Jim Hyslop

Well, the first item - agreeing not to poach each others' employees - I can kind of see. The second item - notifying the other company - hmmm..., well, I don't think that's a good idea. You generally don't want your current employer to know you're job-hunting. The third item, though, stinks. If you like your employee, you should be able to make at least one counter-offer to keep them.

--

Jim

Pacing and timing seem to be the key ingredients. But I just can't seem to put the puzzle together.

...

I often spend hours running through docs and movies with a stopwatch

Put the stopwatch away. Timing in this sense does not involve cutting to the exact millisecond.

You reminded me of a scene from "Star Trek: The Next Generation." Commander Data, the android, has been trying to learn how to tell jokes. He is discussing the issue with Guynan, the main bartender in the ship's lounge. Guynan (played by Whoopi Goldberg) suggests that maybe he has a problem with timing, and... well, here's the audio clip

--

Jim

I primarily use my meter in Indecent mode

Auto-correct fail! Or do you primarily shoot adult movies? :lol: :lol:

--

Jim

But is it even "speed" or "speeding" for the camera? I was taught (Ryerson University) that the sequence is generally:

1AD: Roll sound

Sound: Sound speed

2AC: (reads off slate)

Cam Operator, when camera is at speed: Mark it

2AC claps sticks & exits

Cam Operator: Frame

Dir/AD: Action

--

Jim

Wow. Is that real?

 

 

If so, guy has some serious talents that he could be putting to use on a comedy circuit.

Alas, no: Snopes documents it here.

--

Jim

I'm thinking the hole in the wall myself ... (Tims suggestion, and what I assume you mean by 'great production design')

Well, to elaborate on my earlier comments - since the trick is repeated several times, that would involve building several different mirrored sets, which could get quite costly for a short film. I figure a green screen effect would be cheaper.

I reckon if it were done in post then they may have put more effort into making the camera shake follow the reflections eye/head movement

Sorry, I'm not sure I follow you - do you mean it would require extra effort to match the movement of the inserted shot with the movement of the wall? If so, yeah, that could get tricky. Maybe it's time to do some experimenting :-)

+ its way more fun that way :lol:

No arguments there!

--

Jim

Yeah, I like to think of "CTB" as "convert to blue" and "CTO" as "convert to orange". Those aren't, of course, the correct meanings of the acronyms, but they help remember what the gels do :-D

Well, to be pedantic, no matter how the shot was accomplished it was "special effects" :-)

I can't tell. Given that the effect is repeated several times in several different bathrooms, I'd lean towards a green screen on the mirror and lots of post-production work and attention to detail.

--

Jim

I've used Vistek (www.vistek.ca), 496 Queen St. East; and The Source Shop (www.sourceshop.ca), 119 Jefferson Ave. There's also The DV Shop at 2967 Dundas St. West, but I've never actually been there so I can't say what they're like.

--

Jim

I had to stop watching Peggy Sue Got Married to find out how they did this one. Its pretty brilliant.

 

Seemed pretty obvious to me, but then I took acting classes where we did "mirror exercises."

--

Jim

On my IMDB forum a thread appeared asking about cameraless mirror shots. That sparked my memory about a recent movie with said shot. As I remember, no one made a big deal about it, as probably it wasn't noticed or caught by anyone. Any ideas? I just registered today so I apologize if this has been covered before.

Well, it's not recent, but there's the scene from "Contact" where young Ellie's father has a heart attack, and Ellie runs to the bathroom to get his medication. Of course it's

I love that shot - I bought the DVD just so I could analyze it frame-by-frame at the end.

--

Jim

Hello!

 

I'm producing a feature film that will be made by a core team of very young people (under 21). The film will have a budget of around $100,000 and likely be shot in Austin, TX. I'm scouting the internet for the best young DP in the world. If you or somebody you know are this person, please send me an email and let me know!

It is illegal to include age in a job requirement. Just sayin'...

Copyright rests with the creator. Work for hire only exists when someone is actually employed in a conventional sense and even then it can be a bit of a legal mine field unless there is a really clear work for hire contract.

I don't think it's that much of a mine-field. The U.S. Copyright act seems pretty clear and straight forward to me:

"A 'work made for hire' is—

(1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment;

or

(2) a work specially ordered or commissioned for use as a contribution to a collective work, as a part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, ..., if the parties expressly agree in a written instrument signed by them that the work shall be considered a work made for hire."

As you can see, employment is covered by definition (1). Definition (2) basically says what Bill Simone said - if there's a written contract saying it's a work made for hire, then it's a work made for hire. No contract? It's not "work made for hire."

Of course, that's a lay perspective on it. Lawyers will gladly argue either side of the question - for a price, naturally!

And, of course, this also assumes Alfredo is located in the U.S or Canada (Canada's copyright is very similar to the U.S.'s). If not, the entire discussion may be moot, except for the advice to see a lawyer :-)

--

Jim

Yeah, can be a pain to find what you're looking for on there; but thankfully it's up there. good luck

Thanks, Adrian. I'd been holding off upgrading my MacBook Pro to Snow Leopard because of the concern. I feel more comfortable now that I know it's been resolved.

Go to Sony Alaska then download the white paper on post modern approaches to computer assisted VTOL moonhopper landings, solve the riddle on page 5t (you'll need a 7 rotor enigma to decode it) - the answer will give you the FTP address of Sony Jupiter in which you'll need to visit in person (Thomas, a user here with the right funding and 'can do' attitude can supply the transport) - heat up your laser printer first though by getting it to cut into itself (the 'green' approach), some acrylics need a consistent beam for straight results...

Oh, good, I was afraid it would be difficult to find the right drivers & procedures.

Hi, all

I just Googled, and didn't see any news on the Sony SxS on Snow Leopard issue. The latest news I see is from last September, which seems to have resolved some but not all of the issues. Does anyone have any more recent news?

--

Jim

According to the DVD commentary, David Fincher explains that it was done on set with the camera operator (Conrad Hall, Jr) shaking that Panahead back and forth as the camera tracked in using whatever looseness was in the gears to get the vibration. The footage was then steadied in post so that Brad's nose stayed in the middle of the frame the whole time and then adding the film perf graphic.

That makes sense to me. I tried applying a smooth-cam to a shot I had of two people walking down a hall. The two people stayed perfectly centred, but the background shook around wildly, almost exactly like in the video.

--

Jim

So with a 144 angle at 24 FPS, at 500ASA I should choose 1/60 as my shutter speed to get the correct reading on my meter, yes? (24x360)/144=60

Well, sort of. Technically, you've got the formula upside-down - it's 144/(24x360), which is .01666... or 1/60. But you remembered to invert the answer (1/60 instead of just 60) so it all comes out in the wash anyway.

Not to mention that "60" is easier to understand than "0.01666".

--

Jim

My sincere condolences on the loss of your husband. I learned a lot from his postings on this forum.

Let me attempt a definition:

1 - "The line" is a line (in fact a plane that extends vertically above and below, and continues behind the characters) between the subject of a shot (the subject being what the audience's attention is on at the time) and the focus of that subject's attention at the time.

I like that definition - it's a lot more flexible than the usual definition involving two people.

Vijay, they say a picture is worth a thousand words, so have a look at this Wikipedia article, in particular the first diagram.

Putting aside all the technical jargon, a "circle of confusion" basically means "it's not in focus." Looking at the diagram, the point in the top image is closer to the lens than its focus distance, so the image converges behind the focal plan, resulting in a circle on the film (or sensor) rather than a point. What you see is a blurry circle instead of a sharp point. That circle is the circle of confusion. In the middle image, the point's image converges exactly at the film plane, so you see a sharp point. In the bottom image, the image converges in front of the focal plane, resulting in another blurry circle.

If you have any more specific questions, please feel free to ask them. "Explain in detail" is pretty vague :-)

--

Jim

p.s. As per forum rules, please make sure your first and last names are clearly indicated.

However, you will get a kick out of the technician's diagnosis. Not only does it not make sense, it is entirely inaccurate.

Well, you know what they say. If you can't dazzle them will brilliance, baffle them with bullshit.

--

Jim

So what's is the 1.333 ratio all about?

From what I've seen, it's a way some cameras cheat to get 1080x1920 resolution. They actually record at 1080x1440, with a pixel aspect ratio of 1.33:1. Map every 3 camera pixels into 4 monitor pixels and you get 1920 pixels horizontally. Kind of like a digital version of anamorphic lenses.

It's also used with NTSC DV, to get a 16:9 image out of an NTSC signal. Same principle.

--

Jim

Have you read the Wikipedia entry?

--

Jim

If the streetcar will be moving, you'll need some kind of shock absorbing system. Streetcars (at least the ones in Toronto) are not very smooth rides, and ya can't let some air out of the tires for a smoother ride :-D

--

Jim