A cinematic masterpiece is something that is handcrafted to perfection by the vision of the filmmaker and their way of telling a story, and one of the most beautiful representations of this art can be found today in films made by Christopher Nolan.
Making some of the most impactful pieces of cinema in modern times, the director is rightfully hailed as one of the best creators the world has ever seen.
And not just a unique style of filmmaking, the director is also pretty popular for choosing to shoot almost all of his films in the IMAX film format that he considered the best there is. And just as unique the technology is the way the stars in his films have to act to not mess up a shot, something that Gary Oldman once revealed in an interview.
Gary Oldman Revealed Stars Have To Act A Certain Way In Front Of Christopher Nolan’s IMAX Cameras
Known for creating some of the biggest and most mind-boggling cinematic masterpieces in modern times, director Christopher Nolan is an enigma who also happens to be one of the most revered creators in the film industry.
Almost the whole world has come to witness the greatness that he can bring on-screen with his films, but what still makes everyone curious is the selection of the IMAX technology and how the director uses it in his films, something that one of his stars revealed in an interview.
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In a past interview with Conan O’Brien on his talk show, Gary Oldman, the star who played the role of Commissioner James Gordon in The Dark Knight trilogy, talked about his experience working with the Oppenheimer director on the series. The host was curious about how and why the director chose this format and the things that needed to be done differently to adapt to this technology.
The actor revealed that to make every shot look perfect, they have to go through a manual that outlines the do’s and don’ts while shooting in that particular format. He said:
“Well, there’s a booklet that comes with the IMAX camera, and it tells you how to put the make up on for the make up artists, and it tells you, kind of how to act. You’ve got to kind of pull it back because you’re going to be so big on the screen that they say you have to kind of underplay it, so you can’t do this kind of thing because you just see an eyebrow. You have to keep it very small.”
This is one of the reasons why the audience has come to recognize the iconic close-up shots of the stars in many of Nolan’s films.
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Why Does Christopher Nolan Prefer The IMAX Format?
While most films are shot today with professional-grade cinema cameras from brands like Canon and RED, most of them are not IMAX certified, which means they cannot shoot films in the IMAX cinematic format. Therefore, Nolan uses special cameras directly made by the IMAX Corporation, which can cost up to a whopping $500,000 a device.
The main reason why the director shoots almost exclusively in IMAX is that he believes this format is and should be the future of filmmaking. It gives a lot of resolution in a frame compared to other formats, along with the advantage of retaining that resolution with unparalleled brightness in every frame and headroom to work on the shots extensively in post-production.
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The Dark Knight, streaming on Max.
Source: Conan O’Brien
