The behind-the-scenes production of the secret window

Preparing to make a classic

The story of the film is adapted from the second part of Stephen King's "Four Past Midnight" novel collection "Secret Window, Secret Garden" Window (Secret Garden), the top brass of Columbia Company took a fancy to this novel. The producer quickly found David Cape to adapt the novel into a screenplay. According to producer Gavin Braun (Gavin Polone), Columbia was very optimistic about cooperating with David Cape because "Spider-Man" and "Thriller Space" won Cape a good reputation.

“I really like this kind of movie,” David Cape said. “I like to tell this kind of story that takes place in a small space. Although there are some outdoor scenes in the film, the story is I wanted to explore themes of confinement and delusion as Mort Rainey lived alone at home during the worst phase of his life."

Mort Rainey in the film is a man in a painful marriage. As a successful screenwriter, David Cape resonates with the protagonist of the film to some extent: "I am very familiar with Rainey's lifestyle, and I am familiar with many writers. Similarly, Reni is an introvert. Although his inner life is rich and colorful, there are obstacles to expressing it to the outside world. When I am creating, I also stay alone in the study and don't like others to disturb me. Therefore, I have a deep understanding of John Shu. The impact of Special's intrusion on Renee is understandable, and Mort is at the lowest point in his life."

Johnny Depp sincerely feels that he is very close to the director Cape, not only because of the two. They both had the same birthday and celebrated their birthdays together. In order to urge Depp to join the film, Cape personally rushed to the set of "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" to discuss the matter. Cape's sincere attitude impressed Depp. Very impressed. After reading the script, Depp was shocked. He believed that both readers and viewers would be deeply attracted by the story.

Cap admitted that during the script adaptation process, the role of Mort was tailor-made for Depp. After learning that Depp agreed to star, Cape was extremely excited, and this lucky start made the subsequent casting work smooth, and all the expected actors were in place.

John Turturro, who plays John Shooter in the film, like Johnny Depp, has also played a writer before, in the 1991 "Barton Fink" filmed by the Coen brothers. "middle. Turturro's 13-year-old son is a huge fan of Stephen King. At his son's recommendation, Turturro read some of King's novels and fell in love with some movies adapted from the novels. Before taking on this film, Turturro's son read the entire script and wisely told his father that he should take over the film without hesitation.

Creating Thriller

During the filming of the film, director David Cape used "The Big Board". This is a large rectangular piece of cardboard with a series of storyboards marking out each day's shoot. With The Big Board, Cape puts his theory of horror to good use. He said: "Suspense scenes are small fragments, a kind of landscape film. What is the character in the picture looking at? You need to see his face, what he sees, and maybe what he doesn't see. . It's all made up of clips, but they're never spliced ??together, they're carefully planned, and I have a lot of prep time, and we create a sort of animated storyboard. I even had someone do the dubbing to get a feel for the timing, which is a great technique that helps you realize all the shortcomings and redundancies."

The detailed preparation made the actual filming phase smoother. , shortening the creative process. “There’s nothing worse than waiting until you’re on the soundstage or on location to realize there’s been an oversight, and these storyboards and meticulous preparation eliminate that and you can sit back and let the actors perform. Sometimes I There were brief moments where I needed to take over, but for the most part I just had to focus on the actors’ performances and where to position the camera,” Cape said.

During the filming of the film, Cape also used a lot of fast panning, because this shooting method can quickly change positions and is easy to cut. During the planning stages, Cape and the film's cinematographer, Fred Murphy, watched several famous thrillers, including Roman Polanski's "Rosemary's Baby" and "The Tenant." ", as well as John Bowman's "Four". Finally, Murphy decided to shoot "Secret Window" into a widescreen film in the Super 35 format.

Although the wide screen adds a lot of background to the film, it is difficult to hide any flaws, not to mention Cape's extensive use of mirror images. Cinematographer Murphy said that he has never shot a movie with so many mirrors. The mirrors in this film are one of the most important elements, and they help enhance the sense of space and produce many interesting shots. However, mirrors can reflect more than just the actors. The crew and camera equipment can also "leak out" if they are not careful. The choice of angle is crucial, and green screen technology is used in some of the images in the mirror.

The most difficult thing is not just the image in the mirror. It requires a higher level to clearly reflect the scene in the glass. The reflection of Mott's face in the car window glass in the film is the best proof.

In this set of shots, unlike shooting the mirror image indoors, where you can fill in the light when the light is low, it is not that simple in front of the car window at night. After clever design, the photographer used a special lighting method to illuminate the characters. face.

In addition, the crew also used a variety of photographic equipment such as Technocrane retractable camera stands, and used colors to describe the characters' moods, experiences and memories. The styles and patterns of clothing were also designed according to the personalities of different characters. Certainly.

The film was shot on the shores of Sacacomie Lake in Quebec, Canada, and took three weeks of filming. Howard Cummings, who was responsible for the film's production design, wanted Mort's cabin to be as close to the lake as possible in the film, and chose a location only 20 feet away from the lake. But because of the rock bed, the cabin had to be raised 9 feet. At the same time, in order to prevent weather effects, the crew also built the interior of the cabin as it was in the studio in case of emergencies.

·Ving Rhames was unable to star in the film due to scheduling conflicts.

·With "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl", Johnny Depp has achieved great success. In order to capitalize on the success, the producers will release the film one month in advance.

·Johnny Depp's line "This is not my beautiful house. This is not my beautiful wife. Anymore" comes from the lyrics of "Once in a Lifetime" by the band Talking Heads.