So, this past fall semester, I attended Lighting & Electric - my second class at the Georgia Film Academy (GFA). Jim McKinney led and instructed this class, a longtime electrician and cinematographer the TV/Film Industry. I'll describe how I felt about the course and The Georgia Film Academy below!
“Jim McKinney led and instructed this class, a longtime electrician and cinematographer in the TV/Film Industry.”
At the beginning of the course, we learned the basics of the Electrical department and the various job descriptions and hierarchies of the electrical department in a professional film/television production.
We learned that electricians set the lights. The lighting and rigging technicians are the grips, functioning as a cross between a mechanic and a construction worker on the set. A grip's job responsibilities include: working closely with the camera department, especially if the camera is mounted onto a dolly or crane, work closely with the electrical department to put in the lighting set-ups necessary for a shot. Grips do not set the lights (they are not Gaffers or electricians) but handle all other essential equipment.
There are several grip positions:
• Key Grip – Department head. Overseas the work and responsibilities of all of the grips on the set.
• Best Boy Grip – assists the key grip but assumes more responsibility for the hiring and scheduling of the crew; oversees the rental of the equipment on the set.
• Dolly Grip – operates the camera dollies or camera cranes.
• Grip – 3rds. General laborers in the department.
• Gaffer – head of the electrical department (sometimes called the chief lighting technician). Works closely with the director of photography and oversees the work of the assistants on set.
• Electrician / Best Boy Electric – supports the gaffer. Generally responsible for the daily running of the lighting, hiring, and scheduling of the crew, coordinating the rigging crews if needed.
We then went on to learn the basics of lighting a set, including how to safely light a set. With electricity, there is a right and wrong. If someone executes what can be deemed "bad lighting" (always open to opinion) - there will be no harmful consequences. If the electrical is not done correctly, there is great potential for harm. However, as we went along throughout the course, we learned that the systems are straightforward and extremely safe if you utilize them correctly.
The images above were taken on my Nishika N8000 using Kodak Portra 400.
Once we learned how to light a set safely, we eventually lit our own sets in class (my favorite activity!). We would be free to recreate any lighting set-ups we were inspired by in class and had ample lighting equipment to do so! Check out a few of our set-ups from the class below! We also eventually got into learning how to alter lights in many ways, like shaping them with modifiers, changing the color/tone of lights, and even learning how to light a day and night scene like they do in the tv/film industry!
The images above were taken on my Fujifilm X-Pro 3 and the XF 23mm f/1.4.
My overall feedback would be that this is a very well-crafted course for aspiring filmmakers at any level, whether a beginner or an expert. The knowledge you get from an instructor in the industry, the experience you get in class, and the network you build with classmates, can help you in ways that I can't put into words.
The images above were taken on my Yashica T4 Super using Cinestill 800T.
One of my favorite things in class was setting up the camera for us to record scenes.
I thoroughly enjoyed this semester and can't wait to see what the future holds for me in the TV/Film Industry. I know it will be rough, as I'm told by so many other people who have jobs in the industry, but I trust the Georgia Film Academy and its instructors will help me prepare for what's to come! Over the semester, I've taken photos and videos of what it's like in my GFA class, and I'll post them below. The last project I worked on was a video where I interviewed a few classmates and my instructor on the last day of school. Please check that video out below as well. My classmates (future filmmakers) are discussing the roles they want to occupy in the industry after we graduate from The Georgia Film Academy. In the future, when we have time and experience working on sets, videos like this will be cool to look back on to reflect on where we started!
This video above was shot on my Fujifilm X Series US X-T4 using the XF 16-55mm f/2.8.
Written by Kristopher Reid
Photos and video by Kristopher Reid