Fall/Winter 2016-17
BY BECCA NADLER
"We're very organized, and you have to be," says 1st AD Lars Winther, discussing his process for prepping a Marvel film. "Especially when you're doing a Civil War movie or Guardians of the Galaxy [Vol. 2, which Winther recently wrapped], there's a lot of very complicated stuff and it takes time to figure it out."
A self-described superhero fan who has worked on The Avengers, Ant-Man, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Winther enjoys the puzzle-like challenge of scheduling a film during prep. "I have a B-plan and a C-plan, so if [Plan A] doesn't happen, then I'm prepared to go somewhere else."
One such Plan B became essential during the filming of Captain America: Civil War, when the production team had to deal with sudden late-afternoon rainstorms that didn't show up on radar. "We ended up putting a stage on hold [with a] green screen," Winther recalls. "When the rain would come we would bail [on outdoor filming] and head to stage, and the rest of the day we would just shoot close-ups."
Once the planning is done and shooting begins, though, Winther says the most important aspect of the job is optimism. "You've got to be positive," he says. "You're the AD; you're the pulse of the crew and if you're positive and upbeat, they'll be positive and upbeat. I'm a true believer in that."