’The Tobacconist’ is a South London based odyssey following Tobias, who sells counterfeit tobacco to fund his mother’s return to Jamaica. The city reveals spectres of his community’s history and an uncertain future.
Very proud of this short that showed at #bfi #londonfilmfestival this year.
Shot on
@kodak_shootfilm Double-X B&W 16mm we went for an overall high contrast and gritty look. Early research suggested I’d have limited dynamic range to play with and we embraced that fully. It was great to use
@tiffencompany ’s coloured filters which are based on the Kodak Wratten range and allowed altering of the contrast by intensifying or diminishing certain hues.
For the interiors I favoured hard lighting, sometimes just from photoflood bulbs. The overall approach was to limit the ambient light we were using and make it more about direct sources and pools with dramatic fall off all whilst not fearing loss of detail in the shadows. As always
@greenkitlondon came through with a great package. For exteriors we embraced the occasional flare which would completely blow out the image but overall still aimed to maintain a crisp look.
The camera was to feel oppressive - lots of people at the edge of frame and a feeling that it was sometimes following slightly too close for comfort. We shot mainly from head and legs but when an extended handheld sequence felt right we’d fully embrace it. A big shoutout to 1st AC
@bonhor for his coolness in such moments!
I paired Ultra16 primes and a Canon 11.5-138mm zoom with an Arri SR3 which came from the heroes at
@onestopfilms - I always love a zoom on 16mm for more lingering moments and slow creeps, sometimes even placing a source that flared to “zoom through” in shot, ending on a moment with increased contrast.
Many thanks to
@digital_orchard for the impeccable scans and it was an honour to work with
@jodiemdavidson from
@pictureshop on the grade where we really got to that final pop.
Big love to the whole gang who made this happen!
#londonstories #cinematography #dop #dp #cinematographer #filmmaking #setlife #blackandwhite #setlighting #shortfilm #filmisnotdead #16mm #kodak #kodakshootfilm #analogue #xx
