How to shoot a NETFLIX Style interview | Formula 1: Drive To Survive Style | Interview Lighting

In todays video I do my best to breakdown and replicate the interviews seen in the Netflix Docudrama series Formula 1 : Drive to Survive. I break down and give you a tutorial on how to setup and light the two primary angles that they use in the show during the interview process. I know it's not perfect but I find joy in trying to break down a scene and replicate it with my low budget film making gear! These techniques can be applied to almost any interview with subtle tweaks here and there. If you have any questions about gear or how I did something, please ask in the comments and I'll do my best to answer your questions. All the gear I used in this video is listed and linked below. Thanks for watching!
Sony A7iv -
Manfrotto Tripod - www.amazon.com/Sony-Full-fram...
Sigma 24-70 F2.8 Art Lens - www.amazon.com/Sigma-24-70mm-...
Smallrig 120b (Keylight) - www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...
Neewer LED Pannel (Backlight) - www.amazon.com/Neewer-Upgrade...
Cheap black backdrop - www.amazon.com/EMART-Backdrop...

[@PrettyGuardian]

It's crazy how such a simple difference in lighting can change the entire composition of the shot.

[@banta412]

Yes, lighting is so incredibly important and often overlooked in interview setups. Thanks for watching!

[@relevancestudio1098]

Nice video !

[@banta412]

Thank you!

[@Saltbox97]

Nice vid explaining the style. Thanks

[@DesignFarmStudio]

Good job man! So simple yet so effective! 👌

[@banta412]

Thanks so much!

[@sumitghugharwal2150]

Thank you Jacob 🙏🏼

[@banta412]

Thanks for watching!

[@andyinternetguru]

Good job, really impressed :) Planning a documentary trilogy, and this helps me greatly 😀

[@banta412]

Thank you! That's awesome! I'm stoked to see what you come up with!

[@OrphanRed]

Great info, wonderful presentation, thank you!

[@banta412]

Thanks for watching!

[@TheCrispyCreative]

👍Sounding like a pro my guy ..... and you actually did a great job recreating it. Keep up the grind bud.

[@banta412]

Thanks man, appreciate the positivity!

[@MrRalph-wt3fo]

well done... thanks for sharing!

[@banta412]

And thank you for watching!

Looks so great, I didn't really search for your video, but it will be very useful for my university studies, so thank you! I've also checked your channel, and immediately subscribed! ;)

[@banta412]

Awesome! so glad you got some value out of the video!

[@paintballoperator]

great quality!

[@banta412]

Thank you!

[@BenjiTheMassage]

Nice work! Great explanation and demonstration. Could you show what you would do for a 2 person style interview, an interviewer and interviewee? Like they do on the news or 60 minutes? I would love to see your version of that.

[@banta412]

Thanks you! Love that Idea, I can work on getting that one made for sure! Stay tuned and hopefully I'll have that ready to rock in the coming weeks!

[@sistersforall8265]

More of these videos please 🤗

[@banta412]

Glad you liked it! More on the way!

[@oakparkmedia8465]

Nice work!

[@banta412]

Thanks so much!

[@hamsaschoolofhealingpsychics]

Great video

[@banta412]

Thanks!

[@chrismcphee2060]

Thanks Jacob. What are you using for a backdrop? Love the formula 1 doc series. Thanks for sharing this. #iamyourcameraguy - new sub..👍🏾

[@banta412]

Thanks for watching! The backdrop is just a cheap backdrop from Amazon. It comes with 3 cloth backdrop colors (black, white and green) Hope this helps👍

[@steff5391]

Awesome video! Simple but helpful! I do have a question: What would you recommend for those owning only one camera and still wanting to recreate this interview type style? So with two different angles. I understand it's hard to achieve, but perhaps you have some tips or could share some ideas on what you would do.

[@banta412]

Thanks Steff! Using one camera definitely makes this a little bit trickier but I have a couple of thoughts. One Idea would be to shoot the interview twice (once from each angle) and cut the answers together as seamlessly as possible using the mixed audio from each take. You could also just get a few insert shots from the side angle without dialogue to cut to in moments of silence to help build anticipation and drama for the viewer. The last though I have that isn't totally Ideal but can spice up a single angle interview would be to use keyframes in your interview clips to add a little bit of motion (think slider effect, slow zoom in or out, or even adding some jump cuts where the frame is tighter to give the viewer the impression that it is a new angle) I Hope this give you some ideas to start playing with and thanks for watching!

[@steff5391]

@@banta412Thank you so much! Will definitely try out some of your suggestions. 😊

[@ruslannimbley387]

Hi Jacob I already try to recreate this tutorial with my friends, but we want to know the Font that Netflix use to put the names of the person. 0:15

[@banta412]

Fonts will vary quite a bit from one shoe to another. If I’m working for a brand I’ll usually ask them if they have a specific brand font. If you’re trying to emulate a specific show you can usually dig up the font or a similar one by searching it on Google or a Reddit forum. Good luck and happy shooting!

[@wildpatagoniafilms16]

Nice post mate! well done! Question: so you using two cameras and syncing later right? if that is the case... I guess we need to use two backdrops...? one for the backdrop with the light .. and another with the backdrop for the profile close up...? can you please elaborate on that of you can? thanks mate! cheers!

[@banta412]

Hey Gabriel, Great Question! You will need a backdrop for behind the subject and then a backdrop for the side opposite of the "B cam" or since there is no backlight on the profile side shot you can use a dark wall and make sure there is enough space between the subject and that wall so you don't get light spilling on it. Th goal for that angle is to ave complete darkness in the background so it helps to have a really dark room to start with to give you more control of where your light is landing. Another note on syncing audio: For interviews like this I like to use an external recorder with a lavalier mic, sync that audio to each video track and then sync those two clips up on two tracks (one above the other) then all you have to do is cut out the sections of the B cam track that you don't want to show up. Your B-roll will be on the 3rd track in premiere or final cut. Hope this helps and good luck in your creation journey!