Sam Shetabi: Feeling the Heat

27 July 10

BAFTA and BBC Blast Screen-Skills Award winner Sam is learning the ways of a Cinematographer and it's certainly no easy ride.

Sam Shetabi with Neville Kidd If I had to describe this month’s Screen-Skills placement in one word, it could only be 'sweaty'! This month has all been about not just learning about being a DoP, but putting the skills into practice and seeing how real DoPs deal with the heat...literally sometimes!

After 6 weeks at the London Film Academy learning the ways of a Cinematographer, me and the other students on the course were challenged to make a different 2 minute film every day for 7 days.

It was the first time we’d lived and breathed filming on set and it took us away from our notes and informal practice and threw us in at the deep end, making real films on real Super 16mm film! Not to mention in the hottest week of the year so far!

Every day allowed us to try our hand at a different role on set, to get feel for the different responsibilities and get a really good understanding of how a film set functions. I started as a Gaffer, and it gave me the ideal grounding to really put into practice the principles of lighting we’d learnt in the weeks before.

The heat in the LFA’s studio was punishing, especially under the immense heat from the lights that I eagerly carried up ladders and successfully positioned without burning myself! This really helped when it came to my day as Director of Photography, which left me to get to grips with keeping a consistent lighting style and dreaming up nice lighting effects to make the whole film pop.

I was later able to experience the admirable work of the Clapper Loader – a role each of us looked upon with dread. I’d learnt that when using film, it couldn’t ever be exposed to light and so had to use a black tent to load the magazines of film without seeing a thing…! Add to that the meticulous paperwork that goes with clapper loading, it’s a job I will look at with reverence in the future!

Not only do I feel confident working on a set with all the protocol and pressures that it entails, I’ve also made some great friends on the course – who one day will hopefully be colleagues!

I even had a chance to direct my own piece, the first time I’ve ever done so on film! Overall, (as gruelling as the 12 hour days were at times!) the week was really rewarding. Not only do I feel confident working on a set with all the protocol and pressures that it entails, I’ve also made some great friends on the course – who one day will hopefully be colleagues!

This month also saw my first meeting with my BAFTA mentor - Neville Kidd. Putting the Screen-Skills award and bursary to one side, the biggest prize is definitely the one-to-one mentoring, a prize that money simply can't buy.

We met on the set of the new series of Nigella's Kitchen, where Neville has DoP'd on every previous series! It was great to hear first hand how a successful (and award-winning!) DoP carved their career in the industry and Neville seemed really keen to give me a helping hand too!

After discussing the future of lighting, going handheld on a P2 and talking about Neville's best work it was all over too soon, but luckily I have 6 months more to look forward to! Hopefully Nigella will be around with some nibbles next time!