Another Production Diary

chilipie

chilipie

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After reading and enjoying NickClapper's production diary for his marvellous short film Woolies, I thought I'd have a stab at one for my next project, shooting in early September. This is going to be coming from a slightly different angle, as I'm not writing, directing or editing - I'm Director of Photography, so during pre-production I'll be working closely with the producer and director to make sure everything goes according to plan.

The film is a short comedy with dark undertones, which looks to be around 8-10 minutes long. The title is Permission To Leave and although I don't want to give too much away at this stage, one of the characters wants to commit suicide. So, where are we now? We've got a script, obviously. The writer is also directing, and playing one of the characters… we've got an actor lined up for the other main part, and an actress in mind for the final (small) role. Collectively, we still need to work out our budget, secure locations, organise equipment rental and hire a crew, including a sound recordist and production designer.

…most of that isn't my responsibility, of course - I'm going to try and keep production news up to date, but I'll mostly be concentrating on the visual side of things, from now through to the grade. Should have more to come in the next couple of days!
 
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Short suicide comedies are the rage! We wrap tomorrow, although it sounds like your project is much better organized and conceived.

I'm looking forward to your production diary, although I hope there isn't much drama for your sake.
 
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Copycat!

You can just label me as one of your 'Favourite Director(s)' in return for stealing my idea! :D

I am, of course, kidding and I can't wait to see this updated and in progress. It'll be great to see it from a DoP's point of view as well and I hope you include lots of good technical advice and knowledge.

I found keeping a Production Diary really useful, as well, on a practical level because it forced me to go over the things I hadn't done and the things I planned to do as well as addressing mistakes and successes- so I'd recommend it to anyone (but not too many, because I don't want my originality spoiled!).
 
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CamVader said:
Short suicide comedies are the rage! We wrap tomorrow, although it sounds like your project is much better organized and conceived.

I'm looking forward to your production diary, although I hope there isn't much drama for your sake.
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Thanks, look forward to seeing yours :)

Zensteve said:
You get a lot of value for the film's website, keeping one of those updated. :yes:

Hope your pre-prod sails along smoothly. :cool:
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We're looking into crowdfunding for a portion of the budget, so it will be great to be able to keep everyone updated if we do go down that route. Cheers!

NickClapper said:
Copycat!

You can just label me as one of your 'Favourite Director(s)' in return for stealing my idea! :D

I am, of course, kidding and I can't wait to see this updated and in progress. It'll be great to see it from a DoP's point of view as well and I hope you include lots of good technical advice and knowledge.

I found keeping a Production Diary really useful, as well, on a practical level because it forced me to go over the things I hadn't done and the things I planned to do as well as addressing mistakes and successes- so I'd recommend it to anyone (but not too many, because I don't want my originality spoiled!).
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:lol: Definitely agree with your last point - I've already found myself double checking things and spotted something I may have missed otherwise. When it comes to lighting, too, it never hurts to explain what you're trying to achieve to someone else - can save a lot of headaches!
 
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An update, of sorts

Had a very interesting meeting with the director and producer at the tail end of last week, discussing (amongst other things) the look of the film and our interpretations of the script. Although short, there will be some interesting visual challenges…

The vast majority of the film is dialogue driven and - like a good piece of music - there are highs and lows in the script. We'll be emphasising these with the ebb and flow of camera movements - nothing particularly ground-breaking, but it's good to have reached a decision so long before we roll. By the time we come to film, I plan to have the movements (or lack thereof) detailed on the script like you might have dynamics and tempo indicated on sheet music (extended metaphor alert). I'm sure I'll end up improvising a fair bit on the day, but I'll be working from these foundations. There'll be no Bourne-style camerawork, never fear; we want smooth glides and arcs that can be subtle as easily as they can be powerful.

The script also contains several (very brief) flashbacks that illustrate the dialogue between the two main characters, with the conversation continuing over the top. The dialogue is set in an office environment, but I want to break away from the typical look of washed out colours and heavy overhead lighting. If possible (we're yet to secure a location) I'd like the light to seem as natural as possible, and the overall look will be high key; bright, clean and unnervingly perfect. This is an office where dark things are discussed and approved and hopefully the film will contradict this visually.

The flashbacks - though brief - will need to be markedly different from the office, but I want to be careful not to make them feel too much like a cheesy dream sequence. The production design will play a huge part in making it feel dirty and grubby, something I want to emphasise by bringing out the textures and judicious application of handheld camerawork. The unnerving scenes in the Brother Grimm-style cottage in Hanna (shot by the marvellous Alwin Küchler, BSC) use unusually coloured and angled light to great effect, an idea I'd like to develop and make my own for these sequences - I want to push away from having black and white flashbacks.

While discussing the merits of opening with or without an establishing shot I suggested a slightly different idea for an opening sequence which the director liked and I think we're going to run with, so I'm really looking forward to seeing it come together. We're also fairly close to securing a professional sound recordist for the two days of shooting dialogue, so it will be great not having to worry about any of that.

More soon!
 
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SiCurious said:
Very interesting read. Sounds like you've got a great vibe going on with your team. Keep up the updates :D
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Thanks!

Theodebernacius said:
The look of the film will be mostly determined by you and the color grader. Have you talked to the colorist to make sure you 2 ain't working at cross purposes?
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We don't have a colourist on board yet - when we do, I'll be sure to give them all my notes, both from pre-production and on set. With any luck I'll be able to supervise the grade and make sure nothing's misinterpreted! Finding a production designer and a location are pretty high priority at the moment, as they are both key to the look of the film.
 
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Great read. I've just been re-watching the Hollywood Camera Works course and I'm really enjoying how camera can be used to convey emotions and relationships, both between characters and each other, and the audience and the characters.

One thought I had which might go well with your lighting ideas for the dream sequence, is if you want it to feel otherworldly and maybe unnerving, you can stray from focal lengths that have any similarity to the human eye. So no 35 or 50mm (or whatever the crop factor equivalent is, if you're not on the 5D.) Just a thought. :)
 
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