Neal Fredericks

On a music video I DPed a few years back, the director and producer suddenly wanted to shoot a sync sound intro with the artists.... so we covered up the 35-3 and shot 24fps...when the video was released to MTV/BET, the scene sounded fine. i don't recommend it though...

i have actually DPed several features with no video assist and the directors trusted me and the operators. Of course the directors would look through the lenses on every set up and/or watch a rehearsal through the camera. It was very refreshing to work this way and the ACs loved it too...and we also moved very fast between set-ups... And I have yet to DP a feature where I will get at least one above-the-line production person asking me..."is that how it will look?" when seeing the video assist monitor...

i kinda like Blockbuster (and all the other chains)...a lot of the straight-to-video films I DP get great shelf space... but mostly i rent from the 20/20 chain here in hollywood...

i shot a horror film called LAUGHING DEAD back in '96 (ouch!) on super 16mm that was blown-up to 35mm release prints for a limited theatrical... i used the 98 stock (500T) along with the 45 stock...DuArt Labs in NYC did the 35mm prints and i was there to time them... while the film got mostly less than positive reviews during the theatrical, many reviewers commented on the cinematography...so i was pretty happy with the quality... the more scary thing was that the VHS/DVD release was mastered from a transfer of a 35mm answer print at CFI...(back in '98)...way too dark... but a new distributor is re-releasing the film and I am trying to convince them to do a low-con print for the new DVD transfer...wish me luck...

hey bill: sorry to go off topic here...but that film was called KILLER ME (regular 16mm, Kodak) and it did great at the festivals (Telluride, etc.) and it got a great nationwide DVD/video release...you can find it at all Blockbusters and Hollywood Videos... and we did use a beat up Arriflex SR1...with the older Zeiss 10-100 zoom lens...and my dvd commentary is a riot...i think we mentioned you on it... did you ever see it...? all those scenes in Griffith park made the final cut...

for that particular feature, i felt the BL-4 would be the best choice. it is built like a tank and i have a soft spot in my heart for that Arriflex. plus i was shooting in some god-awful conditions out in Barstow with dust and dirt and the BL-4 had no problems. and with the second unit on that film using the Arri 35-3, I did not need the 45 degree shutter angle option for the "A" camera. i have not actually used an SL for a feature but everyone says it is louder than a compact. i have shot a lot with compacts and super americas and feel they are both quality cameras.

maybe too obvious but give Arriflex here in Burbank a call... or try CamTec (an Arriflex rental house), they have a great Arri tech there... they hooked me up with a retired Arriflex tech from Germany who did some work on my Arriflex M...

if i could i would use Panavision on every feature, but budget has alot to do with my choices... i was able to DP a feature last year here in LA with a Panavision Gold and Ultra Speed "Z" series lenses from Panavision-Hollywood. It was great. the camera was quiet and we had no mechanical problems. but i tend to use Arriflex and MovieCam with Zeiss Super Speeds. you can get great deals on these here in LA if you know the right people.

i used to own a CP-16A...loved that camera and used to DP several films with the R version as well... but i recommend this place to answer all your questions.... whitehouseav

I have had two features telecined on the Cineglyph here in Hollywood at Crest National... one was dailies (unsupervised - regular 35mm) for a Sony picture and the other was fully supervised dailies (super 35mm) for an indy feature... pretty close to the quality of a Shadow but not quite a Spirit...one thing these Cineglyphs did not have were secondary programs to isolate areas of the frame... but overall i was very happy to have my work transferred on them...

i am never happy with the results when I use the lower contrast stocks...no one else notices but i just dig the higher contrast stocks...maybe that's my thing... david, any thoughts on this...? am i doing something wrong...? how do you appraoch lighting when you shoot with a lower contrast stock...? any other filters, gels, etc... i did some spots for DreamWorks a while back with Michael J. Fox on Kodak 320T...they wanted him to look healthy and he did with my lighting approach, but i still think the spots would have looked better to me on 79...

funny i just went through the same thing on the last feature I shot...on regular 35mm producers told me, "we shoot 16X9 for all our movies because they go straight to video/DVD." that's cool with me... so to totally cover my ass I shot two 16X9 frame charts on both the "A" and the "B" camera for my photography tests about a week before production... than at the camera prep I made sure the rental house rented us the exact same camera bodies/lenses and re-shot two more 16X9 frame charts on both cameras... overkill some might say...but the dailies were perfect and no one yelled at me...i am happy...

in super 16mm i try to shoot with Kodak stocks... don't get me wrong, I love shooting Fuji but i am less enthusiastic with their 16mm stocks specifically their 500T... in fact a super 16mm feature i start in two weeks just switched to Kodak...the production got a better deal...shooting 79 for sure and i think we will use 46 for daylight... the director loves Fuji but everytime we do a film in 16mm i try to go Kodak...but it is usually a budget consideration...

i recently shot a project on the DVX100 (24p) and rated it at 400 ASA...I was very happy to see my meter and the camera/monitor coming in line with each other... i was happy with the results...

as a rule i try to work out potential problems in pre-production. if i read something in the script that raises a red flag i express my concerns to the powers that be and at least lay the seed for my thoughts in their head. this has saved my ass several times and i think helped my reputation. as the DP there are so many people you have to keep happy and it is always a delicate balance. and i have come onto several features to "finish" up or re-shoot sequences. and i have also had one person threaten me the same way..."i am gonna fax evryone i know and blacklist you, etc..." that bothered me for about 5 minutes...

not sure what the source materials are for the TV commercials of the film...but i can also see the "video smearing" and I agree with the zooming, very video-ish...

I like to use and own the smaller director's viewfinder made and sold at Birns & Sawyer (Hollywood)... The aspect ratio option is great and the choice of focal length setting is good...

i have DPed a lot features that have gotten the film (Fuji/Kodak) from these two companies in LA...never a problem and great people working there... Media Distributors (Studio City) MikeL@mediadistributors.com Shortenz (Hollywood) sean@shortenz.com

like any lens, i think it depends on the condition of each particular one. it is true with the lens breathing when pulling focus at certain focal lengths. i have gotten some beautiful images out of that lens but when i shoot 16mm i always try to rent the Zeiss 10-100 (T2).

you should be able to put a daylight spool into both versions of the CP-16 mags... make sure the spool is seated properly inside the mag...this may take an extra twist to get it in there...

looking for thoughts from DPs who may have done this for a feature film... Using a Super 16mm Camera equipped with 35mm Lenses... i was told the recent Fox TV show "Skin" used Aatons with 35mm Primos...

david: can't wait to see your Fuji photography for this film... i just wrapped one myself all on Fuji (250D and 500T)...my 7th with all Fuji stock... neal

some other interesting facts...Artisan insisted in putting in as much of the 16mm footage as possible to combat the video portions of the film...i must say though the transfer and blow-up to 35mm looked great considering everything... i am still amazed how good the hi-8mm video looks.... i DP all the formats but always defer to film...the last 5 features i've DPed have been 35mm (4) and 16mm (1)... i have DPed many features on video and most are at Blockbuster so go check out the final distribution quality...i do feel that the ones shot on film tend to survive the post/mastering madness of distribution... http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0292864/ the ones shot on tape seem to get less attention from the distributor and not much post-quality control is extended...

i love my B&H Filmo HR...i even have the 400' mags for it but only use it for 100' loads... i have used it as a B-CAMERA for several features I've DPed that are at Blockbuster and Hollywood Video... UT Photo in Burbank is great...i was able to get a copy of the original owners manual from them...

on the last two features i DPed i used the Compact...but i feel the BL-4 will work best on this new one with the majority of work on a stage and exteriors...no handheld on this show with a pee wee dolly and sticks as the main support... and of course budget is always a consideration with each show...plus i have to have an Arri 3 on set to do some high-speed and 45 degree shutter work...