly less controlled, effect.
Figure 38. Chapman Super PeeWee III dolly.
JIB/BOOM
A jib is a small boom arm that can be connected to a tripod or dolly. The camera is attached to one end and then counterbalanced at the other with a set of weights. The jib can then perform a seesaw motion, producing smooth swooping camera moves. Professional jibs are serious pieces of equipment that really need a qualified grip to operate them; however, there are also smaller lightweight jibs designed for the DV market that are easy to use and produce fairly impressive results.
Figure 39. Cambo Lightweight Jibbing boom arm with video camera.
STEADICAM
Steadicam, unlike most other grip gear, allows the camera to be moved smoothly on multiple axes at the same time. By combining a counterbalance for the camera with a mechanised arm attached to a support vest, the operator can walk or run, while simultaneously panning and tilting.
Figure 40. Tiffen Steadicam in action, operated by Nick Bennett.
The potential steadicam gives for sophisticated camera moves is unparalleled; however, rehearsing and perfecting these moves takes time and will complicate what potentially might be a straightforward shot.
Steadicam is a registered product that is expensive to hire and needs to be operated by a professional. However, much cheaper, less versatile versions are available for lightweight DV camera work, although using them skilfully still requires a fair amount of experience.
19. HIRING EQUIPMENT
Whether you need a camera, lighting or microphone, the chances are that some element in creating your short film will involve you hiring equipment, probably from a professional hire company. There are two main types of hire that most companies offer: dry hire and wet hire.
WET HIRE
Wet hire is hiring equipment that comes with either an operator or supervisor. This is a less common type of hire, but necessary if the piece of equipment requires a specialist or certified operator. When hiring any piece of kit the rental house will always expect the people hiring to be able to use the equipment safely and proficiently; with cameras and sophisticated equipment the rental company will often require a demonstration by the hirers to prove that they know the equipment well enough to use it. If you require an item that you or someone in your team doesn’t know how to use, then most rental houses will offer the option of wet hire, or a training day for the hirer to get accustomed to specific pieces of kit.
DRY HIRE
Dry hire is the most common type of film equipment hire, where equipment can be booked and then picked up before the shoot. However well you or a member of your crew knows a piece of equipment, it is always important that you leave enough time to check each individual item that you are hiring; whether it is a lens or a whole camera, time needs to be taken to check that it is functioning properly. This is vital, as not only will a faulty piece of equipment jeopardise your film, but also leave you liable to take the responsibility when it is returned. Rigorously checking each item avoids both such situations.
BUDGET SAVING
Filmmaking technology is constantly evolving, and the consequences for short filmmakers are twofold. Not only can you get sophisticated gear with which to make your film, it also means that there is a huge amount of filmmaking equipment not really in use.
Equipment rental companies, post-production facilities and so on are required to keep up to date with new technologies because big budget productions want to use them. This process of constant updating means equipment that was state of the art a decade ago might now be nearly obsolete. Just because it’s no longer at the cutting edge doesn’t mean it isn’t still high-quality or professional. When hiring gear or booking facilities, don’t get the latest, newest equipment they have but opt for the equipment they use less frequently and as back up.
It will have been well-maintained and be perfectly usable for the purposes of your short. Just because the kit isn’t cutting edge, doesn’t mean your film won’t be. This approach will potentially save you a small fortune and you will be much more likely to get cheap rates or substantial discounts. You should also get much more kit, which will potentially make your film technically more professional.
When dealing with any professional filmmaking company, whether you’re hiring a costume, prop or camera, you mustn’t expect to get something for nothing. It may seem logical that they would give your small-budget film everything for a proportional amount but post-production facilities, and especially rental houses, have to keep their equipment maintained to the highest standards. Every
time a camera or light goes out, or an editing suite is used, it requires time and effort to check and prepare it for the next rental, all of which can be a labour-intensive process. Luckily, most people that run these companies tend to be passionate about filmmaking, and may well want to help you out, but you will need to bear the following in mind.
The best strategy is to try and get the most you can for what you have. Don’t call and ask for everything for free. Try and offer as much as you can afford, however little that may be. Work around them. All film companies will have down time, periods when they will have low workloads or quiet spells, so ask them to let you know when these occur. Even then don’t ask for the newest, most expensive gear, because they will inevitably need it back the soonest. Explain your project to them. Try and get them as enthused about what you are doing as you are. Explain that it is a non-profit endeavour and you would appreciate anything they could offer, even if it’s not everything you need for the project. Film industry employees will be extremely knowledgeable and potentially helpful, so even if you don’t get the deal you’re after, you may well walk away with some useful information for your project. Always offer film credits to anyone who offers you a deal or help of any nature; it’s the least you can do.
Sadly, there is not really such a thing as a free piece of professional film equipment; nearly anything that you are offered will need to be insured and the more expensive the value of the kit, the higher the insurance costs will be.
20. DIRECTING
Being the director of a film entails much more than just directing a shoot. On short films especially, the director will be deeply involved in every step of the entire production and guide the project through all of the stages to its completion. Directing the shoot, however, requires the director to develop a set of practical skills and considerations that will help control the way in which the material is brought to life.
WORKING WITH ACTORS
Acting is really an act of translation, in which the actor interprets the script and portrays the actions and emotions of the material to an audience. A good performance relies on both the talent of the actor to convey these elements convincingly and the skill of the director in eliciting a good performance. It’s possible to have a natural, raw talent for both, but each improves with practice and requires the source material to have potential in the first place.
Directing actors can be a difficult or effortless undertaking. The key to producing a good performance really lies in your ability to cast the right actor. If you have succeeded in this then you should be able to guide the actor through the script, helping them to draw out the emotional content of the material you want to emphasise. The best approach to working with actors is simply to communicate with them as naturally and clearly as you can. You also need to give the actors as much opportunity as possible to give a good performance and understand the nature of what they are performing. Ensuring that actors have adequate time to learn scripts and develop a performance, by holding read-through sessions and rehearsals, should enable both you and the actors to get a better grasp of the material and improve performances.
Expecting actors to produce pitch-perfect performances on a single take is extremely unrealistic. If you are shooting minimal shooting ratios, due to time or stock limitations, then you shouldn’t expect your cast to necessarily meet those imposed limits. Capturing a good performance takes time and patience.
Body language
As a director you are working with combinations of two major elements, body language and delivery. Body language is probably the more difficult of the two elements to direct. Roles that require little or no dialogue are often much more strenuous for an actor than those with; portraying complex emotions while limited to facial expressions and gestures is very demanding. Even with roles that require dialogue, the subtleties that body language conveys are often more important than the dialogue. As director you should consider and monitor body language constantly, trying out different subtle variations until you find the right combination.
Delivery
The way in which dialogue is delivered should be one of your primary concerns. How convincing a single line or phrase will sound relies on the intonation and emotion of one actor. For conversational dialogue, you also need to consider the timing involved between several people. Directing delivery requires you to help the actors develop the pace and rhythm. Read-throughs prior to the shoot should allow you and the actors to become familiar with the material and evolve a natural rhythm. This can then be fine-tuned by potentially pinpointing certain phrases or even words that you think require more or less emphasis, while ensuring that the overall pace and timing is coherent.
Sometimes dialogue that reads well on a page simply doesn’t sound convincing when spoken, so never be afraid to change a line or even a whole page of script if it is not working. Good delivery doesn’t just rely on the talent of the actor interpreting it, but also on the quality of the script.
Motivation
Motivation is the most essential direction that you can give to an actor. Although it may seem obvious to you (as a scriptwriter perhaps), the emotions that a character is supposed to be feeling at any moment may not necessarily be clear to the actor; and the non-chronological way in which you shoot a film also means that you may be moving quickly between scenes that require very different dramatic tones. It is therefore important to pinpoint the dramatic needs of the characters and work with the actor on generating their consequent body language and delivery.
Blocking
Blocking is the process of working out your actors’ placement and movement for a shot or whole scene. This takes careful consideration: you need to consider not just the dramatic needs of the scene but also the position of the camera and lighting. In a sense the actors need to serve the camera and lighting, rather than the other way round, so that you can keep those elements as fixed as possible. Realistically, under the pressure of time, it is much quicker and easier to manoeuvre an actor than it is to relight a scene or shift a camera.
Walk through
When the actors need to perform a movement, whether it’s a gesture or moving through a room, the most effective method for getting them to understand what you want is to show them yourself, or walking through it with them.
Walking through a scene with an individual should make it easy to understand what you have in mind as far as direction, business, placement and speed are concerned. This process will also help you to see their viewpoint from within a scene and the DP to find the right lens or move to cover any action.
Hitting marks
If you are directing complicated movements or if focus is critical in a scene, then the easiest way to get the actors to their positions is to put marks on the floor, making sure that they are not in shot. The camera can be pre-focused to these marks during a walk through.
Run through
Once you have blocked out the action for a scene or shot, and maybe done a walk through, you will often need to do a run through. This is for you and the DP to make sure it is possible to capture all the action, and to give the actors a last practice chance. With so many unpredictable things that can occur during a take, it really pays to fine-tune a scene before you roll the camera. However, if you are after a certain kind of spontaneity then you have to be careful not to kill the performances by over-rehearsing.
Mise-en-scene
Mise-en-scene refers to how you put a scene together; it’s a broad term for anything that makes up the frame of a shot, so placement of actors, props, lighting and so on.
SHOOTING RATIO
A shooting ratio is the amount of footage you shoot compared to how much goes into the final cut of the film, so shooting 20 minutes for a 10-minute film would be expressed as a 2:1 ratio. Much like a golf par, it consists of how many takes you have to do per shot to get the one you need, and just like golf you need to keep a scorecard.
Every take and its length will be noted by a camera assistant, but it’s also importa
nt for the director to remain aware of how many takes are being averaged. If you are shooting on film then this is crucial. The amount of stock you have will be limited, and will dictate your shooting ratio; otherwise you are going to run out of film before you’ve finished the project.
A shooting ratio is an average, so if you do 15 takes for one shot and 3 for another you would average a 9:1 ratio, which means you can quickly lose track of whether you are staying within your limits. You may think that shooting on video allows you to have an infinite ratio, but with video it’s equally important to keep your shooting ratio down. Handing 30 hours of tapes to your editor for a 10-minute short isn’t feasible. Neither is taking two days to get the one perfect take. Part of your role as director is to know when to call it a day, knowing that you may not have the perfect take, but you do have a usable one. Setting your ratio too low is also a problem. A 2:1 ratio due to lack of stock or time is not very realistic. It will severely limit the quality of your final film if you do not have enough coverage to work with when you come to edit. (See Rodriguez technique for how to shoot a 1:1 ratio.)
Short Films Page 14