:: a place for everything ::
We are asked all the time by clients and planners how we are able to create films that capture events so candidly, and from such an intimate perspective. The answer is simple– we don’t use any ‘Robocop gear’ and we don’t believe that weddings should be turned into ‘Productions’.
Technology has allowed the event cinematography industry exponential advances in the past five years. We can film in near darkness, we have the beauty of shallow depth of field, and our gear for an entire day’s shoot can fit in a backpack. But many event cinematographers have put down their broadcast cameras and big lights for a new generation of intrusive elements– steadicams, sliders, and body brace camera rigs (ironically called ‘armor’ by its fans). These accouterments allow cinematographers to sweep, swoop and glide around your event, in the fashion of, say, a Michael Bay film. But your wedding day is not a Michael Bay film set. Nor is it a place for a team of shooters to make multiple takes of your first meeting or to have some guy in full ‘armor’ running down the aisle behind you to get his shot.
At Films by Francesco, every handheld shot we take focuses us on remaining invisible during the day, not creating it. Our aesthetic captures people naturally, candidly, without drawing their attention out of the irreplaceable realness of their day. We certainly appreciate that there is a place in cinematography for Steadicams, Sliders and ‘Armor’, it’s just not at your wedding. If you were going to get married by, say, base jumping off a cliff, then we’d be happy to bring the steadicams along. Below is a film by Sebastien Montaz-Rosset we absolutely fell in love with– ‘Robocop gear’ included.