The informal recording below shows a half-speed rehearsal for a fight scene that appears in a pilot I shot last year. Though the writers’ strike and other issues have delayed its streaming debut, the complete first season will drop sometime in 2025. For that reason, I’m not allowed to include the finished material. But rest assured that once it hits the street, I’ll pass it right along.
Don’t be fooled by the clip’s relatively static, single take located outside the ring of action. On game day, principal photography was broken into many shots, all of them hand-held, on wide lenses and close to the actors in 16×9 aspect ratio. I’m not usually a fan of the loosey-goosey camera; it’s too easy for directors to hose down the room and often devolves into sloppiness. In this case however, it was precisely the right choice.
Yeah, yeah, I know… You want to run a comparison by seeing the finished product. For now, take my word. The choreography of the actual scene was very close to what you see here, save for a big increase in energy and speed. So, for now, just admire the creativity and physical prowess of the two stuntmen.
And understand that I really wanted to get this video off my computer’s desktop!
Interesting insight for the casual viewer. Was the finished fight scene shot from the inside of a cell as if from the point of view of another inmate? And more importantly, why the vertical format?
Greg – Yes, the fight was shot inside the cell, with wide lenses, in-close. Vertical format was a spontaneous decision when the rehearsal started. I hated it immediately and never did it again!