Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1332040
M A N K | P E R S P E C T I V E 1 0 5 preproduction. Having worked with David numerous times before, this isolated scouting and pre- preproduction time is invaluable. This is when David concisely elaborates on his thoughts, when ideas are discussed pertaining to specifi c sets, when locations are deliberated and contrasted with stage builds, and when lighting is addressedall aside from the various distractions and rigor of full-fl edged production. Extracting a basic visual template from this experience is the objective before any support personnel are brought into the Art Department fold. This provides a point of departure from which the expansion of creative solutions can be developed. As it applies to my responsibilities and contributions, it has always been my belief that this is when the fi lm is made. As always, Fincher projects are effi cient and this process, this time of isolated immersion, is indispensable to that end. Mank very much wanted to look and feel like a fi lm that was made from the period it representedthe 1930s. As always, the desire was to keep it simple and believable. Within this simplicity, a more complex visual could be built. The fi lm was shot in black-and-white to further evoke the sense of it being a product of the 1930s. Some of the exterior night scenes were fi lmed day for night employing this early fi lmmaking technique of the period. For these scenes, exterior practicals were adapted for brighter output. The use of a color palette for the fi lm was substituted by a schedule of tone and contrast. Set dressing, props and paint were all evaluated through black-and-white photos taken in the noir camera setting. Through repeatedly using this approach, the department quickly began to see objects and color through a black-and- white lens and soon settled into an instinctive B. MARION DAVIES' BUNGALOW MODELED BY CASSIDY SHIPLEY IN SKETCHUP. C. MARION DAVIES' BUNGALOW FILMED AT WB STUDIO LOT. PRODUCTION PHOTO. B C