ART HOUSE

Combining three self-contained narratives in one and shifting between different eras, Nexus Studios’ stop-motion creation chronicles the events that unfold in one unconventional house.  

While experienced in the unique world of stop-motion, having worked on productions such as Corpse Bride, Frankenweenie, and Isle of Dogs, British cinematographer Malcolm Hadley GBCT reveled in the new tasks presented by The House, a beautifully crafted, eccentric film with a dark comedic twist, produced by UK-based Nexus Studios and streaming on Netflix. 

Directed by Belgian filmmakers Emma de Swaef and Marc James Roels and set in the 1800s, the first tale in the anthology follows the impoverished Raymond who meets a mysterious benefactor promising to restore him and his family to their former status. Already enamoured with the storytelling in the directors’ previous award-winning productions such as Oh Willy… (2012) and This Magnificent Cake (2018), Hadley wanted to be part of their chapter in the ambitious film. Line producer Angela Poschet and executive producer Charlotte Bavasso welcomed Hadley to the crew in 2019, alongside fellow cinematographer James Lewis, who captured the remaining two chapters.  

“It’s unusual to find filmmakers in the stop-motion world like Emma and Marc whose work is so dark and brooding, so that was an immediate attraction. Marc was also the DP on their earlier films,” says Hadley. “I found the style of their productions and the felt characters starring in them so unique, and I was intrigued to find out more about their creative process.” 

Each time Hadley works with a new director, it’s a new journey. “Regardless of whether it’s live action or stop frame, it’s about establishing a new relationship and method – it’s never the same thing twice.” This shoot also presented a new production process for De Swaef and Roels who had worked independently in Belgium on their previous films. They described their process as “feeling their way through shots”. These productions were mostly funded through grants rather than studio-backed like the Netflix film which in turn introduced them to sharing ideas and working with a larger crew.

The initial plan was to shoot at a London-based studio, but when COVID hit, the decision was made to shoot in Manchester for financial and practical reasons and due to a shortage of studio space in the capital city. The enchanting stories were captured at the studios of Mackinnon and Saunders – a company renowned for specialising in puppet-making.  

The prep period was also affected by the pandemic, reducing the time available to explore options ahead of the shoot. These discussions took place during an intensive period of testing when Hadley arrived in Manchester, two weeks before shooting commenced. Extensive talks had already taken place between the directors and talented production designer Alexandra Walker, who Hadley had previously worked with, and who cohesively united the three stories within the theme of the house. 

Walker’s production design focused on the two main environments the first story would play out in – the cottage the family initially live in, which needed to be lit for both daylight then with oil lanterns at night and the grand, new house they move into which is lit with ‘modern’ gas fixtures. Both environments demanded firelight effects, especially for the dramatic culmination of the film. “When elements we are shooting are made in a workshop, they can be built in fluorescent or natural light rather than tungsten which we predominantly used,” says Hadley. “Alex understands the stop-frame process and that whatever is filmed needs to be tested under the right light before shooting begins.” 

Prior to the shoot and in tandem with her design work and technical drawings, Walker created boards mounted with wallpaper fabric in a variety of colours so Hadley could shoot practical light tests exploring how the sets would react to certain gels and light treatments. Tiny practical light fixtures, just a few centimetres high, were also designed by Walker. The variety of lanterns, gas wall fixtures and chandeliers each with their own hand-blown glass shades were delivered to Hadley who tested different ways of illuminating these miniature practicals, experimenting with ‘grain of wheat’ tungsten bulbs and LEDs until the right combinations were established. Using a puppet from the directors’ previous films, he conducted further tests to examine how the texture of the characters’ unique felt faces appeared under light and on camera. 

The unique stop-motion masterpiece is a finely tuned combination of production design, art direction, set dressing, lighting, along with the many intricate details which are constantly modified during the process of organic development. Accomplishing a feel evocative of an 1800s house was largely realised through the sets which were designed and built by Andy Ferago’s Clockwork Frog Films in Stockport. “You rely on people such as Andy with broad experience because things can go horribly wrong if the materials aren’t right causing elements to separate under the lights. As the sets are shot over a long period of time, things invariably move and change shape with the altering temperature and humidity which also needs to be considered.” 

Hadley aims to finalise most of the colour and look of his stop-frame projects on set “because it’s such a controlled, carefully managed environment, you’re testing gels and you can mix the colours on set – you make those broad colour decisions up front.” When it comes to the grade, which on this occasion was carried out by Andy Glasman at Goldcrest Post, most of the adjustments involved making some of the fire effects richer and bringing them closer together because mixing tungsten lamps, the tiny flicker balls in the fireplace, and small LED sources sometimes resulted in slight colour discrepancies. 

Hadley was also proud to have successfully accomplished a complicated transitional effect as the sun rises over a hill in the final scene of The House. “We worked with a laser-cut disk of mirror board – with layers of amber gel to make it red – and stuck it on a little pole which we poked over the top of the landscape. A Dedolight was then bounced really close to it, with the light almost flaring the lens.” 

Unlike live action, when working in stop-frame, the possibilities are endless. The thrill of working with so many types of material and concepts and collaborating with a unique community of creators is a constant appeal for Hadley. “The next production might be made of wood, plaster, or even cheese! You’re often dealing with new surfaces and materials that take the light differently,” he says. “That’s why it’s so exciting – there’s always something new to explore and challenges to solve which keep it fresh.”