As another television production season begins (most network shows begin shooting shortly after the 4th of July holiday), the question of whether to shoot on film or digital formats has become almost an anachronism in 2010. The fact is that the SAG actions a year ago solidified and accelerated a now unstoppable march towards use of digital formats for all but some legacy shows that are still shot on film. New shows are almost universally choosing (some might say being compelled by the studio, but I digress…) to put the cast under AFTRA contracts and shoot with digital cameras of various types. Under the umbrella of “digital formats,” there are numerous choices available: compressed and uncompressed, videotape based and file based, HD formats and higher resolution formats, large format and small format, and price ranges for equipment ranging from ridiculously cheap (the Canon DSLR’s) to if-you-don’t-have-a-network-level-budget-you-probably-can’t-afford-it (F35, Panavision Genesis, etc.). This season, you will find network shows shot on equipment from Arri, Panavision, Red, Panasonic, Sony, and possibly some others as the primary, or “A” camera, but on the same sets on any given day you might very well find cameras from companies like Canon, Iconix, Woodman Labs (the Go Pro line), and even Apple’s iPhone being used, sometimes on the same scene. If it all sounds like a bit of a free for all, well, to some degree it is. On the down side, the presence of all of these devices, each one seemingly with its own specific file format, has made life much more difficult for post production, both in editorial and in final finishing. On the up side, the viability of all of them for specific purposes has given production more tools than they’ve ever had to explore visual creativity. Every show must ultimately decide what to use as the “A” camera, regardless of what other tools they might bring to the set on any given day. And the reasons behind those decisions are not always what people outside the mainstream television industry seem to think they are. continue reading…
I recently completed a digital intermediate project for an independent feature called “Meeks’ Cutoff.” This picture had a few rather unique characteristics: it was a period Western, it was set in – and shot in – eastern Oregon (an area not exactly known as a production hotbed, and one that as a result has not often been photographed), it was shot with an intended aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and perhaps most surprisingly for an independent production these days, it was shot on 35mm film. Considering the many harsh production conditions – wide open areas with little shade, rapidly changing skies and weather conditions, and lots of dust – that choice was a wise one. But in grading the picture, I was quickly reminded of why film survives, and why it is, in many ways, still the most robust and forgiving production format we have.
Postworld went live on November 23, 2009, which means that it’s now a bit over six months old. I suppose that’s enough of a milestone to take some stock of what it’s meant both to me as your host, and to you as my guests. For me, this blog has been an outlet for me to both learn and educate, and I very much enjoy doing both. I learn from your comments and from the research that I do to fact check the things I write about here, and I hope I educate by sharing that newfound knowledge with all of you in at least a mildly entertaining manner. All of us have our own unique perspectives that we develop through our personal experiences in work and in life, and if there’s one thing that the Web and blogs allow us to do, it’s to share those perspectives and enlighten ourselves and each other in the process. Hopefully Postworld has helped to do that for you, I know it has for me. continue reading…
Due to my work schedule, I did not attend the NAB convention in Las Vegas this year. Which, as it turns out, is a pity, because it was probably one of the most interesting gatherings in quite some time. Lots of interesting announcements on various fronts, involving some of the more significant players in our business, including Arri (with the Alexa camera line), Aaton (showing the proposed digital back for the Penelope camera), Assimilate (showing a new version of Assimilate Scratch working with Arri RAW files in real time), Filmlight (some very interesting new things coming, including integrated Red Rocket support, and support for Sony’s new software version of the SR codec, allowing for some very efficient file based workflow enhancements), and Avid (Media Composer 5, one of the most significant upgrades of that software in years). And I’ll be writing about all of these things in time. But perhaps the most significant – and potentially disruptive – announcements came from Blackmagic Design regarding their newly acquired DaVinci product line. continue reading…
I’ve been a bit busy lately, both personally and professionally, which has resulted in a bit of time between posts. Personally, I moved (from Woodland Hills, in the San Fernando Valley, to Playa Vista, near Marina Del Rey) about 3 weeks ago. This represents a kind of homecoming for me, only a year after coming home from a few years in Florida, as I lived in the Marina on and off for almost 10 years. I’ve always loved living near the beach, especially here in Los Angeles during the summer months, as during the day, it’s almost always at least 20-30 degrees cooler than it is in the Valley (yes, you read that right: it can be 105 degrees in the Valley, while at the beach – less than 10 miles away if you’re in Woodland Hills – it’s only in the mid 70′s). Professionally, I’m now working for a digital intermediate and post facility called Next Element by Deluxe, in Burbank. Next Element has been a working digital intermediate facility for the last 7 years (it was previously known as Hollywood Intermediate), and was recently acquired by Deluxe Digital Media. The company has expanded its focus into television post production, and that’s in part where I come in. My actual title is Senior Colorist (along with Julius Friede, whom I’ve known for many years), although as with most smaller facilities, I’ll also be involved in helping to solve some workflow and technical issues along the way. The people at Next Element are top notch, from the management team, to the producers, to the technical staff, and I’m very happy to be with them. It also represents a reunion of sorts for me with an old friend, Bruce Long, who’s come in as President of Next Element, and is someone I’ve known for almost 20 years and worked with previously during my time at Encore Video. He’s also a very close friend, and the opportunity to work together again is something I’ve looked forward to for a long time. In addition, Next Element is one of the first of what I would consider a “new age” post facility, one that is almost entirely file based, with no use of videotape other than for ingest and delivery. The combination of a custom built Linux based infrastructure, Baselight color grading systems, and some very, very smart people makes for a rather unique atmosphere. I think (and hope) the industry will be hearing quite a bit about us in the near future.
That’s enough about me. We now return you to our regularly scheduled blog posts, already in progress….
With the NAB convention taking place in Las Vegas this week, there are going to be quite a few announcements about all kinds of products. This being NAB, it should always be remembered that an announcement does not a product make, and most certainly, an announcement does not a ship date make. Product announcements are, first and foremost, tools to keep current customers interested and engaged, and potential customers intrigued. I’ll have a lot more to say about NAB announcements after I visit Las Vegas later this week, but one very significant announcement did not wait for NAB. The introduction of the Arri Alexa digital camera line took place in Los Angeles last week, in part to allow the many industry people who are working on television pilots at the moment to participate (why NAB always takes place smack in the middle of pilot season is something I’ve never understood), and probably in part to get some direct attention prior to the rather mad, free for all atmosphere that NAB represents. At any rate, the event was very well attended and very well presented, and illustrated the clear differences between Arri – a well established, well regarded and well known industry player for many years – and their primary competitor in the digital cinema camera arena at the moment, which would be Red – a company with a much shorter history, but a lot of interest, a lot of buzz, a very significant product line, and some big sales numbers. continue reading…
This week I’m in Mumbai, India, doing some demos for my friends at Assimilate (makers of Assimilate Scratch, a digital intermediate system – among other things – that I’ve used for a few years now, both in Miami and back home in Los Angeles). This is my first visit to this part of the world, and that being the case, I’m still a bit overwhelmed, even after 4 days here. What I do know is that I’ve met a lot of interesting, talented, and for lack of a better term, wonderful people that I’m very happy to call new friends. I’ve seen a lot and learned a lot, as is usually the case when one travels to places with cultures and living circumstances very different from their own. continue reading…
Late this past week, announcements were made by SAG and AFTRA that stated their intention to negotiate jointly for their next Film and Primetime Television deal. These negotiations are slated to begin this fall, although the current contracts – signed by AFTRA in 2008 and SAG many months later, in 2009 – don’t expire until June of 2011. These early negotiations were part of the settlement agreed to by SAG when they finally accepted the current contract. The announcement was not unexpected, especially given the upheaval SAG has gone through in the last 2 years, and the stated intentions of their new leadership under their new President, Ken Howard. But make no mistake. SAG is fighting to maintain relevancy, particularly in television, where their antics of the last year and a half have severely reduced their ability to maintain their representation. continue reading…
Welcome to The New Postworld.
Postworld is created using the WordPress platform. WordPress allows the use of Themes to quickly design and modify the appearance of an individual site. Postworld is now using a theme designed by SRS Solutions called Arjuna. I’ve only slightly modified it for my use here. Since Postworld is primarily a blog, and primarily text based, I felt this particular theme allows it to be read a bit easier than the previous design. At any rate, I hope you enjoy the new look and find it a bit easier to get around.
Yesterday, I attended the Red Day presentation done at Ren-Mar Studios (oops…. I meant Red Studios Hollywood – old habits die hard in this town..). Saw a lot of familiar faces, and met a lot of new ones. I especially enjoyed seeing Assimilate’s use of dual Red Rocket cards to provide live playout of stereoscopic Red material with full debayering in real time. That alone has a lot of potential that I hope to explore.
This morning, a discussion on the CML centered around things Red (and possibly other companies) might be able to do that would be truly revolutionary and useful. It seems to many that most of the talk involving new digital cameras centers around things like improved dynamic range and resolution – important things to be sure, but ones that are really incremental improvements, not revolutionary changes. To be revolutionary, something has to be presented that accomplishes something that cannot currently be accomplished, or at least accomplishes it in a new way that changes the way one looks at the problem. It is very helpful if that change is also useful, in terms of either making a task more efficient, or eliminating costs associated with doing things using the current methods. I’ve got some things to suggest that I think might be revolutionary and useful. All relate to characteristics of the current Red systems that are often criticized, such as its use of a proprietary file and compression format, the need to supply personnel and systems for backing up files at the time of production, the complications involved in maintaining a consistent color path for dailies, the need to constantly transcode camera files, and the lack of a proper archival element. Here are some of them:
