Stuart Brereton

It seems like the Fox call sheet is taken word for word from the Contract Services bulletin, with the difference being that Mineral Oil is banned rather than allowed. The CS bulletin does specify "highly refined only", which DF50 is, according to the FDA, whereas Fox merely says Mineral Oil. Obviously, they've taken it upon themselves to implement rules that go beyond generally accepted safety guidelines. I would imagine that they've done that because of some possible legal exposure or financial implication, rather than any concern for human wellbeing ?

I'm not sure that this is accurate. The relevant part of the SAG contract states that actors should be aware of safety precautions when working in smoke or haze, and that they have a right to see the MSDS for the products being used, as well as a right to fresh air breaks when necessary, but it doesn't outright ban any particular type of haze or smoke fluid. The most commonly used haze, DF50, is a light mineral oil. The MSDS states that it is non carcinogenic, and safe to breathe under normal use. The Contract Services safety bulletin does list which substances are banned and which are ok. Highly refined mineral oil (such as DF50) is ok to use, subject to the usual provisos of limiting exposure, etc, etc

The Alexa Classic has a 16:9 sensor. As far as I know, there is no way to crop it to 4:3 in camera. You would have to create custom 4:3 frame lines in the Arri Frameline creator to use as a guide while shooting, then crop the image in post. Black & White would also have to be created in post production.

It’s not nostalgia. The Alexa classic has the same dynamic range and color science as the most modern version. It’s not obsolete in any way, save its sub 4K resolution. If that isn’t an issue for whatever market you shoot in, the Classic is still arguably a better camera than most of its more recent competitors.

It's been a while since I used one, but: 1. The F5 uses XAVC - I, which is a 10 bit 4.2.2 codec. We used to transcode to ProRes for post, but these days a lot more software can cope with XAVC natively. 2. Yes. Bear in mind that the native ISO for the F5 in Cine-EI mode is 2000, and it is considered a little noisy. Because of this most users rate the camera at 800 ISO to clean the shadows up, at the expense of 1 1/3 stops of highlight detail. 3. I've never had any complaints about the F5's color. It's not the same color science or sensor as the more expensive F55, but it still looks good. 4. Not sure about this. I don't remember having to change batteries more often than any other camera. 5. Who knows? 6. The sensor is the same width as s35, but it's 17:9 not 16:9, so it's not as tall.

S360s have a lot of output, but they are still comparatively small compared to a 24' softbox. You are likely to have a varying exposure across the diff. Another issue is that if the soft box is only 8' wide, and it's suspended above the bus, then most of the light is going to be hitting the roof of the bus, and therefore wasted. If I understand your intent properly, you really need the softbox to be above the windows on either side of the bus, which would mean that rig would need to be more like 16' wide, with the lamps hung towards the outer edges rather than the middle. Either that or build two narrower boxes, one for each side of the bus. Helium balloons are self supporting. The only rigging they need is for the guy lines to stop them floating away. The only ones I've used were a HMI/Tungsten mix, but there are now LED versions available. They are not cheap though; the helium itself is a big expense. Airstar are a major supplier, and they have an office in Atlanta.

Chimera softboxes mostly use grid cloth as their rags. The transmission data for the various strengths of grid cloth is available on the LEE filters website. That should get you a ballpark figure, although it wouldn't account for the extra reflectance of the chimera interior. If you can only afford one light, get the big one.

I've never noticed that creating contrast is any more difficult with bright scenes as opposed to dark scenes. It may be that it appears that way to the eye because of the way it adapts to different levels of illumination. I don't think I've ever had to spend extra time flagging lamps because I was lighting to f4 rather than f2. If I have enough light, I'll often switch to 400 iso to get some extra detail in the shadows and clean up noise

Why would pulling your exposures down in post require flagging to be done on set? I generally expose exactly as I want it to look. There are many people who will be watching dailies, and not all of them are overly blessed with imagination. If a scene is dark when it should be light, or light when it should be dark, questions will be asked. It's much better to expose as you want your images to look, that way there is no confusion about your intent.

I could shoot pretty much everything with a 35mm and a 50mm. I do like the look of long lenses; like Adam, I grew up with Tony Scott movies, but these days I’m more likely to move in on the 50mm than switch to an 85mm. Wider lenses are essential in small locations, but I use them sparingly.

Apologies for the typo. I’ll correct my original post.

AFAIK, Panavision don't sell the Genesis, so if you were renting from them anyway, why not just rent PV mount glass? Or if you have PL mount lenses that you really want to use, and you want to own the camera, why not buy a Sony F35 instead?

PL FFD is 52mm Diameter 54mm PV FFD is 57.15mm Diameter 49.5mm

Another possibility might be a C/Y to LPL adapter. The shorter FFD and large physical size of the LPL mount have made a lot of stills lenses adaptable. LPL mount is standard on Alexa LF and Mini LF, and it's an option on other Alexas. They are also available for RED cameras, and I would assume for other brands as well.

That's been the unofficial policy of every arts council in Britain for at least as long as I've been in this industry.

And how many people in the non union world have loan out corporations, do you think Richard? That article quite clearly illustrates that for the vast majority of crew it is illegal to be hired as an independent contractor.

It's illegal in California.

I've never been paid for travel, unless the distance to location is greater than what could reasonably be called 'commuting'. As for the catered lunch, that originally was provided by production as a way of ensuring that the crew didn't disappear off set in 20 different directions every lunchtime.

Sadly, this is not true. Just about any film worker in LA can tell you stories about the awful conditions and illegal rates and contracts that exist in the non union world. Producers hiring crew as independent contractors in defiance of labor laws, sidestepping worker's compensation insurance, paying less than minimum wage, refusing to pay overtime. All these are rife in the industry. It's only in the last few years that there's been a concerted effort to prosecute producers who do this.

It would be nice to work in a world where unions weren't necessary, where producers could be trusted to pay a living wage and to properly recompense skilled workers for their labor. Sadly, we don't live in that world. You only have to look at the rampant abuse of film crew in the non union sector to see that all too many producers care more about their bottom line than they do about their workers or the law.

The fact that something dates back to the 60's does not mean it has been heavily used. Shooting 1 36 exp roll every week for 50 years adds up to around 100,000 shutter actuations, which is at the low end of what manufacturers rate their shutters for. Canon’s shutter count ratings vary from model to model, as do most manufacturers. Their most expensive models have the highest ratings because they are built with higher quality mechanical components. It has nothing to do with the sensor.

I'm seeing swirly bokeh, edge softness, anamorphic and spherical flares, and very shallow DoF. Obviously these shots are designed to show off these artifacts, but it's all a bit distracting, frankly. It's an interesting look for a special effects lens, but I don't think I'd want to watch a narrative piece that looked like that. Cooke Panchros do exhibit a little of the bubble bokeh. you can see it occasionally in 'Her", photographed by Hoyte van Hoytema

I don't know what they can or can't do, but Duclos lenses would be a good place to start.

It was a joy to behold.

Then maybe still follow that old B&W advice of overexposing a stop and then pull processing. You'll have no problems with one of Les Bosher's adapters. He does top notch work.