.
[John Cummings] "...DP's go to great lengths to achieve a period look for that show, but still can't resist using more contemporary-looking soft lighting."
That's a very good and interesting observation.
I think I have an answer to that... or at least my attempt at an explanation...
I think the fairly simple answer is that what they do is an attempt to place you as a viewer
into that location in the early 1960s...
not to have it appear that you are watching a
show from the 1960s.
Their detail is so meticulous... sets, props, dressings, wardrobe, hairstyles are all perfect for the era. But the production itself isn't... actually, not at all... certainly not from a cinematographic or diectoral point of view. All those push-ins and pull-outs were not used much by directors of the era, save for Hitch and a few others. And yes, the lighting is much softer than was seen in productions of that time. All those low and unexpected/unusal angles are not at all evocative many of the era's movies and even fewer television shows... things like that were fairly unseen outside of Hitchcock and Welles. And the editing pace and style is very decidedly
non-1960s.
But rather, I think it's an attempt (and a very successful one) to transport us
into those scenes, albeit in a glamorized way... rather than have us watch them as a viewer.
By the way... I desparately want to
be Don Draper.
T2
__________________________________
Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com
