After I first learn the script for No person 2, the corridor of mirrors sequence jumped out instantly. It was a funhouse maze, stuffed with traps set by Hutch (Bob Odenkirk), ready for Sharon Stone’s character and her staff of henchmen to reach.
On paper, it regarded like a terrific set piece, but additionally a difficult one. We knew we had to determine the neatest option to method it, in any other case we’d find yourself in an actual pickle. Mirrors — particularly a number of mirrors — are a number of the hardest issues to shoot. You’re at all times preventing your individual reflection, or the crew’s, or the gear. Nonetheless, I couldn’t wait to get caught into it.
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Constructing a Larger-Than-Finances Funhouse
From the beginning, Timo Tjahjanto (our director), manufacturing designer Michael Diner, and I agreed the funhouse hallway needed to really feel greater than the price range actually allowed. We needed it to cover Hutch and to present the viewers that dizzying sense of being trapped in a maze of reflections. We additionally deliberate to make use of it earlier within the movie for a lighter scene with Hutch and his daughter on the honest, so the house needed to serve two functions. For that playful model, we designed a lighting look we known as “Bubble Gum” — shiny, candy-coloured, and cheerful — earlier than shifting the identical set right into a a lot darker, extra menacing house later within the story.
Michael’s staff constructed scale fashions with miniature mirrors and hinged panels so we may check angles. We landed on a tapered 40-foot hallway with a hidden bend so characters may enter and exit with out revealing an excessive amount of of the structure. The ground was completed in shiny black tile — reflective sufficient so as to add depth, however safer and fewer chaotic than including much more mirrors. Too many reflections merely turned visible noise.
Capturing Round Reflections
The sequence started in an actual location earlier than transferring onto the stage, the place we may management the geometry. Reflections had been nonetheless a relentless problem. Our A-camera operator, Matt Schween, wore a black “ninja” swimsuit so he would disappear within the glass. We additionally had a two-way mirror that might be slotted down one aspect of the corridor for monitoring profiles. It’s a easy trick that labored effectively. One factor I used to be cautious about this time was the standard of the glass — I’ve had dangerous experiences with cheaper materials that lower an excessive amount of mild. The upper-grade glass we used right here solely misplaced about two stops, which was manageable and gave us a clear picture.
For the shattering glass, the artwork division introduced in six panes of fragile sugar glass, which we shot with pellet weapons to interrupt into tiny items. It’s superb how delicate — and costly — sugar glass is. The staff dealt with it with excessive care, rehearsing rigorously so that each take counted.
Behind the scenes of the mirror sequence for ‘No person 2’Credit score: Common Footage
Lighting a Mirrored Set
Lighting was one other massive problem. In a mirrored set, each supply exhibits up endlessly. As a substitute of preventing it, we leaned into it. We ran full-spectrum LED rope lights down the roof of the hall. By switching the chase course, we may have Bob strolling with the movement and the goons strolling in opposition to it. That solved numerous screen-direction points in an area that may in any other case have been not possible to comply with. The LEDs had been DMX-controlled and mounted in entrance of mirrored ceiling panels, including depth with out cluttering the ground.
Digicam Checks and Visible Tone
We did numerous digicam exams in prep, experimenting with angles and lenses to see the place we may conceal and the way a lot distortion felt acceptable. These exams proved invaluable. We shot on the ARRI 35 with Panavision T-series anamorphic lenses, paired with a LUT created by Dave Hussey at Firm 3. The setup gave us a daring, vibrant look with an underlying darkness that match Hutch’s scenario. The corridor of mirrors was by no means meant to really feel reasonable — it was meant to be immersive and slightly excessive, matching the summer time power of this movie. The place the primary No person had a colder, wintry look, our model was designed to really feel brighter and extra playful, whereas nonetheless carrying hazard beneath.
Teamwork Beneath Strain
A sequence like that is all about teamwork. Timo, Michael, Matt, my gaffer John Clarke, and I spent days testing how one can make the set really feel countless, how one can conceal crew, and how one can preserve the geography clear. Each division needed to problem-solve continuously. In fact, issues nonetheless went improper. At one level, our DMX system failed utterly, which may simply have price us a 3rd of the day. Fortunately, John labored a miracle and had it again up and operating very quickly. These moments are traumatic, however they make the profitable takes that rather more rewarding.
Different On-Set Challenges
The mirrored hallway wasn’t the one problem on this movie. We additionally constructed an outsized stage elevator with swinging partitions so Matt may transfer freely throughout a struggle scene. We recreated a small-town police station and shot it day-for-night beneath blackout tenting, which made the house sizzling but additionally gave us the sweaty ambiance we needed. And we shot an evening sword struggle within the forest with RZA, who performs Hutch’s brother Harry Mansell. That scene was interrupted by a twister and compelled us to improvise lighting setups when our crane was hitting the clouds as a substitute of the set. Every sequence had its personal set of issues to unravel, however the objective was at all times the identical: to maintain the power of the motion clear and immersive for the viewers.
Credit score: Common Footage
Classes Discovered
In a movie stuffed with set items, the corridor of mirrors stands out for me because the one the place problem-solving and magnificence got here collectively greatest. It captures the playful, vibrant, and harmful tone that Timo and I needed to deliver to this sequel.
What I took away is which you could’t at all times keep away from reflections. Typically the trick is to work with them and allow them to develop into a part of the design. That’s what made this sequence really feel distinctive. For me, that’s probably the most rewarding components of cinematography — turning limitations into artistic decisions that give the viewers an expertise they wouldn’t have in any other case had.
