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Ben Luke Taylor

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About Ben Luke Taylor

  • Birthday 07/28/1991

Profile Information

  • Occupation
    P.A.
  • Location
    NW England

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  • Website URL
    http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4734868/?ref_=fn_al_nm_8
  1. Hi guys, this may sound bizarre but when unloading film when you haven't shot to roll out (which I'm aware should never happen) how do you actually get exposed film out of the mag? Is it a case of cutting close to the magazine throat then taking out the exposed film thus leaving anything left on the feed side as a potential short end? Ive seen many videos on how to load but not how to unload. Any tips much appreciated. Thanks, Ben
  2. UK Production News. I think its about £10 a month, gives a list of all features and TV dramas in development and pre-production. Normally has about 20 pages worth of jobs with any contact details that it has attached. Yes as Phil said most people have people they want to work with, but the job I'm currently working on came purely from me 'cold calling' the production by sending off my CV to the contact shown, a week later I got the call and I was on the job… Normally I get my work through a loader or focus puller I know, but this time it came out of no where almost, I had never worked with any of the crew on the shoot, nor the production company. And before its suggested, no, its not a 'low budget drama where we get paid expenses only etc.' so yes, these sites do work, and even if you only get one job from it in the whole year, you're still going to cover the costs for the newsletter, so its worth a chance surely? Also, I have just counted 48 features in the UK on the latest newsletter I was sent out, contrary to what Phil has said...
  3. You can calibrate the remote focus so that it only operates between two certain points on the lens, so you can set it so that it will only focus between 5ft and 15ft for example, meaning that you're small adjusts will be easier as the pulls on the remote focus ring will be bigger than if the wheel had to accommodate min focus - infinity. Hope I've explained that well…
  4. When slating for a pick up, how should the board be marked? New slate number, same slate number new take? Thanks!
  5. Did a job with the 5D using Zeiss Compact Primes and the focus was always slightly out compared to the markings on the lens. So what was sharp at 5' would actually be marked on the lens at 5' 6" or whatever. The puller said it might be due to the adaptor and positioning of the sensor in the camera, wether thats true or not im not sure about… So might just be worth double checking all the witness marks on the lens line up before shooting!
  6. When putting a filter tray with a filter in to the cameras matte box, which is the correct way to face the tray? Some people have told me the tray should be put in with the back (where the release clip is) facing the lens, so that if the filter were to fall out, it would fall back on the lens rather than come straight out of the matte box. Yet other people have told me to do it the opposite way to avoid damaging the lens which would be worth a lot more to replace than the filter if it were to fall out. So which way is the 'correct' way, if there is one, or is it just personal preference?
  7. Yes where i work a majority of the time we shoot digital (XDCAM). I have never seen a slate on set as it is all done by time code! But then again, us camera assistants also have to do the grip work instead...
  8. http://www.panavision.co.uk/panastore/default.asp?cid=36&clr=true
  9. The back focus on the lens has probably just been knocked. http://www.mediacollege.com/video/camera/focus/back-focus.html
  10. You can also make rubber marks, they do the same kind of job as sausage markers, but you can make them yourself for a lot cheaper! Basically, get a rubber mat (the kind you use to cover cables on set) cut them into rectangles, and tape t marks onto them. Use them on wet floors, grass etc where your tape wont stick.
  11. I have found luminous yellow, orange etc to be really handy for marking actors during night shoots when blues and blacks will be hard to see.
  12. Hi, I'm wondering if anyone knows if any rental houses in England offer some kind of internships or work experience? And if so which. And if anyone on here has taken part in an internship or similar with any rental houses what kind of benefits did they get from it? Thanks in advance.
  13. Thanks again for the replies guys. I am aware that there arent many English films around, and England is generally a hard place to get work in. Although I am still prepared to carry on trying to work. Just yesterday when talking to a DoP he was saying how well I am doing for working where I am at my age, so surely this will give me a good impression when applying for a internship at a rental house. The link Phil shared I think has been directed more to people that expect to come out of education, and the next week be directing the next £200M feature film. I know that I am just a AC at the moment, and I will be for a hell of a long time, but I see some of the people I am working with at the moment, and they getting work in London all of the time, but they have a lot more experience than me, and I know that until I have that experience, I wont be working out of the companies I am at the moment. So, Phil, I dont disagree with you at all, I know people are struggling to get work, but I also know some people who are rolling in it, I suppose its all a case of who you know, and where you are. I also know people who have left the media industry and are making a hell of a lot more money now, but after just one year, I dont want to give up, because this is the job I want to have.
  14. Hi Sam, I'm based in Merseyside, and currently do most of my work in Liverpool. Although I would definitely consider the Screen Yorkshire training you have mentioned, I will look in to it right now actually! I have been looking into rental houses, there is Panavision and Arri both in Manchester, which I have been considering sending an e-mail out to, however I am getting steady work at the moment at Lime Pictures, so I also don't want to shut them out right now until work starts to die down a bit, but then would that be more likely that rental houses would be less likely to take me on for some kind of work placement as they probably wont be trading as much in the winter? Yes, I did an apprenticeship in Manchester which got me work experience at 3 companies, 2 of which I work for at the moment, the other closed down, and I feel that I can show I have a few media related qualifications (which I have found are about as worthless as the paper they are printed on so far) but more importantly I have the actual experience to do my job as an AC. I certainly wouldn't go to a job claiming I am a DoP when I have only been a 2nd AC for just over a year now! However I still haven't had any luck when contacting any production companies outside of the ones I have worked for so far which is kind of frustrating. Am I best calling the companies up and asking to speak to their production offices and putting my name forward for freelance work directly rather than just sending out an e-mail which will probably never get read? Thanks for the advice you have given so far, and any replies to my new questions would be great! Ben
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