by John Hart
- Keep your ‘sets’ as simple as possible, especially, since your ‘set-ups’ usually consist of available ‘on location’ areas, like tables, chairs, benches, etc.
- Move or get rid of anything extraneous that you do not absolutely need in your shot.
- If you are working on an almost non-existent budget, just being aware of a basic design set-up is doubly important.
- Don’t over-accessorize, as the Interior Designers say, by placing too many bibelots in the scene. Example: A restaurant scene could consist of a simple brick background with one large painting (an abstract that is not too busy) directly behind the table. A cheap checkered table cloth and one candle in the center. Two chairs and two actors.
- With the over-the-shoulder shots (OTS), just keep the backgrounds dark, i.e. unlit.
- Think about ways to maximize the ‘look’. of your mise-en-scene, ( the area where your action is staged).
- If shooting OUTSIDE/ON LOCATION, make sure that your background (BKD) isn’t too busy (like flashing neon lights) that would distract from your actors in the foreground (FGD). If there are trees in the background, for example, make sure that the trees in the BKD frame your actors and that their branches don’t look like they’re springing from the center of your leading lady’s head. If, however, the neon lights are part of the motivation/plot line, that’s another story.
- Spend some time framing your shots. It’s a question of placement.
- Make good use of available architectural elements in the FGD or BKD, if takes a little location scouting. Just make sure that they are simple, but dynamically designed.
- Since you are dealing with 3D space, keep in mind at all times the FOREGROUND, THE MIDDLE GROUND, and the BACKGROUND – everything that will be seen in the SHOT – the spatial areas surrounding the actors and the camera, the actors themselves, and what is seen behind the actors. All three of the above elements must work together to impart a constructed whole.
- BACKGROUNDS, or, FGDs or MDs should contain design elements that point to or indicate the actors in the mise-en-scene. Being aware of these three basic compositional factors and being conscious of the three receding planes will add to the 3D spatial images that you are capturing on film. Example: Frame the FGD area with, for instance, a cluster of flowers, leaves of an over-hanging tree, or even some quiet people, to enhance and draw attention to your actors.
- In the BKD, place actors in front of, or next to, or seen through an impressive rectangular doorway, an arch; or an oval piece of a Henry Moore-like type of sculpture will give the scene a professional ‘set-up’.
- Adding depth to your scenes says that you are in the professional area of expertise.
- Keep one-point perspective in mind. Use of this visual tool can add depth.
John Hart is an award-winning author, lecturer, storyboard artist, graphic designer and photographer based in New York. He wrote “The Art of the Storyboard,” 1st Edition and 2nd Edition.
