On Set: “WILL”

When shooting our spot based on the will of a fighter and his struggle to train for competition, one of the first things we had to do was develop a “look” that we wanted to pursue. We finalized a treatment consisting of two very distinct images – the training and making way to the competition being dark, tense, and isolating. Contrasting this is the pre-fight “meditative period” being naturally lit and taking place during the day.

A lot of the spot was filmed in an abandoned basement of an old church, which also happened to not have any power. The lighting we chose was the Kino Flo Select system – a 4’x1 and 4’x2 setup. Some of the advantages to this line of fluorescent lighting are that the Selects put out a good amount of light, yet are very power efficient. This was good because the electrical system of the building was ancient and wouldn’t have played nicely with high powered tungsten. Another issue that we avoided by using florescent was ambient heat buildup as the basement had no air conditioning or ventilation. Lastly, the Kino Flo Selects are extremely light and very easy to grip to structures of any kind.

Our lens choices consisted of a Rokinon Cine 14mm and a Nikon 50mm. The 14mm has a way of putting the viewer right inside the action. It emphasizes movement and maximizes impact. The 50mm comes in particularly handy when you need to deal with venue obstructions. The background compression it provides along with the ability to melt everything away with buttery bokeh make this lens our go-to tool when eliminating distractions.

One of the aspects of cinematography that we always try to focus on is to build our frames in layers. The most important thing in a frame is depth; be it by placement of lighting, props, or camera. Depth of frame allows the viewer to mentally “reach into” the film as it provides a three dimensional feel to a two dimensional image. Layering builds a sense of distance as well as a sense of mood.

Some other pieces of equipment that were crucial to our production for adding production value and speed were Kessler Crane’s Pocket Jib, SmallHD DP6 field monitor, (the now famous) Manfrotto monopod, and the Cinevate Atlas FLT. The selection of these items was based around size, portability, and efficiency. The Pocket Jib is a small versatile crane that (when balanced properly) allows for instant re-positioning of the camera. It also requires no cable attachments and quickly extends to different sizes. Along with the monopod, the camera can easily be positioned in whatever way we need without the hassle of dealing with traditional tripod setups. The Atlas FLT is a small and light slider that is perfect for getting those dolly shots on dense shooting sets.

We had the pleasure of having some great hands on set that made the video a success. A big thanks goes out to all the crew and support we received during this production.