Lighting: What We See (or Not)

     In this post, I will be discussing how lighting is one of the most important mise-en-scene elements in our (me and my partner’s) opening and how exactly we plan to use/interpret it in our opening. As many people already know, lighting isn’t just used to light up a scene or just make something visible, it can be used to tell a story on its own and also set the mood for a certain scene that might be very important to the film. In our case, we plan to use lighting to convey a sense of ambiguity and tension along with a few other things. Here’s how: 

    First of all, the film is going to take place in the evening where it suggests secrecy while creating an overall environment where things are hidden. Although this choice might sound obvious for a film like ours, it is essential that we use low levels of environmental lighting in our film as our plot centers around a secret drug dealing that ends with a twist. If this were to be set during the day, there would be a much harder time conveying the tone for this situation and audiences would possibly not understand understand the events or even relate to anything if they were in a similar situation in the past before.    Overall, we want to show to audiences that with us filming in the evening, we want to show that our two main characters are operating in an secret environment where their actions are high stakes and so that the dealer can even use this darkness to his advantage by keeping the kidnapping of the buyer discreet. 

    Tying in to what we have already planned, we plan to use low key lighting which emphasizes strong contrasts between light and shadow. This method of lighting is often used in crime and thriller films (our film is centered toward an action/crime mix) as it visually represents danger and internal conflict. We would like to show how shadows can partially obscure the character’s faces (especially the dealer’s face) as it can represent how the characters’ actions aren’t fully transparent about their intentions.

    With it already being dark outside, we would also like to utilize any practical and already installed sources of lights such as streetlights or any kind of light that has a practical use in daily life. This allows for a clear perception of danger as it is often portrayed in many different films that danger happens in the dark where no one sees. The same even applies for real life as well. Here are a couple of pictures of what I am thinking about lighting wise: 

    Lighting can also be used to create power dynamics within  a film. For example (in the context of our film): The dealer can be shown to have slightly more light to symbolize that he has more power over the situation, especially when he kidnaps the buyer. The opposite applies to the buyer as well, the buyer’s face can be slightly more shadowed than the dealer especially in order to convey a sense of vulnerability and uncertainty. All of these actions in turn, can lead to tensions rising especially when the deal is actively being done and when audiences are expecting something sudden to happen or not. Two big examples of films that I found that use lighting to create tension along with ambiguity through their use of darkness and selective lighting are Nightcrawler (2014) and Drive (2011). 

    Overall, the lighting that we plan to use in our film will visually communicate secrecy, danger, and shifting power dynamics. The lighting would make for a great cinematic experience especially when done right as it can make a huge difference when it comes to the overall environment of the scene.