N.5 | "Amélie" (introducing the characters scene), recreating the atrocities is a mistake plus more

JOURNAL ENTRY

Sep 14, 2024: We’re shooting the micro film next week, Sunday (22 of September). This week, I did some more work on Milanote (shot list, shot order and more) and StudioBinder (script).

I thought of a title, which is Lupo: The Cleaner. The micro film is inspired by a scene of Leon: The Professional and Leon is a cleaner (hitman) in the movie.

Plus, while the name Leon means Lion in Italian, the name Lupo means Wolf in Italian. I thought it was clever. Anyway, this is my second micro film and it’s simply another “training exercise” for me; in order to get better at directing.

I’m taking at heart what Robert Rodriguez says in Rebel Without a Crew: “…everyone has at least a dozen or so bad movies in them…”. So, even if this one is not great, I’m doing my work as a student of the craft …

…this makes me think though, I’d love to find a mentor whose work I admire!

FILM STORYTELLING

Amélie (introducing the characters scene)

Here’s another film that made me fall in love with cinema when I was a teenager. Amélie was released in 2001. I was around 17. What a great original story. On a bad day, this can really pick me up. I love this film a lot. The way it was directed (by Jean-Pierre Jeunet), the music score, and the cinematography by Bruno Delbonnel.

One scene to watch again, as a reference, is the scene introducing Amélie’s parent.

This is exactly what I’m reading right now in Structuring Your Novel by K.M. Weiland. In the book, there’s a whole chapter on introducing characters and the importance of creating an emotional connection between the audience and the characters in the book or film.

TIDBIT I’M PONDERING

The terrible mistake of recreating the atrocities

I was reading about The Zone of Interest a while back; an Holocaust drama. The set is a villa just outside the Auschwitz concentration camp. The house belongs to Rudolf Höss and his wife with their five children. Throughout the whole movie, the characters live and enjoy life as if nothing was happening on the other side of the wall.

The director, Jonathan Glazer, made the choice of not showing anything at all on what’s happening in the camp.

The film aims to make the audience reflect through not showing. Another notable example of this is Son of Saul (2015). Here, the atrocities are obscured by the protagonist, always presented in a close-up.

But why this choice?! Glazer explanation makes me think:

Source: From Sight and Sound magazine (volume 34, issue 2).

PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS

Team Deakins → Episode 7 - LENS CHOICE

The aesthetic feel of different lenses

For a standard shot (over the shoulder), you would use a 32mm or 35mm. A mid shot would be 35mm or 40mm. A standard closeup would be a 50mm. A big closeup would be a 65mm or 75mm.

Roger Deakins mentions that he usually does not shoot on very long lenses. Unlike Ridley Scott, for example, who often shoots on a 120mm.

Prime lenses vs zoom lenses

A prime lens pushes you to make a decision on where you’re going to put the camera.

It’s a sloppy approach to use a zoom lens for a closeup because you don’t want to move the camera. If you do that, your relationship with that closeup is different. It’s also important to consider the perspective of the film. If the film is from one character perspective, you want to shoot them on a wider lens.

In the film 1917, they deliberately didn’t use a wide lens because the story dictated that. They had to use one lens only because it was (felt like) one consecutive shot.

They didn’t want that feeling of seeing the whole world. They wanted a slightly less depth of field. The audience cannot see much around the characters. The story is personal to the characters’ experience of the world around them.

The film was shot on a signature 40mm prime lens. The lens was equivalent to a 32mm-25mm.

Having a second set of lenses as a backup

Team Deakins always has a second set of lenses ready to go, as a backup. This is especially useful if shooting outside and inside in the winter time. One set would sit inside and the other outside, in order to avoid condensation.

Multiple cameras is sometimes a necessity

Roger Deakins prefers to shoot with one camera only, whenever possible. But, in some instances, shooting with multiple cameras can be useful. In some emotionally super-charged dialogue scenes in the film Dead Man Walking, having two cameras was a necessity to capture the performance in one go. 

Putting the audience in the conversation with the characters

A long lens, a 100mm for instance, makes it difficult to shoot an intimate scene like a conversation. With a 100mm, you’ll have to walk a lot to get both over-the-shoulder perspectives. With a 16mm-50mm you can do that much quicker. You’re putting the audience in there with characters.

Prettiness, the real danger of cinematography

Don’t get distracted by the idea of making a scene look attractive with bokeh, shallow depth of field, out-of-focus foreground elements, flares etc. If you’re feeling like you’re starting to build a pretty scene, stop and ask yourself if that does really help you tell the story better or not.

Forget coverage and shoot the shots you need

Having multiple cameras and lenses may lead you to want to shoot a lot. It’s very often about coverage these days rather than what’s important. Deakins says:

Source: From Episode 7 - LENS CHOICE of The Team Deakins podcast (paraphrased and/or quoted).

FILM STORYTELLING

The medium full shot

The medium full shot goes from the top of the subject's head to just below their waist. It is also referred to as the "cowboy shot", based on the height of the gun holster. Use it when you need to present a subject that is confident, dangerous and confrontational.