TYPES OF LIGHTS

Unlike the human eye, video and film cameras need specific lighting to produce an image that looks realistic and believable to the viewer. In order to make movies, lighting has to be considered regularly in every shot. There are fundamentally two types of lighting and several positional techniques used to light a scene in a movie. While there are many variables involved, the basic concepts of movie lighting remain the same throughout the industry.

The basic theory of movie lighting is:-

• Available Light

One of the two types of light available to film crews is commonly called "available light." This simply means that the naturally occurring light on the set will be used to completely or partially light the scene. This is usually sunlight, but the term is also used to refer to any lighting not set up by the crew; streetlights, for example, may be considered available light.

• Artificial Light

Artificial light includes any set lighting brought in by a movie production crew. There are many varieties of artificial lighting used on movie sets. Common tungsten bulbs can be used, but often have to be adjusted for color. 

• Key

Types of movie lighting may refer to the position of the light source and its purpose as well. The key light is the main light source used to light a subject in a scene. This light is often placed on the front and side of the key subject, such as the speaking actor in the scene, and is slightly elevated to mimic sunlight, moonlight or indoor lighting. This is typically the most intense light used on the set.

•  Fill

The fill light is set up on the side opposite from the key light and is a less-intense light. The fill light, as the name would indicate, fills in the spaces where the key light does not reach. This type of lighting softens hard shadows cast by the key light and makes for a more visually appealing image.

•  Back

The back light is often used on the backside of the key subject and is aimed from above to fill the rear and make a sort of halo effect on the head. This is often used in close-up shots of a person and gives them a warm appearance on screen.

•  Set

The set light is the one light source not aimed at the key subjects in the scene. This light is often farther back on the set and is used to illuminate the background so that the audience can see the setting well. For example, the set light, or lights, may be set up on a city street scene to light the fronts of buildings along the street in the background so that they appear natural looking on screen. Without this light, the background could be too dark and get lost in the shot.

USE OF LIGHTING WITH DANCE

This is a dance performance by a well known choreographer in India at a dancing reality show.

It shows stunning use of light projections and after effects in a dance performance. Stage is designed with changing color leds. that gets acquainted as per dance performances and themes of dancers. 

CARCASS_ A SCREENPLAY

Step I

I started by reading script quite a few times and understand characters and imagining world around them. Reading it for first time gave me broad-spectrum initiative about the script. Later reading it again and again I started making notes and rough sketches as per my perceptive and views.

Step II

SCRIPT BREAKDOWN

·        Underlining the charters by color code

·        Listing down the essential props (action props & design props)

·        Listing of sets both interior and exterior

·        Special effects

Step III

I started researching on the ideas that I had in my mind by referring books, collecting images from internet that are appropriate. These are some of the referencing images as per my visualization.

• my perception of interiors in the film sets

    

• some reference for exterior locations and initial sketches

CARCASS _ A SCREEN , 1ST PROJECT

CARCASS is a short film written by julius ayodeji. This is my first MA project for which I would be designing sets. We are given 4 weeks time to complete the project, and presenting it to other students. This will give an understanding of factual industry working tactic, also designer’s relationship with director and co-workers and key design skills for low budget production. It is a futuristic film around 80-90 years from now. This allows an immense amount of sovereignty in terms of designing and explores our own ideas.

The essential requirements by closing stages of this assignment:

• ·        Script breakdown including all props
• ·        Working sketch plan of all sets
• ·        Elevation of one interior set (technical drawing)
• ·        One exterior location
• ·        Story board making of 1 scene
• ·        2 major prop makes

3D Projection Mapping on buildings

What is 3-D Projection Mapping?

3-D projection mapping, according to Wikipedia, “is any method of mapping three-dimensional points to a two-dimensional plane,” But basically they input information about the surface upon which they’re projecting and detail an animation around it using three-dimensional effects like shadowing, foreshortening and Y-axis movement. Using the technique, it’s possible to match the video to the building and animate whatever dreamlike, unique or ruinous episode you want to transpire it.

There are at least two ways of understanding how to make a video mapping projection:

1) Prepare images to project on a surface/façade. Images can be projected as if the building was a huge flat screen. The building itself creates a mask and you will not need to do all the calibration work that video mapping normally requires.

2) MASKING. As in the word, masking is about creating masks (a sort of opacity templates) with the exact shape and position of the different elements of the building, space architecture, 3D object etc. On those masks, or in the space between this masks, is where the video is going to be projected, using a simple alpha-channel technique.

I love it when technology is put together in new and innovative ways. 3D projection mapping allows for a 3D animation to be played by a projector onto any building. This is quite new and it is flourishing nowadays. The reason of its success is that the public gets somehow emotionally involved in the show. It is not just “another cool visualization”, but it is surprising and exciting and involves physical as well as virtual space.

AVATAR( MOVIE )

Avatar is a 2009 American epic science fiction action film written and directed by James Cameron.

Themes and inspirations

For the film's floating "Hallelujah Mountains", the designers drew inspiration from "many different types of mountains, but mainly the karst limestone formations in China.

The look of the Na'vi – the humanoids indigenous to Pandora – was inspired by a dream that Cameron's mother had, long before he started work on Avatar. In her dream, she saw a blue-skinned woman 12 feet (4 m) tall, which he thought was "kind of a cool image". Also he said, "I just like blue. It's a good color … plus, there's a connection to the Hindu deities, which I like conceptually." He included similar creatures in his first screenplay (written in 1976 or 1977), which featured a planet with a native population of "gorgeous" tall blue aliens. The Na'vi were based on them.

Visual effects

A number of innovative visual effects techniques were used in the production of Avatar. The director planned to make use of photorealistic computer-generated characters, created using new motion-capture animation technologies he had been developing in the 14 months.

Innovations include a new system for lighting massive areas like Pandora's jungle,[97] a motion-capture stage or "volume" six times larger than any previously used, and an improved method of capturing facial expressions, enabling full performance capture. To achieve the face capturing, actors wore individually made skull caps fitted with a tiny camera positioned in front of the actors' faces; the information collected about their facial expressions and eyes is then transmitted to computers.

making of avatar movie behind the scenes

Computer-generated imagery (CGI)

Computer-generated imagery (CGI) is the application of computer graphics to create or contribute to images in art, printed media, video games, films, television programs, commercials, and simulators. The visual scenes may be dynamic or static, and may be two-dimensional (2D), though the term "CGI" is most commonly used to refer to 3D computer graphics used for creating scenes or special effects in films and television.

CGI is used because it is often cheaper than physical methods, such as constructing elaborate miniatures for effects shots or hiring a great deal of extras for crowd scenes, and because it allows the creation of images that would not be feasible using any other method. It can also allow a single artist to produce content without the use of actors or other contributors to the project.

Image developed using CGI technology