By Laurent Andrieux

I was asked to light the Whale Room in the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco, located on the sea border in Monaco-Ville, Monaco. The Whale Room has a huge whale skeleton suspended from the ceiling about 20 feet high. The room itself is about 100 square feet and naturally lit by the sun through many windows, plus ancient and beautiful 19th century practical lights.

I’m lighting for an HD multi-camera shoot for a television satellite channel. The Prince of Monaco is our main guest, and the room definitely needs more light to look good on television. In total, there will be 8 people on the set.

The director, Yves Barbara, who directs the French president’s TV shows, wants a warm light. I also would like it soft.

I want to keep the natural light of the place. The mix in color temperatures gives a special mood to it. I want people to be able to recognize it. I don’t want to fake it. I will enhance it. Also, I don’t want any lights to be on stands on the set, so that the director can put his cameras in almost any position he wants.

I won’t be able to put gels on every window, as there are too many windows. I only have a half day to set things up, and another half day for rehearsals and corrections. I also have only one gaffer with me.

But we’re going to use about 50 kW anyway, and the cameras will work between 4 and 5.6 with a – 3 dB gain.

And, the production has limited resources to do the gig.

Let’s keep the challenge alive!

This is the set-up I used for the shoot:

• —  With limited resources (no towers), 2 6kW HMI Cinepar were put on the only balconies available with 1 on each main window around the set. Gelled in 1/2 CTO to match the average inside color temperature plus ND 6 and half white diffusion. They will provide hard cold backlight evocative of the sea and sun proximity.
•   2 5kW tungsten Fresnel lamps for the guests. Both equipped with Chimeras and gelled with Cosmetic peach. It allows me to match with the practical lights and give a soft, warm look to the faces.
• —  2 1kW tungsten Fresnel lamps as a backlight on the guests.
• —  3 2kW tungsten Fresnel lamps for the Prince and the MC, also with Chimeras and Cosmetic Peach.
• —  2 5kW Tungsten Chinese lanterns as a key light for the whole room in the background.
• —  2 1kW Tungsten Fresnel lamps for the whale.
• —  2 redheads for the background walls.
• —  and a series of 1 kW, 650, 500 Fresnel lamps for the showcases and different elements around us, that had no practical light at all.

I liked the challenge, because I think we did respect the natural ambient light, managed the sun quite well and had a very good image for a television show.

Laurent Andrieux is a director of photography, camera operator, and cinematography teacher based in France. www.cinematographie.info

Featured in StudentFilmmakers Magazine, May 2009 Edition.
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