N.17 | "North by Northwest" (open-field airplane scene), rehearse it until your think you’ve got it plus more

JOURNAL ENTRY

Dec 08, 2024: Film school is getting way more interesting. Last week, we all practiced with the camera (Blackmagic Pocket Cinema) and did a couple of 15-sec films to get our hands dirty with composition, camera movement and more. I posted some pics on IG — like the one below.

I’m in the middle of writing a 10-page script as one of the school’s assignments. It has to have 3 characters, and at least 3 locations. I’m writing something inspired by this scene from No Country for Old Men. The story is different, but the main character finds a dead body and a satchel full of cash.

I couldn’t work on my micro film — my personal project. I’ll go back to it over Christmas and try to make some progress.

FILM STORYTELLING

North by Northwest (open-field airplane scene)

Alfred Hitchcock was a master of the visual grammar of filmmaking. He believed that the power of cinema came from being a visual medium.

As the director, you should aim to tell the story with as little dialogue as possible. This is something you also learn from David Mamet in his book On Directing Film.

When watching Hitchcock’s films, it’s easy to spot one rule of film storytelling he used over and over — and that you can borrow.

Often, Hitchcock starts a scene with a long shot, then comes closer and closer as the scene progresses. The director does that to establish the environment where the character is. And when that’s accomplished, the camera can move in on the drama.

Let’s look at the famous airplane scene in North by Northwest (watch 2-min video here → cut shorter from original for clarity).

Long and wide shots

We start with an establishing shot. The character, Roger Thornhill, gets off the bus.

Then, we spend several minutes setting the scene in the open fields. The shots here are long and wide. This is very important in the story because the director is showing the isolation, exposition and vulnerability of the character.

Medium shots while waiting

We move to a series of medium shots, for neutrality. We’re waiting, together with the character. We don’t know what’s about to happen.

Then, when the plane starts moving in and shooting at Thornhill, the drama is amplified, and the camera moves closer, to capture Thornhill’s reaction.

One closeup at the climatic moment

Finally, we reach the climax, when the tension is the highest.

At this point, Thornhill runs to the road to get some help from a truck approaching, and the truck almost hits him. Here, the camera moves to a closeup, to highlight the character’s climatic emotion, thoughts and feelings.

TIDBIT I’M PONDERING

Rehearse it and rehearse it until your think you’ve got it

I was reading Rebel Without a Crew the other day. At some point, Rodriguez talks about how people spend too much time making a movie in Hollywood.

But why?

He starts by saying this, which I find to be true:

So, how do you move faster?

Rehearse the film until you know the project just like you know the back of your hand.

If you plan the shots carefully, rehearse enough and follow your plan on shoot day. Do that, and you’ll have all you need when you get to the cutting stage. Rehearsing also helps you avoid taking too many retakes, which is what eats a lot of time and money.

Source: From Rebel Without a Crew by Robert Rodriguez (paraphrased and/or quoted).

FILM STORYTELLING

Her (medium shot example)

The medium shot is probably the most popular shot size in all cinema because it captures the subject in a size similar to the way we interact with people (watch 30-sec clip here).

It's the neutral shot. It's neither dramatic like the closeup, nor distancing like the wide shot. The typical composition of a medium shot starts above the subject's waist but below the chest and ends just above the head.

Use the medium shot when you need to dig into the subject's eyes without losing their physicality or environment or when you need a "middle ground" approach that is neither jarring nor especially dramatic. Remember, the medium shot is the neutral shot.