Filming a conversation

Filming a conversation

There are a number of techniques used when shooting a conversation, these can be to help the conversation flow smoothly, to create various effects on the audience or even to simply set the situation. These techniques are ones used in just about every film you see, however, they are by no means rules. You should cater the techniques you use to the theme and content of the conversation and scene. 

It seems sensible to begin with camera  angles and shots. A standard conversation will consist of two mid shots, sometimes over the shoulder, and a wide shot containing both characters and the environment, this would often be used as the master shot. Here is a fantastic example of this from the film Drive. By using the 180˚ rule we easily get a sense that the two characters are speaking to each other. The wide shot below is used as a master shot in the scene and is returned to, to keep the audience aware of the geometry and the action happening in the scene. This can be to show how close or far the characters are from each other.

On the left; Our protagonist, unusually framed to the right suggesting a lack of control in the conversation.
In the centre; The antagonist of the conversation is framed to the left, in this case this suggests control over the protagonist and the conversation.
On the right; The wide shot, also the master shot. Our protagonist is framed much closer to us creating an emotional link, whereas the antagonist is positioned down the hall as he makes his way towards us accentuating his threatening role.

There are of course many other shots and angles you can use to continue to develop and add to your scene. A close up can really help to add emotion to a conversation, particularly useful if there is something you want to put across without dialogue. Also, cut aways are a fantastic tool. A cut away is simply cutting away from the characters to see an object or a close up on some action such as picking up a cup. A useful and effective way of using a cut away is to use a 'shot to reverse shot'; This is used when a character looks down at an object, we then cut to see the object and then cut back to the character. Using low and high angles is also a fantastic tool in telling a characters position of power in a conversation.

Moving away from specific shots and angles, a fantastic way to demonstrate tension in a conversational scene is to use tight or loose shots. The difference between these two can be quite dramatic as you can see below. The shot on the left is an extremely tight shot, this can make the audience feel that the character is under pressure and has no where to run. Whereas on the right, the shot is very loose, this can have the opposite effect. 

You can achieve a similar effect to this within a conversation with a subtle dolly movement towards or away from the character e.g. moving from a close up to a mid to create a sense of distance from the character.

When directing a conversation you must keep in mind a number of things. The first of these is the progression from one point in your story to another. The purpose of a scene in any film is to take the viewer from the current point in the story to the next. Because of this, your protagonist at the start of the conversation should be in a different place personally, or have gained power or changed status by the end of it. This proves a challenge when directing actors; you must try to give them an idea of how they should be feeling throughout, without directly telling them a specific emotion or expression. This is because you want the actor to have a natural and believable response to the conversation, without simply trying to comply with what the director has said.

Keeping this in mind, the director must have an order in which they want the shots ordered in. You must keep your priorities in order when doing this, it is very helpful to create a shot list to keep things flowing. When ordering your shots, priorities the shots that tell the story and progress to the shots that tell the details. A sensible example if you have one camera is:

1. Master shot

2. Protagonist MS 

3. Other characters MS

4. Pick ups and other

If you have two or multiple cameras a sensible order is:

1. Master shot + Pick up

2. Protagonist MS + Other characters MS

3. Other

Another element you can consider is lighting. Lighting can create an entirely different atmosphere. You will of course have to cater the lighting to your scene but, having a standard three point light set up can create quite a friendly rom-com kind of style where as a harsh light on the side of a person's face will give it a dark and dramatic feel. The lighting you choose will effect your whole scene giving it one feel or another so it can either make or break a scene. The same can be said for sound; Sound is remarkably important, particularly in a conversation as it is quite reliant on audio. An audience can cope with sub standard imagery, but if a film or scene has bad audio people get very distracted. There are a number of uses to sound, of course you will want to strive for clear dialogue but, there are all sorts of creative uses too. Music will change your audiences feel toward what is happening, for example if you use dramatic orchestral music over a conversation the audience will think it is dramatic whereas if you use summery happy music, the audience will think it is just that. There is also diegetic sound to consider. This is sound that is not actually part of the environment but can seem as if it is. Diegetic sound is commonly used to subtly make the audience feel a certain way about an action or event. In a conversation, if tension is building up to a climax, you can in the background use the sound of an approaching train and as the scene climaxes have the train hit its brakes.

When editing a conversation it is good to keep in mind the beat of the conversation. Rather than cut to see who is speaking every time a person opens their mouth, try to think what is most effective in telling the story. If one of the characters says something and another reacts without speaking, show that, even if the other continues to speak. Also keep in mind the progression of the scene, use the most appropriate footage to where the drama should be at that point. A fantastic example of both of these is this short film called 'The Alienist'

You do not have to stick to any of these techniques, film making is about creating something new and expressing your own identity but, it is difficult to create an effective conversation without using any of them. Many film makers such as Tarantino, Terry Gilliam and Rian Johnson all break the rules of conversation, but only some. If you watch their films you will see many of these techniques used, as well as many of them broken. But what you must always do when shooting a conversation, is to cater your style and techniques to the subject and content of the conversation.

-Joe