American Cinematographer - July 2011 - 22

Raiden and Liu Kang plead for the intervention of the Elder Gods.

virtual cinematography was to mimic a Super 35mm camera aperture — in this case, 1.77:1. “The final, actual camera aperture and size are determined by the programmers, and that was set before we started making the game,” he notes. “But certainly, we were trying to mimic real 35mm cameras visually. There was no need to attempt film grain because Ed Boon wanted the images to play back at 60 fps in real time to make the game respond to controls properly. Grain wasn’t feasible under such circumstances; we wanted a high level of detail in the fighting environments, and there is extensive blood and gore in the fighting sequences. It didn’t make sense to pile too many effects on top of each image to render frames at that rate. We did post-processing effects to mimic the effects of a digital-intermediate process, and stylistically, we were trying to emulate 35mm photography.” The techniques Cianciolo’s team employed included, among other things, a strategic alternation between moving and locked shots for the purpose of building emotion. They also attempted to alternate between dolly and handheld mounts to subjectively capture the characters’ different emotional experiences. The team also employed a nuanced approach to camera angles, Dutched framing, depth-of-field adjustments and focal-length changes within scenes. “These are standard considerations for traditional motion-picture work, but this
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level of sophistication is still somewhat unusual in the fighting-game world,” adds Cianciolo. “There are limitations, of course, because it’s a different medium. We have to be careful, for instance, about how much we move the camera, not in terms of the move, but in terms of the environment. If we move the camera too much, it might require building new assets [for the background]. But the overall goal was to create a feel that would suggest these images were filmed in the real world.” Cianciolo cites a few examples involving key characters. Kitana, for instance, begins as a villainess and goes through an evolution before switching sides in the conflict at the heart of the narrative. “We aren’t sure of her origins, so we kept the focal length around 75mm and increased the amount of blur on her at the beginning, and also added Dutched framing to create an off-balance feel,” Cianciolo explains. “As she changes, the amount of Dutching increases and the focal length gets more pronounced, and as soon as she gets her purpose back, the framing goes to a level horizon, we bring her focal length back a bit, dial back on the depth-of-field and make a few other subtle adjustments.” For the pivotal character Liu Kang, a human warrior who is the defender of Earthrealm, the goal was to showcase the character’s stability and sense of purpose. “Therefore, we stayed primarily with static framing,” says Cianciolo. “We kept the horizon level, limiting rotation to basic panAmerican Cinematographer

and-tilt, and when the camera did move, it simulated dolly movement — straight, steady lines — to suit his serious persona.” By contrast, Stryker is a N ew York Police Dept. detective who has no knowledge of the Mortal Kombat universe until he is pulled into the game. Therefore, when he enters the narrative, he has to push through a sense of confusion over the transformations in the world, and everything he has ever believed, while simultaneously fighting his way through monsters invading New York. “We wanted the player to participate in Stryker’s chaotic journey, so we went for a camera style that mimicked combat photography,” says Cianciolo. “That meant exaggerated movement, additional camera shake and much less precise framing. The camera also stays close to the actors, shooting with wide lenses, in order to help create a sense of intimacy with the action.” These creative uses of the virtual camera lie at the heart of the success of the interactive story within the game, according to Cianciolo. “There is a common misconception in the wider 3-D business that anyone can do virtual camerawork,” he says. “I think it’s important to educate people to understand the intricacies and the craft that go into building shots and deciding how to use them. There simply is no substitute for real-world camera experience and education.” ●

American Cinematographer - July 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - July 2011