Shooting Close Ups First & Why

If you're reading this blog there's a very good chance that you're an ultra low budget, independent, self distributing movie director who has to borrow your friend's camera to get things done.  Or maybe you WANT to be that person.  (You should consult a psychiatrist about that.)  If you're either of these people then your cast members may be friends, family or local theatre volunteers who are helping you out for little or no pay.  Most of them will have other jobs and responsibilities and for some acting may not even be their first passion (gasp!).

No Rehearsals:

When  you're working with people who don't act for a living getting them all together at the same time for rehearsals can be tough.  Getting them together on the location for staging and rehearsals can be even tougher.  And when  you're flying in some talent (usually my biggest expense), getting that person into the mix on a budget can be near impossible.

I remember being super excited about actually having the chance to do a table read for Stopped Dead with the core cast. (on Amazon Prime ).  Actor couple, Kevin and Karen White hosted at their house and Debbie Rochon, I believe, tried to telecommunicate for the reading and did manage to  be there on speaker phone for part of it.

Debbie Rochon in "Stopped Dead"

Photograph by Nancy Liquori

This was, however, a rare  opportunity.  More recently, on Jack vs Lanterns, we had 17 pages to shoot in one day with cast members who had never met.  At least one didn't understand the urgency with which I was shooting.  Monique Parent and Ryli Morgan weren't local and paying for a second trip for Monique would have taken 25% of the budget.  I was already asking for freebies from locals.  Adding money to the travel budget wasn't in the cards.  Weather was a concern for getting some shots and the studio stuff HAD to be done on that specific day.  This didn't really leave time to rehearse much.

A Close Up of Monique Parent in Jack vs Lanterns

because who doesn't want to see a close up of
Monique Parent?

The Blessing and Curse of Off Book:

Going into a situation like this, it's usually a blessing if all of your talent is "off book".  That is, they have their lines memorized.  As I stated earlier though, most of these people have other life matters distracting them, as we usually do, and so they may not have their lines as committed to memory as you'd like.

On the other hand, you may run into someone who is so locked into their lines that the slightest change, say to explain a missing prop or handle a script change that was made the day before, will throw them completely off their game.  You will actually have to present this person with new pages.  Some people need to see things in print.  ( I often need to write things out by  hand in order to memorize them.)

Some actors will only remember the cue words from their fellow characters.  So, if a line is changed, but has the same exact meaning, they won't know when to speak because they're waiting for a specific word.  A bit of improve is something that's good to know.  Learning how to "flow with the changes" is important.  Let the script supervisor writer or director worry about if the slight line change is earth shattering.  Sometimes what's on paper doesn't flow well when said out loud.

These are not complaints.  They're problems you will encounter while working with people who are honing their craft.  You're giving them experience while they give  you their talent.  Part of the pay off is they get to do what they love, so keep a happy set when  you can.  For many, however, learning is a big reason they're working with you.  So, be prepared for not everyone to know their lines or how to handle the changes.

Surround the newcomers with as many of your pros as possible.  It will make your life easier.  Although, some of  your pros may get frustrated, most of them will be helpful with new talent.

Take Advantage of Down Time:

So, it's shoot day.  Most of your cast is sitting around while you set up, reading their lines to themselves.  Put a stop to that immediately.  Have them do that "table read" (I put that in quotes because often I find them sitting on the floor with the dog between them).  Have them interact and read the lines out loud.  Do a bit of multi tasking yourself.  If you have a crew setting up lighting, let them, while  you listen to the cast.  If you're setting up things  yourself (you know you are), listen as you tighten down lights and drop sand bags.  By the time you get everyone on set you'll have a feel for who knows their lines, who is comfortable with their characters and who is ready to "go first".

Learning Lines While the Camera Rolls:

Have your most confident sounding, off book actor do her close ups first. Let everyone else reference their script for feeding your off book actor her lines.  This will often mean shooting a scene, in its entirety, several times.  Perhaps more times than  you think  you need to, but it will ensure you have the coverage when you get into editing.  Watch the actors who aren't on screen as well as the one who is.  This is when  you'll shape their performances.  It's likely that your most confident actor, the one who is already off book, is also your most experienced, or one of them, and will already have a pretty good grasp of the character.  You may need to do some tweaking, but it's the people who weren't quite ready who will need the most help at this point. 

Even if people haven't memorized the lines by the time you get to their close ups, it's easier to hide a few pages of script in a tight shot, than a wide shot.  Just watch for those glances.  They can't be reading their lines while they are speaking and you will want some close up reaction shots with the correct eye-line.  Make sure  you get those.  You may need to tighten the pacing in the editing room, because nothing is worse than fluttering eye-lines that jump from the script to the other character's direction while a line is being spoken. 

After you've gone through everyone's close ups, perhaps stopping when they have to glance at the script from time to time, you'll move on to the wide shots, secure in the fact that you have several close ups to cut away to if the need arises.

Finally, the Straight Run:

Hopefully, now, everyone has gotten the staging, pace and lines pretty locked in.  If the scene is very long they may still stumble, but you want to add some close ups for drama and pacing anyway.  If everything goes to plan, at this point, what you'll have is a nearly flawless reading, that almost comes across as a stage play.  The lines will be quick, the reactions genuine and everyone will be in the moment, together.  They've have their rehearsals and you've gotten your shots.

This is not the ideal way to work a long scene, but it get things done and sometimes that's the best we can do.  The project may deserve better, but finishing a movie is no easy task.  If the impossible shoot day is all that's holding back, hopefully this will get you past shooting and into editing.

Getting to "completed" is another story.