Low-Budget Feature, Red One with Zeiss glass

[ryan knight]

Howdy all,

 

I'm starting a low-budget feature in a few weeks, and I haven't been this excited about a screenplay in a long time. The story is very strong and the characters are well developed. It's a character drama, with strong elements of thriller with supernatural material and some beats of horror.

 

The Director and I have discussed going with a semi-documentary approach, trying to enhance a sense of 'realism'. However, the Director has requested this look should come predominantly from the lighting, and not hand-held camera work (though there will be some hand-held coverage).

 

Can someone point me towards a film that shares this aesthetic: lighting that derives significantly from "available light" and practicals, that is less glossy (but not sloppy), perhaps a little harsher in shadow quality, yet does not use a lot of hand-held?

 

Thanks so much fellows. I can't wait to start photography!

[Scot McPhie]

The Australian film The Irishman has a lot of high contrast natural light photography in it. I don't know what the exposure lattitude of the Red is like - or how contrasty your light is -- here in Australia it's very bright. Barry Lyndon is of course the famous natural light film - shot in softer northern hemisphere conditions

 

Scot

[ryan knight]

I'd love to be able to find the Irishman somewhere (perhaps online?) and I wish I had the time to watch Barry Lyndon (3+ hours).

 

I remember hearing great things about its photography, and the special NASA made lenses (I think I'm talking about the right pic).

 

I did, however, budget 2 and change to watch There Will Be Blood.

 

Thanks so much for the references. Too bad I couldn't benefit from them.

 

RK.

[John Holland]

If you cant spend 3 hours out of your busy life to watch " Barry Lyndon " then you shouldnt be let near any sort of camera !!

[Brad Grimmett]

Why ask for references if you're just going to ignore them? People spend hundreds of hours researching before shooting a film. If you can't spend a few hours watching a film you might be spending your time on the wrong things.

[Frank Glencairn]

This here may be an extreme example, cause I shot it in only one and a half hour under available light without any preplanning or preparation but full batteries.

 

But It may be a bit of inspiration:

 

Frank