♪ ♪
What makes this
moment so iconic?
It's not just the dinosaurs.
For this episode of the
"Directors Playbook",
we're headed to Isla Nublar.
"- There it is."
Welcome.
Oh, sorry, John.
That's your line.
"- Welcome to Jurassic Park."
♪ ♪
♪ Director's Playbook - Intro ♪
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"- Yes!"
Just don't be surprised
when it bites.
"- The most advanced amusement
park in the entire world."
One way Spielberg uses
blocking and staging
is to deal with something
filmmakers dread.
Exposition.
"- No, we've made living biological
attractions so astounding
that they'll capture the
imagination of the entire planet."
Exposition is a necessary evil
communicating
important backstory.
"- A hundred million years ago,
there were mosquitoes just like today.
And just like today,
they fed on the blood of animals.
Even dinosaurs."
Take this scene.
To keep the scene active,
Spielberg gives
us a focal point.
John.
John is trying to convince
the others of his plan
to shut down the system.
It starts wide
to establish the scene.
And the camera follows John
as he tries to reassure Ellie.
"- We'll never find the command Nedry used.
He's covered his tracks far too well."
Then over to Arnold to
highlight their disagreement.
"- So, shutting down
the entire system...
- You need to get somebody else.
I won't do it.
- Shutting down the system is the only
way to wipe out everything that he did."
And then back to Elly for
another attempt to convince her.
"- All the systems
will then come back
on their original start-up mode.
Correct?"
There is nothing but
dialogue in script
and he could have shot this
scene with static coverage.
"- Would we get
the phones back?"
Yet Spielberg manages to include
four setups
in one continuous shot.
And the scene becomes
much more active
and immersive.
And that leads to another way
Spielberg users character
and camera movement
to make us curious.
Because he's not cutting,
it takes the camera time
to find new positions
and reveal new information.
Like this moment
For 22 seconds,
we are left to our imaginations.
"- I want to go now.
- Just look how it eats.
- Please.
- I bet you'll never look
at birds the same way again.
- Yes.
- Go now."
That extra time
allows for anticipation to grow.
"- Look how much blood."
♪ ♪
"- You shouldn't use my name.
- Dodgson.
We've got Dodgson here."
Notice how this next
scene is written.
Not only is it a bit cartoonish.
There's no mystery
in that moment.
Spielberg uses
blocking and staging
to turn that moment into
something more nuanced
and mysterious.
The bag and Dodgson
remain our focal point.
And a question is born.
What's in the bag?
"- $750,000.
On delivery,
$50,000 more for each viable embryo.
That's $1.5 million if you get
all 15 species off the island.
- I'll get them all.
- Remember, viable embryos. They're
no use to us if they don't survive."
"- Yuck. - Oh, great."
How about a shot that's
a little more complex
but is still designed
to peak our curiosity.
"- Now she'll never
try anything new."
It begins as a
simple tracking shot
until Alan disappears
behind the tree.
"- That's what I said.
You're a nerd."
The camera takes an extra
five seconds to catch up
and we finally get
to see what Alan saw.
Let's pretend they just
cut straight to the reveal.
"- I'm a hacker.
- That's what I said.
You're a nerd."
Not quite the same
effect, is it?
By keeping this moment
in a single take,
we have a brief moment
to allow us to lean in
and anticipate the reveal.
"- You know what this is?
It's a dinosaur egg."
You might not realize
that for Jurassic
Park's 2 hour run time,
it takes a full hour
for this to happen.
"- Where's the goat?"
Sure, there's a lot
of science to explain.
"- There's no unauthorized
breeding in Jurassic Park.
- How do you know
they can't breed?
We've engineered them that way."
"- I hate computers."
But during all of that...
"- And look at the half-moon
shaped bones in the wrists.
It's no wonder these
guys learned how to fly."
...we have plenty of time
to establish the characters.
"- No, seriously."
Which brings us to one of
the most important ways
Spielberg uses
blocking and staging.
The characters.
Specifically,
Dr. Alan Grant
and his aversion to children.
"- I mean,
what's so wrong with kids?
- They're noisy, they're
messy, they're expensive."
Let's see how
Spielberg uses a one-er
to set up this
character dynamic.
"- I'm gonna ride
with Dr. Sattler.
- I read your book.
- That's great.
- Do you really think
dinosaurs turned into birds?"
The camera pushes in
to trap Alan inside the Jeep."
And no matter where Alan goes,
Tim follows.
"- They sure don't
look like birds to me."
And so does the camera.
"- I heard that there
was this meteor,
hit the earth someplace down in
Mexico, and made this big crater.
- Listen...
- Tim.
- Tim,
which car were you planning on?
- Whichever one you are."
Tim is persistent
and so is the camera.
"- Then I heard about this thing in Omni
about this meteor making all this heat."
A traditionally shot and
edited version of this scene
would lose that connection
and we wouldn't fully
grasp Alan's discomfort.
"- She said I should ride with
you 'cause it'd be good for you."
And if this shot didn't work,
we wouldn't be able to
appreciate this moment.
"- Don't let the
monsters come over here.
- They're not monsters, they're animals.
These are herbivores."
This is actually the longest
shot in the entire film
at 79 seconds.
It is sweet relief after
20 minutes of this.
From a character perspective,
Alan finds himself in
a moment of reflection.
"- What are you and Ellie
going to do now, if you
don't have to pick up
dinosaur's bones any more?
- I don't know.
I guess we'll just have to
evolve, too."
Whereas this
previous interaction
was all about Alan's
discomfort around children.
Spielberg uses another long take
to allow his
character's development
to fully sink in.
"- What if the dinosaurs come
back while we're all asleep?
- Well...
I'll stay awake."
In doing so,
he can pack a frame and organize
his subjects in compelling ways.
"- They're lethal at eight
months, and I do mean lethal."
He can communicate
their relationships.
"- Kids!
- Grandpa!
- Wait! Careful with me.
- We missed you."
Emotions.
Beliefs.
"- Our scientists have done things
which nobody has ever done before.
- Yeah, but your scientists were so
preoccupied with whether they could,
they didn't stop to
think if they should."
We are right there
with his characters.
Immersed.
And engaged.
"- God bless you."
If filmmakers can take
anything from "Jurassic Park"
and Spielberg in general,
it's the idea that longer
takes aren't just options.
They are opportunities.
Spielberg shots stay active
because the frame is
constantly evolving.
"- Hey, we were saving that.
- For today, I guarantee it."
But it's more than just a
practical consideration.
Take your shot list
and combine two or
three setups into one.
♪ ♪
You'll probably end up with
a more interesting scene.
"- Wow.
- Okay?
- Of course.
- Don't be scared.
Come on, it's okay.
Muldoon tranquillized
her for me."
What's the greatest
Spielberg one-er of all time?
Cast your vote in
the comments below.
"Are you taking me to David?"
For a complete storyboard breakdown
of these shots from "Jurassic Park"
head over to the
StudioBinder blog.
Check the descriptions
for the link.
Spielberg obviously cares
about the audience experience
and you should too.
"- Cut. Great!"
The last thing any
filmmaker wants
is the audience walking
out thinking this.
"- That is one big pile of shit.
- You're right.
There's no trace of lilac berries.
That's so odd, though.
- You will remember to wash your
hands before you eat anything?"
