How Kubrick, Spielberg, and Inarritu Stage their Scenes

[Music] when you combine camera placement movement and actor blocking a filmmaker can create an almost infinite number of cinematic combinations each shot is an opportunity to tell a complete story with subtext yet many filmmakers default to standard coverage the result every movie looks the same and says very little in this video we're going to show you how you can stage your scenes to increase their cinematic energy and convey a deeper meaning visually how you are through blocking and staging the unspoken dance between the actors and the camera the term blocking refers to how characters move through a scene and interact with their environment staging is the placement and movement of the camera in relation to blocking when blocking and staging work together in harmony it can make the difference between watching a functional scene or a subtext rich visual story we're going to analyze three scenes from popular directors Before we jump into our examples make sure to subscribe below and click the bell icon to stay in the loop let's jump in our first example is from Steven Spielberg's Minority Report [Music] the scene begins with a close-up shot of a wooden pre-crime ball and the precogs declare a victim and a killer their name is embedded in the grain of wood since each piece is unique the shape and grain is unique the shape and grain is impossible to forge I'm sure you all understand the legalistic drawback to pre-crime methodology here we go again look I'm not with the ACLU on this Jeff well let's not kid ourselves we are arresting individuals who have broken no law what they will the commission of the crime itself is absolute metaphysics the precogs see the future and they're never wrong Fletcher explains the logic behind their department's technology but then which way brings up the ethical conundrum that faces the pre-crime initiative notice the staging changes here we go again look I'm not with the ACLU on this Jeff well it's not kid ourselves we are arresting individuals who have broken no law what they will the commission of the crime their physical positions now represent their personal beliefs which we're on one side of the room pre-crime on the other but it's not the future if you stop isn't that a fundamental paradox when Whitworth steals the wind from their sails in walks our hero John Anderton yes it is you're talking about predetermination which happens all the time why'd you catch that because it was gonna fall you're sure yeah but it didn't fall you caught it the fact that you prevent it from happening doesn't change the fact that it was going to happen you ever get any false positives when Wittwer mentions false positives we cut now on the other side of the line and in neutral shop behind Fletcher they're evenly matched the audience in the middle this shot visually asks the viewer to make their own determination are you with Anderton or wit where someone intends to kill his boss or his wife but they never that how do the precogs tell the difference pretty excited to see what you intend to do only way you will do then why can't I see ribs our souls for suicides because of the nature of murder Anderton then takes a seat comfortable in his beliefs untimely murder of one human being by another somehow I don't think that was Walt Whitman sour cinnamon she developed precogs designed the system and pioneered the interface speaking of interfacing I'd love to say hello to Hanuman to that cops aren't allowed inside the temple really you've never been inside we keep strict separation so that no one could be accused of tampering so I'll be the first one to go in there maybe you didn't hear me if it's a question of authority no there's no question you don't have any have a warrant in my pocket that's as different when whit where mentions the warrant and items once comfortable seat becomes compromised whit were now in control of the scene shortly sure [Music] this investigation pre-crime and it's personnel is being conducted under the direct supervision and express permission from the Attorney General of the United States I'm here as this representative which means you're not operating under my supervision seems you've been left out of the little chat the body language shot composition and dialogue combined to deflate Anderson's power Spielberg was able to change the meaning behind the blocking through dialogue and body language this is truly masterful directing but what about staging scene with fewer cuts [Applause] let's look at our second example from Clockwork Orange directed by Stanley [Music] Kubrick started his career as a photographer and you can see this in his short composition similar to a photograph Kubik stages his seemed so a single frame communicates a complete story is staging has deep meaning in this scene the drugs are positioned in a triangle with Georgie's legs extended towards dim as Alex comes down the stairs the droogs lookup the blunt end of his cane aimed at dim notice the compositional lines created by both a cane but also the handrail all eyes are on Alex [Music] - what do I owe the extreme pleasure of this surprise all eyes turned to Georgie which guide our eyes as well we got worried then we get our first cut when Georgie leans in notice the position of his shadow in the background there's a little treat aimed at his face staging George and dim in this way tells us where allegiances lie and we count your abode happy apologies we cut to a new wide shot the pointed end of the cane aimed at dim notice how the shadows guide our eyes Kubrick then presents a very obvious moment of intimidation and superiority let's get things nice and sparkling clear this sucked if I may call and such does not become you or my little brothers as I am you're drogon leader I'm entitled to know what goes on now then dim what does that great big ol see cape of a grim portent all right no more picking on dim brother that's part of the new way the entire scene is all about testosterone alpha status the graffiti on the wall the jockstraps the cane and Kubrick's blocking and camerawork support the moment to perfection but what if you want to stage a scene without cutting at all let's look at our third example from Birdman [Music] in this scene sam's movement leads the camera to Larry the costume designer it's here how have you been Larry when staging your tracking shots make sure important information is always in view you just gonna stand there in re two uses the mirror to extend our view production design can be used to enhance the effectiveness of your direction notice that the actors are placed at varying depths in the frame Larry is seated closest to the camera mic in the middle and Sam's reflection in the very back your underpants under the bed at home in re to cleverly moves Larry out of view as Leslie enters this gives us space to see Leslie consider what the actions on screen tell us about each of these characters Mike both admires and critiques his image in the mirror Sam is on her phone distracted in the background and Leslie is focused on her career but also in a hurry each little subtle action paints a very full picture of their individual personalities Leslie moves towards us complaining about Mike's immaturity and Sam's lingering the mirror keeps us constantly aware that Sam is still in the room the drugs the fighter brain or what but don't want her running to her father saying you showed her your junk when Mike finally reveals that Sam is in fact in the room then we should ask her to leave Oh God really an IRA too gives us a great close up view of Leslie's reaction he knew this moment was important and that Leslie's face gives a scene the biggest payoff Sammy its Sam Sam Leslie listen um when I said that I don't worry about it he's a handful huh [Music] inner Ito used intelligent blocking and staging to land in this shot at this moment they should give this guy an award or something [Applause] to recap we showed you how Spielberg uses blocking and body language to represent a shift in power we showed you how Kubrick directs the eyes with lines and shapes and we showed you how in a ritual changes composition during his long takes so that it culminates in a big reaction shot what are your favorite examples of blocking how did the director use it to elevate the material tell us in the comments if you're planning compositions that are beyond standard coverage it's helpful to use a shot list or storyboard to map it out check the description to sign up the studio binder it's free to get started remember to subscribe to our channel for more videos like this click the bell icon for notifications and follow us on our Instagram page very well my brothers and sisters you [Music]

Channel: StudioBinder

Views: 607,268

Rating: 4.9657683 out of 5

Keywords: Birdman, Directing, Filmmaking theory, A Clockwork Orange, Minority Report, Filmmaking, Staging, Spielberg, Blocking movie, Kubrick, Film school, Composition in art, Directing movies, Film scenes, Inarritu, Video Essay, Film Analysis, Blocking in film, Composition film, How to direct a movie, Blocking scenes, Filmmaking tips, Scene analysis, How to direct actors, Staging film, How to shoot a scene, How to direct a scene, screen rant, film riot, cinematyler, the take

Id: o-4rk3T8PbQ

Length: 13min 6sec (786 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 07 2019