Following my recent obsession with long takes, walking and zooms, I crafted this scene by giving little direction to the actors, letting them follow instinct, and allowing the camera to ‘follow’ and work spontaneously.

Let me preface this by talking about two of the elements; the lighting and the sound. Firstly, the lighting for both shots is pretty poor. I’m not great when it comes to shooting outside and finding the right balance. We shot on a balcony, and while the space on the left side (with the concrete and shadows) came out okay, the right side, with the backdrop of sky and distant buildings, was too overexposed. Secondly, the sound was a disaster. It was a windy day, and to be honest, the crew members were not fully focussed on their role. It was also difficult considering the distance between the mic and actors, but it still could have been a lot better.

To me, the first shot is okay. The first six seconds is fine, but there is probably a bit too much headroom. As the shot goes on I improvised with the zoom, and I probably went more ‘out’ than I should have. I really like the blocking (not my doing) when they first interact; I just wish there wasn’t so much space is the background.

The second shot is far worse. The exposure level is more distracting, the zoom is too long and ends too far away, and it overall, it doesn’t have the same sense of urgency as the first shot.

Overall, this was a pretty fun exercise. I like making these mistakes as I honestly believe they make me a better filmmaker. I wish we did it again, but it was ultimately a pretty fulfilling experience.