This is a character driven film -- three figures moving through a landscape to their own end and a seen-it-all policeman who offers doubt rather than solace.
The look of the ‘hero car’ will set the palate for costuming and ripple out to the other characters.
There should be a strong sense of place -- contrasting open landscape with the confinement of the car, the cold interrogation room and Kate’s home.
All shots and sequences should have their own kind of beauty but as the film evolves, it should become more memorable -- a very subtle shift to an alternate reality where sound is hyper-real, colours altered, details amplified, and movement heightened.
As the film begins, the look and feel is loose, light and warm with the camera moves and framing smooth and encompassing.
Danger arrives handheld with rougher framing and a stark, darker edge that is increasingly pronounced as we near the journey’s end.
Quick shots – like a nudge, eyes locking, or a hand as it moves cautiously to the door handle – will help build the pace and tension of the story.
We’ll shoot against action wherever possible to augment the sense of speed and make use of a lot of close-ups as that is the DNA of suspense.
The end of the road for Kate is the clearing.
Stepping outside the car should feel expansive for a few beats before returning to an even stronger tension in the photography –- handheld operating intimate and raw as we approach the climax.
As for shooting characters in a car… it has to play cinematically with lots of angles that will help convey a sense of time passing.
I’ve been watching a lot of road movies and have listed twenty-nine potential shots from which to build my sequences.
At times, the car will be towed and we’ll shoot using such mechanics as mounted hostess trays to tracking shots from the tow rig to handheld. We’ll be filming smart.
The big challenge is to be adaptable and organic because two–thirds of the film is day exterior based – including traveling in the car -- and that means making the on-the-day conditions, assets, and building from there.
How to proceed under the varying day exterior possibilities will be completely discussed in advance with the DOP so that we can implement on the day.
Bright and sunny, we’ll augment that and play off the contrast and juxtaposition of light and shadow; overcast and dark, we go for atmospheric with a slight contrast, moody feeling.
After all, winter is wet and dark in Vancouver.
This is my preference.
In the interrogation scene between Kate and Anderchuk, the focus is the two characters’ confrontation.
It’s Kate against the machine -- a solitary figure in a spare intimidating space.
The look is cold -- a hard source light from the side that creates deep shadows.
Lots of tension in the photography such as characters riding opposing edges of an extreme wide frame, or a circling camera when seated across from each other, or the background visible in wide shots of a lonely figure waiting etc.
This material should feel and look distinct from the kidnapping and car sequences.
Even though it’s empty and dark, Kate’s home at night should be a refuge.
Warm incandescent light, personal objects and a bathroom big enough to shoot in -- everything should be ordinary until Moustache rips open the shower curtain.
We’ll do a plate shot of the bathroom outside the shower and shoot Moustache’s medium shot against a portable green screen so we have the option of dissolving him into the clearing.
Sound is the fourth dimension to Joy Ride.
In a sense, I’m shooting for the film score and the subtle, simple and organic sounds of silence.
The intent is to use distinct tones that are repeated patterns and spare music as dialogue while the threesome drive toward their fate and as Kate waits in the interrogation room.
We’ll use foley to sweeten the production sound and make it precise.
For example, the ‘hero car’ lighter POPPING – heighten but very natural-sounding so that the audience’s mind knows what’s going on without necessarily having to see it.
Having Mozart’s Queen of the Night aria an aural focal point is meant to ratch up the sensation of altered reality.
I’ve made contact with a rising, young Vancouver based soprano – Melody Mecredi – who is presently understudying the Queen of the Night role in the upcoming Vancouver Opera production of The Magic Flute.
As well, Chris Ainscough, the accomplished composer who scored my documentary mini-series on ‘Light’ will help finesse the film’s tone and rhythm.
Interested parties should contact Michaelin McDermott at Bedazzled Pics.
