N.6 | "Last Tango in Paris" (Paul's monologue), incorrect exposure for storytelling plus more

JOURNAL ENTRY

Sep 21, 2024: The day has come, finally. We're shooting tomorrow, Sunday, Sep 22. Alexy sent me the pic below. He was able to attach the microphone on top of the camera, his Sony FS7.

This is good because we’re a tiny team this time, 3 people only, and we won’t be able to operate a boom mic. But with the mic set up like that, we can keep the team small and agile. The first micro film I directed (a horrible thing I did a few months ago) we were 5 people, and there was someone actually operating the boom mic.

I signed up to film school this week. I’m very happy about that. I’m sure it’s money well invested. It’s a five-month course.

I'm doing this for two reasons: to get some formal foundations, and to network. I don’t care if it’s a top-rated film school or not. I just want someone who knows more about filmmaking than me to teach me all they know. After learning as much as possible about everything for five months, I'll sail by myself.

The course is actually pretty comprehensive. I'll cover a lot of topics, including screenplay formatting, creating a story, camera lights and sound equipment, basics of camera and sound department, how to light a scene, how to cast and more.

At the end of the five months, I’ll be making a short film with the other students from the school.

FILM STORYTELLING

Last Tango in Paris (Paul’s monologue)

I watched Last Tango in Paris again this week after so many years. I’ve never liked the story that much, but I really enjoy watching Marlon Brando performing in this film.

There’s a scene - 46:00 to 50:30 - where it’s just him talking. He talks about his past as a child … about his father … about a date he had with a girl … about milking cows … about working hard in a ditch … about his mother … about Dutchy, the big black dog hunting rabbits.

It’s almost five minutes of him talking. He just talks. I bloody love that. That rarely happens these days. Today, it’s very often about fast cuts and a lot of coverage.

TIDBIT I’M PONDERING

Incorrect exposure: just another storytelling tool

I'm doing a lot of photography lately. As much as I can. I enjoy that immensely. The problem is though, I always worry about exposure. I want to be exposing correctly.

But the other day I remembered something I read in StudioBinder’s ebook on exposure. And I realized:

I can do whatever I want. There are no rules. It all depends on what I’m trying to say or portray. Photographers and cinematographers have the power to control the light, which in turn means controlling what the viewers sees and feels.

For example, the image above from Slumdog Millionaire is overexposed. Director Danny Boyle did that with the intention of creating a visual that is nostalgic. In fact, that scene is a memory from the character’s past.

In this other shot, from Inherent Vice, the rules of exposure are broken with a different intention. The scene is underexposed. Highlights are muddied while mid-tones and dark-tones are crushed towards black. As a result, a mysterious effect is created, making the viewer lean in to take in the shadowy moment in order to discover what comes next.

Source: From my brain and StudioBinder’s ebook on exposure.

PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS

Team Deakins → Episode 9 - Learning Lighting

Traditional lighting is NOT how you learn lighting

Technically speaking, you learn to light by using the traditional way: you have a front light, a key light, a back light, a fill light, a kicker light etc. But that’s not the essence of lighting.

Proper lighting is recreating the image you have in your head. The best way to learn lighting is get out there and experience the nuances of light. Look around you and take notice of where the light comes from.

The weather is also a great teacher. Weather can create a dark and ominous look or a bright and happy one. Use your camera to capture moments and study them.

Experiment with light bulbs and materials

Go and buy different light bulbs. See how they differ from each other. Use tin foil against the light (or white cloth, red cloth etc.) to bounce the light off and observe how that makes your feel, or perhaps how the light is reflected on a human face or surface.

Just play!

Look at paintings, still photography and cinematography

Looking at paintings, still photos and cinematography stills is very helpful. Look at the difference of individuals’ work. Look at, for example, Alex Webb vs someone who only does black and white photography and take notice of the different ways they use light and color.

Don’t look at them to copy their work, but to get inspiration and understand what you like and don’t in order to develop your taste.

William Eggleston - one of the first really great color photographers - would take lots of pictures of unimportant stuff like old buildings, signs and cars. He once took a picture of the back of the head and shoulders of an old lady sitting on a green shiny couch in a café. That’s an amazing shot with really interesting colors and composition.

What do you want the audience to feel?

Key light, fill light, back light etc. are not the important stuff. Asking yourself: “how do I light this scene?” is the wrong question. You can light a scene in a million different ways.

The right question to ask is: “what do I want the audience to feel?” Study the script, the story, the scene, come up with the shots and find out what you want the audience to feel by what you do with the camera.

Play around with images in order to learn

Although Roger Deakins is not a great fan of color correction and color grading, he does suggest (pushed by James) to play around with images in post. It’s not about finding a technical solution. It’s finding out and learning what affects you, which is something more than just creating a superficial image.

Keep it simple and don’t overthink it

Roger Deakins recalls something very telling that James Wong Howe said towards the end of his career:

James Wong Howe was searching for simplicity. We’re all guilty of adding more, instead of removing. You add one light, and then another, and then a card to bounce off another light etc. etc. etc. Before you know it, you’ve destroyed your scene. Keep it simple and don’t overthink it.

Learn how to shoot the human face

If you can photograph a human face, you can photograph anything. This is not just about technicalities of where and how to place lights, but it’s about bringing out the character and the essence of who that character is. That’s what great portrait photographers can do.

Lighting a big set is just like lighting a human face. The set is just a lot bigger. If you’re interested in working in film, you have to learn how to do that because films are mostly about characters.

Know the equipment available on the market

Knowing what lights are available out there is essential. Whether you’re doing low budget films or Hollywood movies, it’s important you know what’s out there when the occasion calls for it. Go and learn bulbs and their light, rigs and more. It’ll come useful at some point in your career.

Source: From Episode 9 - Learning Lighting of The Team Deakins podcast (paraphrased and/or quoted).

FILM STORYTELLING

The medium shot

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.

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. Again, the medium shot is the neutral shot.