Posted in: Movies, Netflix | Tagged: netflix, Rebel Moon, Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire, zack snyder

Rebel Moon: Zack Snyder On His Process For When To Use Slow Motion

Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire director Zack Snyder is fond of using slow motion in his film, and he talks about his process of using it in his movies.

Published Sun, 10 Dec 2023 12:02:08 -0600

by Kaitlyn Booth

Comments

Article Summary

Zack Snyder sheds light on his signature slow-motion technique in Rebel Moon.
He opts to shoot scenes in slow motion, deciding later whether to speed them up.
Snyder avoids post-production slow-down of scenes shot at 24 frames per second.
His strategic use of slow motion is a cautious but deliberate directorial decision.

We are pretty close to the release of Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire, and one of the things people are looking forward to in this film is seeing more of director Zack Snyder's signature style. Every director has something they become known for, and when you watch one of their films, you know you're watching it. For Snyder, one of the first things is you know the trailers are going to be awesome because, seriously, awesome trailers every time. Snyder is also known for using slow motion to help enhance the action scenes. When it comes to deciding which scenes he wants to shoot in slow motion and which ones he doesn't, Snyder explained his process to Collider a little bit. "[I'll] shoot it in slow motion anyway and then decide whether to put it back in 24 [frames-per-second] after. … Maybe I won't use it, but I want to be sure that I won't have to then slow down something that I shot at 24 frames. That I just couldn't do because I don't like the way it looks." Basically, if he's unsure if a scene will require any slow motion, he's inclined to air on the side of caution because it's easier to speed things back up than slow them back down.

The frame rate you're shooting in also plays a massive role in Snyder's use of slow motion and how it is utilized in films. In fact, he has set up very clear perimeters for what he doesn't want to do regarding his slow-motion scenes. Things have changed from the Watchmen opening credits scene in 2009 to Rebel Moon in 2023.

"What I don't like doing, what I never have done, and I try not to do, is slow anything down that was photographed at another frame rate," Snyder continued. "Like if I shot something at 24 frames, I never would say, 'Oh, let's slow it down so it looks like slow motion.' The only reason we did something similar to that in 'Watchmen' in the title sequence, we had to do that fake slow motion because we couldn't get the cameras. At that time, there was no Phantom; it was only Photo-Sonic. So in order to get, like, 1000 frames, we would have the actors act like they were in more slow motion than they were, so that's what we were thinking. Then in CG, you'd make the spit, or the shell casings, to make it look like it was super slow."

It sounds like Snyder more or less knows what the scene will look like before he gets in front of the camera. This scene needs slow motion and another special effect; these are all things directors plan out in their minds and with their team before shooting. So Snyder makes it sound like he isn't inclined to slow things down for the hell of it, despite what some people might think, and his use of slow motion is deliberate. There are just a few moments here or there where he's unsure, and thanks to many years of using this effect, he knows that airing on the side of caution is the way to go.

Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire: Summary, Cast List, Release Date

A new universe awaits on Netflix starting December 22. From Zack Snyder, the filmmaker behind 300, Man of Steel, and Army of the Dead, comes Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire, a 2-part movie event decades in the making. After crash landing on a moon in the furthest reaches of the universe, Kora (Sofia Boutella), a stranger with a mysterious past, begins a new life among a peaceful settlement of farmers. But she soon becomes their only hope for survival when the tyrannical Regent Balisarius (Fra Fee) and his cruel emissary, Admiral Noble (Ed Skrein), discover the farmers have unwittingly sold their crops to the Bloodaxes (Cleopatra Coleman and Ray Fisher) — leaders of a fierce group of insurgents hunted by the Motherworld.

Tasked with finding fighters who would risk their lives to defend the people of Veldt, Kora, and Gunnar (Michiel Huisman), a tenderhearted farmer naive in the realities of war, journey to different worlds in search of the Bloodaxes and assemble a small band of warriors who share a common need for redemption along the way: Kai (Charlie Hunnam), a pilot and gun for hire; General Titus (Djimon Hounsou), a legendary commander; Nemesis (Doona Bae), a master swordswoman; Tarak (Staz Nair), a captive with a regal past; and Milius (E. Duffy), a resistance fighter. Back on Veldt, Jimmy (voiced by Anthony Hopkins), an ancient mechanized protector hiding in the wings, awakens with a new purpose. But the newly formed revolutionaries must learn to trust each other and fight as one before the armies of the Motherworld come to destroy them all.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!