Lighting

 Hey guys! As you guys know, me and my group have finished filming our movie opener. We are now in the editing process. However, today I will be discussing the lighting in our opener and the different aspects of it. Our lighting choices played a crucial role in storytelling, and we employed a mix of natural, low-key, and high-key lighting to create emotionally distinct worlds for each scene. 

For our beach memorial scene, we relied entirely on natural lighting. We filmed during the sunset hour, which gave us a soft, warm flow that felt authentic and gave a sense of comfort. We did not use any artificial lighting here because we wanted the scene to feel raw and connected to the natural act of letting go. The moon was also visible in this scene, which became our key light in a way that it cast small shadows on us with light that felt related to grief and mourning.

The flashback scenes in Jahzara's bedroom were our most deliberate forms of usage of lighting. We used a mix of high-key and low-key lighting to create a strong contrast and a sense of clashing realities. We had four main light sources. This included the warm, natural light shining through the window, the harsh light from the fluorescent ceiling fan, the LED pole/lamp, and the warm-toned desk lamp by the bedside. This setup allowed us to create various spaces of light and shadow. The warm window light and lamp represented memory and the dying bits of our friendship. Whereas the cool ceiling light and LED represented the cold, inescapable reality of the sickness. As each friend left the room in the montage, the lighting started becoming dimmer and portrayed low-key lighting. This visually marks our departure from the warmth of Jahzara's presence.

In the present-day school scene, we used the existing practical fluorescent lights of the classroom to create an unflattering and cool-toned atmosphere. This was an active mise-en-scène choice to make the environment feel cold and emotionally sterile, which is a direct contrast to the warm lighting in the past. The lack of shadows from this flat lighting makes the space feel empty and hopeless, mirroring each character's emotional numbness.