Hampus Bystrom

Oh man how I love Deakins. I think that interview underscores why he's one of the greats. The consummate artist; embracing new technology, never afraid of challenges and what the future may bring. Personally if the DP starts bitching to me about how he has to shoot 35/16 rather than 5D if that's what the film requires, he's out on his ass. I hate that attitude, I know that the DoP:s job is to make sure that the image quality is optimal, but a great films is about so much more than great image quality.

By the way, this is not a dressed-up indirect response to anyone in this thread, I just took a quick look so I don't want anybody to think that I be trollin' or flamin'

I always find Haneke's films to be so disturbing that I almost repress them... Which is a good thing, I love movies that have that visceral effect on you. I mean I saw the film at least half a year ago, and I still don't know what to make of it

Hey, long time, no post... Making. I hope this hasn't been discussed extensively before.

Anyway, basically I can't afford a steadi-operator for my next film, nor can I afford to transport huge amounts of rails where we're going. So therefore I've decided to shoot handheld, mostly after having seen Ridley Scott's Alien where Scott himself does some great, subtle handheld work. Obviously, in an ideal world, artistic vision should never suffer to economic constraints. Unfortunately I live in the real world of independent, no-budget, cinema. My worry is that handheld suggest subjective camera, documentary or drags attention to the operator. All of which I don't want, the film's look should very much echo seeking control in nature, which is ultimately uncontrollable. I suppose you could argue that steadicam and dollies are all attempts to control nature, but I don't want to get too philosophical here. The floating camera for me makes the camera almost godlike and inhuman, which is what I want. Now, what I want to ask is; do you guys know of any, great, handheld work that moves with the actors without dragging to much attention to itself and doesn't feel documentary in style? Is this an impossible request and I should just man-up and pay a steadicam operator four times the wages of my "normal" crew?

Share your thoughts please!

Don't use superflat, at least not when trying to deduce exposure. Numerous times my DP have wrongly judged the exposure because the curve is so flattened at both ends, when trying to gauge the exposure I would suggest using Satsuki's settings and then switching over to superflat just before shooting. Shane Hurlbut talks about this on his blog.

I don't know, it's an alright quote. Seems like it's that attitude which churns out the same old hackneyed movies every year. You can certainly look at filmmaking with that cynical realism, but I prefer to think of it as more magical.

You know I'm going to make a controversial statement, well I don't know how controversial it is really, but I don't like Kubrick. I mean his films are bombastic and overwhelming, but after the initial wonder I always forget them. I've probably given them 5/5 but in hindsight I just remember a cold spectacle. I generally don't like "show-offy" cinema, and I think Kubrick is the prime example of trying to show-off rather than tell a visual story. It's like he's trying to make the "best" film in every genre, you know, Sci-fi with 2001, horror with The Shining, comedy with Dr Strangelove etc.

I'd just thought I would share this because it's been bugging me for some time...

I'd be the first to affirm that it isn't really a 1080-line camera (in early 2009 I think I called it "not high def, but def-and-a-half" in an interview)

Now you'll have to excuse my ignorance here, because my technical proficiency isn't that great, but I've heard this before. How isn't this a 1080p camera? It records 1920x1080 doesn't it? I mean I tried wikipeding (what's the verb of that?) it and it says plain and simple "The 5D Mark II is the first DSLR to feature 1080p video recording".

Right, I admit that this is sort of a shameless attempt at drumming up some controversy, but also I think that criticism as well as praise should be brought up. I don't know if this article has been talked about before, but I couldn't find anything, so anyway... Here's what Werner says about the R1

Q: What about shooting digitally?

A: We used the RED camera for My Son' date=' My Son, What Have Ye Done. It's an immature camera created by computer people who do not have a sensibility or understanding for the value of high-precision mechanics, which has a 200-year history. It's terrible: Whenever you have to reboot the camera, it takes 4½ minutes or so. It drove me insane, because sometimes something is happening and you can't just push the button and record it. An assistant cameraman said this camera would be ideal if we were filming the National Library in Paris, which has been sitting there for centuries. But everything that moves faster than a library is a problem for the RED. Super 35 mm celluloid is still better.[/quote']

 

Source: http://www.dgaquarterly.org/BACKISSUES/Winter2010/DGAInterviewWernerHerzog.aspx

 

 

Any comments? I mean I've just held an Red camera for a few seconds before it was whisked off to a more important director, so I don't really have any opinion.

Movies:

Mulholland Dr.

Dog Day Afternoon

Crimes and Misdemeanors

Directors:

David Lynch

Robert Altman

Sidney Lumet

Cinematographers:

Gregg Toland

Doyle

Zsigmond

No, I really can't...

Yeah, it's really hard to understand isn't it? A light-weight 1080p camera with great lowlight capabilities and interchangable high quality lenses for a fifth the cost of an EX1. Just an all around great camera for the struggling indie filmmaker who can't afford film or RED... I'm also clueless as to why people like it

[/sUPER-SARCASM OVER]

Looks pretty cool, I think I might try it for a dreamy sex-scene I'm directing, if you haven't patented the look already. I know you didn't ask, but it looks a liiiiiittle bit prone to visual masturbation, but it's hard to say without knowing the story. But no dialogue and enigmatic women staring out the window, drinking tea, ruminating over lost love... I really like the feel of your other videos tough so it should be nice anyway.

I haven't seen the American version of The Office, the UK version is f-ing ingenious. I can assume that the camera work is pretty similar, and I really don't know what you're talking about, because I thought the documentary style worked wonders for the comedic style. Again, I don't know the American version, perhaps it's terrible. I think it's common for cinematographers to become purists and overlook the main aspect of filmmaking, namely to move the audience. Even though I'm not a DP, I'm really interested in the technical aspects, so I know that I went through a period of disliking anything that didn't employ really slick camera work. Perhaps you're looking through it from a conservative DP's point of view...

I was going to say "none", but from the movies you guys have picked I can tell that it's actually been a great decade for movies. My all time favorite is actually in this decade.

 

10. Kar Wai - In The Mood For Love

An elegy for lovers, sad and slow, beautiful and sublime. And yes, it is better than Lost in Translation.

 

9. Richard Linklater - Waking Life

The movie that got me in to the concept of "lucid dreaming". A surreal and dreamlike movie with a great soundtrack. A must-see for philosophically inclined.

 

8. Jeunet - Amelie from Montmartre

Who can't love this movie? Pure heart and joy...

 

7. Gondry - Eternal Sunshine Of A Spotless Mind

Yeah, what can you say? A trip down memory lane masterfully crafted.

 

6. Wes Anderson - The Fantastic Mr. Fox

I loved this movie, it's like Amelie from Montmartre, pure heart and joy. And also the animation is pretty bitchin'

 

5. Sean Penn - Into the Wild

Even though Sean Penn seems like an annoying douche, he pretty much hit the mark on this one. A great character study of a real life character who did what all fragile, pretentious young men have been wanting to do - and reminds us why that might be disastrous. The Eddie Veder soundtrack is haunting.

 

4. Ruben Östlund - The Involuntary

This might be a movie completely unintelligible for people outside Sweden, but it captures our Swedish mentality so brutally honest and effectively, that I'm jealous of it. It's painfully good, and it hurts me to say so in a competitive field like directing. Kudos Ruben...

 

3. Steve McQueen - Hunger

This movie achieves everything that I love about cinema. The thrust of the movie is purely visual, there's not much dialogue, but not to the point that it becomes ridiculously "artsy". It just explains everything without words, and never ceases to grab you at that.

 

2. Gaspar Noé - Irreversible

This movie is a freight train doomed for catastrophe. It moves in reverse, so everything just becomes a tragic exercise in futility. The rape-scene is gut-wrenching and confrontational. We know the outcome so even the sweetest of kisses seem tragic. There's also an awesome soundtrack by the second half of Daft Punk, which is one guy. It's like Harold Pinter's play Betrayal which chronicles a love-affair backwards, only slightly more disastrous.

 

1. David Lynch - Mulholland Drive

Bergman always said that someone had yet to explore the full capacity of cinema... Well here it is. David Lynch did it, it's been done. All we can do now is venerate it and regardless of what David does after it (euhm, Inland Empire), NEVER criticize him. It's like Shakespeare and Dylan - if you don't like 'em; you're wrong. This is also my all time favorite movie.

I can't seem to edit my previous post but anyway, honourable mentions:

Let the Right One In - I'm afraid that this might classify as slightly paedophilic but I'm a little bit in love with the girl playing Eli. I think it's the character though so don't worry, she's 500 years old for f-ck sakes. Calm down!

I'm Not There - I love Bob Dylan and this is the perfect film for him, slightly gratuitous in it's mystification of Dylan but it left me with a great feeling.

Inglorious Basterds - This is such a got damn revenge feast that it's almost ridiculous - But my god, how satisfying it is when Shoshanna lets the Nazis fry with celluloid as ignition. I think Tarantino is more concerned with being hip than making penetrating movies, but you gotta hand it to him - he knows his stuff.

Man on Wire - The most artful crime in history. I love how they used Michael Nyman and Erik Saties music in this one.

4 months, 3 weeks and two days - A great Rumanian film, it doesn't force the themes in our faces and yet it's so obvious. Just a great film.

You, the living AND Songs from the second floor - Roy Andersson is somewhat of a Swedish icon. A unique style that's hard to describe. His movies are artful and complicated.

I could go on and on...

I was going to say "none", but from the movies you guys have picked I can tell that it's actually been a great decade for movies. My all time favorite is actually in this decade.

10. Kar Wai - In The Mood For Love

An elegy for lovers, sad and slow, beautiful and sublime. And yes, it is better than Lost in Translation.

9. Richard Linklater - Waking Life

The movie that got me in to the concept of "lucid dreaming". A surreal and dreamlike movie with a great soundtrack. A must-see for philosophically inclined.

8. Jeunet - Amelie from Montmartre

Who can't love this movie? Pure heart and joy...

7. Gondry - Eternal Sunshine Of A Spotless Mind

Yeah, what can you say? A trip down memory lane masterfully crafted.

6. Wes Anderson - The Fantastic Mr. Fox

I loved this movie, it's like Amelie from Montmartre, pure heart and joy. And also the animation is pretty bitchin'

5. Sean Penn - Into the Wild

Even though Sean Penn seems like an annoying douche, he pretty much hit the mark on this one. A great character study of a real life character who did what all fragile, pretentious young men have been wanting to do - and reminds us why that might be disastrous. The Eddie Veder soundtrack is haunting.

4. Ruben Östlund - The Involuntary

This might be a movie completely unintelligible for people outside Sweden, but it captures our Swedish mentality so brutally honest and effectively, that I'm jealous of it. It's painfully good, and it hurts me to say so in a competitive field like directing. Kudos Ruben...

3. Steve McQueen - Hunger

This movie achieves everything that I love about cinema. The thrust of the movie is purely visual, there's not much dialogue, but not to the point that it becomes ridiculously "artsy". It just explains everything without words, and never ceases to grab you at that.

2. Gaspar Noé - Irreversible

This movie is a freight train doomed for catastrophe. It moves in reverse, so everything just becomes a tragic exercise in futility. The rape-scene is gut-wrenching and confrontational. We know the outcome so even the sweetest of kisses seem tragic. There's also an awesome soundtrack by the second half of Daft Punk, which is one guy. It's like Harold Pinter's play Betrayal which chronicles a love-affair backwards, only slightly more disastrous.

1. David Lynch - Mulholland Drive

Bergman always said that someone had yet to explore the full capacity of cinema... Well here it is. David Lynch did it, it's been done. All we can do now is venerate it and regardless of what David does after it (euhm, Inland Empire), NEVER criticize him. It's like Shakespeare and Dylan - if you don't like 'em; you're wrong. This is also my all time favorite movie.

How long is a piece of string? Only you can decide if 82mm is long enough, but Altman generally was using lenses like the 25-250mm Angenieux (or the anamorphized version on his scope movies). So 82mm is going to come up a bit short in terms of that long-lensed look in many of Altman's exterior shots. At the minimum, I'd look into something like the 20-100mm Cooke zoom.

Alright, that what's I needed to know. What kind of length on the zoom to have without it being ridiculous, to zip from a master shot to a close up. Thanks David, the Cooke 20-100 isn't too expensive.

Sorry for digging up an old thread, but I just love Altman, and in my new film I'd like to mimic his zooms. So I thought it'd be better posting here rather than creating a new thread. Anyways, I will be shooting on the Red One, and I was wondering how long zoom one should get to achieve those Altmanesque zooms? My budget is practically non-existant so I can't afford the really long ones, like the Optimo 24-250 or what the hell it is. Is the Elite Zoom 24-82 enough?

I know that Ozu frequently broke the 180-degree angle, and he sure got away with it. Wong Kar-Wai and Kubrick aswell. I've never liked that rule, but then they all broke it for effect. If it's a mistake, and doesn't occur in the rest of the film then it might just be disorienting and weird.

Yeah, I shouldn't boldly state things just based on rumours, I don't know Megan Fox, I have only heard things about her through less than reliable sources. Although, come on, women that beautiful CAN'T be humble

Must be a privilege to work with Megan Fox too...

Why? Because she's hot? Not to be polemic, and no disrespect to Mr Mullen, the movie looked gorgeous, but in terms of story, plot and character development... it kinda sucked :(

Hey, sorry to dig up an old thread. And sorry again for being a bit thick, but I can't get a clear grasp on this business with stepdown-rings and whatnot. I'd like to shoot some anamorphic with my 5D Mark II, is this the lens you guys have been experimenting with?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Kowa-Prominar-Anamorph...p3286.m20.l1116

And what step-up/down rings would I need to fit them onto Canon EF 35mm f/1,4 and EF 50mm f/1,2 and lastly EF 85mm f/1,2

I believe all these lenes have a filter size of 72

cheers

Satantango is amazing, it's completely breathtaking.

I'm going to see it tonight, looking forward to it actually. Roger Ebert gave it his infamous thumb up, and it's sitting at a pretty decent 88% at Rotten Tomatoes with at least 20 different reviews.

I mean, it's Harry Potter, it's a trying-encompass-all-generations, crowd pleaser, which shouldn't attract me. But I actually like Harry Potter, I stopped reading the books after the fifth one in, what was it, 2003, and lost interest after that one. But when the latest arrived, I thought I should catch up and read the sixth and the seventh, and I really liked the The Halfblood Prince. I thought it was dark, entertaining and quite possibly the best in the series.

So I hope the film can live up to my expectations.

Why do "blockbuster" films always have to go over the top with contrast? They always crank it up to ridiculous proportions, especially fantasy and science fiction, and it seems like this one is no exception. But I thought it worked very well with Watchmen, so it's not always a terrible choice. Anyway, I'll report back latahhh.

Wow this is great, I love analogies between hot chicks and evil demons, it's totally apt (I'm not being sardonic)

Man I hate censorship, let the kids watch it all, they close their eyes if they can't handle it.

We're shooting tomorrow night, I'll try to post some stills when we get our dailies back. Thanks for the advice.

Please do! I have some campfire scenes that I would like to execute as non-grainy as possible. I love this scene from Van Sant's Last Days:

Thanks for trying Tim, but I don't think I do understand. :D

I'll try and read your post again, haha.