Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/541232
www.postmagazine.com 19 POST JULY 2015 the Alexa 65 with a HydroHead, and as it was so difficult getting the camera to move around sets underwater, some of it was done with real set pieces, but the rest was done with green screen, and the virtual set was added later in post." Do you like the post process? "I love it, as after the shoot it's so peaceful and relaxed, and far more orderly and or- ganized. And I'm heavily involved in every aspect, from editing to sound to the DI and so on. I love every aspect of post." Where did you do the post? "We're doing it all in Soho, London." The film was edited by Eddie Hamilton. How did that relationship work? "I love the edit and I'm not one to just check in on progress now and again. I love being in the editing room and working hand in hand with my editor, shot for shot — and communicating all the time during production. So when we shot the tank sequence, and were only doing a couple of set ups a day, because of all the rigging and lighting, I could sneak away for hours to the edit, so I could get a jump on the edit and was able to reassess certain sequences, and that all continued into post. And Eddie was with us at Pinewood a lot, as well as with us on-location whenever possible, which was a big help when we did another very complicated sequence shot at the Vienna Opera house, both on-stage and backstage. And the very first and very last shot of the film are both from that sequence, and we were shooting that sequence throughout the entire production. There's a big fight in the lighting grid between Tom and a bad guy struggling over a gun, while an opera's being performed, and we were shooting various stunts and action scenes 60-feet in the air, and so I'd bring Eddie on-set and he had a great sense of the continuity. He was also working with the 2 nd unit whenever I couldn't be there, to help supervise and direct, and I'm very wary of 2 nd unit, but Eddie immediately proved himself to have a really good eye and great skills with the crew... He'd tell me he needed some pick-up shot for a sequence, and I'd tell him to get what he needed with the splinter unit, so it was a great collaboration." How many visual effects are there? "Well over 1,200, and they were all done by [Double Negative] in London, who've done an amazing job." What was the most difficult sequence? "It was definitely the underwater se- quence. We had originally planned to build a complete set for the sequence, but safety was a big concern, along with all the problems of moving the camera, so we ultimately went with a virtual set. With the exception of the things that Tom physically interacts with underwa- ter, it's all virtual. And because it was so tricky to do, for the most part Tom is sta- tionary and it's the camera that moves." Can you talk about the importance of music and sound to you as a filmmaker? "It's so vital, and for me it's a three- pronged approach; it's music, sound and silence, and the combination of all three elements. We're walking a fine line [at press time] as we're still posting and testing the movie. I was able to play a lot with music — and the absence of music — in Jack Reacher. But that was a smaller film than this, and you're trying to reach the broadest audience possible with this. And for every person who's totally immersed in your movie, there are two others who may be distracted, and you're constantly fighting to hold on to their attention. So I'm feeling my way through it right now, just in terms of what I can get away with. I like to rely on music only when it's really needed for emotional beats, and I really like to play with silence. In the big car chase in Jack Reacher, we had no music at all — just the sound design, and it was very effec- tive, I feel." How did the DI process help? "We're not quite there yet, as we've just finished doing a few last pick-up shots. But it will be vital and we'll be doing it in London. I actually try to get the film as close as possible to what I want on the day, and then I look at the DI as a way of enhancing that and shaping that, but I don't actually like to manipulate things too gratuitously, although it's very tempt- ing with all the stuff you can do now to an image. I'd rather have it be as close to what was shot, as I feel, 'That's the movie we made.' And it's easy to forget that au- diences are going to watch the film and look at it in a very different way from us." Did the film turn out as you had hoped? "It did, although the process is always full of surprises." So will you do another? "Absolutely! I'd love to. But I also think it's a fantastic tradition they have of bringing in a new director for each one." What's next? "A very long nap, and then I have a lot of writing obligations to fulfill before I decide what I'll direct next." Star Tom Cruise handled much of his own stunts. VFX were created by Double Negative. DIRECTOR'S CHAIR