Director- Directors are the creative leads of the film, they deal with the creative aspects of production and hold the creative vision throughout the whole process (envisioning the script in a visual form) from pre-production through to the final edit. They are employed by the executive producer/producer, who is ultimately in charge of a production. However, the director is responsible for overseeing the design, production, and final product of a film, this includes everything from casting, to scriptwriting to directing actors on set. Additionally, directors are responsible for hiring their own team including camera operators, editors, and cinematographers. Sources: https://filmlifestyle.com/what-does-a-director-do/ and https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/film-and-tv-drama/development-film-and-tv-drama-job-profiles/director-film-and-tv-drama/
Editor- ‘Film editing is the art of selecting the best shots from the footage recorded on location and assembling them into a coherent film. Film editing is a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking.’ The film editor works with the raw footage, selecting specific shots and then combining them into sequences to create a finished motion picture. – editing can change how you view a scene/moment. Source: https://filmlifestyle.com/what-is-film-editing/
Cinematography– The cinematographer (Director of Photography) is in charge of the camera and the lighting crew. The cinematographer sets the overall look and visuals of the film. A cinematographer works closely with a director to create dynamics on screen and to ensure the directors vision is correctly portrayed-pre-production, but they also work post-production explaining their shots to the editor as they know best what/why they have captured a certain shot. They have creative control over lighting, camera movements/angles, lenses used, camera set up for every shot, the visual style etc. A good cinematographer will consider/introduce ideas and concepts then discuss these with the director for them to ultimately consider. ‘Cinematography is the art of photography and visual storytelling in a motion picture or television show. Cinematography comprises all on-screen visual elements, including lighting, framing, composition, camera motion, camera angles, film selection, lens choices, depth of field, zoom, focus, colour, exposure, and filtration.’ Source: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/film-101-what-is-cinematography-and-what-does-a-cinematographer-do
INSPIRATIONAL PRACTITIONERS:
Director– Sofia Coppola
Some of her trademarks:
- Showing human connection through images oppose to words; intimacy between characters exploring human connection/mystery of love that transcends words. (‘underwater in the swimming pool to playfully sip imaginary tea. The swimming pool becomes a metaphor for the womb and only here, away from the pressures of Hollywood and society in general, can they truly connect. It’s one of the most beautiful father/daughter moments on film.’ – Somewhere https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQgwLES_aOI )
- Young woman coming of age through heartbreak.
- Characters using fashion to express themselves (Marie Antoinette– fashion transcends beyond the representation of womanhood into the social and political realm. In this scene set to Bow Wow Wow’s “I Want Candy,” pastel-coloured shoes and gowns get mashed up with sweets, lap dogs, and an endless stream of champagne emphasizing the corruption of the ruling class. Marie’s (Kirsten Dunst) impossibly tall wig decorated with baby birds sits precariously on top of her head, ready to topple down at any moment – just like the ill-fated aristocracy, foreshadows that heads will literally roll.)
- Source: https://screencraft.org/blog/5-trademarks-of-sofia-coppolas-films/
Editor- Tom Cross (Works closely with director Damien Chazelle)
- Use of the Kuleshov effect (seen in Whiplash final scene)
- Fast paced cuts
- Overt editing style ‘overt editing style – Whiplash, for example. So a lot of my work in those films is more noticeable, you feel the cuts.’
- Trying to build characters and character arcs through editing (‘inject the characters into that scene. We had to find all the right moments of Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons – especially the pieces when their eyes meet’)
- Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2019/01/02/tom-cross-editor-of-first-man-talks-the-art-of-the-edit/?sh=2d74988019d4
Cinematographer- Robert Yeoman (Works closely with director Wes Anderson)
- Colours/Black and white (The French Dispatch and Grand Budapest Hotel etc)
- Framing – eg ‘lots of symmetrical compositions and shots that are constructed to reflect the perspective of a specific character in a film. Lots of straight-on views and quite a heavy usage of wide angle lens.’
- Low and high angle shots
- Frame in frame shots
- Whip pans – one of the most distinctive camera moves known from Anderson films. Most of the time it is used to change the view from one character to another. In Grand Budapest Hotel we can even see 180 degree pan between 2 characters on the opposite ends.
- Zooms – in critical moments we can see some extreme zooms to bring the audience right into action.
- Sideway dollies – oftentimes the character on screen is followed by the camera sideways.
- Tilts – coupled with wide angle lens it creates an extreme change in perspective.
- Source: https://timeinpixels.com/2015/09/cinematography-in-grand-budapest-hotel/
