AMIRA Live on multi-camera courtroom drama

Mr. Frenzel, what conversations did you have with RP Kahl about how to approach the shoot?

When the producer Alexander Van Dülmen first contacted me, it quickly became clear that this project would be a hybrid of different production methods, with elements of cinema, theater, and broadcast television. Our production team had an intriguing mix of professional backgrounds. Director RP Kahl mainly comes from cinema, our production designer Nina Peller often works in theater, and our costume designer Tina Kloempken has extensive experience in opera. My own background is a mix of cinema and multi-camera live TV productions. When I discussed the project with RP Kahl we decided on a “live-to-tape” approach, filming on a TV soundstage at Studio Berlin with multiple cameras and 360-degree coverage of the action.

How did you decide on the look of the film? What were your references?

The design of the set was more an abstraction of a courtroom, since we wanted to stay away from a historical depiction of the trials, as you would see in a period piece. There are some subtle hints of the 1960s through the choice of wardrobe, but generally it was more of a timeless space, which in my opinion makes it more relevant to the now. We tried to bring in a subtle fluidity to the very static setup of a courtroom by using four mobile cameras that added some movement: a Steadicam, a Technocrane, a dolly camera, and a movable PED cam (pedestal camera) to get different angles.  
 
In terms of lighting, we relied on automated fixtures used for live TV shows, theatrical performances, and concerts. We worked with our lighting designer Peer Langemak to create different moods for each chapter and occasionally dynamic light changes during a scene as well. As far as references go, we looked at Gerhard Richter’s Birkenau paintings, which are a good starting point for exploring how to approach any artistic representation of something as horrific as the Holocaust. For me personally, Jacob Ihre’s use of what I would call “unpleasant” color on the HBO miniseries “Chernobyl” was something I kept circling back to.

How tight was your shooting schedule?

We only had five shooting days. Typically, we would shoot three takes of one chapter in the morning, and then three takes of another in the afternoon. Each take was around 15 to 30 minutes non-stop, which was a tremendous challenge for the actors and the entire team. To prepare for it, RP and I had made a very detailed camera coverage plan, which we rehearsed with the actors and technical team in the week leading up to our shoot. It is quite a different task to plan for eight cameras versus the typical two-camera coverage of a conventional feature. I sat down for two mornings during our rehearsal week just to communicate the coverage plan to the camera operators. Since I live and work mostly in the US, this was my first collaboration with the camera crew in Germany and I’m very grateful for how much creativity and professionalism they all brought to the project.

What kinds of things were in the camera coverage plan you devised?

The camera choreography was very important because we had to get all shots covered in very few takes. As an example, we had to decide beforehand when the Steadicam would cover dialogue up close on stage, because that could prevent the other cameras from getting their shots at the same time. Everyone knew that each take counted fully; being reduced to only three takes would be unthinkable on a traditional feature film. But the live aspect brings everyone to the highest level of concentration, both in front of and behind the camera.