THE FAVOUR I TE | SHOOT STORY
The choice of pull-processing a slow stock, rather than simply using ND filters, was practical. “We were shooting on very wide lenses,” Robbie continues. “The lens was too [physically large] to put a filter on it. They were Primo. We used a fisheye 6mm, quite an unusual lens, a 10mm and up to 100mm, but we mainly ranged between the 6mm, 10mm and 75mm a lot of the time. None of us had used the 6mm. We found it at Panavision and thought, ‘wow, that’s pretty wide’. [Lanthimos] said ‘that’s brilliant, I’ll have that!’ A lot of people watching the film now refer to that. It highlighted the absurdity of the situation.” HELPFUL LOCATION Wide lenses let the filmmakers make the best use of the production’s principal location, Hatfield House in Hertfordshire, which dates back to 1611. The house has been widely used as a filming location, perhaps mainly because it is privately owned and imposes rules that are different from those commonly applied to National Trust properties. “The great thing about it was that it was a location that would let you light candles. A lot of National Trust properties don’t.
I thoroughly enjoy shooting on film, and I think the productions are enhanced by it
I thoroughly enjoy shooting on film, and I think the productions are enhanced by it.” FILM STOCK Robbie’s camera package came from Panavision, with the production mainly using Kodak’s 500T stock 5219. For particularly well-lit day exteriors, Robbie chose slower 200T or 50D stocks. The 50D was pull-processed two stops to offset bright light even more and to normalise the higher-contrast look of the slower stock with respect to the less contrasty 500T. “The thing about 50D is that it’s a very contrasty stock, by pulling it you lose a bit of contrast but it made it very beautiful. [Lanthimos] actually likes the look of the 500T in daylight, as well,” Robbie recalls. “It had a touch of a colder feel to it – well, not necessarily colder, maybe, but it seems to be a good workhorse of a stock. It gives you good latitude.”
JANUARY 20 1 9 | DEF I N I T ION 35
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