The ShotDeck Recreations contest was dreamed up during the first Covid-19 lockdown, when Oscar-nominated cinematographer Lawrence Sher ASC and his wife, Hema, recreated film stills using household items as props, family members as actors, and their cell phones for cameras. Now, the winners of the 2022 ShotDeck Recreations contest have been rewarded with over $30,000 worth of prizes including cameras, lenses, lights and support from Sony, Zeiss, Blackmagic, Aputure, Rosco, SmallHD, Tiffen, and British Cinematographer.

The free competition saw entrants select a frame from the 300,000-plus stills in ShotDeck’s high-definition movie images library and recreate it, DIY-style. This year over 800 entries were received from around the world!

The November issue of British Cinematographer magazine will spotlight four of the competition’s amazing finalists, showcasing their creativity and inspirations behind their recreations. Next up, we enter Wes Anderson’s fantastical world with Karla Torres and Abisai Garcia’s spin on a frame from Moonrise Kingdom (2012).

Don’t forget, you can see these shots and more on ShotDeck’s website (which offers a free two-week trial for new members).

Can you tell us a little bit about your background in filmmaking and/or photography?

Abisai and I (Karla) studied for a while at the same film university. We met and started working on several projects together, then after university I started working more as a producer, and Abisai as a director. Both of us have also worked as production designers or art assistants on some of our music videos.

What inspired you to enter the ShotDeck Recreations contest?

We had been using ShotDeck in different ways in our projects, even just to analyse a little bit of lighting/environment types in scenes and sometimes, to recreate some ambience. When we saw the contest, we were interested in the idea of creating something that was more than just using lights, we wanted something more complex that was also from one of our favourite movies.

How did you decide which shot from ShotDeck’s library to recreate? What was it about that shot that caught your attention?

We have always liked the symmetry in the shots and also the warm colours, so we started looking for movies of Wes Anderson, and frames from the Moonrise Kingdom movie. In the end, we chose that frame because we were excited about the idea of recreating the bus stop, the colours and even making a dress like that. When I saw the frame, I thought of one actress who’d worked with us in another project and I said, ‘’She looks like the girl in the frame!’’

Before you started work on your submission, what challenges did you anticipate? Were there any unexpected challenges that arose during the production process?

We figured it would be very difficult to match the daylight as it was totally outdoor photography, and we would have to use very large light diffusers to achieve it. We had to do different tests at many different times during the day. We tried first very early, when the sunlight is very soft, but still, the colours and the skin looked too vivid, so hoping to find a cloudy day or a cloudy moment, we had to run to the park before the sun came out again. The problem was setting everything up and looking for lots of trees behind the set. When we arrived, we only had 20 minutes before it started to rain

Where did you shoot your submission?

At a public park near our home. We did a scan of many parks looking for one that had trees on both sides behind our place.

What equipment did you use?

We use a Sony A7SII, and a 35mm lens, and a light diffuser for the window, to get the right effect for the sky.

Who were the different members of your team and what were their roles?

Abisai Garcia took the photo, I (Karla) did colour correction, Nadia Garcia (Abisai’s mom) made the dress, and Noe Garcia created the wooden bus stop.

Can you take us through the shooting process?

First we chose our location, started setting up the set and tried to make the trees behind the window look as close to the image as possible, because there were parts where the trees filled the whole window and we had no room for the sky. Then we started to set the camera to a closed aperture to
get all the details of the set and the girl.

The hardest part was to find the angle of the photo that was as close to the frame as possible, because otherwise we wouldn’t get the framing where the feet are cut, the ”SCHOOL BUS” sign and the correct dimensions of the bus stop.

How many takes/shots did the process entail and how long did it take to get the perfect shot?

About 40 shots, to find the correct light, composition and the pose.

Is there anything you wish you’d done differently?

We’re happy with the result, but because of the rain, we couldn’t done the perfect pose and the ‘burning’ sky really well.

How did it feel to be announced as a finalist of the contest?

We couldn’t believe it! We knew we had put in a lot of effort but there were SO many good photos that had impressively recreated the light and composition that we came to think that maybe ours was a little more production design-oriented and we were a little afraid that it wasn’t what the
contest was looking for. So we were very happy when we also saw that they opened different categories. It seemed a very fair thing that more of the people who had incredible work and creativity were recognised, regardless of all the equipment or not that they used.