BEHIND THE SCENES OF GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

Ben Davis, ASC was the cinematographer on “Guardians of the Galaxy” and was tasked with translating the comic book into reality. The majority of the film was photographed with the Arri Alexa XT shooting ARRIRAW (framed for 2.40:1)with Zeiss Master Primes. However, to give the intro a different feel they employed a set of JDC Cooke Xtal (Crystal) Express anamorphic prime lenses.

James Gunn framing up with a JDC Cooke Xtal (Crystal) Express anamorphic prime lens

The cinematographer mentions that he was incredibly inspired by the concept art for the film and that he tried to really bring that feeling into the photography. Concept art is a somewhat secret art in the film industry, but it shows the power it has to inspire the entire crew.

EXT. Morag Temple

The production built a large portion of the Morag Temple set that was surrounded in blacks or chroma blue screen and later digitally extended by MPC. It is usually best to photograph the character on a physical floor because creating dust/foot prints/shadows interactions can be difficult in post, especially on uneven terrain.

Morag Temple – Live-Action Plate

If you examine the original live-action plate, you’ll see two large units (18ks?) suspended by a crane. Each light is creating a hot spot on the ground and is creating some atmospheric lighting effects. While the general composition of the frame in regards to the “hot spots” is preserved, the final CG lighting changes the direction of the light from backlight to three-quarter front light.

Final shot after CG environment extensions

To get perfect crepuscular rays or “God Rays,” on a set that big, you would need the actual sun and then a huge set piece to control how much sunlight came into the scene. In CG, it is much easier to control the amount of atmospheric perspective and art direct the the direction and quality of the rays.

A scale model of the Morag Temple set

On a union feature film, it is common practice for the production designer to build a scale model of the sets. This is a great tool to communicate with the director and to ultimately build the actual set. Looking at this particular model, one might design the set in a digital sculpting program like Z-Brush or Mudbox and then 3D print it out. And then the previs team or post-vis team could use the 3D model of the set too.

Chris Pratt running full speed while a Libra Head keeps the shot smooth

To shoot FAST running shots this combo Picture Car + Libra head is pretty popular. For moderate speed shots a steadicam may be sufficient, but to handle the extreme bumps and accelerations the stabilized Libra head is required. However, for the normal Technocrane shots the production used a stabilized Scorpio head.

INT. Klyn Prison

The Klyn Prison was a huge multi-tiered set that took over 15,000 DMX channels to control all of the lights. For the ambient “space light,” there were several 20×20 overhead soft boxes with Panalux FloBank tungsten fluorescents (gelled with ½ CTB) through a full grid (dyed Lee Filters 728 Steel Green). For architectural accents and oppressive top-lighting there are hundreds of par cans hung above the set. The rest of the lighting is built right into the set and is a combination of LED and fluorescents.

Klyn Prison wide shot

In this wide shot you see the blue soft boxes overhead and the par cans beaming down on the set. The scene is being filmed with a SuperTechno 50 and a Stabilized Scorpio Head. You can also clearly see where the spotlight is focused.

CDB GIF Breakdown: In this establishing shot of the prison the production employs a SuperTechno 50 and an overslung Stabilized Scropio Head. The shot begins wide and pushes into some inmates fighting, it then moves down to reveal Star-Lord looking around.

Klyn Prision – Handheld shot with the Alexa

Klyn Prison, mulit-camera fight scene

In this shot you can see three cameras filming a fight sequence.
Wide Shot: Fisher10 Dolly with a fluid head
MCU Drax: Fisher10 Dolly handheld
MCU Drax (low angle): Handheld laying on the floor

And three 1st AC’s pulling focus with their Preston FI+Z Remote Lens Control Systems.

Klyn Prison – Behind the Scenes