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FILM IS AS FILM DOES
DP Ciro Candia on the variety of challenges offered by shooting the new music promo Ofelia and a short film, Dance For Eternity.
As a cinematographer in the digital age we often find our- selves trying to convince fel- low filmmakers of the benefits of shooting on film. There is
always a more cost- effective format out there and so much energy is spent on inventing clever ways to make digi-
“tal look like film.
However, as I always remind peo- ple, the best way to make it ‘look like
film’ is, yes, to shoot it on film!
I’ve recently had the fortune to shoot two ambitious projects where
the filmmakers were committed to shooting on film at an early stage even though it inevitably meant raising more funds.
On both occasions, Fujifilm played a significant part in getting the projects made through their continued support of emerging filmmakers.
The first project was the test music video Ofelia, which is based on the song ‘Bad Is As Bad Does’ by the Earlies. The director Liam Garvo and I initially thought about shooting on HD, but we ended up choosing Super 16mm not only because of the texture of film, but also because we wanted to shoot high speed, which always seems to be simpler on film.
The video is inspired by the world of fairytales: an old gardener enters a young girl’s room through her wardrobe and transports her to an enchanted forest where he plants her into the ground. As the seasons pass, the gardener tends her carefully and the girl is transformed into a fully- grown tree woman.
The video was shot on F stage at Shepperton and presented several chal- lenges to the camera and the art depart- ment: how to re-create a forest in the studio and the passing of the seasons from winter to summer and back again, together with the transformation of the girl from a child tree to an adult tree.
The set was dressed with real veg- etation obtained from a nearby wood, and I decided to keep the lighting design very simple with one main light source through a huge diffusion frame.
During the shoot l adjusted light- ing ratios according to each season. We also wanted to give each season its own colour scheme, and Liam and I decided to do this at the grading stage, which was carried out by Vic Parker at Glassworks.
The other challenge was that we didn’t want to see the gardener’s face and were more interested in his with- ered hands and beard. As usual the solution was very simple: we gave him a hat and tried to always top light him to keep his face in shadow.
The final part of the look was lots of free camera movement around the tree, and for this we enlisted steadicam operator Mike Scott, who had his work cut out pulling off many tricky 360-degree moves.
We used Fujicolor Super F-125T, and I was more than happy with the way it handled some calculated under- exposure, which I used to keep things looking dark.
The second project is a short film called Dance For Eternity. It was writ- ten, directed by and stars the actor Michael Gilroy. Michael and I had been talking about shooting this film for well over a year, but although we could have easily shot it on tape just to get it in the can, Michael was com- mitted to shooting 35mm and was pre- pared to postpone the shoot until more funds were raised.
It was well worth the wait, how- ever, as 35mm was the only format that allowed us to capture the beauty of the north Cornwall location in all its richness.
Dance For Eternity is a film about two lovers set on the edge of a cliff. As they contemplate their love for each other, they make a promise that will dramatically change their lives. The story takes place inside a vintage Mini Estate car and the visual intention was to have the audience sitting on the back seat watching the couple as they try to muster the courage to embark on a journey they will never forget.
With 95% of the film set inside the car, we decided to get the smallest
35mm camera we could, a Moviecam SL, and we shot Super 35mm (2.40:1) to give us a wide canvas. As with the music video, Panavision supplied us with a generous camera package and Fuji came on board with their ETERNA 250D stock.
This film was essentially an actor’s piece and Michael wanted to keep the camera static inside the car to capture the intimacy of the two lovers. However, he did allow me to indulge in some complicated tracking shots for the start and the end of the film.
For the dialogue, we decided to play everything in silhouette, which I knew the film stock would handle per- fectly. We wanted a soft, naturalistic look and I was very happy with what we achieved on the stock.
On the whole, I feel fortunate to have collaborated on two projects where the filmmakers were willing to make the extra effort to shoot on film even though cheaper digital formats were available. These two projects have been significant steps on my own journey to becoming a better cinematographer, and has
again reinforced my belief that originating on film is always
well worth the sacrifice and is
a worthwhile investment. ■
Ofelia and Dance For Eternity were originated, respectively on
16mm Fujicolor Super F-125T 86”32 and 35mm Fujicolor ETERNA 250D 8563
Ciro Candia has been working his way up the ranks for the past 12 years, working on features such as Hannibal, Gladiator, Kingdom Of Heaven and Spy Game. As a DP, he has filmed a wide range of music videos and short films for directors such as the Shammasian Brothers, and has also shot the independent British feature, Cash And Curry, for director Sarjit Bains.
Photo main and near left: on the set of Ofelia; far left to right: on location, with Actor/Director Michael Gilroy (inside the car) and DP Ciro Candia (behind the camera), in north Cornwall shooting Dance For Eternity
Fujifilm Motion Picture • The Magazine • Exposure • 13