First watch these two scenes..
The first scene was shot on real locations, but the rain seen in the second scene was created with the help of pumps and fountains. Similarly, the flood scene in the film 'Kedarnath' was also shot in a small lake in Film City.
In fact, flood and storm scenes in films cannot be shot on real locations. In such a situation, a set is made, in which air is blown with the help of a machine and rain is made with the help of a pump. Later the scenes are shot with the help of sound and VFX.
In this episode of Reel to Real, we will know how natural disaster scenes are shot in movies. For this we spoke to filmmaker Karan Kapadia, miniature artist Sarvesh Pawar, cinematographer Tushar Kanti Ray and VFX editor Upanshu Singh.
How are earthquake scenes filmed? First let's know how the earthquake scene is filmed. Before filming an earthquake scene, the director and the production team first decide together how to show the effect of the earthquake. For this, the entire team researches earthquake-related events like collapse of buildings, debris flows, etc. Meanwhile, the help of VFX experts is also taken, so that the effect of the earthquake can be shown properly.
Small models of buildings are made on set for earthquake scenes. These models look like real buildings. After this, a vibrator is used on the set to show the effect of the earthquake. The vibrators start working as soon as the shooting starts. Buildings shake, giving the audience an earthquake experience. Additionally, small grains (clay particles) are used to add dust and debris effects, making the scene more realistic.
During shooting, the camera shoots from several angles. Smoke making machines are used to show the smoke in this process. Apart from this, the scene is made more dramatic by adding effects like shouts or explosions in the background. After shooting, the remaining work is completed with the help of computer graphics.
Aishwarya-Abhishek lived in water for 14-15 hours during the shooting of the film 'Raavan'. Karan Kapadia acted in the movie 'Raavan'. River, lake and rain scenes were shot in this film. About the experience of this film, Karan said that shooting it was very dangerous. Almost all the shooting of the film has been done on live locations. Most of the scenes were to be shot in the forest. The entire team had to stay in the water for 14-15 hours.
In the movie 'Raavan' we have seen many scenes in which rain is shown. Karan said that some of these scenes were shot in real rain. At the same time, artificial rain was setup for some scenes.
Water is sprayed from pumps for flood scenes. All flood scenes shown in movies are fake. They are not shot on real locations, but on prepared sets. First of all, a set is prepared, on which objects like houses, roads and trees are built. All these models are small in size, but look quite realistic.
Small pumps are then installed on the set, which are used to spray water. The water level rises or falls depending on the scene. To show a tsunami, a large pump is used, which throws water as fast as an ocean wave. After the shooting is over, sound effects are created with the help of computer graphics.
We have seen many such scenes in movies, where the forest catches fire and the entire village is burnt down. In fact, in such cases, some scenes are shot in real locations like forests, while sometimes many such locations have been created in Film City, where fire scenes can be shot.
However, permission has to be sought to shoot in real locations like forests. Shooting starts here only after taking permission from the forest department. Shooting here is not possible without permission. Fire department permission is required for shooting scenes related to fire.
An ambulance and a team of doctors are always present on the sets. Karan said that when scenes like floods, fires and earthquakes are shot, an ambulance and a team of doctors are always present on the sets to protect the actors.
How and why are miniatures made? Let us understand the planning and process of miniature model with an example. For example, first of all, the director of the film and the miniature expert decided together how to show the scene of the sinking of the Titanic. It was not possible to submerge the actual ship, so smaller models were designed.
A large model of the actual ship and several smaller models of the Titanic were built. Small details were also created in the miniature models, such as the ship's rooms, stairs and the effect of sea waves was also taken into account.
When these miniature models were ready, they were placed in water and filmed. To show the effect of the ship sinking, small motors and small machines were installed, which slowly tilted the ship, causing it to sink into the water. This time, special lights and cameras were used, so that everything looked real and the audience could really feel the situation.
VFX and computer graphics were added to the filmed scenes to make the ship sinking and sea wave effects look realistic. The Titanic scene used the miniature technique because it was too difficult and expensive to do on a realistic scale.
The flood scenes are shot in a small pond The role of miniature models increases greatly in the shooting of flood scenes. Actually shooting such a scene on real location is not possible. For this reason a small pond is made and the entire scene is shot in it. Then the rest is done with the help of special effects.
Miniature Models are made in less time and less budget Sarvesh Pawar said that the budget of shooting with miniature models is much less than shooting on real location. However, there is very little time from the production team to create miniature models. Sometimes only 7 days are available.
In 'Kedarnath', the underwater scenes were shot in a swimming pool. Tusshar Kanti Ray worked as a cinematographer in Kedarnath. Flood and storm scenes have also been shot in the film. Regarding its making, Tushar said, 'We have shot the temple scene in the film at a real location. The flood scene was shot at Film City. A lake has been built in Film City, where scenes related to water can be easily shot. The film 'Kedarnath' also has underwater scenes. The scenes were shot in a swimming pool.
This scene from the movie 'Kedarnath' was shot in a swimming pool.
Air is thrown from the machine for storm scenes in films. Even the storms shown in movies are fake. To set up a storm, the director and the production team first decide what the storm will be like, how strong the wind will blow, how heavy the rain will fall. Then the set is ready, on which the houses, trees and plants are all. To create the appearance of strong winds, wind generating machines have been installed.
A sprinkler or a hose (a long pipe used to convey water from one place to another) is used when there is heavy rain accompanied by wind. Sometimes, to further enhance the effect of rainfall, water is also released from above.
Then after shooting, the sound engineer records the sounds of lightning, wind and rain and places them in the scene. Apart from this, computer graphics are also used to give the scene a complete look.
Creating flood and storm scenes is impossible without VFX. Upanshu Singh said that VFX plays an important role in shooting natural calamity scenes. As earthquakes cannot be shot on real location. For this reason, VFX is used to make the scene realistic.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
