American Cinematographer - June 2006 - 44

Secret

History
the shoot took

place at the height of
season.
Shooting
was allowed
only after hours, and the
galleys had to be pristine by the time
the

summer

the

tourist

cleared

crew

out

at

6

Nothing could be pre-rigged
behind,

not

even

a.m.

or

left
the

outside

Lights could not be
pointed directly at artwork. And, of
museum.

course, no

blood was allowed

on

the

floors.
By the third tech meeting, it

parquet
was

clear

the filmmakers that

to

portions of the Louvre would have
to be replicated onstage. For starters,
there

Above:

Langdon

lectures at the
American

University in
Paris. Below:

Sophie ponders
her next

move.

Gaining access required intensive
diplomacy, and the museum's
restrictions made it

one

of the

most

challenging locations of the shoot.
Da

Vinci

Code

was

not

the S4s

The

Missing, so I went out
bought my own set," says Totino.
The cameras would be constantly
moving, affixed to sundry dollies,
jib arms, Steadicam rigs, or
on

and

the

Technocranes (50', 30' and 15') with

Studios, two Arricam Lites, and

machine. The administration also

Louvre, each

did

Because

a compact

a

lightweight Arri 235, all mounted
really loved

with Cooke S4 lenses. "I

Scorpio stabilizing heads.
Naturally, the Louvre wanted
to safeguard its priceless art against
accidental

damage by

not want

man

filming to impinge

Studios). The Louvre murder was
filmed there, as was all the action
around the corpse

on

and in the Grand

Gallery.
Seven

or

the flow of visitors, especially because

matter

Pinewood Studios (one of 12 stages
used there and at Shepperton

produc¬
Super 35mm 2.35:1,
Totino planned to use at least two
cameras on
every setup; his main
package included two Arricam

expected to be

tion. Working in

of the

huge
glass ceiling that stretches the length
of the Grand Gallery and lets in light
at daybreak. "The Louvre people
weren't interested in us getting up
there and controlling the light," says
British gaffer Perry Evans. So the
Grand Gallery was ultimately re¬
created on the 007 Stage at
was

days

were spent at

one

in

a

different

the

area.

setups were quite
Totino organized a

some

involved,

comprehensive lighting rehearsal
weeks before production. "One
massive night we had 400 electri¬
cians, 20 cherry-pickers and 20
generators," says Evans. "They liter¬
ally did what they were going to do
in each area. Sal went through the
building and we set everything in
position. He told the French gaffer to
bring the same crew back in two
weeks to do exactly the same thing. It
was like a
military operation, so
two

when

we were

allowed in the build¬

p.m., everyone had
They all drove into posi¬
tion and it went quickly." Totino
adds, "Once we started filming,
everything went really smoothly.
There were very good technicians."
Setting the film's mood in the

ing at

7

rehearsed.

40 June 2006
American Cinematographer - June 2006

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