American Cinematographer - April 2010 - 56

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Weapons of Deception

A-camera operator Klemens Becker, a regular on Greengrass’ projects, stays close to Damon. “Klemens tends to do wider shots that are handheld … he’d strip the camera down to its lightest possible configuration and use it more like a video camera,” notes Ackroyd.

didn’t have to talk to Paul too much because our method was just to avoid doing anything that would interfere with the process. We’d never invade someone’s scenario or get into the middle of a group. We always shot outside the circle; that was a basic tenet.” Being a political thriller, Green Zone involves a lot of corridors and a good many walk-and-talks. That meant that large and long areas had to be lit, and Greengrass’ penchant for long takes made this even more important. “I always try to make whatever I’m shooting as taut and compact as I can, but then play it out in its longest possible form,” says Greengrass. Ackroyd recalls, “We did a shot in the Republican Palace where we walked all the way through four scenes in about seven locations, so we had to light a staircase, a corridor, an entrance hall, a big reception area, a press conference, another corridor and then a meeting room. We spent most of a day lighting the whole thing and then two-and-a-half hours shooting it, using three cameras and handing the scene over from one
56 April 2010

camera to the next. Of course, it will be cut to pieces in the final film, but that’s the kind of freedom Paul wants.” Faced with such protracted takes, Ackroyd’s crew tried to light from outside windows wherever possible,

“We want the viewer to feel like an observer who’s inevitably caught up in what’s happening.”

usually with 12K Pars or banks of 4K Pars. “The great thing about working with Barry is that he’s always happy to work with the best you can give him,” says Wiggins. “He fully understands the
American Cinematographer

limitations that come with trying to make something very versatile. I’d try to maintain a good level where we could give it to him, but I wasn’t struggling to bring everything up to the same level because I knew we’d be cutting quickly and the camera would never be static. The set-dressing department’s aesthetic was all about functionality, so we could get away with murder. If a corridor was dark, we were free to dot it with work lights, small tungsten floods on stands or little fluorescents that were standing on the floor or up on T-bars. We also used 1.2K HMI Gaffair balloons, which we put up on a wire overhead or on a stand that could pass for a piece of military equipment. They gave us 360 degrees of soft illumination, and that was useful in places like the Republican Palace. We could inflate them very quickly, and because they’re air balloons, we could change our minds about them without incurring huge helium costs.” Well into the shoot, the final act of the film still hadn’t been worked out, though the crew knew it would involve a chase across Baghdad. Ackroyd recalls, “I clearly remember Paul

American Cinematographer - April 2010

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