Diary of a Leonardo Intern from Lorcan Dunne

After the success of last month’s diary of an intern, Pulse News got another opportunity to get the inside scoop on what it’s like to work with iconic actors and award winning directors. Lorcan was placed in the cutting edge, Mill Studio and tells us all about his experience working with the legendry William Hurt and the beautiful Isabella Rossellini.

Hi, my name is Lorcan Dunne and I’m on the full time film course. During my work placement in the UK, I spent a week on the film set of Late Bloomers and one week in The Mill, a world renowned Post Production company, based in Soho, London.

In 2007, industry magazine ‘Shots’ named The Mill 'the most-awarded VFX company in the world' and in March this year, The Mill was awarded a BTAA (British Television Advertising Awards). The Mill has built relationships with some of the industry’s finest directors including Chris Cunningham, Frank Budgen, Fredrik Bond, Ringan Ledwidge and Michel Gondry. The Mill ethos is to push the boundaries of creativity and technology, making it a very exciting work environment.

I worked on Late Bloomers, a Drama starring the multi award winning actor William Hurt and the very talented Isabella Rossellini. It was shot around many stunning locations in Central London. My contact was Farah Abushwesha, who was Production Manager for the film. Farah coordinates and teaches the excellent Screenwriting Workshop in Pulse and that’s how we initially met.

I assisted the lighting department on the film set. The lighting team consisted of Lee Walters, the Head Gaffer and four electricians/grips. Lee Walters is one of the top Gaffers in the UK and has lit major films such as Sahara, The Hours and Enigma. The gaffer works very closely with the Director of Photography and is responsible for all lighting on the film as well as having the huge responsibility of being the head of the electrical department.

The Director of Photography decides the lighting effect required for a scene. Under the Gaffer's supervision, the team of riggers, carpenters & electricians physically position and supply electricity to all the lighting. This can range from putting lights on stands, to building elaborate platforms or the use of cranes to achieve the desired effect. Once the lights are in position, the task of shaping and focusing the light with flags, scrims and gels gets underway. This is all done to achieve the exact lighting effect that the Director of Photography desires.

In a sense, the Director of Photography is the brush and the lighting team is the paint. As part of my work placement, I had to produce a work log, this excerpt will give you an insight into a typical shooting day:

Day 2

The day started with a night time bedroom scene. All the windows were blacked out and tungsten lamps were used to create the warm look. Each shot change required a tweak in the lighting. It was a busy day, as the scene was shot from multiple angles and required a lot of lighting adjustments. Speed is crucial in the lighting department, you can’t have the crew or talent waiting around. Lighting changes from one shot to the next had to be quick and accurate. Normally, there is a crew rehearsal. All the department heads gather around the monitor observing hair, makeup, props, continuity and lighting, once this is finished, the various departments will make the necessary final adjustments, then they shoot.


This was the last day at that location and there was a lot of de-rigging going on behind the scenes. The lighting team consists of 5 members. The two electricians prepare the location and dismantle and pack away all the gear while Lee and his two assistants work on the next set up. There were only two scenes filmed and the last took place in another bedroom. This scene was lit very naturally with a daylight balanced lamp hanging directly over the window to accentuate the daylight coming in. It was heavily diffused and Depron, a white reflective card, was placed behind the bed to bounce some of the light onto the actors’ faces. Shooting finished at 4 and all the gear was packed into the lorries, ready for the next location.

The experience of working on a real film set cemented my interest in film lighting as a career. I learned more about lighting for film in seven days than I did on any of the courses I completed in the past. Working on a film set is a great buzz, but there are drawbacks; you have to work long hours and sometimes late into the night. When you are working, believe me, you work hard, but there is a lot of waiting around between takes. Ultimately though, all that is insignificant when you consider how privileged a position it is to be involved in the most collaborative art form of them all, filmmaking.

To say that it was a great experience would be an understatement: I made loads of industry contacts, participated in a film shoot and at the end of it all was invited to join the Lighting Team on the next Martin Scorsese film in Shepperton Studios this summer. Not bad for a work placement!