The cinematographers behind the winning films at this year’s WPPI 16×20 competition—and the judges who awarded them first place—discuss why their storytelling methods work.
Kingdom of the Ice Bear
By Abraham Joffe
First Place in Commercial/Illustrative Filmmaking
Australian director and filmmaker Abraham Joffe used to shoot wedding films earlier in his career, but he’s spent the last several years traveling the globe and turning his lens to wildlife and conservation issues. His first-place award in the Filmmaking Division’s Commercial/Illustrative category at WPPI 2017, Kingdom of the Ice Bear, was created on commission by Joshua Holko, the leader of an arctic wildlife photography travel expedition, to “document what it’s like to be in the company of [polar bears], these huge, amazing animals,” Joffe says. “We wanted to celebrate that the arctic offers photographic and visual opportunities, and encourage people to go up and visit these extreme locations—especially now that they’re under such a real threat.”
Joffe, who typically works with a crew of three or four, was the lone videographer on this assignment. “This is the first trip where I had to do all the drone work by myself,” he says, “and it’s a real challenge flying one in the arctic.” The fast-draining battery life was one of the more challenging and important obstacles to overcome, he says, and to keep the batteries alive longer in cold conditions, Joffe wrapped them in hand warmers. “The drone is really what enabled me to get amazing visuals—especially those shots where the ship is pushing through the ice.”
The film was shot in 4K and edited in Adobe Premier Pro. “I always edit with the RAW and 4K files,” Joffe says. “We master 4K, grade in 4K and stay in 4K throughout the whole post-production process.” Sometimes he’ll bring in a colorist, and, for Kingdom of the Ice Bear, he used an external sound designer to help layer in the atmospheric noises and ensure the narration was crisp and clear.
Overall, Joffe credits his passion for helping transform the final piece into an award-winning film. “Good storytelling starts by being curious,” he says. “Especially if you’re working on documentaries.” He also won second place in the Commercial/Illustrative category for Tales by Light Season 2 Extended Trailer, a teaser video for the second season of his National Geographic documentary series Tales by Light (season 1 is currently available on Netflix). “Wildlife is my passion, and I continue to improve my skills every year, whether that’s taking more advanced diving courses or lessons in drone operation,” he says.
When it came to submitting his films to WPPI, Joffe says the 5-minute time limit helped him curate his selection, but he was still mindful of which films would do best under the judging criteria. Creating storylines for films under 5 minutes means “you really need to communicate a strong message,” he says. “The film can’t be pure visuals—it needs a message and a story. The films I entered were strong regarding storytelling, and the strong visuals followed.”
NOTES FROM THE JUDGES:
Michael Novo
“Joffe combined shots from multiple locations and put his own spin on them. There was no narration for the first 20 seconds, but the environmental sounds let the viewer begin to understand what they’re about to see. The technical detail that stood out the most to me was the opening shot. You’re looking straight down the bow of the boat into the water and a gull enters the frame. That establishes the size of what the viewer is actually looking at. It’s so easy to just have a camera on a tripod looking straight at
the horizon.”
Nik Pekridis
“What impresses me most about this film, aside from the brilliant technical skill it took to create and the well-executed narration, are the breathtaking drone scenes showcasing the icebreaker. These shots tied with the narrative really popped and helped the film stand out from the competition.”
Catherine Hall
“This film shows excellent technical skill by capturing a challenging arctic environment, and it displays very skilled storytelling, selling this voyage without feeling like a commercial. It’s a brilliant approach of soft-selling something through a video that’s filled with profound visuals. There’s superb use of audio, ranging from the cracking sounds of the ice to the compelling interviews.”
Adrian Henson
“It does a fantastic job of selling photo tours and creating a sense of urgency—I literally felt like signing up for the tour while watching it. I feel educated, and I find it stunningly beautiful. It is hard to note the technical details because the videography never draws attention to itself. The cool colorcast supports everything within the context. I never feel let down because a scene is too short, and the film also never loses my attention by hanging with a scene too long.”
WHEN IT COMES TO DRONES…
Get qualified
Go through the training and testing required to become—for those in Australia—Civilian Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) certified. There, you’ll learn that the most important flying rules are: Don’t fly within three nautical miles of a towered airport, don’t fly above 400 feet, and don’t fly within 100 feet of people or overpopulated areas.
[Editor’s note: In the States, you can get remote pilot certification through the FAA.]
Plan ahead
Think about what shot (or shots) you want to achieve before taking off. It’s not only safer, but will also conserve battery power.
Keep it simple
Grand wides [big-vista panoramic shots of landscapes] establishing a scene or a birds-eye shot can be powerful. Fast flying or exaggerated moves don’t always mean more impact. The power of a well-framed, eye-in-the-sky shot shouldn’t be ignored!
Cameras: RED EPIC Dragon, Canon 1D C
Lenses: Canon 200-400mm f/4L, 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II, 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II
Drone: DJI Inspire 1
Audio: Sound Devices 633 Field Production Mixer, Sennheiser MKH 8060 microphone, Rycote Windshield microphone kit
Sound recording: Jen Walker
Sound design: Nylon Studio Editing: Lorna-Jean Bradley
Christi + Seth
by Blue Kite Cinema
First Place in Wedding Filmmaking
When Colin Rieser and Nick Wilson—the dynamic duo behind the cinematography company Blue Kite Cinema—first moved to Los Angeles to start their business in 2012, they met and befriended Christi and Seth. “We were camping outside at a music festival and had set up a tent next to them,” Rieser recalls. “We partied all weekend with them and hit it off with their family,” so when Christi and Seth got engaged a few years later, the Blue Kite boys were their first pick to be the official videographers for their nuptials.
The film Christi + Seth would ultimately win first place in the Filmmaking Division’s Wedding category of WPPI 2017’s Print Comp.
Having an established friendship with the couple before the wedding was a major component to the film’s success. “We knew that they love nature, love camping, love being in the trees,” Rieser says, and that helped lay the foundation for their video, giving them a guideline for what type of B-roll to capture—vignettes of the rustic venue, flower garden and the sun shining through the clouds in the sky.
The film begins with the sound of Christi reading her vows, which Rieser and Wilson asked to get a sneak preview of several days before the wedding. “Early on, she talks about how Seth pulls her back down from the clouds,” Wilson notes, “so on the rehearsal day, we got a great drone shot coming through the clouds down to the venue,” to make that visual connection in the film. It’s detailed planning like this that “made this film come together easier than most,” Wilson says.
It also helped when the couple made it known to other vendors that the wedding video was a priority. “This almost never happens,” Rieser points out. “It’s a totally different game when you can take control and pose the couple how you want. We typically mirror the photographer during the portrait session and jump in to record right after them, but for us to take those initial poses was a big help.” It wasn’t make-or-break in terms of winning the award at WPPI, “but it allowed us to get some stunning portrait shots.”
Audio was another key component. When it comes to picking a song, “it has to move me,” Rieser says. The video incorporates the dialogue from the speeches and vows throughout its 5-minute duration. “But making a good wedding film is also about testing and revising. This wedding had a lot of great dialogue, so I’d start editing the first minute and then I’d find something that worked better and start over. We always make sure we focus on what serves a film best. We’re not trying to cram as much of the day into the film as possible.”
NOTES FROM THE JUDGES:
Adrian Henson
“There is a nice mix of subtle and appropriate camera movements, clean, honest color grading, and the film conveys the fun and emotion of the wedding well. Time is condensed, I am able to get into the story, and I feel like the makers stay out of the way and let the story live through the film. The chronology is also spot-on. The epic video portrait of the couple in their venue shows us why they chose it and even gives us a glimpse into who they are as a couple. I connect with them right away and stay with their story the whole way through—exactly what any good film should do.”
Michael Novo
“One of the most impressive things about this film is that, in an era where it’s easy to go overboard with technical wizardry, the film stuck to telling the story of the day with some—but not too many—technical manipulations. The opening shot, for example: The camera doesn’t just pan down from the ceiling to reveal the bride, but it moves in on her, which opens the narrative. Later, there’s an aerial shot that zooms out and away from the couple, which tells me that the story is winding down.”
Catherine Hall
“The film is very comprehensive—from the hero drone shots to the details to the candid moments. The filmmakers knew how to masterfully document all aspects of the wedding-day experience. There’s also great integration of the speeches within the film. It was fluid, engaging and easy for the viewer to become immersed. You laugh, you get teary-eyed and you really feel the love between this couple.”
Nik Pekridis
“The film is fresh, clean and fast. It was well edited and has great color grading. Plus, it has great music which, combined with the speeches, makes for an amazing film.”
A TIP FOR…
Exposure and color-grading
We use our zebra stripes setting to make sure we aren’t clipping any of the highlights. We also constantly yell temperature settings at each other throughout the day to make sure we are consistent in terms of color quality.
Audio
Mic anything and everything, including the brides. Redundancies and constant monitoring help us get the best audio we can.
Song selection
Choosing the right song is typically a multi-hour process. Be patient, feel the emotion of your subjects and make sure the music helps drive the film.
Camera: Canon EOS C100 Mark II
Drone: DJI Phantom 4 Audio: Sennheiser EW 100-ENG G3 lavalier packs into Tascam DR-40 recorder, Countryman B6 Omnidirectional lavalier into Sony ICD-SX1000 recorder (for the bride)
Music: Licensed through Musicbed
To read this article in the digital edition, click here.
CreativeLive Video Tutorial: Drone Photography and Film Class
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