a story lives forever
Register
Sign in
Form submission failed!

Stay signed in

Recover your password?
Register
Form submission failed!

Web of Stories Ltd would like to keep you informed about our products and services.

Please tick here if you would like us to keep you informed about our products and services.

I have read and accepted the Terms & Conditions.

Please note: Your email and any private information provided at registration will not be passed on to other individuals or organisations without your specific approval.

Video URL

You must be registered to use this feature. Sign in or register.

NEXT STORY

Steadicams developed by Garrett Brown

RELATED STORIES

Avoid being formulaic when setting out the scene
Billy Williams Film-maker
Comments (0) Please sign in or register to add comments

I think it's very easy, when you're working out with the director, how you're going to shoot a scene and how you're going to cover it, it's very easy to fall into a certain formula and I try to shoot scenes in different ways so that as a… as different scenes progress, there isn't a repetition in terms of technique or angles; so that you try to bring to each particular scene, both in terms of light, composition and movement, something that's relative to that scene which will make it stand out from other scenes that might follow. So I think you… what one is trying to do is get to the essence of the scene: what's the scene about, who's got the most important lines in this scene, who should we feature more than another, and most importantly, where… where is the camera going to be.

Billy Williams, London-born cinematographer Billy Williams gained his first two Oscar nominations for the acclaimed “Women in Love” and “On Golden Pond”. His third nomination, which was successful, was for the epic “Gandhi”. He was President of the British Society of Cinematographers, and was awarded the Camera Image Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000.

Listeners: Neil Binney

Neil Binney began working as a 'clapper boy' in 1946 on spin-off films from steam radio such as "Dick Barton". Between 1948-1950 he served as a Royal Air Force photographer. From 1950 he was a Technicolor assistant technician working on films such as John Ford's "Mogambo" (photographed by Freddie Young), Hitchcock's "The Man Who Knew Too Much" (Bob Burke), and Visconti's "Senso" (G.R. Aldo/B. Cracker). As a camera assistant he worked on "Mind Benders", "Billy Liar" and "This Sporting Life". Niel Binney became a camera operator in 1963 and worked with, among others, Jack Cardiff, Fred Tammes and Billy Williams. He was elected associate member of the British Society of Cinematographers in 1981 and his most recent credits include "A Fish Called Wanda" and "Fierce Creatures".

Duration: 55 seconds

Date story recorded: September 2003

Date story went live: 24 January 2008