Gioulakis says films created during the Australian New Wave, including Walkabout (1971, dir/DP Nicolas Roeg BSC) and Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975, dir. Peter Weir, DP Russell Boyd ACS ASC), helped to inspire the emotional look-and-feel for Old.
“Walkabout was one of the movies that made me want to become a cinematographer,” says Gioulakis, “and both were particularly important to us for Old, as they are largely based outdoors, where the natural environment can be beautiful, but also harsh and hostile.
“Typically, Night and I start by boarding production in sequential/chronological order, working with Brick Mason, his long-time storyboard artist. Through that process we discover our approach to the visual language scene-by-scene` and refine that further via subsequent passes through the script.”
Indeed, it was this extensive exercise that helped the DP and director to design the beguiling juxtaposition of the luscious shoreline location with the growing frenzy taking place on the beach. The result was knowing where and when to combine make-up and subtle VFX to age the actors with gliding camera moves, sudden whip-pans, close-ups, forced perspectives and use of look-alikes in Texan Switch routines – all to ramp-up the tension and credible dramatic effect for the audience. For example, the framing catches the side of a character’s head before suddenly revealing they are now being played by a different and more aged performer.
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