Steven Parker

same as usual, but alas - no film this year, all digital

I do find it frustrating sometimes that inexperienced people are getting some jobs they're not qualified for, and sometimes I feel digital video, reality TV and DVD extras have taken away some of the respect and awe that should (used to?) surround our craft. I spent almost ten years lighting sets, working up to Key Grip, then Gaffer, before I shot my first feature in 2001. I used to say I wanted to learn to mix the paints and prep the canvas before I started actually painting... sometimes I think I spent too long 'prepping' before taking the plunge. As frustrated as I get (with myself especially) I know I can do really good work, at a very high level of creativity and responsibility... so I don't worry too much about people jumping straight into shooting. We'll all sink or swim on our own merits.

oh man that looks DELISH... baking and pastries are something I'm just now getting into; I've been doing French country and Indian lately (western Indian, Rajasthan, etc)... yeah, there's definitely something wonderful about creating without electronics, and hearing the hmmphs and gasps of your guests... I've thought about the military... but I'm too old and set in my ways - not sure they'd have me!

That's wonderful and quite frankly, amazing. Excellent ACs are an endangered species as so many do see it as a stepping stone. Seems to be little appreciation left for the art of pulling focus. Rare, indeed. I have always said, when the whole movie thing crashes and burns for me, I'll open a diner in a little backwater town somewhere... pics from my adventures in the movies everywhere, and stills from the shows... no more angry dept heads or penny-pinching producers asking for more while offering less... just make some cheeseburgers, serve some chili, maybe have a drink in the evening in my cabin (of course it has a jacuzzi on the deck under the bright, bright stars) and relive the glory days.... ...hmmm, wonder what I'm waiting for?

Nice. Japanese anime' as well as video games have been using "DPs" for many years. Western filmmakers are just now starting to see the benefits of that. Cinematographers do a hell of a lot more than take pictures... they discuss theme and mood and help to realize them, help maintain (or grow or change) a visual language across the length of the story, help directors build scenes with their understanding of cinematic grammar and editing, help to avoid a redundancy of style within a story, the list goes on... It's good to know there's a purist out there who's aware of the true value a cinematographer can bring to a project.

Not a lens tech, but your reasoning seems sound... The Nikon-to-PL "adapter" on my Red is a very simple piece but it essentially replaces the camera's native PL mount... not what you're looking for, I know... I recently heard Nikon is planning on releasing their own PL-mount glass. Haven't been able to verify it yet, but maybe the conversion is not such a stretch after all... :huh: EDIT: just found this, so it is possible: http://www.alibaba.com/catalog/11398257/Ni...tal_Camera.html

I notice you're in Carbondale, Illinois... have you looked at Chicago? There's a pretty vibrant indie film scene there, and a ton of commercial work. Also, Michigan has killer production incentives in place and is set to be quite busy over the next couple years.... It could be a way to make yourself AND your mom happy....

Since you've offended everyone in Seattle, this may not work BUT maybe a friend of yours in Seattle knows someone in L.A. - try to set up some connections before you leave. I made the transition from Chicago to L.A. by working two connections from a show I did in Indianapolis. Wasn't great but at least I got started. Pretty bleak scenario if you know absolutely no one in the new town... and saving money goes without saying, even if you weren't in the film biz... I'm assuming you've been checking Mandy, craigslist, etc. There's nothing like going into a new town and already having a hook-up...

A little bit of a tangent, but I've had excellent results with the Brevis from Cinevate: http://www.cinevate.com/website/index.php/products/ There is still the image inversion problem, but it's lightweight, looks great and has very little light loss - I generally 'rate' the HVX at 240ASA but with the Brevis I rate it at 200ASA

Was lucky enough to see this at Universal - with both Julian Schnabel & Janusz Kaminski doing a Q&A afterword. Kaminski used swing & tilt lenses, and also something he described as "a rubber lens" which I believe was a bellows-type arrangement where the front element could move around. They also put the camera operator in the patient's bed, his wheelchair, etc to get as real a POV as possible; sometimes they had to modify the furniture or chair to make room for the mag and pan/tilt. Not sure how they pulled off the eyelid-stitching but from the sound of it, it was most likely a pretty low-fi, very simple solution. They seemed to really enjoy a 'keep-it-simple' approach to the shoot. For instance, Schnabel said some of the blinking eyelid stuff was just the operator's fingers close to the lens. I think this film is stunning, across the board. They don't make very many movies like this anymore.

IF Deckard really is a replicant, maybe he's not a military design like Batty and Zhora. Originally a political liaison? Diplomatic/intelligence service? That could explain the lack of physical prowess and seemingly above-average detective skills.

So Maarten- What have you learned? 4K Viper coming?

Hey All-- Looking for Brevis or RR M2 with Nikons or something similar for 3-day shoot in Madison, WI, mid-August. HVX200 will be primary camera. There is some money for the rental. Thought I'd throw it out here before I start calling Zacuto, Fletcher, etc etc PM me or message me here. Thanks.

I agree. Jan posted thoughtful, polite and very thorough answers. Why the bad attitude? And yes, reduser can be a bit annoying at times but the knowledge available there from working professionals is invaluable. Hence Michael's links to the info threads and diagrams. BTW, most of that info was built by reduser members themselves, as an aid to people who aren't sold on the camera yet and as a way of centralizing the confirmed info that's available. Just ask politely - someone will post a link for you or you'll have started a new thread. And Thank You goes a LONG way. You might consider saying it to Jan.

I agree completely, what a great, fun film! And Vin Diesel's best performance ever!

Yeah, sometimes you just want that security. I just got back from shooting in Sudan, thinking during prep I wanted the HVX, but once I was there I was satisfied with the old Beta SPs and a couple DVXs for time lapses... not really monkeys shagging, but pretty quick action nonetheless ;) It's so easy to pick Red apart because they've opened their growth and development to the public eye so all the warts and all the bumps in the road are in full view. The imagery looks great, really great - I would love to see some night exteriors, though. The workflow seems pretty solid - but Apple has to upgrade/patch FCP in the near future for native support. The compression seems to hold up really well - when you grab stills off RedUser. Perfect? Not yet... but Red is on to something, and they are doing it right. 4K/2K/HD tapeless workflow? PL mount/Nikon/Canon/B4 optics mounts? About $30K with all accessories?!? RAW data port if you want to spend the extra $ ??? OPTIONS. That's where it's at, man, no doubt. I don't think they'll actually be able to make exactly their most recently proposed delivery schedule, but heck - they're only a few months behind. The HVX200 was almost year late on its original street date.

No, it's the next logical step. After a while in the low budget indies, you peak. The next step almost always has to be union work - because that's where the time/money/resources are that are lacking in the low budget world. I am definitely a fan of the rights and wages and benefits and protections of the unions but I gotta say - as a creative person, what I really want is the time and resources to do better work. But you should definitely try to keep the best records you can. Make sure your call sheets are accurate and save them; make copies of your check stubs and try to make sure they put your position on the memo line. The day will come when you'll be ready to join - and you might as well be ready.

In Los Angeles, I had to prove 100 days of paid non-union work (as a DP) within three years. I got accepted with little fuss, so I count myself as lucky - and honored, quite frankly. If you're getting permitted union days, I think it's 30 days within one year. As Paul mentions above, you should call the Guild and ask about specifics, especially if you're outside LA. If you go in as a 1st AC, you'll need to show pay stubs that reflect your working days as a 1st. You can upgrade to DP later when you're ready. Good luck!! So, c'mon fellas - a lot more of you have had to make this jump.... :huh:

Thanks, David. I had heard the medical/pension days could be tough... but I've been w/out insurance for so long just the OPTION to qualify is great. BTW, check your RedUser mailbox :rolleyes:

Hello All- I have finally qualified for membership in the Intl Cinematographer's Guild as a DP and was hoping some of you could share some advice or anecdotes about making the jump from indie/low budget features to the studio/network world. I guess I'm a bit nervous about stepping up - I have few contacts in the union realm, my credits are pretty unrecognizable, etc. I will be recutting my reel soon, chasing an agent and so forth but I'm hoping some of you who've made the jump can talk about things both good and bad to watch out for. I'm based in LA but any advice from anywhere is much appreciated. Thanks in advance