Blog Garrett O’Brien Shooting McKenna Michels’ song “Monster” on Optimo Primes

“Monster”, came about when artist McKenna Michels came back to director Nick Peterson about doing a sequel to an earlier one of her videos titled, Born To Die. Both Nick and I had done that video previously for McKenna so we had an idea of what we were in for with the universe they had created before. What was done so well previously was the scope but also how highly focused we were on wonderful details that created a rich, complex world that takes place in a time around the 1700s. It starts with a more formal approach of center framed shots framed in 1.33 aspect ratio along with controlled dolly moves. We then wanted to juxtaposed this style to longer handheld tracking shots that follow the action when things take a turn for the dark.   Born To Die was a project, but Monster would be even larger.

After Nick brought me onto the project it was great to hear that they wanted to match that same sense of look and style as Born to Die in order to show it’s connection to Monster. While still embracing the new scale and differences via the world opening up significantly in the story. The idea being that it would be an epic adventure across a wide variety of terrain and people they come across. Pulling inspiration from Fellowship of the Ring. We wanted to create a unique feel that was rooted in an older time. So for the previous project we used Camtec’s Falcon lenses with ¼ black pro mist filtration. We also did a digital to film conversion process within the grade that had us emulating the color, contrast, grain, film halation and gate weave to match that of 4 perf Kodak 5207. For Monster we needed a very different approach to filmmaking from the last one but still wanted to achieve the same aesthetic. The plan was to have a weekend of filming in Los Angeles to accomplish our fight scene that had been choreographed extensively. Then the rest would be on the road with a skeleton sized crew in order to hit the vast variety of locations in remote areas that would have to happen all within a few days all over California. I knew going in that I wouldn’t have nearly the same amount of lighting and man power. Which then became imperative that we be as smart about our scheduling, locations, time of day, weather and the right level of minimalism and visual contrast to make these worlds marry.

I normally shoot with my Sony Venice 2 camera as I believe it is the most complete digital cinema camera made to date in terms of image and usability for nearly every situation. My normal spherical lens of choice is the Cooke S4. I find they gave me the ideal amount of character, uniformity, stop speed and focal length options that I prefer with a lens set. While the Venice 2 was our camera, we needed to make sure we captured in full frame and at the tallest aspect ratio to match our previous look and feel. Utilizing the entire Sony Venice sensor and full frame lenses to give us the sort of unique scale we were looking for with this universe. I took the opportunity to test some new lenses at Becine because I felt that going with modern lenses would be crucial in order to handle the wide variety of situations that would arise while not having nearly as much control as the previous video. There would be next to no lighting and we would often be looking directly into the sun and in high contrast wide shot situations. We needed full frame lenses with a fast, consistent stops across the whole set to shoot in our natural, low light conditions. We would also need consistent size focal lengths for fast lens changes, especially with steadicam and the wide variety of shots needed for our fight sequence. Lastly, the consistency of lens attributes and artifacts between focal lengths would be another important element. Often vintage lenses can be a nuisance trying to find a perfectly matching set. I believe that consistency is important to help keep the viewer present in the story but also saving time in the grade but not spending time fixing mistakes. 

I also knew that smaller lenses would be best so that we could have a travel lens bag instead of a heavy road case for our primes. My 1st AC, Michael Chomieniec, would not have a 2nd AC with him on the road. Michael also pulled double duty as a drone operator. So it was important to us that we find ways to be as smart with the camera package as possible. The less cases the better!

Out of all the lenses tested at Becine that fit our parameters, the ones that caught my attention the most were the Angenieux Optimo primes. They had a sensibility that reminded me of the Cooke S4s. In particular how the lenses resolve faces. Giving slight, pleasing distortions when utilizing the full width of the image sensor. This helped elevate our wide shots and our close ups on faces. With our gorgeous environments I tended to stop down to T4 – T5.6 to give a sense of depth and the space while shooting. But for the fire light scenes and dusk scenes I did opt to go near wide open. I loved the feeling of the lens. It performed beautifully at all stops. But perhaps just as important was the ability to use the IOP with a ⅛ glimmerglass. This was a huge advantage for us. As it would mean not having to worry about any filters to slow us down while out in the field. Most importantly giving us an older, more vintage lens feeling but with modern advantages. We went with the 18, 28, 40, 75 and 200mm focal lengths. The workhorse lenses being the 28mm and 40mm for most of the shoot. Then occasionally jumping to the 18mm for wide vistas and the 75mm for tighter detailed shots and the occasional close up

The IOP with the ⅛ glimmerglass was one of the significant reasons I chose this lens set. First the glimmer glass IOP does a wonderful job of giving this lifted, slightly softer aesthetic similar to vintage lenses without drawing too much attention to itself. Especially when being flared with something in frame or just out of it. With the IOP element being embedded within the lens and not external, it meant the degree of glimmer glass effect is perfectly consistent no matter the focal length. When cutting from an 18mm to a 75mm shot, it allows for a perfectly seamless cut between them. As opposed to external filters that may need time to try different strengths depending on the extremes of the shot, camera movement and focal length.

Secondly, it allowed us to worry about one less thing for camera. It consumed less time and less resources for manpower and transporting gear. When combining that function with the built in NDs of the sony venice, we were able to move at an incredible pace for such a small team. Hitting our tight timelines for the gorgeous natural light we were after every day. 

Lastly, with not having any external filters it meant that anytime we panned or tilted across the sun or any bright practical in frame, it would not give us any peculiar filter flares that can occur when they reflect off the front element of a lens and bounce back into the filter element. Instead of those distractions, we had gorgeous flares that roll off in a really beautiful, subtle manner with the glimmer glass IOP.

I really fell in love with the 18mm and 40mm lenses. They had a wonderful amount of barrel distortion when shooting full frame. It brought people out in a gorgeous, three dimensional quality. The 40mm in particular felt like I could use that lens all day long. Handheld or on sticks it always felt like it resolved faces in such a pleasing way without distracting from the story at hand. All the while giving all of the benefits that modern lenses have to offer in a perfectly sized form factor for full frame capture. I wouldn’t hesitate to use these lenses in the future and dig even deeper into the IOP system and offerings!

The Crew :
Director: Nick Peterson
Executive Producer: John Dismukes
Producer: Nic Paine
Director of Photography: Garrett O’Brien 
1st AC: Michael Chomieniec
2nd AC: Ruoyu Zhang
Key Grip: Abigail Menzel
Gaffer Mayur: Patankar
Steadicam: Andres Raygoza

Discover the whole video clip here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtAwTfUqilc
Garrett O’Brien’s Instagram : @garrettobrien
Garrett O’Brien’s website : https://www.govisuals.com/