MOBLAND LIGHTING
Gaffer Harlon Haveland discusses his approach to the new Paramount+ series – and how the Aputure INFINIMAT played a critical role S ee the set as a large operating theatre where the cinematographer is the surgeon – I’m the one who LIGHTING MOBLAND LIGHT ON THEIR FEET Quick deployment helped the crew stay on track for last-minute night shoots and location changes
hands him the knives, my knives. I decide which knife he has to operate with,” sums up gaffer Harlon Haveland with a smile. For MobLand , his knife of choice was the Aputure INFINIMAT, in both a small (2x4) and large (4x4) size. “Instead of setting up a book light, we just put the INFINIMAT in a corner of the room with a diffusion in front to make it even softer. Within minutes, your key light is set up, which you can easily manoeuvre and take to the next set without even deflating it.” These aspects of the INFINIMAT were revelatory for Haveland while shooting the series, as the team was working to an ‘unbelievably crazy’ schedule, with multiple locations throughout the south of England – including sets in the heart of London. “Driving there is a nightmare, so we had to take public transport to each location. I’ve never done a job like that; I was exhausted,” he shares. For that reason, his lighting system had to be quick and easy to set up. Whether shooting in a working pub or a cafe in Antwerp, the INFINIMAT was at the ready. “In the latter, there was a big window, we set up two cameras, put the INFINIMAT up to give us a bit of directional light and did the scene. After they called a wrap, we had everything packed up within 20 minutes.”
On another occasion, he got a phone call just the day before they scheduled a night shoot in the Cotswolds, over a two-hour drive away. “We had to prep, get there, rig everything and hope for the best when night fell. It actually turned out great, though we sort of pulled it out of the hat.” The only cinematographer working on MobLand that was already familiar with the INFINIMATs was Stephan Pehrsson, BSC, who’d set the look and feel of the series with director Guy Ritchie. “This formed the original base on which we had to build, and the other cinematographers followed suit. So David Katznelson, DFF, BSC; Baz Irvine, BSC, ISC; and Si Bell, BSC would come in and ask me which lights I use regularly and how. I introduced them to the INFINIMATs, and they ran with it with great enthusiasm.” Haveland lit five episodes (and Oliver Whickman did the other five), hence why
the cinematographers relied on him to be the consistent factor when it comes to lighting. “They then mould it into their own vision throughout their creative process, while using the same instruments.” Shooting in tight spaces was another area in which the INFINIMATs – taking up only about 10% of a standard book light – excelled. “The crew would not have been able to move around and do anything if our lights had taken up all the space,” Haveland explains. “It’s not just about the light itself, but also about being sympathetic to the entire crew. Everybody’s got a job to do, and we try not to make it harder on each other.” In combination with the wireless control via Sidus Link Pro, it was a matter of setting up the INFINIMATs once. Every time they switched on the lights, everything was already programmed: “Ready to go in a matter of minutes,” he concludes.
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