"I love the natural rhythm of this kind of shooting."
In front of Los Angeles International Airport, the crew members were busily loading packed equipment onto the charter plane, while Duke was being interviewed by reporters. "After finishing a scene, you clean the floor, move the lights back, and the actors can take a sip of water. You need to be more involved in the role of a director rather than checking emails — because your assistant is doing that for you; you hold the light meter in your hand, observing how the light affects the actor's face…"
As always, how the filmed shots visually attract the audience is of vital importance to Duke's work. This is reflected in his fondness for moving cameras. During filming, Duke avoids wide static panoramas and top-down shots; instead, he relies on Steadicam to design dynamic panoramic shots, allowing a scene to unfold and highlight its key points in motion.
Since the start of filming Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the most difficult scenes were sometimes those that appeared simplest and most straightforward on the surface — two people talking in a room, or inside the Millennium Falcon — always the hardest to film. Duke tried as much as possible to balance the grandeur and scale of Star Wars with the intimacy and heartbeat of each character.
At the same time, he hoped to handle the film with a more retro style.
This doesn't mean there won't be any fast-cut action scenes, but rather that he was striving to shoot longer and more confident takes.
It was a very meaningful task. Duke didn't need lifeless shots, nor would he accept sloppy work. His vision was as sharp as ever; he would notice everything. So when the crew's work met his standards, everyone knew they had done well.
After finishing the scenes at Warner Bros. Studios, Duke had to lead the crew out of the Burbank soundstages to film "a galaxy far, far away," creating epic scale and majestic spectacle.
In fact, Duke had never filmed so many outdoor locations in one movie before.
When asked by reporters about the filming locations, Duke said, "We're going to the forests of Wales, Skellig Michael Island in Ireland, the frozen forests of Iceland, and the deserts of Abu Dhabi. These places will have undeniable presence in the film. Their energy will flow into every scene, every actor, every member of the crew. It's an energy that benefits the movie."
Of course, for Duke and the crew, the part of the shoot in the deserts of Abu Dhabi in the UAE was the most grueling. The filming locations were separated by hundreds of miles, and the actual set was built using methods rarely seen today — harnessing wind, sand, and natural light.
A small fleet of Ford vehicles formed the convoy that supported this desert expedition. Each camera had its own white pickup truck filled with lenses, functioning much like a human-powered cart.
Frankly speaking, this was the toughest film Duke had ever shot. The desert of Abu Dhabi was even hotter and drier than imagined. After only two days, some crew members were already showing signs of dehydration. Duke had to issue strict orders requiring everyone to drink plenty of water.
Fortunately, the IMAX film cameras were very reliable under such conditions. Under the same circumstances, digital cameras would have overheated and become unusable. Extensive testing ensured the crew wouldn't be affected by metal expansion under high temperatures. In extreme environments, film once again showed its advantages, acting as a nearly perfect medium. This challenging desert shoot also proved that IMAX filming technology had become highly mature.
To ensure smooth filming in desert areas, Duke hired a special team for the maintenance and upkeep of film reels. Combined with custom rain and dust covers, this allowed the IMAX cameras to "breathe" properly.
In addition, the crew contacted a well-known local producer in Abu Dhabi, commissioning him to buy large quantities of dry ice, which were packed tightly with V-CLOTH covers and placed close to the camera bodies to reduce heat.
After arriving in the UAE, Duke hired many local workers to join the crew, which helped minimize difficulties.
Film is an international language, but words like "monopod" or "electrical tape" are not. If you plan to shoot abroad — especially in unfamiliar environments or the wilderness — unexpected situations may arise: how to select and use equipment, how to preserve footage, what are the local filming regulations, and what if you accidentally break the law?
These are not merely language problems.
Any Hollywood crew filming overseas — especially outside the English-speaking "Five Friends" circle — must pay attention to many issues.
For instance, Duke's crew had done extensive preparation before coming to the UAE.
In terms of equipment alone, besides the two IMAX cameras named "Death Star" and "Millennium Falcon," Duke also had IMAX provide backup cameras. He wasn't without a history of damaging IMAX cameras — so far, two had been scrapped during his previous shoots.
There were also plenty of film reels, batteries, storage cards, and all kinds of cables. No one could predict what might break during production.
Just transporting the spare equipment required hiring a large cargo plane — even after the crew had conducted multiple scouting trips to the Abu Dhabi desert to "slim down" the equipment list.
Before shipping, Duke had all the gear tested thoroughly to ensure everything was flawless. In a foreign country where language barriers exist, it's nearly impossible to find a professional repair shop. He arranged for the equipment to be shipped in advance so that it would arrive in the UAE a day before the crew, preventing wasted time on-site and enabling filming to begin as soon as possible.
At the same time, he also prepared a large number of power adapters — since plugs differ between the EU, UK, US, Southeast Asia, Japan, and South Korea — and purchased a batch of local phone numbers.
In addition, the most important thing when filming overseas is obtaining filming permits.
Locally, the more shooting permits you can get, the better. You must contact the local film bureau. Even if the locals might allow the crew to shoot freely without any official permits, the local government may not think the same way.
It is also necessary to find a local producer who can obtain signatures from everyone who might appear on camera at the filming location and who is familiar with the local film laws and customs.
How do people greet each other? What gestures or words are considered impolite? What are the local traffic rules?
These details might seem unimportant but can greatly affect the crew's operations and filming efficiency.
Moreover, hiring a well-known local producer has another advantage—it effectively prevents theft.
There are criminals everywhere, and the first rule of preventing theft is to always keep your equipment within sight. If you can work with local producers or filming teams, they can tell you about the safety of the shooting areas—where and when it may not be safe.
Hiring some locals costs extra money, but it will be worthwhile in the end. They can give the crew useful advice and save filming time.
In the deserts of Abu Dhabi, early morning and evening became the busiest times for Duke and his crew. First, these hours were relatively cooler, allowing actors and staff to perform at their best; second, this was also Hollywood's most valued "Golden Hour" for shooting.
What is "Golden Hour"? Its English name is "Golden Hour," also known as the "Magic Hour." The fact that it is described with "golden" and "magic" shows how precious and extraordinary this period is.
It lasts only for a short time, and the resulting images are dominated by golden tones. The best moments occur shortly after sunrise and just before sunset. Opportunities to capture it are extremely limited within a single day.
In the desert, during midday the sunlight is directly overhead, creating harsh, strong shadows and glaring brightness. But in the early morning after sunrise and the evening before sunset, when the sun is near the horizon, the light becomes warmer and richer. This is because at that time, sunlight passes through a thicker atmosphere, which absorbs most of the blue light and leaves behind warmer parts of the spectrum, revealing the charm of golden light. The golden light of the "Golden Hour" can turn ordinary scenes into something completely new.
Unlike the warm artificial lighting from electric lamps, the natural light during the Golden Hour is warm, soft, and layered. As the sun has just risen above the horizon, the shadows become longer and deeper, adding many visual possibilities for filming. Therefore, if the composition is well arranged, the chances of producing a beautiful shot greatly increase.
Soft light is extremely important in cinematography. It allows cinematographers to easily capture changing shooting conditions without losing details or shadows.
Duke was especially strict about shooting during this time. The Golden Hour doesn't always mean just a few dozen minutes—it depends greatly on where on Earth the filming takes place. Near the poles, it can last one to two hours, but near the equator, such as in Abu Dhabi, the Golden Hour may only last a few minutes.
Many of the desert scenes in Star Wars: The Force Awakens were shot at sunset, especially the scenes involving the female lead, Daisy Ridley. Many of her shots required sunrise or sunset as the backdrop.
Although Duke did not personally operate the camera, he gave John Schwartzman's cinematography team two instructions: first, do not set the white balance to "automatic white balance"; second, plan the camera positions carefully—analyze each scene according to its specifics.
For a dialogue scene between Daisy Ridley and BB-8, the Golden Hour was very short. Several hours before it began, Duke led the crew to arrive early and prepare all the equipment in advance. This saved time that could have been lost to mistakes. If the scene couldn't be completed in one take and required multiple retakes, much of the precious light would be wasted.
Therefore, to make full use of the limited Golden Hour, the key was thorough preparation ahead of time.
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