American Cinematographer - June 2008 - (Page 39)

tanding on a London Underground platform during World War II, one year after their adventures in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (AC Dec. ’05), the four Pevensie children suddenly find themselves whisked back to the fantasy world of Narnia, where they had ruled as kings and queens. They soon discover that much has changed in the 1,300 Narnian years that have passed since their departure. Telmarines, a truculent race descended from humans, now occupy the land, and the sinister King Miraz (Sergio Castellitto) intends to usurp the throne from his nephew and rightful heir, Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), in order to install his own son as monarch. The second in a series of films based on books by C.S. Lewis, Prince Caspian was directed by Andrew Adamson, who also helmed The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, and shot by Karl Walter Lindenlaub, ASC, BVK, whose recent credits include Georgia Rule and Black Book (AC March ’07). “We wanted to evolve from what was done on the first movie,” says Lindenlaub. “We didn’t want to simply repeat the look of it; we wanted to learn from it and, if possible, improve on it. One of the general ideas we had was that this film should be darker than the first one to fit the tone of the material.” Adamson knew from the outset he wanted to do as much location filming as possible. “If you’re taking the audience into a fantasy world, you want to give them as much to hold on to as you can,” he says. “If you can find exceptional locations, it’s much easier for the audience to perceive it as a real place but still be awed by it. On the first film, we were limited to some degree by the story’s winter setting, which meant we ended up doing a lot onstage. Those experiences made me want to do more on location this time.” “I spent a lot of time thinking S Photos courtesy of Disney Enterprises, Inc. and Walden Media, LLC. about the look of the movie, and I couldn’t come up with anything that was completely out of this world,” notes Lindenlaub. “In general, I think our perception of fantasy and even science fiction is still grounded in our experiences. For example, during testing for this movie, I tried all sorts of different color combinations for moonlight, but in the end, I kept it pretty simple and used what I’d used before. I think that’s justifiable, because you don’t want the audience to feel that Narnia is a ‘toy’ world; it should have some natural reality, and that’s what you get when you go on location. My biggest inspiration turned out to be the wonderful conceptual designs we got from Roger Ford’s art department.” Filming began with a six-week location shoot in New Zealand, after which the company traveled to Prague for studio and location work, and then Poland and Slovenia for additional location shooting. “It was very tricky to be on two continents, but the schedule dictated that,” says Lindenlaub. “We had to catch the end of the summer in New Zealand and then, when the weather got bad there, move on to Europe. Assisting me tremendously were the American camera operator and first Opposite: Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes) gallops into battle as he attempts to reclaim his rightful place as Narnia’s king. This page, above: After returning to Narnia, Edmund Pevensie (Skandar Keynes) and his sisters, Susan (Anna Popplewell) and Lucy (Georgie Henley), join forces with the virtuous dwarf Trumpkin (Peter Dinklage). Left: Karl Walter Lindenlaub, ASC, BVK says he prefers shooting on location to working on greenscreen stages, despite the vagaries of weather. American Cinematographer 39

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - June 2008

American Cinematographer - June 2008 Contents Editor's Note Short Takes: "100 Days, " Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings Production Slate: Mongol Production Slate: Greensburg Vintage Indy A Prince in Peril Women's World 90 Years of Precision Post Focus: A 3-D Imax Work Flow for Wild Ocean Post Focus: 3cP Incorporates ASC CDL on State of Play Filmmakers' Forum: John Baily, ASC New Products & Services International Marketplace Classified Ads Ad Index ASC Membership Roster In Memoriam: Gayne Rescher, ASC Clubhouse News ASC Close-Up: Rob McLachlan

American Cinematographer - June 2008

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