Echoes of Hollywood

"Diego Ross, Scene 1, Take 1."

Following Murphy's command, the clapperboard was placed in front of the main camera's lens, and the assistant director loudly announced, "Action!"

In the dimly lit room, Robert Downey Jr. and Margot Robbie sat facing each other. Downey's eyes were glazed, seemingly out of it, while Robbie was dressed stylishly, resembling a socialite.

"Damn it!" Margot Robbie glanced at Downey, suddenly erupting, "I gave you the product to sell, not to use!"

Downey wobbled, "I just took a little bit. Don't worry, I'll pay you every cent for the goods."

The camera shifted to Robbie. Seeing the close-up of her face, Murphy raised a hand and shouted, "Cut!"

Seth Rogen, standing behind Murphy, stepped forward slightly and adjusted his glasses, looking at the monitor screen. He couldn't quite understand why Murphy called for a cut.

He directed films full of crude humor, where the acting requirements weren't particularly high. Now that Murphy called for a cut, he really couldn't see what the problem was.

Robert Downey Jr. and Margot Robbie looked toward Murphy. Murphy gestured for Robbie to come over, "Margot, come here."

He thought for a moment and added, "Downey, you too."

Robbie walked over first, asking, "Is it my fault?"

"Yes, your expression." Murphy pulled up the close-up shot on the monitor, freezing it, and pointed at Robbie's mouth, "You're supposed to be furious here. Fury isn't about exaggerated expressions."

"Oh..." Robbie scratched her head, "I'll pay attention next time."

Murphy then turned to Downey, "Downey, distance yourself from the table a bit. Right now, you're supposed to be feeling guilty."

Downey, seemingly still in character, just nodded without saying anything.

"You two go prepare." Murphy waved them off and then called to an assistant, "Get Philippe over here."

Soon, Philippe Rousselot arrived.

Reviewing the same footage, Murphy pointed at Robbie's face, "She's lost a lot of weight recently, her eye sockets are sunken, and her face is too thin. Make some adjustments with the camera."

"Alright." Philippe Rousselot quickly thought of a solution, "I'll handle it right away."

Murphy nodded. Using camera techniques to compensate for an actor's physiological and appearance shortcomings was just basic cinematography.

After Rousselot adjusted the camera, shooting resumed. This time, it went smoothly, especially with the small issues Murphy mentioned about Robbie's face due to excessive weight loss being effectively addressed.

When shooting a character, physiological defects can be mitigated with different lighting and shooting angles.

Philippe Rousselot applied this method.

For instance, characters with round faces should avoid front close-ups. The face can be slightly angled, and the camera raised slightly to shoot from a downward angle. The main light should be higher and more to the side to create shadows, making the face appear thinner. Conversely, a thin face should be shot from the opposite angles.

For people with different sized eyes or sunken eyes, shooting from a slight angle based on the perspective principle of nearer objects appearing larger can make the smaller eye look bigger.

Lighting can also be used. Rousselot instructed David Robey to adjust the lighting, placing Robbie's sunken eye sockets in the shadows and using softer lighting to compensate for her weight loss.

With Downey and Robbie back in the right state, the camera angles and lighting in place, this shoot went smoothly. After Robbie finished her dialogue with Downey and stood to leave, the camera lingered on the dazed Downey.

This was a freeze-frame shot. Murphy looked at it and called, "Cut! This one's good."

But before the crew could relax, Murphy loudly said, "Jack, touch up Downey and Margot's makeup. We'll go again in fifteen minutes."

Then, he motioned to the main camera. Philippe Rousselot came over again.

When Rousselot arrived, Murphy replayed the shot, pointing at the final freeze-frame of Downey, "Using a freeze-frame here to show the character's daze isn't quite right."

Rousselot replayed the shot, "Freeze-frames don't carry continuity, the effect is indeed poor."

Murphy thought for a moment, "Let's try a dolly zoom."

The camera tracks had been laid out on set, needing just a bit of adjustment.

The dolly zoom's most direct effect is a vertigo effect. This shot combines dolly movement with zooming. As the camera moves closer to the subject, the zoom lens pulls back; as the camera moves away, the zoom lens pushes in.

Done correctly, the subject remains the same size in the frame, but the background perspective changes dramatically, seemingly moving towards or away from the subject. The effect is intense and disorienting, often used to signify a critical moment or the character's confusion.

The speed of the dolly zoom affects how the audience interprets the scene and the emotion conveyed. For strong emotions, the speed is typically very fast, making the perspective change noticeable.

In other cases, the speed is slow, making the perspective shift subtle, often barely noticeable, conveying that something significant but not intense is happening.

The on-site shoot quickly resumed. Murphy stood behind the director's monitor, closely watching the camera's changes. When Robbie left and the camera shifted to Downey, it wasn't a freeze-frame. Rousselot switched to a close-range wide-angle lens, keeping the camera close to Downey. During the shot, as the zoom reached telephoto, the camera quickly retreated on the track, moving away from Downey, making him appear the same size but bringing the background closer.

After the shot, Murphy replayed it. This dolly zoom effectively conveyed the protagonist's confusion and helplessness at a crucial moment, demonstrating that when the subject's size remains constant, changing the focal length doesn't affect the depth of field, as the distance between the camera and the subject compensates for the difference, keeping the background out of focus throughout.

Satisfied, Murphy nodded lightly. This was the effect he wanted.

"Much better than before." Rogen, having watched from behind, came over and said, "It perfectly captures Diego Ross's state during this critical decision moment."

"This is the dolly zoom. It can also be used in another situation." Murphy explained simply, "Dolly zooms are also used in rare cases to highlight the background rather than the subject, keeping the subject out of focus. This is often used to show that characters feel their surroundings are distorted due to psychological states or supernatural forces, a favorite technique in horror films."

This intriguing cinematographic technique, popularized by the master filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock, is also known as the "Hitchcock zoom" or "Vertigo effect."

The principle is simple: by zooming in while moving the camera away or zooming out while moving the camera closer, the subject's size remains constant, creating a continuous perspective shift where the background changes size, while the subject stays the same.

As the film's shooting had just begun, nothing was guaranteed to go smoothly. Murphy, experienced from directing multiple films, knew the practical effects during filming might differ from expectations, necessitating adjustments.

After five takes, Murphy finally declared the scene good, using this process to convey his strict shooting requirements.

Filming is unpredictable, but preparation reduces the chance of errors.

Murphy then continued shooting Downey's solo scenes.

Playing Diego Ross, Downey understood the film wasn't about profit but about commitment and friendship. He had invested considerable time and effort into studying the character, and his performance was excellent.

In one morning, Murphy shot four scenes. During the lunch break, producer Gal Gadot approached him.

"These two documents need your signature." Gal Gadot placed two documents flat in front of Murphy, handing him a pen. "This is the location rental agreement between the crew and Stanton Studio..."

Murphy glanced over it, took the pen, and signed his name.

Gadot put away the documents and added, "Bill just called. He received an invitation. Britney Spears is inviting you to a party."

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