Assignment 4 – Lighting

This brief for this assignment was:

“In groups of 4, create a one-shot interior scene in which two characters interact without speaking.

Shoot the scene 2 times: once creating a ‘natural’ look making use of daylight, and the second time using only tungsten lights. The locations of the two scenes need not be the same, although the action must be the same (the actors, however, can be different in each scene).”

Though we managed to meet the brief and complete the project, this assignment proved to be far more difficult than I had initially expected. Our first big hurdle came as a result of scheduling conflicts and the difficulty of finding a suitable interior location. As de facto director, I coordinated with the group’s producer (Anne Martine Myking) who was able to secure a suitable and convenient location for our shoot. With a definite location in mind I was able to come up with an idea I thought might be visually interesting if filmed correctly.

Our initial plan involved shooting in two locations, a common room at Usher Hall and the atrium in the Grove. We arrived in the morning and commerced shooting our first scene in the atrium as allowed us to make excellent use of daylight. As my group and I had missed the previous lesson in which the lighting induction was undertaken, we were unfamiliar with the equipment however I had volunteered to help out another group in order so that they might return the favour and briefly run us through how to use the lighting kit. Despite this there was still a certain reluctance among the group about handling the lighting kit and camera, no doubt as a result of unfamiliarity with the equipment.

Shooting at Usher Hall: High angle and natural light. 

Though in theory I was familiar with the three-point lighting set up I had never had to deal with it practically meaning that my initial idea (involving 180° pan) didn’t quite work as my movement with the camera played havoc with the lighting. However after some discussion I decide to instead film from a high angle whilst slowly zooming out and tilting upwards so that I could still capture the same level of detail whilst also keeping the shot visually interesting.

After relocating to Usher Hall  to film the second scene we suffered another potentially disastrous setback as the SD card we were using experienced some kind of technical problem and all data was lost – including the scene we had filmed in the atrium. As time was pressing and the brief didn’t require two locations, we decided to simply film both shots at Usher Hall.

Despite the numerous problems that plagued this project I am satisfied with the finished piece and have gained a vital insight into the practical realities of filming using artificial lighting.