American Cinematographer - May 2005 - 98

retain

control

intended. I

am

over

[the look]

not the best

colorist,

we
nor

by far the best compositor or rotoscoper,
but I feel a deep creative satisfaction in
doing this myself on this scale. This is a
precursor to an in-home digital interme¬
diate, and the price point allows you to
own the gear. Also, if your deadline is
compressed, you still can bring in the
artists who specialize in the various post
disciplines; there will always be work for
those really good folks. This experience
has made me appreciate the creative
ones, and I will always want to work
artist in front of a da Vinci when¬

with

an

ever

possible."

them until the filmmakers

the Sundance Film Festival. "In many

transfer their works to film. "That's

instances, they have to guide directors

disconcerting," he

through the process."
The advice cinematographers offer
is critical, because making the wrong
decisions while shooting and editing can
lead to expensive problems in post. Those
who really understand the technical
aspects of working in DV have been able
to do some remarkable things, including
using MiniDV to shoot features intended
for anamorphic film projection, creating
3-D rigs with a pair of MiniDV cameras,
and even bypassing DV cameras' built-in
recording mechanisms to capture higherresolution images.
According to EFilm co-founder
David Flays, 24p video has become the
most common DV format for independent
filmmakers, surpassing NTSC and PAL.
But even two years after the introduction

scan

video, there is still

no

standard work-

flow for

seven years since the
picture Festen (The Celebration)

became the first feature shot on MiniDV
to

in
independent film. About 70
percent of the 3,800 shorts submitted

on

the world of

for the 2005 Sundance Film Festival

originated on video, as did 43 of the 120
features and 30 of the 82 shorts that
ultimately screened. But while the
stigma associated with shooting indie
projects on video - and MiniDV in
particular - may have largely disap¬
peared, using MiniDV can still lead to
some unfamiliar problems, particularly
when it comes to postproduction steps
such as editing and transferring to film.
When shooting projects on DV,
cinematographers often find that they're
expected to be technical experts on all
aspects of working with the format.
"Cinematographers become more
were

94

May 2005

use

the least amount of trouble, use the Stan¬
dard cadence."

In

a

world filled with

contradictory

use a

is that the

during preproduction to sort out their
entire workflow; this includes discussing
the project with an editor, a lab and any
other post personnel who might be neces¬
sary. That seldom happens, however. Joe
Monge, vice president of video operations

to very

at

DuArt, estimates that about 10 DV

DuArt last year, but

could, which

about what
Monge, for

waveform monitor to

see

if

clipping in the image. "You can
decide on set whether what you're seeing
is what you intended," says Schechter.
"It's just another tool to understand
what's going down on tape. When you're
shooting, you want to capture images that
are as 'neutral' as possible."
Another significant warning labs
issue to cinematographers using MiniDV

advice, filmmakers must take the time

features went through

projects than any

ever

warns filmmakers not to over¬
the image during the editorial
phase. "The bottom line is, you don't want
to introduce artifacts," he explains. "It
could be too sharp; too much intensity can
introduce anomalies or ghosting, espe¬
cially in the reds."
Flays offers similar advice for digi¬
tal capture, suggesting that cinematogra¬
phers stay conservative about how much
image adjustment they do to MiniDV
images. Filtration can appear doubled, he
says, which means a ]A Tiffen Pro-Mist
can look like a Vi application. When in
doubt, keep the image as clean as possi¬
ble. The same goes for camera settings:
"With some of these cameras, you're able
to dial in certain looks, but people may
change their minds and then not be able
get out of that look later."
Schechter tells cinematographers
there are two things they should do on set
to make sure they capture the best
footage they can. First, rather than an LCD
or flat-panel monitor, use a CRT monitor,
preferably in a black bag, to check expo¬
sure and focus. Second, especially with

DV,

In the
Danish

DV

process

there is

transferred

to film at EFilm.

little

example,

24p Advanced. "There are only a few
editing systems that can handle that
mode, whereas almost every edit system
can work with the 24p Standard mode,"
says Schechter. ''If you want to make sure
your tapes can be edited anywhere with

(opposite page),

more

they

Maurice Schechter tells filmmakers not to

by Sion

far

can offer advice
will and won't work. DuArt's
means

video has become widely accepted

Evolving Process of
Taking DVto Film
by Stephanie Argy

Michel, ACS
was

on

individual filmmaker

get a wide theatrical release, working

The

a

says.

Still, most post facilities have
worked

24p movies destined for transfer
to film. For example, EFilm recommends
that filmmakers shoot in 24p Advanced
mode, which applies a 2:3:3:2 pulldown
when it records the 24-fps signal to 29.97fps tape. "It keeps the cadence straight
throughout the editorial process, so
there's less likelihood of having to go back
in and recraft the edit," says Flays. But at
DuArt in New York, chief engineer

Laura Smiles, a
feature shot on

exceptions, he didn't hear about
were ready to

important as the choices multiply," notes
Cooper, director of programming for

of the Panasonic AG-DVX100, the first
MiniDV camera to offer 24p progressive-

DV

with few

John

cameras

don't lend themselves

wide shots. "There's not enough
information going onto the chip, so things
start to break up," explains Monge. "If
you're doing a DV feature, you shouldn't
be doing wide shots."
Because many cinematographers
have by now had chances to experiment
with MiniDV and FID, they have begun to

LFSMuriacsohtniegnzdl.

ocurftesy

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