Discussing his role as Marvel's The Avengers director of photography, Oscar-nominated cinematographer Seamus McGarvey speaks with with ARRI Group about filming the climatic sequence, the usual aspect ratio, and 3D conversion among other specifics. He also dots on his learning experience with director Joss Whedon.
"Joss and I were keen on having a very visceral and naturalistic quality to the image," says McGarvey. "We wanted this to feel immersive and did not want a 'comic book look' that might distance an audience with the engagement of the film. We moved the camera a lot on Steadicam, cranes and on dollies to create kinetic images; and we chose angles that were dramatic, like low angles for heroic imagery."
"I was quite excited by the prospect of doing a film that would expand my horizons in terms of learning about visual effects on such a grand scale. I knew I would be employing a different cinematographic approach to a film like this. I had never tried to shoot or test a digital camera before, so for me it was a leap into the dark. We shot under candlelight, bracketing the exposures. bIt was incredible how far we could go with the ALEXA [camera system] before the image would start to break up."
"Shooting [with an 1.85:1 aspect ratio] is kind of unusual for an epic film like this, but we needed the height in the screen to be able to frame in all the characters like Hulk, Captain America and Black Widow, who is much smaller. We had to give them all precedence and width within the frame. Also, Joss knew the final battle sequence was going to be this extravaganza in Manhattan, so the height and vertical scale of the buildings was going to be really important."
For the full chat with Seamus McGarvey, where he discusses the specs of shooting most of The Avengers climatic sequences indoors, color timing, and using the ARRI ALEXA camera system, head on over to ARRI Group.
In a separate interview with ARRI Group, Marvel's The Avengers co-visual effects supervisor Jake Morrison elaborated on being tasked to manage the second unit as well filming aerial shots and background plates. Discussing managing the multiple characters' specific needs regarding blue or greenscreen, Morrison says...
"Black Widow has red hair, Thor is blonde, Captain America's costume is not far from chroma blue - there were a variety of different requirements," says Morrison. "We worked out for every scene whether it would be green or bluescreen and took the lesser of two evils as to what we would shoot with. I'm a big fan of Joss Whedon, going back to BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER; he's an excellent director so I was excited to be working with him"
Revealing that his team shot aerial footage for over days for use as background plates, specifically for the Manhattan scenes, Morrison says, "My focus is to get as much aerial work in as possible for the audience to see the big expanses, the wide establishing shots, while also making sure that the effects work doesn't look too computer generated. We're getting much better at making entirely computer-generated environments, but there is no substitute for starting with a real image and adding what you need."
"The night footage is where I became really impressed with the ALEXA [camera system]. I'm very familiar with film stocks and you know what you can get away with at night, but ALEXA loves the night. With a good DIT set up, you can get a very rich digital 'negative' with lots of information to work with in post, but still have dailies that look really good - sharp, contrasty and punchy."
Marvel Studios presents in association with Paramount Pictures “Marvel’s The Avengers”--the super hero team up of a lifetime, featuring iconic Marvel super heroes Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye and Black Widow. When an unexpected enemy emerges that threatens global safety and security, Nick Fury, Director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. Spanning the globe, a daring recruitment effort begins.
Starring Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson, & directed by Joss Whedon from a screenplay by Joss Whedon, “Marvel’s The Avengers” is based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series “The Avengers,” first published in 1963 and a comics institution ever since. Prepare yourself for an exciting event movie, packed with action and spectacular special effects, when “Marvel’s The Avengers” assemble on May 4, 2012. The film is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. In addition to "Marvel's The Avengers," Marvel Studios will release a slate of films based on the Marvel characters including "Iron Man 3" on May 3, 2013!; and “Thor 2” on November 15, 2013.