Here is a short video inspired by Alfred Hitchcock and Bernard Herrmann. I was dissatisfied with the first edit of Shadow Glance last year so have re-done it. This is a mixture of old 5D Mark II 30p footage and Panasonic GH1 24p footage and I like the re-edit much more now.
Lately I have been listening to some classic sound tracks which hold universal appeal. I think modern music is just so subjective that I am leaning back on the older cinematic style of music to give my footage a certain mood.
Bernard Herrmann’s music really lights up the footage but at the same time it feels as natural as breathing. Like a start black and white picture his music has great contrast in it. For this I used The Forest from the Vertigo sound track.
I do still like small parts of how rock or indie music fits with the image – in the Joy Division song on my old Shadowplay video I liked that the shimmering reflections in the water could almost be vibrating to the bass.
Cinematic music goes up and down in feel – playing with your perceptions and mood. Bernard Herrmann’s music goes from relaxed ambience and whimsical grace to shimmering tension and suspense before bubbling up into a dramatic confrontation with the audience – pulling them into the scenes all the time. This track in particular is like breathing in and out whilst watching a murder occur or a mystery unfold, and your breathing getting shallower and shallower as the tension rises.
The footage was shot with the Panasonic GH1 (an older model without the hack for high bitrates) and the 5D Mark II was used before the 24p firmware update. I’ve rendered the whole thing out to 30p XDCAM (35Mbps) from H.264 but the GH1’s footage was all shot in 24p mode. Can you tell the difference between the cameras and the frame rates?
ISO was mostly set to 1600 and it holds up quite well for most shots on both cameras. The shooting star and the clock tower were shot on the GH1 in 720p mode at a slow shutter speed (around 1/2) and ISO 1600. You can set slow shutter speeds in video mode on the GH1 but only with 720p and manual-focus enabled.
I hope you enjoy my Manchester Noir, if you don’t, do feel free to let me know but tell me why…and don’t forget to seek out more of Bernard Herrmann‘s music and more about the man himself. Also a big thanks to my actress friend Maria Marino!
