A photo of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

When speaking of Deng Lu, the industry insiders like to call her “Steadicam Queen”. Deng was born in “a family of filmmakers” as most men in her family are photographers or producers, and women are hair and make-up designers. After working as costume assistant, script supervisor, casting assistant, hair and make-up designer and taking other positions at the shooting sites, she threw herself in cinematography, starting as an assistant camerawoman and eventually evolving into a director of photography.

　　A collection of the posters of Deng Lu’s works

As Deng Lu had learned the characteristics of NEWHER Workshop & Masterclass and its audience in advance, she made a custom list of “instructions for rookie filmmakers” for the attending young filmmakers.

First, ask for help from the seasoned veterans in the industry. When encountering a problem at the shooting site, an experienced filmmaker can keep calm, provide a solution quickly and respond to the changes occurred at the site based on their understanding of the industry and years of experience. With the help of a seasoned veteran, it could save valuable time for the film crew and ensure the shooting goes as planned.

Second, find a way to communicate with the director of photography (DP). The communication between the director and the cinematographer is essential in filmmaking because the latter is responsible for transforming the creative vision of the former into pictures. However, talking with the DP could be a challenge for those directors who suffer from social phobia. Directors can use music, drawings, photography works, film clips and other art forms to express their creativity and emotions. And these media can serve as a non-verbal way of communication, helping the cinematographer understand the artistic expression of the director.

　　A photo of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

Third, break down the storyline to the actors and actresses before reminding them about the takes. Directors have to not only convey their understanding of the roles and storyline, but also guide the actors and actresses to transform such understanding into their acting. When communicating with the actors and actresses, directors need to give priority to theatrical expression and ensure the actors and actresses have greater room for acting, and then provide specific guidance on the camera language based on the shooting requirements. This communication strategy helps improve the quality of the production and makes full use of the personal characteristics and creativity of the actors and actresses.

　　A photo of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

Fourth, be cautious about your language and attitude. In the business of film production, a film crew comes from different backgrounds and has different professional skills and creation concepts, so the director has to pay more attention to their language and attitude when communicating with them. Be it an actor, photographer, or other people, the director should treat everyone in the shooting crew with respectful language and attitude.

After that, Deng Lu shared her insight on various film subjects, including long take, women-focused film, use of color and unique symbol of cinema. She also discussed with the audience about interpersonal relationship and the relationship between literature and art, conveying her viewpoint of “there is no cinema without safety”.

When filming a long take, every detail, including blocking, camera movement and light placement, has to be coordinated precisely. The shooting of the scene could fail even though a minor error occurs when the director conveys the information to the crew. The second problem of filing a long take is unpredictable weather variations. The overcast scene in the script is in opposition to the reality -- blue sky and white clouds, which has implications on creation of atmosphere and light processing. Moreover, the shooting could also be compromised by a sudden snowfall. Faced with these situations, the director and the shooting crew must improvise and coordinate according to the actual situation, which requires high-level professional literacy and creativity of the crew.

　　A Dialogue Scene in Hero

Director Joan Chen filmed a scene without dialogue for the movie Hero, and she chose a Steadicam for the shooting after discussion. The extreme emotions and change of countenance of actors are often unpredictable, and a Steadicam system used in a narrow space allows a photographer to change camera angle and zoom in/out more flexibly in order to better capture the interactions and emotional exchange between actors. On the other hand, actors are empowered to have greater acting freedom and better performance by the right choice of photographic equipment. 

　　The PowerPoint File of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

If a director wants to film a long take, a more efficient way to communicate and make preparations is to draw the specific information and key frames of the long take out. The creativity and intention of the director can be conveyed more directly by painting the camera movement, blocking and key moments of affective fluctuation. The more complicated a take is, the more straightforward directors must be in communication. It can help everyone in the film crew know his/her duties by drawing out the key frames.

　　The Women-Focused Films of All Time

It’s very sensitive when speaking of women-focused film because people tend to get worked up for this topic. But I would like to talk about film itself instead of sexism. There is a difference between women-focused film and women-directed film. Actually many excellent women-focused film are directed by men, and they present a shocking perspective and viewpoint, such as the following ones. These male directors went beyond their gender perspective to build a comprehensive and multi-dimensional world from the macro perspective. Female perspective should be a supplementary part when directors build a world in their films. I believe that if viewers like to see a women-focused film many times, they are attracted to the storyline of the film rather than the director’s gender because the movie tells a wonderful story of feminine subject.

　　Color Psychology Often Used in Photography

Color in photography is affected by many factors. For example, the overall tone of a picture is under the influence of variance of color temperature. The colors presented in a picture can also be influenced by camera placement, choice of lens and filters. The staff of other departments in a film crew might be used to match color based on color cards, such as costume designers and production designers. However, the colors they have selected might differ from their expectation due to the aforesaid factors when they are filmed by a camera. This requires sufficient testing and communication before shooting in order to achieve a good coordination among various departments and ensure the colors presented in the film can reflect the intention of the director's creativity.

Wes Anderson is one of my favorite directors because he has a strong filmmaking style -- bright in color, symmetrical shot, editing with a rhythmic beat and well-designed takes. His films would still boast of such style no matter who the cinematographer is, and these are director’s personal traits. Hirokazu Koreeda is another stylized director as you can always experience female subtlety and sensitivity in his films. He is known to shoot soft-toned and comely films presenting small but meaningful moments, and Umimachi Diary is a typical case of this style.

　　Sharing the Meaningful Single Frames in Umimachi Diary

I had a mental breakdown due to work stress and taking hormone medication. I put on a lot of weight, which forced me to reflect on my image and go on a diet. But my partner said to me, “I think there is nothing wrong with you being chubby, and you are so sexy when you are at work.” I thought he was just cuddling me, but when I checked my work photos before, I did find myself in a great physical shape. (a laugh from all present)

I finally realized that the beauty of a woman, regardless of outer beauty or inner beauty, is brought out when she works earnestly without noticing and other people would observe it unconsciously when I reflected on myself again. And this applies to film, too. Sometimes male directors make the women in their films more experienced and layered than their female counterparts because they analyze women and highlight their personality traits in their films as observers. A filmmaker, regardless of gender, should try hard to learn and appreciate the diversity and uniqueness of the two sexes. Only in this way can they break the stereotype and shoot more realistic and powerful films.

　　A photo of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

If you want to make an unforgettable film, you need to develop an exclusive symbol for this movie, which could be a memorable scene, a take, a one-second moment or a single frame. For example, the take of the character looking back in Black Swan not only makes it a symbolic scene of the film, but also transforms into an emotionally resonant trigger for the viewers. This is called the hypnosis of cinematography. You would remember the film whenever you see the composition and scene, and you feel it pulls at your heartstring.

　　The Iconic Scene of the Film

Spenser is a film co-created by a male director and a female cinematographer. There is a take in the movie where little K gets out of the car, and the camera pans slowly to the hill where a scarecrow is shown. The character took the clothes from the scarecrow and walked far away. As we are both female cinematographers, I share the same sensitivity with her, which comes from the same attention to detail and an in-depth understanding of emotion. Female filmmakers focus on capturing the subtle emotional change between characters or highlighting emotional tension in the story with specific composition and light placement. This sensitivity usually makes their films have a unique beauty and emotional depth.

　　The Film Spenser

I think you might have seen these two photos as they are very famous. I have marked their shooting time particularly. One was shot in 1859, the other 1945, almost a century later. The latter is remarkably similar to the former in terms of style, composition, subject, etc. Is it a tribute or a clone? There is always a similarity between two artworks with the same subject, so you should not worry about being called a copycat. It is most common to use classical symbols and styles in history for reference and study them for your work. The most important thing is to ensure your story and emotion are told and expressed exactly, and, in so doing, your own style is gradually pieced together.

　　A Photo of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

For example, I was inspired by Love Letter for the color system and light placement for the second half of my film One Week Friends. However I didn’t want to fill my film with the aesthetic style and emotional atmosphere of Love Letter because I still wanted to present my own unique cinematographer style. You can find the camera work of dual focal length used on the goldfish and characters in the fourth picture in order to highlight the depth and layers of the picture. This is my cinematographer style.

　　A Still from One Week Friends

Last but not least, I hope you can appreciate the fact that no cinema is worthy of losing your life.

When I had my further education at Beijing Film Academy, I shot my classmate’s graduation film, and I filmed a take that I dared to do only once in my life. After I sat on the chair, the crane shook and I almost fell from it together with the camera. Such accidents happened a million times at various shooting sites, and a film crew should be held accountable for the safety of each of its members. We should always stay vigilant and take all necessary precautions to ensure the staff can work in a safe shooting site. You need to remember safety always comes first. There is no cinema without safety.

　　Work Photo of Deng Lu

Attendee 1: Do you think Steadicam will be replaced by Ronin in the future? A growing number of people might use Ronin instead of Steadicam because of the former’s low cost.

　　The Q&A Section of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

Deng Lu: As for the cost of equipment, actually Steadicam is more affordable than Ronin because you have to take into account the overall cost. I worked with Yang Rui on a project that was a film screened in art museums and used for a world exhibition circuit. Do you know how many people there were on the film crew? It’s just me, the director and a focus puller.

Attendee 2: As a renowned female cinematographer in the industry, do you have any preference on women-focused film?

　　The Q&A Section of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography

Deng Lu: That’s a very good question. First of all, I would judge if the story is interesting rather than thinking about if I want to shoot a women-focused film. Many female directors only make women-focused films, and after you make such a film, you are most likely to be labeled as a filmmaker who can only shoot women-focused films. Some production or streaming companies often make such a complaint, “We are not shooting a women-focused film, and we are not making a brisk and fresh movie, so why should we get a female director or a female cinematographer?” That’s really bad for us.

We could find the cause from the production side if we want to break the routine in the film industry. Cinema embraces a broad view because it’s not just about the two sexes. We as filmmakers should be more diversified when doing our work, and we should try to shoot movies with all kinds of novel subjects; we should try something that female directors and female cinematographers never do in the traditional view of filmmakers.

I wrote several stories during the pandemic. I highly recommend you make more short videos because they are the “films” you can shoot anywhere, anytime. It is a film if we shoot what our heart wants to say no matter if it is a one-minute footage or a one-hour motion picture.

　　A Group Photo of Deng Lu Workshop & Masterclass on Cinematography