The Wait

Short Film: THE WAIT

🎥 Camera & Lenses: Cinematic, Intimate, and Controlled

Camera Options:
• Canon EOS R6 / Sony FX3 / Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K
(Lightweight, cinematic image, great for natural light scenes)
• If budget allows: Sony FX6 / Canon C70 / ARRI Alexa Mini

Lenses:
• Prime Lenses:
35mm for medium shots, 50mm for intimate close-ups, 85mm for emotional depth of field.
• Wide Lens (24mm): For establishing shots of the park, the bench, and to isolate the characters in wide space.

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🎤 Sound: Clean and Isolated (Very Important Here)
• Shotgun Mic (Boom): Rode NTG5 or Sennheiser MKH 416
• Lavalier Mic: Sanken COS-11D or Tentacle Sync Track E (for seamless, hidden dialogue capture)
• Field Recorder: Zoom F6 or Sound Devices MixPre-3 II for precise control over atmospheric sound.

You’ll need to capture the stillness of the space, so high-quality ambient sound recording is essential.

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💡 Lighting: Soft, Naturalistic, Moody
• Natural Light + Bounce Boards: Use available daylight, control it with diffusers and white/gold reflectors.
• LED Panels (portable, battery-powered): Aputure MCs for subtle fill light or rim lighting.
• Softbox / Lantern: If you want to lightly key the actors during magic hour without making it look artificial.

The key is to embrace shadows, soft edges, and the moodiness of dusk.

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🦶 Camera Movement: Minimal and Purposeful
• Tripod: For locked-off, patient shots (the wait is part of the theme).
• Slider or Dolly (Optional): For very slow, creeping movements if you want to create tension.
• Gimbal (Optional): For the jogging scene, but it could also be handheld for a slightly raw feel.

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🎨 Color Grading & Look: Desaturated, Soft, Slightly Cool
• Shoot in Log profile to retain dynamic range and add a soft, slightly cool or greenish tint in post to emphasize the unsettling tone.
• Consider vignetting and slight lens blur to give a dreamlike quality to memories.

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🎭 Performance & Direction: Understated, Thoughtful
• You need actors who can carry long silences and subtle emotional shifts.
• Lots of beats, pauses, and micro-expressions.

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🛠️ Practical Materials:
• Bench (central prop, carefully selected – old, weathered, iconic-looking)
• Costumes: Simple, everyday clothing, possibly with subtle callbacks in color palette between the characters.
• Glitch effects: Can be done in post (Adobe After Effects, Premiere Pro) using light distortion, time displacement, and frame skipping.

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🎬 Summary Checklist:
• ✔️ Camera (Canon R6, Sony FX3, BMPCC6K)
• ✔️ 24mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm prime lenses
• ✔️ Shotgun + lav mics + field recorder
• ✔️ Bounce boards + LED panels (Aputure MC or 120D)
• ✔️ Tripod (priority), slider/gimbal (optional)
• ✔️ Bench + practical costumes
• ✔️ Ambient sound capture plan
• ✔️ Subtle post-production glitch toolkit

Filmmaking Process for The Wait

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1. Pre-Production (2-4 Weeks)

Conceptualization
• Finalize script and narration beats (the story is driven by the cadence of the voiceover and silences).
• Build a visual language:
• Fixed shots
• Symmetry
• Slow movement
• Emphasis on natural light transitions (wind, dusk, stillness)

Storyboarding & Shot List
• Design key frames:
• Empty bench
• Jogging entrance
• Sit-down, shared silence
• Subtle glitches
• Final wide of her stuck on the bench
• Map beats to specific times of day (Golden Hour, Dusk, Early Morning)

Location Scouting
• Find a bench with character in a quiet, visually rich park.
• Assess light changes, wind patterns, foot traffic.

Casting
• Choose actors with expressive, subtle faces capable of holding long, quiet beats.
• Prioritize chemistry and ability to “hold the frame” in stillness.

Equipment Planning
• Minimal setup:
• Compact camera + prime lenses
• Natural light kit (bounce boards, small LEDs)
• High-quality audio gear (for natural ambience and VO)

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2. Production (2-3 Days)

Day 1: Ambient & Bench Establishing Shots
• Capture wide shots at different times of day.
• Record clean ambient sound (wind, distant footsteps, silence).
• Shoot the empty bench, leaves moving, wind patterns.

Day 2: Character Coverage
• Film jogging approach, sit-down, dialogue moments.
• Use locked shots and very slow slider moves for tension.
• Record actor dialogue + emotional beats on location, quietly.

Day 3: Close-Ups & Glitch Setups
• Isolate expressions, small gestures.
• Capture over-the-shoulder and profile shots.
• Film panic/glitch sequence with camera shakiness, frame skipping setups.

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3. Post-Production (3-4 Weeks)

Editing
• Build the pace around breath, pauses, and silences.
• Prioritize long static shots.
• Use L-cuts to let dialogue bleed over scene transitions.

Glitch Effects (Subtle)
• Apply frame drops, mild time displacement, digital noise (in Premiere Pro or After Effects).
• Keep it organic, like a memory slipping — not overt horror.

Sound Design
• Layer wind, distant footsteps, faint voices.
• Use quiet glitches, sub-bass pulses, or barely audible whispers during “exchange” moment.
• The silence should feel weighted.

Voiceover Recording
• Record with soft, intimate delivery — almost a whisper at times.
• Optionally record in two takes:
• Clean
• With slight breathiness, like recalling a memory.

Color Grading
• Soft contrast, slight desaturation.
• Gentle green or cool blue tint.
• Optionally add subtle vignetting to suggest the edges of perception.

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4. Final Touches
• Export with careful attention to ambient levels — the quiet should draw the viewer in.
• Title card with minimalist font.
• Optional: Add light film grain to give a timeless feel.

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🎯 Key Creative Focus:
• Stillness is the power.
• The environment is an active character.
• Embrace long pauses, visual repetition, and natural transitions.
• Subtlety beats spectacle.