steve hyde

Cinematographers, Please know that my first film Shikashika (2008) will be screening at Palm Springs Film Festival this weekend. The premiere was at True/False documentary festival in March. Since then AFI/Silverdocs, Telluride Mountain Film, New Zealand. Last night we screened at the W Hotel in Los Angeles as part of the Film Independent Cinema Lounge. In Seattle Shikashika will screen at SIFF Cinema as part of the One Reel Film Festival on August 31st at 1PM. Shikashika is currently featured in the July issue of Kodak In Camera Magazine. Please visit the Shikashika website to learn more about this new independent film.

..I got a chance to play with one. No serious shooting - but did have the opportunity to plug it into a Plasma TV and was rather impressed with what I saw. Forget about exposure latitude, but I liked the camera a lot actually. So much so that I am considering one as a research camera for documentary pre-production. I want to learn more about the camera and Codec used. If anyone knows of any good resources for learning more about the pros and cons of working in the HF100 codec, please do post about that. I don't know if the 24p mode is real or not. I did switch between 24 and 30 and honestly I did not notice a difference on the play back. The lens is fast though at F 1.8 and there are lots of different frame rate options on the camera for shooting in low light. You can get shallow DOF with this little cam.

Selling a Marantz PMD660 solid state audio recorder in superb condition. Was used on one project and has been stored in the manufacturer's box for about the past year. In like-new condition. $375.00 OBO `

...16mm Bolex and I remember noticing that they were shooting on BetaSP. It is probably a mix of DV, 16mm and Betacam. Lovely film for sure.

...that is pretty hilarious. Snoop has a great sense of humor and so does Willy Nelson. Thumbs up! Do you think the full-frame+ stuff with perfs showing was acheived by running the film with a 35mm gate during TK? Nice effect.

...I've used the lens on a Bell and Howell Filmo DR with great results. It will vignette on Super 16 for sure. I have also used the lens on a Beaulieu Super 8 camera for fixed focus shooting with great results. On Super 8 it is no longer wide angle. My Ang 5.9 has good coatings and colors look amazing. I am also pleased with the fact that edge distortion is not noticeable. However, it may be that the colorist took care of that during telecine by cropping. All in all - it's a nice wide lens for regular 16 shooting -s

Maya, you can probably skip going to HD for your short. It's an added expense and is probably only worth it if you know you are blowing up to 35. I have a super 8 short in the festivals right now and I have been screening DigiBeta, BetaSP, DVcam and DVD. Digibeta looks really great and probably captures all the color information on a super 8 negative. I use www.fsft.com for super 8 telecine and recommend them. More and more festival are screening HD though. The festival I am at right now: Telluride Mountain Film has now upgraded all their venues to handle Sony HDcam projection. For a super 16 show I would say go the 1920x 1080 HD route, but for super 8 your money is probably better spent on higher shooting ratios or something like that and then just go for a high quality SD telecine to Digibeta.

in theory, not much. Certainly not what we are seeing on your YouTube example. Who did the TC?

...I missed the YouTube example for my first reply. It looks like a camera problem or TC problem. Try shooting a roll of reversal and projecting it. If it looks reasonably stable the problem is probably TC.

...this is a characteristic of the Beaulieu 4008. the mirror shutter is fast (1/86th) at 24fps - fast enough to stop action. This creates a slight strobe effect. If you adjust the shutter angle half open you get (1/172) at 24fps. This will make the strobe effect even more pronounced. The average shutter speed on most cine cameras is around 1/45 - 1/55th at 24fps. The slower shutter speeds produce smoother frame to frame recording.

...Those Centuries are rare and expensive. I've never used them. The Angeniuex 5.9 and 10mm both offer focus-free shooting on super 8, but that is really the only benefit outside of reducing camera size. The Schneider 6- 66 is a great all-around super 8 lens. Super 8 is not a good format for wide angle shooting. When wide angle is desired I turn to 16mm.

I use both of these lenses on my 4008 with good results.

....and this imaginative festival in Greece should not go unnoticed: http://www.festivaldetours.org/

...Thanks for the kind words. I'm very happy that the film is connecting with audiences worldwide. The film is in consideration at some upcoming LA area festivals. I'm waiting to hear from them. We keep the screenings page updated: http://www.shikashika.com/screenings.html I'm presenting the film at Mountain Film in Telluride in May and will spend a week at AFI / Silverdocs in June. Hopefully I will have a chance to meet some of you guys in person out in the festival circuit. We are very happy with these placements and now this encouraging award from Cambridge! We are just thrilled about this and already dreaming-up a new small gauge film that we will shoot sometime soon. Again, thanks

Hey Super8ers, I just want to share with you the news that our film Shikashika won the jury prize for "best film" at Cambridge International Super 8 Film Festival. The generous prize includes 20 rolls of Kodak color negative film + processing and telecine services at Todd-AO in the UK. We are very excited to have this opportunity to make another small gauge film and very much appreciate this encouragement. web: http://www.todd-ao.co.uk/index.htm If you are interested to learn more about our film, please visit our website: http://www.shikashika.com and of course the festival web is: http://www.cambridge-super8.org/ ...I know the directors are already planning for a 3rd annual festival so keep them in mind when your films are ready.

Qualitative reasoning. Yes - I totally agree.... On the technical side - I may be wrong about the FSFT gate - I do know that they are not using a modified 16mm gate. They are using something that was manufactured specifically for Super8mm Steve

...I second the recommendation of Justin Lovell at Frame Discreet. He puts heart and soul into the work he does and is on the leading edge of workprinter telecine. I've been to Frame Discreet in Toronto - Justin has a pro set up and is fun to work with. His black and white negative transfers have a distinct and beautiful look that I've never seen achieved by any other. FSFT in Seattle also has the expensive super8 gate that Alessandro is talking about on their Grass Valley Shadow. Steve

...if color, image stability and reduced grain are important to you I recommend www.fsft.com. They can also xfer super 8 at 1080p if you need that. ...for low-budget www.posthouse.com. Fast turn around time and wet-gate for older films that have been projected

...it looks like an excellent fest. I wish I could attend. Steve

...try these contacts if you are in Brasil. They should be able to advise you: BRAZIL São Paulo: Kodak Brasileira Com.Ind.Ltda. Market Place Tower II-15° andar Av. Doutor Chucri Zaidan -940 São Paulo/SP CEP: 04583-906 Tel: 55-11-2132 6000 Fax: 55-11-2132 6104 Rio de Janeiro Kodak Brasileira Com. Ind. Ltda. Rua São Januário-234-São Cristóvão Rio de Janeiro/RJ CEP: 20921-000 Tel. 55.21.2589.1184 Fax. 55.21.2589.4568 São José dos Campos: Rodovia Presidente Dutra - Km 154.7 São José dos Campos/SP Brasil Tel. 55.12.3932.6329 /3932.6701 Fax. 55.12.3932.6721 For other international try: source: http://www.kodak.com/US/en/motion/about/wwoffices.jhtml

Doug, I've never had a transport problem. I suggest discussing with a camera technician. maybe Bernie: http://www.super16inc.com/page4.html or try: Bjorn Andersson bjorn.andersson (at) brevet.nu. Steve

Hi Tony, I have not done this myself, although I have done a bit of research into doing this. Here in the United States I have been told the go-to guy is Bill Brand in New York. web: http://www.bboptics.com/ I realize you are working from Sweden; however, Bill may be able to advise you or maybe you will decide to send to him. Also , you may find that blowing your S8 to 35mm is a better solution. For example you could shoot S8 color negative - have it transfered to HD - or 2K - then have it printed on an Arri Laser. I recently saw a stunning 35mm show print that originated from black and white Super 8 that was done this way. web: http://www.branduponthebrain.com/ Steve

....or Super 16 modifications.. Steve

...really thought this was a well-made film. Great themes. The filmmakers mapped the processes of corporate sheltering brilliantly. One thing I noticed about the cinematography is that the bokeh was rendered in oval shapes. Is this a bi-product of the scope (anamorphic) lens? ...and yes, I did notice the dot patterns in the out of focus lights. I assumed it was just grain dance. NEvertheless, it doesn't serve the story in any way. It's just a distraction from the story. Steve

Justin, On my Filmo project, I loaded all the daylight rolls out in the open light. I would drape my changing bag over the top to subdue the light, but never tried to load it in the bag because it is critical to get the loops right. I was primarily shooting 7201 (50D) On average I lost the first 6 feet (10 secs) because of instability in the image and fog. That is normal. I always used the changing bag to remove the film roll so I didn't loose anything on the tale end. Steve