"Don't you need to apply for approval from the New York City Council for this shot?" Director of Photography Michael Ballhaus asked Ronald. The first officially shot scene in the film was the aerial shot immediately following, on the Staten Island Ferry.
interior view.
Starting from the torch of the Statue of Liberty, it panoramically displays the atmosphere of the center of the universe in Manhattan, and then switches from the New Jerusalem-style tall metropolis to the shabby, dirty, backward ferry, showing the life of a poor blue-collar secretary working on Wall Street.
Life.
The famous American director Orson Welles once said that long takes are the hallmark that distinguishes adults from children. After almost all directors become famous, in order to prove their artistic value, they must show off their skills in the opening scene.
A long shot is like a coming-of-age ceremony for the director.
Hitchcock used "Rope of Souls" to show off his skills. Except for the few seconds of black screen after each roll of film, the rest was shot in one shot. The promotion of the film was also based on Hitchcock's
Technological breakthroughs as the main selling point.
Orson Welles himself used the opening three minutes of "The Last Day", distributed in three blocks, with cars and on foot, with more than fifty long shot announcements of extras, a long shot of Hitchcock's chamber drama
It doesn’t matter. Those who dare to take long outdoor shots are technological inventors.
In the opening scene of "Empire of the Sun", Spielberg used a ship to swoop in and knock open a coffin on the Huangpu River. The long shot was a metaphor for the impact of modernization on ancient civilizations, proving that he could make epic films.
Long shots are not entirely about showing off skills. The opening of the movie should quickly immerse the audience into the dream brought to them by the director. Long shots paired with music always make people feel the atmosphere inexplicably. Therefore, many directors have become
The first choice for opening scenes.
This coming-of-age ceremony is now Ronald's turn.
However, as we all know, Ronald does not have any technical mystique. It is not necessary to take a long shot from the beginning. The last scene of the aerial photography is from flying from high altitude to a height similar to that of the ferry, and then zooming in with a zoom lens, and finally freezing in Stan
On the glass window of the yellow ferry boat on Don Island.
So Ronald chose the connecting shot that was later edited, where Tess and Sheen were discussing how to celebrate Tess's 30th birthday on the ferry.
In order to capture the effect of a daily ferry and let New York audiences know that this is a real New York story, Ronald did not report it to the city hall, rent a ferry, and then find hundreds of extras to solve the problem.
Instead, he directly brought the film crew and asked two actors, Melanie Griffiths and Joan Cusack, to put on leather jackets and coats, apply exaggerated secretary makeup, and sneak in like a real Wall Street secretary.
On the ferry, I found two seats near the porthole and sat down.
This kind of candid photography can restore the temperament of New York that is different from any other city.
Ignoring the director of photography's teasing, Ronald quickly found the angle of the sun, and then asked the camera crew to shoot using handheld photography.
A microphone was hung on the camera, and the photographer, carrying a heavy machine, walked quickly from the side of the cabin. If this were done elsewhere, it would definitely have attracted a group of people to watch. But this is New York, where the citizens of America are the most arrogant. They themselves
They were talking to themselves, and not many people paid attention to the commotion caused by these people.
Very good, only one citizen leaning on the aisle glanced at the camera twice.
Ronald gave a hand signal to Joan Cusack, who played Xin. Joan Cusack turned her head, looked at Tess, played by Melanie Griffiths, and sang softly:
"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you..."
The sound was not loud, and was picked up by the microphone hanging on the camera. It was also picked up by the voices of people nearby and various noises.
On the other side of Joan Cusack is a real secretary. Her hairstyle is similar to that of the two actors. It is combed high and fixed with styling water. Two very large earrings sway as she turns her head.
Ronald smiled as soon as he saw it. He couldn't tell the difference between the costumes, makeup and hairstyle carefully designed by the crew and the real secretary. This indicates that the careful preparations for the filming of this film were very successful.
What Xin was holding was a small cupcake with three small candles on it. The script set that today happened to be Tess's thirtieth birthday. She was too busy at work and could only spend time with her good friends.
Celebrating on the way to work.
The real secretary next to her looked at Melanie with curiosity in her eyes. While chewing gum, she looked over, maybe wondering if she wanted to sing together.
"Huh..." Melanie Griffith blew out the candle.
"Did you make a wish?" Joan Cusack said. Xin felt that it was too simple to celebrate like this. After all, this was an integer birthday of thirty.
"Promised..." Melanie replied, and Tess looked in the other direction. Most secretaries would get married at this age, and she still had great ambitions. Melanie's face was facing the sun, and the light
Through her withered blond hair, there is a good atmosphere on her face.
"Cut!" Ronald was very satisfied with this shot. It seemed that his decision to go straight to the scene without rehearsing was the right one.
Both actors are very experienced, and they have such a tacit understanding with each other. But when they come up, they just shoot without thinking. The attention of the New Yorkers around them has not been attracted, and they get things done at lightning speed.
over.
Director of photography Michael Ballhaus raised his hand to indicate that the picture was OK, and Ronald asked them to put away the equipment and prepare to evacuate.
"Are you making a movie?" The people around were awakened by the "Cut" sound. The female secretary sitting next to Joan Cusack asked Ronald, "Is it a Hollywood production? Or is it an advertisement or something?"
For a while, the eyes of many people around were focused on this. Although New Yorkers are not surprised by this kind of thing, if it is a Hollywood production, there may be some celebrities hiding nearby, waiting to come out to film.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "No, I am a student at New York University, and we are here to take pictures of our homework." Ronald immediately denied it.
"Beep...beep..." Just as the ferry started to sound its whistle, it was only a few minutes before we reached the hotel in Lower Manhattan.
After docking, the group quickly met up with the second group filming the docking scene of the "American Legion" ferry at the dock, got into a Toyota van, and drove toward the World Trade Center.
"Student homework from New York University... Hahaha, I laughed to death." Melanie Griffiths and Joan Cusack were taking off their makeup in the car and talked about how quickly Ronald answered the passenger.
, almost shook them both.
"Thank God, I haven't lost the skills I learned from Roger Corman." Ronald also celebrated with Michael Ballhaus.
…
The crew officially arrived at the World Trade Center. Many companies had closed down after the stock market crash, and there were not as many people in the lobby as originally expected. Ronald had no choice but to have the Screen Actors Guild bring in dozens of extras in the afternoon to film Tess at work.
Entry to the World Trade Center.
The camera is assumed to be on the second floor balcony of the World Trade Center. The telephoto lens is focused on Tess and Sheen walking among a large group of extras.
The longer the focal length of the lens, the smaller the field of view. The director of photography fixed the lens on the necks and heads of Tess and Xin. In the picture, he captured the dozens of people performing in the group, and he captured the image of thousands of troops fighting over each other.
Momentum at work.
The heads of Griffiths and Cusack, rising and falling as they walked, were captured by the camera, as if they were the two standouts among the sheep.
This footage could not be recorded live and had to be dubbed later, but the two actors still spoke their lines meticulously.
"No lunch, I have to take a public speaking class." Tess said to her good friend Xin, declining the invitation to have lunch together.
"Why do you want to take a speech class? You speak very well." Joan Cusack, who plays Xin, imitated the accent to a very high level, and simulated the blue-collar accent of Brooklyn very vividly. Open accents replaced closed accents in large numbers.
, sounds like a poor man.
"Then I'll pick you up at five o'clock in the evening and we'll go to Staten Island together." Xin continued to work hard.
"No, I have a lecture on emerging markets to attend in the afternoon." Melanie Griffiths, who plays Tess, also had her accent trained by a pronunciation coach. Her Brooklyn accent is much weaker, but there are some
You can still hear the traces in the words. The image of a woman who worked hard from a secretary position and tried to integrate into a higher-level circle can be understood by the audience from the lines.
"God, today is your birthday, can't emerging markets wait?" Xin was a little nervous.
"When is my birthday surprise party?" Tess knew what her friend meant and simply said it.
"What kind of surprise party?" If you say it, it won't be considered a surprise.
"Stop pulling..."
"Okay, I should take you out for a drink after get off work and then go home at seven o'clock. They are all here."
"Okay, I'll leave early and I'll be home at 7:15. Okay?"
The two friends started bumping each other's shoulders, a kind of affectionate game only played by little girls.
Ronald was very happy, this was obviously an improvisation by Melanie Griffiths. Joan Cusack also reacted immediately and bumped back. The two hugged each other on the road, laughing and joking.
This kind of behavior is only seen by girls who grew up in poor communities. Girls from wealthy families are usually forbidden by their mothers to make a fuss, which is not elegant.
Sure enough, they are talented actors. Ronald deliberately did not let them rehearse, so that the first performance would be a natural and undesigned reaction. For such talented, well-trained, and experienced actors in film shooting,
This is the best way to give them some space.
"Cut!"
Although there was no simultaneous recording, the mouth movements of the two people were captured on film by the telephoto lens. The director of photography said that Ronald was perfect. The focus operator withstood the test and turned the focus wave wheel very quickly without any out-of-focus situations.
.
The next thing to be shot is the scene of Tess and Sheen walking out of the gate into the lobby of the skyscraper to squeeze into the elevator.
Because guide rails need to be laid, there is no way to take secret photos. As for the World Trade Center property management, preparations have been made in advance. The wave of rent cancellations caused by the recent stock market crash is not the most serious one in the twin towers, but the No. 7 building behind it.
So this shot was shot in the lobby of Building 7.
The prepared extras, dressed in office workers' attire, began to file in through a row of transparent glass doors. The camera shot from the side at a 45-degree angle.
The characters Tess and Sheen walked into the door, and the camera began to push up along the guide rail. The relative movement of the two sides was faster than real walking, making this shot look very fast. It seemed that there were really thousands of people. It was urgent.
As if squeezing in hastily.
All in all, everything went smoothly and the first day of shooting was successfully completed.
After announcing the end, Ronald still had to prepare for the next day's shooting, and then send the film to be developed and printed. You can see the developed samples at noon tomorrow.
He and the crew were still waiting where they were, and the actors were already getting ready to leave.
"Director, we are going to the bar tonight, will you come?" Melanie Griffiths played very well today. She came over and boldly asked Ronald if he wanted to go and have fun together.
"You guys go ahead, don't go too far." Ronald didn't object to whoever finished filming, and the actor relaxed a little.
"Well, bye..." Melanie quickly changed her clothes and went out to get into the Hollywood investment banker's car. It seemed that the two of them had really started dating.
"Ronald..."
There is actually another reason why Ronald doesn't go to the bar, that is, he has to meet and chat with the crew of "Hairspray".
This ultra-low-budget movie with very low investment was released in the United States two weeks ago. The distribution department of Daydream is very powerful, and it has contacted more than 200 theaters to show it after the film opened.
Unexpectedly, this dance film, billed as a comedy version of "Dirty Dancing", was unexpectedly loved by the audience. The box office in the first weekend exceeded one million, and the cost was recovered by the second week.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Ronald was very happy to hear Michelle Cannold's report. This shows that their strategy of focusing on low-cost genre films is well underway. The first film
The movie was a huge success.
The main creative staff of the crew include director John Waters, Ricky Lake as the fat girl, Drag Queen as her mother, Divine, and Cher's ex-husband Sonny, who has just been elected as the mayor of Palm Springs and has not yet taken office.
Bono, all came to New York to promote.
The box office was so strong this time that the entire crew began to arrange road shows in major cities across the country. Ronald invested hundreds of thousands of dollars more and added more performances in central and eastern cities.
The box office in the second week was even higher than that in the first week. When Ronald was happy, he changed the hotel where the cast and crew were staying to the St. Regis Hotel, the most expensive and luxurious hotel in Manhattan.
Several people arrived at the World Trade Center, met Ronald, and went to the St. Regis Hotel for dinner.
"Director, thank you. My agent has received many offers." The speaker was the heroine Ricky Lake. She was not the most beautiful actress in "Hairspray". But the unexpected explosion of the movie's box office made her
Everyone in Hollywood feels that this little chubby girl has unlimited future.
"When you lose weight, don't lose weight too quickly. Ask your agent to plan it carefully. Many actresses in Hollywood have lost many good roles because they lost weight too fast." Ronald looked at Ricky Lake who had already lost weight.
I have lost a lot of weight and look completely different from the chubby girl in the movie.
"I know, thank you."
"If you ask me, what's wrong with being fat? There are too many skinny people in Hollywood, but there are only a few of us fat girls..." Divine, the Drag Queen, is still very straightforward in speaking. His weight is more than twice that of Ricky Lake.
He was so fat that he could hardly sit down.
But he is already over forty years old, and Ricky Lake is only twenty this year. He is at the age where he loves beauty. How could he just walk around Hollywood with the image of a fat girl?
However, the friendship between mother and daughter in the movie has continued into life, and they are quite happy playing around.
Ronald chatted with Sonny Bono.
Bono's luck has improved since he starred in Ronald's movie. During the election, because he happened to appear on David Letterman's talk show with his ex-wife Cher, his popularity suddenly increased and he successfully defeated his predecessor.
mayor.
After he finished promoting the movie, he was ready to take office. In order to fulfill his promise to voters, Bono decided to start with his own expertise and create a Palm Springs Film Festival. He would learn from Robert Redford's Sundance Film Festival, which was designed to attract
Independently produced films are included in the competition.
Ronald reminded him that there were not many independent films in Hollywood. Robert Redford's film festival had been running for several years and was not comparable in terms of popularity. He had to find a suitable selling point to launch the Palm Springs Film Festival.
Then it will drive Bono's own restaurant business, and Palm Springs' tourism and economy.
"I have thought about it. Palm Springs cannot compete head-on with Sundance. I plan to invite independent films from other countries to compete and participate in the exhibition. There are many independent filmmakers from Europe and Asia who make B-level films and want to
Entering the American market."
Ronald was very interested in Sonny Bono's idea. He and Bono agreed that for the first film festival next year, they would contact the other side of the Pacific and send some films from there, Hong Kong, Japan, and other places to exhibit.
"Ah ha ha ha... Divine burst out laughing over there." It turned out that his agent called him again. Due to the writers' strike, many TV series in New York have stopped and they can only rerun or find some guests.
Go on a talk show.
The second season finale of the Fox TV series "Married... with Children" was also disrupted by a strike. It had no choice but to take out the old script from the first season and find some latest celebrities to participate.
Anyway, in this sitcom, there are a lot of viewers on the scene to make canned laughter. As long as Divine uses his ability to improvise on the spot, just come in a few times and fool the last episode. Who makes him the most talked about in the media now?
, what about the "female" actress who brought unexpected surprises?
Ronald stepped forward and hugged him, and then congratulated him on his success. This "Hairspray", just like "Dirty Dancing", also brought good luck to the creator. All the actors, because of a small win, a big success.
movies and got more opportunities.
Ronald is very happy about this kind of thing. Anyway, the big studio system has collapsed. It is impossible for a movie produced by Ronald to tie up the original cast and make five more similar movies. It is better to get together.
Good luck, let these people go out and make money.
Anyway, no one in Hollywood knows all the secrets of success. If they are no longer popular, then coming back to make sequels is the right way for a small production company to survive.
Besides, don’t we have the weapon of video tape now? A movie that earns its money back at the box office can make a profit on the video tape. And a movie like "Hairspray" that has built a certain momentum in the media can make a profit on the video tape after it is released.
, a very good advertisement. Ronald is happy to see all these creative staff get opportunities.
When they are interviewed, they will also be asked by the media what they think of the movie "Hairspray". It's all free advertising.