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Found 10 results

  1. FotoKem, a leader in digital and film post production, announced today that industry veteran Dana Ross has joined the facility as Senior Vice President of Client Relations. With more than 40 years of experience, Ross will collaborate with FotoKem’s sales and marketing teams to continue to expand its growing creative connections. Ross brings a breadth of experience to this new engagement that encompasses motion picture workflow, production, camera and lens expertise, and decades of relationships with filmmakers. He began his career at CFI Motion Picture Laboratory, first as a projectionist and later as a color timer. After 23 years at CFI, he transitioned to Technicolor, serving as SVP of Feature Film Relations. In 2014, Ross joined the ARRI Rental team as a global marketing executive and embarked in the development and launch of the Alexa 65 camera system, which has become a leading tool for filmmakers and used on Academy Award®-winning films. Ross, an associate member of the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC), also has a passion for still photography. In particular, he fosters a love for working in the 11x14 plate camera format. This passion, combined with many years working closely with directors of photography, has seen him take studio portraits of numerous cinematographers. Ross says, “FotoKem is renowned for its service, expertise, and numerous credits on highly respected projects. I am excited to join the team to help further inform the broader creative community of the company’s accomplishments and capabilities.” FotoKem Chief Strategy Officer Mike Brodersen adds, “Ross has been supporting filmmakers on projects of every size for many years in the industry. We’re thrilled to have him on board to communicate our offerings to a broader scope of filmmakers.”
  2. BURBANK, CA (May 1, 2019) – There’s nothing small about the bicoastal post-production workflow provided by FotoKem for Universal Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ Little. FotoKem’s Atlanta and Burbank facilities supported the production from digital dailies through finishing with a full ACES finish for this fantasy comedy. From blockbuster producer Will Packer (Girls Trip, Night School, the Ride Along franchise) and director and co-writer Tina Gordon (Peeples, Drumline), Little tells the story of a tech mogul (Girls Trip’s Regina Hall) who is transformed into a 13-year-old version of herself (Marsai Martin), and must rely on her long-suffering assistant (Insecure’s Issa Rae), just as the future of her company is on the line. Martin, who stars in the TV series Black-ish, had the idea for the film when she was 10 and acts as an executive producer on the film. She is the youngest person to hold that title on a major Hollywood production. Principal photography for Little took place last summer in the Atlanta area. FotoKem’s Atlanta location provided digital dailies with looks developed by FotoKem colorist Alastor Arnold alongside cinematographer Greg Gardiner (Girls Trip, Night School) who shot with Sony F55 cameras. “Greg likes a super-clean look, which we based on Sony color science, with a warm and cool variant and a standard hero LUT,” says Arnold. “He creates the style of every scene with his lighting and photography. We wanted to maximize his out-of-the-camera look and pass it through to the grading process.” FotoKem responded to the sharp growth of production in Georgia, and entered the Atlanta market five years ago to offer on-the-ground support for creatives. “FotoKem Atlanta is an extension of our Burbank team with colorists and operations staff to provide the upfront workflow required for file-based dailies,” says Senior Vice President Tom Vice of FotoKem’s Creative Services Division. “Atlanta is an exciting place to be, and we’re thrilled to be part of that community.” When editor David Moritz and the editorial team moved to Los Angeles, FotoKem sent EDLs to its nextLAB dailies platform, the facility’s proprietary digital file management system, where shots for VFX vendors were transcoded as ACES EXR files with full color metadata. Non-VFX shots were also automatically pulled from nextLAB for conform. The online was completed in Resolve. The DI and the film conform happened concurrently, with Arnold and Gardiner working together daily. “We had a full ACES pipeline, with high dynamic range and high bit rate, which both Greg and I liked,” Arnold says. “The film has a punchy, crisp chromatic look, but it’s not too contemporary in style or hyper-pushed. It’s clean and naturalistic with an extra chroma punch.” Gordon was also a key part of the collaboration, playing an active role in the DI, working closely with Gardiner to craft the images. “She really got into the color aspect of the workflow,” notes Arnold. “Of course, she had a vision for the movie and fully embraced the way that color impacts the story during the DI process.” Arnold’s first pass was for the theatrical grade and the second for the HDR10 grade. “What I like about ACES is the simplicity of transforming to different color spaces and working environments. And the HDR grade was a quicker process,” he says. “HDR is increasingly part of our deliverables, and we’re seeing a lot more ACES workflows lately, including work on trailers.” FotoKem’s deliverables included a DCP, DCDM and DSM for the theatrical release; separations and .j2k files for HDR10 archiving; and ProRes QuickTimes for QC.
  3. Colorist Aidan Stanford has joined Keep Me Posted (KMP), a FotoKem company specializing in creative and technical episodic post-production services. In his role as senior colorist, Stanford builds upon Fotokem’s roster of creative talent that serves episodic and feature projects. With over 25 years of experience, Stanford brings unique expertise including proficiencies on color grading systems. His experience ranges from photochemical color timing to digital color grading and includes DI, broadcast, commercials and shorts. His varied background includes color timing 65mm film for LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (IMAX 2002 restoration/release); the DI, HDR and all video deliverables for the Oscar-winning GET OUT; and multiple seasons of Emmy Award-winning television series. His credits include the features HAPPY DEATH DAY, INSIDIOUS 4 and BENJI and his episodic credits include MODERN FAMILY, DRUNK HISTORY, YOU’RE THE WORST and FRESH OFF THE BOAT. Stanford noted, “No other facility offers the breadth of service for filmmakers that is available within the FotoKem family of companies. There is a dedication to customers and a meticulous approach to the work that is in perfect sync with my own. KMP is a highly respected facility, and I am delighted to join the talented team here.” Mike Brodersen, FotoKem’s Chief Strategy Officer, commented on the addition of Stanford to the creative services team. “Aidan brings a deep knowledge of film, an artistic eye and a keen technical ability to help our creative customers bring their vision to reality. His comprehensive skill set in combination with his expertise in color have made him a trusted collaborator with many filmmakers and show runners. We are delighted to have him on our team.”
  4. <iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/258354917"width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen></iframe> Tyler Burns - "Knock On Wood/Frankenthaler" Shot this 9.5 minute double music video/short film on Kodak 16mm MPF (50D, 250D, 500T) with an Aaton XTR Prod and Zeiss Primes MKI over the course of almost 3 years in Oregon. Development by Fotokem (Burbank, CA) Telecine by Lightpress (Seattle, WA) Love to hear what y'all think. http://aleceagon.com http://instagram.com/aleceagon
  5. FotoKem, a leader in digital and film post production, was the facility of choice for providing comprehensive creative and technical services from pre-production through final deliverables on the critically acclaimed Star Wars: The Last Jedi from Disney/Lucasfilm. The facility built technically advanced solutions that supported the creative team through their interplanetary production from dailies to color grade. Services included a customized workflow for dailies, editorial and VFX support, conform, and a color pipeline that incorporated all camera formats (film and file based) while adhering to critical studio guidelines. Working collaboratively with key creatives – including director Rian Johnson; cinematographer Steve Yedlin, ASC; producer Ram Bergman; Lucasfilm’s Head of Post Production Pippa Anderson; and Lucasfilm’s Director of Post Production Mike Blanchard – the post process allowed them to operate with speed and flexibility while enabling maximum creative freedom served by the technology. The filmmakers behind The Last Jedi had an ambitious vision for the second installment in the sequel trilogy. FotoKem was engaged prior to the beginning of principal photography, and devised an intricate workflow tailored to accommodate the goals of production. A remote post production facility was assembled near-set in London where film technician Simone Appleby expertly operated two real-time film scanners, digitizing up to 15,000 feet a day of 35mm footage at slightly above 4K resolution. Supported by a highly secure network, FotoKem nextLAB® systems ingested the digitized film and file-based camera footage, providing “scan-once instant access” to everything, and creating a singular workflow for every unit’s footage. By the end of production, over one petabyte of data was managed by FotoKem’s nextLAB®, enabling the filmmakers, visual effects teams, editors, and studio executives to securely and easily share large volumes of assets for any part of the workflow. Johnson said, “For me, it’s simple – FotoKem helped me tell the story I was hoping to tell. They invented solutions and made it easy for us to work the way we wanted to work.” Bergman added, “I worked with FotoKem previously and knew their capabilities. This project clearly required a high level of support to handle global locations with multiple units and production partners. We had a lot of requirements at this scale to create a consistent workflow for all the teams utilizing the footage, from production viewing dailies to the specific editorial deliverables, visual effects plates, marketing, and finishing, with no delays or security concerns.” Before shooting began, Yedlin worked with FotoKem’s film and digital lab to create specialized scanner profiles and custom Look Up Tables (LUTs). FotoKem implemented the algorithms devised by Yedlin into their nextLAB® software to obtain a seamless match between digital footage and film scans. Yedlin also received full-resolution stills which served as a communication funnel for color and quality control checks. This color workflow was devised in collaboration with FotoKem color scientist Joseph Slomka, and executed by nextLAB® software developer Eric Cameron and dailies colorist Jon Rocke, who were on site throughout the entire production. “With the knowledge of an HDR deliverable, we set to work to make sure the look captured on set matched the vision of the filmmakers and was carried throughout the workflow for the ultimate control of color from camera to screen,” noted Slomka. Yedlin observed, “As cinematographers, we work hard to create looks, and FotoKem made it possible for me to take control of each step in the process and know exactly what was happening. The color science support I received made true image control a realized concept.” Calibrated 4K monitoring and the high availability SAN on site managed by nextLAB® created a world where visual effects and editorial could instantly access full fidelity footage during and after production. Through the nextLAB® interface, these teams could procure footage, pull shots as needed, and maintain exact color and metadata integration between any step. For the color grade, FotoKem colorist Walter Volpatto fine-tuned raw images, as well as those from ILM, with Johnson and Yedlin using the color and imaging pipeline established from day one. FotoKem also set up remote grading suites at Skywalker Sound and Disney so the teams could work during the sound mix, and later grading for HDR and other specialty theatrical deliverables. “The film emulation LUT that Steve (Yedlin) created carried nuances he wanted in the final image and he was mindful of this while shooting, lighting both the film and digital scenes so that minimal manipulation was required in the color grade,” Volpatto explained. “Steve’s mastery of lighting for both formats, as well as his extensive understanding of color science, helped to make the blended footage look more cohesive.” Volpatto also oversaw the HDR pass and IMAX® versions. Ultimately, multiple deliverables were created by FotoKem including standard DCP, HDR10, Dolby Vision™, HLG, 3D (in standard, stereo Dolby and 2D Dolby HDR), and home video formats. FotoKem worked with IMAX to align the color science pipeline with their Xenon and laser DCPs and 15-perf 70mm prints as well. Mike Brodersen, FotoKem’s Chief Strategy Officer, said, “Our incredible team’s objective from the beginning of this project was to provide a process for the creatives to flourish, without worrying about the technology. It’s not every day that we would ship scanners to remote locations and integrate a real-time post environment that would rival many permanent installations. Our approach combined decades of film and digital expertise, intense artistry, and exceptional post production workflow knowledge. We are honored that they entrusted us in this endeavor and grateful to be part of this iconic project.”
  6. Facility Relocates to Second Line Stages, Adds Finishing Suite NEW ORLEANS (November 16, 2015) - FotoKem has expanded its award-winning post production services in New Orleans, and moved into a new space here at Second Line Stages, a production hub for the local filmmaking community in the heart of the Lower Garden District. Previously situated downtown near the French Quarter, FotoKem has been supporting local productions and providing quick deployment of its on-set and near-set nextLAB systems since 2011. As part of the expansion, FotoKem has added a dedicated Mac-based Blackmagic DaVinci Resolve suite to allow for conform and color services. The facility's comprehensive offerings in the region include advanced file-based dailies, offline editorial systems, media management, and global file delivery. FotoKem's new space offers 1gig, 10gig, and SDI routing capabilities to the dailies rooms. FotoKem clients will also have access to Second Line Stage's 2K Christie theater, with direct SDI signal routing to and from the FotoKem suites in the near future. Second Line Stages is a USGBC (United States Green Building Council) LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) GOLD campus, making FotoKem's new office space more energy and resource-efficient. The building also provides increased security controls. FotoKem's Peter Santoro, VP of Feature and Commercial Services, has overseen the company's presence and relationships with the local filmmaking community since its opening four years ago. Santoro notes, "FotoKem's presence in Louisiana has been a great experience for our entire team. We've worked on 50-plus projects with more in the queue, and, in the process, developed long-standing relationships and built new ones. Our relocation is a testament to FotoKem's commitment to support the creative community with cutting-edge technical and creative solutions." Productions shooting in New Orleans that have relied on FotoKem include Into the Badlands, Astronaut's Wives Club, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, The D Train, and 99 Homes.
  7. BURBANK, Calif. (March 10, 2015) - FotoKem's restoration of Twentieth Century Fox's The Sound of Music will kick off the sixth annual TCM Classic Film Festival on March 26 in Hollywood. Originally released in 1965, the re-mastered version of this cinematic treasure will grace the screen of the TCL Chinese Theater IMAX as the fest's Opening Night Film, as previously announced by TCM. The movie's stars - Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer - will be on hand to introduce the film, along with Turner Classic Movies host Robert Osborne. Directed by Robert Wise and photographed by Ted D. McCord, ASC, The Sound of Music earned five Oscars® for Best Picture, Director, Sound, Editing and Score. The Rodgers & Hammerstein musical tells the true story of a nun (Andrews) who leaves the convent to serve as governess at the nearby Von Trapp household, where she falls in love with Captain Von Trapp (Plummer) and the family encounters dangers and eventual triumph in Nazi-era Austria. This marks the second consecutive year that a movie restored by FotoKem has opened the TCM Classic Film Festival. Last year, Twentieth Century Fox's Oklahoma! was unveiled for attendees. FotoKem completed the restoration of both 65mm classics through 8K scans from large-format film elements, down-sampled to 4K for restoration and digital cinema mastering. "The popularity of The Sound of Music is in part a testament to the power of 65mm capture," says Schawn Belston, Executive Vice President, Media and Library Services at Twentieth Century Fox, who supervised the restoration. "FotoKem's 8K scanning and complimentary digital post resulted in a stunning digital version of this timeless classic, and made our new 4K restorations of The Sound of Music and Oklahoma! a perfect fit for the opening night screening slot at a festival as prestigious as TCM's." FotoKem, which provides digital workflow and creative finishing solutions, and continues to operate one of the last motion picture laboratories in the United States, has been providing skillful restoration and preservation services for decades. Their expertise in the entire post production process makes the facility uniquely positioned to restore and deliver 65mm sourced images to today's audiences. "We're honored to have been entrusted with the job of digitizing and restoring the The Sound of Music," says FotoKem's Andrew Oran. "This 50-year-old film comes alive today in a whole new way - with a vividness and emotional impact that arguably exceeds even its original release - because of its 65mm pedigree, and the great care we've taken throughout the post process to honor that unique, ultra-high quality source." For the restoration of The Sound of Music, Oran and his team began by creating the highest quality 65mm intermediate film components possible on the facility's re-engineered 65mm contact printers. Next, those film elements were digitized at 8K on the 65mm IMAGICA scanner. FotoKem colorist Mark Griffith mastered the film from re-scaled 4K files, utilizing powerful digital tools to address quality issues present in the sourced material, such as flicker and variable color fading. "At FotoKem, we employ many of these same restoration tools and techniques on 65mm originated images week in and week out for new Hollywood features, giant screen documentaries, and theme park attractions," adds Oran. "Working with 65mm requires precision, whether the images are new or old. Whatever the vintage, we consider it our duty to retain the intentions of the original filmmakers." FotoKem is a sponsor of the 2015 TCM Classic Film Festival, which runs March 26-29. The golden anniversary of the film's premiere launched March 2 in the UK, and March 10 in the U.S. with the release of the 5-disc Ultimate Collector's Edition 50th Anniversary Blu-ray/DVD/Digital HD, which features over 13 hours of bonus content. Additionally, through a Fox partnership with Fathom Events and Turner Classic Movies, the restored film will also be shown for two days only, April 19 and 22, in over 500 theatres across the U.S. For more information about FotoKem, visit www.fotokem.com. For details about the TCM Classic Film Festival, go to http://filmfestival.tcm.com.
  8. Christopher Nolan Continues Long Association with Facility for Unprecedented Film-to-Multiplatform Release Model BURBANK, CA (November 24, 2014) - Celebrated director Christopher Nolan returned to FotoKem to craft unique 35mm and 65mm film finishing pipelines for his epic sci-fi adventure Interstellar. Having completed numerous projects at FotoKem over the years - including the 35mm blowup and re-mastering of Following, the original lab work and re-mastering of Memento, and the home theater release of Inception and The Dark Knight - Nolan's collaboration with the facility deepened on Interstellar to involve negative processing through film, digital and video finishing, and distribution. "My experience of working with FotoKem dates back to 1999, and I'm happy to say in 2014 their photochemical post-production and film handling work is better than ever," Nolan said. Nolan and cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema, FSF, NSC worked closely with artists and technicians at FotoKem to fine tune lab and digital processes to ensure that every scene, take and visual effect during production and post was reproduced accurately in all distribution formats. FotoKem's involvement on the project started with 65mm negative processing, progressed to include 35mm VFX negative processing, and 35mm and 65mm negative cutting with acclaimed negative cutter Mo Henry working in a special room at FotoKem designed for the process. Other work included 35mm and 70mm answer prints, intermediates, domestic release prints, digital cinema mastering and home video transfers. A unique optical format conversion to extract both 35mm and 65mm/5p widescreen images from 65mm/15p source negative was designed and utilized in over one hour of the movie's content. Seasoned film timer Mato worked closely with Nolan and Hoytema to fine tune scene-by-scene color, working with intercut original and intermediate elements to build the final film masters, with meticulous attention on color and mood for each scene. Mato teamed up with DI colorist Walter Volpatto and color scientist Joseph Slomka to ensure an exact match with the approved film print masters for the multiple digital deliverables. The unique release structure of Interstellar allows audiences to experience the film on 70mm IMAX print, 70mm 5-perf print, 35mm print, IMAX Digital, 4K DCP and 2K DCP, with the IMAX 70mm print version being the highest resolution and most immersive of the available exhibition options. FotoKem will also provide digital deliverables for home theatrical presentation, with Kostas Theodosiou supervising the color pass, his sixth time mastering a Nolan film for home release. For more information about FotoKem, visit www.fotokem.com.
  9. BURBANK, CA (October 10, 2014) - FotoKem, a returning sponsor of the New Orleans Film Festival, will present a panel discussion with the production team behind the making of Black and White, starring Academy Award® winners Kevin Costner and Octavia Spencer. The film, making its U.S. premiere, opens the festival on October 16. The conversation, "A Case Study: Black and White," will take place October 18, at 4:45 p.m., in the Rehearsal Hall at the Contemporary Arts Center (2nd Floor). Panelists are expected to include Producer Todd Lewis, Co-producers Jasa McCall and Gbenga Idowu, Production Supervisor Will Greenfield, Location Manager Elston Howard, and Project Manager David Hall, who oversees operations at FotoKem New Orleans. Carroll Morton, manager of entertainment industry development for the City of New Orleans, will moderate. "Working with the Black and White team on this meaningful and timely project was a distinct honor," says Peter Santoro, Vice President of Sales at FotoKem. "We look forward to sharing that experience with the audience at the festival as well. Our team here in New Orleans works closely with filmmakers to provide the most advanced services possible to support their creative vision. We're delighted to be part of the community and to support the New Orleans Film Festival's 25th anniversary." Produced entirely in New Orleans, Black and White tells the moving story of the custody battle for a young girl. Costner plays a grieving widower who has helped raise his bi-racial, parentless, granddaughter (Jillian Estell) since the death of his daughter in childbirth. When he assumes legal guardianship, the child's paternal grandmother (Spencer) wants the child returned to her son, who may be an improbable choice. The emotional drama that ensues raises thought-provoking and difficult questions about life, death and race. Black and White was directed by Mike Binder and shot by Russ Alsobrook, ASC. The New Orleans Film Festival-now in its 25th year-has firmly established itself as one of the most recognized regional film festivals in the country. Over 22,000 filmmakers and fans attend the screenings and sessions that celebrate the city now known as "Hollywood South." FotoKem, headquartered in Burbank, opened a satellite office in New Orleans in 2011. Bringing the expertise of FotoKem staff and advanced technology to the region, the office supports the burgeoning local production environment by offering a range of post production services, including their award-winning nextLAB system with an infrastructure for file-based dailies, file delivery services and offline editorial systems. To ensure rapid content delivery from one location to another, the NOLA office is fully integrated with FotoKem's globalDATA platform, which facilitates delivery of content via a secure internet connection anywhere in the world. In addition to Black and White, several films that recently screened at Toronto and Telluride relied on FotoKem's global services and expertise for their post production needs. They include Wild, 99 Homes, Maggie, Welcome to Me and Songs She Wrote About People She Knows, among others. For more information on FotoKem, visit www.FotoKem.com. For more about the New Orleans Film Festival, go to http://neworleansfilmsociety.org.
  10. FotoKem and SPY (a FotoKem company) combined in-house talent and key post-production services for the Sundance winning film Fruitvale, written and directed by Ryan Coogler with cinematography by Rachel Morrison. The film won the festival’s coveted Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award for a drama, and was acquired by The Weinstein Company soon after its premiere screening. Providing end-to-end services for the Super 16 mm project, FotoKem and SPY worked closely with the filmmakers from start to finish. Fruitvale was processed and transferred at FotoKem in Burbank. The files were delivered to SPY’s headquarters in San Francisco, where colorist Chris Martin color graded the film with Coogler and Morrison. The two facilities are securely connected by a high-speed network offering real-time interface capabilities between the locations to provide the creative community with easy access to the full breadth of post-production services that FotoKem and its companies offer. Fruitvale follows the final day of 22-year old Oscar Grant, who was gunned down by a police officer at the Fruitvale stop of an Oakland transit line. The tragedy was caught on video, and the incident made national headlines. The movie was shot on location in San Francisco. The Super 16 footage was then shipped to Burbank, scanned to HDCAM SR, and conformed at SPY. “When I met with Ryan and Rachel prior to production, they were committed to shooting film. They felt strongly that film would convey the emotion they wanted to draw from Oscar's character,” recalls Martin. “Our color grade supported the quality of grain and tonal palette that the Super 16 format brought to the story. Specifically, we approached the process as if we were timing in a film laboratory, avoiding the feeling of a digital grade. Building in contrast and adding weight to the mid-tones, rather than overcooking the shadows and highlights, brought a very specific emotional element to the film. The result is a feeling of intimacy that holds the personality of the film and supports Rachel’s amazing camera work. Obviously the audience at Sundance agreed!” Martin notes that Fruitvale can be divided into two worlds - the quiet intimate world of Oscar and his family, and the larger institutional world where Oscar encounters conflict. “Oscar's world tends to be defined by warmer scenes with more intimate contrast while the institutional scenes are seen with a wider lens and more mixed lighting, embracing an observational feel,” says Martin. “So while we maintained the same approach for all the scenes, there's a wonderful dichotomy between the two worlds.” “We are honored to have collaborated with the talented team behind Fruitvale. At FotoKem, we continually strive to offer independent filmmakers the workflow expertise that they need, and invest in the talent and technology to support their creative visions,” says FotoKem’s Mike Brodersen.
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