The new possibilities of visual expression hidden in 16mm film The challenge of the movie “Toki” [CINEMORE ACADEMY Vol.17]

The good tension that film shooting brings

Q: I understand that you have already used 16mm film to shoot the pilot film, but how was the experience on set? (*As of the time of interview in April, the first filming of the main story has now finished)

Tsukada (Director): I think the best thing is seeing the actors' performances and the atmosphere live, so I don't really look at the monitors on set. Especially in the case of film, the cameraman sees all the images and cannot look back at them on the spot, so you can never miss the momentary moment of life happening on the spot. I really like that tension.

Also, the handling of light used to print on film is very delicate, and the staff in the photography and lighting departments are very sensitive to this. There is a sense of urgency among the staff that they must not miss out on capturing this beautiful and fleeting moment. I really feel the weight of that moment that started with a yoy start.

Haga (Director of Photography): Film production requires not only creativity but also imagination. Because film needs to be developed, it is impossible to know what state the film will be in on-site. I feel it is extremely important to imagine this.

I prepared a monitor for 16mm film at the scene, but it's an SD quality monitor that simply shows what's inside the viewfinder, so there's a huge difference in image quality compared to a digital monitor that allows you to see what you've shot in 4K. There is. Many of our staff members are used to beautiful digital monitors, so it seems like they get anxious when they see the image quality on a 16mm monitor. Of course, I explain to them, ``The image you see on this monitor is not the final image, and once developed, it will be a completely different image,'' but I can understand why they feel anxious.

For example, even if you want to focus, you can't just use the monitor, so you have to carefully measure the distance and calculate the distance before taking the picture, but you won't know if it's really in focus until it's developed. The same goes for light exposure; if it's wrong, it won't look right. In that sense, it creates a great sense of tension.

(c)Movie "TOKI-" Executive Committee

There are many aspects that are more difficult than digital, so the entire team will inevitably have to deal with them. I think that's partly why the enthusiasm on set has increased so much.

Also, since I can't rely on a monitor, the world I see through the viewfinder becomes extremely important. Creating a picture, a world, comes with a heavy responsibility, and at the same time, as a cameraman, I am the only one who can see the film spinning and the shutter being released through the viewfinder. I feel this is a very addictive task.

When I first looked into the viewfinder of a 16mm film camera during my internship in university, I heard the sound of the film spinning and the shutter clicking, and the moment I thought I was the only one looking at the world, I became addicted to it. It has become. It was a brain-burning experience.

The emotional state of the person photographing is very visible in the image, so I think film is a film that is more likely to imprint that sense of elation and sense of mission.

Q: It's true that images shot digitally are beautiful because the previews are all digital, right? Nowadays, it's hard to understand that you can't immediately see what you've taken.

Mr. Imai, how did you feel about the atmosphere on set?

Imai (Producer): It was a gathering of film enthusiasts, so I could see that everyone was having fun filming, which made me happy. When I shoot with film, I really feel like I'm making a movie!

Also, as both Mr. Haga and Mr. Tsukada said, there was a good sense of tension on set. There is also a sense of budgetary tension, as if a take fails, the film would be a waste. Also, since there were many children in the cast, it was not possible to shoot until late, so perhaps Mr. Tsukada's direction was good, and the filming went smoothly without too many takes. Perhaps having a moderate amount of tension worked for the better.

When shooting digitally, it looks good even if it's a little dark, so if the budget is low, I sometimes omit the lighting, but this time it's film, so I had to use proper lighting. Of course, we did it with the bare minimum staff and equipment necessary for the budget, but I feel that by adding proper lighting, the images look even more cinematic.

Film shooting not suitable for subjective images