Projects

AN HOMAGE TO THE SWINGING SIXTIES

How Jah Wobble made his directorial debut with a glossy short based on Antonioni’s seminal film Blow Up

John Wardle, better known as bass guitarist Jah Wobble from band Public Image Limited, has made his directorial debut with a short homage to seminal 60s murder mystery Blow Up.

In addition to direction Wardle took on the lead role

of Thomas, the narcissistic fashion photographer played by David Hemmings in the original Michelangelo Antonioni film. Set in the milieu of the “Swinging Sixties” the film was to have a clear look – there was to be a big emphasis on clothes, with over £50,000 of bright, elegant and vibrant costumes supplied by fashion label Missoni providing an air of hipness and sixties cool. Says Wardle: “I wanted the finished film to look like a million dollars, with the same seductive quality of a car or a perfume ad.” The idea was to show that while the character of Thomas lived a life of luxury with a penthouse apartment, Aston Martin and gorgeous wife, he remains fundamentally dissatisfied.

26 theproducer Spring 2010

To achieve a glossy look on a short film budget

Wardle turned to director of photography Saul Gittens, producer John Brennan and Andew Black from hire company Procam. Says Wardle: “They were full of good advice and I could not have made a film of this standard without them.” Procam’s Black adds: “We looked at using a number of formats but the one which shone through during the tests was XDCAM HD.” Procam supplied the PDW-700 and PDW-F800 for the shoot, XDCAM HD422 cameras which were able to produce clean, sharp images with an easy to follow workflow. These were combined with footage shot using a Sony HD minicam mounted on Thomas’ Aston Martin for scenes of him driving through London. Says Gittens: “The camera dealt perfectly with the changing light conditions when driving through London’s tunnels, open streets and enclosed shopping districts. Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36