David Gottlieb

Ouch - it is double perf (says 2R on package) - does this mean I'm stuck with magnetic or I have to go silent? There has to be some sound solution I don't know why Kodak would make a print stock that can't handle an audio track, but I'm told magnetic stripe projectors are hard to come by. All suggestions and comments still appreciated!

You have a good reel there - shows a lot of versitality - nighttime shots look nice, animal shots look crisp, outdoor shot of the island was easily my favorite shot, the rock music videos looked like rock music videos, but the underwater footage is the biggest draw - you've seemed to have spent a lot of time in a diving suit, something that could come in handy for certain projects; also had some nice saturated colors on the outdoor shots, smooth pans and dolly shots. Overall very impressive BUT a little jarring because of how you made the order very random, might want to consider grouping your shots differently (animals, then rock, then night, etc.) but that's your preference. This reel is a good sell for a nature documentary if you add a few more location shots because the animals are great, and it also shows you can do bright outdoor daylight scenes as well as dark indoor nighttime, both tough extremes to shoot in. Well done.

Thanks for the comments and suggestions: I feel I have a clearer idea of what to do now. I'm going to ignore the magnetic stripe because I won't be projecting the original; I too bought a lot of 7399 (16,000 ft actually) so anything I make I can duplicate onto the print film and then add an optical soundtrack that would work in more places, ignoring completely that the film even came with a magnetic stripe and leaving the sound on my computer and on the prints. I'll just remember that I can't shoot on S16 because of the magnetic stripe. I still think some places are still doing VNF reversal but if anyone knows places it would help a lot. Does this sound like a better route to take? Thanks for your comments and suggestions!

Which camera did you use with your project and was the sound preserved well? This is a new area for me so any tips and suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Sorry new to this please add replies to the first post I did under 'Film Stocks' - thanks

If this is not your plan, mind if I ask what it is ? I actually ebayed this film not knowing there was a magnetic stripe until it arrived, but it was $80 for all 2400 feet so i wasn't complaining. I recently made a short using tri-x and plus-x reversals and wanted to experiment with color reversals, but a friend who has done this thing on super-8 before told me you hear a weird clicking sound every time there's a cut in the magnetic stripe. I bought some ektachrome print films and i was planning to do all the sound in post on my comp and then give it to the lab to put on the stripe, since it's a one time recording on magnetic. When you cut the film I was told the presstape would overlap the stripe and normally they put the stripe on over the presstapes, but since I have it on already, I'm trying to figure out if I should ignore the stripe entirely and not have a usable sound strip on my masters, something I'm not really comfortable with. I am going to use this to shoot some short films, but I guess I could just ignore the sound strip and only put the sound onto the prints, unless someone else has a better suggestion. I haven't shot with live sound and I don't want to because its a feature and not a newsreel and I add a lot of sound f/x and music in post. The other option would be to shoot it with no intention of cutting (i.e. long takes mixed with in-camera edit), in which case the magnetic stripe would be preserved and I could have a true master. Still appreciating any and all comments and suggestions - Thanks

I believe Film is the combination of over a dozen factors, and while Cinematography may especially appeal to most here (including me), for every dull movie with exciting cinematography you can find an amazing movie with minimalistic cinematogrpahy. If the story can hold up, the cinematography can only enahnce it. Very rarely does it distract from the story, but it's almost like comparing Ozu to Kurosawa. Ozu had amazing characters and stories, and almost never moved his camera - it's by no means a negative example of cinematography, but rather a simple and effective minimalistic approach. On the other hand Kurosawa's movies, despite having amazing stories and characters, also had amazingly lush and complex cinematography. Something as simple as walking through the woods in Rashomon becomes an ingeniously choreographed scene, and Ran relies on its striking visuals to compliment its story at every turn, greatly enhancing the story. While an amazing story will be remembered in any format, on film a cinematographer has the chance to make someone not only remember the story but also the visuals that accompany it. The cinematographer is an interpreter, if you will, translating the story to a visual medium and interpreting the director's vision correctly. Watch 'City of God' again if you need a reminder of how memorable cinematography can enhance a story beyond the synopsis you read on websites and into a visual experience. Great cinematography is only fantastic to watch if the story and a host of other things hold up. As important and impacting as it is, it very rarely can hold an entire movie together. The style can overpower the substance (Kill Bill) but not unless the substance can support the style. You could build a mansion, but if it's on a weak foundation, no matter how impressive it may look it won't hold up. It IS essential to the filmmaking process, but I think we should remember its place in the overall process.

Can you cut film that already has a magnetic stripe on it before you shoot? I recently bought 2400 feet of Kodak Ektachrome 7240 Video News Film that already is magnetic striped. I have not shot on it yet and it is unopened in my fridge, but i need to know if I'll have to do an in camera edit or 12-minute takes (they're 400' each) or some mixture of both which would be infinitely more complicated than normal editing. I plan to film it with a normal no-sound 16mm camera and add sound in post. On that subject, can you film it without sound and not damage the stripe? This is an expired stock but if anyone knows if you can splice magnetic strips without sound distortion that would help a lot. Would appreciate any suggestions - thanks!

Can you cut film that already has a magnetic stripe on it before you shoot? I recently bought 2400 feet of Kodak Ektachrome 7240 Video News Film that already is magnetic striped. I have not shot on it yet and it is unopened in my fridge, but i need to know if I'll have to do an in camera edit or 12-minute takes (they're 400' each) or some mixture of both which would be infinitely more complicated than normal editing. I plan to film it with a normal no-sound 16mm camera and add sound in post. On that subject, can you film it without sound and not damage the stripe? This is an expired stock but if anyone knows if you can splice magnetic strips without sound distortion that would help a lot. Would appreciate any suggestions - thanks!