10 Movie Industry Secrets You Didn't Know

It can't be understated just how much work goes into filming even the most seemingly basic shot in a major Hollywood movie.

Beyond getting the actors in place and blocking them correctly, the sheer number of variables that go into lighting a scene appropriately are absolutely mind-boggling.

While you'd expect to see any manner of lamps and reflectors used to set up a shot, there's one prop routinely used in filmmaking which you've likely taken entirely for granted: water.

That's right, water is an extremely useful tool for cinematographers, because it can be used to instantly make surfaces more reflective and, as a result, enhance the luminosity of a given scene.

You've probably never noticed that a disproportionate number of night-time scenes in movies will feature a wet floor. While this obviously implies it's recently rained, this is actually a basic attempt to fill the environment with more light by having the water reflect it.

Water is also used often in interiors to make the floor shinier and, again, better reflect the light within the room.

That's not to say that all movies use the trick, because it sometimes doesn't suit a given movie's style and mood, but for cinematographers struggling to make a scene "pop," it's a devilishly simple way to make their work easier.