American Cinematographer - September 2008 - (Page 32) Portrait of a Lady Right: After tying the knot, the duke (Ralph Fiennes) and his new bride bask in the applause of their eminent wedding guests. Below: In a fateful moment, Georgina introduces the duke to her new best friend, Bess (Hayley Atwell), who moves into their home and quickly becomes a formidable rival for the duke’s affection. about six weeks with Saul before filming began, but I would have liked even more time, especially because it was a big and complicated production,” Pados continues. “We storyboarded a lot of things; we knew we wouldn’t necessarily be pinned down by our drawings and that there would be a lot of improvisation, but that approach allowed us to discover the really important moments. Sometimes we would just figure out one key shot for a scene, a bit of movement that would capture exactly what Saul wanted to express.” The film was shot almost entirely on location at a number of historic homes across England. This decision was made primarily for financial reasons, but it perfectly suited Dibb, who is accustomed to location filming and a great believer in its benefits. “I wanted to shoot on location, and there’s no way we could have afforded not to,” says the director. “We’re lucky in England because all of these extraordinary houses still exist; I believe shooting in these real locations helped everybody connect with that time and that world. I think it helped the actors to be able to walk into a real house and realize how fabulously wealthy and powerful these aristocrats were.” Shooting at well over a dozen different period properties was not without its difficulties, however. Aside from the logistical complexities of traveling between locations on a tight schedule, many of the structures are maintained and protected by the National Trust, which imposes strict limitations on the activities of film crews in order to prevent any damage to the heritage sites. Pados jokes, “They have an interesting rule: you can’t touch anything!” More specifically, the Trust prohibits any equipment 32 September 2008
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