ZOOMING IN ON VIRTUAL CINEMATOGRAPHY

Trevor Hogg examines the worlds of live-action, animation and video games through a virtual camera lens

Even with the dominance of digital photography, there is still a push to reflect the grounded philosophy from the film era – though this traditional approach is changing as several generations have grown up with a video game console in their hands, and smartphones have led to the global proliferation of cameras. As a result, the criteria for what is considered to be believable and attainable imagery is being redefined, and causing a reshaping of the cinematic visual language.

“There’s got to be a knock-on effect from people growing up with that sort of world,” observes Oscar-winning cinematographer Greig Fraser who shot the pilot for The Mandalorian, which sparked the virtual production craze. “I don’t think every film in 25 years will be a first-person shooter but we’re seeing that with films, like The Revenant, which is immersive and wide angle. I believe that there’s going to be a place for a lot of different styles without a shadow of a doubt.”

In the past, getting access to camera equipment was an expensive proposition, but game engines such as Unreal Engine and Unity are making the virtual alternative an affordable and accessible option. “The best training tool that I could possibly imagine would be someone being proficient in these programs where they can experiment and play to their heart’s desire,” believes Fraser. “And then apply what they’re learning to the real world, but they’ve also got a huge base of knowledge when they get into the virtual world, and know what’s possible and what’s not possible.”