Chapter 43

At the third hour of the night, I present this, seeking recommendations and favorites!

"Kerry!"

In the temporary set in the living room, Murphy called over Kerry Mulligan. The previous test shoot went well, but he felt that Kerry Mulligan could do even better. "You're not at the point of transformation yet; you need to make your innocent side appear more natural."

After declining James Franco's invitation that night, Kerry Mulligan gradually formed a plan in her heart. She temporarily suppressed her feelings towards James Franco. Although her performance was far from perfect during rehearsals and on-site shoots, it showed her rapid improvement.

On the other side, James Franco had stepped out of his character, watching Kerry Mulligan listen to Murphy. In the past week, he had shown what he called sincerity, and the girl's attitude towards him had clearly improved. It seemed that the rookie director's words had some truth to them.

Although Kerry Mulligan wouldn't roughhouse with him, she occasionally joked, which somewhat comforted James Franco's itchy heart. Everything was moving in a positive direction...

He curled his lips, as if seeing his heart's desire come true.

"You did well, Kerry," Murphy continued to Kerry Mulligan. "But I know you can do better. Didn't you tell me you're a performance genius? Show me all your potential."

Kerry Mulligan wrinkled her nose. "I will."

"Go get ready." Murphy waved her off.

The makeup artist, Jack Watson, immediately followed Kerry Mulligan to touch up her and James Franco's makeup.

The next part was still a test shoot. As the director and cinematographer, Murphy not only had to adjust the actors' states and positions but also find the most suitable shooting angles and techniques.

Although many shooting methods were planned, for a novice like him, the difference between planning and actual shooting could be significant.

"Lighting, get ready!" Murphy shouldered the camera. "Actors, get ready! Action!"

Due to the previous test shoot, both the mediocre lighting technician, John Douglas, and the lead actors, James Franco and Kerry Mulligan, quickly entered their roles, especially the latter two, who appeared in Murphy's camera lens according to the set positions.

James Franco handed the cup to Kerry Mulligan, who withdrew her gaze from the living room and looked at James Franco with bright eyes but did not take the cup.

"What's wrong?" James Franco asked.

Kerry Mulligan said innocently, "Adults tell us not to drink drinks offered by strange men."

After several rehearsals and test shoots, their mastery of this scene had improved, but Murphy did not use the same shooting method as before. Instead, he changed the positioning and shooting technique.

During the shoot, not only the actors and other behind-the-scenes staff needed to adjust, but the director and cinematographer also had to adjust to find the best way to achieve the best results.

During the filming, Murphy tried to control all the elements in the frame, which was very helpful for storytelling. He alternated between open and closed framing techniques.

Additionally, when using the Steadicam, he paid great attention to the spatial continuity of the shots.

Spatial continuity is crucial. Murphy had already determined the shooting focal point in the temporary set in the living room and used overlapping methods to include the same elements in separate shots, thus clarifying the spatial relationships between the characters.

In the current shot, whether it was a close-up of James Franco or a wide shot of Kerry Mulligan, the cup was always present. This not only expressed the peculiar relationship between the two but also conveyed to the audience that the cup would play a significant role in the subsequent plot.

Murphy also paid attention to avoiding too many close-up shots. Uniform close-ups are not the only way to clarify the spatial relationships between characters. Otherwise, a series of close-ups in the final cut would make the scenes appear stiff and lifeless.

Therefore, Murphy used Kerry Mulligan as the central axis and shot in a clockwise direction. This 360-degree axis rotation is a common shooting technique in films, especially by the famous Michael Bay, who often uses it to show character relationships and emotions.

The axis shooting technique was initially created to ensure smooth editing. Many people think it is too rigid and should be broken, but Murphy doesn't agree. This technique is still widely used, demonstrating its value, especially for novice directors. One must first master it before breaking it; otherwise, it's just random shooting.

Of course, many directors break the axis to disrupt psychological expectations, create confusion, or change the character's position, but these are techniques developed after gaining proficiency.

After the test shoot, Murphy did not immediately start the formal shoot but instead announced a temporary break and called over the editor.

The editor had arrived a few days ago from Fox Los Angeles TV Channel 6, the same Griffith whom Murphy had previously learned from. He charged only $10,000 as a favor.

Compared to Murphy, a novice, Griffith, though not well-known, was an experienced editor.

Experience can be shared and learned. Griffith taught Murphy many details about how a director should manage the editor, such as how to arrange the editing staff on set, how to communicate with them, how to handle the pacing and arrangement of materials, and how to use music and sound effects in editing.

Murphy brought the footage from today's shoot and entered a temporary studio on the right side of the living room with Griffith to perform preliminary on-site editing.

As an editor, one needs to be involved in the entire filming process, but many directors do not perform on-site editing. Murphy, however, needed it as an aid to compensate for his lack of experience. For example, he needed to see if the scenes he designed could be reasonably executed or if the form could convey his ideas. Therefore, he needed the help of an experienced person like Griffith.

Additionally, Murphy needed to explore other shooting possibilities in the existing footage.

Moreover, on-site editing could help a novice director find the rhythm.

Rhythm is a somewhat abstract concept. Since films are composed of many elements, it has many aspects. Murphy primarily focused on the emotional rhythm.

For example, the change in Haley's attitude towards Jeff.

After a busy day in the studio, Murphy finally announced the start of the formal shoot. The numerous adjustments and test shoots directly led to an extremely slow shooting pace. By the end of the day, only three scenes had been completed.

"That's it for today."

The sky outside gradually darkened, and Murphy announced the end of the work. It was the weekend, and despite the unsatisfactory shooting progress, he loudly said, "We'll take Saturday off."

He himself also needed some time to summarize.

Jessica Chastain then walked over and whispered, "I need to go back to the city."

Murphy waved her off. As Jessica Chastain left, Kerry Mulligan, who had just finished her makeup, came up to him. "Murphy, are you going back this weekend?"

"No..." Murphy shook his head, his face weary, and his head began to throb slightly. "I have work to do."

"Perfect, I sent Bill away," Kerry Mulligan said excitedly. "I just made plans with James to rehearse the scene where Haley subdues Jeff tomorrow."