Finishing Touches Put On BABEL and SOUTHLAND TALES

[Tim Tyler]

The final looks of the feature films BABEL and

SOUTHLAND TALES were completed during digital intermediate (DI) timing

sessions in collaboration with the filmmakers at LaserPacific Media

Corporation in Hollywood prior to their premieres here at the 2006 Cannes

International Film Festival. Both films made the Cannes Official Selection

and are vying for awards in competition and the coveted Camera d'Or.

 

Director Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu and cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto,

ASC, AMC chose to produce BABEL in three different film formats for aesthetic

reasons. LaserPacific adapted advanced scanning technology as part of an

innovative workflow solution to smoothly integrate scenes filmed in different

formats into a single digital master file. Over a period of about three

weeks, Prieto timed the film in collaboration with colorist Yvan Lucas for

shot-to-shot continuity, while adding other intuitive visual accents to

support the arc of the story.

 

Cinematographer Steven Poster, ASC and director Richard Kelly utilized

cutting-edge hybrid filmmaking technology on SOUTHLAND TALES. Images were

recorded on KODAK VISION2 5218 color negative film in three-perf 35 mm

format. Poster used the KODAK Look Manager System to communicate his

intentions for different "looks" in the various scenes. LaserPacific provided

front-end lab services including HD dailies. Poster and Kelly also seamlessly

integrated some 200 visual effects shots with live-action footage while

timing SOUTHLAND TALES in a DI suite with colorist David Cole.

 

On BABEL, Prieto and Inarritu made selective use of Super 16, three-perf

Super 35, and 35 mm anamorphic formats to create a visual tapestry that

enhances the emotional flow of the story. LaserPacific scanned the conformed

negative at 4K resolution and created a 2K digital master file in Academy

aperture 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The digital master was projected on a cinema-

sized screen in LaserPacific's theater during interactive DI timing sessions.

 

"We were exploring new territory with these innovative filmmakers because

this unique project had footage produced in different film formats, including

three-perf, 1.85 anamorphic and Super 16 mm, with both spherical and

anamorphic lenses," says Leon Silverman, president of LaserPacific. "The

creative choices they made required a technology solution that was true to

the aesthetic intentions of the director and cinematographer."

 

On SOUTHLAND TALES, Poster took a classic approach to shooting, trusting

his instincts, knowing that he would be using DI technology as a tool to

visually focus the intent of the story.

 

"The power of DI tools today and the visual creativeness of these

filmmakers allowed us to complete this film in ways that were simply not

available to independent filmmakers in the past," Cole says. "We were able to

take Steven's compelling original photography and enhance it in service to

the story."

 

"We are honored to have had this opportunity to support these talented

artists," adds Silverman. "These films were an innovative exercise in

creative hybrid filmmaking. The filmmakers used a combination of film and

digital technologies to create compelling stories."

 

LaserPacific's slate of high-profile DI projects includes the upcoming

releases THE BLACK DAHLIA, FLICKA and CLERKS II.

 

LaserPacific Media Corporation, a Kodak company, is an award-winning

postproduction facility offering an array of end-to-end services for the

entertainment industry. A leader in providing innovative technological

solutions coupled with a team of highly experienced professionals,

LaserPacific offers such services as 16 and 35 mm processing, telecine, film

scanning and recording, digital intermediates (DI), multimedia, sound editing

and mixing, as well as digital cinema packaging for customers ranging from

independent filmmakers to major studios