The “Chief of Struggle” finale, Episode 9 on the Apple TV+ collection, is named “The Black Desert.” And director Jason Momoa doesn’t maintain again in terms of simply how “black” and “desert”-like that setting is for the present’s climactic, 30-plus-minute battle between the forces of Hawaii and Maui.
The conflict sees Cliff Curtis’ spurned chieftain Keōua, now excessive on his personal provide because the chosen of the volcano Gods, on the one facet; then, Kaina Makua’s reluctant, good-hearted king Kamehameha, and Jason Momoa’s vengeful chief of warfare Ka’iana on the opposite. The large armies sq. up on a desolate lava subject, which isn’t precisely the form of place you’d need to struggle with very sharp spears and minimal padding.
It’s additionally not essentially the form of place you’d need to drag a movie crew for eight days of capturing intense crowd and stunt sequences. However collection cinematographer Matthew Chuang instructed IndieWire the placement the “Chief of Struggle” staff discovered was merely simple as the place for the battle the place the Kingdom of Hawaii actually got here into being.
“We have been scouting potential places for this, and we got here throughout this lava subject — this big lava subject on a cliff by the facet of the water. I don’t know should you’ve ever been on a lava subject earlier than, nevertheless it’s like strolling on the moon,” Chuang mentioned. “It’s so jagged, and the bottom has these peaks and cracks, and it’s actually sharp. For those who put your hand on the lava, you can minimize your self.”
It took the placement scouting staff about half-hour to stroll into the spot round Hawaiʻi Volcanoes Nationwide Park the place they’d finally movie, in truth, as a result of the bottom was so sharp. However Momoa particularly pushed for them to search out options to work and get energy to the placement safely, in order that the present might visually underscore the significance of the battle in Hawaiian historical past. “He needed to shoot that on Hawaiian land, you already know?” Chuang mentioned. “In order that they received geologists to come back in and appeared [at the location], with manufacturing, at how we might get our gear in there, they usually form of made it potential.”
With geological details about the most secure locations to movie and how you can get gear out and in, although, Chuang and Momoa nonetheless needed to check a variety of digicam and, particularly, lighting gear to make sure that they might face up to the marathon, all-day, and into-night battle sequence. Chuang made the right story determination for the present to embrace a naturalistic fashion general, constructing frames that frequently envelop the characters throughout the panorama or set them starkly in opposition to it. Nevertheless it meant that throughout the battle shoot, the manufacturing needed to actually divide and conquer with a purpose to get the protection they wanted.
“We had 5 models going on the identical time. Jason introduced in [the other ‘Chief of War’ directors] Brian Mendoza and Justin Chon to assist him direct sure sequences. We sectioned off the lava subject for various areas to have the forces stand off, then colliding, then a piece for sure characters to make use of, and we cut up it off that method,” Chuang mentioned. “It was an enormous enterprise.”
Momoa, who leads Kamehameha’s forces from the entrance, needed to stability spearing and pummelling his method by way of Keōua’s military on digicam with coordinating different models following different characters by way of the bloody scrum. You’d anticipate this to require an enormous quantity of planning and communication between the digicam and stunt groups, and it did. However, reflecting on the expertise, Chuang was struck by how getting the dimensions of the battle proper took a full-court press from the whole “Chief of Struggle” crew.
“It was all deliberate out, however on the identical time, extremely loopy. Everybody on the crew, from costumes to make-up to stunts, have been all taking place all alongside the identical time. All of the PAs and transport — everybody wanted to come back collectively to make this potential. Generally, we might begin at 3 within the morning and prep at night time. Then, because the solar was developing, we’d begin capturing all these sequences.”
The brutality of the black desert is an enormous a part of what makes the sequence really feel so visually distinct; it sharpens as the sunshine modifications, then grows darkish and fiery and virtually infernal as night time falls, and because the combatants need to wail at one another by the glow of lava coming forth from the Earth. Chuang mentioned that in terms of the lava-work, visible texture permits the digicam and the motion to breathe a bit — to not want the form of shaky-cam or fast motion that forces a way of depth. As a substitute, it comes from the atmosphere and the actors onscreen.
It’s a visible strategy Momoa responded to even earlier than Chuang received the job. “The important thing [to shooting the lava] is to have fog and smoke and environment to mild. Certainly one of my greatest influences normally is that this photographer, Todd Hido. His stuff is that this quiet, moody, memory-based work. After I was speaking to Jason about coming to shoot the present, we’d simply met for the primary time over Zoom, and I discussed Todd. He was like, ‘Oh, I like Todd! He’s a good friend.’” Chuang mentioned.
Todd Hido was not the one good friend of the present on “Chief of Struggle.” Simply because the Apple TV+ collection was gearing as much as shoot the Episode 9 battle sequences, Mokuʻāweoweo, the summit caldera of Mauna Loa, erupted for the primary time since 1984. The manufacturing wanted to halt for a day to ensure the air high quality was secure and it will be secure to movie.
“We went on the market and began scouting anyway, and it was really a very nice prep day as a result of everybody might get there and settle. However yeah, that volcano hadn’t exploded in like 40 or 50 years, after which the day that we completed [shooting], it stopped erupting,” Chuang mentioned. “Jason and the Hawaiians thought it was an indication from the Gods, like a blessing, you already know? In order that was actually wonderful.”
“Chief of Struggle” is offered to stream on Apple TV+
