Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook Film Lighting Equipment, Practice, and Electrical Distribution Fourth Edition Harry C. Box AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON NEW YORK • OXFORD • PARIS • SAN DIEGO SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford, OX5 1GB, UK # 2010 Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. 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To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Box, Harry C. Set lighting technician’s handbook : film lighting equipment, practice, and electrical distribution/Harry C. Box. – 4th ed. p. ; cm. ISBN 978-0-240-81075-1 1. Cinematography–Lighting–Handbooks, manuals, etc. I. Title. TR891.B68 2010 778.5 0 343–dc22 2010008897 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN: 978-0-240-81075-1 For information on all Focal Press publications visit our Web site at www.elsevierdirect.com 10 11 12 13 14 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States of America To my mother and father Preface TERMINOLOGY Imagine that your mother visits you on the set. You introduce her to the gaffer, who she says seems like a nice fellow—that is, until he starts giving orders: “Hang a baby. Kill the midget and have two blondes standing by for the martini.” The set lighting profession uses volumes of peculiar-sounding technical terms. In this book, terms are explained the first time they are used and can also be found in the glossary. You will find, how- ever, that the same equipment has different names from country to country, city to city, and studio lot to studio lot. An obie light is called a basher in England. In Jamaica, a scrim is known as a strainer, but here we often simply call it wire. A wall sled is called a Grumpy at Paramount Studio (the name people around the lot bestowed on its inventor). There are even a few common terms that are difficult to use in polite conversation. People who work in rental houses will act as if you are out of your mind if you call something by a name different than that with which they are familiar. This can be frustrating when working out of town with a new rental house. Sometimes technicians are far more familiar with the nickname for a piece of gear than they are the proper name. To make matters even more unpredictable, terms change over time and are constantly being invented and evolving. I adopted the terms that, in my experience, are most universally used, but you will no doubt run across many other names that do not appear here. TWO DECADES OF TRANSITION IN THE LIGHTING INDUSTRY The practices of lighting technicians in film and television production have undergone many trans- formations since the summer of 1991, when I first began making notes for what eventually became the first edition of this book. At that time, the conversion from vintage DC distribution equipment to AC was still taking place. Lots of different distribution systems had popped up; there was no domi- nant standard for connectors and junction boxes. SCR dimmers were suddenly becoming a big part of motion picture lighting for the first time, bringing with them the attendant issues of harmonic cur- rents that overheat transformers. Electronic HMI ballasts were experiencing a troubled adolescence, but were beginning on a path toward greater reliability. At that time there was little or no formal training for lighting technicians. Electricians leaned from each other on the job. For many old-school electricians three-phase AC systems, power factor, current harmonics and even grounding, were new concepts. At that same time, a much larger percentage of production in Los Angeles was non-union. Necessity being the mother of invention, these more thrifty productions spawned many innovative lighting techniques that have since become common practices, but they also often resorted to meth- ods that were actually quite foolhardy and potentially hazardous. One way and another there was a great deal of confusion and misinformation being circulated. It was in this context that I first under- took writing a book for lighting technicians in the film and television industry, with the goal of thor- oughly researching the many issues I was aware of, in order to offer lighting technicians an authoritative source of information and guidance. xvii The forces at work started to spur change in the motion picture industry. There was pressure from electrical inspectors. There was a desire from the manufacturing sector to settle on legal, reliable standards. And there was a realization among employers that sketchy informal training left them open to liability. These forces all began to push the industry in the direction of stricter and more for- mal rules and guidelines. It was a few years later that the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) redoubled its efforts to provide proper training for its workforce. Federal OSHA regulations require employers to provide training for certain kinds of work especially those that are potentially hazardous. Up until that point technicians had little or no formal training about safety hazards, yet they were rigging lights to aerial lifts, operating heavy machinery, working in the cat- walks high above the stage floor, and connecting up large electrical distribution systems. Contract Services Administration Trust Fund (CSATF) is a nonprofit organization funded by contributions from producers who are signatories of a collective bargaining agreement with the International Alli- ance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE) (based on hours worked by covered employees). CSATF is administered by a board of trustees appointed by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Tele- vision Producers (AMPTP). This is how producers have arranged to provide training to an essentially freelance workforce in order to meet OSHA requirements and create a safer work environment. The second edition of this book was formally adopted by Local 728 (Hollywood Set Lighting) as part of that effort. In the past ten years Contract Services has vastly expanded and improved their Safety Training program to include the Safety Pass program, required for all employees, and it also partially funds Local 728’s voluntary Skills Training program. This edition of the Set Lighting Technician’s Hand- book is designed to be a primer and a reference for some of the topics covered in the training program. This book has existed in a time frame spanning a massive shift toward greater awareness and education for lighting technicians. To some extent, it has been a part of that shift. In this edition you will find a great many changes to the book, which are a result of the formalization of training and rethinking of safety that has occurred in the last decade. Practices that were once casually accepted are now carefully controlled. Things like using flammable materials or non-UL-listed parts and equipment, procedures for tying-in to electrical panels, use of electricity around water and in damp locations: these are just a few of the areas where training and formalization of practices (not to mention the efforts of equipment manufacturers to bring us new solutions) has greatly improved the safety of our daily work. Woven throughout this edition are the latest guidelines of many differ- ent safety and regulatory organizations, including: the National Electrical Code, OSHA, Fire and Building Codes, studio safety departments, the CSATF Safety Pass Training and Safety Bulletins, ESTA recommendations for safe practices and standards, as well as the safety recommendations of equipment manufacturers. To the extent possible, I have sought to make sure that the practices discussed here are all fully compliant with current standards and training. xviii Preface Companion Web site The book now has a companion Web site, which includes many new articles on advanced topics that could not fit in this volume. It also includes archived material that appeared in previous editions, photos, and helpful links. Please take care to type the URL exactly as it appears here: http://booksite.focalpress.com/box/setlighting/ For initial access, the Web site requires the use of the following access code: setlighting Once registered, you will be prompted to create your own password for subsequent access to the site. Please mark this for your records. xix Acknowledgments The fourth edition of the Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook marks a big step forward. In writing this edition, I was very fortunate to have the support of many top professionals in production as well as distinguished experts in the manufacturing sector. The insights and perspective they offered made it possible for me to write a well-rounded book about many exciting technologies. I am very grateful to Mike Bauman for his kind input and terrific photographs. In recent years, Mike has blazed a path embracing some of the most technologically advanced lighting solutions. I owe a debt of thanks to Richard Cadena, Scott Barnes, Josh Thatcher, Jeff Levi, and John Amorelli for their input on the subject of lighting control technology and moving lights. Thanks to Mike Wood (Mike Wood Consult- ing), Rob Gerlach (Selador/ETC), Ryan Fletcher (ARRI), David Amphlett (Gekko), Jim Sanfilippo (NILA), Richard Lund (Philips), and Lee Ford Parker (JiffyFX.com) for their valuable contributions to the new chapter on LEDs. Thanks to the terrific team at ARRI Lighting—John Gresch, Mike Jones, Aeron Weller, and An Tran—for their continuing support, and contributions especially in regard to HMI troubleshooting. The dazzling cover photo of this edition is by An Tran. Other experts in the field helped shape this new edition: Steve Terry (ETC), Michael Lay (Strand) lent their expertise on dim- ming; Bob Cookson (Illumination Dynamics) Russle Saunders (Saunders Generators) and Ron Dahlquist (Dadco) on transformers and generators; John Parkinson (Power To Light), Paul Tipple and Phil Ellems (Power Gems) on HMI electronic ballasts; Stewart Lennox (battery packs) and Guy Holt on small generators; Michael Skinner on entertainment industry applications of the National Electrical Code; Andy C. Huber on underwater lighting; and my old friend and colleague Brian O’Kelley lent an AD’s perspective to the opening chapter. Other lighting professionals who contribu- ted include Erik Messerschmitt, Mike Ambrose, Dave Devlin, Dwight Campbell, Martin Weeks, and many others. My thanks to the Local 728 Safety Training Program and Contract Services, especially Allan Rowe, whose comprehensive work developing Skills Training courses for Local 728 plays no small part in helping the membership remain the best trained, most experienced lighting technicians in the world. My sincere thanks to the many individuals who gave me feedback and suggestions for this edition: Daniel Aleksic, David E. Elkins, John Gates, Michael Hofstein, Seth Jason, and Stephen Lighthill. I gratefully acknowledge the many manufacturers who provided technical information, photo- graphs, and illustrations. The manufacturers are listed in Appendix F. This book was first published in 1993. I am deeply indebted to many individuals for their gener- ous contributions to this book over the years: Darryl Murchison, whose discussions during the early stages of writing the first edition helped set the book on course; Doug Pentek, Earl Gilbert, Larry Parker, Cyrus Yavneh, Russ Brandt, Dean Bray, Frieder Hochheim, Herb Breitling, Michael Kaiping, Scott Toland, and Jon Bart, all of whom read and improved sections of the book in its first and second editions; Richard Mula and Pete Romano, who shed much light on the subject of under- water lighting; Frank “the Dinosaur” Valdez and Gary Scalzo, who lent their expertise to the section on rigging; and Vance Trussell, whose suggestions and ongoing interest and encouragement were invaluable to me. My thanks to Eric King, who shared his expertise on HMIs and electronic ballasts. My thanks to Bernie Kret at Strand, who helped upgrade the section on electronic dimmers for the second edition. I owe a debt of gratitude to Chris Barratt, without whose generosity and vast xxi experience I could not have created the new section on generator troubleshooting, and whose legacy lives on despite his passing. A special note of thanks to the illustrators, Shawn Murphy and Lisa Cyr, who created the hand- drawn illustrations for the first edition and who may well have been inking drawings on their wed- ding night to make the publication deadline. Praise also goes to the talents of John Huey, who created additional artwork for the second edition. For new illustrations in the third edition, I thank Dan Haberkorn. Thanks to my dear friend and colleague Mark Doering-Powell for his advice and artwork in the section on blue-screen photography. Thanks to Laura Mancini for modeling for the book, and to Keith Morgan, for lending a hand (and a couple of very nice lights). My thanks also to Doug Pentec and Carly Barber of Hollywood Rental and Robert Guzman of Concept Lighting for the use of their rental equipment in creating the artwork in the first edition, and Debra at Cineworks for use of equipment for artwork added in the third edition. More than ever, I am grateful to the team at Focal Press—my editor Michele Cronin, Elinor Actipis, and Marie Lee, whose help, support, and buoyant optimism helped me see this through. I am thankful, once again, to Joan Box, my faithful and talented (unofficial) copyeditor who has taken an interest in my writing since I was first able to form letters. It is a true testament to a mother’s love that she endures all this techno mumbo-jumbo, but it is always a joy to work together on it. Big, big, ginormous thanks, finally, to my loving wife Stacey, who is officially completely sick of this book at this point, and with good reason. Thank you for your patience and support. I love you with all my heart. xxii Acknowledgments CHAPTER Set basics: Your first barbecue 1 All the technical aspects of filmmaking—film stocks, cameras, lighting, sound, effects—involve a myriad of small details that, taken as a whole, seem impossibly complex. As with any craft, to become a master requires years of experience and exposure to many different situations. It has been my experience, however, that no single piece of equipment, procedure, or technique is really compli- cated; there is no one thing that cannot be explained and understood in less than 10 minutes. Making movies is the artful application of millions of relatively simple details. This book helps with some of those details, describing procedures that save time and promote safety, clarifying aspects of the craft that are confusing and often misunderstood, and supplying a wealth of information about the hundreds of gadgets of which lighting technicians are so fond. Starting with the basics, we begin with a summary of the role of the lighting crew on a film set. JOB DESCRIPTIONS OF THE LIGHTING CREW The electric, grip, and camera departments fall under the direction of the director of photography (DP). The gaffer and key grip are the DP’s lieutenants. The gaffer is the head of the electric department, in charge of the lighting crew. The gaffer’s crew consists of a best boy electric and the set electricians. Director of photography Q: How many directors does it take to screw in a lightbulb? A: One; no, two . no, no one. The DP is the director’s right hand; he or she is the one who helps the director make all the hard decisions. It is the DP’s responsibility to create on film what the director has envisioned for each scene; to evoke the proper time, place, and atmosphere by means of lighting; and to help choose camera angles and camera movement that will be most effective in telling the story and covering the scene. He or she designs the lighting, balancing realism against the dramatic potential of more stylized effects, as called for by the script and the director. It is often incumbent on the DP to pho- tograph particular actors with special care in order to maintain their screen persona. The DP must maintain proper screen direction (a responsibility shared with the script supervisor) and lighting con- tinuity between setups so the film can be edited seamlessly. The DP has a say in the design and color of the sets and the wardrobe and in the selection of locations. The DP works closely with the assis- tant director (AD) to schedule scenes at the right time of day for the best light. The DP usually shoots tests prior to the beginning of photography. He or she may experiment with various lighting Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook, 4e. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-240-81075-1.00001-5 © 2010 Published by Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved. 1 [...]... determine what special considerations should be given to the lighting in designing the sets Designers are generally very conscious of lighting, and design the sets with windows in places that will make for good lighting; however, looking over the designer’s plans allows the DP, gaffer, and key grip to consider practical matters such as access to the set, placement of wild walls (walls that can be removed),... loader The camera operator sets the shot and operates the camera The operator is charged with the responsibility of keeping the lights, grip equipment, and microphones out of the shot If you are setting a light close to the frame line, the camera operator can tell you where it is safe It is a very good idea that the camera operator set the shot before the lighting crew starts lighting it, as important... very good at analyzing the lighting and use great ingenuity to avoid casting shadows The lighting crew helps the boom operator by setting toppers on lights as needed to eliminate microphone shadows Certain lighting directions are inherently problematic for the boom operator For example, hard front-light from the direction of the camera, tends to throw mike shadows onto actors, set dressings, or walls... could use Construction builds the sets, set dressing decorates the set with items not handled by an actor, and the props department is responsible for anything that is handled by an actor Wall lamps, practicals, The company 11 “oil” lanterns, and the like are provided and placed by the set decorators Wiring them is taken care of by an electrician During production, the onset dresser and his helpers are... prerigging is required to achieve efficiency during shooting? How much time does it take to get into and wrap out of each set? What might cause lighting delays the DP and production department should take into account? What workable solutions can the gaffer suggest? Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook, 4e DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-240-81075-1.00002-7 © 2010 Published by Elsevier, Inc All rights reserved 15 16 CHAPTER... to the DP and to the production manager for approval, and then see the plan to fruition On the set, the gaffer is responsible for the execution of the lighting scheme and the organization and operation of the lighting crew The DP and the gaffer discuss the lighting Typically, when talking about the actor’s lighting, the DP may specify the placement of each fixture to accomplish a particular effect Sometimes... discover problems on the set when production is in full swing Equipment package 19 FIGURE 2.1 Complete scrim set with box The Hollywood set includes (from left to right) a half double, half single, two doubles, a single, and a set of gel frames CHECKLIST 2.1: FRESNEL AND OPEN-FACE TUNGSTEN LAMPS CHECKOUT □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ Check whether each light is complete Each must have a full set of scrims, a scrim... juicers or sparks and are officially titled set lighting technicians or lamp operators The electrician’s primary responsibility is placing and focusing lights according to the wishes of the gaffer At each location, the electricians unload and reload the lighting equipment from the trucks, run cabling, and run the distribution of electrical power for the lights On the set, electricians are responsible for... decoration If a piece of furniture needs to be moved, or a picture frame removed from the wall, ask the onset dresser to do it If you do it yourself, it will break; it’s an immutable Law of Set Dressing Anyone who thinks that set dressing is nothing more than moving furniture is missing something The onset dresser is in touch with unseen forces that hold objects together, until they are touched by an electrician,... Progress on the set is measured in setups A feature film crew may shoot two or three pages of script a day For a television single-camera show, the average is four to eight pages per day, typically 20-30 setups per day The AD and DP work together to determine an efficient shooting order for the needed shots Conventionally, wider master shots are photographed first, establishing the lighting for the