Digital or Film

[gustavius smith]

My silent b&w short is inspired by Charles Bowers' "The Wild Roomer" (1927) or "He done his Best" 1925. The entire short will be shot inside in a closed studio.

Can I use a digital camera like the XL1? If so how will I get the desired results?

If film is the only option what type of film stock should I use?

What kind of lighting set up will be required?

Are there any special processing techniques that will have to be done?

Has anyone tried to do this before?

[David Sweetman]

For b/w, go for film. Of course, this is someone with no first-hand experience with any manner of black and white film stock, but I do enjoy black and white movies, and the low contrast look of b/w film can't really be matched by the xl1, especially if you just desaturate the color image. It aggravates me when someone takes a digital image and desaturates it just to make it 'artistic.' (this happens at the high-school level quite often.)

 

I really like the b/w look of Christopher Nolan's "Following," a movie my film teacher introduced me to. Also, this is Nolan at home - it's a small, psychological movie; the kind of story he's great at telling. Now i'm just off-topic tho.

 

Anyway yeah i'd do it on film.

 

-David Sweetman

[Steven Budden]

Black and white film isn't too bad, but if there is a lot if dialogue film might complicate things. But maybe check out Screamplay for a very simple effective black and white film.

 

Steven