Voice Vision A Creative Approach to

Narrative Filmmaking 3rd Edition Mick

Hurbis-Cherrier
Visit to download the full and correct content document:
https://textbookfull.com/product/voice-vision-a-creative-approach-to-narrative-filmmaki
ng-3rd-edition-mick-hurbis-cherrier/
More products digital (pdf, epub, mobi) instant
download maybe you interests ...

Cognition and Emotion From Order to Disorder 3rd

Edition Mick Power

https://textbookfull.com/product/cognition-and-emotion-from-
order-to-disorder-3rd-edition-mick-power/

Creative Blindness (And How To Cure It): Real-life

stories of remarkable creative vision 1st Edition Trott

https://textbookfull.com/product/creative-blindness-and-how-to-
cure-it-real-life-stories-of-remarkable-creative-vision-1st-
edition-trott/

Creative Solutions to Global Business Negotiations 3rd

Edition Claude Cellich

https://textbookfull.com/product/creative-solutions-to-global-
business-negotiations-3rd-edition-claude-cellich/

A Loving Approach to Dementia Care 3rd Edition Laura

Wayman

https://textbookfull.com/product/a-loving-approach-to-dementia-
care-3rd-edition-laura-wayman/
Context and Narrative in Photography Basics Creative
Photography 2nd Edition Maria Short

https://textbookfull.com/product/context-and-narrative-in-
photography-basics-creative-photography-2nd-edition-maria-short/

Community Pest Management in Practice: A Narrative

Approach Tanya M. Howard

https://textbookfull.com/product/community-pest-management-in-
practice-a-narrative-approach-tanya-m-howard/

The Analysis Of Legal Cases A Narrative Approach Flora

Di Donato

https://textbookfull.com/product/the-analysis-of-legal-cases-a-
narrative-approach-flora-di-donato/

Creative Direction in a Digital World A Guide to Being

a Modern Creative Director 1st Edition Adam Harrell

https://textbookfull.com/product/creative-direction-in-a-digital-
world-a-guide-to-being-a-modern-creative-director-1st-edition-
adam-harrell/

Practical derivatives a transactional approach 3rd

Edition Parker

https://textbookfull.com/product/practical-derivatives-a-
transactional-approach-3rd-edition-parker/
Voice & Vision

Develop your creative voice while acquiring the practical skills and confidence to use it
with this new and fully updated edition of Mick Hurbis-Cherrier’s filmmaking bible, Voice
& Vision. Written for independent filmmakers and film students who want a solid ground-
ing in the tools, techniques, and processes of narrative film, this comprehensive manual
covers all of the essentials while keeping artistic vision front and center. Hurbis-Cherrier
walks the reader through every step of the process—from the transformation of an idea
into a cinematic story, to the intricacies of promotion and distribution—and every detail in
between.

Features of this book include:

■ Comprehensive technical information on video production and postproduction tools,
allowing filmmakers to express themselves with any camera, in any format, and on any
budget
■ An emphasis on the collaborative filmmaking process, including the responsibilities
and creative contributions of every principal member of the crew and cast
■ A focus on learning to work successfully with available resources (time, equipment,
budget, personnel, etc.) in order to turn limitations into opportunities
■ Updated digital filmmaking workflow breakdowns for Rec. 709 HD, Log Format, and
D-Cinema productions
■ Substantial coverage of the sound tools and techniques used in film production and
the creative impact of postproduction sound design
■ An extensive discussion of digital cinematography fundamentals, including essential
lighting and exposure control tools, common gamma profiles, the use of LUTs, and the
role of color grading
■ Abundant examples referencing contemporary and classic films from around the world
■ Indispensable information on production safety, team etiquette, and set procedures.

This third edition also features a robust companion website that includes eight award-
winning example short films; interactive and high-resolution figures; downloadable raw
footage; production forms and logs for preproduction, production, and postproduction;
video examples that illustrate key concepts found within the book, and more.

Whether you are using it in the classroom or are looking for a comprehensive reference to
learn everything you need to know about the filmmaking process, Voice & Vision delivers
all of the details in an accessible and reader-friendly format.

Mick Hurbis-Cherrier has been teaching all levels of film production at Hunter College
in New York City for well over a decade. He works professionally in both film and video
and has performed a wide range of duties, including producing, writing, directing, cinema-
tography, and editing. His films have been shown around the country and have garnered
prizes at a number of festivals. He is also the co-author of Directing: Film Techniques and
Aesthetics (2013), now in its fifth edition.
 Voice & Vision
A Creative Approach to
Narrative Filmmaking
Third Edition

MICK HURBIS-CHERRIER
Illustrated by Gustavo Mercado
Third edition published 2018
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017

and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

© 2018 Taylor & Francis

The right of Mick Hurbis-Cherrier to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by
him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by
any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopy-
ing and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and
are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

First edition published by Focal Press 2012

Second edition published by Focal Press 2013

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Names: Hurbis-Cherrier, Mick, author.
Title: Voice & vision: a creative approach to narrative filmmaking / Mick Hurbis-Cherrier; illustrated
by Gustavo Mercado.
Description: 3rd edition. | New York: Routledge, 2018. | Includes bibliographical references
and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017057452 | ISBN 9781138480445 (hardback) | ISBN 9780415739986 (pbk.)
| ISBN 9781315815893 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: Motion pictures–Production and direction.
Classification: LCC PN1995.9.P7 H79 2018 | DDC 791.4302/32–dc23LC record available at
https://lccn.loc.gov/2017057452

ISBN: 978-1-138-48044-5 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-415-73998-6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-81589-3 (ebk)

Typeset in Helvetica Neue and Kunstler 480 by

Servis Filmsetting Ltd, Stockport, Cheshire

Visit the companion website: www.routledge.com/cw/hurbis-cherrier

This book is dedicated to Frank Beaver, Michelle Citron, and Dana
Hodgdon—exceptional professors, mentors, and friends whose teachings
have remained with me and whose voices echo throughout the pages
of this book.
Contents

DEDICATION ....................................................................................................................................... v
COMPANION WEBSITE CONTENTS ..............................................................................................xvii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................................... xix
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. xxi
■ Film is a Collaborative Art Form .............................................................................................xxiv
■ Teaching and Learning Filmmaking .......................................................................................xxiv
WHAT’S NEW IN THE THIRD EDITION ........................................................................................ xxvii
■ Celluloid Film Information is Relocated to the Website ...................................................... xxvii
■ Changes in Voice & Vision Third Edition ............................................................................... xxvii

Part I ■ Developing Your Film on Paper ...................................................................................................... 1

CHAPTER 1: FROM IDEA TO CINEMATIC STORY ..........................................................................3
■ Finding an Idea .............................................................................................................................3
■ From an Idea to a Story ...............................................................................................................4
■ Narrative Basics I: Essential Story Elements ............................................................................6
The Central Character ........................................................................................................................6
The Dramatic Situation: Conflict, Action, and the Central Question ..................................................7
Story Dynamism: Action, Change, and Development ........................................................................8
The Stakes ..........................................................................................................................................8
Resolution and Meaning .....................................................................................................................9
Story Essentials in Practice ................................................................................................................9
Making Specific Choices ..................................................................................................................12
■ Narrative Basics II: Goal and Conflict-Driven Stories.............................................................12
■ Narrative Basics III: Other Dramatic Story Concepts .............................................................14
A Final Note on Essential Dramatic Principles .................................................................................16
■ Ideas within Limitations ............................................................................................................16
Story Scale and Film Length ............................................................................................................17
Production Time ...............................................................................................................................17
Financial Resources..........................................................................................................................18
Equipment, Location, Props, and Other Resources .........................................................................18
Cast and Crew ..................................................................................................................................18
Keep It Manageable..........................................................................................................................19

CHAPTER 2: THE SCREENPLAY .....................................................................................................23

■ Stages of Script Development ..................................................................................................23
Concept ............................................................................................................................................23
Treatment ..........................................................................................................................................24
Author’s Draft to Final Draft ..............................................................................................................25
Shooting Script .................................................................................................................................25
■ Formatting the Author’s Draft Screenplay ...............................................................................25
Elements of an Author’s Draft Script ................................................................................................25
■ Screenplay Language and Style ...............................................................................................33
Visual Writing, Character, and Action ...............................................................................................33
Working with Dialogue: Revealing Emotions, Not Announcing Them ..............................................37
■ Reworking and Rewriting ..........................................................................................................42
vii
viii CONTENTS

CHAPTER 3: THE VISUAL LANGUAGE AND AESTHETICS OF CINEMA .....................................45

■ Shots, Sequences, and Scenes ................................................................................................45
■ The Frame and Composition .....................................................................................................50
Dimensions of the Frame ..................................................................................................................50
Shot Composition and the Graphic Qualities of the Frame..............................................................51
Shot Size...........................................................................................................................................56
Camera Angles .................................................................................................................................58
■ The Moving Frame .....................................................................................................................61
Camera Moves .................................................................................................................................61
The Moving Frame and Perspective .................................................................................................63
Motivation and the Moving Camera .................................................................................................65
■ Rate of Motion ............................................................................................................................68
Slow Motion ......................................................................................................................................68
Fast Motion .......................................................................................................................................69
■ Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................70

CHAPTER 4: ORGANIZING CINEMATIC TIME AND SPACE .........................................................71

■ Single-Camera Production and the Continuity System ..........................................................71
■ Principles of Continuity Style ....................................................................................................71
Continuity of Mise-en-Scène ............................................................................................................72
Continuity of Sound ..........................................................................................................................74
Continuity of Performance, Actions, and Placement........................................................................74
Spatial Continuity and the 180° Principle .........................................................................................74
20mm/30° Rule .................................................................................................................................76
Cutting on Action ..............................................................................................................................76
■ Scene Strategies: Putting Continuity to Use ...........................................................................79
Two-Person and Person/Object Interactions....................................................................................79
Changing the Line of Action .............................................................................................................84
Creating Visual Point of View ............................................................................................................85
Group Interactions ............................................................................................................................87
Moving a Person through Space ......................................................................................................87
Moving People through Space: Following or Converging ................................................................91
Parallel Action Sequence ..................................................................................................................92
Cheating on Film...............................................................................................................................97
■ Style Outside the Continuity System ......................................................................................101
Jump Cut Technique .......................................................................................................................102
Long Take Technique ......................................................................................................................103

CHAPTER 5: FROM SCREENPLAY TO VISUAL PLAN .................................................................107

■ Three Tools for Previsualization..............................................................................................107
The Shooting Script ........................................................................................................................107
Overhead Diagrams ........................................................................................................................110
Storyboards ....................................................................................................................................114
It’s Only on Paper, Not Written in Stone .........................................................................................114
■ The Director and Previsualizing: A Method ...........................................................................117
The Big Picture ...............................................................................................................................117
The Details: How to Cover Scenes .................................................................................................118
Back to the Big Picture ...................................................................................................................120
■ Previsualization and Collaboration .........................................................................................121
Director and Cinematographer .......................................................................................................121
Director and Actors.........................................................................................................................122
Director and Production Team ........................................................................................................122
■ The Shot List: From Visual Plan to Production Plan .............................................................123
Creating a Shot List ........................................................................................................................123
■ Day-to-Day Production Scheduling ........................................................................................128
 CONTENTS ix

Part II ■ Preparing for Production............................................................................................................ 131

CHAPTER 6: PREPARING FOR PRODUCTION ............................................................................133
■ Line Producing and the Creative Process .............................................................................133
How Much is Enough? ...................................................................................................................133
Production Design ..........................................................................................................................134
Locations and Set Dressing............................................................................................................135
Location Scouting...........................................................................................................................139
The Location Technical Survey .......................................................................................................140
Wardrobe and Props .......................................................................................................................141
The Script Breakdown ....................................................................................................................143
■ Budgeting Your Film.................................................................................................................147
Shooting Days: Film Length, Scale, and Shooting Ratio................................................................148
Workflow and Budgeting ................................................................................................................151
Department Structure .....................................................................................................................152
Equipment and Facilities ................................................................................................................152
Supplies, Materials, and Expendables ...........................................................................................153
Location Expenses .........................................................................................................................153
Personnel (Cast and Crew) .............................................................................................................153
Legal and Insurance .......................................................................................................................154
Hidden Costs and Contingency .....................................................................................................155
Feature-Film Budgets .....................................................................................................................155
■ Summary: Preproduction Paperwork .....................................................................................156

CHAPTER 7: THE CAST AND CREW ............................................................................................157

■ The Production Crew ...............................................................................................................157
Production Department Structure ..................................................................................................157
■ Departments and Department Heads: The Creative Core ...................................................158
The Producing Team .......................................................................................................................158
The Director, Assistant Director, and Script Supervisor .................................................................159
The Camera and Electric Departments ..........................................................................................162
The Art Department ........................................................................................................................165
The Sound Department ..................................................................................................................165
The Appropriate Crew Size .............................................................................................................166
■ Crew Meetings and Communication ......................................................................................166
■ Being a Crewmember ..............................................................................................................167
■ On-Camera Talent ....................................................................................................................168
Finding an Actor ............................................................................................................................168
Auditions .........................................................................................................................................170
Callbacks ........................................................................................................................................173
Releases, Minors, and Unions .......................................................................................................174
Actors Unions .................................................................................................................................174
■ Working with Actors I: Before the Camera Rolls ..................................................................175
The Actor as Creative Collaborator ................................................................................................175
Rehearsals ......................................................................................................................................176
Working with Trained Actors ...........................................................................................................177
Working with Nonactors .................................................................................................................178
Working with Extras ........................................................................................................................179
The Contact Sheet ..........................................................................................................................180

Part III ■ Tools and Techniques: Production ........................................................................................ 181

CHAPTER 8: THE DIGITAL VIDEO SYSTEM .................................................................................183
■ Film: A Mechanical and Photochemical Medium ..................................................................183
■ Video: An Electronic Medium ..................................................................................................184
Analog versus Digital Video ............................................................................................................184
Video Formats.................................................................................................................................185
x CONTENTS

■ Broadcast Standards ...............................................................................................................186

Scanning and Frame Rate ..............................................................................................................187
Aspect Ratio ...................................................................................................................................192
Resolution .......................................................................................................................................192
Color Encoding: Rec. 709 and Rec. 2020 ......................................................................................194
Timecode ........................................................................................................................................195
■ Other Broadcast Standards Worldwide .................................................................................196
■ DCI Standards for Theatrical Projection ................................................................................197
■ A Final Note on Video Standards ............................................................................................198

CHAPTER 9: THE DIGITAL VIDEO CAMERA ................................................................................199

■ Digital Video Camera Essentials: Exterior .............................................................................200
The Body ........................................................................................................................................200
Function Buttons and Switches......................................................................................................201
The Lens .........................................................................................................................................201
Servo Zoom Control .......................................................................................................................202
Viewfinders and LCD Viewscreens .................................................................................................203
Media Bay .......................................................................................................................................204
Video, Audio, Data-In and Out ........................................................................................................206
DC Power .......................................................................................................................................206
■ Digital Video Camera Essentials: Interior ..............................................................................208
The Image Sensor...........................................................................................................................208
Analog-to-Digital Converter ............................................................................................................211
The Digital Signal Processor...........................................................................................................212
Compression and Codecs ..............................................................................................................212
Chroma Subsampling .....................................................................................................................214
Data Rate ........................................................................................................................................215
■ Camera Settings.......................................................................................................................218
Format Settings ..............................................................................................................................218
Image Control Settings ...................................................................................................................218
■ Digital Video Cameras Today ..................................................................................................221
The Camcorder ...............................................................................................................................221
DSLRs and Mirrorless Cameras .....................................................................................................222
Hybrid Large Sensor Cameras .......................................................................................................224
Action Cams ...................................................................................................................................224
The Ultra High End: D-Cinema, UHD, and Beyond ........................................................................224
How Much Camera Do You Actually Need? ...................................................................................225
The Future.......................................................................................................................................226

CHAPTER 10: THE CAMERA LENS...............................................................................................231

■ Basic Lens Optics ....................................................................................................................231
■ Focal Length .............................................................................................................................232
Prime and Zoom Lenses.................................................................................................................233
Crop Factor: Focal Length and Sensor Size ..................................................................................234
Lens Perspective ............................................................................................................................235
■ Focus .........................................................................................................................................240
Selective Focus ..............................................................................................................................241
Methods for Finding Focus.............................................................................................................242
■ Aperture ....................................................................................................................................244
F-stops and T-stops .......................................................................................................................245
Aperture and Exposure Control ......................................................................................................246
Lens Speed .....................................................................................................................................246
Automatic versus Manual Lens Functions......................................................................................247
■ Depth of Field ...........................................................................................................................248
Controlling Depth of Field ...............................................................................................................249
DOF Range Distribution ..................................................................................................................252
Circle of Confusion .........................................................................................................................252
 CONTENTS xi

CHAPTER 11: CAMERA SUPPORT ...............................................................................................255

■ The Handheld Camera .............................................................................................................255
Shoulder Mounts ............................................................................................................................257
■ The Tripod .................................................................................................................................257
Tripod Head ....................................................................................................................................257
Tripod Legs .....................................................................................................................................260
■ The Dolly ...................................................................................................................................261
■ Sliders .......................................................................................................................................261
■ Jib Arms ....................................................................................................................................262
■ Stabilizing Systems ..................................................................................................................262
■ Jerry-Rigged or Improvised Support Systems ......................................................................263
■ Drones .......................................................................................................................................265
■ Aesthetic and Practical Considerations ................................................................................267
Camera Moves versus Camera Adjustments .................................................................................268

CHAPTER 12: BASICS OF EXPOSURE .........................................................................................269

■ Image Exposure........................................................................................................................269
Elements of Exposure .....................................................................................................................271
■ Finding Exposures with In-Camera Meters ...........................................................................275
The Run ‘n’ Gun Exposure Method ................................................................................................275
The Gray Card Exposure Method ...................................................................................................276
Zoom versus Spot Meter Function .................................................................................................278
Which Exposure? ............................................................................................................................279
More Metering Options ...................................................................................................................279
Black, White, and Middle Gray: A Waveform Monitor Introduction ................................................281
Zebras .............................................................................................................................................283
Using Field Monitors .......................................................................................................................284

CHAPTER 13: BASICS OF LIGHT AND LIGHTING .......................................................................287

■ The Fundamental Objectives of Lighting ...............................................................................289
■ The Fundamental Sources of Light ........................................................................................289
■ Three Essential Properties of Light ........................................................................................291
Intensity ..........................................................................................................................................291
Quality ............................................................................................................................................292
Color Temperature ..........................................................................................................................293
■ Light and Directionality............................................................................................................294
■ Fundamental Lighting Setups and Principles ........................................................................296
Key Light .........................................................................................................................................298
Fill Light ..........................................................................................................................................299
Backlight .........................................................................................................................................299
Set Lights ........................................................................................................................................300
Specials and Practicals ..................................................................................................................300
Three-Point Lighting .......................................................................................................................301
Lighting Order and Exposures ........................................................................................................302
Lighting Ratios ................................................................................................................................302
Background-to-Subject Ratio.........................................................................................................304
■ Exterior Lighting .......................................................................................................................306
Location Scouting and Scheduling.................................................................................................306
Check the Weather .........................................................................................................................307
Subject and Camera Positions .......................................................................................................307
Sun Plus Bounced Light .................................................................................................................308
Shade Plus Bounced Light .............................................................................................................308
Diffusing Sunlight ............................................................................................................................308
Dusk-for-Night ................................................................................................................................309
Shooting at Night ............................................................................................................................309
Magic Hour .....................................................................................................................................309
xii CONTENTS

■ Altering Light with Gels and Filters ........................................................................................311

Lighting Gels ...................................................................................................................................311
Camera Filters ...............................................................................................................................314
■ Basic Lighting and Grip Equipment ........................................................................................317
Lighting Units ..................................................................................................................................317
Basic Grip Gear ..............................................................................................................................320

CHAPTER 14: LIGHTING AND EXPOSURE: BEYOND THE BASICS ..........................................325

■ Contrast Range and Dynamic Range .....................................................................................325
Contrast Range...............................................................................................................................325
Dynamic Range ..............................................................................................................................326
■ Video Gamma ...........................................................................................................................329
Gamma Options .............................................................................................................................330
Dynamic Range versus Useable Dynamic Range ..........................................................................333
■ Advanced Exposure Tools .......................................................................................................335
Handheld Light Meters ...................................................................................................................335
The Waveform Monitor ...................................................................................................................338
Putting Dynamic Range, Exposures, and Lighting to Work............................................................340
Reflectance and Exposure Range ..................................................................................................345
Camera Tests ..................................................................................................................................348
Don’t Forget What It’s All About .....................................................................................................349
■ Lighting Approaches and Styles .............................................................................................350
Naturalism and Lighting ..................................................................................................................350
Stylized Lighting .............................................................................................................................352
Not an Either/or Choice ..................................................................................................................353
■ Finding the Appropriate Lighting Strategy ............................................................................356
The Overall Look .............................................................................................................................356
Visual Research ..............................................................................................................................357
Other Considerations......................................................................................................................359
A Final Word on Cinematography ...................................................................................................360

CHAPTER 15: SOUND FOR PRODUCTION ..................................................................................363

■ What is Production Audio? ......................................................................................................363
■ Understanding Sound ..............................................................................................................363
Frequency (Pitch) ............................................................................................................................365
Amplitude (Loudness) .....................................................................................................................366
Quality (Timbre) ...............................................................................................................................366
Velocity ...........................................................................................................................................367
■ Production Sound ....................................................................................................................367
Location Audio: Sync Sound, Wild Sound, and Ambient Sound ...................................................367
Location Acoustics .........................................................................................................................369
■ Double-System and Single-System Recording .....................................................................369
Why Double-System for Narrative Projects? ..................................................................................370
The Slate in Double-System Recording .........................................................................................370
■ Digital Sound Recording..........................................................................................................371
The Basic Signal Path.....................................................................................................................371
Digital Audio: Quality Matters .........................................................................................................372
Sampling, Bit Depth, and File Formats ...........................................................................................372
■ Production Sound Tools ..........................................................................................................374
The Digital Sound Recorder ...........................................................................................................374
Sound Recording Direct to Camera ...............................................................................................377
Portable Field Mixers ......................................................................................................................378
■ Microphones .............................................................................................................................379
Dynamic, Condenser, and Electret Condenser...............................................................................379
Microphone Frequency Response..................................................................................................380
Microphone Directionality ...............................................................................................................380
 CONTENTS xiii

The XLR Connector ........................................................................................................................383

Wireless and On-Board Microphones ............................................................................................383
What’s Really Important..................................................................................................................385

CHAPTER 16: LOCATION SOUND TECHNIQUES ........................................................................387

■ The Sound Team .......................................................................................................................387
■ Sound Preproduction ...............................................................................................................388
■ Recording Technique ...............................................................................................................388
Setting Levels .................................................................................................................................389
Reference Tone and Calibration .....................................................................................................391
Manual versus Automatic Functions ..............................................................................................391
Headphone Monitoring ...................................................................................................................392
■ Microphone Technique ............................................................................................................394
Selecting the Right Microphone .....................................................................................................394
Balance, Consistency, and Being On-Axis .....................................................................................394
Booms and Boom Technique .........................................................................................................395
Using Lavaliere Mics .......................................................................................................................397
Miking and Perspective ..................................................................................................................398
Using Multiple Microphones ...........................................................................................................398
Ambient Sound and Audio Continuity ............................................................................................398
Miscellaneous Recording Challenges ............................................................................................399

CHAPTER 17: ON-SET PROCEDURES .........................................................................................403

■ Walking Onto the Set ...............................................................................................................403
Who Does What, When .................................................................................................................404
Dressing the Set .............................................................................................................................404
Loading In .......................................................................................................................................404
Prepping the Gear and Rough Setup .............................................................................................404
Tech Rehearsal ...............................................................................................................................405
Setup ..............................................................................................................................................405
Final Run-Throughs ........................................................................................................................407
■ Shooting a Take ........................................................................................................................409
Slate Protocol .................................................................................................................................409
Evaluating the Take .........................................................................................................................410
■ Additional Shooting Procedures .............................................................................................413
Time Management ..........................................................................................................................413
The Script Supervisor’s Report.......................................................................................................413
■ Data Management ....................................................................................................................415
File-Based Media Management on the Set ....................................................................................415
The Data Wrangler’s Kit ..................................................................................................................416
The Data Backup Process ..............................................................................................................416
Data Organization ...........................................................................................................................417
■ After the Shoot .........................................................................................................................417
Striking the Set ...............................................................................................................................417
That’s a Wrap! .................................................................................................................................418
■ The Director and Actors On the Set .......................................................................................418
Tech Rehearsals..............................................................................................................................419
Setup ..............................................................................................................................................420
Run-throughs ..................................................................................................................................420
Takes ...............................................................................................................................................420
Flexibility and Opportunities ...........................................................................................................421

CHAPTER 18: SET ETIQUETTE AND PRODUCTION SAFETY ....................................................423

■ Set Etiquette: Respect, Courtesy, and Good Work ...............................................................423
Food and Breaks ............................................................................................................................424
Courtesy on Public Locations.........................................................................................................425
xiv CONTENTS

Respect and Protect the Locations, Props, and Costumes ...........................................................425

Respect Your Equipment ................................................................................................................427
■ Production Safety and Security ..............................................................................................427
Prepare for Safety ...........................................................................................................................429
Production Insurance......................................................................................................................430
Common Sense ..............................................................................................................................430
Locations and Permits ....................................................................................................................432
Rest and Health ..............................................................................................................................432
Weather...........................................................................................................................................432
Risky Locations ..............................................................................................................................433
Picture Vehicles and Drones ...........................................................................................................433
Weapons and Violence ...................................................................................................................434
Fire and Open Flames ....................................................................................................................435
Water ..............................................................................................................................................436
Physical Stunts ...............................................................................................................................436
Security ...........................................................................................................................................437
■ Electricity and Safety ...............................................................................................................438
How Much Electricity? ....................................................................................................................438
Electrical Loads and Time ..............................................................................................................440
Lighting and Grip Safety Tips .........................................................................................................441

Part IV ■ Tools and Techniques: Postproduction ............................................................................ 443

CHAPTER 19: POSTPRODUCTION OVERVIEW: WORKFLOW AND THE EDITING STAGES ...445
■ The Postproduction Team .......................................................................................................445
■ Technical Workflow: From Start to Finish ..............................................................................446
Low-Budget Workflows ..................................................................................................................446
Format Workflow: Codecs and Containers.....................................................................................447
LUTs and Workflow .........................................................................................................................449
High-End Workflow .........................................................................................................................450
Any Film Can Distribute as a DCP ..................................................................................................452
■ The Editing Stages ...................................................................................................................452
Edit Process Overview ....................................................................................................................453
Viewing Dailies ................................................................................................................................453
First Assembly Edit .........................................................................................................................455
Rough Cuts .....................................................................................................................................455
Fresh Eyes and Review Screenings................................................................................................456
Cutting Dialogue .............................................................................................................................457
The Fine Cut and Picture Lock .......................................................................................................457
Finishing..........................................................................................................................................459
Mastering ........................................................................................................................................460

CHAPTER 20: DIGITAL EDITING FUNDAMENTALS.....................................................................461

■ Too Much of a Good Thing? ....................................................................................................462
■ How to Approach Surplus Technology ...................................................................................464
■ The Basic NLE System.............................................................................................................466
The Hardware Setup .......................................................................................................................466
The Software Interface ...................................................................................................................467
■ Editing Essentials I: Getting Started.......................................................................................473
Setting Up Your NLE Project ..........................................................................................................473
Importing Video and Audio Assets .................................................................................................474
Syncing Footage .............................................................................................................................475
Organizing Your Footage ................................................................................................................478
Using Bins to Organize ...................................................................................................................479
 CONTENTS xv

■ Editing Essentials II: Making Simple Edits .............................................................................479

Basic Edit Types ............................................................................................................................479
Basic Cutting ..................................................................................................................................482
Think! ..............................................................................................................................................486

CHAPTER 21: THE ART AND TECHNIQUE OF EDITING .............................................................489

■ The Golden Rule of Postproduction .......................................................................................489
■ Why We Edit I: Narrative Order and Emphasis ......................................................................492
Editing for Story Order ....................................................................................................................493
Editing for Dramatic Emphasis .......................................................................................................494
■ Fundamental Image-to-Image Transitions ............................................................................499
The Cut ...........................................................................................................................................499
The Dissolve ...................................................................................................................................500
The Fade .........................................................................................................................................501
■ Why We Edit II: Extra-Narrative Considerations ...................................................................501
Temporal Editing: Condensing and Expanding Time .....................................................................502
Timing, Rhythm, and Pace .............................................................................................................505
Associative Editing .........................................................................................................................510
Emotion...........................................................................................................................................513

CHAPTER 22: THE SOUND DESIGN IN FILM ...............................................................................515

■ Sound Design Overview ..........................................................................................................515
■ Sound Design I: Sounds, Sync, and Source ..........................................................................516
Movie Sounds: Speech, Sound Effects, Ambience, and Music .....................................................516
Synchronous, Nonsynchronous, and Postsynchronous Audio ......................................................517
Source ............................................................................................................................................518
■ Sound Design II: The Sound Elements in Detail ....................................................................520
Speech............................................................................................................................................520
Sound Effects—Hard and Soft .......................................................................................................523
Ambient Sound, Room Tone, and Walla .........................................................................................527
Music ..............................................................................................................................................529
Common Music Pitfalls ...................................................................................................................533
■ Sound Design Strategies .........................................................................................................535
From Realism to Stylized Approaches ...........................................................................................535

CHAPTER 23: CUTTING SOUND AND WORKING WITH MULTIPLE TRACKS ..........................541
■ Working with Multiple Tracks ..................................................................................................541
Building Your Essential Audio Tracks .............................................................................................542
Refining Your Sound Design ...........................................................................................................542
Tweaking Sound and Using Workspaces .......................................................................................544
Sound Track Labels by Type...........................................................................................................545
■ Basic Sound Design: Analysis of a Simple Scene .................................................................545
Dialogue Tracks ..............................................................................................................................547
Room Tone Track ............................................................................................................................548
Sound Effects Track........................................................................................................................549
Ambience Track ..............................................................................................................................552
Music Track.....................................................................................................................................552
■ The Sound Mix ..........................................................................................................................554
The Sound Mixing Steps ................................................................................................................554
Step 1: Final Sound Selection, Placement, and Splitting Tracks....................................................554
Step 2: Audio Sweetening ..............................................................................................................554
Step 3: Creating Audio Transitions .................................................................................................557
Step 4: Audio Level Balancing........................................................................................................558
Step 5: The Mix Down ....................................................................................................................561
■ Advanced Sound Mixing Programs ........................................................................................561
Why Go Pro? ..................................................................................................................................563
xvi CONTENTS

CHAPTER 24: GRADING, MASTERING, AND DISTRIBUTION ....................................................567

■ Color Correction versus Color Grading .................................................................................567
■ Basic Color Correction in Your NLE .......................................................................................568
Adjusting Luminance Values ...........................................................................................................568
Adjusting Chrominance Values .......................................................................................................569
The Color Workspace and Tools .....................................................................................................569
Grading Log Footage From Scratch ...............................................................................................572
Applying LUTs to Log Footage .......................................................................................................573
Advice from the Color Grading Trenches .......................................................................................574
■ Titles and Credits .....................................................................................................................575
■ Mastering and Distribution Copies .........................................................................................577
Output Formats for Distribution ......................................................................................................577
DVD and Blu-Ray ............................................................................................................................578
■ Distributing Your Film ..............................................................................................................580
Self-Distribution ..............................................................................................................................581
Distributors .....................................................................................................................................582
Film Festivals ..................................................................................................................................582
Traditional Theatrical.......................................................................................................................583
Crowdsource Theatrical..................................................................................................................584
Digital: Video Hosting/Sharing ........................................................................................................585
Digital: Video on Demand ...............................................................................................................586

RECOMMENDED READINGS ........................................................................................................591

RECOMMENDED FILMMAKING APPS FOR MOBILE DEVICES.................................................595
BIBLIOGRAPHY ..............................................................................................................................599
FILMOGRAPHY ...............................................................................................................................605
PHOTO AND ILLUSTRATION CREDITS ........................................................................................623
INDEX ..............................................................................................................................................625
Companion Website Contents
www.routledge.com/cw/hurbis-cherrier

When you see this hand pointer icon in the pages of this book, it indicates that
material related to that section is available online at www.routledge.com/cw/hurbis-
cherrier

■ THE COMPANION WEBSITE TABS

All By Chapters
This section contains all of the supplementary web materials in the book, listed by chapter
and in the order they occur in each chapter. This includes:
■ Short film examples
■ High-resolution and color figures
■ Video figures
■ Interactive figures
■ Forms, logs, and tables for preproduction, production, and postproduction.

Short Films
This section contains links to stream the example short films discussed in the book. The
films are:
■ The Black Hole. Directed by The Diamond Dogs Phil & Olly (3 min.)
■ Plastic Bag. Directed by Ramin Bahrani (18 min.)
■ Waking Dreams. Directed by John Daschbach (24 min.)
■ When I Was Young. Directed by Huixia Lu (15 min.)
■ Vive le 14 Juillet. Directed by Didier Rouget (4 min.)
■ Winner Take Steve. Directed by Jared Hess (2 min.)
■ This is It. Directed by Alexander Engel (3 min.)
■ The Wake. Directed by Gemma Lee (7 min.)
■ Before the Making of Sleep Dealer. Directed by Alex Rivera (12 min.)
■ Kiarra’s Escape (scene excerpt) (2 min.)
■ You Got It (multiple scene excerpts).

Video and Interactive Figures

This section contains all of the figures and examples which are noted in the book as videos
or interactive flash figures.

Forms, Logs, Tables

This section contains downloadable forms, logs, and tables for preproduction, production,
and postproduction. These forms include:
■ Storyboard forms
■ Location scouting report
■ Budget forms
■ Production call sheet
■ Script breakdown sheet
■ Camera and sound reports
■ Depth of field tables for the 16mm format
■ Film can labels for exposed film
■ Sound cue spotting sheet.
xvii
xviii COMPANION WEBSITE CONTENTS

The Celluloid System

This section contains all of the chapters and sections dealing with the celluloid filmmaking
process from the second edition of this book (i.e., film cameras, film stocks, film-to-tape
transfers, and film workflow in general). You may download all celluloid film related chap-
ters as .pdfs if you wish.

Web Resources Links

This section contains links to useful websites related to various aspects of filmmaking.

Raw Footage Downloads

This section includes download links for raw video footage to be used for editing exercises.

Misc. and New

This section includes miscellaneous materials from throughout the book and new material
added to the website after publication. This includes:
■ Sample location contract and talent release
■ The CSATF and Ontario production safety guideline publications
■ Screenplay formatting specifications
■ Instructions for calibrating monitors to color bars
■ New materials added to the website after publication date.
Acknowledgments
The third edition of this book represents a veritable overhaul and could not have been
accomplished without the kind help, contributions, and counsel of many reviewers, assis-
tants, consultants, students, and colleagues—friends one and all.

Naturally, warmest thanks go to the team at Focal Press (Taylor & Francis): Sheni Kruger,
John Makowski, Abigail Stanley, Jonathan Merrett, Emily Boyd, Simon Jacobs, Dennis
McGonagle, Emily McCloskey, Peter Linsley, and of course, the former acquisitions editor
Elinor Actipis, who initiated this entire project.

I am deeply grateful to the filmmakers who generously provided their excellent short films
for analysis and streaming on the book’s companion website: John Daschbach, Huixia Lu,
the Diamond Dogs Phil & Olly, Ramin Bahrani, Didier Rouget, Alexander Engel, Gemma
Lee, Alex Rivera, Jared Hess, and the Wexley School for Girls.

I would also like to thank my colleagues at Hunter College of the City University of New
York for their support, advice, and encouragement, primarily President Jennifer Raab, Jay
Roman, Joel Zuker, Andrew Lund, Ivone Margulies, Joe McElhaney, Shanti Thakur, Michael
Gitlin, Sameh Zoabi, Renato Tonelli, David Pavlosky, Carol Adams, and Peter A. Jackson.
Special acknowledgment goes to my colleagues Kelly Anderson and Martin Lucas, with
whom I worked on the documentary version of this book (Documentary Voice & Vision,
Focal Press, 2016), a process that informed this edition; and Ricardo Miranda who created
the interactive figures for the companion website.

During the writing of this book I have been deeply touched by the way Hunter College
film students eagerly rallied to my aid. To all of those who gave so willingly of their energy,
enthusiasm, and talent, I am grateful: Alana Kakoyianis, George Racz, Emily DiPaola,
Myles Glynn, Ivana Rai evi , Emilio Castro, Dennis Ragone, Nicole Pommerehncke, Ruomi
Lee Hampel, Rommel Genciana, Maya Sheppard, Elvis Maynard, Melissa Hill, Matt Post,
Nikki Hracs, Richard Unapanta, Tristan Allman, Eric Smith, Donna Chin, and Brian Kolb.

And, of course, I must acknowledge the many friends whose tangible and inspira-
tional support is woven throughout the pages of this text, especially Abbas Kiarostami,
Seifollah Samadian, Raymond Cauchetier, Rachel Morrison, Thelma Schoonmaker, Ellen
Kuras, John Inwood, Bill Collage, Pam Katz, Paul Cronin, Timothy Corrigan, Mike Figgis,
Shirin Neshat, Antoin Cox, Christine Vachon, Kim Fuller, Courtney Hunt, Don Harwood,
Heather Rae, Cory McAbee, Becky Glupczynski, Rain Li, Walter Partos, Zachary Sluser,
Michel Khleifi, Dag Bennstrom, Matt Anderson, Clarence Courtney, Claire Luke, Henny
Garfunkel, and Charles Merzbacher, Catherine Riggs-Bergesen, Laurent Tirard, Wes
Simpkins, Pete Abel at Abel CineTech, Jan Crittenden at Panasonic, and Joe Hannigan
at Weston Sound.

Deserving of extra gratitude are cinematographers Ben Silberfarb and Michael Carmine
for their generous assistance with the exposure chapters; Ken Dancyger, for prompting
me to write a book in the first place; and Michael Rabiger who has become a remarkably
perspicacious mentor ever since my collaboration with him on Directing: Film Techniques
and Aesthetics (Focal Press, 2013).

Also, a huge thanks to all of the people who created the online example film excerpts: (You
Got It) Marta Gac, Liz Dorovitsine, Namakula Mu, Don Puglisi, Tom Ashton, Edel Garstad,
xix
xx ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

George Mantzoutsos, Joanne Marino, Sydney Amanuel, Marion Kennelly, and Mihir
Chitale; and (Kiarra’s Escape) Miles Adgate, Jordan Cooke, Nick Vega, Sharine Mohamed,
Robert Youngren, Jessica Krueger, Victor Varela, and Rick Varela.

And most profoundly, I am eternally grateful and indebted to Katherine Hurbis-Cherrier

and my brother Gustavo Mercado, who were in the trenches with me each and every day
of the writing and research. This book would not have been possible without them.
Introduction: Third Edition, 2018
As I was preparing the third edition of Voice & Vision, I carefully read over my two previ-
ous introductions. The first edition intro, written in 2007, essentially asserts that filmmaking
is more than just having a good story—it argues that one must gain a degree of familiar-
ity, if not mastery, over the tools and technology of the medium in order to become truly
expressive and fluent. Too many times beginners launch into a film project without really
understanding how a lens, or light, or an edit, or a sound effect can contribute to telling a
compelling story on the screen.

The introduction to the second edition, however, seemed a reversal of this concern. Only
a few years after publishing the first edition, digital technologies exploded and became
more powerful and available, and I noticed a trend with emerging filmmakers; they were
becoming so enamored with the technology that the lion’s share of their attention went
into securing 4K cameras, strategizing workflows, and designing cool green screen CGI
effects, while far too little attention was being paid to the foundational storytelling aspects
like writing a solid script, rehearsing actors, or creating expressive lighting and composi-
tions. I had seen more than a few novice filmmakers hire a cinematographer for no other
reason than they happened to have an Arri Alexa camera.

Are these two exhortations incompatible? Are they contradictory? Not at all, and this rep-
resents the steep learning curve for all new filmmakers; you’ve got to do it all. You have to
know your technology and tools, and you must maintain your focus on creative storytell-
ing, expressive image making, and convincing performance.

So how does a beginner absorb all of this—and fast? Practice, lots and lots of practice.
It’s a good thing that exceptional filmmaking tools are neither expensive nor difficult to
acquire, and this makes extensive practice doable. If you are just starting out in your career
as a filmmaker, don’t get bogged down in complex technologies and expensive workflows.
Stay lean. Work simply. Produce much. You can make fantastic films with little more than a
good camera, an off the shelf editing system, and a small cast and crew of eager creative
people—and of course a great script. Producing multiple short films, quickly, will teach you
more about the real world of filmmaking than a film production class, or online forums, or
YouTube tutorials, or even a book on filmmaking . . . oh, wait! Of course, if you have all four
resources working in coordination, then every short film you make as a beginner will rep-
resent a veritable crash course.

So, don’t immediately jump into features or 30-minute films. These can take a very long
time to simply get off the ground. You should be producing, producing, producing. Some
of your movies will be good, others may be not so good—doesn’t matter. Making multiple
short films with a simple workflow will allow you to develop your core storytelling tech-
niques like writing a solid screenplay, visual storytelling, working with actors, controlling
rhythm and tone, and harnessing the storytelling power of editing and sound design. And
while none of these things requires a big budget, complex workflows, grip trucks, or a 4K
DCP, you will nonetheless be gaining a degree of mastery over the tools of cinematic sto-
rytelling. Making many short films quickly will also give you familiarity and confidence with
the filmmaking stages, set-protocol and most importantly, working collaboratively. Then,
as you begin to add more advanced technologies and workflows, and larger crews and
budgets, you’ll still remain in control of the filmmaking process, rather than having the
process control you. You will be able to tell the difference between a cinematographer who
thinks creatively about image making from one who has a lot of awesome gear, but no eye
xxi
xxii INTRODUCTION

for image making or story sensitivity (and there are a lot of those). You’ll gain a clear-eyed
perspective for the relative value between a well written screenplay and a fine actor versus
the latest 8K camera and a D-Cinema workflow. In other words, you will discover who you
are as a filmmaker and you will be equipped to do good work over the long haul, in what-
ever production situation you find yourself in, no matter how technologies and workflows
change in the future.

This little pep talk does not simply apply to directors; it goes for anyone seeking to work
in one of the creative filmmaking roles. A budding cinematographer is better off making
five short films in one year with a DSLR and a basic lighting package, rather than spend-
ing that year hunting down an Arri Amira, attending training workshops to learn how to use
it, researching a technical workflow that includes transcoding proxies and 3D LUTs for it,
finding a reliable DIT, and shooting only one project. Shooting many projects will help you
understand how to become an expressive shooter with any camera, rather than being just
a gearhead, and you will learn about collaboration and how to recognize good directing
and good screenwriting. The same goes for editors, and art directors, and sound design-
ers, and special effects designers, and so on. So get out there and make films, lots of
them, take risks, experiment, try different approaches—find your voice.

I have included trimmed down versions of the previous introductions here in the third edi-
tion because while the technology of filmmaking may have changed dramatically since
2007 (!), the basic principles behind learning and practicing the craft have not. These intro-
ductions are still relevant and instructive, and will give you a good sense for the philosoph-
ical and pedagogical underpinnings of this book. Please do give them a read.

■ INTRODUCTION: SECOND EDITION, 2012

Early in the process of writing the second edition, I happened to run into a former student
who was preparing to go into production on his first feature film. When he elaborated
on the project, the very first thing he told me, quite excitedly, was that he was shoot-
ing on a RED ONE camera at 24p and 4K resolution and that the latest version of Final
Cut Pro supported the REDCODE RAW codec without transcoding, and so on and so on.
It took some time for the conversation to get around to the actual story and ideas in the
film.

This is not an unusual conversation these days. I have seen countless students labor so
mightily over the mysteries of production formats, transcoding, compression ratios, work-
flows, container formats, and codecs, that the creative dimension (the hard work of craft-
ing a compelling story with convincing characters and expressive images) often takes a
backseat. But they’re not entirely to blame for this tendency. The technology of filmmaking
and film distribution has accelerated rapidly, oftentimes outpacing the end user’s ability
to fully absorb the new paradigms. American video standards are now completely digital
and analog NTSC is a quaint antique. High Definition video has come down in price and
saturated all market levels to the point where HD formats are the new standard. Anything
resembling tape stock, whether in sound recording or video recording, is totally archaic;
sound and picture production is file based and solid state. Elite film camera manufactur-
ers like Aaton, Arriflex, and Panavision have fully entered the digital cinema arena and left
celluloid behind. Additionally, the web, which has become an essential tool for promo-
tion, fund raising, and distribution, requires yet another set of technical skills to success-
fully harness. And if the past five years has shown us anything, it’s that we can expect the
same rate of technological transformation in the next five years—perhaps even greater. So
it’s understandable why a young filmmaker would reel off the technical dimensions of his
project before the story; getting a handle on all of it does constitute an accomplishment
of sorts. But this is exactly why we must be extra vigilant not to let the tail wag the dog.
Filmmakers must dig deep into the core of their creativity to find their true artistic voices,
even while they are digging deep into product spec sheets, user forums, and software
manuals. And this is very possible.
 INTRODUCTION xxiii

I believe that this avalanche of technology is actually having an impact in two ways. Some
things are getting trickier, while other things are getting easier. Yes, the constant changes
to workflows, shooting formats, frame rates, scanning options, sensor types, and codecs
can be a veritable technological tar pit. At the same time, however, gorgeous, high-resolu-
tion images of broadcast or theatrical quality, which allow for precise creative control over
lighting and exposures, are now within easy reach for even a novice with very little money.
In the past, it was rare for a student to shoot a 35mm film, even a short one; now I have
many advanced students shooting on the same camera rigs used by commercial directors
like Soderbergh or Fincher, and many more recent graduates are able to embark on feature
films knowing that even midlevel camcorders and off-the-shelf editing software will yield
professional results. Perhaps all this easy and relatively inexpensive access to very high
production values, along with this state of constant technological flux, might just make the
technology less precious and encourage filmmakers to place their best energies into what
will truly distinguish them as visual storytellers—the script, the acting, the images, and the
ideas behind all of it.

So, yes, the technical information in this book is important—these are our tools, this is
how we express ourselves in this technological medium after all—and it is my sincerest
desire that this book give you the fundamental technical information you need to work suc-
cessfully as a filmmaker. I hope that the technical discussion in these pages empowers
you to make films, to make them look the way you want them to look, and to avoid costly
technical detours and errors. But I also hope that this book inspires you artistically and
encourages you to never lose sight of the fact that filmmaking is a creative endeavor. We
tell stories to move people, to make them cry, laugh, shriek, sit on the edge of their seat,
hold their lover a little harder, think about their actions, understand other people better, feel
warmth, joy, fear, or outrage. We do not tell stories to prove to the world that we know how
to use a RED camera shooting 24p at 4K resolution.

The point is that it really doesn’t matter what the equipment is. It really matters who the
artist is, and what their attitude is.
Mike Figgis (From Digital Filmmaking, 2007)

■ INTRODUCTION: FIRST EDITION, 2007

Where does one begin a journey into the world of filmmaking? Film is creative and it is
technical. It’s a form of personal expression and a universal language. It requires careful
logistical planning and inspired spontaneity. It is the product of a single vision and collab-
orative energy. Film is also the quintessential hybrid art form, finding its expressive power
though the unique amalgam of writing, performance, design, photography, music, and
editing. And all of it matters. Every choice you make, from the largest creative decisions
to the smallest practical solutions, has a profound impact on what appears on the screen
and how it moves an audience emotionally.

The central principle behind Voice & Vision is the notion that all of the conceptual, tech-
nical, and logistical activity on a film project should serve the filmmaker’s creative vision.
Making a film begins with someone wanting to tell a story, wanting to bring an idea to the
screen for the world to see. The next step then involves gathering together the people,
equipment, and resources to produce the movie. However, it’s quite common these days
to hear people who don’t want to bother themselves with the technical or conceptual fun-
damentals of filmmaking say that “it’s not about tech, it’s not about rules, it’s all about the
story.” That’s a little too facile. The fact is, it’s not enough to just have a story, no matter
how good it is; you have to be able to tell that story well. It’s not simply “all about story,”
it’s all about storytelling, and in this medium storytelling involves actors, a camera, lights,
sound, and editing. To develop your ability to tell a story on film necessarily means under-
standing the basic visual vocabulary of cinema, the process of production, as well as the
function and expressive potential of the tools; like a camera, a light meter, and editing soft-
ware. In a recent filmmaker’s master class, the great director Abbas Kiarostami stressed
xxiv INTRODUCTION

the point that a mediocre idea brilliantly told is preferable to a brilliant idea poorly told. Film
is a complex art form, and in order to make the right decisions and express oneself suc-
cessfully you must be clear about what your ideas are and what you want to say; and you
must gain control of the film language, tools, and production process in order to say just
that. As James Broughton, one of cinema’s great poets, once wrote:

Every film is a voyage into the unknown. . . . It is unwise to embark on the high seas
without knowing a few of the laws of navigation. To have a shipwreck before you have
cleared the port is both messy and embarrassing.
(From Making Light of It, 1992)

Voice & Vision elaborates on all of the essential information and skills necessary to ensure
that the student filmmaker will acquire the technical, logistical, and conceptual authority
needed to “speak in film” with cinematic eloquence and fluency. Think of the book like a
map—it may not predict every wondrous sight or challenge you’ll encounter on your voy-
age, but it’ll get you sailing into open waters.

Obviously, it is not possible for one book on filmmaking to be a completely comprehensive

resource on such a vast and evolving subject. In fact, all of the film books on the bookstore
shelves put together don’t even manage to say all there is to say—and thank goodness
for that. Voice & Vision is written for the introductory and intermediate film student or inde-
pendent filmmaker. It aims to provide a solid foundation in narrative filmmaking, from idea
to distribution, including essential technical information on production tools, a thorough
overview of the filmmaking process, and, of course, a discussion of the conceptual and
aesthetic dimensions of telling a motion picture story.

■ FILM IS A COLLABORATIVE ART FORM

The act of making a film, on any scale, is an endeavor that requires enormous effort,
concentration, and a broad range of knowledge. It also requires the execution of sev-
eral tasks simultaneously. For this reason, narrative filmmaking is always a collaborative
art form, requiring the collective energy and expertise of a team. A filmmaking team can
be anywhere from two to two dozen (or more), but the basic dynamic is the same—a film
becomes better when everyone on the team is allowed to make creative contributions and
when everyone takes serious responsibility for their practical and technical duties. You
will see these ideas of team creativity and responsibility emphasized throughout Voice
& Vision. This book is also written with the understanding that not every film student will
become, or even wants to become, a director. Knowing that students can follow so many
creative and fulfilling paths in film (cinematography, sound design, editing, art direction,
etc.), I have provided ample technical information, creative context, and discussions of
aesthetics to thoroughly engage those many students who are enthusiastic about areas
other than directing. Whether they are writing, directing, shooting, or editing, the ultimate
goal of Voice & Vision is to guide each student of film to develop their own creative voice
while acquiring the practical skills and confidence to use it.

■ TEACHING AND LEARNING FILMMAKING

Film writing and directing cannot be taught, only learned, and each man or woman has
to learn it through his or her own system of self-education.
Alexander Mackendrick (From On Filmmaking, 2004)

The great film director Alexander Mackendrick (The Ladykillers, Sweet Smell of Success)
raises a pertinent issue when he states in his book, On Filmmaking, that you cannot teach
film, but you can learn it. The interesting twist, however, is that Mr. Mackendrick was also
a legendary film teacher at the California Institute of the Arts for 25 years, so he must
have believed that something about film could be taught, or at least conveyed, and that
 INTRODUCTION xxv

a teacher plays some role in learning about filmmaking. I believe that you can, in fact,
teach a great deal about filmmaking. One can teach the essentials of technique, cine-
matic language, the technology, and the expressive capabilities of the instruments of the
art form. One can teach an understanding of how the production process itself supports
the creation of a movie. One can teach a student a method for recognizing and appreci-
ating exceptional examples of filmmaking from the history of movies. All of this can bring
the serious student right to the threshold. The rest of what is necessary, albeit the core of
being an artist in any medium, must be learned through example and experience, and here
a teacher, and a book, can serve as a guide. This core consists of imagination, visual intu-
ition, initiative, an aesthetic sense, and personal style. These qualities can’t be taught, but
they can certainly be nurtured and developed.

So where do we go to learn those things that cannot be taught? The first thing an aspir-
ing filmmaker must do is watch films, especially the films of the masters, old and new.
Writers read great writers, painters look at paintings and, in fact, often copy the works of
masters when developing their craft. It is imperative that young filmmakers look carefully
at films for what they express and how the filmmaker actually achieves that particular
mood or emotion, or that specific narrative point, or how they develop a theme, or move
you to laugh, or cry, or vote, through images, actions, and sound. Movies themselves are
our most useful textbooks. Think about it: not one cinematic storytelling technique in the
history of film has become extinct. Every filmmaking technique that has been developed
remains part of the lexicon of the art form and it’s all there for you to learn from, rework,
customize, and apply to your own story. Knowing this, I have included throughout the
text numerous illustrations from movies. The “In Practice” feature provides brief analyses
of scenes or techniques from films that illustrate how a specific technology, process, or
technique is used to support a conceptual, narrative, or aesthetic impulse—in essence,
the creative application of a principle or a technology. This encourages the student to
look at films analytically and to use the wealth of material available for rent as a research
tool. You will notice that I reference films from all eras and from all over the world and
at all budget levels. This book celebrates the vast diversity of voices, approaches, per-
spectives, and innovations in cinema throughout its history. A smart film student will
understand that great movies and creative innovations are as likely to come from Taiwan,
Denmark, Brazil, and Iran as Los Angeles. Film is truly a global art form, and every conti-
nent continues to make vital contributions.

The second way we can learn about filmmaking is to listen to the tales from the trenches
of production. Everyone has on-set experience stories: challenges that they faced, puzzles
that they solved, issues with which they struggled, ideas that they held on to and those
that they had to let go, accounts of their crafty accomplishments, shrewd fixes, and inno-
vative workarounds. It’s important to listen to these stories. We learn from the experiences,
ideas, ingenuity, solutions, knowledge, advice, strategies, difficulties, disappointments,
and successes of other filmmakers, from students struggling with their very first film to
seasoned pros struggling with their 30th movie—there are lessons in all of it. Pick up any
trade magazine, like American Cinematographer, or go to a website like www.filmsound.
org, or pick up a book like Laurent Tirard’s Moviemakers’ Master Class or Walter Murch’s
In the Blink of an Eye, and what you’ll find are people with experience in cinematography,
sound design, directing, editing, or any other creative aspect of filmmaking sharing what
they’ve accomplished and what they’ve learned along the way. You can tuck all of these
illuminating stories, all of this first-hand information, into your tool kit and bring it with you
to your next project. Then, after you’ve spent even one day on a film set, you’ll have your
own stories to share. It’s all about storytelling after all.

You will find real-world stories sprinkled throughout the book and also in the “In Practice”
boxes, which often contain brief anecdotes detailing common and characteristic produc-
tion challenges from professional film shoots as well as student productions. Many of
these on-set stories come directly from the experiences of my students during my 13
[now 24] years of teaching introductory and intermediate production courses. Some of
xxvi INTRODUCTION

them come from filmmakers ranging in experience from first-time feature film directors to
legendary masters of cinema.

In the end, however, the best way to learn about filmmaking is simply to make films. Here
is some advice from someone who’s made a few himself:

The advice I would give today to anyone who wants to become a director is quite
simple: make a film. In the sixties, it wasn’t so easy because there wasn’t even super
8. If you wanted to shoot anything, you had to rent a 16-millimeter camera, and often
it would be silent. But today, nothing is as easy as buying or borrowing a small video
camera. You have a picture, you have sound, and you can screen your film on any TV
set. So when an aspiring director comes to me for advice, my answer is always the
same: “Take a camera, shoot something, and show it to someone. Anyone.”
Jean-Luc Godard (From Moviemakers’ Master Class, by L. Tirard, 2002)

So there you have it. What are you waiting for? It’s time to make movies!
What’s New in the Third Edition
■ CELLULOID FILM INFORMATION IS RELOCATED TO THE WEBSITE
The most obvious change from previous editions of Voice & Vision is the removal of the
chapters and sections dealing with celluloid filmmaking from the text (i.e., film cameras,
film stocks, film-to-tape transfers, and film workflow in general). This material, however,
is not gone; I have simply relocated it to the Voice & Vision companion website under the
tab “The Celluloid System.” You may download all celluloid film related chapters from the
second edition if you wish.

■ CHANGES IN VOICE & VISION THIRD EDITION

For this new edition, every single chapter has been refreshed and updated to a greater
or lesser extent. Clearly, the small changes are far too numerous to list, but some of the
chapters dealing with the technical aspects of digital shooting and postproduction have
been overhauled, and significant updates have also been made to many of the sections
on production procedures. Following is a list of some of the major changes you will find in
the third edition of Voice & Vision:
■ New Example Films: I am very excited to include three excellent new short example
films: Gemma Lee’s The Wake, Alexander Engel’s This is It, and Jared Hess’ Winner
Take Steve. These films are excellent models of tight, effective, and innovative film-
making on slight budgets. Along with the previous collection of short films, these new
shorts are discussed as examples throughout the text and are available on the Voice &
Vision companion website for streaming.
■ Expanded and Updated Digital Workflow Information: I have greatly expanded and
updated the information on the digital filmmaking workflow. This includes updates on
the ever evolving ATSC digital standards, shooting formats, image sensor technology,
camera settings and options, and standard record media. I have also augmented the
section on the digital video cameras which now lists many more available varieties and
their unique features. The new discussion of workflow also takes into greater account
the increasing integration of processes that were once thought of as distinctly prepro-
duction, production, or postproduction tasks. Much of the filmmaking process these
days happens simultaneously, for example, color grading is no longer strictly a post-
production process, but often “looks” are designed in preproduction, during camera
tests.
■ Picture Profiles and Log Format: Directly related to the digital workflow, I have also
included information on working with various picture profiles (gamma settings), includ-
ing detailed information (across several chapters) on the Log gamma workflow and the
use of LUTs in the field and in postproduction.
■ Exposure Control for Video: Given the ever increasing sensitivity and latitude of mod-
ern imaging sensors, I have also greatly expanded the discussion of exposure control
for video. Divided between a “basics of exposure” section and later an “advanced
exposure control” section, the specific topics include the proper use of in-camera
meters, zebras, handheld light meters, external field monitors, and waveform monitors
(for both standard Rec. 709 and Log shooting). All in all, lighting and exposure control
comprise three full chapters (Chapters 12, 13, and 14) with further discussion of image
refinement emerging in the section on color grading as well.
■ New Editing and Color Tools: In general, the chapters on picture and sound editing
and project finishing were updated to reflect the recent developments in the non-linear
editing software landscape (i.e., the tremendous expansion of Avid Media Composer
and Premiere Pro into the academic market). Along with this platform shift came an
xxvii
xxviii WHAT’S NEW IN THE THIRD EDITION

increased sophistication of color tools bundled with software packages which com-
pelled me to also expand the section on color correction and color grading.
■ Data Wrangling, the DIT, and Gear Prep: Now that this text is given over entirely to
the digital workflow, I found it essential that I augment my discussion of data manage-
ment on the set and include information on the role of the Digital Imaging Technician—a
position that has grown in importance so much that the DIT is often considered a D.P.’s
principle creative collaborator (along with the 1st A.C.). In addition I have updated
the production forms available online, improved my section on the role of the script
supervisor, and provided detailed checklists for prepping a digital camera and sound
recorder.
■ Independent Film Distribution: Perhaps one of the most radical transformations to
occur since the last edition has been the rapid changes occurring in the world of inde-
pendent film distribution. At this moment, film distribution is the new “wild west,” a
territory that favors the intrepid pioneer, where the rules are being written and broken
regularly. Who knows when the dust will settle, or if it will settle. In an attempt to keep
up with developments in contemporary film distribution strategies, paths, and oppor-
tunities, I have expanded this section and provided many new examples.

Obviously, it’s impossible for a published book to remain absolutely current with the tech-
nological state of the art for any field of digital production. As before, I’ve concentrated
on the broader concepts and more enduring information concerning what the purpose of
a thing is, or how something works, or why we follow a certain procedure, rather than fall
down the rabbit hole of trying to catalog every button on every camera and every menu
option on every NLE workspace. Not only would this be futile, but that information is read-
ily available in product manuals and online tutorials. I’ve carefully designed each section
involving technology around the fundamental knowledge underpinning the hard specs,
and that information should prove to be somewhat future proof. Also, consistent with my
personal teaching philosophy, I’ve assiduously maintained my focus on the creative appli-
cation, aesthetic impact, and expressive possibilities embedded in the digital technologies
used in film production—and they are substantial.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
saddle. It was close to this that Omar laid the foundation of the
Mosque which, to this day, bears his name.[329]
Mahometan tradition gives no further
detail respecting this memorable visit. But Christian tradition regarding
we are told by Christian writers that Omar Omar’s visit to Jerusalem.
accompanied Sophronius over the city, visited the Jerusalem,
various places of pilgrimage, and graciously inquired into their
history. As the appointed hour came round, the Patriarch bade the
Caliph to perform his orisons on the spot where they chanced to be,
namely, the Church of the Resurrection. But he declined to pray
either there or in the Church of Constantine, where a carpet had
been spread for him—alleging, as the reason, that if he were to pray
there, his followers would deem it their duty to oust the Christians
and take possession of the church for ever afterwards, as a place
where Moslem prayer had once been offered up. He also visited
Bethlehem. There, having prayed in the Church of the Nativity, he
gave nevertheless a rescript to the Patriarch who accompanied him
on the pious errand, securing the Christians in possession of the
building, with the condition that not more than one Mussulman
should ever enter at a time; but the stipulation, we are told, was
disregarded, and a Mosque was eventually erected there, as well as
on the site of the porch of the Church of Constantine.[330]
Whatever truth there may be in these
traditions, Omar did not prolong his visit to Omar returns to Medîna.
Jerusalem or its environs. Having settled
the matter for which he came, he proceeded to divide Palestine into
two provinces; one of which he assigned to the government of
Jerusalem, and the other to that of Ramleh. He then returned by the
way that he came to Medîna.[331]
Thus was Syria, from the farthest north
to the border of Egypt, within the space of Causes which facilitated the
three years, lost to Christendom. One conquest of Syria.
reflects with wonder at the feeble resistance offered by the Byzantine
power, both military and naval, and by its many strongholds of
antiquity and renown, to this sudden inroad. The affinities of the
Syrian Bedouins to the Arabian nation facilitated no doubt the
conquest. There was also an element of weakness in the settled
population; for luxurious living had demoralised the effeminate race
and rendered it unable to resist the onset of the wild and fanatic
invaders. Still worse, they had no heart to fight. What patriotic vigour
might have still survived, was lost in religious strife. Sects rejoiced
each in the humiliation of the other; and, as is usual in such
controversies, the finer the distinction, the more inveterate the hatred
thereby engendered. Loyalty was thus smothered by bitter
jealousies, and there are not wanting instances even of active
assistance rendered to the enemy.[332] There may have been among
some, even a sense of relief in the equal though contemptuous
licence given, by the toleration or haughty indifference of the
conquerors, to all alike. But there was a still deeper cause, and that
was the growing decrepitude of the Roman empire. No vigour
remained to drive back the shock of barbarian invaders. And while
northern hordes could by degrees amalgamate with the nations
which they overran, the exclusive faith and the intolerant teaching of
Islam kept the Arabs a race distinct and dominant.
The conquerors did not spread
themselves abroad in Syria, as in The Arabs did not settle in
Syria to the same extent as
Chaldæa. They founded no such Arabian in Chaldæa.
towns and military settlements as
Bussorah and Kûfa. The country and climate were less congenial,
and the beautiful scenery, of the land of brooks of water and depths
springing out of valleys and hills, the land of vines and fig-trees and
pomegranates, the land of oil-olive and honey, offered fewer
attractions to the Arabian races than the heated sandy plains of the
Tigris and Euphrates, with their desert garb of tamarisk and groves
of the familiar date. They came to Syria as conquerors; and, as
conquerors, they settled largely, particularly the southern tribes, in
Damascus, Hims, and other centres of administration. But the body
of the native Syrians remained after the conquest substantially the
same as before; and through long centuries of degradation they
clung, as to some extent they still cling, to their ancestral faith.
 We read in later days of the Ordinance
of Omar, to regulate the conditions of Humiliation of Jews and
Christian communities throughout Islam. Christians.
But it would be a libel on that tolerant Ruler to credit him with the
greater part of these observances. It is true that the stamp of
inferiority—according to the Divine injunction, Fight against the
people of the Book, Jews and Christians, until they pay tribute with
their hands and are humbled[333]—was branded upon them from the
first; but the worst disabilities of that intolerant Ordinance were not
imposed till a later period. Introduced by degrees, these gradually
became, through practice and precedent, the law of the land. At the
first the exactions of the conquerors, besides the universal tribute,
were limited to the demand of a yearly supply of oil-olive and other
food, and the obligation to entertain Moslem travellers on their
journey for three days at a time. But when the Caliphate was
established at Damascus, its pomp and pride could no longer brook
the semblance even of social equality, and hence the badge of an
inferior race must be shown at every step. The dress of both sexes
and of their slaves must be distinguished by broad stripes of yellow.
They were forbidden to appear on horseback; and if they rode on
mule or ass, their stirrups must be of wood, and the saddle known by
knobs of the same material. Their graves must be level with the
ground, and the mark of the devil placed on the lintel of their doors.
Their children must be taught by Moslem masters; and the race,
however able or well qualified, was proscribed from aspiring to any
office of high emolument or trust. Besides the existing churches
spared at the conquest, no new building must be erected for the
purposes of worship; free entry into all their holy places must be
allowed at the pleasure of the Moslem; no cross must remain in view
outside, nor any church bells rung. They must refrain from
processions in the street at Easter and other solemn seasons; and in
short from anything, whether by outward symbol, word, or deed, in
rivalry or derogation of the royal faith. Such was the so-called Code
of Omar.[334] Enforced with less or greater stringency in different
lands and under different dynasties, it was, and still remains, the law
of Islam. One must admire the rare tenacity of the subject faith,
which, with but scanty light and hope, held its ground through weary
ages of insult and depression, and still survives to see, as we now
may hope, the dawning of a brighter day.
I have spoken of the loss of Syria as
the dismemberment of a limb from the The East cut off from the
Byzantine empire. In one respect it was West.
something more. For their own safety, the Romans dismantled a
broad belt of country on the borders of the now barbarian Syria. The
towns and fortresses were razed, and the inhabitants withdrawn.
And so the neutral zone became a barrier against travel to and fro.
For all ordinary communication, whether social, religious, or
commercial, the road was closed. The East was severed from the
West.
‘The abomination of desolation’ wept
over by Sophronius stood in the Holy Silence of Byzantine
Place. The cradle of Christianity, Zion the historians.
joy of the whole earth, was trodden under foot, and utterly cut off
from the sight of its votaries. And all is told by the Byzantine writers
in a few short lines. The pen of the Christian annalist might well
refuse to write the story of cowardice and shame.
 CHAPTER XXI.
RISING IN NORTHERN SYRIA.

A.H. XVII. A.D. 638.

In the sixth year of Omar’s Caliphate, a

desperate effort was made by the Rising in Northern Syria.
Byzantine power, and at one moment not
without some prospect of success, to shake off the Moslem yoke and
recover possession of Northern Syria.
The movement is attributed by tradition
to an appeal from the Christian tribes of Romans by sea support
Mesopotamia, which when the Roman attack of Mesopotamian
Bedouins. a.h. XVII. a.d.
army retired into Asia Minor, besought the 638.
Emperor to save them from falling under
his adversary’s sway. Although the Moslem frontier on the side of
Cilicia was tolerably secure, yet the seaboard to the west, and the
desert border on the east of Syria, were both vulnerable. Most of the
strongholds of Mesopotamia, it is true, had already fallen into the
hands of Sád;[335] but the wandering Bedouins were not controlled
by these, and with few exceptions the numerous Christian tribes still
looked for support to the Persian or the Roman empires. The
maritime power of the Romans was yet untouched. Cæsarea with its
naval supports remained proof against landward attack; and the
whole sea coast was kept unsettled by the hope, or by the fear, that
the Roman fleet might at any time appear. The Emperor now
promised the dwellers in Mesopotamia that he would second their
efforts by way of the sea. An expedition was accordingly directed
from the port of Alexandria upon Antioch; while the Bedouins
gathered in great hordes around Hims. Thus seriously threatened,
Abu Obeida called in Khâlid from Kinnisrîn, and every garrison that
could be spared from the south. But the enemy was still too strong to
be dispersed by the force at his disposal, and so he sent an urgent
summons for assistance to Medîna. Thereupon Omar ordered Sád
to despatch a strong column from Kûfa under Cacâa for the relief of
Hims without a day’s delay; and likewise to effect a diversion by
sending other columns against Rickka, Roha, Nisibîn, and such like
strongholds in Upper Mesopotamia. Meanwhile the Romans landed
from their ships. Antioch threw open her gates to them; and
Kinnisrîn, Aleppo, and all the chief towns in the north, were in full
revolt. Abu Obeida called a council of war; Khâlid was for giving
battle, but he was alone in that view. Abu Obeida, feeling too weak to
cope with the now combined forces of the Bedouins and Romans,
retired within the walls of Hims, and, hemmed in by enemies,
awaited the succour now advancing from Kûfa. So grave did Omar
himself regard the crisis that, quitting Medîna for the second time, he
journeyed to Jâbia, intending to march in person with the
reinforcements northwards. But while on the journey, a change had
already come over the scene. The vigorous movements in
Mesopotamia so alarmed the Bedouins for the safety of their homes
in the desert, that they began to forsake the Roman cause. Seeing
now his opportunity, Abu Obeida issued
from the fortress, and after a severe Abu Obeida puts the Romans
engagement routed the enemy, who fled in and Bedouins to flight.
such confusion that, even before the arrival of Cacâa, they were
totally dispersed. Omar returned from Jâbia to Medîna. He was
delighted at the result; and he specially commended the alacrity of
the Kûfa column:—‘The Lord reward them,’ he wrote to Sád, ‘for their
ready gathering and their speedy march to the succour of their
beleaguered brethren.’[336]
It was the last effort of Constantinople
to expel the invader from Syria, and the Campaign in Mesopotamia
yoke plainly now was not to be shaken off. and Asia Minor. a.h. XVII.
a.d. 638.
The expeditions undertaken for diverting
the nomad insurgents had also the effect of reducing Mesopotamia
to its uttermost limits. But not content with this, the infant faith,
becoming conscious of its giant strength, began to stretch itself
towards the north. The successes in Mesopotamia were followed up
by a campaign in Asia Minor, under distinguished leaders; and the
name of Iyâdh, the general-in-chief, under whom even Khâlid did not
disdain to serve, begins to figure in the brief Byzantine record.[337]
Nisibîn,[338] Amida, Harrân, Roha, and all the strong places lying
along the northern frontier were taken or recaptured, and even
Armenia was overrun.[339]
Most of the Bedouin tribes in
Mesopotamia embraced Islam. There were Christian tribes in
exceptions, and the story of the Beni Iyâdh Mesopotamia.
Iyâdh.
The Beni

is singular. They migrated to the north and

found an asylum in Roman territory. But Omar, nettled at their
disappearance, and fearing lest they should remain a thorn in his
side, demanded their extradition from the Byzantine Court, on pain of
the expulsion of all the Christian tribes living under his protection.
And the Emperor, unwilling to expose these to ill-treatment, complied
with the demand.[340] Equally remarkable is the tale of the Beni
Taghlib. They tendered their submission to
Welîd ibn Ocba, who, solicitous for the Beni Taghlib allowed to pay
adhesion to Islam of this great and famous tithe.
race, pressed them with some rigour to abjure their ancient faith.
Omar was much displeased at this,—‘Leave them,’ he wrote, ‘in the
profession of the Gospel. It is only within the bounds of the
Peninsula, where are the Holy Places, that no polytheist tribe is
permitted to remain.’ Welîd was removed from his command; and it
was enjoined on his successor to stipulate only that the usual tribute
should be paid, that no member of the tribe should be hindered from
embracing Islam, and that the children should not be educated in the
Christian faith. The tribe, deeming in its pride the payment of ‘tribute’
(jazia) an indignity, sent a deputation to the Caliph:—They were
willing, they said, to pay the tax if only it were levied under the same
name as that taken from the Moslems. Omar evinced his liberality by
allowing the concession; and so the Beni Taghlib enjoyed the
singular privilege of being assessed as Christians at a ‘double Tithe,’
instead of paying Jazia, the obnoxious badge of subjugation.[341]
The last place to hold out in Syria was
Cæsarea. It fell a last in the fifth year of Fall of Cæsarea. a.h. XVII.
a.d. 638.
Omar’s Caliphate. Amru had sat long
before it. But, being open to the sea, and the battlements landward
strong and well manned, it resisted all his efforts; and although Yezîd
sent his brother Muâvia with reinforcements from Damascus, the
siege was prolonged for several years. Sallies persistently made by
the garrison, were driven back with equal constancy. In the end, as
we are told, by the treachery of a Jew, a weak point was discovered
in the defences. The city was carried by storm, with prodigious
carnage of the wretched inhabitants. Four thousand prisoners, of
either sex, were despatched as part of the prey to Medîna, and there
distributed in slavery.[342]
Khâlid had again the misfortune to incur
the displeasure of Omar. He came back Khâlid brought to trial. a.h.
from the campaign of Iyâdh greatly XVII. a.d. 638–9.
enriched with the spoils of war. In expectation of his bounty, many of
his old friends from Irâc flocked to him on his return to his
government at Kinnisrîn; and amongst these was Asháth, chief of the
Beni Kinda, to whom he gave the princely largess of one thousand
pieces of gold. Again, at Amida in the east, Khâlid had indulged in
the luxury of a bath mingled with wine, the odour whereof as he
came forth still clung about him. On both charges he was now
arraigned. About the second, there could be no question; the use of
wine, even externally, was a forbidden thing, and Khâlid forswore the
indulgence in it even thus. The other offence was graver in the
Caliph’s eyes. Either the gift was booty of the army; or, if Khâlid’s
own to give away, he was guilty, even on that supposition, of
culpable extravagance. Whichever was the case, he deserved to be
deposed from his command. In such terms a rescript was addressed
to Abu Obeida, and sent by the hands of a courier charged to see
that the command was fully carried out. Khâlid was to be accused
publicly; his helmet[343] taken off; his hands bound with his head-
kerchief; and so arraigned he was to declare the truth.
With Abu Obeida this was an
ungracious task; for to the now degraded Khâlid arraigned at Hims for
warrior he was beholden for all his victories malversation;
in Syria. But the Caliph’s word was law. And so he summoned Khâlid
from his seat of government, proclaimed an assembly in the great
Mosque of Hims, and, standing in the pulpit, placed Khâlid in the
midst. Then the courier put his master’s question—From whence the
money given to Asháth came? Khâlid, confounded at the unexpected
charge, made no reply. Pressed by his friends, still he remained
silent. Abu Obeida stood himself embarrassed, and a painful pause
ensued. At last Bilâl, privileged as the Muedzzin of the Prophet,
stepped forth, and with stentorian voice cried, ‘Thus and thus hath
the Commander of the Faithful said, and it is incumbent on us to
obey;’ so saying, he unwound the kerchief from the head of Khâlid,
bound his hands therewith, and took off his helmet. The great
warrior, to whom Islam owed its conquests, stood as a felon before
the congregation. Bilâl repeated the question, and Khâlid at length
replied, ‘The money was my own.’ At once Bilâl unbound his hands,
and, replacing the helmet on his head, wound the kerchief around it
as before, and said, ‘We honour thee still, even as we did honour
thee before, one of our chiefest captains.’ But Abu Obeida was
silent; and Khâlid, stunned by the disgrace, stood speechless and
bewildered. Abu Obeida had not the heart to tell him of his
deposition; but, without sending him back to his seat of government,
spoke kindly to him as to one who still had his confidence. Omar
understood the delicacy of Abu Obeida’s position, and himself
summoned Khâlid to Medîna. Prompt to
obey, though sore at heart, Khâlid first summoned to Medîna,
returned to Kinnisrîn; and both there and at
Hims, bidding adieu to his friends and to the people, he complained
openly and bitterly of the ingratitude of a prince who scrupled not to
use him in his times of difficulty, but cast him aside when, through his
aid, he had reached the summit of his power. Arrived at Medîna, he
reproached the Caliph: ‘I swear that thou hast treated despitefully a
faithful servant to whom thou owest much; and I appeal from thee to
the whole body of the Faithful.’ ‘Whence came that money?’ was
Omar’s only answer. The question was repeated day by day; till at
last, galled by the charge of unfaithfulness, Khâlid made answer
thus: ‘I have nought but the spoil which the Lord hath given me in the
days of Abu Bekr, as well as in thine own. Whatever thou findest
over 60,000 pieces, hath been gained in thy Caliphate; take it if thou
wilt.’ So his effects were valued, and the estimate reaching 80,000,
Omar confiscated the difference. But he
still affected to hold the great general in and there mulcted and
honour and regard. Accordingly, he sent a deposed.
rescript to the various provinces, announcing that he had deposed
Khâlid, not because of any tyranny or fraud, but because he deemed
it needful to remove a stumbling-block out of the way of the people,
who were tempted to put their trust in an arm of flesh, instead of
looking alone to the Giver of all victory.
So closed the career of Khâlid. The first
beginning of Omar’s alienation was the Khâlid dies in neglect. a.h.
affair of Mâlik ibn Noweira, followed by acts XXI.
of tyranny in Irâc, which grated on his sense of clemency and justice.
But these acts had long since been condoned; and therefore his
conduct now was ungenerous and unjust. He used the ‘Sword of
God’ so long as he had need of it, and when by it victory was
secured, he cast it ungratefully away. Khâlid retired to Hims, and did
not long survive. His manner of life when in the full tide of prosperity
may be gathered from the brief notice that in the Plague (of which
mention will soon be made) forty of his sons were carried off. The
remainder of the family took refuge, like many others, in the desert.
Soon after, in the eighth year of Omar’s Caliphate, the great general
died. In his last illness he kept showing the scars which thickly
covered his body all over—marks of his bravery and unflinching
prowess. ‘And now,’ he said, ‘I die even as a coward dieth, or as the
camel breatheth its last breath.’ His end illustrates forcibly the
instability of this world’s fame and glory. The hero who had borne
Islam aloft to the crest of victory and conquest, ended his days in
penury and neglect.[344]
 CHAPTER XXII.
EXPULSION OF JEWS AND CHRISTIANS FROM ARABIA. THE
CIVIL LIST OF OMAR. SLAVES OF ARAB BLOOD MADE FREE.

A.H. XIV., XV. A.D. 635, 636.

I must now revert to one or two matters

of domestic interest, which, not to break Domestic events. a.h. XIV.,
XV.
the story of external conquest, I have
refrained from noticing before.
Arabia, as the nursery of the legions
destined to wage the wars of Islam, must Expulsion of Jews and
be purged of strange religions. And Christians from Arabia.
accordingly, so soon as victory was secured in Syria and Irâc, Omar
proceeded to signalise his reign by an act of harshness, if not of
questionable equity.
In the centre of Arabia lies the province
of Najrân, inhabited from of old by a Christians removed from
Najrân,
Christian people. Mahomet had concluded
a treaty with their chiefs and bishops, by which the annual tribute of
2,000 suits of raiment secured them safety in the undisturbed
profession of their ancestral faith. Throughout the rebellion they
remained loyal to their engagements, and Abu Bekr renewed the
treaty. Worthy descendants of a martyr race, they resisted the
blandishments of Islam; and as a penalty they must now quit their
native soil, consecrated, in the persecution of Dzu Nowâs, by the
ashes of their forefathers.[345] They were ordered to depart and
receive lands in exchange elsewhere. Some migrated to Syria; but
the greater part settled in the vicinity of Kûfa, where the colony of
Najrânia long maintained the memory of Mahometan intolerance.
The rights, however, conferred upon them by the Prophet’s treaty, so
far as their expatriation might admit, were respected by successive
rulers; and their tribute, with decreasing numbers, lightened sensibly
from time to time. After their removal, no
long time elapsed before the Jews of and Jews from Kheibar.
Kheibar, a rich vale two or three days’
journey north of Medîna, met a similar fate. Their claim was not so
strong as the Christians’; for, conquered by Mahomet, they had been
left on sufferance in possession of their fields at a rent of half the
produce. In return for this partial right from which they now were
ousted, they received a money payment, and then departed for
Syria. Various pretexts are urged for the expatriation in either case.
But behind them all we find the dogma—supposed dying behest of
Mahomet—In Arabia there shall be but one religion. The recruiting
field of Islam must be sacred ground.[346]
The Arabian nation was the champion
of Islam; and to fight its battles every Arab The Arabs as a nation share
was jealously reserved. He must be the the spoils of war.
soldier, and nothing else. He might not settle down in any conquered
province as cultivator of the soil; and for merchandise or other
labour, a busy warlike life offered but little leisure. Neither was there
any need. The Arabs lived on the fat of the conquered lands, and
captive nations served them. Of the booty taken in war, four parts
were distributed to the army in the field; the fifth was reserved for the
State; and even that, after discharging public obligations, was shared
among the Arabian people. In the reign of Abu Bekr this was a
simple matter. But in the Caliphate of Omar the spoil of Syria and of
Persia began in ever-increasing volume to pour into the treasury of
Medîna, where it was distributed almost as soon as received. What
was easy in small beginnings, by equal sharing or discretionary
preference, became now a heavy task. And there began, also, to
arise new sources of revenue in the land assessment and the poll
tax of subject countries, which, after defraying civil and military
charges, had to be accounted for to the Central Government;—the
surplus being, like the royal Fifth, the patrimony of the Arab nation.
At length, in the second or third year of
his Caliphate, Omar determined that the New rule of distribution by
classes of merit.
distribution should be regulated on a fixed
and systematic scale. The income of the Commonwealth was to be
divided, as heretofore, amongst the Faithful as their heritage, but
upon a rule of precedence befitting the military and theocratic
groundwork of Islam. For this end three points only were considered:
priority of conversion, affinity to the Prophet, and military service.
The widows of Mahomet, ‘Mothers of the Faithful,’ took the
precedence with an annual allowance of 10,000 pieces each; and all
his kinsmen were with a corresponding liberality provided for.[347]
The famous Three Hundred of Bedr had 5,000 each; presence at
Hodeibia and the Pledge of the Tree[348] gave a claim to 4,000; such
as took part in quelling the Rebellion had 3,000; and those engaged
in the great battles of Syria and Irâc, as well as sons of the men of
Bedr, 2,000; those taking the field after the actions of Câdesîya and
the Yermûk, 1,000. Warriors of distinction received an extra grant of
500. And so they graduated downwards to 200 pieces for the latest
levies. Nor were the households forgotten. Women had, as a rule,
one-tenth of a man’s share. Wives, widows, and children had each
their proper stipend; and in the register, every infant, as soon as
born, had the title to be entered with a minimum allowance of ten
pieces, rising with advancing age to its proper place. Even Arab
slaves (so long as any of that race remained) had, strange to say,
their portion.
Thus every soul was rated at its worth.
But the privilege was confined most strictly All other nations a lower
to those of Arab blood. A few exceptions, class.
indeed, were made of distinguished Persian chiefs; but the mention
of them only proves the stringency of the general rule.[349] The
whole nation, every man, woman, and child of the militant Arab race,
was subsidised. In theory, the rights of all believers were the same.
‘Ye are one brotherhood,’ said Mahomet at the Farewell pilgrimage;
and as he spake he placed two fingers of one hand upon his other
hand, to enforce the absolute equality.[350] But in point of fact, the
equality was limited to the Arab nation. The right of any brother of
alien race was a dole of food sufficient for subsistence, and no more.
[351]
 A great nation dividing thus amongst
them their whole revenues, spoil, and Principle adopted by Omar
conquests, first on the principle of equal disarms Arabian jealousies.
brotherhood, and next on that of martial merit and spiritual
distinction, is a spectacle probably without parallel in the world. The
rule itself was well conceived. In no other way would it have been
possible to reconcile the jealous susceptibilities of tribal rivalry.[352]
Safwân, Soheil, and other great chiefs of the Coreish, who fell into a
lower class because they had not joined the Prophet till after the
capture of Mecca, refused at first any allowance but the highest: ‘We
know of none nobler than ourselves,’ they said; ‘and less than any
other we will not take.’ ‘Not so,’ answered Omar; ‘I give it by priority
of faith, and not for noble birth.’ ‘It is well,’ they replied; and no
reason but this, unanswerable because already axiomatic among the
Moslems, would have satisfied them. Apart from tribal jealousy, there
were two other sources of danger: first, the rivalry between the
Bedouin tribes, on the one hand, and the ‘Companions,’ or men of
Mecca and Medîna, on the other; and, second, between the Beni
Hâshim (the Prophet’s family), the Omeyyads, and the Coreish at
large;—jealousies which by-and-by developed into large proportions,
and threatened the very existence of the Caliphate; but which, held
in check by the strong arm of Omar, were now for a time avoided by
assuming a spiritual test as the main ground of precedence.
The Arabian aristocracy thus created
was recognised by the whole Moslem Omar perpetuates military
world. The rank and stipend now assigned organisation of Arabs.
descended in the direct line of birth. Even rewards given for special
gallantry in the field were heritable.[353] By making thus the revenues
of Islam the heritage of the nation militant, their martial genius was
maintained, and their employment perpetuated as the standing army
of the Caliphate. The ennobled nation, pampered by indulgence,
factious and turbulent when idle, were indeed too often a serious
element of sedition and intrigue. But they were nevertheless the
backbone of Islam, the secret of its conquests, and the stay of the
Caliphate. The crowded harems multiplied the race with marvellous
rapidity; and the progeny were, by Omar’s organisation, kept
sedulously distinct, so as never to mingle with the conquered races.
Wherever they went they formed a class distinct and dominant—the
nobles and rulers of the land. The subject peoples, even if they
embraced Islam, were of a lower caste; and as clients of some Arab
chief or tribe, courted their patronage and protection. Thus the
fighting nation was set apart for the sacred task of subjugating
nations and of propagating Islam; and even after the new-born zeal
of the Faith had to some extent evaporated, the martial fire of the
Arabs as a whole and undivided people was, owing mainly to Omar’s
foresight, kept alive in full activity for two centuries and a half. The
nation was, and continued, an army mobilised; the cantonment, not
the city, their home; their business, war and the camp;—a people
whose hereditary calling it was to be ready to march on warlike
expeditions at a moment’s notice.
To carry out this vast design, a Register
had to be drawn and kept up of every man, Register of all Arabs entitled
woman, and child, entitled to a stipend to a stipend.
from the State—in other words, of the whole Arab race employed in
the interests of Islam. This was easy enough for the higher grades,
but a herculean task for the hundreds of thousands of ordinary
fighting men and their families who kept streaming forth from the
Peninsula; and who, by the extravagant indulgence of polygamy,
were multiplying rapidly. But the task was simplified by the strictly
tribal composition and disposition of the forces. Men of a tribe, or
branch of a tribe, fought together; and the several corps and
brigades being thus territorially arranged in clans, the Register
assumed the same form. Every soul was entered under the stock
and tribe and clan whose lineage it claimed. And to this exhaustive
classification we owe in great measure the elaborate genealogies
and tribal traditions of Arabia before Islam.
The Register itself, as well as the office
for its maintenance and for pensionary The Dewân of Omar.
account, was called the Dewân or
Department of the Exchequer. The State had by this time, as we
have seen, an income swollen by the tribute of conquered cities, the
poll-tax of subjugated peoples, the land and other regular
assessments, the spoil of war, and the tithes. The first charge was
for the revenue and civil administration; the next for military
requirements, which began soon to assume a sustained and
permanent form; the surplus remained (as has been now set forth)
for pensionary and eleemosynary distribution. The whole revenues
of Islam were thus expended as soon, almost, as received; and
Omar took a special pride in seeing the treasury, in accord with this
principle, emptied to the last dirhem.[354] The accounts of the various
provinces were at the first kept by natives of the country in the
character to which they were accustomed—in Syria by Greeks, and
in Irâc by Persians. At Kûfa the use of Pehlevi was maintained till the
time of Hajjâj, when, an Arab assistant having learned the art from
the chief treasurer, the Arabic system of record and notation was
introduced.
We are not told the numerical result of
the Dewân of Omar, but the population of Vast extent of Arab exodus.
Kûfa and Bussora may give us a standard
to judge of the vast exodus in progress from Arabia, and the rapid
strides by which the crowded harems multiplied the race. Arab
ladies, as a rule, married only Arab husbands; but the other sex,
besides unlimited indulgence in servile concubinage, were free to
contract marriage with the women of conquered lands, whether
converts or ‘people of the Book;’ for marriage is lawful between a
Moslem and females of the Jewish and Christian faith. And although
the wives of Arab blood took precedence in virtue of rank and birth,
the children also of every Arab father, whether the mother were slave
or free, Moslem, Jew, or Christian, were equal in legitimacy. And so
the nation multiplied. Looking to these considerations and to the new
drain upon Arabia to meet the conquests in Egypt and Persia (of
which anon), we shall not greatly err if we assume that before
Omar’s death the number of Arabs beyond the limits of Arabia
proper, reached to Half a million, and eventually doubled, perhaps
quadrupled.
Civil administration followed in the
wake of conquest. In Chaldæa, the great Provincial administration.
network of canals was early taken in hand.
The long-neglected embankments of the Euphrates were placed
under charge of a special officer, and those of the Tigris under
another. Syria and Irâc were measured field by field; and the
assessment of the lands, both crown and provincial, established on a
uniform system. In Irâc, the agency of the Dihcâns, or great
landholders, was taken advantage of, as under the Sassanide
dynasty, to aid in the police and revenue administration.
In addition to the armies in the field,
Omar arranged that a reserve of cavalry Reserves of cavalry.
should be maintained at the head-quarters
of the several provinces, in proportion to their resources, ready to be
called out upon emergency. The corps at Kûfa numbered 4,000
lances, and there were eight such centres. Reserves for forage were
also everywhere set apart; and the cost of these measures formed a
first charge upon provincial revenue.
The various Suras and fragments of the
Corân had by this time been compiled into Corân; how ‘collected.’
a single volume. The ‘collecting’ of these
was begun in the reign of Abu Bekr, at the suggestion of Omar, who
was alarmed at the loss of so many of those, who had the Revelation
by heart, in the battle of Yemâma. ‘I fear,’ he said to Abu Bekr, ‘that
slaughter may again wax hot amongst the Reciters of the Corân in
other fields of battle, and that much may be lost of the divine text;
now, therefore, give orders speedily for its collection.’ The
commission was given to Zeid ibn Thâbit, who, as the Prophet’s
amanuensis, had written down much of the revelation from the
Prophet’s lips. At first he scrupled to do what Mahomet himself had
left undone. At last he accepted the task; and seeking out the Suras
and scattered fragments and verses from every quarter, ‘gathered
them together from date leaves, shreds of leather and parchment,
shoulder blades, tablets of white stone, and the breasts of men.’ By
the labours of Zeid, these confused materials were reduced to the
comparative order and sequence in which we now find them; but in
its obscurity and incoherence, the collection still bears traces in
almost every page of the haphazard way in which the pieces, thus
rudely dovetailed, were compiled. The original copy was committed
to the custody of Haphsa, Omar’s daughter, one of the Prophet’s
widows; and during Omar’s Caliphate this exemplar continued to be
the standard and authoritative text of the Corân.[355]