October 5, 2020
Narrative Development Through Colors : Lootera
The film achieves the contrast in its emotions in the first and the second half significantly by its choice of color palettes and the general atmosphere that is conjured by its visuals. The former is constituted by high saturation and contrast, as opposed to the muted, quiet, steely palettes of the latter.
Lootera remains one of the most beautiful, but underrated examples of storytelling in film. It's first half embodies the various stages of falling in love, the obstacles that such a situation often presents the characters with, and the consequent battle of overcoming or succumbing to them.
The second half, however, is marked by a completely opposite tone. While it includes the story of love gone sour, there is also an overwhelming sense of sadness and anguish which is never truly explicitly spelled out, and yet is ubiquitous and all-pervasive.
The film achieves this contrast in its emotions in the first and the second half significantly by its choice of color palettes and the general atmosphere that is conjured by its visuals. The former is constituted by high saturation and contrast, as opposed to the muted, quiet, steely palettes of the latter.
The warmth is also brought about by the location - a summery, sunny corner of West Bengal. The second half, on the other hand, unfolds in a landscape that is cold, frigid and even frozen by the end of the film. The colors now acquire a gray undertone with their lowered saturation.
This contrast, achieved skilfully in the film, enables it to be a poignant, moving story. It further shows how filmmaking is a process made successful by a combination of several factors and variables, put together most expertly in Lootera.
Credits: Director: @motwayne DOP: Mahendra Shetty Editor: @kalradipika Production Designer: @adityakan Art Director: @vilaskolap
The second half, however, is marked by a completely opposite tone. While it includes the story of love gone sour, there is also an overwhelming sense of sadness and anguish which is never truly explicitly spelled out, and yet is ubiquitous and all-pervasive.
The film achieves this contrast in its emotions in the first and the second half significantly by its choice of color palettes and the general atmosphere that is conjured by its visuals. The former is constituted by high saturation and contrast, as opposed to the muted, quiet, steely palettes of the latter.
The warmth is also brought about by the location - a summery, sunny corner of West Bengal. The second half, on the other hand, unfolds in a landscape that is cold, frigid and even frozen by the end of the film. The colors now acquire a gray undertone with their lowered saturation.
This contrast, achieved skilfully in the film, enables it to be a poignant, moving story. It further shows how filmmaking is a process made successful by a combination of several factors and variables, put together most expertly in Lootera.
Credits: Director: @motwayne DOP: Mahendra Shetty Editor: @kalradipika Production Designer: @adityakan Art Director: @vilaskolap
