Marc Levy

Hello All, So I've got a shoot coming up with a good deal of int. car scenes, and we are going for a more stylized look. I was hoping for input on one scene in particular: Ext. Night - the camera is mounted to the hood so we are looking down slightly at the driver, and ideally time-lapse/blurred, streaking lights would be reflecting off the windshield as he drives in real time. I know there are a number of ways to do this - some in the studio, some on the streets. Any thoughts?

Good stuff, Matt. Best,

Travis, Overall a great reel. Excellent lighting and camera-work. I especially like your use of backlight. It doesn't feel overdone or unnatural, but creates nice separation and punch. Other thoughts: It takes too long to download. I don't think any potential employer would wait as long as I did to watch it. The mood of the music is good, but maintains an even tone throughout, so the reel seems to do the same. I would consider a more dynamic piece of music. My least favorite shots are the faux bleach-bypass/sepia shots. It seems like they are for a flashback? They seem a bit overdone, and enhance the blown highlights. Kudos!

Matt, The stills look great. I especially like the last CU's (with the higher contrast ratios), the theater audience shot, and the classroom shots (specifically the one of the kid bent over studying and the one with the kid and his teacher). You mentioned that you lit the ext. day CU's with the 2500 HMI PAR through Tough Frost. I love the soft quality there. Did you warm that lamp up a bit? How large was the diffusion? And approximately how close was the lamp and diffusion to the actor? Congrats!

John, Thank you for the expertise and the good will you contributed to this site. Your spirit will live on here. With warm regards, Marc Levy

The New World is the first film I thought of.

Aside from the standard color correction and diffusion gels, I seem to always have a gel cocktail of Golden Amber and Deep Amber on hand. I use that combination for anything from mercury vapor to stylized sunset stuff. I've also used it as a completely unjustified soft backlight for African Amercian skin tones.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I checked out Basquiat again (the gallery scene), and have decided to emulate that soft top-lit look. We're going to embrace the white walls, light with (4) Kino 4x4 banks from above and slightly off to one side (maybe a little opal on them). We'll fly a 2x2 Kino bank for eye sockets, etc. And we're going to use a few 8' single Kino Flo fixtures (blue tubes) as practicals tucked into the nooks in the walls. I really don't know what to expect from this look, as I rarely light this "flat," but I have a good feeling about it. I'll include pics after the shoot. Thanks

Paul, Thanks for sharing. Please keep it coming. I'm really interested in details of the type of input/exchanges you have with your Gaffer. It seems that on much of the projects I work on (not all, but much), the gaffer is only remotely active in the design of the lighting - especially in pre-production. Thanks

Great suggestion on Basquiat. I love the film, and I'm sure I'll get some good ideas from that look. Yeah, we're going to have practicals in frame (light globes of some kind) on cocktail tables. I feel better now that others think my approach makes sense. Thanks

I learn a great deal from Film Lighting (Kris Malkiewicz) every time I read it.

Hello, I've got a scene coming up that I need some advice on. It's a gallery (night interior) with white walls, and it happens to be the show's climax. The director recently informed me that he wants to be able to shoot any direction at any time, and the blocking is quite complicated, with many people in frame and lots of axis changes. I will not be able to tweak much or relight between setups, as we are shooting many pages in 1 day. But I still want it to look good. Initially, my plan was to use space lights (or chinese lanters) from above (there is only about 7' between the walls, and we will see the walls in the shots, so it not realistic to light from the floor) to create a soft ambient level approx .5 stop under key. Then I was going to have warmer kickers to create separation. I was also planing on letting the walls go darker and cooler (by skirting the space lights), except for some art I'd accentuate with snooted, warmed lights. In CU's, I was going to bring in a small soft head (like a Divalite) to add some directionality to the key, and fine tune the backlight. Now, with the need to shoot 360 degrees at any point, I'm wondering if I should just embrace the whiteness of the space and flood the place with soft overhead, slightly warmed light, accentuating things with hot pools of cooler light. This makes me nervous, though, as I don't want it to be flat. Another idea I had was to wash the white walls with a saturated blue light (from cyc strips or something) and then have a warm soft overhead light fill the entire place. I was hoping that would create some color contrast. Please Note: Shooting with HVX200 with P+S Technik adapter (rated at 80 ASA!!!) The show has a slightly high-key look, as it is aimed for females ages 14-21 Ideas?

Thank you all for your interest. The position has been filled. As I suspected, I received inquiries from a number of qualified and talented cinematographers and operators. I will keep you in mind for future projects. Thanks

Pure handheld. We have 1 scene in which we could use steadicam, but this is definitely a hand-held show. Thanks

Hello, I am looking for a B-Cam operator. Here are the details: Narrative fiction pilot Los Angeles area July 17-22 $250/day HVX200 w/ P+S Technik adapter and Zeiss high-speed primes **All handheld I am the DP and A-Cam operator. I would like a great collaborator with a feel for naturalistic handheld work (think Emmanual Lubeski or Chris Doyle), whose reel displays that ability. I know the money's not that great, but I'm sure there are people who may be interested. Please respond to marc@marclevycine.com or here, whichever you prefer. Thanks

Yes, the music for this film is haunting. Here's a link to the soundtrack on Amazon. I have the CD, and I'm sure it has the piece you're talking about. http://www.amazon.com/Before-Rain-Pred-Doz...9455&sr=8-3

Hello all, A topic that always seems to cause me some apprehension while formulating my g/e lists is whether to lean toward HMI or tungsten lighting - especially when the shoot has a good bit of location day interiors with visible windows. HMI's are always my first instinct. Thus, I usually end up renting a package made up mostly of HMI's and Kinos (with both tungsten and daylight tubes), and a few tungsten heads, with the idea that I can always gel the HMI's down to 3200K or warmer if necessary, and I have more punch than the tungsten counterparts. But I have noticed that I don't like the quality of light produced by HMI's as much as tungsten. It's something I can't put my finger on - maybe it's just a bit harsher, even when softened by the same diffusing methods. Maybe I'm imagining this - I don't know. So, my question to all of you is, for shoots with a good bit of location day interiors, do you prefer HMI's or tungsten as the main source to emulate daylight and sunlight? (I'm not interested in gelling/diffusing techniques to match sunlight/daylight, etc.). Thanks,

Glenn, Do you have any pics of wider shots from the same setup? Thanks

Thanks Walter.

Greetings, I?ve got a how-to question about a shot for an upcoming music video. Your thoughts and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. It will be green screen, and I have somehow managed to elude greenscreen shoots up to this point (I know, I know). The shot is of a woman (a tight Med. shot) who approaches a window and sees another version of herself on the opposite side of the glass (thus, same actor). The angle favors the woman on the outside of the glass, and is somewhere between a 3 quarter back/profile of the woman in the FG. The shot will be locked down, and the FG woman will enter frame with her alternate self already on the other side . We will be inside of the glass, meaning we will not see any pane, or wall. We are shooting in DVCPRO-HD on the HVX200 at 24FPS. The director?s plan is to shoot the window normally, with the alternate self on the other side of the glass. Then, without moving the camera, which is about 5 feet or so from the window, we?d place a green screen over the window and shoot the FG woman. When composited, they?d both be there. I?m already thinking that the FG woman would be way too close to the green screen, and would catch mucho green bounce. I suggested moving the camera and FG subject back about 15feet, but he was hesitant about ?messing any perspective up.? My lighting package is very small: a 4x4 kino flo, a 1k Lowell Rifa Lite, a few cheap 600 open faces with soft boxes, and an Arri 650 fresnel. Thanks

John, I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers. Get well soon. Best, Marc

Any good guides on how to best use the WF monitor? Thanks.

I'm new to the F900, and to waveform monitors, but know film pretty well. So the F900 at 0db Gain is the equivealent of 320 ISO? O.k., so I'm thinking use my meter set to 320 ASA and expose accordingly. As I am more familiar with my meter than using a waveform monitor, I'll rely on my meter to set the TStop, then tweak lighting according to the waveform monitor to prevent blown-out highlights. Feedback?

Hello all, Can anyone provide downloadable settings for the F900 that match film emulsions (ie. 7218, etc.) and photochemical processes (ie. bleach-bypass)? I know this has been discussed, but the archives are limited. The Cinealta site is no longer functioning. Thanks

Thanks for the excellent feedback. I think I will opt for the jib - it would take too many unavailable resources to rig something properly.