Interview with DP Lü Qing of "Annular Solar Eclipse"

"The environment was completely uncontrollable—the sky was about to get dark quickly, and we couldn't occupy public spaces for long. It was the MAVO Edge 6K that made it possible to capture the images I wanted."

DP Lü Qing, 16th FIRST Training Camp

Efficiency is the foundation of breakthroughs; breakthroughs are the core of creation. Shot at midday in mist and light, the 16th FIRST Training Camp's "Annular Solar Eclipse" uses a relatively restrained cinematographic approach to convey an uncanny and mysterious atmosphere between two women in the midst of mundane everyday life. Reflecting on this shoot, DP Lü Qing notes thatnot only was the MAVO Edge 6K stable throughout the regular shoot—it was the camera that saved the day at critical moments. "Fortunately the MAVO Edge 6K is compact and flexible, and the entire shooting process was very smooth. If it had been any other camera, this would have been very difficult."

DP Lü Qing filming with the MAVO Edge 6K

Lü Qing is a young cinematographer and film/video producer. Notable works include: narrative short "Separated Love" (隔爱), which received a special screening at Cannes; narrative short "Three Feet" (三尺), which won Best Short Film at the 13th FIRST Youth Film Festival; and "Floating Clouds" (流云过), selected for FIRST FRAME. He also has extensive experience in commercial projects across fashion, music, travel, and celebrity content.

Let's step behind the scenes of this short film and see what fascinating chemistry occurred between the MAVO Edge 6K and this production.

DP Lü Qing filming with the MAVO Edge 6K

ZhuoyaoWhen you first read the "Annular Solar Eclipse" script, what were your shooting ideas? ​Lü Qing​From a cinematographic standpoint, this story is primarily a two-hander between the two female leads. Through the female protagonist's emotional progression from awkwardness to guilt, the internal sense of mystery and suspense needs to be expressed in a connected, continuous way.I wanted to use a more creative approach to express the uncanny atmosphere of mutual suspicion between the two protagonists.

Actors Zeng Li and Cheng Qi

Zhuoyao What were your first impressions when you started using the camera? ​Lü Qing​What I really liked was the KineMON small monitor—I was fortunate to use both the 5-inch and 7-inch versions. Thismonitor has a brightness of2000 nits, making itvery well-suited for exterior shooting—everything was clearly visible throughout. The touchscreen operation is also very convenient: switching ND, LUT presets, recording format, and frame rate with a tap—it provided great convenience for the shoot.

Monitoring on the KineMON small monitor

The camera's built-in LUT presets actually looked very much like the color tone of the film "Arrival," and since I primarily used monochromatic lighting,without relying on a lot of additional lighting, I already had the image I wanted—a real surprise.

MAVO Edge 6K

ZhuoyaoWhat cinematographic approach did you use in the shoot? Lü Qing: Looking at the script content, we leaned toward expressing the conflict between characters through more everyday, life-like scenes. To emphasize the main characters, we designed the surrounding environment without large color masses or overly complex colors.I chose backgrounds with more defined shapes, using these contrasts to convey the complexity of the characters' inner states.

"Annular Solar Eclipse" BTS

ZhuoyaoAs everyone knows, shooting at the FIRST Training Camp is not simple. What difficulties did you encounter? How were they resolved? Lü Qing: There was one scene shot in a very small space that was very difficult—but fortunately, the MAVO Edge 6K is extremely compact and lightweight. We needed to film a scene on a coach bus and required a fixed position, but the space was too small for a regular tripod. I came up with a solution: I took apart the folding table we used for lunch, removed a wooden board, placed it on the seat,then set the camera on top of the board. Fortunately the camera is compact and flexible, and the entire shooting process was very smooth.If it had been any other camera, this would have been very difficult.

Filming on the coach bus

Then there was a scene at a hotel front desk. The environment was completely uncontrollable—the sky was about to get dark quickly, and we couldn't occupy public spaces for long.I feel that in situations like this, beyond the director's ability to control the scene, the stability of the camera is also critically important!It also wasn't convenient to set up lights at the time—it was the MAVO Edge 6K's excellentlow-lightperformancethat allowed us to capture the feeling we wanted.

"Annular Solar Eclipse" film still

Zhuoyao: How did the exterior shooting go?

Lü QingVery smoothly—becausethe camera's highlight performance is excellent, allowing the highlight headroom to be set for different lighting environments.我拍摄白天在湖边的戏时，可以把高光档位调到6以上。当然也有很多傍晚在室外的戏，因为训练营的灯具数量不是很充足，这些场景几乎没怎么打灯，我都是通过调节摄影机本身的参数，捕捉到更多细节，以此获得了很好的画面。

MAVO Edge 6K拍摄现场

MAVO Edge 6K

Zhuoyao: Was the color grading smooth? Did you achieve any breakthroughs in this shoot?

Lü QingRegarding the footage—capturing images like this in such a short time was already very impressive. Although we only had a few hours for grading,the film'spresentation on the big screen at its world premierewassomething I was very satisfied with—and it retained its own shooting style throughout. From my personal perspective, cinematography is like a chameleon—you might find my previous work looks completely different from this film. As a DP, you need to work with different teams and different creative partners to create a new visual language and a new style,and use a new camera to offer a new interpretation and expression.

"Annular Solar Eclipse" film still

ZhuoyaoWhat made the deepest impression on you about using the MAVO Edge 6K?

Lü QingThe camera's overall efficiency is very high—the KineMAG Nano 1TB has very large storage capacity, and one or two cards can basically handle a full day of shooting. On this project, I was very satisfied with the KineMON small monitor—it was very convenient to operate. And Kinefinity's mount adapters are very comprehensive—PL, EF, E-mount, and more. The EVF viewfinder also exceeded my expectations—on this shoot I basically spent no time testing the camera, most of the time going straight to working with the director.When I first got the MAVO Edge 6K,Ilooked at the image and immediately felt confident about this camera.

MAVO Edge 6K

Because I normally shoot a lot of moving shots—primarily handheld—though I didn't do much of that in this shoot, I still tested the camera,and the rolling shutter effect is minimal—impressive that a Chinese-made camera has reached this level!

Zhuoyao: You've participated in multiple FIRST Training Camps—how does this small-team shooting approach differ from your regular work? Lü Qing: With such a small crew in the training camp,everyone helps each other solve problems—I think that may be one of the camp's purposes—and it's a very meaningful thing. In regular productions, this kind of dynamic rarely happens anymore—most tasks are handled by camera assistants and other dedicated crew. Another difference about this shoot: the training camp's timeline is relatively compressed, so it's best todedicate the available time to the director for filming, rather than constantly solving various production problems. I felt the KineMON small monitor was very convenient to operate—used alongside the streaming feature, you can review shots and check colors, which is very efficient. This entire combination is very well suited for the training camp. "As a DP, you need to work with different teams and different creative partners to create a new visual language and a new style, and use a new camera to offer a new interpretation and expression."

Lü Qing, DP of "Annular Solar Eclipse"

Through the years, holding fast to the original aspiration. Creating the future through hard work, breaking through oneself through efficiency.

Kinefinity joins young filmmakers in using the MAVO Edge 6K to tell moving stories through light and shadow.

Thank you to DP Lü Qing for his answers! That concludes this interview—we hope it has been helpful to friends interested in Kinefinity.