Page 24 - Fujifilm Exposure_40 Golden Compass_ok

in person
INTO THE WOODS
DP Peter Ellmore talks to EXPOSURE about the making of Tree, a recent entrant at the Encounters Short Film Festival in Bristol.
‘Drawn to the same place for very different reasons, two strangers wander a wood, each unaware of the other, until their pathways cross by an ancient Tree.’
During prep for Tree, director Phil Dale and I looked at a variety of shoot- ing options including several High Def
“cameras and Digital formats. We kept coming back to film, as it seemed the best choice and the most workable option for us.
Ultimately the 12-minute film had a very modest budget but we
were determined to get a very cinematic look. The great
thing about a film camera is that you can pick it up and shoot. No need to worry about cables, computers and wires. As the film takes place entirely in a wood these were major considerations.
I tested four film stocks – including Fujicolor Reala 500D
8592 and ETERNA 500T 8573 -
opting for faster stocks as we were shooting under relatively dense vege- tation during short October days.
I was looking to see how the stocks handled underexposure, and rendered foliage and skin tones. As we will be finishing the film digitally, we viewed the tests at telecine (Da Vinci 2K). This enabled us to push the parameters around and directly com- pare stocks.
I was extremely pleased with the Fujifilm stock; something about the look felt right for us. They have a softness and pastel feel that adds an organic quality to the image that worked for us. The rendition of the multitude of greens within the forest was very impressive.
I also tested the stock for under- exposure and was amazed with the latitude. Shots four stops under could be graded up with no noticeable increase in grain or loss of colour reproduction. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to resort to this on the shoot but it was a useful exercise.
I wanted to ensure that the blacks were in no way crushed and that I could still see detail in the shadows. I
knew that there would inherently be a great deal of contrast in the woods so I didn’t want a stock that would add to that contrast. I ultimately decided to underexpose the stock one stop so that the image could be lifted later, hopefully avoiding any further crush- ing of darker areas.
Although I liked the idea of using a fast daylight stock, I ultimately decided to use the ETERNA 500T. As we wanted the finished film to look warm and saturated towards the
film and how the characters would interact within that frame. The format also worked well with the composition of the tree itself and the long low branch that was an essential element to the story.
We tried to emphasise the dis- tance and isolation of the woman (Beth Winslet) by using a shallow depth of field and wide lenses in close, trying to create a soft dreamy environ- ment surrounding her. By contrast we shot the Man (Clive Brunt) with long
lenses. Again, this would isolate him from his background but in a different way – these characters are in the same environment but have very different personalities.
As they come together and meet at the tree, the way we shoot them becomes similar, using the same lenses as they eventually share the frame. The effect is subtle but serves as a useful starting point when decid- ing how to shoot the film and
the logic of lens choice and the effect you are trying to create.
The film was graded in a Digital Intermediate suite at Ascent Media Digital Film Services with grader Rob Pizzey. The negative was scanned on an Arri Scanner at Super 2K resolu- tion, conformed in Quantel IQ and graded on a Da Vinci 2K Plus. We grad- ed in a theatre environment on a large screen with the digital projection pro- vided by a Barco DP 90.
We devised a colour scale that would progress throughout the film. Utilising Photoshop, Phil and I crudely graded frames from the film that served as a useful reference point to take to the grade.
Certain moments within the script were used as punctuation points for grade changes and the pro- gression of the colour shifts. Subtly, we warmed up the film as it pro- gressed and the conclusion of the film is very warm, reflecting the hope and future of the characters.
The Woman’s palette starts very cold - highlighting her condition, emphasising blues and cooler colours.
orange end of the spectrum, we decid- ed the ETERNA would be better for us. We were not able to light the
entire wood but we were able to utilise and make the most of the loca- tion we chose as it had a natural open- ing caused by a few fallen branches. Through planning we were able to use this to our advantage and where possi- ble, locate action to make the most of the suns position and available light.
Using this as a basis for my light- ing approach, I supplemented or recre- ated the quality and direction of this light using two Briese lights (a 220 and 140) - both 2.5kw Daylight- balanced. These lights produce a nice soft light and are relatively easy to manoeuvre in difficult, uneven terrain.
I further softened the light using frames and silks. Bounce was provided with unbleached muslin - again enhancing the warm look we were after and replicating the natural bounce provided by the autumnal leaf litter scattering the floor.
We decided to shoot the film in the 1:2.35 aspect ratio. We wanted to play with the cinematic language of
22 • Exposure • The Magazine • Fujifilm Motion Picture