The atmosphere of sunset is different from that of sunrise; at least, it is obvious in the camera.
The light of sunrise is pale blue, giving a mysterious and quiet feeling, while the light of sunset, after a day of hustle and bustle, the air is dusty, and the scattered sunlight is orange-red, warm and earthly.
In the hands of a very particular director, perhaps the sunrise and sunset scenes cannot be shot together. However, Ronald was a true successor to Roger Corman, the successor of the master of fast shooting and a temporary director of low-budget exploitation films, so he had no such concerns at all.
Finally, it was past 4 pm, the sky began to darken, and the magic light that filmmakers love the most was about to come. The crew and actors had already returned to their seats, and the director of photography leaned over the viewfinder for a long time before finally giving the OK signal.
Ronald took a deep breath and gave the order.
"Recording?"
"It's open."
"Camera?"
"Full speed."
"Ms. Voronov?"
"I'm ready."
"'High School Life' Scene 135, First Shot, First Take!"
"Action!"
Ronald no longer gave the orders with all his might as he did in the morning but was much gentler. Perhaps his throat was tired from shouting too much, or perhaps he was a little reluctant to give up these last two shots.
Mary Woronov, who plays the headmistress, starts walking towards the camera with her head held high, followed by two followers, one fat and one thin, who are complete clowns. On both sides are two sexy beauties, Chris and Mara.
Ronald still gave them another chance to appear on camera. The two changed their clothes and dressed up as ordinary students, but their dancing and posture were still very sexy, and they stood out even in the mid-shot.
However, Mary is the one who appears in the front view, while the other two beauties are only shown from the side. When Mary passes by them, the audience's attention will be focused on Mary.
Actors attach great importance to their screen time. Only by performing well can the director and editor show leniency and keep more of your footage.
Mary Woronov is great, she seems to make the camera fall in love with her. Ronald hid behind the camera to watch her performance, and his eyes were involuntarily attracted to her. I think after the film is over, the audience in the cinema will be like him, and will look at her face for no reason.
Why is that? Maybe it's because the composition puts her in the middle? Maybe it's because she's taller? No, PJ Soules and Dey Young also enjoyed this treatment, but they seemed to lack this magic.
It should be Mary's lively expression and movements, right? They look very real, and people always react to real expressions and movements. In short, this Mary is something, Ronald thought to himself.
"Cut!"
There is only one last shot left.
"I want a panning shot, with two people walking from left to right in front of the camera, and then the camera keeps following them. Kate, played by Dey Young, is a little unhappy after being punished with detention, and Riff, played by PJ, keeps comforting her, making faces, playing music, and skipping all the way forward. Keep following them, walking past the tree, and moving forward until I call stop."
Having understood Roger Corman's secrets, Ronald gave specific instructions right away.
The camera is pointed at PJ Soles and Dey Young on the grass. At the beginning of the shot, the two stand in the east, the sun shines on their faces, and they look youthful and lively. Then the two slowly walk to the west, the setting sun shines on them obliquely, outlining the golden outline, which is inexplicably a bit sad. It just fits Kate's mood change after hearing the punishment. If the direction is changed, the two people are backlit in the close-up at the beginning, and they are in direct light when they walk away, which is inconsistent with the mood of the whole scene.
Ronald was a little proud. It seemed that I knew a little about the use of light, which was the basis for him to be a portrait photographer. As the two actors gradually walked away, Ronald felt a little sad. His days as a temporary director were coming to an end.
"Cut!"
Director of photography Dean Cundey indicated that all the shots had been taken, and Ronald picked up the bullhorn:
"Everyone, I announce that today's scene has been filmed."
After a pause, Ronald resumed his assistant's tone and began to announce the shooting schedule for next week:
"We're done for now, and we'll have a day off tomorrow. The call-up time the day after tomorrow is 07:00 a.m., and the group gathering time is 08:00 a.m. The location is Mount Carmel High School, 7011 South Hoover Street. The map is attached to the notice for the day after tomorrow, and those who are going there for the first time can familiarize themselves with it first. The high school has been closed, so don't be surprised if you find no students or teachers when you arrive at school on Monday."
"Oh, by the way, thank you, everyone! Thank you for your cooperation today. Thank you!"
Everyone started to leave, and Ronald walked over to thank the director of photography, Dean Cundey, individually. He wanted to shake Dean's hand.
But Dean pulled him in for a hug. "Ronald, good job. Good job, kid," he said, patting him on the back.
Ronald thanked several actors individually, including the president's assistant Gail, the script supervisor Jenny, the makeup artist Gigi, and the dance director Siana, and finally it was Jim's turn.
"Hey, Jim, great job today!"
"You too, Ronnie."
The two hugged each other tightly.
"You go ahead, Ronald. I'll stay and watch the camera crew load the equipment. I'll also sign the actors' work orders."
Normally, this was a job that the first assistant director directed the crew assistants to do. Jim knew that Ronald was very excited and tired today, so he took the initiative to do these chores.
"Let's go together. It will only take about 10 minutes."
…
The two began to watch the camera crew pack up their equipment, and once they were done, the location shooting at Van Nuys High School was officially over.
"Where's Ronald?"
Roger Corman's voice came from the school gate behind me.
"I'm here, Mr. Corman."
"Oh, good. I was worried you'd left. Help load the film into the car later."
"Yes, Mr. Corman."
Films need to be developed before they can be shown. "Rock n Roll High School" uses MGM's "Metrocolor" laboratory, which is cheaper than the "Seven Arts Color" used by big companies. In addition, in order to save money, Roger Corman does not develop samples every day like the big crews, but twice a week. Today happens to be the day for developing.
Ronald and the red-haired photography assistant moved the film into the trunk of the crew's van and said hello to the driver, Chris. Chris came back from the hospital in the afternoon and heard about Ronald's temporary directorship. He reached out from the cab and shook hands with him.
After Ronald finished moving the film, Roger Corman and driver Chris told him to follow him to the lab, and then got into his BMW. He stuck his head out of the cab and said to Ronald, "Ronald, you and Jim must come to the New World office before 10 a.m. tomorrow so we can look at the developed samples."
The sample film was originally viewed by the director, assistant director, producer, actors, director of photography, and others. The assistants were not eligible, and this was Ronald's first opportunity to watch it.
Roger Corman's BMW drove out of the school gate, accelerated and turned left onto Victory Avenue, and the van followed.
Ronald turned back toward his Volkswagen Hare and saw Jim starting up his Harley, which Ronald often joked was the "Hardly Move."
The quality of the motorcycle was questionable, and it would often break down and stop working. But Jim was very knowledgeable about mechanics, and small problems were not a problem for him.
Before getting in the car, Ronald looked back at the gate of Van Nuys High School, and his mood was just like the song played by Dancer Siana...
It's been a long day. But even the longest dream has to come to an end...