October 4, 2006
For writer/directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, former commercial helmers making their feature debut, the idea for Crank stemmed from their desire to make a nonstop action movie, "a movie that was just like a video game," says Neveldine.
Crank takes place over the course of one frenzied day in Los Angeles, where Chev Chelios (Jason Statham), a hit man who is trying to give up the business to lead a normal life with his oblivious girlfriend, Eve (Amy Smart), wakes up to find that he has been poisoned with a drug that will kill him if his heartbeat slows below a certain level.
Says writer/director Taylor, "With Crank, we wanted to do a movie where a guy was moving, moving, moving all the time. It's like Speed, only instead of a bus, it's a guy. And if he slows down, he detonates. It gave us a built-in way to move the camera the way we like to move it and to attack the world of the character the way we wanted to attack his world."
The task of acquiring the production hardware that would allow Neveldine and Taylor to attack Crank's world in the manner they had envisioned while writing its script was overseen by Director of Photography Adam Biddle and Digital Imaging Technician Nick Theodorakis.
Theodorakis immediately understood that Neveldine and Taylor chose to use HD for its own merits, not simply as a cheaper alternative to film. "I was brought on board as a quality control, to make sure that the look of the film passed a certain measure of acceptable quality standards that most movies go for," recalls Theodorakis. "I realized the directors' look is one that totally fits not just their style but the script for this frenetic film, and it fit perfectly. Their look is frenzied and incredibly dynamic. There's a lot of movement, but it goes beyond that. And it goes into the actual quality of the video that they're shooting."
Theodorakis adds, "Neveldine and Taylor are big video fanatics, which is sort of refreshing because most of the time when I shoot high definition with people, they're shooting HD maybe because they can't afford film or they view it as something that should just look like film. However, here are two young guys who actually grew up on video and look at it as an art form in itself, which is great because we could develop a look that is not quite film and not quite traditional video or HD. It's something that is just quintessential Crank, a 'Neveldine-Taylor look.'"
Taylor states, "I think when people see this movie, they're going to see something that looks different from anything they've ever seen. And that was our goal." He adds, "If we're going to embrace this new technology and go through all the learning curves of working with it, let's get something out of it and try to break new ground."
TESTING CAMERAS
"Our directors wanted a very sharp, high-detail look for this picture that would never stop moving," says Biddle. "The first thing we did was test cameras. We put the Sony F950, Sony F900 and a Panasonic VariCam into worst-case scenario mode: middle of the day, natural light, very high contrast, with just a handheld bounce board. Then we tried a car interior, going around the block to constantly mix up the direction of the sun."
Biddle and team filmed the test footage out at LaserPacific, finding that the Sony F950 gave them the look they wanted. The directors ultimately shot Crank with several Sony HDC-F950 cameras and a modified F950 T-cam on Sony HDCAM SR tape.
Digital Imaging Technician Nick Theodorakis had put together a wish list of equipment that would allow the directors to do the wildest practical camera stunts they could imagine. And they could imagine some pretty wild things. The technology that facilitated such an unorthodox approach to filmmaking was supplied by Sony, Pace Technologies, inventor Vince Pace and Band Pro. Pace Technologies' newest camera system is the Advantage, a modified Sony HDC-F950. Pace streamlined the camera and enhanced it with a fiber optic interface and motor control system. "Instead of bulky add-ons and a wrist-thick engineering umbilical, we have a pencil-thin fiber optic bridge that handles all the signal integrity needed for a 4:4:4 image," explains Vince Pace.
Theodorakis says, "Vince Pace called me and told me he was going to give me everything I wanted and more. Not only did we get to use the Advantage camera, Vince was one of the first people in the world to purchase the new fiber optic adapters for the SRW-1 decks, which were supplied by Band Pro. These adapters made the system so easy to use because now everything was optical."
In the Advantage system, one fiber optic cable connects the Advantage to the F950 and another fiber cable connects to Sony's SRW-1 field recorder. "This setup was highly reliable over the long run and ensured that we were always getting the cleanest, most direct signal, as the fiber cable went directly from the camera to the deck with no camera control unit in between," adds Theodorakis.
"When I saw the Advantage camera, I was immediately struck by how it resembles a film camera in appearance," says Biddle. "The body is uncluttered, with very few switches to inadvertently interfere with. It also balances very nicely in handheld mode. With regard to remote focus, when doing long periods handheld, it really helps to have as little 'draped' off the camera as possible. The Advantage interfaced quite well with the Preston."
To complement the Advantage and give Biddle the sharpest image possible, "Vince bought a set of Zeiss DigiPrimes and the DigiZoom from Band Pro," he says. "They were exactly what we needed.
"Once we screened the first day of tests, I immediately noticed how good the Zeiss lenses looked in comparison to a basic ENG-style zoom and, indeed, 'a competitor's' primes. Sharpness and color rendition were superb. The wide angles looked great, without the ugly keystone effect I had previously encountered with other brands of lenses. It was a simple decision. The Zeiss DigiPrimes were to be our basic set of glass. We carried a full set right up to the 70mm, and also the 6-24mm zoom."
Mobility
Before production began, Digital Imaging Technician Nick Theodorakis met with Pace and crew. "The nature of the movie required that we be very mobile in our approach, as we had numerous car chase sequences, very small interiors and a fight scene in a helicopter while flying.
In order to get the most mobility possible from Sony's F950 cameras, Theodorakis collaborated with Pace Technologies to construct what has been termed the Nano or Nanocam. Nanocam is essentially a backpack rig that contains all the elements necessary for one person to power and operate a modular F950 and record the resultant video. The F950 is described as modular because the unit's optical block (the T-cam) is separated from the camera body/DSP processing system. With this configuration, a camera operator holds the F950's optical block with DigiPrime lens and image plate, while the camera body, SRW-1 deck and battery pack contained in the backpack rig are located nearby. The camera head, body and deck are connected by two lightweight fiber optic cables.
The Nanocam rig facilitated several different shooting configurations on Crank. In one instance-the Rollercam configuration-Neveldine carried the setup on his back and held the F950's optical block in his hands to capture action while on roller blades. The Nano rig was also crucial in overcoming the challenge of limited space in the action vehicles employed in the film's numerous car action sequences. In one instance, placing the Nanocam in the action vehicle's trunk allowed room for an additional person. In another instance, the action car was actually cut in half to increase its top speed. Without a condensed and streamlined camera, capturing these shots would have been impossible.
One of the most unusual aspects of this project was that, in reality, Biddle didn't really have "operators" working. "At the beginning of the show, the producers and directors met with Local 600 and were granted permission to operate mostly on the grounds of Rollercam footage they had previously shot on commercials," Biddle says. "The Rollercam aspect was really the most dramatic and technically challenging of the movie."
"Rollercam was operated by one of the co-directors [Mark Neveldine] and involved using the 950 in T-cam mode. Mark absolutely could not be tethered or restricted by any cables when blading at speeds up to 30 mph, so Nick and Vince devised a body pack that Mark would wear, holding the 950 block, deck and power sources. The footage we obtained from this setup is unique and could never have happened without Vince's willingness to go for it with his precious, brand-new 950 equipment, let alone the new Zeiss DigiPrimes."
When operating in Nano mode, the part of the camera the operator holds, the T-cam, is contained in a unit similar in size to a Bolex camera or an ARRI S. While the package is about the size of a consumer video camera, it retains the capacity to photograph 4:4:4 HD imagery. The configuration allows more creative camera shooting angles and the freedom to place the imaging assembly in areas where a full-size camera would be restricted.
Biddle notes that using the Nano "enabled us to do moves passing from exterior to interior without the fear of snagging cables on props or extras as we traveled. Once we got over the initial teething problems of this rig, we used it on many sequences that we could not have covered the same way without it.
"We had a great deal of car work to do, and the directors wanted a more 'organic' feel than was obtainable with a process trailer. Consequently, the actors actually drove action vehicles, and the Nano rig was rigged in the trunk in order to leave room for an extra person. My key grip, Loren Corl, built a brilliant rig in the trunk to hold the Nano that ingeniously cushioned it from the bumps of high-speed driving.
"Yet more driving sequences were filmed on something called the 'go mobile.' This basically consisted of the action vehicle, cut in half and the front discarded, while the rear is joined to two wheels and an engine, forming one hell of a fast vehicle. Again, space was very limited, and without the ability to condense the camera package down to the Nano rigs, we could never have shot this the way we did."
The Roller Dolly
Once Biddle began production, he found that the 7mm DigiPrime lens worked best for roller dolly sequences. "Occasionally we used the 5mm or the 10mm," he adds. "Focus was always via wireless remote, and these lenses are beautifully scaled, making focus pulling much easier. Some lens manufacturers tend to make the barrel markings too close together, requiring a more exact turn of the focus knob. This is fine for conventional work, but when your AC has to run alongside you full speed, a little longer lens travel is not such a bad thing.
"This also goes for iris pulls," he adds. "I always prefer to do them myself-and on some sequences I was doing five-stop pulls. Again, the Zeiss lenses are scaled in a way that provides more 'travel' on the iris controller, so you get way more feel for what you are doing. This way, the exposure change is very smooth and essentially unnoticeable. Without this facility, I really would have been compromising what the directors wanted to achieve-something I never want to do."
Biddle trusted that no matter where he moved, the Zeiss lenses would be in focus and on the mark. "That made us really push the envelope of movement," he adds. "Although we were tethered to 'the mother ship,' as we nicknamed Nick's base, the tethers Vince's cameras use are much smaller-width cable, not only giving us a physical edge but a psychological one as well. Less to haul, easier to move.
"These cables are far less obtrusive on sets and on location, and they are available in much longer lengths than the standard fiber optic cable with the F950. That helped speed things up, because it was a lot quicker to run more cable than constantly repositioning the mother ship," says the cinematographer. "However, I still was able to sit next to Nick and manipulate some aspects of the image [color correction, sharpness, black stretch, shutter angles] remotely."
Producer Richard Wright notes, "The main advantage is that you actually have, in effect, your laboratory on the set. Our DIT is able to adjust the aperture, the brightness, color, crispness-15 different axes of adjustment to the image on the fly. So you can start indoors in one light level, walk outdoors into completely different light and adjust it as you go. It makes lighting much faster and makes possible shots that otherwise would have been impossible, or at least very difficult. It also gives us the ability to see instantly that we've gotten a shot."
At first, Biddle wanted to shoot with DigiPrime lenses only. As he progressed, however, he started to use the Zeiss 6-24mm DigiZoom. "I was amazed at how good this looked. It really was a true match to the DigiPrimes, and being only nominally larger and heavier than the Primes, we could still use it for handheld work.
"My personal favorite lens, though, was the 70mm DigiPrime. Its sharpness and lack of depth [wide open] is unmatched, and it truly is a thrill to see the results.
"Crank was a high-energy, never-stop moving picture that required specialized camera equipment. When we put the Advantage and the Zeiss DigiPrimes and DigiZoom together, I knew we could keep up with the story without losing what our directors wanted."
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