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Michael Collier

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Everything posted by Michael Collier

  1. It also has to do with how many times a show can play on one screen in a day. I have heard its much tougher to distribute a 3 hour film than it is a 2 1/2 hour film for that reason. Not to mention if your striking 3000 prints, that extra 30 minutes means almost 9 million more feet in print costs.
  2. I have a CP-16 and in the low end 16mm cameras I think its the best. It has 400' mags, its simple internally, crystal synced and can run up to 32 fps. Also it can be modified to accept PL lenses and super16 gate. If you don't want to modify the lens mount, I have found the angie 12-120 lens to be very clean and sharp, although it has terrible close focus charecteristics. If you want to focus any closer than 5 ft, you must be at a 25mm lens or greater, which can sometimes be a restriction without diopters. There is an angie 6mm prime lens available in the CP mount that is just gorgeous.
  3. --I forgot to mention, the band that plays in the film will be performing live in concert at the after party, opening for Morgan Freemans band. So come out and see some Alaskana bluegrass/rock
  4. 'Way Up North', a short film I shot up here in Alaska, will have its LA premiere at the Beverly Hills Film Festival on Friday, April 3d at 8:15 at the Clarity Theater. Paired with the feature film 'Ganster Exchange', it will play during the second block of the day, and should be a good action packed two hours. If your in Beverly Hills area on Friday, I invite you to come out. I will be there along with the Director and a few of the actors. Tickets available at the BHFF website: Tickets And if you'd like to see the trailer it can be found here: Trailer
  5. Are you sure it was for the EX1? The EX1 has a fixed lens an would need a ground glass type adapter to make it work. Now if it was for the EX3 which has a bayonet mount it might be possible, but the EX3 has a 1/2" bayo which will not work with a 1/3" on your 270. Even if it did work, the widest lens you could find would be a 18mm or something like that. Wide for 35mm, but nearly telephoto in a 1/3" camera.
  6. Excellent link. I knew that lenses had a sweet spot and that at too deep of a stop they will suffer resolution loss, but didn't know the reason or math behind it. I thought it had more to do with lens design and how the aperture is built and positioned rather than theoretical optics science. Very interesting seeing how wavelength affects airy disks size. Double checking the math you have done, this only relates to digital 1080P imagers of 2/3 and 35mm correct? In film it would be the circle of confusion that would be the limit, not the nyquist limit? And an digital imager of the same size, but with a higher resolution, and ability to reproduce finer detail without ailising would have to adjust the math to find the correct upper limit for either film or a higher resolution chip of a similar size, correct? Good info, thanks for that John.
  7. John- could you explain the diffraction limitation between 2/3 and 35mm? I don't generally shoot deeper than an F8 on any format, but I am intrigued...what do you mean by diffraction limitation?
  8. watch the special feature DVD. Its a combination of archival footage, a model, a force perspective partial set and duplicating a crowd of extras several times over to fill the scene. I believe the airplanes were CG. If not they might have been models, but the smoke was definitely CG. If you look the footage from the road is much grainier and the falloff of the light is much quicker. I think that is archival footage of the actual premiere. I think if I remember right they duplicated the crowd against a half height set that used forced perspective to make it seem longer, and they extended the set upwards with the model photography. The special edition DVD explains in detail all the effects shots. They used very little CG to do the work, which is probably why their effects stand out.
  9. Totally normal. My first telecine I was nervous as hell. Today several films later I don't really get that voice of doubt, because I work each setup mechanically and double check the work my whole crew is doing. Did I really pull that 85b when I switched from bedroom to living room? Did I forget to remove the pola when we went inside. Did I accidentally load 500t when I meant to load 200t? The thing is, when you look back over notes and remember how the shoot went, you should remember how attentive to details you were. Checking the t-stop before each take, carefully calculating filter loss when setting your meter, obsessing over every detail as you went. If you stop and start to question that your going to convince yourself that you did something wrong. Remember how careful you were on set and trust in that. It hasn't let me down yet. I recall one shoot where I was careful about checking the T-stop all day, but for some reason I doubted if I had checked it during the last few takes. In a hurry to pack out of the location I must have rolled the iris while either checking the gate or putting the camera away, and was horrified later that night when I took the camera out and saw it was on a T5.6 instead of the T2.8 that I had metered for. Of course it just let me worry, I did check the iris before each shot, but sometimes things that are so drilled into your brain, so mechanical, if you have to think back and ask if you ever did it, sometimes its not clear. Sort of like if you leave your house and mid day wonder-did I lock the door? If you lock the door every day odds are you did today, and its become so much habit you don't clearly remember doing it. Sometimes I end up doing things twice just to be sure. Just so long as in the moment your paying attention you will get everything right, but you will still be able to convince yourself you were wrong. Head up, telecine will come back beautiful. And we all need quality first ACs. Even with a first on set you need to know they are 110% at their job, or you spend just as much energy checking their work. As for the steadicam op, well you should be able to trust him hopefully. If he is even somewhat experienced he should see the matte box in the monitor and probably corrected for it without telling you. Maybe in the future if you can't afford a modulous, then you can at least put a clam shell on his sled so you can watch video playback after takes. My guess is once you get the footage back you will have a similar reaction to it that I did with my first telecine. Good. Technically mistake free....but I wish I had been bolder! Film can handle a lot, and first time out the gate few are ready to start pushing the limits. Use that to build on and see how far you can push the image. But I doubt you will see any shots that will ruin the film. Have faith!
  10. Are you seriously asking this of the advertising industry? You might not like the answer.
  11. If they want you to do a different job than was advertised for, I would ask for more compensation than was advertised for. It almost sounds like they want you to make a TV show they can air. You probably can't air the local news there without permission. Advertisers and station managers wouldn't be too keen on them using their footage. You either would have to go with cash in hand to arrange rights to the images (producers work) or you would have to create all the elements with actors on a set (2d unit director/dp) I could see a video assist position for so low (though I don't think its right given their budget) but I think its terrible that they try and rope you into the job, then once in they want to move the goal posts without giving you adequate pay or title. I would bring that up if your on the fence about taking the position. Lay out the deal and say, more money. At 600/week, if they ever go over 14 hours your getting paid less than minimum wage. Not good if they are having you do producing or 2d unit work. Sounds like you have good report with producers on this show, I am sure you can word it in a fair manner so they don't see it as you demanding too much. In fact don't assume they don't know how low this offer is, they might expect a bit of negotiation. At least they couldn't hold it against you.
  12. I think it bears mentioning that this figure is WAY out of the reality of film production. I don't know of a single film that cost 4-7 million in stock, cameras and lab work. I don't think even Kubrick with massive shooting ratios has reached a figure like that. For 35, there is some flexibility with what you shoot. Action films obviously will eat up more film than an average drama. But a good starting point for film cost is 250K. That would cover stock lab work and some cameras, depending on options. It could be done for 150K, or even less if producers had a few favors to call in. I doubt many films ever grace the $1million mark in terms of basic cost of shooting film. And the ones that do you can bet are well budgeted and the cost isn't a large chunk of the pie. I would be very surprised if ever there was a film that cost 4-7million in film costs.
  13. So our film 'Way Up North' was selected for the Beverly Hills Film Festival this April and the director, and the band that was in the picture, and I are flying down to showcase it. I have a couple of free days around that time that I will be in LA and I wanted to do some touring around. What out there is good to see? I grew up in LA so site seeing isn't a big deal to me. I would rather go meet people in the industry. I wanted to check out Panavision while I was there if I could arrange it, but what else could I have access to? Is the ASC having an open house during that period? What about a cinemotography.com meet for drinks? It sounds like there is opportunity to meet lots of good people in connection to the festival, but outside of that I just want to network and get a sense of what is possible with LA's infrastructure. Anybody know of anything like that going on that would be good to check out? I got the plane tickets and the car rental. Just looking for stuff to do while I am there. I will be in LA from March 31-April 6th. I am staying at some fancy Beverly Hills hotel, but I am not sure which one, the festival director recommended it to us. (also if anyone is planning to attend the festivals parties, our band 'The Rebuttals' are opening for Morgan Freeman's band, so get some Alaskana blue grass/rock music and delta BG in one pop! good stuff.)
  14. That really is too bad. I have been a fan of SV since I first watched season one through three on DVD in less than two weeks. It has been in no small part to the great quality of images the show has always had. But I suppose that is the downside of TV, there's always a compromise to be made. I was always impressed how few compromises you have had to make. Composition aside, the acting is great, the stories are great, and the lighting and camera work is consistently top notch (Kudos Glen, I learned your name from credits before I knew you posted here just because that show has always struck me as one of the best shot programs on TV) Its a shame to have to step back from that freedom, but the strengths of the show will pull it through. Hopefully soon enough 16x9 will be predominant enough that networks won't ask cinematographers to make that compromise. But until then, I am sure you will find a creative way to keep the 16x9 image striking while protecting 4:3 It is odd though, on my cable box in small market Anchorage Alaska, there is a button to switch between 4:3 and 16:9 with letter box (I assume it adds letter box or does the center cut in the box from a single 16x9 signal) I figured that was standard on all cable boxes, but maybe because I have the HD package I have an upgraded box. Also I read somewhere Alaska has one the highest per capita ownership of HD sets in the US. Maybe its a market thing. But if that's common all over the US and abroad I would think networks would leave the choice up to the viewer, at least with dramas. Head up though, your doing excellent work and I don't think that small compromise alone will be the demise of Smallville's quality cinematography.
  15. I wasn't trying to imply the air temp was the factor, I was saying the cables ability to safely pass current depends on the conductors temperature. My intent was to say that if your running at the limit, and a hot sun (IR heat, not ambient air) comes out and heats up the BLACK STINGER jacket, thus heating the conductor (at a rate much greater than air temp would do) then your cables current rating will decrease. Think car with black interior in full sun. My aim was to point out that conductor temp and current ratings are symbiotic, and can become degenerative if ignored. I once ran HMI's near the limit on long cable runs, but only because it was -30 outside, so the stinger was nearly a superconductor, actually improving the cables current rating (most ratings are pegged at a specified conductor temp, usually room temp). Even in that condition however I would not exceed the calculated safety factor, just feel better about getting close. The key words though is 'if your near or exceeding the limit', if your trying to push more current than the cable can handle.
  16. When cabling becomes warm, its current rating goes down. So its not just a 1.6 amp overdraw. As you draw more current than the cable can handle, the actual ability to pass that current degrades. The point at which that degenerative cycle reaches terminal velocity is the point where it will fail, and that could be rather quick fail point after a long warm up period. So you can be just fine most of the day, and then the sun comes out and your cords start frying, or worse just the jacket melts off, and makes a cart or c-stand hot. Then when someone touches it--zapp, lawsuit, negligent homicide. Most DAs could make a case for NH, especially if your a professional electric (and if your on set, paid or unpaid, high or low budget, they will label you a professional who should have known better) Don't do this. Get the heavier gauge cable. With short runs overdrawing is not advisable. with typical long runs we see on set it can be catastrophic. At what point is risk too much risk? Don't chance it, play by the numbers. Stingers are cheap. Plan overhead, don't plan for failure. 2k=minimum 20amp to be safe. 60 amp bates would be better.
  17. Keep in mind there is no 180degree CP, which your light meter assumes is your shutter. Figure out if you have the 172 halfmoon or the 155 bowtie (I think there might be another bowtie angle out there as well, so check and be sure) and compensate your rating accordingly.
  18. I don't know for sure, but it seems that if its an old analog meter (I assume this is on a K3?) the voltage would be important. However that said there is a 3% difference over the range of the scale. Since analog meters are accurate to about +/- 1/2 stop, it seems as though .05v difference would be negligible, but then again, its worth a test. Set up the meter on a gray card and compare it to a hand held digital meter you know is good.
  19. It wouldn't affect my advice to shoot 24fps, since I know it should still be workable; but you should get some post options from someone who has dealt with PAL. I have only worked with pal once, and I wasn't editing, so I don't know the endgame of that, just that it works. I mean obviously it works since every major picture is shot 24fps, and I am sure they make it to DVDs that play on Pal TVs. I am just unclear exactly how they do that. I heard once they just speed the footage up to 25fps. But if your printing for festival you'd be best served by shooting 24fps and figuring out the DVD option. I am sure in PAL its quite simple, its easy as pie here in NTSC.
  20. I would shoot 24 fps. Assuming your in NTSC land, or more importantly the festivals you want to submit to are in NTSC parts of the world. Also with 24fps, it can be dealt with to make it work in 25fps pal, so don't choose based on DVD submissions. It says f-stops on your meter, but trust me it really means T-stops. F-stops on your meter is assuming you have 0 light loss through your lenses-a practical impossibility. T-stops are the calibrated F-stop, so basically meter your light, set your T-stop and if they are all set up correctly you should get the same exposure between all your lenses on that T-stop. F-stop markings on lenses is the mathematical F-stop and are used for DOF calculations that are not affected by light loss.
  21. Keep in mind John that there is an efficiency overhead for the inverters, so even if your lights are 16amp, you're likely to need more to cover the inefficiency of the inverter. I know bergstrom used sealed gels because they can mount in any direction, which is helpful for transpo. Don't know about leasure, but I would avoid anything that isn't sealed because it could leak acid if not stored properly. I would assume marine batteries are sealed, but check to be sure. but in general yes, that is a good rough equation to figure approximate runtime. I would factor a 10% overhead to cover your bases. Also be sure your battery can source the amps you need. It may be a 100amp hour battery, but only able to safely source 10 amps continuously (for 10 hours). Batteries have no fuse or breaker pannel to keep them from exceeding their current limit, so over driving them is a good way to shorten their life span or get them to catch fire. Bergstrom's setup if I remember properly is able to drive 25 amps at a time (enough to cover the 300w inverter.) If you need more current than any one battery can supply, you can wire them in parallel to up the rated current, but you might need a shunt diode to prevent cross charging of the cells at the end of their run.
  22. Send a PM to Michael Bergstrom, He rigged up a cool pelican case with a sealed gel battery and inverter in one unit. Its heavy, but carryable by one person. Drives about 300 watts for a few hours. You might find the cost of building something like that comparable to a generator rental if its just for one shoot however.
  23. Ok, now that's pretty sweet. Its like tilt shift on crack. I could see that being useful on certain shots.
  24. I am sure there are tons of examples. I did a shot last weekend where we had the lights dim as a charecter is getting ready to leave, but I won't have the telecine back for a while. If color shift is your question, there are tons of calculators out there that will tell you the mired shift and equivelent CTO strength at various percents of dimming. Very helpful, and if you have a good sense of what a 1/2 CTO would look like on the film you want to shoot, it can give you a good idea of the photometrics and color of the lights once dimmed.
  25. So after this weekends shoot, I have realized we are going to run out of film likely before we finish shooting, so I am on the hunt for some cheap film. We don't have much money, or much needs. I am looking for 600-800' of 16mm color negative. Past that I am pretty flexible. If anyone has any Vision 200t (7274) that would be excelent, since I have 200 ft of that already and could shoot the whole end scene in an older stock, but in general I can be flexible since the scene I need it for needs to look different than the rest of the picture Can anyone help? I need help fast, we shoot the rest of the project this weekend. Stocks we have shot so far: 200t v2 (7217) 500t v2 (7218) stocks we have in can but haven't loaded yet: 200t v1 (7274) But we will consider anything. Fuji or Kodak. Also small amounts of black and white could be useful, if the price is right. (and for what its worth, never let anyone tell you that shooting oners saves film. The problem we had was trying to shoot the end shot, that holds while credits roll, and at the end of a minute long take, the actress blows a bubbles into the camera. Problem was despite practice and rehearsals going smoothly, the bubbles were camera shy during the actual take. I suppose these things happen.) But any help at all would be greatly appreciated
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