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Lighting A Long Take( True Detective example)?

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HowTheyDoThat

When you're lighting a long take---where the camera is moving----how is this accomplished?

In long takes where the camera is static or barely moves, you can pre-set lights. But how about long takes where the camera is moving?

(Disclaimer:I'm coming at this question as someone who's a complete novice to lighting)

There are recent examples such as Childern of Men , Magnolia, GoodFellas, and Secrets and Lies, and older stuff like Touch of Evil, Weekend, Paths of Glory.


Here's a recent example from youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_HuFuKiq8U

The setup is this: Matt M is running through a PJ at night with a hostage. The camera is following him thorough the entire scene from the beginning of the door break---till they get into the car.

Is the lighting all "ambient" light ? There were sections where it was dark, but I did not mind because of the action(story/acting/sound/movement).

How was this lit?

At the end, where they climb over the fence, the stedi-cam op must have had a staircase built ahead of time, so where they also light sources scattered throughout?
 
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It varies. In some cases, you'll simply use available light (including practicals).

In other cases, you'll plan very, very carefully so that lights can be positioned out of shot throughout the take - switching on and off as appropriate.

And in yet other cases - including the famous Touch of Evil opening shot - you'll move the lights with the camera. (It was, apparently, the sight of the whole camera, crane and lights apparatus moving towards him that caused the actor playing the border guard to keep fluffing his lines. In the end, Welles got him to simply mouth the words, not say them, and the dialogue was added later.)
 
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There's a lot going on in that shot. It would have been meticulously planned, and they quite possible spent two full nights shooting it - one to rehearse and another to shoot. There are a lot of cues, and a lot of behind the scenes stuff that you're not seeing. There's so much in here.

In regards to the lighting, there's a lot going on. Most of it is very creatively rigged so that you can't see the lights.
Adam Arkapaw is a great DP, and his lighting is generally naturalistic, though is also usually very augmented and adjusted from simply just 'available' light.

Even the fluros on the outside of the house look like they had their globes replaced with Kino tubes in order to get higher output and a more satisfying colour temp. Realistically, those fluros could have easily been set dressed in.
 
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great. thanks for the responses.

--didn't know that about Touch of Evil. Interesting.

--thanks for the American Hustle vid.

--- Jax Rox-- I hadn't looked up the d.p before, for some reason. He has made lots of stuff I liked (Animal Kingdom, Top of the Lake----even a short I had seen a while looking for good short examples--zombie thing with Mia Wasikowska)

Also, I was looking at some interviews he gave and you pretty much nailed it. 2 Days. Half to light it and then half +1 to shoot. Though they preplanned for a few months. Supposedly lots of lights that we're not seeing.

here's the short interview i found.

http://variety.com/2014/tv/awards/true-detective-cinematographer-adam-arkapaw-1201275544/
 
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