Behind The Scenes: Part 2

After a somewhat successful dayu of shooting, we went right back at it on Monday, and things were off to a shaky start. It wasn't that anyone was doing anything wrong. It was mostly that everyone was tired because we were beginning to see that these types of shoots can be physically, mentally, and emotionally draining. However, we quickly banded together and kept working.

Monday was a longer shoot than most days because it was the day when we filmed most everything else. The bulk of our film had to be done that night. We worked around the clock for well over 5 hours, trying to make the best of our story. We did hit a few roadblocks; sound wasn't working properly, lights weren't set up perfectly, and actors were inevitably forgetting their lines. But we all managed to pull through it.

After wrapping on Monday, I went my seperate way, as I was unable to shoot with them on Tuesday night. However, I am happy to report that everything went well and that we now have a finished film. I honestly can't wait to see how all of our hard work paid off.

Behind The Scenes: Part One

A little over a week ago, I was assigned a film project for one of my classes at UA. We each had to split up into teams and were instructed to make a short film (5-5:30 minutes) in a week. This excited all of us very much, and we were eager to start.

I joined three other guys in my class and we received a our topic. We had to make a film in the Noir style with an Underdog theme. I don't know if this is common knowledge, but those are two styles that repeatedly clash together. So, it was safe to say, we had our work cut out for us. As soon as we found out, we got started on our story. Granted, I'd helped work on some stories before for short films, and had even written a few, but this time, it was different. Working with other people with differing views on film was definitely an eye-opening experience. We had a great time trying to figure out how to tell a compelling story.

Then, friday came and went. We had yet to start shooting, but we did have our story outlined and a potential cast in place. We were making good time, in my opinion. Location scouting was also going well as we had already chosen where to shoot. The only thing we were waiting on was our schedule's to match up.

Sunday finally arrived and we were able to start shooting. We were a little worried because some of the casting decisions fell through, but we managed to convince other friends to help us out so we could get this done. And once they arrived, we started.

I have to admit; I'd never really worked with lights on a set before, but this shoot made me appreciate just how long it could take and how important it is. The lighting ended up proving integral to our success. We began shooting at 7 and were done around 9 that night. We all felt good about where it was going and were ready to tackle the next day...

Rowing Has Never Seemed So Much Fun

Whenever someone asks me to recommend films from a certain director, one of my first suggestions is always the never boring, fascinating work by David Fincher. His career has been one of incredible success and worth, having garnered a massive fan base over two decades. He has created such classics as "Se7en," "Fight Club," "The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button," and most recently, "The Social Network." With each new film, he challenges the audience not only with critical moral and ethical dilemmas, but also with his mastery of the visual arts. Each film is unique in its own right because of the different direction he goes in with them, ranging from the use of cinematography to even different types of panning shots. He is one of the many reasons I am interested in filmmaking, and here's why.


Given the extreme success of his newest film, "The Social Network," I will be highlighting that particular film in his impressive canon to show his different techniques. Written in the fast-paced style by Aaron Sorkin, Fincher maneuvered through each scene with a kind of nuance and grace that young aspiring filmmakers should make a note of. His manipulation of focus and depth of field in each scene, whether it be about a brooding Mark Zuckerberg in heated discussion with lawyers, or a rowing race. The focus is always on the main characters in the scene, with the background being blurred out, as evidenced in the rowing scene.




During this Henley Race Scene, all the focus is placed on the main actors/rowers, while most, if not all, of the background is extremely out of focus. Fincher uses this as a way to make sure the audience pays attention to where the real action is: the rowers' emotional struggle and determination to win. It is conveyed not only in their faces, but through the wide variety of medium, close-up and extreme close-up shots. Each shot in this short two minute scene does a perfect job of telling the story playing out in front of us. Some of the best moments are the medium and close-up shots involving the main actor and focusing squarely on him while having a blurred focus on the other rowers directly behind him. This manipulation of focus and even depth of field shows that Fincher knows who he wants the audience to pay attention to.

David Fincher is clearly a director who understands how to use even basic techniques involving focus and framing to tell a wonderful, vivid, and engaging story. With his recent success, it's only going to go up from here. Here's hoping that he will continue to make amazing entries into the history of film.