Exploiting Hollywood 1980

  Chapter 914 Ronald goes into battle in person

  Gary Tirches was the director of photography on the film "Sticky Fingers," directed by Katherine Bigelow. He mainly works as a cinematographer on projects such as small-budget films and commercials, and as a secondary cameraman on some larger projects.

   Bigelow, Helen and Ronald all said that Gary Tirches is more impressive than a photographer because of his technical talent.

  Most of the time, low-cost productions can only rent second-hand equipment. Many very old cameras have many mechanical problems. He only needs to fiddle with them a few times to use them very smoothly.

   What Bigelow can't forget the most is that Gary Tierkis got a camera attachment himself. After adding it, it will be very convenient when shooting long sports shots.

   Before the crew started filming, Ronald had to get the opening and ending aerial long shots. Gary Tirches was invited by him to discuss the issue of camera stabilization for aerial photography.

   When Ronald was filming "Top Gun" before, he encountered a big problem with aerial photography. That time, it was impossible to fix the camera with any bracket outside the high-speed flying fighter jet to take images of the plane itself.

   Later, the engineers of Grumman modified the camera gun of the plane, and installed an ultra-small camera in the cockpit to solve the problem.

  The difficulty of aerial photography with a helicopter this time is different from the last time with a jet plane. On a helicopter that is constantly moving, it is necessary to ensure that the focus of the aerial camera is as close as possible to the Statue of Liberty in the center of the frame.

  The camera stabilizer (Steadicam) commonly used in movie shooting can only solve the shake problem caused by the photographer's own up and down motion. But this time the aerial photography, the jitter of the picture is mainly due to the acceleration of the helicopter hovering.

  So the effect of using the Steadicam on the helicopter is just to stabilize the camera lens a little bit. Keeping the Statue of Liberty in the center of the picture forever depends on the strength and experience of the photographer himself. In the case of shooting with the hatch open, the high-altitude wind is a very big test for the photographer.

"In the long shot at the beginning of Sticky Fingers, we need to keep the center on Helen's footsteps in the long shot that is constantly moving. Then after more than ten seconds of follow-up shooting, we have to perform push-and-pull operations to move the camera back to her and Helen. A close up shot of the other heroine's upper body, and finally a medium shot of the full body."

  Gary Tierkis used a viewfinder to simulate the movement of the camera at that time. Explain your gizmo to Ronald.

"We laid the track. When following the filming, the camera is not directly fixed on the track car, but a cross slide rail is used to allow him to have a two-dimensional degree of freedom, and he can do push, pull and shake within a certain range. , while doing the action, always follow the movement and rotation of the target."

  Gary Tirches used a small cross-shaped slide under the viewfinder, and then simulated camera movement by hand.

"So, this thing can help us not only keep aiming at the target of the movement and shooting in the general direction, but also do the camera's push, pull and pan in a small range?" Ronald figured it out, "Your system, generally Can the photographer operate it? Or do I need special training?"

"In terms of physics, this is a superposition of two action systems. Of course, our operation will not be so complicated, like..." Gary Tierkis thought about how to explain, "Do you have a dog? Walk the dog He will follow you when you are walking, which is the main movement. Then he will also look back and forth, left and right to see if there are other dogs, which is his own small degree of freedom."

   "But a dog doesn't need to know physics to follow me?"

Ronald was not at ease. He asked Gary Tirches to install the system on a pickup truck of the crew, fixed his Sony camera on the system, and then asked the driver to drive out and follow Bud in front of him in a Mercedes-Benz. .

   I took a lot of experimental pictures on the road, and when I got back to the hotel, Ronald played it on the video recorder, and it turned out that the shots were perfect. There is no jitter in the picture, and the Mercedes-Benz driven by Bard is always in the center of the picture.

   Then Ronald pushed, pulled, and swayed by himself, which was well reflected on the screen. In the end Ronald used a zoom and pulled it directly to the back of Little Bard's head. The picture is always very stable.

  And Ronald didn't have any difficulties when he operated it by himself. The weight of the camera is borne by Gary Tirches' gizmo, which moves the camera by itself with very little force.

  The photographer can focus all his energy on framing and focusing. People like Ronald who are not professional cinematographers can also take good pictures.

  In this way, when shooting aerially, the photographer does not need to rely only on his arms to move the camera, but uses his arms to keep the camera's trajectory smooth and stable.

   "It's such a useful invention, have you applied for a patent?" Ronald decided to rent this system for aerial photography.

"Yes, I just applied for a patent, and if possible in the future, I would like to start a company to manufacture this machine and rent it out to photographers. You know, camera stabilizers (Steadycam) are a big business now, and almost every The crew will use it. I don’t have that much applicability, but it’s not a problem to make a small business, and I’m a member of the Society of Cinematographers.”

   "Oh, then you can add the name of ASC."

  Ronald said in his heart that he did not expect Gary Tirches to join the American Society of Cinematographers for making a small-budget film. This is a remarkable achievement for his career as a photographer.

   The American Photographers Association is not a union, but an honorary technical association. Instead of organizing a strike, the members exchanged cinematographic techniques with each other.

  At the earliest time, the association was established to solve the white stripes on the screen caused by the static electricity of the camera. Later, Huang Zongzhan, the first famous Chinese cinematographer in Hollywood, invented a technology that made the eyes of blonde actors no longer look empty in the era of black and white film.

  This technology has also benefited many blond and blue-eyed beauties and handsome men, making Hollywood history monopolized by beauties with brown hair and brown eyes.

  From Huang Zongzhan's time, the Society of Cinematographers began to publish the "Cinematographer's Handbook" for reference by photographers in the industry. Every time the technology is upgraded, it will be revised again. Now in its fifth edition of the modern republished Handbook.

   To join this association, you must have served as the director of photography for feature films for the past five years, and you also need the recommendation of the three photographer associations. Generally, it is a senior director of photography who will use the qualification to add the words ASC (abbreviation for Member of the Society of Cinematographers) after the name of the subtitle.

   But Gary Tierkis is a technical inventor, so it should not be difficult to find references.

"However, it takes a lot of money to produce this kind of equipment. I am still earning money as a photographer. When I raise enough money, I will entrust a Hollywood prop manufacturer to produce it and ask my wife to open a rental shop in Burbank. I personally prefer to be a director of photography for a film.”

   "If you just want to do this, I can let you realize your dream ahead of schedule." Ronald laughed, isn't this a good opportunity for industrialization?

"Maybe you don't know, my company produces the lightning lights used by many production crews and Broadway. I also produce new types of tapes for editing. If you want, we can cooperate. Your technology, plus I am in Stan The production capacity of the Ton Island factory.

  If you want to invest in technology, or you can charge patent fees for each piece of equipment. We can ask the lawyer to negotiate a condition that is beneficial to us. "

"Oh yeah? So you made that lightning lamp? Many low-budget horror films like to use it now, and it's much brighter than the original lightning lamp." Gary Tierkis saw that thing in the crew, flashed it, Not much worse than sunlight during the day.

   "Yes, we are still improving the technology and preparing to upgrade the high-voltage devices. By next year, we can produce a lightning that can also achieve satisfactory results on film during the day."

   "That's great, I'll ask my lawyer to discuss the agreement with your lawyer. I just want to have such a factory to help me with all production issues." He and Ronald shook hands again, expressing their determination to cooperate.

   "Do you need me to help you with this aerial photography? I am the most familiar with my invention." Gary Tirches was in a good mood and began to help.

   "Which regional union do you belong to? 644 or 666?" Ronald asked, and he also wanted an inventor to help him operate this little machine.

   "I am 666 from the Los Angeles area."

   "Sorry, this film is the property of the New York Cinematographers Guild 644."

   "Understood." Gary Tirches got up and said goodbye to Ronald.

  The code name mentioned by Ronald is actually the code of the local technical trade unions under the International Theater and Stage Employees Union. This is different from the ASC association that Gary Tirches said he joined. This 666 is a compulsory union with the same nature as the actors' union.

Unlike the three national unions of directors, screenwriters, and actors, the unions of technical jobs are all local, and then the local unions are joining the big alliance of all technical and behind-the-scenes staff unions—the International Theater and Stage Employees Union, to protect that power.

  Why are there national and local differences between these two types of unions?

  This is because, in the budget table of Hollywood producers, there is a horizontal line in the middle of the salary part of the budget to distinguish the two types of personnel.

   One type is on the horizontal line, called online work. They are three kinds of people, screenwriters, directors, and actors. These people need to make a budget before shooting, and their remuneration cannot be simply measured by working hours.

   That is to say, these people are artists, creators. Perhaps the price of one person acting for a day is much more expensive than another person acting for a week.

  For example, in Working Girl, although Melanie Griffiths is the number one character in the movie. But her salary is only 800,000 US dollars, which is far lower than the 1.5 million US dollars of the second female Sigourney Weaver, and it is not comparable to Harrison Ford's 6 million US dollars.

   And these remunerations are often determined by the box office output of the movie, whether there are additional dividends and bonuses. Movies are screened nationwide, and stars receive dividends, and the union surplus dividends distributed to other ordinary actors are all percentages of national income.

  In this way, these three types of work are combined into a national trade union.

   Most of the personnel who are transferred to the lower level are not artists, and their salary can basically be calculated simply based on the working hours and their own level. Including but not limited to, photographers, sound engineers, dressing rooms, costume designers, props designers, stunt personnel, and even crew members have special unions.

  The photographers belong to the three major regional labor unions. New York's code is 644, while Los Angeles is assigned 666, which many people think is the devil's code. This fits well with how many cinematographers decide whether a heroine is beautiful or ugly.

  Because "Working Girl" was filmed in New York, the photography crew also hired local union members in New York. Gary Tirches of Los Angeles 666 was not allowed to work on the project without permission.

  Anyway, this aerial shot was completed by a professional photographer, the second group who is often engaged in aerial photography, so Ronald didn't bother to let Gary Tirches join him.

  It was the day when the filming was scheduled, and it was a rare sunny day just like the weather in history. The sun shines the golden light on the water surface outside Manhattan, which is very poetic.

   Seven o'clock in the morning, just in time for the best shooting time. Ronald was waiting for the photographer on the helipad. Gary Tirches had already installed the bracket in advance, and Ronald went up to operate it himself, and the equipment was debugged very well.

  The driver was still the old man wearing sunglasses. He knew Ronald very well, and even handed him a cup of instant coffee.

   "Thank you..." Ronald took a sip. It is really comfortable to have a sip of hot drink in winter.

   "Where's your photographer?" the driver asked.

   "Isn't this here?" Ronald pointed to the aerial photography expert from the local union who came over.

  The man was five big and three thick, about the same size as Ronald, and he looked like he could resist the camera.

   "Director, we can't shoot today." But what the man said was very unpleasant.

   "Can't shoot, what the **** are you talking about?" Ronald frowned, why did this movie go so badly? Let's hear his reasons first.

   "This is a regulation of the New York Photographers' Union. The wind speed exceeds the standard. For aerial photography, opening the hatch in such a strong wind is risky for photographers. This is for our safety."

Seeing that Ronald's complexion was very bad, the photographer added, "At this temperature, the strong wind will not only make the helicopter unstable, but also make our body temperature drop. We will definitely tremble, and we may not be able to take pictures. use."

   "Don't worry, I installed this good thing." Ronald took him to the helicopter, pointing to the installed cross device—Ronald specially named it "dog head" for commercialization.

   "With this, you don't have to worry about shaking." Ronald looked at the pilot again, "Can you fly today?"

   "No problem, our pilots won't be grounded because of this wind speed. You know when I was in the Army, the machine gunner would be there to open the hatch to control Gatling."

   "See? This regulation was probably set for the shoulder-mounted shooting before. Now that we have this thing, the wind speed will not pose an additional risk." Director of photography Michael Ballhouse also helped to speak.

  Ballhaus really wanted to go up there by himself, but according to the rules of the 644 and 666 trade unions, the photography director himself was not allowed to touch the machine.

"I can't. If you insist on me, I will call the union representative. Sorry, director, this is not a personal grievance. If we violate the union rules, we will be reported. We may be kicked out of the union , I won’t work anymore.”

   "BullShxt!" Ronald cursed, there are only a few people here, who will report to the trade union?

   "Michael, are you a union member?"

   "I'm not 644, but I also joined the trade union in Germany and enjoy the same treatment as members of the International Photographers Union. But whatever, I'll take pictures for you." Michael Ballhaus said.

  The photographers' union is different, perhaps because Hollywood introduced many European photographers in the early days, so it is the only one with the word "international" in front of its name among all film practitioners' unions in America.

  Michael Ballhouse was treated the same as the International Photographers Union in name, but if he committed a foul, 644 could not punish him with coercive measures.

   "You can't do this, it's against the rules." The photographer shouted loudly from behind.

   "Who cares about you?" Ronald was so angry that he stopped.

  The two prepared for a while, and Michael Ballhouse was familiar with the operation of the dog head, and he was full of praise.

   Just as the two were about to take off for aerial photography, the photographer and another man in a suit and leather shoes walked over with a briefcase.

   "Hello, I am a representative of the 644 trade union. I have received a report that a foreign photographer is going to violate the union's regulations and take aerial photos when the wind speed exceeds the standard. We have the right to prohibit his behavior according to New York's trade union law."

   "Comeon, isn't he a member of yours?" Ronald was anxious, jumped off the helicopter and called him.

"Sir, this is not what I said casually. This is the law of the states of America and New York. People who work in the same job in an out-of-state or foreign country, we have the right to give them priority in the presence of other employees with the same qualifications. Right. You are in violation of the law of New York State, and you can choose to wait for a less windy shooting time. You just lose some costs."

"I..." Ronald was in a hurry, and the best time to shoot was about to come, "It's not a question of money. I applied to New York City Hall for two months for this half-day helicopter aerial photography! If I apply again I don't know how long it will be."

   "Sorry, if you want this Mr. Ballhouse, a photographer with the same qualifications as our members, to get on the helicopter, I will call 911 and ask them to stop your violation."

   "Fuxkyou!" Ronald gestured towards the camera.

   "Fuxkyou!" The photographer replied with a smirk on his face. Anyway, the accident is not allowed to shoot, and the salary has to be paid.

"The law is the law. I'm sorry and I sympathize with you. But if someone reports to us, we must protect the legal rights of union members. This Mr. Ballhouse has the same qualifications as our members..." The union representative said He often deals with this kind of thing. The old-fashioned he knows that there are many interests involved in this kind of thing, and he just wants to do business.

   "So, if there is someone who doesn't have the same qualifications, wouldn't it be considered stealing his job?" Ronald took out the sunglasses from his pocket and put them on by himself.

   "Hey, you are breaking the rules!" The photographer was anxious.

   "Fuxkyou!" I have no qualifications, I just went up to test the equipment.

  Ronald got on the plane, fastened his seat belt, patted the driver's seat, and signaled the pilot to take off.

   The booming rotors turned rapidly, and the helicopter took off from the ground with a force.

   "That's it, that's it, circle around the Statue of Liberty, fly a spiral, and then fly towards the ferry." Ronald whispered to the pilot in the headset.

  The retired pilot flew very steadily, and Ronald happily completed the shooting task.

   "Thank you, you are flying well."

   After landing, Ronald bid farewell to the pilot, and the director of photography Ballhouse came over to ask Ronald about the situation.

   "The equipment is well debugged..." Ronald smiled.

   "He's gone, and the union rep said a ticket might be issued."

  “I care so much about him, as long as the photos are taken. It is not easy to get a permit for aerial photography in Lower Manhattan, and the helicopter rental fee is also very expensive. They can figure it out. If the wind is too strong, the family will not let them fly.”

   Ronald cursed a lot.

   "Ronald..."

   Someone was calling him, Ronald turned around and saw that Sigourney Weaver was sitting in the car, greeting himself.

"Exactly, you're on time." Ronald looked at Sigourney Weaver, who was wearing a very nice snow-white mink coat. She just came back from Kenya to reshoot the gorilla expert biopic and happened to be filming " Working Girl" first shot.

   "Action!"

  The team is ready, a camera crew is ready for the camera, and the lens is aimed at the helicopter whose rotors have just been spinning.

  Sigourney Weaver disembarked from a helicopter holding a very large, human-sized gorilla doll. Holding the doll, she also pinched the doll's neck with her hands and turned sideways according to Ronald's request.

   "Cut!"

  I made the best use of everything, just as the helicopter was there, Ronald took the time to take this shot as well.

   "Why such a big gorilla?" Sigourney Weaver asked with a smile.

   "Congratulations on your return from photographing the gorilla expert." Ronald replied with a smile. He bought it from the most famous doll shop in Manhattan, and the price is very expensive.

   "No, you must have other reasons. What is it about the character of Catherine? Do you want to remind me?"

   "Think for yourself." Ronald replied with a smile.

   "I thought of it..." Sigourney Weaver, who had been thinking about what Ronald wanted to remind herself when she returned to the hotel, had a dream after falling asleep and woke up with a startled cry.

   "I thought about it, Ronald is really good, so I wanted to find inspiration from the classic movie King Kong."

  (end of this chapter)