I chose to watch a behind the scenes featurette for the hit 2017 film Wonder Woman. The film is widely regarded form its impressive visuals, stunts, editing, and acting, and the feature highlighted how the filming process ran.

 

Impressively, many of the shots that one would assume were filmed with green screens and added effects were actually shot on site. The first section of the movie takes place on a beautiful island, and the crew actually did film on a real Italian island. As seen in the feature, most of the shots were able to rely on the natural beauty of the island to get the desired effect. Many impressive scenes were filmed on the island, and the filming process reveals how similar these shots are to the actual final movie. One behind the scenes shots shows warriors charging across the beach on horseback. Many others show fighting and battles happening, with actual stunts being performed. Even things like explosions, which one would assume were effects added in later, were actually real life.

 

However, the behind the scenes shots also demonstrate shots that would need to be superimposed in editing. Much of the filming took place in a small island village, but green screens were strewn about to cover things that would need to be changed in editing. Still, there were some shots that were almost entirely man-made. It’s incredible that some films like this one have a budget large enough that they can build an entire fake town for a few minutes of footage. Many interior shots had green screens on windows, doors, and openings. There were also certain shots that relied almost exclusively on green screen for the background. It’s impressive how these digitally developed scenes end up looking so real in the end.

 

The behind the scenes shots demonstrate the sheer magnitude of the amount of work that goes into making a film. Countless extras must be trained and costumed to ensure they create the desired effect. In addition, the number of crew involved in each shot is staggering. The shot could be a dialogue between two people, but there could be 30 people standing around them filming and directing. The number of cameras in each scene was also surprising; there truly are cameras filming every possible angle. The complex tracks and gimbals that the cameras maneuver around on demonstrate how panning and movement heavy shots are achieved. It was also interesting seeing people scurrying around with lights, microphones, and screens.

 

But more than just hard work, filming this movie looked to be a fun experience. Blooper shots were strewn throughout, showing the actors laughing at each other and messed up lines. This humanizes the actors and reveals that they’re not perfect all the time. Not only does the filming process seem to be educational and fascinating, but it looks enjoyable as well and the feeling of seeing all the work come into fruition in the end must be very special. Seeing this kind of thing definitely shows me the intricacies of the film industry, but also shows how fascinating it is.