DEFINITION May 2018

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ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT FEATURE

I WANTED THE LOOK TO STILL BE DOCUMENTARY STYLE BUT MAYBE JUST A BIT MORE CINEMATIC

of a feel for it and was impressed by how inventive it all was. It’s just so full of references to other things that are going on and every line is a clever line. And the voiceover approach is one of my favourite ways of working: just one line can bring the viewer right up to speed in the action. So I loved the show and wanted to sit down to talk through what I could bring to it. I wanted the look to still be documentary style but maybe just a bit more cinematic.” THREE CAMERA SET-UP One of the major changes Patrick envisaged was the use of three camera operators, up from the previous two. To the trained eye the use of two cameras was placing restrictions on the number of shots that could be utilised, particularly in instances where three to five people might be talking to one another, when an additional viewpoint would enable a greater range of choice and lead to fewer scenes having to be setting up again and reshot. Another big plus was Patrick’s discovery of a new camera to use, the Panasonic VariCam LT. “Prior to starting the Arrested Development job I’d done a lot of testing,” he says,

I knew that this programme had a number of seasons left in it – four in fact – and so was guaranteed work. Also at that time I think myself and many others didn’t really understand Netflix, and so I wasn’t aware of how big and influential they would become. “Fortunately I got another chance when Season 5 was being envisaged, and I was approached because I’d been working with art director Dan Butts on Flight of the Conchords . He called me up full of enthusiasm and told me that they wanted me to be involved. “So I met up with the show’s creator, Mitchell Hurwitz to talk it all through, which was a little awkward because I had to tell him that I’d been watching the early episodes and, although I’d found them really funny, I was struggling to cope with the camera work in the earlier series to the point where I’d had to give up! “That’s the problem when you’re a cameraman yourself, because you can’t help looking at that aspect of things and it can sometimes prevent you seeing the bigger picture. “I went back and persevered a little longer and, after watching around 25 shows, I’d really got more

LEFT When master of handheld shots, DOP Patrick Stewart joined Arrested Development he brought along his own Fujinon Cabrio lenses. Why? BELOW Patrick Stewart with his Fujinon Cabrio lens on set.

© Mike Yarish

to February 2006, the show, despite critical acclaim, disappeared from the screens for several years before being revived by Netflix in May 2013. The style of the programme has always been fly on the wall, as though the actors were unaware they were being filmed. It relies heavily on running gags and a voiceover narration from director Ron Howard that brings the viewer up to date with the storyline as each episode progresses. The revival of the series has proved to be a big success, hence the decision to commission a further season, and Patrick is enjoying being involved in such a high profile project. “I was actually approached to be involved in the filming of Season 4,” he says, “but the timing wasn’t right for me then. For a start I would have had to have walked away from my work at The League to take it on, and

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MAY 2018 DEFINITION

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