{"id":193640,"date":"2021-03-04T04:16:16","date_gmt":"2021-03-04T01:16:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/the-cinematography-of-wandavision-one-camera-47-lenses\/"},"modified":"2021-03-04T04:16:16","modified_gmt":"2021-03-04T01:16:16","slug":"the-cinematography-of-wandavision-one-camera-47-lenses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-cinematography-of-wandavision-one-camera-47-lenses\/","title":{"rendered":"#The Cinematography of &#8216;WandaVision&#8217;: One Camera, 47 Lenses"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#The Cinematography of &#8216;WandaVision&#8217;: One Camera, 47 Lenses<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\">\n                <\/aside>\n<p><!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 3.7.9--><em>Welcome to <strong>World Builders<\/strong>, our ongoing <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">series<\/a> of conversations with the most productive and thoughtful behind-the-scenes craftspeople in the industry. In this entry, we chat with Jess Hall about WandaVision\u2019s cinematography.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p>How do you do this? The question fired through <strong>Jess Hall<\/strong>\u2018s brain like a bullet. On his desk, there were nine <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">script<\/a>s and seven requested looks. Each episode was designed as a celebratory tour through television history, but underneath that sitcom gloss, there also had to be a level of darkness held over from the show\u2019s deadly serious shared universe. The cinematographer had never encountered a project like <strong><em>WandaVision<\/em><\/strong> before, and its possibilities sent quizzical shivers through his system.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was overwhelming,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>Realizing one cinematic canvas is hard enough, and it comes with an endless stream of problems requiring quick solutions.\u00a0Multiplying an already colossal endeavor by seven felt absurd.\u00a0Yet, if Hall could not replicate <em>The Dick Van Dyke Show<\/em> and<em> Modern Family<\/em>, plus the other primetime shades that fall between, then <em>WandaVision<\/em> would fail its heroine.<\/p>\n<p>From its premiere, we sensed how Wanda\u2019s television fantasy operated as a panacea. Her childhood TV comedies represent a reality where hijinks trump trauma. It\u2019s a blissful realm with no room for Thanos, dead lovers, or dead brothers. Crumbling from unbearable loss, the Avenger sought\u00a0the safety of boob tube trends and cliches.<\/p>\n<p>To underscore the agonizing thrum beating beneath everything, the sitcoms could not waver in their authenticity. A chink in the armor could decimate the illusion and betray Wanda\u2019s internal strife. Hall was tasked with building a time machine through his lens. <em>WandaVision<\/em> is a week-to-week period film that sheds its eras as quickly as Wanda (<strong>Elizabeth Olsen<\/strong>) can flick her wrist or twitch her nose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the things that I did very early on,\u201d explains Hall, \u201cwas say, \u2018I\u2019ve got to simplify this show somehow.\u2019 When you\u2019re working on a production, it\u2019s busy. You don\u2019t want too many elements. I didn\u2019t want a bunch of vintage cameras that we\u2019re going to break down in the heat or the rain. It had to have a bulletproof and efficient system. I made the call to use one camera platform throughout.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hall landed on the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.arri.com\/en\/camera-systems\/cameras\/alexa-lf\">ARRI ALEXA LF<\/a> as his instrument, but keeping it simple also meant prepping forty-seven different lenses, several of which were customized. While he could not hop in Doc Brown\u2019s DeLorean, he could yank old lenses from the past and give them a whirl on his camera. Pre-production was a period of tremendous trial and research.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe did a lot of experimentation testing,\u201d he says. \u201cI would get a camera, and I would experiment with some color <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/sciencee\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"5\" title=\"Science\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">science<\/a>. Try a bunch of lenses and see what kind of color palettes we\u2019d have. I\u2019d get some fabric swatches, some wall swatches from the art department, and try different lighting techniques.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-363592\" src=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WandaVision-Jess-Hall-Cinematography-.jpg\" alt=\"Wandavision Jess Hall Cinematography\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WandaVision-Jess-Hall-Cinematography-.jpg 800w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WandaVision-Jess-Hall-Cinematography--768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WandaVision-Jess-Hall-Cinematography--320x240.jpg 320w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>The ALEXA LF allowed Hall to capture a 4K image. Mastering at the highest quality, the cinematographer could then massage the color to match whatever era\u2019s specific style and tone. It became a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a> of reverse engineering.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had to get into the color science basically,\u201d says Hall. \u201cI had to manipulate it in order to put a window, or my period, into the camera so that it interprets the data and gets me something like where I need to go. On top of that, I can put my lensing and use period lighting. Then, I built a shot vocabulary, a type of composition, an aspect ratio, and all the rest of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Production rushed upon Hall. While he was still working on the visual language for the \u201960s, \u201970s, and \u201980s, he had to get to the hard work of actually shooting the first episode. And not just any first episode, but one shot in front of a live studio audience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs if things weren\u2019t complicated enough,\u201d Hall exclaims. \u201cNow you\u2019re doing a twenty-six-minute single-take in front of a live-audience, effectively. I mean, yes, you get to down your lights while the set changes, but other than that, you\u2019re running concurrently. It\u2019s a live performance. Huge challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With his camera operators on headsets, Hall and his lighting console technician called directions while on the fly. The experience was nerve-wracking but also equally exhilarating. All bases had to be covered, even the ones he couldn\u2019t predict.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019ve got to light the set and make it photographable from one-hundred-and-eighty degrees,\u201d he explains. \u201cYou\u2019ve got maybe a camera from the front shooting a wide shot and then two cameras from each ninety degrees off-angle. So, really, your lighting has to work from one-hundred-and-eighty degrees. You need to leave a view for the audience, so you can\u2019t have fixtures on the floor, and then you\u2019re doing live lighting cues.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-363613\" src=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/wandavision-monica-awakens-hospital.gif\" alt=\"Wandavision Monica Awakens Hospital\" width=\"800\" height=\"332\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/wandavision-monica-awakens-hospital.gif 800w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/wandavision-monica-awakens-hospital-768x319.gif 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>At the end of <em>WandaVision<\/em> Episode 3, Wanda ejects Monica Rambeau (<strong>Teyonah Parris<\/strong>) from her \u201970s sitcom surroundings. After she\u2019s propelled through the Hex barrier, Monica lands in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) reality with its own aspect ratio (2:40) and color scheme. Bringing the outer cinematic world into the Disney+ arena presented another unique spectrum to duplicate.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you look at the history of lighting,\u201d says Hall, \u201c[Episode 3] is in the film and television lighting era. It\u2019s very much studio lighting with these big, old-fashioned <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fresnel_lantern\">Fresnel heavy lights<\/a>. Then you go into this MCU world, which is much more lit by the idea of practical lighting motivated by real sources that you can see and show.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The MCU exists in a much darker color palette. Along with the aspect ratio shift, Hall also switches his lenses into 1.3 anamorphic. When <em>WandaVision <\/em>Episode 4 begins, and we explore Monica\u2019s resurrection <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/marvelcinematicuniverse.fandom.com\/wiki\/Blip\">after The Blip<\/a>, Hall goes full-throttle into the Marvel Studios aesthetic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have one shot that follows Monica through [the hospital],\u201d he says. \u201cWe reveal the Blips coming back, and she collides with one of them. It was this long choreographed one-er, which is something that we hadn\u2019t had the license to do within the vocabulary of the \u201950s to the \u201970s. It was very enjoyable to choreograph and use a handheld camera, which we hadn\u2019t done yet. Also, we got to get down and dirty and a bit gritty with the environment lighting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Using aspect ratios to communicate story was another unexpected gift. The chance to dance in this realm linked Hall to some of his favorite movies. Suddenly, he was a contender.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a fantastic tool to be able to play with,\u201d says Hall. \u201cI always loved that example in <strong><em>Raging Bull<\/em> <\/strong>where it cuts to the Super 8 footage. The kind of dramatic tension that you can get from an aspect ratio change is really interesting. It\u2019s this other arsenal in your toolkit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marvel\u2019s traditional 2:40 ratio arrives in <em>WandaVision<\/em> with a lightning bolt crack. It\u2019s a zinger purposefully executed to elicit an intense response. Hall never lets audience expectations leave his mind. He knows the viewers are tracking every pixel in every frame.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEspecially the MCU fan base,\u201d he says. \u201cYou\u2019re telling them, \u2018Okay, here we go. You\u2019ve been patient with us. You\u2019ve tolerated this period-work. We started with it, and now we\u2019re going to give you what you\u2019re more familiar with.\u2019 I have a nineteen-year-old son, and he was literally cheering when that transition happened. So, it\u2019s fun to work with [aspect ratios] as a dramatic tool.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-363614\" src=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/wandavision-agatha-all-along.gif\" alt=\"Wandavision Agatha All Along\" width=\"800\" height=\"449\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/wandavision-agatha-all-along.gif 800w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/wandavision-agatha-all-along-768x431.gif 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>All of <em>WandaVision<\/em>\u2018s wacky worlds collide during Episode 7\u2019s climax. We\u2019re talking <strong>SPOILERS<\/strong> here, so please look no further if you\u2019re not caught up on the series. The revelation that nosy next-door neighbor\u00a0Agnes (<strong>Kathryn Hahn<\/strong>) is actually the witch Agatha Harkness comes complete with a spinoff credit sequence. Her <em>Agatha All Along<\/em> theme plays over a montage depicting <em>WandaVision<\/em>\u2018s various eras and aspect ratios.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was shot over the series,\u201d Hall says. \u201cWe\u2019d be on the set, say, for example, during the magic show [in Episode 2]. We weren\u2019t going to go back to that set with that costume, so we had to capitalize on that time efficiency and execute that shot. It would <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a>ly be done at the end of shooting our other footage, and we\u2019d be like, \u2018Right, it\u2019s the <em>Agatha All Along<\/em> moment.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>These occasions sparked further creativity. To add an extra flair to these Agatha shots, Hall would incorporate an interloping piece of <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a>. Agatha is a magical invader, and her spinoff should reflect such mischief.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose moments were one-ers,\u201d he says. \u201cThey\u2019re all single shots, but we\u2019d have a piece of equipment that wouldn\u2019t be appropriate for the period \u2014 like <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Technocrane\">a Technocrane<\/a> or some camera move that was more sophisticated. We\u2019d have to switch our heads into [an Agatha] mode.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>To film <em>WandaVision<\/em> was to be in a constant state of inventive flux. Every episode required swapping mindsets. The fluidity was a high \u2014 one that many of its involved creatives will be chasing for a while.<\/p>\n<p>With the final episode of <em>WandaVision <\/em>airing this week, Hall reflects on his time with the series and recognizes it as his dream project. The chances seem unlikely that another property will come along demanding as many disparate looks. Certainly, those future gigs will present other difficulties, but what he\u2019s learned on this series, and the rate at which he learned it, will aid him going forward.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p><strong>The <em>WandaVision<\/em> finale airs this Friday on Disney+.<\/strong>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wandavision-cinematography\/#utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=wandavision-cinematography\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#The Cinematography of &#8216;WandaVision&#8217;: One Camera, 47 Lenses&#8221; Welcome to World Builders, our ongoing series of conversations with the most productive and thoughtful behind-the-scenes craftspeople in the industry. In this entry, we chat with Jess Hall about WandaVision\u2019s cinematography. How do you do this? The question fired through Jess Hall\u2018s brain like a bullet. On&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":193641,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WandaVision-Jess-Hall-Cinematography.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[23258,71853,34434,26110],"class_list":["post-193640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa","tag-cinematography","tag-elizabeth-olsen","tag-marvel-cinematic-universe","tag-wandavision"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=193640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193640\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/193641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=193640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=193640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=193640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}