THE OUTRUN PRODUCTION
LIGHT TOUCH A naturalistic approach to lighting was favoured
highlights in a similar way, which was key for continuity regarding an aspect of the look. Sometimes, in the grading process, you couldn’t tell much difference between the lenses, and some of the visual world was subtly psychological. The Primos were the sober lenses in Orkney and far more subtle. We wanted to show the world in a naked way. “It was a bold and theoretical look. If you go to Orkney, you need to have everything soft and beautiful, and then hard and contrasty in London. We did it the other way around, but I felt this was important. It made more sense for what Rona’s character was going through.” Imer wanted to take a naturalistic approach to lighting. “I often orientate what light does on its own, then support it. I had a great gaffer, Gordon J Goodwin, with me all the time. We started with a bigger crew and bigger units, trucks and gear and everything, then the further north we went, the smaller the crew got. We just had one little van at the end. I’m very proud of the searchlight we used in the club scene; we were able to use that as a main light source. They built a rig so we could turn this old 2K lamp.” To capture the underwater sequences at Orkney, underwater cinematographer Raymond Besant was brought in. “He
lives in Orkney,” reveals Imer. “We got in touch with him because of his beautiful images of seals in the water. We worked out a little underwater set-up he could use – and he already had all the gear himself. He’d come to the remote island to film seals and, on the second day, the team approached him. This was a great collaboration; we’re lucky we found him.” Filming took place over a period of six months, with production starting in London and slowly moving up north to Edinburgh where the production office was based. Several shots throughout the film proved particularly difficult to capture, although Imer points to one boat scene as the riskiest. “We were a seriously small unit doing this, it should be said. We were going to another island and I had the camera with
me,” he recalls. “Suddenly, there was this mist and waves and I went to the front of the boat, trying to hold this camera. The boat was rocking up and down and I had to hold on tight just to stay on. I was trying to balance the movement of the waves and it made the image look shaky, but Nora wanted it to be still. Ultimately, it looked much better when I didn’t balance it out like she initially asked.” Immersing himself with the people and communities of Orkney and Papa Westray was one of the most enjoyable aspects of production for Imer. “This part of the world is beautiful and very special, and the community was incredibly warm and welcoming to the production team. We spent quite a bit of time there and wanted to make sure everyone there felt comfortable with us too.”
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