Lights, Camera, Action! A cinematic guide through the art of filmmaking
Adrianna Bilas Abc / 1
Lights, Camera, Action! Cinematic guide through the art of filmmaking
Adrianna Bilas
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C O N T E N T
C O N T E N T
13
Intro
29
Colours
117
Light
137
Shots
Content / 7
Intro 15
Introduction
16
The Process
18
Crew
20
Why Does The Film Look Like a Film?
20
Aspect Ratio
22
24 Frames Per Second
24
Shutter Speed
25
Filming on The Negative
Colours 31
What is Colour?
32
Understanding Colour
34
Psychology of Colour
36
38
Red
40
Orange
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Pink
42
Yellow
44
Green
46
Blue
48
Purple
50
White
52
Black
54
Colour Schemes
56
58
Analogous
60
Triadic
62
Split-Complementary
64
Tetradic
66
Monochromatic
68
Discordant Colours
74
Associative Colours
84
Transitional Colours
96
Short History of The Colour in Film
110
Wes Anderson’s Colour Palettes
Complementary
Content / 9
Light 119
Light in Film
120
Three-Point Lighting
121
Light Typologies
122
Key Light
123
Fill Light
124
Back Light
125
Side Light
126
Practical Light
127
Bounce Light
128
Motivated Lighting
129
Available Light
130
Soft Light & Hard Light
130
Soft Light
131
Hard Light
132
Low Key & High Key
132
Low Key
133
Hard Key
134
Colour Temperature
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Shots 139
Shots in Film
140
The Rule of Thirds
142
Types of Shots
143
Framing or Shot Length
148
Camera Angle
154
Camera Movement
158
Film Scenes with Incredible Camera Movement
165
Aspect Ratio
166
Interactive Transformation of The Aspect Ratio
172
Opening Shots
176
How To Break The Fourth Wall?
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I N T R O
I N T R O
Intoduction Have you ever wondered how these amazing films were created? This book will explore the techniques used by filmmakers to create a magical performance you can watch on your screen. It will be your guide through the art of the filmmaking: cinematography.
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The Process Film making process is much more complicated than what most people think. It may take even years until the film is released.
Development IDEA
LOGLINE
The start of a project varies, but generally will begin with an idea and development of a script, be that an existing script, a book, a brief story outline.
Logline - One or two sentences describing the story. It has to encourage a producer and present the most important ideas for the film.
TREATMENT
Treatment - Extended version of the synopsis, with more detailed description of a plot. It allows take a broader look at the story.
SCRIPT
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SYNOPSIS
Synopsis - Abstract of the story on several pages. With synopsis we start to look for a producer.
GATHERING THE CREW
Post-Production PLANNING FILMING DAYS
CREATING PROPS LISTS
FILMING
ANIMATION
EDITING
Production Scouting - looking for a location. All these beautiful and imaginary places from the script have to be found in the real world. It is a long process of going around the world and obtaining legal permits.
LOCATION PLANNING
SCOUTING
Pre-Production
Ironically, shortest part of the film making process is the production. It may take few weeks or months. During this phase it is key to keep planning ahead of the daily shoot. Communication is key between location, set, office, production company, distributors - in short, all parties involved. The raw elements for the finished film are recorded.
COLOUR GRADING
SPECIAL EFFECTS
Colour Grading - it is the process of altering and enhancing the colour of a motion picture, video image, or still image. Colour grading encompasses both colour correction and the generation of artistic colour effects.
This is the phase where you would narrow down the options of the production. It is where all the planning takes place before the camera rolls and sets the overall vision of the project.
CASTINGS FOR ACTORS
SOUND EFFECTS & MUSIC
MARKETING
Crew To make a film it takes hundreds of people in hundreds of different roles. The director and & director of photography are the first people to hire. Then, they choose the team of different people they want to work with. Here are some of the roles.
Producers
Screenwriters
UNFOLD ME
Director
Location Management
Agents
Assistants Walk On
Plan Direction Sound
Costumes
Actors Stuntmen
Make Up & Hair Artists
Casting Dubbing
Lighting Grip
Technicians
Camera Operation
Engineers
Colourists
Director of Photography
Assistants
Supervision Graphic Artists
Art Direction CGI Stage designers
Editing
Visual Effects
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Why Does The Film Look Like a Film? There are several features that make the film seem like a ‘movie’. A few of these are: aspect ratio, frame rate, shutter speed and filming on the negative.
Aspect Ratio You are sure to remember the black stripes on top and the bottom of the film. Some people like them and some people don’t, but we should just accept them. Aspect ratio is inseparably connected with the film and black bands are the result of technological compromises, so that the viewer can watch the movie in full glory, not cut off. In cinemas we don’t see them, because the screens are customised to display a wide image. On the other hand, our home appliances are not.
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How did it all happen? Years ago, films were displayed in well-known 4:3 aspect ratio. It was generally accepted and given the name of ‘Academy Standard’. The change took place in the 1950s when the TV became popular. They also had an aspect ratio of 4:3. People then started to look for changes in the cinema to encourage people to watch films on the silver screen instead of using television. Then they started to introduce wide screen proportions. There were lots of experiments with film sizes, like 2.76:1, which was also used in the film Ben-Hur. Popular become ‘Cinemascope‘ with the proportions 2.35:1. Currently the most commonly used formats are 1.85:1 and 2.39:1. Often films are created using anamorphic lenses, which flatten the picture on the negative. Later, they are stretched during the projection in the cinema, giving a clear, full of detail effect. The black stripes on our computer screens are here to allow us to enjoy the full of beauty of the film. Some TVs have and option called ‘pan and scan‘, which fills the screen with a film. Unfortunately, it cuts the edges of the film out. If we want to watch a movie like it was intended by the creator, it’s best to turn off this feature. Have a look at page 166 in Shots chapter to see an interactive transformation of the aspect ratio.
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24 Frames Per Second
Years ago, when films had no sound, the frame rate was diverse. It varied somewhere between 16 20 something frames per second. Sometimes, the frame rate was changing within one film. When the sound came in, there was a problem with synchronising
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it with the moving image. Filmmakers found out that 24 frames per second speed harmonizes best with the sound and so it is today. Our brains got used to seeing films made from 24 frames and after all those years of watching them, it seems like it is the only right speed.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) ‘Hobbit’ was made in 50 frames rate. This is why the movement looks very fluid and peculiar.
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Shutter Speed It directly affects the level of motion blur. In film cameras, as in photographic cameras, we can find a shutter. It is rotatable, for a moment it allows to highlight the film and then obscures the light. Then, the mechanism moves the negative to the next frame. After that, the shutter unveil the light. In film cameras this process is repeated 24 times per second, because we are exposing 24 frames per second. It’s easy to explain on the example of photography. The shorter the exposure time is, the motion blur is less visible.
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The longer the exposure time is, the motion blur is more visible. In films, it is exactly the same. The greater the shutter angle, the greater the motion blur is. It was agreed that in order to obtain a good-looking exposure time, the camera should maintain a shutter speed of 180 degrees, ie half. If sometimes you can see a very sharp and clear fight scene, it is possible that the cameraman opted out of the standard shutter setting and allowed himself shut it down to achieve this effect.
Filming on The Negative
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This has recently ceased to be a cinematic aspect, as many of the films have already been digitised. However, many creators still films using negatives. This gives an amazing visual impact that is not to be falsified by digital format.
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C O L O U R S
C O L O U R S
What is Colour? How would you explain how red looks like? How yellow feels? No one explains the meaning of colour to us: the philosophy of it. It’s our psychological reaction to different wave lengths of visible light. This is how we visually perceive our reality. This chapter will explore the role of colours in films, how they serve the story and reveal the hidden meaning of them.
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Understanding Colour Certain colours invoking specific emotional responses has been ever present in our story telling to this day. When it comes to using, artist’s greatest tool is not a degree in psychology, but it’s their ideas. A lot of these ideas can be explained with one simple tool. There are three key elements to any colour: hue, saturation and value. If you change any of these elements, then you change the tone of the film. Change the tone, and you have a different movie.
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Hue is the actual colour, so it can be red, orange, green and so on.
The saturation is how intense the colour is. It can be extremely vibrant or faded and pale. The more desaturated something is, the closer it is to grey.
Finally, there is the value. If the colour has a low value, then it’s darker than the colours with a higher value.
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Psychology of colour
Birdman (2014) 34 \ Abc
Films not only use colour to differentiate multiple stories, but use them to set the atmosphere for that particular story. How did the pioneers of the art form know these techniques would work? Humans will always have inner psychological reactions to certain colours, and so particular colours are often used in very particular ways. But it doesn’t make the colour use exclusive. Red seems to be the colour we have the strongest reaction to. One may use it as a depiction of anger, hate and cruelty, another may use it to show passion and love. Green fields give us hope and symbolise fertility. A green location can also be depicted as mundane and lifeless. Green on the person tells us who the monster is.
There is no guidelines telling us how to use the colour, but understanding the cognitive effects of it does help. There are no absolute rules for colour selection. Ultimately, the viewer’s reaction to the colour is dependent on how it is defined within the film. For example, in ‘The Sixth Sense’, M. Night Shyamalan uses the colour red to represent fear, dread and foreshadowing whereas in ‘Pleasantville’, David Lynch uses red to represent hope, love and sensuality. Colour theory norms should be understood by filmmakers, but never seen as a limitation. This section explores the possible meanings of colours and how usually they are associated with emotions.
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Pink
Love Innocence Health Happiness Content Romance Charm Playfulness Softness Delicateness Femininity Emphaty Beauty Sweetness
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Legally Blonde (2001)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
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Red Anger Passion Rage Desire Excitement Energy Speed Strength Power Heat Love Aggression Danger Fire Blood War Violence
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American Beauty (1999)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
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Orange
Friendliness Warmth Enthusiasm Humor Sociality Balance Warmth Youth Death Exoticism Expansiveness Energy Vibrance Flamboyance
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The Martian (2015)
The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
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Yellow Wisdom Knowledge Relaxation Joy Happiness Optimism Idealism Imagination Hope Summer Dishonesty Cowardice Betrayal Jealousy Covetousness Illness Hazard
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Birdman (2014)
Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
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Green Health Peace Perseverance Self-awareness Nature Environment Luck Renewal Youth Vigour Spring Generosity Fertility Jealousy Inexperience Envy
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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Maleficent (2014)
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Blue Faith Spirituality Loyalty Fulfilment Peace Melancholy Stability Harmony Unity Trust Truth Confidence Isolation Order Cold Technology Depression
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House of Cards (2013-)
Cloud Atlas (2012)
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Purple Eroticism Royalty Nobility Spirituality Death Mystery Mysticism Wisdom Enlightenment Cruelty Arrogance Mourning Power Sensitiveness Illusion Intimacy
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Avatar (2009)
Lost River (2015)
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White
Protection Love Reverence Purity Simplicity Cleanliness Peace Humility Precision Innocence Youth Birth Goodness Sterility
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The Young Pope (2016)
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay: Part 1 (2014)
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Black Power Sexuality Sophistication Formality Elegance Wealth Mystery Fear Anonymity Unhappiness Depth Evil Sadness Remorse Anger
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Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Sweeney Todd (2007)
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Colour Schemes Being able to use colour to acquire harmony or tension within a scene is not an easy job. This is created through the selection of objects used in the scenography, right costumes choice and an appropriate colour grading technique. It is not a coincidence that the main character wears a T-shirt of a certain colour. This section explores 5 common film colour schemes that can help you understand how cinematic colour design works.
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Complementary Two colours on opposite sides of the colour wheel make a complementary pair. This is by far the most commonly used pairing. A popular example is orange and blue, often used in many blockbuster films. The duelling colours are associated with conflict, whether internal or external. No matter the colour selection, complementary colours combine warm and cool colours to produce a high-contrast and vibrant tension in the film. Saturation must be managed but a complementary pair are often quite naturally pleasing to the eye.
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Blue & Orange Complementary pairing of orange and blue in ‘Mad Max’. It is a popular scheme used in blockbusters. This colour pairing is very distinctive through whole film.
Red & Green ‘Amelie’ is best known of using a great complementary pairing of red and green. It helps the film to deliver a story and present the atmosphere of the film.
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Analogous Analogous colours sit next to each other on the colour wheel. They match well and can create a overall harmony in colour palette. It’s either warmer colours, or cooler colours so don’t have the contrast and tension of the complementary colours. Analogous colours are easy to take advantage of in landscapes and exteriors as they are often found in nature. Often one colour can be chosen to dominate, a second to support, and a third along with blacks, whites and grey tones to accent.
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Oranges, Browns and Yellows Colours in this scene from ‘American Hustle’ fall next to each other on the colour wheel forming a warm overall feel with very little tension in the image.
Purples, Pinks & Reds In the scene from ‘Tokyo Drifter’ the colours are neatly selected. They create an ominous feeling, which makes the audience anxious and nervous.
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Triadic Triadic scheme is created from three colours spaced evenly around the colour wheel, causing there is no clear dominance of one colour. They give a vibrant feel even if the hues are quite unsaturated. Triadic is one of the least common colour schemes in film and although difficult, it can be quite striking.
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Red, Blue & Yellow A film like ‘Pierrot le Fou’ may appear to have no set colour scheme, but it uses triadic colour. This playful balance creates the atmosphere of the film.
Red, Blue & Yellow In ‘A woman is a Woman’, Jean-Luc Godard uses washed-out primary colours: blues, reds and yellows. This gives the film the feel of a sun-faded De Stijl painting.
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Split-Complementary A split-complementary colour scheme is really very similar to complimentary colours but instead of using the direct opposite colour of the base colour, it uses the two colours next to the opposite. It has the same high contrast but less tension than a complementary pair. The base colour is main, while the secondary colours should be used only for highlights and accents. We get a combination of one warm and two cold colours (or vice versa).
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Red, Green & Teal A split complimentary colour scheme is presented in the scene of the Coen Brother’s ‘Burn After Reading’ of red, green and teal.
Red, Green & Blue In ‘Hellboy’ colours are dark and create a high contrast. The attention is paid to the main character by using the only warm colour in the scheme: red.
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Tetradic Tetradic colour scheme consist of four colours arranged into two complementary pairs. The result is a full palette with many possible variations. As with most of these colour harmonies, one colour is usually dominant. This scheme is always vibrant, nervous and colourful, there is equal tension between all colours. Tetrad is very aggressive colour scheme, requiring very good planning and very sensitive approach to relations of these colours.
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Blue, Purple, Red & Green ‘Mama Mia’s’ colourful party scene creates a well balanced and harmonious palette in a scene that could otherwise have looked like a bad disco.
Blues, Red Orange & Pink A scene from ‘Magnolia’ show is blues pushed into the shadows, and oranges in the midtones and highlights specifically in skin tones.
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Monochromatic Monochromatic colours are all the colours (tints, tones, and shades) of a single hue. Monochromatic colour schemes are derived from a single base hue and extended using its shades, tones and tints. Tints are achieved by adding white and shades and tones are achieved by adding a darker colour, grey or black. An example can be red, dark red, and pink. Monochromatic colours create a deeply harmonious feeling that is soft, lulling and soothing.
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Green Nearly every scene set within the world of the ‘Matrix’ has a green hue. Shades of green create an unnatural, ‘lulling’ effect (representative of those ‘asleep’).
Yellow In ‘Moonrise Kingdom’ shades of yellow create a summer-like haze over the film, which demonstrates the love of Sam and Suzy.
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Discordant Colours Discordance is a deliberate choice by the director to deviate from the balanced movie colour schemes mentioned above to refocus attention. Discording colours can help a character, detail, or moment stand out from the rest of the film. For example, the red colour of the coat in ‘Schindler’s List’ (1993) is a discordant colour.
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The Sixth Sense (1999) The red colour appears as a symbol throughout the film.
Pleasantville (1998) Precisely selected objects appear in colour contrasting with the black-and-white background.
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We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) It is a film with very violent themes that features almost zero violence. In this instance, red is associated with blood, but that doesn’t mean that all associations have to follow social constraints of a colour.
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Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014) Red colour contrasting with black and white surroundings.
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Amelie (2001) Blue is immediately noticeable, because it doesn’t fit in the red & green colour scheme of the film.
Tokyo Drifter (1966) Red in this scene on the yellow background is unpleasant for the eye, which makes it noticeable.
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Associative Colours Having considered the various components colour theory, we can now look at colour selection on a larger scale – not just in a single scene, but over the course of the entire story. When a colour or scheme is recurrently associated with a specific character, object, place or theme, it becomes a symbol. This is seen throughout many iconic films. Let’s say the character is associated with purple. If we proceed to see purple in the future, we will know it’s because that scene, in some way, is referencing the subject.
The Dark Knight (2008) Joker is always associated with purple. 74 \ Abc
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The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Batman is always identified with black in every film in the series.
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Vertigo (1958) Scottie Ferguson, is represented by red : his clothing, the furniture that surrounds him, the door to his apartment . On the other hand, Madeline, the object of his obsession, is represented by the hue directly opposite red on the colour wheel: green. Her dress, car and other objects surrounding her are green. As these two characters come together and grow closer, so too do their colours co-mingle.
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The Godfather (1972) Don Vito Corleone is followed by orange. Light and objects near him are almost always in this colour. Orange is associated with death. Repetition of a single colour in the scheme show some kind of interrelation with an idea.
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Inside Out (2015) Each emotion is associated with a specific colour: red is anger, blue is sadness, green is disgust, purple is fear and yellow is joy. Abc / 81
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Kill Bill (2003) Uma Thurman is identified with yellow costume. Her outfit not only becomes iconic through the colour use, but gives us strong subconscious reaction to the character. This intense yellow evokes feelings of the hazardous. Abc / 83
Transitional Colours When a recurring film palette or colour shifts over the course of the film, it often represents a transformation in the character, story, or theme. This is a powerful way to subliminally communicate a character or story arc in a visual manner.
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Breaking Bad (2008 - 2013) Using colour schemes in clothes was essential in presenting the moral standings of characters in ‘Breaking Bad’ (2009). One of the best examples of character transitions comes in the scene where Walter, just before he dives even further into his own evils, removes red shirt to reveal darker one. His visual presence represents his character arc, something dark lies beneath the surface of Walter. Colour can be used to heighten the nature of our desires or to be a final twist of the knife. It sets a groundwork for the emotional state of a film.
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Up (2009) Immediate change of colours can be seen between the scenes from Up. These colour schemes represent happy and sad life moments of the main character. 88 \ Abc
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The Last Emperor (1987) Transitions can be shown in something as simple as locations or be something more complex, like depiction of character’s state of mind. In ‘The Last Emperor’ as the character discovers more about the world around him, the colour palette shifts. The world of tradition and the characters naivete is displayed by the world of red. However, as the character begins to learn more, the colour goes from red to orange, yellow and finally, once he becomes fully comprehensive of his surroundings, he is bounded to green.
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Blue is The Warmest Colour (2013) Blue is extremely prevalent throughout ‘Blue Is The Warmest Colour’. Literally every scene has something blue in it. When Adèle meets Emma, her hair is blue. The colour represents Adèle’s freedom to express herself, as well as the love between her and Emma. Blue is associative and the subject is Adele’s relationship. Here we see social connotations of colours set in stone. Love is represented by blue instead of red. As we progress through the stages of the relationship, the colour scheme reflects this. During the happiest parts of the relationship blue surrounds Adèle and it’s very saturated, showing the intensity of her love. At her lowest Adèle is surrounded by much paler blues, showing that the love is fading.
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Tokyo Drifter (1966) Colour transitions typically happen gradually over the course of film. However, when the subject’s transition is more sudden, then depending on the kind of film, the transition can be instantaneous, like in Tokyo Drifter.
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Short History of The Colour in Film Since before we have been even able to actualise sound in films, we’ve been obsessed with colour. Film has always been about the visual. The primordial age of cinema displays the lens we were willing to go to just to capture its essence. Before filters in cameras existed, innovators like Thomas Edison and Georges Méliès would paint on top of the film to enhance their images, so they could become wondrous. Colour was initially used to show the dream like quality of cinema
and to present how distant from our reality it was. It didn’t take filmmakers too long to discover that colour was an essential component of storytelling. Artists such as Benjamin Christensen realised how different colours are connected to our psychological reactions. We would feel much more on edge when screen was covered in red, which contrasted to much more serene shots using blue tint.
In ‘Intolerance’ (1916) the array of colour tints were used to show the difference between various periods of times. 96 \ Colours
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Greed (1924) Colour soon became a way to symbolise the inner workings of characters. In ‘Greed’ (1924) yellow follows presence of the man’s greediness. Film starts with a few elements painted yellow and it ends with full screen tinted in this colour.
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Though much of early cinema is of the black and white variety, colour tinted films go all the way back to the silent era. These days, colour is an integral part of film, and it has incredible power over how we perceive the film and the characters.
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Technicolor Technicolor is the name applied to a series of colour motion picture processes. The first version, dating from 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. In the first stage, just two colours were used: red and green on top of the black and white film. This technology developed into three-striped colours system, which helped many filmmakers with creating amazing art pieces. Once Technicolor developed three-strip colour technique, a brand new world of opportunities was opened to us. We’ve became completely free to use colour however we wanted and artists begun to understand the disciplines of aesthetics and symbolism.
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Dreaming in
T
NICOLO H C R E
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Hero (2002) ‘Intolerance’ (1916) showed the way colour can separate place and time. The same way ‘Hero’ (2002) uses its art direction to show stories from different perspectives.
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“It’s easier to make colour look good, but harder to make it service the story.” - Roger Deakins
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Wes Anderson’s Colour Palettes One of the best filmmakers utilising colour today is Wes Anderson. The fictional worlds evoked in films by him have such a precise colouration – the very particular pastel-hues that paint the skies, drench the buildings and dress the characters, render Anderson’s microcosms almost dream-like. The hazy-hued lens through which we peer into the director’s unique world has a retro quality that casts his films in a nostalgia for a time that could have been. The muted pink of The Grand Budapest Hotel that makes the hotel itself the biggest character in the movie; the very particular French mustard that comes to define Gwyneth Paltrow’s Margot Tenenbaum in The Royal Tenenbaums; the vintage boy-scout green in Moonrise Kingdom. The symmetry, the camera movements, the beautiful lighting - it all serves to create a world that is, strangely, both unique and nostalgic.
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It’s worth mentioning that Wes Anderson is not alone. His Director of Photography, Robert Yeoman, has been collaborating with him for almost 20 years, creating this incredible art pieces. One can imagine how many obstacles the DoP in a Wes Anderson’s film would have to overcome considering Anderson’s penchant for creating immersive worlds with highly detailed sets and costumes, as well as his insistence that everything has to be perfect within the frame. But, as Yeoman points out, he doesn’t like to say ‘no’ to a director; he likes to give them what they ask for, and for him that means shooting anamorphic, theater-like compositions, x/y axis camera movement, and soft lighting.
Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
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The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
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Colour is very often the first thing to notice in Wes Anderson’s motion picture. With a great love of pastel tones, he installs these kinds of colours into almost every element of the scenery. This gives him a complete monopoly over the meaning and subtext of his films. It’s hard to imagine ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’ without seeing its sugary pink exterior. In ‘Fantastic Mr Fox’ he coats the picturesque English countryside not in green and blue you’d expect, but in autumnal tones of orange and gold. He uses the power of colour to make us look at the world differently. Alternatively in ‘The Darjeeling Limited,’ he floods the frame with traditional bright and citrus tones of India to immerse us completely into that exotic world.
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The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
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Hotel Chevalier (2007)
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L I G H T
L I G H T
Light in Film Light is an integral part of cinematography and is largely responsible for the look of the film. It can easily set the tone of a scene and make or break how ‘good’ a movie looks. It can also be used artistically. Light can represent a feeling or a presence. Coloured lights can hold a meaning or highlight the tone of a scene. This chapter will analyse the lighting techniques used by filmmakers and the role of light
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Three-Point Lighting Three-point lighting is a standard method used in visual media such as theatre, video, film, still photography and computer-generated imagery. By using three separate positions, the photographer can illuminate the shot’s subject (such as a person) however desired, while also controlling (or eliminating entirely) the shading and shadows produced by direct lighting.
Back Light
Object
Fill Light Key Light
Camera 12 0 \ Light
Light Typologies Lighting is an integral part of cinematography, and it’s one of the few areas of filmmaking that has infinite arrangements of set-ups. Quite like in camera terminology, there are many variations of tools and lighting language. In short; it can get quite confusing. There is no right way to employ lighting design. A scene could be lit in several different ways by different cinematographers, each altering the mood and overall impact of the image. However, there is a basic list of lighting placements. It’s important to note that there can be several terms for the same placement. For example; A back light, rim light, and a hair light are interchangeable terms for having the light placed behind and above an actor.
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Key Light A key light is the primary light of a scene. It will be the most intense and direct light source of the entire scene. It will be the first light to set up, and will be used to illuminate the form of the subject or an actor.
Skyfall (2012)
Tips! Avoid placing your key light close to the camera. It will cause your lighting to become flat and featureless. If a key light is positioned to the side or back of an actor, it will create a mysterious/dramatic mood, and overall keep the image dark.
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Fill Light A fill light illuminates the shadows that are created by key light. A fill light is usually placed on the opposite side of a key light, and often not as powerful as the key.
Inception (2010)
Tips! As the primary function of the fill is to remove shadows created by the key, it’s important that the fill remains indistinctive and does not create shadows or it’s own characteristics. The closer the fill light is to the camera, the less shadows it will create. Fills are easy to create even if you don’t have another light at hand; you can place a reflector on the opposite 3/4 to the key. Light will spill onto the reflector and bounce up to your subject. A fill light is measured in a fill light ratio also known as a key/fill ratio. It describes the relative amount of light from the key and the fill. For example, a ratio of 1:2 would indicate that the fill is half the intensity of the key.
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Back Light A back light hits an actor or object from behind, and is usually placed higher than the object it is lighting. A back light is often used to separate an object or an actor from a dark background, and to give the subject more shape and depth. Back lighting can help bring your subject out and away from looking two dimensional.
Shutter Island (2010)
Tips! Non-diffused sunlight can often be too harsh to light your subject as a key light, but as a back light, the sun can make your subject stand out. With the sun as a back light, you can use a reflector or a foam board to bounce the sun at a lesser intensity back up to the actor. If a back light is placed behind an actor at a directional angle, where the light hits part of the face, the back light becomes a kicker. To create a silhouette, expose for the back light and remove your key and fill.
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Side Light A sidelight is a light that comes from the side parallel to the actor. A sidelight is ideal for creating a dramatic mood and chiaroscuro lighting. Chiaroscuro is created with low-key and high-contrast. It is a traditional technique employed throughout the film noir period of cinema.
Casino Royale (2006)
Tips! To create better dramatic lighting with a sidelight, it is best to use it without a fill or have the fill ratio very low such as 1:8. Sidelights are ideal for revealing texture.
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Practical Light A practical light is an actual working light within the scene itself. This can be a household lamp, a TV, candles, police lights and so on.
Birdman (2014)
Tips! Practical lamps were a big part of classic Hollywood films. The lamps are a major source of illumination, and they also increase the depth of the scene. Common practice for practical lighting is for the lights to have a dimmer of some sort. Unfortunately, you might not be in a position, or have an electrician on set to install a dimmer switch. Therefore, an option you can take is to cut some diffusion gel and place it around the bulb. Unless you’re filming with a Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/0.7 like on Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon, candle light itself will not be strong enough to illuminate your entire scene to a substantial exposure.
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Bounce Light A bounce light is a light that has been reflected. There are dedicated tools such as a silk or a foam board to do this, but a bounce light can also come from the wall or the ceiling, the possibilities are endless.
Behind the Scenes from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
Tips! Foam bead boards have a matte surface and will create the softest bounce light. Reflectors with silver reflective material can create a hard light and often provide bounce light at 3/4 of the intensity back, depending on the distance of the light itself. Bounced light in the form a reflector can be very versatile. You can create a key, fill, back light, and even illuminate objects in the background with reflective material.
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Motivated Lighting Motivated lighting is when the light in the scene imitates a natural source within the scene. The difference between motivated lighting and practical lighting is that motivated lighting is the act of enhancing and replicating practical lighting.
Behind the Scenes from Her (2013)
Tips! Establish the source of the motivated lighting early in the scene and within the production schedule itself. If your motivated source is a window, and the shoot runs into the evening while the story time remains in the day, you can increase and change lighting gels to match the earlier time. Make sure you have the correct gels to correct the colour temperature to match the source of motivation. It’s important to have your light to look and act the same as the apparent source. If the motivation is moonlight, and your light is producing hard light at 5600k, it’s not going to sell the scene.
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Available Light Available is what already exists at the location. This could just be the sun itself in the Rub’ al Khali desert, or street lights and store signs on a New York City street.
Game of Thrones (2011-)
Tips! If you’re using the sun as your lighting source, be sure to carefully plan for the weather and sun placement. Early morning and late evening are great times for soft golden lighting. Keep a track of time, the sun changes intensity and colour quite quickly towards the later end of the day.
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Soft Light Soft light is more of a term that describes the size of a light source rather than a placement itself. Soft light comes from a large source, either a light fixture or diffusion sheet. The light produced will have soft shadows – or if soft enough, no shadows at all. Her (2013)
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Hard Light Hard light creates sharp and harsh shadows. You will get hard light from the midday sun, or a small lighting source. Hard light is often unwanted. To reiterate the points above in soft light, whether a light is soft or hard will completely come down to the size of the source. Casablanca (1942)
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Low Key An image with low key lighting is predominantly dark and filled with more shadows than light. There is little or no fill light. Low key focuses on the use of shadows as a character, rather than the subjects in the light itself. It’s commonly used throughout horror and thriller films. Inception (2010)
High Key High Key is a style of lighting that is bright and shadowless with lots of fill light. It was used a lot in the classic Hollywood period in the 1930s and 40s, in particular for comedies and musicals. Today high key lighting is primarily used for cosmetic commercials, sitcoms, and music videos. Although it does still find its place within modern cinema. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011) 132 \ Abc
Low Key & High Key
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Colour Temperature Colour temperature refers to the ‘colour’ of white light emitted by a light source based on that radiated by a perfect black body at a given temperature measured in degrees Kelvin. White light can be warm (yellow/ orange) or cool (blue) and our eyes automatically adjust. However, the colour temperature of light sources and especially the mixing of different colour temperatures becomes very important when designing film lighting. Using light we can create a change in a mood of the scene. One way to do it is to change colour temperature. There are traditionally two important numbers you should know by heart: 3200K which is the temperature of tungsten lighting and 5600K which is the temperature of sunlight at midday.
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Temperature Sources 1,700 K: Match Flame
1,850 K: Candle Flame, Sunset/Sunrise
2,700–3,300 K: Incandescent Lamps
4,100–4,150 K: Moonlight
5,000 K: Sun Behind The Coluds
5,500–6,500 K: Daylight
15,000–27,000 K Clear Blue Poleward Sky
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S H O T S
S H O T S
Shots in Film A shot is a series of frames, that runs for an uninterrupted period of time. Film shots are an essential aspect of a movie where angles, transitions and cuts are used to further express emotion, ideas and movement. The term ‘shot’ derives from the early days of film production when cameras were hand-cranked, and operated similarly to the hand-cranked machine guns of the time. That is, a cameraman would ‘shoot’ film the way someone would ‘shoot’ bullets from a machine gun.
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The Rule of Thirds This is a general principle in photography, which is generally considered to make shots more appealing to the eye. One can easily visualize this rule by taking a frame and dividing the horizontal piece into three equal sections and dividing the vertical in three equal sections. This creates 9 equal sections. By aligning the central object into these points of the frame (often called the power points), instead of centring the object, you get more aesthetically and professional looking shots. However, we should note that while we describe this as the rule of thirds, it might better be used as a guideline.
Common uses of this rule in filmmaking: Framing an interview: The eyes of your subject should fall in one of the upper points and the subject should be looking towards the empty space on the frame. Shooting a horizon: Rather than position the horizon on the centre of the frame, align it along the upper or lower third depending on what you want to emphasize. 14 0 \ Abc
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Types of Shots Shots can be categorised in a number of ways. Camera angles and movements combine to create a sequence of images, just as words, word order and punctuation combine to make the meaning of a sentence. You need a straightforward set of key terms to describe them. When describing camera angles, or creating them yourself, you have to think about three important factors: the framing or the length of shot, the angle of the shot and if there is any movement involved. When describing different cinematic shots, different terms are used to indicate the amount of subject matter contained within a frame, how far away the camera is from the subject, and the perspective of the viewer. Each different shot has a different purpose and effect. A change between two different shots is called a cut. Here are the examples of the most common types of shots.
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Framing or Shot Length The field size explains how much of the subject and its surrounding area is visible within the camera’s field of view, and is determined by two factors: the distance of the subject from the camera (‘camera-subject distance’) and the focal length of the lens.
Extreme Long Shot This can be taken from as much as a quarter of a mile away, and is generally used as a scene-setting, establishing shot. It normally shows an exterior, e.g. the outside of a building or a landscape, and is often used to show scenes of thrilling action e.g. in a war film or disaster movie. There will be very little detail visible in this shot, it’s meant to give a general impression rather than specific information.
Django Unchained (2012)
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Long Shot / Full Shot This is the most difficult to categorise precisely, but is generally one which shows the image as approximately ‘life’ size i.e. corresponding to the real distance between the audience and the screen in a cinema. This category
includes a full shot showing the entire human body, with the head near the top of the frame and the feet near the bottom. While the focus is on characters, plenty of background detail still emerges.
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
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Medium Shot Contains a figure from the knees/ waist up and is normally used for dialogue scenes, or to show some detail of action. Variations on this include: two shot (containing two figures from the waist up) and three shot (contains 3 figures). Background level of detail is minimal, usually because location has been established
earlier in the scene - audience already know where they are and now want to focus on a dialogue and characters interaction. Another variation in this category is over-the-shoulder-shot, which positions the camera behind one figure, revealing the other figure, and part of the first figure’s back, head and shoulder.
The Dark Knight (2008)
Westorld (2016-) Shots / 145
Close-up This shows very little background, and concentrates on either a face, or a specific detail of mise en scène. Everything else is just a blur in the background. This shot magnifies an object (think of how big it looks on a cinema screen) and shows the importance of things, be it words written on paper, or the expression on someone’s face. The close-up takes us
The Shining (1980)
The Master (2012) 14 6 \ Shots
into the mind of a character. In reality, we only let people that we really trust to get that close to our face - mothers, children and lovers, usually - so a close up of a face is a very intimate shot. A film-maker may use this to make us feel extra comfortable or extremely uncomfortable about a character, and usually uses a zoom lens in order to get the required framing.
Extreme Close-up As its name suggests, an extreme version of the close up, generally magnifying beyond what the human eye would experience in reality. The extreme close-up shot is traditionally used in film to allow the viewer to enter the character’s intimate space, revealing certain characteristics and emotions that would otherwise go unnoticed from afar. An extreme
close-up of a face, for instance, would show only the mouth or eyes, with no background detail whatsoever. This is a very artificial shot, and can be used for dramatic effect. The tight focus required means that extra care must be taken when setting up and lighting the shot - the slightest camera shake or error in focal length is very noticeable.
X-Men: First Class (2011)
Psycho (1960) Shots / 147
Camera Angle The relationship between the camera and the object being photographed gives emotional information to an audience, and guides their judgment about the character or object in shot. The more extreme the angle (i.e. the further away it is from eye left), the more symbolic and heavily-loaded the shot.
Bird’s-Eye Shot / Crane Shot This shows a scene from directly overhead, a very unnatural and strange angle. Familiar objects viewed from this angle might seem totally unrecognisable at first . This shot does, however, put the audience in a godlike position, looking down on the action. People can be made to look insignificant, ant-like, part of a wider scheme of things. Hitchcock (and his admirers, like Brian de Palma) is fond of this style of shot.
Captain Phillips (2013)
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High Angle Shot Not so extreme as a bird’s eye view. The camera is elevated above the action using a crane to give a general overview. High angles make the object photographed seem smaller, and less significant (or scary). The object or character often gets swallowed up by their setting - they
become part of a wider picture. High-angle shots can make the subject seem vulnerable or powerless when applied with the correct mood, setting, and effects. If there is a person at high elevation who is talking to someone below them, this shot is often used.
Avengers (2012)
Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
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Eye Level Shot The eye-level camera angle is the most commonly used camera angle of them all. This angle is the ‘personal view’ and shows the subject as we expect to see them in real life. A fairly neutral shot; the camera is positioned as though it is
Forrest Gump (1994)
La La Land (2016)
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a human actually observing a scene, so that e.g. actors’ heads are on a level with the focus. A neutral shot or eye-level shot has little to no psychological effect on the viewer. They are ideal for romantic comedies and news casting.
Low Angle Shot These increase height (useful for short actors like Tom Cruise or James McAvoy) and give a sense of speeded motion. Low angles help give a sense of confusion to a viewer, of powerlessness within the action of a scene. The background of a low angle shot will tend to be just sky or
ceiling, the lack of detail about the setting adding to the disorientation of the viewer. The added height of the object may make it inspire fear and insecurity in the viewer, who is psychologically dominated by the figure on the screen.
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Hunger Games (2012)
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Oblique/Canted Angle Shot Also called Dutch Tilt, a canted angle has the camera leaning sideways, transforming the horizon into a slope. It changes horizontal and vertical lines into diagonals and creates a more dynamic composition. Though rare, canted
Inception (2010)
The Dark Knight (2008)
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angles can be employed with great artistic effect to disorient and disturb the viewer. Sometimes the camera is tilted (i.e. is not placed horizontal to floor level), to suggest imbalance, transition and instability (very popular in horror movies).
Point of View (POV) A point of view shot (also known as POV shot, First-person shot or a subjective camera) is a short film scene that shows what a character (the subject) is looking at (represented through the camera). Point-of-view shots are angles in which the camera
incorporates a character’s eyes. POVs are usually preceded by a close-up of the character’s eyes. Sometimes the point-of-view shot is taken over the shoulder of the character (third person), who remains visible on the screen.
Premium Rush (2012)
Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
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Camera Movement A director may choose to move action along by telling the story as a series of cuts, going from one shot to another, or they may decide to move the camera with the action. Moving the camera often takes a great deal of time, and makes the action seem slower, as it takes several second for a moving camera shot to be effective, when the same information may be placed on screen in a series of fast cuts. Not only must the style of movement be chosen, but the method of actually moving the camera must be selected too. There are seven basic methods:
Pans A movement which scans a scene horizontally. The camera is placed on a tripod, which operates as a stationary axis point as the camera is turned, often to follow a moving object which is kept in the middle of the frame.
Tilts A movement which scans a scene vertically, otherwise similar to a pan.
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Dolly Shots Sometimes called trucking or tracking shots. The camera is placed on a moving vehicle and moves alongside the action, generally following a moving figure or object. Complicated dolly shots will involve a track being laid on set for the camera to follow, hence the name. The camera might be mounted on
a car, a plane, or even a shopping trolley. A dolly shot may be a good way of portraying movement, the journey of a character for instance, or for moving from a long shot to a close-up, gradually focusing the audience on a particular object or character.
Behind the Scenes from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
Behind the Scenes from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay: Part 1 (2014)
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Hand-held shots The hand-held movie camera first saw widespread use during World War II, when news reporters took their windup Arriflexes and Eyemos into the heat of battle, producing some of the most arresting footage of the twentieth century. After the war, it took a while for commercially produced movies to catch up, and documentary makers led the way, demanding the production of smaller, lighter cameras that could be moved in and out of a scene with speed, producing a ‘fly-on-the-wall’ effect. This aesthetic took a while to catch on with mainstream Hollywood, as it gives a jerky, ragged effect, totally at odds with the organised
Behind the Scenes from Birdman (2014)
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smoothness of a dolly shot. The Steadicam (a heavy contraption which is attached a camera to an operator by a harness. The camera is stabilized so it moves independently) was debuted in Marathon Man (1976), bringing a new smoothness to hand held camera movement and has been used to great effect in movies and TV shows ever since. No “walk and talk” sequence would be complete without one. Hand held cameras denote a certain kind of gritty realism, and they can make the audience feel as though they are part of a scene, rather than viewing it from a detached, frozen position.
Crane Shots Basically, it’s a dolly-shots-in-the-air. A crane (or jib), is a large, heavy piece of equipment, but is a useful way of moving a camera - it can move up, down, left, right, swooping in on action or moving diagonally out of it. The camera operator and camera are counter-balanced by a heavy weight.
Zoom Lenses A zoom lens contains a mechanism that changes the magnification of an image. On a still camera, this means that the photographer can get a ‘close up’ shot while still being some distance from the subject. Zoom lenses are often over-used by many directors, who try to give an impression of movement and excitement in a scene where it does not exist.
The Aerial Shot An exciting variation of a crane shot, usually taken from a helicopter. This is often used at the beginning of a film, in order to establish setting and movement. A helicopter is like a particularly flexible sort of crane: it can go anywhere, keep up with anything, move in and out of a scene, and convey real drama and exhilaration — so long as you don’t need to get too close to your actors or use location sound with the shots.
Suits (2011-)
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Film Scenes with Incredible Camera Movement Cameras in films are swimming, flying and being hooked up to airplanes. Operators do amazing things with them. However, if you think that an incredible camera movement is something that was just introduced in a modern cinema, then you will be very surprised. Here are few scenes with an extraordinary camera movement.
Car Chase Scene From ‘Raid 2’
The Raid 2 (2014) The camera is hand held and is always moving, but it is a realistic movement. Whole scene was made with just one shot - no cuts!
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The operator being held outside the vehicle was filming the first car.
Then, the team drove smoothly to the other car and passed the camera to the person dressed as a seat in another car.
Lastly, the camera was passed to another operator, attached to a construction outside the car.
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Vertigo Effect in ‘La Haine’ & ‘Vertigo’ Vertigo is an effect achieved by simultaneously moving the camera away from the subject and zooming in on it. This gives an impression the distance from the subject does not change, but by changing the focal length of the lens, the perspective changes.
Vertigo (1958) Amazing Vertigo shot by Stanley Kubrick.
La Haine (1995) Vertigo effect achieved in La Haine.
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Mirror Trick in ‘Contact’ In one of the more memorable scenes in the movie, Ellie (Dr. Eleanor Ann) discovers that her father died, and runs to the medicine cabinet in the bathroom to get his pills. It is a single shot that follows Ellie from the bottom of the staircase all the way up until she reaches out to the mirrored cabinet and opens it, only to reveal that the entire shot was taken ‘through the mirror’.
Contact (1997) There was a speed change (from 24 to 48fps). By the time she stops and puts her hand to open the medicine cabinet door (‘A’ plate ) – we are then inside the reflection. The medicine cabinet was the ‘B’ plate and then the door closes and we have the ‘C’ plate. The mirror was fake (it was a blue screen) and it was all put together in the post-production.
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Amazing Continuous Shots
Spectre (2015) We follow a couple in the crowd, then they go into the hotel and inside the room. The scene continues with a camera on a crane outside the building, where crowd can be seen from a distance. Everything was made without any cuts.
Birdman (2014) Birdman was filmed to look like one continuous shot. To make this work, the director and cinematographers had to get really creative, utilizing tricks like time lapse and dark spaces for cuts between scenes. But the film doesn’t rely entirely on movie magic: parts of the movie are truly composed of massively long takes. 162 \ Shots
Touch of Evil (1958) It’s a continuous shot, starting on the close-up. The camera follows a couple for few minutes, panning in and out. Pretty amazing for the 50’s!
Soy Cuba (1964) We follow a couple in the crowd, then they go into the hotel and inside the room. The scene continues with a camera on a crane outside the building. Here we can see the crowd from a distance. Everything was made without any cuts.
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Incredible ‘Gravity’
Gravity (2013) The technology Alfonso Cuarón and his crew created to make ‘Gravity’ possible was called a ‘Light Box’. It is really ingenious thing: Rather than trying to figure out how to move Sandra Bullock through space, they realized they could move space around her. Not that it was simple from there. To make the technique work, they built the Light Box, or ‘Sandy’s Box’, out of “1.8 million individually controllable LED bulbs”—essentially it’s 360 degrees of Jumbotron screens—and then piloted the camera through it using a robot.
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Aspect Ratio The essential idea behind aspect ratios is pretty simple. You’ll usually see them referred to as two numbers, separated by a colon. For instance, 4:3. Or 1.33:1. In each of these cases, the first number refers to the width of the screen, and the second to the height. You have probably noticed that 4:3 is the same as 1.33:1. It’s pretty much a stylistic quirk whether you’d rather express the ratio in whole numbers (4:3) or always have the second number as 1 (1.33:1). The aspect ratio of cinematic films expanded with time (See the detailed explanation on the page 20). Have a look at the interactive evolution of the screen on the next page.
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Interactive Transformation
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Aspect Ratio 1,78:1 (16:9)
Aspect Ratio 1,33:1 (4:3)
Aspect Ratio 2.35:1
Anamorphic Scope - Cinemascope / Panavision
Academy Standard / NTSC Television
US Digital Television
of The Aspect Ratio
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Opening Shots The opening shot is by far one of the most crucial parts of any film. It may not be the most memorable or intricate shot, but it’s the first thing we see, and like our first impression of a person we meet, it’s extremely important. Opening shots are often forgotten about, especially when they aren’t flashy, but directors almost always use opening shots to convey the films main ideas, premises or character arcs. In the same way that an establishing shot introduces us into a scene, an opening shot introduces us into a film, and that introduction can be landscape, character or even a computer screen, but whatever it is, it’s one of the most noteworthy aspects in a film. Opening shots are the first bit of information we get, so directors make it count. Here are few examples of great opening shots.
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2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
The shot starts behind the moon. Our first look is away from earth in the desolate, lifeless part of space. We catch Earth from past the moon with the sun rising behind it. This shot, literally showing the dawn of man, is packed with symbolism. The shot isn’t of a person or a group of people, it’s of all of civilisation. We’re shown that this film isn’t about people, but it’s about humanity as a whole. The sun, symbol of life, rises into our view.
We’re watching the circle of life being in front of our eyes. The music gives a sense of weight and epic scale to the whole shot, and then rising sun, what we need to live, behind our home, Earth, tells us this story centres on life on Earth. We know our perspective is that of an outsider looking in from the point of view of space. The film title tells us we’re on an odyssey or journey. From this shot, we know exactly what the plot will be about.
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Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Depending on the blocking, position in relation to the camera and action of a character in an opening shot, we can infer so much about the film as a whole. In Silver Linings Playbook our first look at the main character is from behind. Part of him is hidden from us. The slow zoom towards him
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eases us into his head, which is facing the wrong direction and he’s talking away from us about his goal to make amends. His position facing away from camera is also a sign of weakness for the character. We know the film will focus on him and what’s going on in his head.
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
We see the reflection of Miss Louisiana winning a beauty pageant in the girl’s glasses. We know in seconds that this movie is about dreams and the pursuit of theses dreams. Judging from her desire to be a beauty pageant winner, we also get the impression that these
dreams may be shallow and focus more on the superficial. The closeup on her eyes shows that Miss Louisiana is what she wants to see in herself. Through the lens of her glasses, she can now see what she wants to become.
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How To Break The Fourth Wall? The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imagined wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ‘wall’, the convention assumes, the actors act as if they cannot. Breaking the Fourth wall is one of the most unique thematic devices at the disposal of a filmmaker. Most cinematic techniques pull us into a story and make us forget we’re watching a film, but breaking the fourth wall does the opposite. It reminds us we’re actually an audience member watching what’s happening on the screen. To really understand the power of breaking the fourth wall, we have to look at its inception in theatrical performance. A formal definition for breaking the fourth wall would be a dramatic technique in a work of fiction where characters display an awareness that they are in such a work. The term first arose after the use of Box Sets became popular in the 1800’s when sets were constructed with three walls, the fourth wall being the imaginary wall between the audience and the performers on stage. Whenever a character acknowledged the audience’s presence, the fourth wall was broken.
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House of Cards (2013-) Frank Underwood addressing us directly is the foundation for so much of the energy in House of Cards. Often he says one thing to another character, and then looks at us and remind us what he’s really after.
Deadpool (2016) Deadpool is a master in breaking the fourth wall. He uses this device to create comedic scenes. This character was already breaking the fourth in the comic. He first appeared in 1991 in Marvel’s The New Mutants #98 comic book. Shots / 177
Spaceballs (1987) You can’t talk about breaking the fourth wall without mentioning Mel Brooks. He broke the fourth wall in the most extreme ways possible. His films go so far as to actually have the main characters watch themselves within the film
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A Clockwork Orange (1971)
Psycho (1960) The great effect of breaking the fourth wall is to unsettle. There’s nothing scarier than feeling safe and removed from the villain in a film and then having the villain look directly at you.
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