Simulate a Television being too bright with ASA 100 color reversal

[Jeff Hayford]

I'm gaffing a film this weekend and the DP wants to do a shot of a television but can't afford to pay for the rights to whatever TV show is on it so stylistically she wants it to blow out (bright) the camera. But, we're using Kodak Ektachrome 100 Color reversal. We have access to a TV frame (gutted TV) and I thought about putting a 1K behind it with some CTB a piece of diffusion where the screen would be and then waving a piece of CTO in front of it but I think that might look like the TV is one fire rather than images moving on it.

 

Suggestions?

[Daniel Madsen]

Place some light diffusion (hampshire maybe) over the working screen (so you can't see detail) and bounce some blue light off of it.

[David Mullen ASC]

I don't think you're going to get a convincing effect short of undercranking and really letting the TV set go overexposed. You may be better off shooting in such a way that the TV is always out of focus in the background. Or play some sort of public domain footage on the TV.

 

Sure, you could cover an empty TV set with diffusion material and put a light behind it on a flicker box, or a couple of lights on dimmers, etc. but unless it is completely whited-out, you'd expect even an overexposed TV to have moving images on it. And a whited-out screen would look like the TV was receiving static only.

[Bernhard Zitz]

I'm gaffing a film this weekend and the DP wants to do a shot of a television but can't afford to pay for the rights to whatever TV show is on

 

So there would still be the sound of real TV-show? I'm not expert in right, but why would one have to pay for the rights for the image while the sound is for free?

 

Why don't you film some stuff with a videocamera then play this to bright on a TV-set, or the showreel of your DP or your last hollyday-video etc... I guess this would be more realistic than an empty TV with a 1k and diffusion inside...

 

cheers, Bernhard

[David Mullen ASC]

Why don't you film some stuff with a videocamera then play this to bright on a TV-set, or the showreel of your DP or your last hollyday-video etc... I guess this would be more realistic than an empty TV with a 1k and diffusion inside...

 

Yes, that's a good idea -- and shooting footage slightly overexposed would help.

[Patrick Cooper]

You could even film a 'mock' news flash to be displayed on the TV - have someone in a formal suit behind a desk reading out what the viewer would assume to be the news.

[Tim O'Connor]

Yes, that's a good idea -- and shooting footage slightly overexposed would help.

 

If it's not critical to your story what footage is on the t.v. then you can join the legions

who get around the rights issues and have some fun at the same time. For example,

I think that in "The Last Boy Scout" written by Shane Black, a television playing in a

living room is showing a scene from "Lethal Weapon" also written by Shane Black, so he

probably was able to arrange for that and have an in-joke as well. It'll probably be easier

for you since Shane likely had to get permission from a star and a studio.

 

 

I've shot several films where this has come up and the producers played footage from one

of their previous projects, sometimes to great effect. In fact, a producer that I work with is

always sneaking the poster from his last film into the background somewhere in the

new one being shot.

 

 

The D.P.'s reel is a good idea or if you do go out and shoot something, maybe you could

have it comment on, or inform, as they say, your story without being too on-point.

 

This sounds more and more like an opportunity for you. Good luck.