‘The Rings of Power’: How Director J.A. Bayona Used Music to Keep the Actors in the Zone
Many directors have unique traditions they do on set to keep the energy flowing for the actors. They can range from standard to bizarre, but they can often create a distinct environment on set. According to Benjamin Walker, while filming Amazon’s Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, director J.A. Bayona would play music to keep actors in the zone.
Director J.A. Bayona directed the first two episodes of ‘The Rings of Power’
The first season of The Rings of Power is being shared between three different directors. The first two episodes are directed by J.A. Bayona, with Wayne Che Yip and Charlotte Brandstrom splitting up the final six. While many will associate The Lord of the Rings with director Peter Jackson, he is not involved with the Amazon series.
Bayona has directed four movies, including The Orphanage, The Impossible, and A Monster Calls. His most famous movie is Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, which was a box office success, but not a hit with critics. His first two episodes of The Rings of Power are his first venture into Middle Earth, but not his first venture into television, as he directed a few episodes of Penny Dreadful.
Benjamin Walker says director Bayona played music while filming ‘The Rings of Power’
In an interview with Collider, Walker, who plays the High King of the Elves, Gil-galad, shared what it was like to work with director Bayona on The Rings of Power. Walker said Bayona brought a burst of energy to the set, but he also did something unique by playing music constantly throughout the shoot.
“Bravery and an endless amount of energy,” Walker said. “The man can just ping-pong all over the place and he is an inspiration in that sense. He’s constantly looking to be surprised by the visual aspect of it, by the performance, and he does a thing that I’ve never had a director do. He plays music constantly. And I don’t mean like his iPod shuffle. He’s got a specific song that will play in between setups, in between takes, and it’s usually a film score.”
“But what it does is, on a deeply subconscious level, it unifies the work that’s going on, “ Walker added. “Everyone can kind of get an idea of how he’s imagining the scene going, and even in the downtime, when you’re not shooting, you’re still kind of in that reality, and it’s because he’s playing this music. I loved that because oftentimes, you go to the craft service table, you’re having a cookie. The kind of air goes out. And he didn’t allow that and that’s something I’ll take with me on every job from here on out.”
Bayona believes playing music helps set the mood
In an interview with Slash Film, Bayona addressed why he plays music while filming. Bayona was talking about filming Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and said he liked to play music during the shoot because it helped set the mood and helped with building tension during moments that needed it.
“I like music,” Bayona said. “It helps a lot in creating the tension, the mood. Sometimes you play light music to make the actors feel good on the set. And the lines come with a freshness that maybe you would not get in a different way.”
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
