Jessy Namiki reflections on Lighting

My production role for Swindle was the gaffer (Lighting Technician) and continuity. When in charge of Lighting in various scenes were Swindle had to film at night or in dark places for e.g. corridor and other dark places. I didn’t anticipate on the lack of lights around the hostel since there was no street or head lamps around the area. This meant I had to use a torch to help me look where I was going and being extra careful on planting the flolight exactly where I wanted it to be. The weather throughout whilst using the lights at night was quite challenging since it was cold and windy, this meant I had to plan ahead of schedule and adapt well to these conditions where I wore warm clothing, I also communicated well with the director, producer, cameraman and soundman this lead to all of us being fully satisfied with what we filmed and building a greater bound with each other. Others aspects that occurred whilst filming meant that me and the cameraman had to communicate really well especially whilst filming in the dark to get the best quality shots which we were both fully satisfied with but if this wasn’t the case then we’d adjust the lighting and re-shoot the scene. Various problems that occurred whilst I was using the Lighting were the weather and health & safety concerns. The weather was an issue because it would have been impossible for to protect the lights, if it were to start pouring down with rain I wouldn’t have been able to protect it. Another issue would have been the health & safety due to exposing wires lying around. In one script due the EXT I didn’t get the chance to use the aril lights since it wasn’t dark enough to take effect whereas it was quite bright when we reached our destination. Even whilst trying to keep time with our production schedule I’d build myself some extra time to set up and make sure the stool is screwed on properly same with flolight as well to avoid any accidents from happening. Due to the short staff my other role was Continuity this was quite challenging since I had to always keep a photo image of how the scene looked and making sure everything was in the right place. If this was not taken seriously into consideration, whilst editing we would of witnessed an obvious mistake were our character could be misplaced, wearing something different from the previous scene or just something bait and obvious which wouldn’t make our film reaching a professional standard. Overall I found it an enthralling experience because I improved my communication skills with my colleagues; I also became more independent and well prepared for various situations. Staying on task with the production schedule went smooth for the reason that I was prepared and determined for the task ahead. In addition I enjoyed the whole experience and I would definitely go again if I had the chance, yet the weather did let us down a bit. Since the weather wasn’t on our side I would next time bring an umbrella and water proof protection to help protect my equipment.