Chloé Deleplace experimented with unique dioptre filters and dual framing to craft a visually emotive storytelling experience in Universelles.
There was a time when filters mostly meant different grades of mist or diffusion, but the modern push for real-world optical effects has created an inexhaustible demand for interesting new options. Everything from fabric to plant material has since been mounted between two sheets of glass for sliding into a mattebox, simultaneously provoking tantalising possibilities – and a degree of creative risk – for anyone willing to experiment.
Chloé Deleplace tackled those risks on Universelles, a series of shorts currently available from the Belgian broadcaster RTBF. “During the pandemic I was developing a production with a friend,” Deleplace begins, “which was originally a short film, six episodes of five minutes each which became a series, and we decided to shoot that in Brussels.” Intended for online distribution, the production was to be shot with framing protected for both 1.85:1 and 4:5 delivery.
Dual framing inevitably demands careful shot design, but it would later interact with Deleplace’s choice of filtration in a way that might not have applied to everyday mist or diffusion effects. The approach, meanwhile, would be guided by story: “It’s about two women who meet in Brussels for the first time and each episode would represent a step in how they fall in love. It was very much about the emotional connection of these two women, and how they’re discovering one another. We wanted it to be very natural.”
“We were very inspired by a lot of medium format photography,” Deleplace says, “but we didn’t want it to feel gimmicky, we didn’t want to overdo it. We considered 35mm and large format sensors. What shifted our choice was that a few years ago I saw Post Tenebras Lux directed by Carlos Reygadas – It’s a very strong visual piece. It was shot by Alexis Zabé [ASC, AMC] and there are moments where we’re in the character’s head, where we really feel the character, and it stuck with me.”
“From when I first saw Alexis’s work, the visual effect I was looking for was the distorted images which has that polished centre,” Deleplace reflects. “I wanted to know how Alexis did it, but I didn’t want to copy-paste. I did some research and there wasn’t much information on how he did it, so I contacted him and he said he used Vantage squeeze dioptres. I got in touch with Vantage and they said there’s only that one set in continental Europe. So, I watched some tests from One Stop and they had a similar set, but better for our budget.”
Whether or not a dioptre with a plano (that is, flat, zero power) area in the centre is a filter is perhaps a philosophical consideration; the design unmistakably begins to cross over with lenses themselves, requiring a round mount on a lens of a suitable diameter. Deleplace, meanwhile, was keenly aware of the importance of a careful test process, in order to control the effect of such a unique and potentially powerful design – especially given two different frame sizes which would reveal different amounts of the resulting corner distortion.
Happily, Deleplace continues, the full set of filters provides a lot of options. “There are different diameters – 25, 50, 75mm, that’s the part where your image is clear, and all around it you have a degree of distortion. It’s a a bit like the Petzval, where it’s very circular. They also have different strengths, plus one, plus two or plus three, so you can really play with how much you see polished, and how strong you want the effect to be.”
Choosing a lens to go behind a filter might seem like a reversal of the usual approach, though Deleplace’s choices were limited by both availability and the need for a full-frame lens to potentially suit a full-frame camera. “We didn’t have that much choice in the sense of what the rental in Brussels had, because they were fully booked out, but I wanted a vintage piece of glass. We opted for Olympus Zuikos, the TLS rehouse.” The screw-in filters would require a consistent front diameter, making the rehoused option particularly valuable: “We didn’t have to worry about all the things we’d usually have to think about with vintage casings. We knew all the front diameters would fit for all the dioptres and the effect would be pretty much the same in terms of the science of it. That was helpful for us.”
Optically, though, the challenge of those unusual dioptres was clear, as Deleplace goes on. “I was concerned about the strength of the effect, especially as we were shooting two formats, so the [horizontally narrower] four-by-five would still show the effect of the filter even though it would be quite minute – I was told it would be the primary format but I wanted to focus on both. I first tried both of them with the 16:9 sensor size to see how they looked with equivalent sensor sizes with equivalent focal lengths.”
That process, Deleplace says, led to a straightforward conclusion: “on Alexa 35 the effect felt too visually present, and the more we talked about the look, the more I was getting attached to the large format visual style. We ended up going with the LF. It was about fine-tuning the dosage and how much we’ll see the filter at a particular focal length. The wider we were the more we’d see the effect, and the tighter, the less we’d see it. I think we decided to start on the first episode with the plus-one, so it was present but quite subtle, then we ended up with the plus-two. It had the progression of emotional charge.”
It would not be unusual for a production shooting with a large, high-resolution sensor and the demand for two different outputs to frame generously and make final decisions in post. With the filter effect also serving to frame the image, however, Deleplace avoided doing so, making her choices in camera in pursuit of consistent filtration results. “We did think about it – there were a lot of talks about what we should do in post and how much money or time it would save us. What we ended up doing was to create our own frame guides where we had both on all the monitors, even for our Steadicam operator. It was quite tricky, but it was a necessity.”
Universelles was mainly recorded using the Alexa LF’s 4.3K-wide 16:9 frame, although Deleplace took full advantage of the option to use other sensor areas to fine-tune the effect of the dioptre filters. “When it came to the shots with the dioptres, we had to change the sensor size so it would fit the look better. I tested that to see what would work. I knew the Hollywood Black Magic and I’d adjust the strengths for the shadows and the highlights, but I went in there thinking that what I’m going to see in camera is what I’m going to get.”
FRAME BY FRAME
In a practical sense, Deleplace reflects, the generally wide framing chosen for the piece was key. “I don’t think we did anything tighter than an MCU – it was very much vignettes, within the lives of these women. All these elements helped make the use of the filters work for the story. If it had been tighter shots or handheld, closeup to closeup, it would never have worked.”
Universelles is a testament to the ability of modern crews to operate with minimal support, even while dealing with a complex project involving dual framing and filter effects directly influencing, and influenced by, that framing. “It was just me and the gaffer,” Deleplace points out, “and we had huge locations to light, and a very tight schedule – two or three locations a day. Realistically, we were very limited and we had to be very creative and go with the tools we had. Trust the light meter, trust the monitor and trust the numbers and the colour science of the camera. It was a real-life story in a real environment, and it really worked out.”
–
Words: Phil Rhodes
