TV Show directory - The Taking Of Prince Harry
This insightful programme examines the hypothetical disaster that would erupt should Prince Harry's helicopter come under fire and fall into the hands of the Taliban. Just who would be responsible for his rescue, and how would they go about it? What political action – both foreign and domestic – would be necessary to ensure both the Prince's and England's national dignity remain unscathed? Back home, how would the matter be spun? And if there was no other option, would the British concede defeat and foot the ransom?
"Alexander, the director, was adamant that the grade should enhance the narrative of the piece," said colourist Richard Fearon, who graded the show in Baselight. "There are several different locations that are intercut with each other in order to deliver the story, and whilst each has its own look it was essential that they all sat cleanly together. At the very beginning of the show when Harry crashes his Apache helicopter, we go straight in with high contrast and hot colours so that you are blasted by the heat of the desert," Richard continued. "When Harry's being held hostage we intensified the shots by crushing the blacks, twisting the contrast and adding a heavy vignette to make everything feel a lot more claustrophobic."
"For the negotiation scenes in London," Richard added, "we went with a much colder, bluer grade so there's a stark difference when the locations are cut back to back, though we kept the heavy vignettes to close things in, as well as deeply crushed blacks and accelerated contrast. The shots are quite saturated as the story begins but as the situation gets worse the saturation starts to come down and the highlights are pushed up to really stretch the image."
Production Company: Prime Focus
Year of Publication: 2010
