JACK CABBAGE

Yeah, that's right. The guy's name is Harry Box. Get it out of your system and then continue reading.

Okay, back to business. This is a book that is very good for what it is, but which may not necessarily be exactly what you're looking for. If you are indeed a set lighting technician, and you are learning or want to specialize in the technical side of lighting sets...then you have struck gold.

This book breaks down the various tools of the trade, describes the technical nuances of the equipment and principles in a digestible manner, and if you read attentively, you should walk away with a good understanding of electricity as it applies to the set, the organizational structure and chain of command involved in a shooting day, and some valuable tips that will enhance your efficiency and professionalism in this area of filmmaking.

However, a lot of people may be purchasing this book as an introductory guide to the artistic and mood-based elements of cinematography and set lighting. If this is your goal as you stock you library, then be notified that you still stand to benefit from having this book in your arsenal, but that those elements of the field are not the strong point (nor are they the intended aim) of this particular book.

There is a good (but fairly cursory) discussion on Lighting Objectives and Methods that will address these aspects of cinematography. But these are largely supplemental considerations to how you, as a set lighting technician, can better do your job as a technical professional. Nonetheless, in filmmaking, the technical cannot succeed without the artistic...and the artistic cannot succeed without the technical. So you had best verse yourself in both to some degree.

Harry Box is a... Quiet, class. Harry Box is a sound professional with good, experientially-based advice. Provided that you are purchasing this book for the appropriate reasons, it has the JC stamp of approval. You can visit his IMDB PROFILE to check his credentials for yourself.

Below is a link to the book where you can peruse the first few pages for yourself and, of course, draw your own conclusions...

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I will grant you that most of the topics we deal with here at JC relate to what happens either behind the camera or once the camera is turned off and everybody has gone home.

But when you are directing, do you not expect the actor to trim his or her movements and expressions in an extreme close-up? Do you expect them not to whip quickly all over the frame in a choker? Well, that's because either explicitly or implicitly, you want them to respect the challenges faced in the editing room with matching motion and physical pacing. There are dozens, if not hundreds, if not thousands, of tiny little things actors do that aren't necessarily related to the emotional truth of their performance or character, but rather are geared toward making the job of everyone else on the film easier. As a result, their performance is more effective.

Good, experienced actors do these things as a matter of second-nature. And at least on some level, they have an intuition or knowledge of how their work relates to what is happening on the other side of the camera.

Well, wouldn't it be nice if the same went for directors? Many, many times I have seen directors so focused on a checklist of shots and simply recording the dialogue on the page - to the point where the ability of the actor to prepare or even give a good performance is largely hindered. Just watch the latest low-budget horror being filmed in your neighborhood.

"Did she say line X?"
"Yep."
"Was she in frame?"
"Yep."
"Did the audio peak?
"Nope."
"Okay, moving on."

Acting for the Camera by Tony Barr is written for actors. It is not written for directors or editors, but it could be. In 300-some-odd pages, you should be able to glean a pretty good understanding of what a (professional) actor goes through, both in terms of preparation and research, as well as on "the day."

Quite frankly, I think this could be the most concise and efficient instructional piece I have come across regarding the method of acting. I came from an acting background myself and have studied the field full-time. I would not be exaggerating by saying that there are many acting schools and teachers out there whose curriculum is basically a chapter-by-chapter implementation of this book.

And that does not necessarily make for a bad program. This book is not the only place where you are going to find a good structure to the principles of solid acting. There are some universals in these pages that, should you so choose, you will find elsewhere if you look. But there is a reason that this book is generally considered one of the fundamental pieces of reading in the field.

The words themselves are not important; it is what makes the words happen that has significance.

Always choose to care about what is happening as much as you logically can within the context of the material.

The book is filled with memorable axioms (related to acting) that are not given as Morpheus-like faux-wisdom, but rather are presented as conclusions to fully completed instructions and arguments. They will sink in.



The covers are filled with praise from screen luminaries such as Karl Malden, Sharon Gless, Henry Winkler, David Paymer and Eva Marie Saint, all of whom have themselves produced some memorable work. "Heyyyyyyyyyyyyy..."

So anyway, whether you are a director (in which case I recommend this book) or an actor (in which case I highly recommend this book), you are likely to benefit from the wisdom within. If you are a director who focuses primarily on visuals or checklists but is not terribly attentive to emotional truth, knowing something about the other side of the camera may help you spot it when you see it, not settle for imitations, and even improve your casting decisions from the audition room.

A link to the book can be seen below, where you can take a look inside the covers if you wish.

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It's not that often that I'll go out of my way to review or promote a book, but I was going through my shelves recently and came across and oldie but goodie that I hadn't looked at in a while.

I was quickly reminded what a useful beginners' tool / professionals' review book I had in The Five C's of Cinematography by Joseph V. Mascelli.

If you're experienced in the area, Mascelli still does a good job of reviewing things in a digestible way. If you're just starting out, he introduces concepts and principles that will largely form the basis of your cinematography work. It can be an especially useful read if you don't come from a strong still photography background and are therefore not heavily versed in shot composition, form, mass and the like.

Mascelli provides a wealth of relevant illustrations of each concept, framing and lighting actors and capturing the images that represent his principles in movie "screen capture" format. The book has been around for some time, and while techniques have evolved somewhat since the first printing, the fact remains that these principles do form the foundation of modern cinematography. You can't do trigonometry if you never learn arithmetic.

The New York Times review on the back states that "Mr. Mascelli provides the attentive reader with the equivalent of a complete course in filmmaking." While this may be a slight overstatement, it is true that there is great value for the time and money to be had within these pages, and especially so for the attentive reader. But attentive reading is generally required for all instances where you are reading to learn, rather than reading to escape. And Joseph Mascelli does a pretty good job of making it easy to remain attentive from cover to cover.

In case you want to take a glimpse inside the covers or at some samples of the writing, the link is available below.

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