Film Technique: The Mirror Shot in Andrei Tarkovsky's Mirror

Mirror, directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, screenplay by Andrei Tarkovsky and Aleksandr Misharin, cinematography by Georgi Rerberg, music by Eduard Artemev, and edit by Lyudmila Feyginova.

"Mirrors are the essence of movies." When we reflect on Andrei Tarkovsky's poetic direction of film language, we can not help but think Tarkovsky would agree with Nicolas Roeg's statement on the use of mirrors in filmmaking. The mirror shot carries the essence of the frame within a frame technique and the feel of the mise-en-abyme, as in the metaphysical meaning manifested by the story within a story technique found in literature and that translates into the visual arts to great effect. Call to mind Gabriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude in literature. In painting, think of Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez. In cinema, consider Orson Welles' Citizen Kane and The Lady from Shanghai. The mirror is an impactful tool for artistic expression. In the hands of a filmmaker who emphasizes the effective use of film language, the mirror furthers visual, emotional, and psychological depth, and in the hands of a filmmaker like Andrei Tarkovsky, it furthers poetic depth, as seen in his masterpiece Mirror. The mirror shot is a shot of intimacy that allows a narrative to connect with an audience in terms of contemplation, discovery, desire, identity, memory, persona and truth, and much more.

Film Technique: Chiaroscuro in David Lynch's Mulholland Drive

Mulholland Drive, directed by David Lynch, screenplay by David Lynch, cinematography by Peter Deming, music by Angelo Badalamenti, and edit by Mary Sweeney.

Chiaroscuro translates to "light-dark" (chiaro: light or clear; oscuro: dark or obscure). In visual art, the term means the use of deep variations in and subtle gradations of light and shadow to create three-dimensional volume on a flat surface. The painter Caravaggio is well-known for his effective use of chiaroscuro through his blending of high contrast and a single focused light source. Where the light focuses your attention on his subjects and storytelling, the deep contrast intensifies the drama of his scenes. Other painters who used chiaroscuro are Leonardo da Vinci, Artemisia Gentileschi, Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, and Francisco Goya.

In film, the chiaroscuro technique can enrich a film's visual narrative and emotional depth. When we consider German Expressionism and Film Noir—for example, F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu and Orson Welles' Touch of Evil, respectively—we see how the technique creates specific moods and engages us into the atmosphere and drama of a scene. Time-travel to Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather and David Lynch's Mulholland Drive, we realize the chiaroscuro technique is a timeless tool for filmmakers and cinematic storytelling. David Lynch especially utilizes the technique to great effect. By emphasizing the interplay of light and shadow, Lynch interjects a sense of mystery into his films while at the same time heightening our sense of reality in his visual narratives.