James Bruce

I was wondering if anyone had any experience finishing in b + w from the vision2 super 16 color negatives. I'm directing a 20 minute narrative short that has a very strong emphasis on classical black and white compositions (contrasty, crushed blacks, creamy whites, etc.) Think 50's / 60's Fellini, Antonioni, etc.

I am very torn, however, because my DP has showed me Plus-X footage he shot on the same SR3 that I absolutely love, yet I'm not as interested in the grain- basically I strving for 35mm quality b + w out of super 16, yet Kodak hasn't updated their black and white stocks in years. If I shoot color, will I be able to even get close in post to the look of a project that originated in b + w? We'll probably use a 2K/HD and I have unlimited access to a post house with Final Touch, VFX suites, etc. I'm hoping the effect can be achieved digitally versus chemically, but...

I just came off a shoot where the director specifically wanted shallow depth-of-field almost exclusively; so that, even in a conversation between two people sitting on the same bench, one person would be sharply focused and the other would be 'as soft as possible'. In order to accomplish (I hope!) this, I used a slow film stock (Fuji 64D rated at 50 ASA -- I probably should have rated it at ASA 25; we'll see what happens), the long end of the lens, and threw an ND 1.2 filter in front of the lens.

Just out of curiosity Scott, if the director was really interested in the absolute shallowest DOF, why did u stop at only 1.2 ND when more could of allowed you to work at your zoom's fastest speed? Obviously this would of offered shallower focus than T4.