Malek Allari | Editor-in-Chief
The film Visions of Light was a slow-flowing film that talked about the history of
filmmaking and cinematography. It will change the views and thinking of many people about
how they perceive the idea of filmmaking and helps them understand that filmmaking has a rich history behind it that many people have no idea about.
The film made me conflicted a little bit. It is a common stereotype that black and white
movies are not as great as colored ones. It is also a common stereotype that movies from the past are not as great as movies today, whether it be the story, acting, visuals, sounds, or lighting. However, according to great critics and filmmakers, the golden era of filmmaking was in the teens and ‘20s of the 20th century. Having that idea in mind, people will have to start thinking and realizing that films of the past are the ones that should be praised more.
The film also made me feel a little excited and curious about how filmmaking had
progressed throughout the years. It made me want to jump out of my seat and look at some of the greatest films of the ‘20s. It also wants to make people just go around, camera in hand, and start filming some scenes and actions that happen during our lives. The fact that a film about the history of filmmaking was produced means that filmmaking is not just for anyone; it requires the talent, the eye, the skills, and sometimes, the luck behind it to make a great film. Whether it be in a studio, like modern times, or out in the open, like ancient times, it is essential to the concept behind filmmaking and how it plays an important part in the lives of the people, especially now when the public has easy access to films and TV shows.
What drew me into the film was that the cameras, in the past, were “free.” It was easier
for filmmakers to just have a camera and run around with it, shooting scenes and actions. But
they also had natural talent since they used the lighting at their disposal and could not “edit” the lighting in their films as we have now in modern times. As for modern times, it seems that lighting can be edited using software on a computer, and the cameras are not as “free” as they used to be in the past. For example, in modern times, the cameras are significant, and with the inventions of editing ad the green screen, the actors, producers, cameraperson, and anyone working on the film does not really have to leave the studio. However, in the past, the actors worked themselves out to do what they had to do for the scene. Everyone working on the film is out in a place and filming the scene as it should be done.
There was a short video with Jason Statham talking about how as they were shooting a
scene from the movie Expendables, and since they did not have the technology of editing back then as we have it now, Jason Statham had to drive a truck and go into the water, while Sylvester Stallon just filming him and says, “Hey Jason, you need a towel?” This story of Jason Statham shows how editing and studios just changed the actors’ lives and jobs from being as dangerous as they could be back in the ‘20s and how it is not as dangerous as it is now.
The importance of lighting back in the day and even now is how we perceive our
emotions. It helps shape the scene’s emotions, and by that, it affects the emotions of the viewer. It does affect the storytelling since the story will have these emotions embedded into it, and lighting will help deliver the emotions to the viewers, whether it be a colored movie or a black and white movie.