james donovan

You'll either need a set of rewinds and a split reel to spool the film off the core, or else some other home-brewed equivalent.

Ok so I won the auction...might leave the EXR...I have plenty of 100 ft daylight spools..but i reread your post about having a split reel. How does the 400ft reel look like? Is it like a big version of the 100 ft? can i do the maneuver with 2 100 ft spools because its only 34 metres on the core...thanks for the help

Personally, faced with your choice I'd probably buy both - 100ft of film for £4 is dirt cheap, if the 7201 short end is more than 100ft, then it works out to even better value! Buy it whilst you can.

 

As to which one to use, that's a harder choice. Even stored in a fridge, the EXR is still 15 years old. You'd probably want to rate that perhaps a stop slower to try and rise above any natural age fog. The 7201 is probably in better condition (assuming it's been kept cool). But if the 7201 is a short-end or recan, then there's always the remote risk the film has been exposed to light and totally fogged! The standard response is to get a clip-test done on the film before using it, but in the past I've not really had labs falling over themselves to help me when I've tried enquiring about getting it done.

 

 

What are you planning to film?

How important for you is it to get good results?

 

Personally I'm only shooting 'home movie' type projects, so if I get naff (or no) results then I haven't got to worry about reshooting. So far I've not a had problem, so the cost saving of using old stock and respooing myself has been significant.

 

Ultimately, only you can make the decision. If you've got access to suitable facilities respooling in the dark isn't difficult, you just need to be organised about what you're doing.

I am filming a personal project but I still care about getting results. Unfortunately I cant care £30 pounds for new stock and all of the processing costs etc. Think I might buy both and shoot both...Could stretch to that possibly...

Looked on your vimeo and your EXR looked lovely...the reds and the greens were really really deep. Do you think that its alot to do with the telecine grading or is it a attribute of the stock itself - the rich colour and all....?

how do you know you've spooled exactly or around 100ft ?

I think the film would fill up the spool so you cant get any more on...

Thanks Ian! Now I have the chance of getting some 7201 short end that is about 9 months old....which I would have to respool...Or there is some 50 D EXR film 100 ft that has been refrigerated...Considering I am on a micro budget...which would you go for...? They are both around 3-4 UK pounds.(or thats how much i will pay for them)

If i go with the EXR i dont have the headache of respooling but its probably 15 years out of date...

If I go with short end I have got to contend with respooling...

What would you do? Decisions, decisions...

So I am about to buy a 34 meter short end 400 ft reel. 7201 50d. I want to respool it to a 100 ft spool to fit in my bolex. Can i do this sort of thing in a bathroom?

And what would the procedure be? respool it to a new spool and then rewind it back to another ?

use a copy stand with two or four 100 watt (500 watt equivalent) daylight fluoros. Or one of the ebay photo tents. I think that with the right lens, you should be all set using a bolex. Since it is stop motion, you can do long exposures to get a think negative.

Cool. Now would flicker be a problem with the fluorescent lighting? I believe the shutter is something like 1/30th for single frame on the RX5...I have forgotten whether its the shutter that causes the flicker or the electrics in the lights that fluctuates...?

Hi, I was looking at a good telecine of this film on the internet and I really like the fine grain of the film. I am making a stop motion animation film with photographs (each frame will be a shot of a photo from my 16mm bolex)

What kind of lighting power would you need to work with that film indoors? Would it be possible to make a lighting kit for this purpose from a hardware store?

Or would it be simpler to set my project up outside on a sunny, cloudless day and shoot outside? I could imagine that could cause problems what with weather being temperamental? TY

"rosencrantz", you need to go to My Controls and change your Display Name to a real first and last name (with a space inbetween) as per the forum rules. Thanks.

Hi, it will not let me change at the moment due to an error, will sort it out when i get back from work, thanks,

Knowing what you want to do in life is one of the hardest things, perhaps ever. Even if you know you want to make movies or TV there are still hundreds of differnt jobs in the industry. What makes it harder is you also have to find out what you are good at too.

 

Some people are technicaly minded, some are visually minded, some are very literate, some people are socialable, some are good at organizing things, some people are musical and have a natural rythem, etc....

 

All jobs in the industry require at least several of the above traits, but if your going to a film school why not try every job (and do it with total comitment) and that way you will find what your passions, skills and talents are. The job you enjoy most will probably be the best one - not necessarily direction, infact remember that not every sailor can be the captain of the ship and not every one wants to. But when you do find your passion it is recomended to commit to that, for the time being anyhow.

 

Yes some cinematographers do become directors, like Nicolas Roeg (Don't Look Now) for instance, however the nature of the job, the level of the experience required to be a succesful DOP means that it requires total commitment to that job.

 

Now of course there are many people, many on this board who do promos, corprate work, short films and they often DOP and direct - but in the more rigid realms of the industry, particularly narrative films and TV, the jobs will very separate and experience in more than one role will most deffinatly not assist you opportunities wise or financialy. Practically and artisticly maybe.

 

If you definatly want to direct, then you must build up your directing skills and experience, however and this comes as the exception of the rule - if you want to get opportunities to direct you may also need to be able to produce, so learn those skills too.

 

What ever you decide to do, enjoy it and don't hurt people while doing it - that may sound obvious but film school will show you why I say that.

 

Best of luck,

Andy

 

PS. Oh and if you want a serious reply from one of the other forum users, you better change your user name to your real first and last name - its pretty strict here.

Thanks for that reply Andy, I hope my user name is more appropriate. So I understand that directing is an amalgamation of everything involved with the film making process? I am moderately technical but coming to a forum like this one, the gulf between me and what people are discussing here seems to be huge.

I find it funny that when I watch films that aren't nessacerily any "good," in my opinion, technically they are pretty much perfect, what with lighting etc. - So in theory the director could put themselves in the position of acquiring the best people possible and take it from there, or rather my question should be how much technical hands on work should the director take on or is expected of them.

Excuse me for the daft questions!

Hello, I always had the assumption that the role of director in filmmaking was primarily about the look and imagery of the respective films, but reading around the forums recently I have realised that, this job primarily rests upon the cinematographers shoulders, as the role requires the technical know how.

I am thinking about going to film school and direction seems to be the path everyone wants to follow. But isn't it more beneficial to try to become a cinematographer first and then enter into directing projects? Thanks, h.dog

these are good ideas - i like the idea of having regular 8mm on 16mm sounds interesting - would there be 2 images one right way up and the other the right way round, or would there be 4?

Hi, I was just wondering whether theres a super 8 camera that has a backwind facility for rewinding the film. Is the Nizo 6080 capable of doing such tricks? I want to super impose images so any advice would be great, thanks

The best way to achieve this effect is with an optical printer and a set of masks. With a JK-103 printer and Bolex H16 RX DS8 camera I owned in the 1970s, I was able to insert four separate moving images in a 16mm frame. It might be possible to achieve something similar using masks in a matte box, but I've not tried it (the Bolex COPEN and COZOM matte box kits were typically supplied with a set of masks).

thanks for the info - you owned a jk printer? that must have been great. i think I will try the matte box idea out for starters- but do you think that the lines will be defined or fuzzy/hazy?

Hi, I was just wondering whether there is a contraption that allows you to film multiple images on 16mm film, but with each shot composed into compartments -

take this image that artist Gordon Matta Clark made of a house with independent photographs for rooms collaged together.

Does anybody have any idea as to how to collage an image like this, with different shots making up the one image?

I think if I used my bolex I would have to do alot of rewinding etc, but any ideas would be fantastic, thanks,

(ps i hope i explained myself ok)

The German motor and electronics are definitely considered better than the French. The first Arriflex 16SR cameras were equipped with the French versions.

 

I am not sure that the French stuff was less reliable, but I do know that parts are pretty much no longer available for the French motor and electronics, where as the German parts are still readily available.

 

If you have a chance to buy one or the other, get the one with the German motor and electronics.

 

-Tim

Hi Tim, I enquired about service on the arri s that was available in the uk and i talked to the big "Arriflex" company in London. wow, big difference in price, i think it would be cheaper to ship it out to you! and I also tried another company but it was alot cheaper. i asked them whether they used the factory lubricants but they didnt get back to me, so i assume they don't. Is it really important to have the custom oils? Thanks for your time,

Hi, I was just wondering what the difference was with the German and French circuit/electronics on these cameras? Is the German version better over the French? Thanks

In the Uk there is alot of 16mm work. I remember going to a film lab and seeing BBC programme canisters, music videos and commercials. Also there is an art based contingent, who use film as well as their principle medium,

I would recommend a CLA (clean, lube and adjust) for an Arri S that has been in storage for ten years. The cameras were build incredibly well, and as a friend of mine says, "You could hammer nails with that camera..." But after ten years, the lubricants are probably very dried up and since most of the gears in the camera are made of a fibre composite, you do not want them to run anywhere close to dry.

 

Make sure whoever does the service on the camera only uses the original ARRI lubricants, as they are the only lubricants that were made to work with the fibre gears and the inter-mating surfaces. I have rebuild a number of Arri 16S cameras where someone used lithium grease, or some other type of grease, and the fibre gears, especially the ones that interface with metal gears (like the gear on the mirror shutter), have had severe wear and needed to be replaced. And they aren't cheep.

 

Once serviced, the Arriflex 16S is a great little MOS camera and can create fantastic images. To see examples of this, visit:

 

Arriflex 16S camera performance at www.Arri16S.com

 

-Tim

Hi Tim, now I think I spoken to you before about an arri camera - great site by the way. If I sent it out to you by post do you think the movement in transit would hurt the camera? If I packed the camera incredibly well then I dont think that would be a problem.

Now this might defeat your whole business but are there any reputable people who know of arri repair in the UK? If you get many cameras to repair coming in from across the pond then I suppose it is not an issue, thanks

I am the proud owner of an Arri M and it is an incredible camera. I enjoy using this

camera more than any camera I have ever owned. So much so, that I think about

selling off some of my other equipment so that I can buy an Arri S to compliment it.

How often do you service it?

Hi, I know someone that is selling an Arri S - full kit, only problem is that it's been stored safely for 10 years and not been used. Is it a fair bet to say that it wont work/ developed a fault/ something to avoid?

Would a service be in order, or is it a no go?

Thanks I appreciate your help!

I cannot vouch for these folks one way or the other, but they do sell quite a few Arriflex 16S and S/B cameras, and they are located in London. If they don't service the cameras themselves, they may be able to tell you who can do it locally.

 

Film Camera Kit.Com

 

If you decide to send the camera Stateside for service, we are the only shop that uses all the original ARRI lubricants on the camera, and we set the camera back to original factory specs. You can check us out at:

 

Arri16S.com

 

Hope that helps,

-Tim

Thanks for that Tim, I am talking with them about it. I stumbled across your site the other day, and it's the best one I have found for the Arri s (the only one?)

I am just weighing up the possibility of getting one from Hungary, Ebay. I know it sounds completely ubsurd; the camera looks quite beat up - but at $500 for a complete kit...? What do you think, should I simply hold out and save for a decent one?

Thanks

Hello, does anyone know of a company in the UK, England, who fix/service the arriflex s? It seems alot more common over there in the states to find service for the arriflex.

Help is appreciated! thanks

Final Addendum: apparently, the SBM does come w/ a variable shutter (you may want to double check) so that w/ a revolution motor would be my first choice.

Thanks for sharing the knowledge, I've put a bid down now on the ebm so we shall see how it goes, I might even pick up a cheap bolex to do time lapse work. But for the moment I work to get into long shots like Haneke (so I guess that an electric camera would be good)..

Du-all sells a universal charger/conditioner that will let you plug in anywhere but you should double check with them. Also, theysell new batteries as well. However, you may just want to get Bolex-to-XLR power cable from and run the camera off one of those 12V lead acid batteries that can be had for cheep. http://www.duallcamera.com/store/Batteries_Chargers.shtml

 

Regarding flexibility, I would probably advise getting a late model Bolex (Rex 5 or SBM) and using one of those NCS intervolemeter moters that will not only let you do time lapse, but crystal and all the speeds between 1-48fps plus backwards http://www.intervalometers.com/rev/bolex/index.stm

 

However, AZ Spectrum does sell a motor upgrade for multple speeds, sync and backwards running for an EBM and I've been planning on having that done once I have some more money. http://members.aol.com/azspectrum/bolex_cr.html

Thanks for the info! I shall check into it, do you have an ebm? If so, do you think it's a good camera to invest in, damien

There are chargers that run on 120V(US) and others that run on 240V(UK, EU). Usualy you run the camera off it's batteries so the question is just wether your charger is US or UK. With an 240V to 120V transformer you'll be able to use the US-charger in UK.

 

The camera runs on 12V Nicads, with a little DIY you should be able to use any 12V-DC source. Anyway if the batteries are as old as the camera, chances are high that you need new ones...

 

cheers, bernhard

Hi, thanks, do you think that a clockwork bolex with a sync motor would offer more versatility over the ebm? Thanks for your time, damien

Hi, I have recently seen a nice bolex ebm going on ebay in America. However before I do anything rash, I dont suppose anyone out there knows whether the electronics of the camera would be suitable for UK voltages/power supply?

I was thinking of getting a convertor, but havent looked into it that much, or buying a new battery and charger altogether. Would that work on a bolex from America? Thanks for your time,

Damo

By the way I live in England! D