So, as the
opening blog on my brand spanking new website I thought it would be good to
set up an ongoing series of technical directing oriented blogs that each looks at a
different element of the Directors job and how to get the best out of each.
One of the
things that I continually see is a psychological chasm between character and
camera movement. Instead of coordinating the two elements together as they are
supposed to be, providing a fluid orchestral flow, there are many of us out
there that focus on one or the other and then just bolt the other one on as an
afterthought with the result that it feels as though the visual flow of the
images jars our senses, leading to an amateur viewing experience or else one
that the audience just wants to turn off!
One of the
things to realise early on in the Directors process is that the camera is
representative of the audiences eye and as such we are in the unique positions
as directors that we need to anticipate what it is the audience will naturally
want to see and secondly we have the ability to guide their senses to occlude
their own desires for viewing.
First and
foremost, to be able to structure this intensified experience we need to
concentrate on the character movement first, because it is this that sets the
environment and needs of everything that comes after.
When we come to
place the cameras we may need to go back and adjust the character movement to
facilitate the fluid coordination that we are looking for.
Deciding on
character movement is almost like armchair psychology in that there are a group
of conditions that a character obeys that determines when a character does and
does not move.
In film it is a
very well known maxim that you must show, and not tell and as such all of this
character movement that we will be deciding upon is, to a certain degree,
indicative of internal thought processes. In every day life this probably
wouldn’t work so well but where drama and documentary is concerned our inherent
understanding of the grammar of film has been instilled in us since our cradle
days and therefore we inherently understand the meanings imparted perfectly.
Each character
has motivations for movement and motivations for stopping and the list is as
follows:
Motivations for
Character Movement:
Characters will
move for many of the same reasons that we all move in the real world and the
vast majority of reasons are summarised with the following motivations:
i)
Initiative – This is a movement
that any character can do in order to show a sense of purpose
ii)
Control/Territory – This is
movement that a character will do in order to take a dominant position and
become the centre of attention
iii)
Discomfort – This is movement
that we may do when an uncomfortable situation is gnawing at us and we find it
uncomfortable
iv)
Becoming more personal – This
is movement that a character will undertake when they wish to forge a closer
connection or relationship with another character and will often involve an
invasion of the other characters personal space.
v)
Becoming more private – This is
movement that is the opposite to the previous condition where a character may
wish to reduce the personal connection with another character, and could
indicate emotional withdrawal and rejection.
A lot of
character movement within a scene is a mix of characters becoming more and/ or
less personal.
Motivations for
Character Stops:
Just as there
are reasons for characters to instigate movement there are also reasons for a
characters to end their movement.
i)
Stopping to End Movement – This
stoppage occurs when the motivation for the original movement is no longer
evident
ii)
Stopping to Think or Feel – As
soon as something grabs the attention of the character in a lot of cases it may
bring any movement to a halt or preclude the start of a new movement as the
character chooses to focus on thinking on the thing instead
iii)
Stopping to Shift Gears – This
is just a momentary stop as a character changes an emotional state from one
movement to a higher or lower energy state in which he starts the new movement
iv)
Stopping for Clarity – This is
a stoppage which serves to emphasize of underline something.
v)
Stopping for the Camera – This
character stoppage is for the sole purpose of allowing the viewer a moment of
analysis of the character and should as often as possible be used in
combination with another stoppage motivation in order to disguise the mechanic.
The last option
also covers a simple reaction shot or even a matching reverse where a character
stands at the end of a scene which can be used for a detach. If the scene
terminates with the character still standing there can be used to show intense
and heavy internal reflection. It may however, only show a stoppage for a
moment before the character in frame walks off frame indicating only a momentary
internal reflection.
The directors
job is to be able to portray visually an internal psychological story by
utilizing character movements and frame juxtapositions but it is the decisions
on the character movement that provides the foundations for everything that
comes afterwards….
