Seeking survival

The scorching heat in Cannes was almost evaporating people on the spot. Through the rotten hole in the warehouse ceiling, it seemed as if one could directly see the rays of light emitted by the enormous sun above turning into flames, blazing fiercely.

Lyman was busy arranging the camera position while carrying the tripod. Sweat kept pouring out of him. On the other side, Heath Ledger sat in a chair, mediating his emotions.

Sliders, audio equipment, and lighting devices were also getting arranged with the help of others. The entire production team had arrived at the shooting location, which was a rented warehouse. Fortunately, this play was a solo performance, so there was no need to coordinate the actors' performances and camera movements. Otherwise, it would have been enough to give this young crew a hard time.

"Director, everything is ready," an intern named Thomas hurriedly ran over and said. Upon hearing this, Lyman looked towards the open space near the gate where a large pile of yellow sand had been prepared.

Afterward, everyone began their own debugging work, and it wasn't until ten o'clock in the morning that Lyman announced the official start of filming. "Everyone, please be quiet. We are about to start filming. Prepare the lights, cameras, actors, script supervisor. Each department, listen to my command."

René shouted into a small megaphone. Each time he mentioned a department, the respective members would respond.

"Action!"

With Thomas, who served as the script supervisor, clapping the slate, the camera continued to rotate, officially beginning the shoot. The crew members were all quietly fulfilling their responsibilities.

Lyman sat behind the director's monitor, closely watching Heath Ledger as he entered the scene. The first scene to be filmed was the shot of the protagonist, Paul, waking up after being buried alive in a coffin. The props consisted of a pile of rough yellow sand and a rectangular wooden box, inside of which was a custom-made wooden coffin for Heath Ledger to lie in.

By using the two boxes, one large and one small, the camera could be fixed on the outer box during close-up shots. There were also movable wooden rods for sliding, which facilitated the shooting process. It was the result of the crew's collective brainstorming. Regardless of the angle or shooting transitions, it could keep up.

The film "Buried" couldn't be filmed with just one perspective throughout due to its enclosed setting. That was obviously impossible. The director's skill in camera movement and coordination, the actors' performance skills and ability to captivate, and even the burden of story editing all needed to endure rigorous coordination to make this solo performance truly successful.

"Cut!"

Seeing the close-up shot, Lyman immediately called for a stop. The filming effect did not meet the requirements at all.

Everyone looked over, and Lyman reviewed the footage, saying to the lighting technician, Dax Richet: "There's an issue with the lighting. Come and take a look."

Heath Ledger, still lying in the coffin, let out a sigh of relief upon hearing that. He thought the sudden pause was due to his own mistake, which made him quite nervous. He didn't want the first official shoot to be interrupted because of him.

"What's wrong, Director?" Dax approached.

"Look, the image is too dark. We can't see the actor's face." Although it would be pitch black underground, in this scene, Paul wakes up and uses a lighter to illuminate the interior space. However, the captured footage was too blurry, greatly affecting the viewing experience. "Buried" first and foremost needed to be a movie that required sufficient light sources to enable the camera to capture the actors' facial details.

"I got it, Director. I'll add another reflector to focus the light."

"Good, go ahead." Lyman knew what effect he wanted, but he didn't know how to solve the problem, so he relied on the lighting technician, Dax, to handle it. Hopefully, this second-highest-paid professional could deliver some quality work.

Once Dax understood the problem, he immediately placed a reflector inside the coffin and made the main light softer and brighter. Since it was a dark scene, all the lighting had a low-key style. With this adjustment, it was clear that the lighting became more defined.

"It's done, Director. During the next camera shot, pay attention to the positioning of the reflector and don't hide it."

"Start the second take." With Lyman's signal, René came over and clapped the slate again.

"Scene one, act one, second take, action!" With these words, accompanied by a crisp sound, the second attempt began.

Due to the unique nature of the film "Buried", the camera was fixed on the left side of the coffin, smoothly moving backward to lock in the close-up shot. At the beginning, it was naturally all dark, relying on sound to create a sense of imagery.

Sound brings the picture to life!

First came a steady breathing, as if someone were asleep. After a while, the breathing became irregular, followed by a forceful breath, disturbing the serene atmosphere. Then, the breathing suddenly stopped, and the moment of silence froze the dark stillness. However, it was only a moment; soon, someone began to groan in pain, and the breathing became more erratic and urgent.

"Hah... hah..." The breathing intensified, lengthening, and then there was a burst of intense coughing. At the same time, the coffin began to make noises, as if someone inside was shifting positions, as if searching for something, exploring. The commotion grew louder; someone inside was struggling intensely. The clattering collisions mingled with chaotic and rapid breaths.

"Haah..." Another deep inhalation. By now, the collision sounds had ceased, replaced by the faint sound of fabric rubbing against something. Was there someone inside? What had they encountered? The imagery conveyed through sound was quite powerful.

In the gradually quieting atmosphere, a distinct mechanical rubbing sound emerged. It sounded like... like a lighter! "Swipe!" A flash of fire suddenly lit up. The deep yellow light illuminated the cramped space, causing the darkness to recede like a retreating tide, but it didn't completely disappear. It encircled the faint glow, watching intently.

In the light, one-third of a cheek was visible. The panicked eyes scanned the surroundings, displaying fear, confusion, pain, contemplation, all interwoven, accompanied by rapid and erratic breathing.

Fantastic!

Heath Ledger's performance was excellent, and Lyman was extremely satisfied as he watched the footage transmitted through the director's monitor.

"Cut"

Upon hearing this, everyone on the set stopped their work again. "Go check if there's any issue with the sound," Lyman said. René, who was beside Lyman, nodded and walked towards the audio equipment.

Heath Ledger, lying in the coffin, pushed open the lid and walked out. He wanted to see how the scene he had just performed would appear on the screen.

"Director."

"Come and take a look. It was shot well. Maintain this state," Lyman said with a slightly proud tone upon hearing the voice. He also changed the completed footage for them to review. "How was it?" Lyman asked with a hint of pride, looking at Heath Ledger who had just immersed himself completely in the performance.

The previous two minutes were shot in one continuous take. There was no camera shot coordination, no need for post-production editing; it was purely a single shot in the darkness. Of course, in this filming process, Heath Ledger, as the lead actor, played a much more significant role than the director. "Sound brings the picture to life" may sound simple, but all the imagery needed to be created by the actor. This young actor gave a brilliant performance.

"Good," Heath Ledger said. After watching the short two-minute shot, he didn't know how the final effect would appear in the film, but he knew he had done well.

"No sound issues," René returned shortly to report.

Due to tight budget constraints, the crew didn't hire a professional sound technician, so they needed to personally verify if the audio and visuals were in sync in the footage. "That's good." Lyman couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Such an important shot couldn't afford any mistakes.

"With this scene approved, let's rearrange the lighting and have the actors do their makeup again."

In just a short while, Heath Ledger's face and body were covered in sweat. Although sweating was normal being trapped underground, it would affect the next shooting session. Actors needed to be camera-ready and apply some powder to cover up imperfections. However, all the makeup had been washed away during the previous shot.

The entire crew got busy again—rearranging the lighting, doing makeup, adjusting the camera position. The camera needed to be positioned from the coffin, securely fixed on the actor's abdomen, capturing close-ups of Paul's face from below.

Filming was never a simple task!