Exploiting Hollywood 1980

   Chapter 93 The director's new toy

After    Barry Miller's double whammy, Ronald told producers about the skirmish.

  Producer David knew that the director had disclosed his relationship with Maureen Tiffey, so he arranged for Ronald to continue to keep an eye on Barry Miller secretly to observe whether he behaved abnormally after being hit.

  The brawls caused by jealousy among the crew are not uncommon in Hollywood. However, Ronald didn't think that Barry had the guts to compete with the director. After Allen's relationship was revealed, he obediently confessed.

   After that, Barry Miller became cooperative, and the progress of the shooting progressed very quickly.

  Although most of the famous scenes are indoor scenes, there are some outdoor scenes for the protagonists of the acting department. It mainly shows the daily life of the three acting protagonists.

  This morning is an outdoor scene, the scene is very simple:

  Doris of Jewish descent is good friends with **** Montgomery, and the two practice acting on the streets of Manhattan. Doris, disguised as a blind man, held Montgomery's hand, and the two walked towards the camera while chatting.

Pedestrians did not realize that Doris holding a blind stick was a fake blind person. The last pedestrian was even persuaded by Doris' acting skills that she thought she was really blind. She took out a few coins and threw them into the stainless steel in Doris's hand. in the cup.

  Producer David da Silva applied for permission to shoot on the street for a total of 2 hours. Police helped seal off both ends of the street, and DP Michael Serresin directed assistants to line up the tracks.

   As the two actors approach the camera, the camera pulls back, creating a feeling that the camera follows the actors gradually.

   “You should wait for your new toy to arrive before taking this shot, Ellen,” says DP Michael Ceresin.

   "That way we can get that rhythm that opens up on Saturday Night Fever."

  Ronald watched "Saturday Night Fever," where John Travolta started walking down the streets of Brooklyn to the disco beat of the BeeGees.

  The camera closely follows his shoes, as if someone was carrying the camera on his shoulders to follow the rhythm of Travolta's walk.

  It was not unusual to watch a movie as an audience. After the crew had been together for a long time, it was extremely difficult to know this group of shots.

   Carrying the camera on the shoulder can easily cause lens shake. Slow follow-up to keep the picture from shaking requires amazing arm strength, and photographers who can do it can charge a high price.

   To follow the footsteps without shaking the camera, Ronald couldn't figure out how to shoot. Now listening to the director of photography means that there is a special equipment to shoot this kind of shot.

   "This toy is only for rent, not for sale. Now only the inventor can operate it. Stan has used him for several months, and it's finally my turn. He'll be in New York tomorrow."

   "Oh? Kubrick is really a tech maniac. He used so many new technologies in the new movie Shining?"

   "You know him, our fellow Englishman who likes new toys the most."

   "How long can we use the toy?" the director of photography asked.

   "Only rented for one day, then you can see it."

  …

   "Attention of all departments, the actual shooting will follow." The first assistant director took the electric horn and began to call all the group performers to take their places.

  Although it is an ordinary street scene, all the pedestrians are extras. America is a society under the rule of law, and if the faces of passersby are filmed in movies without permission, it is possible to get a lawsuit for the right of reputation.

   Besides, the crew is not short of this money.

  The working girl is drawn from the left...the man in the cap is from the right...the girl with the braids bumps into Montgomery...the lady giving the change three, two, one...

  "Dang chirp..." The coin fell into the stainless steel cup.

   "Cut! Good."

  …

   Garrett Brown was a tall man with a stick in his hand, a camera above it, and a rectangular iron block for balancing under the stick.

   "Is this the equipment that filmed Stallone climbing the steps in 'Rocky'?" Alan Parker asked.

   "No, that's a first-gen device, this is my latest and improved second-gen Steadicam." Garrett Brown clapped the device in his hand.

   Steadicam means camera stabilizer. He can convert the vibration caused by the photographer's violent running and use the damper to buffer it into a slow motion, so that the lens captures the picture softly and clearly.

   It's like the shot of Doris and Ralph Garcia going down the stairs from the subway entrance and into the subway car right now.

  The photographer can follow along with the Steadicam, and the picture is clear and not shaken. Since the scene of Stallone climbing the Philadelphia monument in "Rocky" shocked the industry, many directors want to include it in their own movies.

   In order to ensure that there were no crowds during the filming, the producer went to the New York subway department and determined a station without a bus at night, and opened an extra subway specifically for the filming.

  After the subway operation ends, the subway will open one more train, and there will be only one train.

   This only gave the crew a chance to shoot, no matter how good or bad the performance and photography were, it was only for a while,

  This site has two higher steps. Garrett Brown practiced twice and was ready to shoot. Lighting, actors, cinematography, all strive to be ready, the first time.

   Maureen Tiffie, and Barry Miller, both descend from the subway entrance. Garrett Brown, holding the Steadicam, stepped back down the steps while shooting at the two actors.

  The two play a couple who talk about the success of Ralph Garcia's stand-up comedy along the way.

   After descending the two stairs, the two stood at the subway waiting area. Garrett Brown shot from the front to the back of the two, and there was no obvious shaking.

   "Woooooo..."

  The last subway train to open, roared.

  The wind blew Maureen Tiffey's hair. The two said goodbye with a smile, Doris entered the subway, the door was closed, and the two were still talking about their longing for the future across the door of the subway car, the Amelica dream that only belonged to them.

   "Cut!" Alan Parker and Garrett Brown, who was operating the camera's stabilizer, confirmed the footage and declared the shooting a success.

   Ronald looked at this amazing toy and wanted to take it and play with it.

   Gart LeBron saw his mind and took out a business card and handed it to him. "If you have other needs in the future, you can contact me."

   "Whether it's handheld, mounted in a car, or aerial photography, my camera stabilizer will get you to the desired picture."

   "He's such a curious, energetic guy, isn't he? Ellen," Maureen Tiffey said.

   "Yeah, very energetic," Alan Parker narrowed his eyes. "Maybe the curiosity is too strong."

   (end of this chapter)