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November/December2010 • V. 25 |No. 6
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
2.0
Affordable HD SI-2K cameras get into tight spaces for 127 Hours
Hot Spots: Cutting Commercials Mobile Production In the Air, On the Ground Spotlight: West Coast – Still Golden
Permit 211 Bolingbrook, IL
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SonyCreative_SeptOct10
10/25/10
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FAITH GRANGER Filmmaker
Vegas Pro 10: A new dimension New Vegas™ Pro 10 software brings the third dimension to video production; edit and produce stereoscopic 3D video in all leading formats! The preferred platform for creative professionals, Vegas Pro 10 offers new features designed to further its reach including comprehensive closed captioning, enhanced plug-in support, and robust audio improvements. Vegas Pro’s intuitive interface makes it easy to learn and use. Its array of professional effects and flexible editing workflows lets you produce and create the way you want; its ability to ingest, edit and deliver content across varied formats, from tape to file based to DVD/Blu-ray, means you’ll always have ultimate control.Vegas Pro 10 also includes a full featured integrated 5.1 digital audio workstation, providing maximum functionality for scoring, sound design, and multitrack recording. Filmmaker Faith Granger relied on Vegas Pro to create her period hot rod feature film “Deuce of Spades.” “Vegas Pro turned this hot rod girl into a full fledged filmmaker overnight,” says Faith.“It’s easy to use, light on resources, and stable. I was able to enjoy the creative process.Vegas Pro is inspiring!” Vegas Pro 10 delivers more than ever before. It’s a feature-rich, multi-media production environment, offering new dimensions for both you and your audience to explore. Realize your vision in all its dimensions with new Vegas Pro 10. For more information, please visit: www.sonycreativesoftware.com/land Copyright ©2010. Sony Creative Software Inc. All rights reserved. “SONY” and “make.believe” are trademarks of Sony Corporation. DEUCE OF SPADES images property of TM ©FAITH GRANGER FILMS, LLC. All rights reserved, duplication strictly prohibited. Photo: Didier Soyeux
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Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
November/December 2010 Volume 25, Number 6
contents w w w. m a r k e e m a g . c o m
44
10
44
features
44
Hot Spots:
10 Cutting Commercials By Michael Fickes
Affordable HD:
20 Silicon Imaging’s SI-2K Cameras Offer Unique POV for Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours By Jason Wolfe, special to Markee 2.0
24 High Quality, Low Cost By Christine Bunish
Mobile Production:
28 Bird’s Eye View By Mark R. Smith
32 Mobile Vendors Keep on Truckin’ By Christine Bunish
Spotlight – West Coast
36 Still Golden By Mark R. Smith
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November/December 2010
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
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6
Markee2.0
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
Markee 2.0 is a results-driven magazine that has been published since December 1985. A nationwide survey of film and video industry professionals revealed that Markee 2.0 is at the top of their must-read list.
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Editorially, Markee 2.0 offers a wide range of content tailored for its diverse readership. Features span film and video production and postproduction topics to include must-read interviews with leaders in the creative community, the latest equipment and technology news, perspectives on innovative independent filmmaking, and in-the-trenches reports on shooters, editors, animators and audio pros – plus regularlyscheduled specialty supplements. Markee 2.0’s seasoned writers know the industry inside-out. That’s what makes Markee 2.0 compelling, informative and timely reading.
www.markeemag.com
columns & departments 4
Editor’s Note
6
Making TV – Scratch a Magazine, Find a Production Opportunity Multimedia platforms are unveiling new television shows with opportunities for DPs and shooters. Outdoors On The Farm is an example. By Michael Fickes
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On the cover: Danny Boyle directs James Franco in the replica crevice set on 127 Hours. Photo by: Chuck Zlotnick
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Making Commercials – Where No Minion Has Gone Before Mr. Sulu meets the Minions in a sharp new commercial for Sharp’s 3D TV. By Michael Fickes
44 Newsroom 46 Film & Video Galleries 48 Inside View – Randall P. Dark By Christine Bunish www.markeemag.com
November/December 2010
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from the editor
Markee2.0
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
| by Christine Bunish
www.markeemag.com LIONHEART PUBLISHING, INC. 506 Roswell Street, Suite 220, Marietta, GA 30060 Tel: 770.431.0867 Fax: 770.432.6969 E-mail: lpi@lionhrtpub.com www.markeemag.com
Ringing In The New Year
Publisher
Editor
As we wrap the first year of Markee 2.0, and the 25th year of the Markee franchise, we’d like to thank all of you who welcomed and supported our return. It’s been a seminal year. We introduced a dynamic new look that accommodates a variety of story formats designed to keep readers engaged and informed. We’ve reported on high-profile projects from Avatar to CSI’s Emmy-winning VFX to Rubicon’s evocative original score. We’ve covered the burgeoning stereo 3D industry and showcased an array of the latest equipment. And we’ve kept pace with commercial shooters and independent filmmakers nationwide as well as individuals and companies doing break-through work across the country. In 2011, Markee 2.0 will increase its frequency to eight issues. A new website with more editorial opportunities will debut. So stay tuned for expanded coverage of an industry that never stands still. In the meantime, you’ll find plenty in this current issue to keep you busy. Discover, in a special to Markee 2.0, how affordable SI-2K cameras got into tight spaces for the new Danny Boyle feature, 127 Hours. And read on to explore other cost-effective HD camera options. Have fun seeing what Hot Spots commercial editors chose to profile. Look skyward to find the leading aerial production companies and make room on the road for the latest HD trucks. Catch up with production incentives and activities on the West Coast and the companies in California, Oregon and Washington that are doing great work. Don’t forget Making TV, Making Commercials, Newsroom and our Inside View Q&A. Have a happy, healthy and prosperous new year!
Managing Editor
Senior Writers
Art Director
John Llewellyn llewellyn@lionhrtpub.com Christine Bunish editor@markeemag.com Cory Sekine-Pettite cory@lionhrtpub.com Michael Fickes Mark R. Smith Alan Brubaker albrubaker@lionhrtpub.com
Assistant Art Director
Lindsay Sport lindsay@lionhrtpub.com
Online Projects Manager
Patton McGinley patton@lionhrtpub.com
Advertising Sales
Gayle Rosier gaylerosier@gmail.com
Marketing Director/Reprints
Kelly Millwood kelly@lionhrtpub.com
Subscriptions
Amy Halvorsen amyh@lionhrtpub.com
Markee 2.0 (ISSN 1073-8924) is published bi-monthly by Lionheart Publishing, Inc.
Subscription Rates – Annual subscription rate for U.S. orders - 1 year $34 / 2 year $56; Canada & Mexico – 1 year $58 / 2 year $89; All other countries – 1 year $85 / 2 year $120. Single issue $8. All orders outside the United States must be prepaid in U.S. Dollars only. Remit all requests and payment to Lionheart Publishing, Inc., 506 Roswell Street, Suite 220, Marietta, GA 30060.
Highlights Coming In
January/February 2011
• Cinematography: ASC Lifetime Achievement Award Winners • Feature Film VFX • Music and Sound Effects Libraries
Copyright © 2010 by Lionheart Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. The copyright owner, however, does consent to a single copy of an article being made for personal use. Otherwise, except under circumstances within fair use as defined by copyright law, no part of this publication may be reproduced, displayed or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner, Lionheart Publishing, Inc. Send e-mail permission requests to editor@markeemag.com.
• Southeast Spotlight
IN EVERY ISSUE: Making TV • Making Commercials • Newsroom • Inside View
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November/December 2010
Disclaimer – The statements and opinions in the articles of this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Lionheart Publishing, Inc. or the editorial staff of Markee 2.0 or any sponsoring organization. The appearance of advertisements in this magazine is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised.
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
SonyCreative#2-VP!) Food_NovDec2010
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JUSTIN FORNAL Filmmaker
Vegas Pro 10: A new dimension New Vegas™ Pro 10 software brings the third dimension to video production; edit and produce stereoscopic 3D video in all leading formats! The preferred platform for creative professionals,Vegas Pro 10 offers new features designed to further its reach including comprehensive closed captioning, enhanced plug-in support, and robust audio improvements. Vegas Pro’s intuitive interface makes it easy to learn and use. Its array of professional effects and flexible editing workflows lets you produce and create the way you want; its ability to ingest, edit and deliver content across varied formats, from tape to file based to DVD/Blu-ray, means you’ll always have ultimate control.Vegas Pro 10 also includes a full featured integrated 5.1 digital audio workstation, providing maximum functionality for scoring, sound design, and multitrack recording. Filmmaker Justin Fornal relies on Vegas Pro to create his hit BronxNet TV show “Bronx Flavor.” “Nothing gets you from raw footage to final render quicker than Vegas Pro,” Justin says. “Plus, its audio support consistently delivers the highest production values available.” Vegas Pro 10 delivers more than ever before. It’s a feature-rich, multi-media production environment, offering new dimensions for both you and your audience to explore. Realize your vision in all its dimensions with new Vegas Pro 10. For more information, please visit: www.sonycreativesoftware.com/food
Copyright ©2010. Sony Creative Software Inc. All rights reserved. “SONY” and “make.believe” are trademarks of Sony Corporation. Bronx Flavor is the exclusive property of BronxNet Media and Fornal Films LLC. Photo Kim M. Fornal.
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making TV
Outdoors On The Farm | By Michael Fickes
Scratch a Magazine, Find a Production Opportunity Multimedia platforms are unveiling new television shows with opportunities for DPs and shooters. Outdoors On The Farm is an example. While most print magazines struggle to sell enough advertising to live on these days, a handful of publications have discovered that a multimedia company with print publications, websites and television programming can generate more advertising revenue than just a magazine – because each format advertises the others and gives advertisers a host of different ways to tell their story to prospective customers. It can be done large, like Rupert Murdoch’s international News Corporation, which owns cable networks and channels, magazines, Internet networks, movie studios, newspapers and other media assets. Or it can be done small like Farm Journal Media, a Philadelphia-based multimedia company that covers agriculture in more than a half-dozen print publications, each with a comprehensive website, and five television programs that appear on the RFD-TV network (www.rfdtvcom): AgDay, Corn College, Outdoors On The Farm, The Legacy Project and U.S. Farm Report. Either way, large or small, the video programming part of a multimedia organization offers opportunities for Directors of Photography (DPs), camera operators and crew.
From Segment to Show “Outdoors On The Farm started in 2002,” says Chip Flory, the editor of Pro Farmer, a Farm Journal Media electronic newsletter and the show’s host. “It was an occasional three-minute segment inside AgDay TV and U.S. Farm Report. The feedback was positive, and we 6
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decided to go to a half-hour weekly format on RFD-TV and online. The first show aired November 4.” Television programs spinning out of print media evolve differently from conventional television. Flory not only hosts the show, he also handles producing tasks such as content development. “This is a show about the farmer, the farm and the farm’s connection with the outdoors,” he says. “It showcases ideas for improving habitat and generating new sources of revenue from the property. I’m responsible for all of the content.” The first show covered a Nebraska pheasant hunt. Next came “Mississippi Makeover,” about using abandoned catfish ponds to build habitats for waterfowl. Episode three, “Food Plot Plans,” talked about designing food plots to hold wildlife and songbirds all year. Joe Brown, a partner with Mediawork Productions in Davenport, Iowa, shot “Food Plot Plans.” He and Flory worked together on Outdoors On The Farm segments before the half-hour program was commissioned. Now Brown shoots regularly for the show. “Chip uses several videographers, based on geography,” Brown says. “When the show goes to Illinois, Nebraska or another state, he’ll use someone there.” Brown calls the show’s shooting style Electronic Field Production (EFP), a “run ’n gun” approach to creating the TV magazine-style features that compose each show. “Chip knows the topics and can go
November/December 2010
[Above] Mike Byers editing Outdoors On The Farm.
without a script,” Brown says. “My job as DP is to make it look and sound good.” Brown shoots with a Sony HVR-Z1U, a smaller-format digital camera with HD and SD capabilities. He carries the camera and a tripod from location to location. Flory wears a wireless mic connected to channel one on the camera. The second audio channel is a camera-mounted shotgun mic that captures ambient sound. Brown is the video and audio tech as well as the lighting tech. Outside, he uses available light. For indoor interviews, he keeps it straightforward with one key light and a back light on the subject’s shoulders and hair to separate the subject from the background. Shoots take a couple of days. On day one of “Food Plot Plans,” Flory and Brown prepped the show and shot short
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[Left Top] Outdoors On The Farm host Chip Flory goes fishing.
[Left Bottom] Todd Sterrett, a professional dog trainer on staff with the show, works with a hunting dog.
[Below] Joe Brown with Mediawork Productions shoots a hunting show on muleback.
interviews with experts who add detail to the shows. Shoot days can include teases and tags to promote future shows. “We often shoot promotional elements for upcoming shows,” says senior producer Mike Byers. Brown shot the lion’s share of “Food Plot Plans,” on the second day. It consisted of several interviews ranging across land being converted to a food plot as well as B-roll shots of wildlife and other kinds of habitats to transition from one interview to another. “The biggest challenge is to capture enough footage during these shoots,” Brown says. While a lot of the shooting is straightforward, it is also a lot of work to cram into a single shooting day.
Print Plus Web Plus Television Make a Business After the shoot, tape and media cards from the DP and other shooters, dependwww.markeemag.com
ing on the show, go to the Farm Journal Media offices in South Bend, Indiana where producer Doug Farmwald logs and organizes it into four segments that move from an opening though three commercial breaks and back to the program. Farmwald also writes voiceover transitions that link one segment to another. Next, Mike Byers converts any nonBeta SX tape footage and imports it into a Grass Valley Edius 5.5 editing system. He also collects files on media cards, from QuickTime to Windows Media Video. “Edius can see most of the formats,” he says. “Sometimes we have to convert those files to MXF, which is a format native to Edius, which can export video to Beta SX. “I’ll edit three or four segments and interviews and put them together in the right order, fitting the pieces together with the animated show-openings,” Byers explains. “It takes from two-anda-half to three days to finish. I record each show to tape and send it off to
RFD-TV, where it is captured into their distribution system.” Finally, Byers converts a video file of the show to a Flash file and uploads it to the server that distributes Farm Journal Media’s television shows. Online viewers can access the show at the website (www.agweb.com) by clicking on the multimedia button. Turning back to the larger picture, programs such as this and the other Farm Journal Media shows help to drive viewers and advertisers to their respective print magazines and websites. In turn, the websites and print magazines drive readers and viewers to the RFDTV programs. In the end, each medium becomes more attractive to advertisers. Synergy in action. “There is no question in my mind that without the multimedia aspect, Outdoors On The Farm would not be successful,” Flory says. “It enabled us to attract a lead sponsor for the show: Ram Truck, which wants to communicate directly with farmers on the website, in magazines and through the television show.”
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making Commercials
Sharp | By Michael Fickes
Where No Minion Has Gone Before Mr. Sulu meets the Minions in a sharp new commercial for Sharp’s 3D TV. To introduce its new 3D television, Sharp Electronics Corporation asked its advertising agencies for a commercial illustrating the breakthrough technology. In other words, the assignment was to persuade viewers watching conventional 2D television that a 3D television image is spectacular. Tough job. Sharp’s agencies, mcgarrybowen/New York (www.mcgarrybowen.com) and Dentsu Kansai, Osaka/Japan (www. dentsu.com) came up with a fun idea that shows 3D Minions from the recently-released, 3D-animated feature Despicable Me spilling out of the television into the real world. The agencies licensed the Minions from Universal Studios and arranged for the Paris offices of Mac Guff, which had animated the movie, to post the commercial with help from Mac Guff in Los Angeles. Director Chris Stocksmith from Twist, a production house based in Minneapolis and New York City (www. twistfilm.com), managed the live-action shoot, which had a shot list created to facilitate the animation. The commercial opens with George Takei, known to Star Trek fans as Mr. Sulu, in a white lab coat on a white set in front of Sharp’s 3D AQUOS Quattron TV set. Takei had established himself in earlier commercials for the 2D AQUOS Quattron as Sharp’s scientist spokesman. Takei explains one of the keys to both the 2D and 3D AQUOS Quattron technology: A fourth color, yellow, complements the conventional red, green and blue color system in this set. As Takei talks, he holds up a rectangular card showing examples of the red, green, blue and now yellow colors. 8
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Then he flips the board over to reveal an illustration of yellow bananas. Meanwhile, on the 3D screen beside Takei, three Minions have been milling around. Turns out, Minions love bananas, and Takei’s picture of bananas rivets their attention. More Minions show up and begin to slam into the television screen from inside, trying to get the bananas. Takei dons 3D glasses and looks at the screen. The glasses release the Minions, and a half-dozen or so tumble onto the floor. Looking stunned, Takei hollers “Whoa!” then pauses a beat and follows up with his signature “Oh, my!” that he had voiced in an earlier 2D commercial. That commercial and the line quickly went viral. As the last Minion dives out, Takei knocks it across the set with a flick of his finger. The others surround him, their eyes glued to the bananas. The spot goes to the tagline: “You have to see it to believe it,” a
November/December 2010
[Above] Sharp spokesman George Takei discusses a shot with Twist director Chris Stocksmith. Photo by: Andy Lilien
[Below] Minions mill around on the screen of Sharp’s 3D AQUOS Quattron TV.
reminder that viewers can’t appreciate the images unless they watch in 3D. (See the spot at http://twistfilm.com/quicktimes/ Sharp_The_Spill.mov).
Shooting Sulu After looking at the agency storyboard, Twist’s Stocksmith realized
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[Top Left] The notion of bananas excites the Minions trapped in the TV.
[Middle Left] The Minions break out of the screen when Takei dons 3D glasses.
[Bottom Left] A flick of Takei’s finger propels a Minion toward viewers.
that he would have to control the shoot precisely to give the animation artists from Mac Guff the angles and lighting they would need to stage the Minions. For the real-world shoot, Stocksmith and DP Andy Lilien selected an Aaton Penelope 35mm switchable 2-perf/3perf camera. “It’s quiet and has a very sharp video tap,” he says. “We covered the story with a variety of wide, medium and close-up shots to give the editor room to play.” The high-quality video tap was key to ensuring that the set ups were precisely right. Simon Holden, a freelance VFX artist worked the shoot through Mac Guff/Los Angeles for Mac Guff/Paris, advising on lighting, shadows and camera angles. For instance, he recommended shots of the television with it turned on – to provide www.markeemag.com
reference of where the animated picture should fit on the screen. Additional reference shots showed the television from different angles under different lighting conditions. As always, accumulated details make CGI seem comfortable and real to viewers. To capture a highlight around the edge of the screen, for instance, Stocksmith shot a scene with Takei and then without, a shot that permitted the lighting to highlight the edge of the screen. “In post, we stripped the highlight into the scene with George,” Holden says. “We did a lot of these shots. Whenever a object reflected light, we shot a clean version of the background so shadows and reflections could be added later and matched up with the Minions.” By placing a gray sphere in several scenes, the team collected reference shots for shadows and reflections that would become important when the Minions burst out of the television. “That was the tricky part,” says Arnauld Boulard, the executive producer for the spot with Mac Guff/Paris. “There is one lighting scheme and one camera for the Minions inside the television set and another lighting scheme and another camera outside. We needed a lot of reference to ensure a seamless transition.”
Transporting Minions From Their World To Ours Mac Guff/Paris used Autodesk Maya as its 3D animation tool, proprietary software called MGLR for rendering and Nuke from The Foundry for compositing. When the project arrived in Los Angeles, Holden responded to requests from the agencies and client to tweak scenes with Autodesk Flame. These tools enabled the Minions to transport from their home world to earth. For the first half of the spot, the virtual CGI camera shows the Minions head-on inside the television, which, in turn, was shot head-on with the Penelope. As several Minions prepare to leap out of the television, both the virtual camera and the Penelope angle to one side. The Minions burst through, from a darker lighting scheme inside the television to the brightly-lit set. “We couldn’t do it in one pass with the virtual camera,” Holden says. “We took one pass with one camera inside the set and one pass with the other camera outside. Then we had to find the best transition point from the first camera to the second.” “We made the transition from one camera to the other in Nuke during compositing,” Boulard explains. Once a number of Minions have arrived, the commercial cuts back to the original straight-on shots of the virtual Minions inside the television and Takei on the set. At this point, however, the Minions in our world have been re-rendered and composited onto the set with Takei. The Minions are here.
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Hot Spots:
CUTTING COMMERCIALS Editors showcase creative cuts that tell hip, humorous and moving stories for Mountain Dew, Dos Equis, Thera-Gesic, Volkswagen, DirecTV and the University of Minnesota. BY MICHAEL FICKES
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November/December 2010
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
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Edit house: 3008, Dallas Editor: Brent Herrington Advertiser: Mission Pharmaceutical’s Thera-Gesic
Campaign/spot: Home Remedies: “Goat’s Tears,” :10, :15, :30 and :60 versions
Ad agency: Moroch/Dallas
Where to see the spot: www.3008.com (Brent Herrington general reel)
Production Company: STORY, New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles
Director: David Popescu The storyline: An ancient and hilarious spokeswoman hawks goat’s tears as a painrelieving balm. But goats don’t cry easily. Onions, a scary mask and bad singing produce no tears. But when she shows a goat its mother’s grave – bingo! Why the spot’s on my reel: “The assignment was to make a humorous 15-second spot, but at the shoot, the talent’s performance inspired the director and creatives to shoot a lot of extra set-ups,” says editor Brent Herrington, a partner in 3008. “The footage inspired me to cut a :60. The work inspired the client to ask for four cuts from short to long. The idea, the humor, the talent and the production team came together perfectly during the shoot and the edit in a way that rarely happens.” The biggest creative challenge: “To get the most out of the spokeswoman’s tremendous performance. When you cut commercials day in and day out, your instinct is to tell a slick story. But this footage called for something different. Finding the right idea was the challenge. In the end, I used a loose, kind of airy, documentary style that let the performance play.” The biggest technical challenge: “The technical challenge followed from the creative challenge: keep the story in the documentary world. Some of the techniques included degrading the film a bit and adding grain. The cuts are purposely abrupt, maybe even crude. If the camera framing of a scene was off a bit, we didn’t push in to correct it. In a way, the technical challenge was to resist the urge to edit technically.” Input from other creatives: “At the shoot, the agency creatives and the director collaborated and created extra set ups. In the editorial room, all of us – the agency creatives and the director through e-mail – worked and re-worked the spot constantly. In fact, we pulled it out of the online finishing room to flip two scenes. The scene we pushed back toward the end seemed funnier to us, and we wanted to be sure the humor built to a crescendo.” Why the spot works: “First and foremost, the casting. Sally Tindall was great. She made each scene of the spot great with a dead-on performance every time.” Beyond broadcast: The spot ran on the Mission Pharmaceutical website and YouTube and as a print campaign. www.markeemag.com
DP: Peter Simonite
Colorist: Rick Stephenson, The Filmworkers Club, Dallas
Online editor: Mark Sullivan, 3008, Dallas
Sound mixer: Matt Cimino, 3008, Dallas
Acquisition format/camera: 16mm film
Editing systems: Avid Media Composer, Avid Nitris DX
Awards: Short-listed for Cannes, TV/Pharmaceutical category; nominated AICE Best in Dallas
[Top] Goats are not easily moved to tears despite cut onions and sad songs.
[Left] Editor Brent Herrington, a partner in 3008.
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HOT Spots
Edit house: Chrome, Santa Monica Editor: Hal Honigsberg Advertiser: Mountain Dew’s White Out
Spot: “Here’s To The Loud,” :30
Ad agency: Motive/Denver
Where to see the spot: www.mountaindew.com/#/ads/, click on White Out.
Production company: Joneses, New York City and Los Angeles
Director/DP: Vincent Laforet
Colorist/online editor: Rob Doolittle, Elephant Post, Santa Monica
Sound mixers: Andrew and Paul Vastola, Rocky Mountain Recorders, Denver
Music composer: Michael “Smidi” Smith, Glue Audio, Los Angeles; Hugh Barton, executive producer; Sean Holt, creative director; Ryan Amen, producer
Acquisition format/cameras: Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Flip video camcorders
The storyline: Launching White Out, a new Mountain Dew flavor selected by fans, the youth-oriented spot features professionally-photographed portraits of four leaders of the White Out fan movement plus self-portraits shot by fans themselves. Why the spot’s on my reel: “I like the sincerity of the real people in the spot,” says editor Hal Honigsberg. “Every scene was a sincere moment. They weren’t easy to find. I had to sort through eight hours of footage, find the moments and make them into a story. I like the look of the spot, too. We shot in color and then roto’d around the bottles and transferred everything but the bottles in black and white. Only the bottle is in color.” The biggest creative challenge: “About half the footage was shot by consumers on Flip cameras. A professional shot the rest on a Canon 5D Mark II cam-
Editing system: Avid Media Composer Mojo DX
[Three Images at Right] “Here’s To The Loud” was transferred in black and white; only the bottles appear in color.
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era in High Definition. So the quality varied tremendously. Making it look like it fit together was challenging. We had to degrade the quality of the professional images and add grain over the entire spot, dialing it in and out to make a consistent look. We also keyed on the White Out name and added a white-out look to some of the scenes, again for consistency.” The biggest technical challenge: “Using Avid’s new AMA (Avid Media Access) to ingest the footage without any transcoding. Older Avid technology converts footage to a proprietary format in real time. That would have taken eight hours, probably over two days. The agency supplied a hard drive with 740 clips to ingest with AMA. The process was fraught with technical challenges and took a while to figure out.” Input from other creatives: “I cut in Denver and collaborated by phone and email with the director who was in LA. We put together a cut that moved very rapidly. But as we talked about it with the agency and the client, we decided to re-pace it, slow it down and romance the moments. So we did a second cut that made it more about connecting with people than generating excitement. That cut worked great. We all loved it.” Why the spot works: “The realpeople moments we found give it a feeling of sincerity and immediacy.” Beyond broadcast: A :60 was made specifically for the Mountain Dew website.
www.markeemag.com
[Left] Chrome editor Hal Honigsberg.
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HOT Spots
Edit house: Cut+Run, Los Angeles Lead editor: Eve Ashwell Advertiser: Volkswagen (VW)
Campaign/spots: Jetta launch; “Dream Team” and “Moonlighting,” :30s and :60s
Ad agency: Deutsch/Los Angeles
Where to see the spots: www.vimeo.com/17336340; www.vimeo.com/17336078
Production company: Epoch/Rattling Stick, New York City and London
Director: Daniel Kleinman
DP: Stuart Graham
Colorist: Stefan Sonnenfeld, Company 3, Los Angeles
Online editor/VFX lead: Giles Cheetham, The Mill, Los Angeles
Sound mixing: Jeff Payne, eleven, Santa Monica
Music: Licensed “Are You Ready?” by RPA & The United Nations of Sound (Richard Ashcroft) for “Dream Team” and “Another Day, Another Dollar” by the late Wynn Stewart for “Moonlighting”
The storyline: “Dream Team” chronicles the labors of the engineers and designers creating the all-new Jetta, followed by their utter, and funny, disappointment when the car’s low price seems to belittle their efforts. In “Moonlighting” a young man takes dozens of odd jobs to earn money for a Jetta, only to discover that its low price means he can buy two. Why the spots are on my reel: “The understated humor and the balance between the narrative and the comedy,” says lead editor Eve Ashwell. “It all works together to pay off the tagline: ‘Great. For the price of good.’” The biggest creative challenge: “In ‘Moonlighting,’ the challenge was finding the right balance between the odd jobs taken on by the hero – rodeo clown, mascot for a fast-food restaurant, nude model, punching dummy and others – with the twist at the end when he finds he did more work than necessary. The ‘Dream Team’ challenge involved making sure the narrative about engineering and design enabled the viewer to appreciate the difficulties and intricacies of the day-andnight design work without compromising the humor of the pay-off.”
[Top] Volkswagen engineers and designers labor to create the new Jetta.
[Three Images at Right] A young man works myriad odd jobs to earn money for a new VW Jetta.
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The biggest technical challenge: “‘Dream Team’ posed several technical challenges. It was shot on one 35mm film camera and three RED cameras, which shot lots of footage of the time-lapse aging process. Managing that footage was challenging. The spot also uses complex effects, and I tried to pass shots through to the effects artists as early as possible to ensure that they had time to do their work.” Input from other creatives: “Director Daniel Kleinman and I began collaborating at the shoot, where the edit actually started. It was important to get a head start because of the many special effects, in-camera and in post, necessary for ‘Dream Team.’ It was also useful to me to talk to the director and the effects artist during the shoot and develop an understanding of their visions for the project. About two weeks into the project, I asked another Cut+Run editor, Frank Effron, to become involved to try and ease the workload. Both spots had to be edited simultaneously to meet the deadline, so his involvement was a great help.” Why the spots work: “The wonderful mix of comedy and narrative. The reactions from the ‘Moonlighting’ hero and the ‘Dream Team’ are exaggerated, yet believable given what they go through.”
www.markeemag.com
Sound design: 740 Sound Design, Los Angeles; Eddie Kim for “Dream Team,” Andrew Tracy for “Moonlighting,” Scott Ganary, executive producer
Acquisition format/camera: 35mm film, RED
Editing system: Avid Media Composer
[Above] A hard-working young man learns that the Jetta’s low price tag means he can buy two.
[Left] Cut+Run’s Eve Ashwell was lead editor on VW’s “Dream Team” and “Moonlighting.”
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HOT Spots
Edit house: Splice, Minneapolis Editor: Chad Nelson Advertiser: University of Minnesota
Campaign/spots: Driven To Discover; “Amplatz,” “Empty,” “Smarter Grid,” :30s
Ad agency: OLSON/Minneapolis
Where to see the spots: www.ocointeractive.com/pressportal/081210/UMN
Production company: Barry Kimm Productions, Minneapolis
Director: Barry Kimm
DP: Jeff Stonehouse
Colorist/online editor: Michael Sandness, Splice
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The storylines: The long-running documentary-style campaign chronicles research conducted by professors and other faculty at the University of Minnesota. This year’s researchers are battling wheat rust disease, engineering a smart electrical grid and searching for cures at a children’s hospital. Why the spots are on my reel: “I believe in the campaign’s message,” says editor Chad Nelson. “I believe in research and people moving forward as a society and making life better. I also like the idea that we’re telling these stories with the real people who are doing the real work and not actors.” The biggest creative challenge: “Making sure that the real people – academics – in the spots don’t come across as cold. In ‘Empty’ for example, Dr. Mattias Persson, in the department of plant pathology, tells his story [about stopping wheat rust disease] as the voiceover. One sequence that stands out for me follows images of empty, dilapidated farm structures. Then the footage cuts to Mattias in an amber wheat field in late afternoon while his voiceover says that saving wheat can prevent global famine. The spot cuts from him to a combine harvester at work to his hand caressing several grains of wheat. It’s a sequence that shows how important the research is to him.”
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The biggest technical challenge: “The word ‘because’ became a campaign theme highlighting the importance of the research story. It appears in each commercial as a practical or 3D model. In ’Empty,’ the scene that calls for ‘because’ occurs in a sprawling wheat field with a combine harvesting in the distance. The huge proportions called for a huge-looking 3D model. We shot a plate with the combine and used Cinema 4D to build the model. Then we went over to After Effects for final design, lighting and compositing. The challenge was to make it look like it lived in the same world as the wheat field and the combine.” Input from other creatives: “These are quick turnaround spots and so very collaborative. The creatives from the agency are in the room early in the edit. While I go through dailies and pick the selects, we discuss the feelings we want the stories to communicate. We work that way throughout the rough cut. Each spot uses original music. Because I have a musical background, I work with the composer [and] talk about the special moments in the spots where the music can accent the emotion.” Why the spots work: “Because we find stories that can speak for themselves and let them. The Wall Street Journal asked a panel to rate the college and university commercials that run during televised football games and ‘Smarter Grid’ ranked first. The panelists said it conveyed messages about academics, research and diversity without beating viewers over the head.” Beyond broadcast: The spots appear on the University website and YouTube; print ads and billboards use images from the spots as illustrations.
www.markeemag.com
VFX lead: Mark Youngren; VFX artists Brian Olson, Chris Averbeck, Splice
Sound mixers: David J. Russ and Kelly Pieklo, Splice for “Empty” and “Smarter Grid;” Bryan Hanna, Modern Music, Minneapolis for “Amplatz”
Music composer: Alex Berglund, Echo Boys, Minneapolis
Acquisition format/camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Editing system: Apple Final Cut Pro
[Opposite Top] Plant pathologist Dr. Mattias Persson battles wheat rust disease in “Empty.”
[Opposite Bottom] Energy VFX spark “Smarter Grid.”
[Above Top] A huge-looking 3D model holds its own in a wheat field in “Empty.”
[Above Bottom] Professor Massoud Amin explains the importance of a “Smarter Grid.”
[Left] Splice editor Chad Nelson cut the University of Minnesota’s Driven To Discover campaign.
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HOT Spots
Edit house: now., New York City Lead editor: Nelson Leonard Advertiser: DirecTV
Campaign/spots: DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket; “Cheesehead,” “Cabbie,” “Waitress,” “Cops,” “Voodoo,” :30s
Ad agency: Deutsch/New York
Where to see the spots: www.youtube.com/directv then search for NFL Sunday Ticket plus the name of the commercial.
Production company: Station Film, New York and Los Angeles
Director: Harold Einstein
DP: Barry Markowitz
Colorist: Billy Gabor, Company 3, New York City
Online editing and VFX: Coda Visual Effects, New York City; Paul Agid, creative director and Flame artist; Toni DiMauro, Flame artist; Michael Nutt, designer
Sound mixer: Steve Rosen, Sonic Union, New York City
Music: Stock
Acquisition format: 35mm film
Editing systems: Avid Media Composer, Apple Final Cut Pro
[Top] VFX were required to create this shot in DirecTV’s “Cabbie.”
[Right] Lead editor and now. partner Nelson Leonard cutting DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket campaign.
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The storyline: The DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket service delivers every NFL game to a subscriber’s TV, smart phone or electronic tablet regardless of where they live. The campaign promoting the service shows fans who have moved or are traveling to other cities watching and rooting for their hometown teams. When the local fans catch them, though, it may be time for the ref to throw a flag. Why the campaign’s on my reel: “Anyone who has ever followed an NFL team understands how completely wrapped up you can get in your team. The spots capture those feelings perfectly,” says lead editor and now. partner Nelson Leonard. The biggest creative challenge: “Deciding what jokes to take out. In ‘Cabbie,’ for instance, a New York City cab driver and Giants fan with a Russian accent can’t stand it that his fare, a couple, is watching the [Dallas] Cowboys using their mobile phone connected to DirecTV. When they cheer a touchdown, he hits the brakes, and the couple smashes into the plastic barrier. ‘We’re here,’ growls the cabbie. The couple ends up standing in front of a vacant lot [and] an abandoned car. The bewildered wife asks: ‘This is Central Park?’ Funny moment. But to make it work, we had to take out another funny cut of the cabbie screeching off and shouting ‘Go Giants.’ We wanted to keep it all. But it looked too rushed, and you didn’t have enough time to appreciate the Central Park joke.” The biggest technical challenge: “‘Cabbie’ opens on a New York City cab driver sitting on the hood of his cab talking about respect for New York City. Beside him, weeds were growing through the sidewalk and the grass was dead. You could see gray sky and billboards in the background. The client wanted to get rid of the billboards and add a New York City skyline in the background and landscaping in the foreground. We sent rough comps from an Avid to Coda [Visual Effects] along with stock photos, and we literally changed the location.” Input from other creatives: “I like to show rough ideas to a lot of people – the director, agency, client, even other editors [here] – early in an edit. I like to see how people respond: Do they laugh or just smile? I also solicit a lot of opinions: Which cut gets the biggest laugh?” Why the spots work: “The idea that absolute fan loyalty is a little crazy is something every football fan can appreciate. The casting, writing, art direction and directing came together in just the right way to put across the idea.” Beyond broadcast: The spots appear on DirecTV’s YouTube page.
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Edit house: outside edit + design, New York City Editor: Jeff Ferruzzo Advertiser: Dos Equis (Dos XX) beer
Campaign/spots: The Most Interesting Man in the World: “Cliff Diver” and “Ice Fishing,” :30s
Ad agency: Euro RSCG/NY
Where to see the spots: www.dosequis.com
Production company: @radical.media, New York City The storylines: In “Cliff Diver,” the tongue-in-cheek Most Interesting Man in the World dives into the ocean as women at a party wave and admire him. Voiceover: “He is the life of parties he has never attended.” In “Ice Fishing,” he emerges from an Eskimo’s fishing hole, holding his catch in his bare hands. Voiceover: “He wouldn’t be afraid to show his feminine side – if he had one.” The Most Interesting Man doesn’t always drink beer, but when he does he prefers Dos Equis, telling viewers, “Stay thirsty, my friends.” Why the spots are on my reel: “Because of the creative – great writing and great storytelling – and also because of the success of the campaign,” says editor Jeff Ferruzzo, who is also a partner at outside edit + design. “The Most Interesting Man spots went from a regional effort a few years ago to a national campaign today, while increasing sales. I’m also proud that each of these commercials seems to become part of popular culture.” The biggest creative challenge: “Making the footage of the man’s exploits seem like authentic clips from archives of old newsreels. When you study newsreel footage, you see that there is no continuity. No one thinks about what scenes come first and second. That means that I have the freedom to pick the moments that play off of the voiceover’s absurd statements without worrying about continuity. Of course, I do have to find the right moments.” The biggest technical challenge: “Each commercial features four vignettes shot with two cameras, a 35mm or 16mm film camera, depending upon the story, and a 16mm Bolex shooting reversal film. Sometimes the footage is Super 8. The challenge is finding the right visual stories from a ton of materials and then fitting four completely different vignettes into 20 seconds.” Input from other creatives: “Steve Miller, the director, encourages collaboration. He brings a ton of ideas to the shoot and solicits ideas from everyone. The original storyboards are a guide, but all of us are always working to make the vignettes better.” Why the spots work: “Because of the idea behind the campaign, the visual concepts and the way the writing plays off of the visuals. When you think about it, the campaign uses a 60-year-old man who isn’t really selling beer to sell beer.” Beyond broadcast: The spots run on the Dos Equis website (www.dosequis.com). www.markeemag.com
Director: Steve Miller
DP: Bryan Newman
Colorist: Tom Poole, Company 3, New York City
Online editor/VFX lead: Johnny Starace, outside edit + design, New York City
Sound mixer: Eric Thompson, Berwyn Audio, New York City
Music composer: Brett Fuchs, Berwyn Audio, New York City
Acquisition formats: 35mm and 16mm film
Editing system: Apple Final Cut Pro
Awards: Both spots were nominated for Hollywood Post Alliance (HPA) awards.
[Top left] The Most Interesting Man in the World emerges from "Ice Fishing"
[Top Right] The Most Interesting Man in the World concludes each Dos Equis spot with, “Stay thirsty, my friends.”
[Left] Jeff Ferruzzo, an editor and partner in outside edit + design.
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Silicon Imaging's SI-2K Cameras Offer Unique POV for Danny Boyle’s
127 HOURS
[Right] Looking down the replica crevice at James Franco and his stunt double; Michael Mansouri in the background. Photo by: Bobby Mansouri
BY JASON WOLFE, SPECIAL TO MARKEE 2.0 20
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While preparing to shoot 127 Hours, acclaimed director Danny Boyle and cinematographers Anthony Dod Mantle and Enrique Chedik discovered what a growing number of digital filmmakers already know: If you want to get the impossible shot, get Michael Mansouri, the DIT who founded HD Camera Rentals (www.hdcamerarentals.com) in Los Angeles. Mansouri helped take digital technology to new heights in the film, much to the satisfaction of Boyle and Mantle, who were following up their Academy Award-winning work on Slumdog Millionaire. In fact, many of the most creative shots in 127 Hours were the result of Mansouri finding a solution that enabled the DPs to get what they wanted how they wanted it. The movie, starring James Franco, tells the story of Aron Ralston, an adventurous hiker who spent 127 hours in the Utah desert pinned by a boulder in a deep crevice before deciding to amputate his own arm to escape. Mansouri recently spoke about his involvement in 127 Hours. Wolfe: How did you get involved in 127 Hours? Mansouri: “We were contacted by 127 Hours after someone there learned of our work on an AT&T spot during the Winter Olympics. In that spot, we figured out how to strap a tiny SI-2K POV camera and a Cinedeck recorder onto an Olympic ski jumper who did a 120-meter jump while wearing the apparatus. It was an amazing shot. Since we had so much experience with the SI-2K, the team from 127 Hours called us in to see what we could do for them. We explained some of the ways we had improved the SI-2K, way beyond what they had used in filming Slumdog. They liked what they heard and we were hired.”
Wolfe: Tell us about some of the solutions. Mansouri: “We already had made a number of improvements to the SI-2K system to make it more compatible with filmmaking and less [about] consumer applications. When we brought all our different SI-2K rigs to the set Danny and Anthony were blown away. With the SI-2K/Cinedeck solution, they could record uncompressed files that were ready for immediate viewing on set through QuickTime without a transcoding step. They loved how integrated the entire system was and how fast it moved.
[Above] Michael Mansouri with the SI-2K in the replica crevice set. Photo by: Bobby Mansouri
[Below] The SI-2K camera being readied to capture the POV from behind James Franco. Photo by: Bobby Mansouri
Wolfe: How did you prepare for the shoot? Mansouri: “With the help of my brother, Bobby Mansouri, we spent almost a month in R & D responding to a long list of demands from Danny and Anthony. We custom built handheld rigs. We also built a special cage for Anthony [that] was multipurpose, allowing us to mount the camera anywhere, and [having] a power distribution box so that we could power many things off of it. This was done in response to one of the weak points with digital – all the cables everywhere. We resolved that by removing all the connectors on the camera, like the manufacturer’s VGA and USB connections. We changed all those to professional Lemo connections and made the power source tap right into the sensor. We focused on keeping everything as clean and simple as possible.” www.markeemag.com
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Affordable HD
127 Hours the crevice, go up to James Franco and follow him as he falls down. How do you do that and control the small camera? We were able to make this remote-control head that we suspended with cables with tilt and pan and controlled its travel using a joystick.”
[Above] Cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle with Danny Boyle, second from left, preparing to shoot into the replica crevice. Photo by: Bobby Mansouri
[Below] Shooting Aron's initial accident with the SI-2K in Moab, Utah. Photo by: Bobby Mansouri
“We also presented them with autofocus systems to handle some of the shots that were really hard to focus on. The lens control took over and controlled the focus. “Anthony wanted everything as small as possible. They had replicated exactly the deep crevice where Aron Ralston got his hand caught, so we needed to shoot in an extremely narrow and tight space. Bobby and I made a rig to fit the space. Only the absolutely essential equipment could be there. We stripped a camera down to its bare sensor and ran 250-foot cables from it back to a recording device where the techs could pull focus and give feedback to the cinematographer. “We also provided Anthony, based on his request, with a remote button on his handheld system that, when he would trigger [it], gave his eye piece certain information like his focus or his luminance levels. We had programmed all those in there for him. He also wanted specific shutters, so we were able to program those as well. A lot of that was achieved by changing the software inside the camera. “In a pretty elaborate shot quite early on, they wanted to mount the camera to travel off the side of the rocks in
Wolfe: What equipment did HD Camera Rentals provide? Mansouri: “We supplied eight SI-2K cameras as well as an assortment of Canon DSLRs and the IDT Redlake high-speed camera. We provided the new ARRI Ultra 16s, which are super sharp, amazing lenses. We also shot with the full set of Schneider C-mount lenses and a full set of ‘L’ series lenses for the Canon cameras. And if you can believe this, we also shot with the Angenieux Optimo 24-290 on the SI-2K. “My brother and I remained on the set in Utah throughout the eight-week shoot. It was pretty remote. The film was shot sequentially, much of it in the actual canyon and a lot of it on a sound stage, where the crevice was re-created. It was an unusual arrangement with two cinematographers and two crews on set at the same time. They took turns shooting. When one was shooting, the other rested, and vice versa, so we were able to shoot seven days a week. When a challenge arose, which was pretty much every day, we worked to resolve it. They’d say, “we can’t do that shot,” then two days later we’d have it resolved and they would get the shot. “Both units were shooting SI-2Ks and the film had a total of six camera units at any one time. Each unit would have two cameras, sometimes three cameras, at the same time. Since the SI-2K has interchangeable lens mounts, filmmakers are able to use any lens they want to shoot on. On 127 Hours, we had cameras that were set up with Canon lenses on, PL mounts and C mounts and we could change them out without ever affecting anything. It was as easy as changing a lens. This arrangement allowed us to work fast.” Wolfe: How did you deal with holding the SI-2K steady? Mansouri: “We developed customized units with gyro-stabilization heads from Kenyon Labs that fit on the bottom of the SI-2K. This allowed the camera operators to execute complex and dynamic moves in tightly-constrained spaces. These cameras are not designed for the X and Y axis, tilt and roll, movement, so we made adapter mounts. Also, their design is constantly powered, but our design made it so we could hot-swap it. Because we were also recording sound, we had to be able to disconnect them so they could still run without the noise of the gyros’ operation affecting dialogue. It was quite a challenge.”
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Wolfe: What other steps did you take to deal with working in such tight spaces? Mansouri: “Because the space that Anthony was working in was so small, his camera assistant [AC] couldn’t work beside him, so wireless video and focus controls were needed so the AC wasn’t flying blind. We used cmotion’s new cdisplay II touchscreen LCD to transmit the signal wirelessly right into the monitor on the handheld system and include all of the lens and focus detail info. If Anthony had a really difficult shot, he hit auto-focus, the Cine Tape constantly took measurements and communicated directly to the motor. If he tilted to the left, and the subject was six feet away, and then he tilted to the right, and the subject was nine feet away, it automatically racked focus from six feet to nine feet and back.” Wolfe: How did the SI-2K perform? Mansouri: “The SI-2K is a remarkable camera, not only based upon the form factor, the size, the flexibility and the lenses, but the image quality out of this camera is the closest I’ve seen to film. The problem I have with other digital cameras is that they are too sharp, too noticeably digital. The SI-2K also has some organic feel to it, a little bit of imperfection like analog does. The other benefit is that it shoots uncompressed – you’re getting 2K, not 4K, but you’re getting it uncompressed and you’re getting a lot
more bit depth and a lot more information and coloration or as we like to call it ‘roll off.’ We were able to use the new version of software from the one that Anthony used on Slumdog and it’s a lot better apart from it being uncompressed. The Slumdog camera was 8:1 compression. Wolfe: How do you assess your work on 127 Hours? Mansouri: “Well, like anything, you look back and think about things you might have figured out sooner or some alternative fixes. But, that said, I’m confident we made a real difference on this movie. I believe there would have been more limitations without us, and the movie would have taken longer to complete and been more expensive. The bottom line is, we enabled them to get the shots they wanted, so that’s gratifying. “I have nothing but the deepest respect for Danny Boyle and Anthony Dod Mantle as filmmakers and as visionaries. They have embraced digital cinema and are taking filmmaking to some place new and fresh. I’d like to think we make a pretty good team.”
[Above] James Franco (as Aron Ralston) in the replica crevice outfitted with an SI-2K rig. Photo by: Bobby Mansouri
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Affordable HD:
HIGH QUALITY, LOW COST BY CHRISTINE BUNISH
Shooting HD has never been more affordable. Cost-effective, high-performance HD cameras from Canon, GoPro and Panasonic have provided solutions to budget-challenged projects from California to Uganda.
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Canon 5D Goes Up Close with Gary Allan at the House of Blues “I think Canon introduced the affordable HD camera category!” declares LA-based DP Rhet Bear (www.rhetbear.com). “The Canon EOS 5D Mark II HDSLR was the first camera I know to have a full-frame sensor that recorded HD video for under $3,000. Many people already had Canon lenses so, for a small investment, you instantly had an HD camera package.” He reports that “everyone from directors to PAs has a Canon camera on the set now, even on film shoots or shoots with more expensive [video] cameras. I always have my 5D or [Canon] 7D with me.” Bear’s first major project with the 5D was a documentary on an international music festival in China. He and the director each toted their 5D camera and after 10 days of “constant shooting” Bear conquered the learning curve and determined “how to make shooting comfortable” with the HDSLR. Recently Bear was DP on Gary Allan: Live at the House of Blues, a concert special on the Great American Country cablenet, where Canon HDSLRs were the primary cameras. “Director Stephen Shepherd, from Nashville’s Tailight production company, had the cameras in mind” for the concert in Chicago, he says. “He didn’t want to do a traditional-style live show. He didn’t want to be tethered to a truck with broadcast cameras. He wanted something that had a lot more energy and a lot more frenetic action to it.” Shepherd decided to field five camera operators each with a 5D plus an additional 7D which had just been introduced. “The operators were able to get into places where no tethered camera could – hiding behind the drummer, getting up next to the keyboards or down in the pit,” notes Bear. “All of them had shot with the 5D before, which was important. They understood that they alone were in charge of focus and exposure. Each operator was on his or her own, and there wasn’t anyone giving us a traditional line cut.” [Clockwise from Bottom] Director Frank Matson used GoPro HD HERO cameras during the production of the mountain-biking feature, Race Across The Sky. Equipping the camera crew with Canon EOS 5D Mark II HDSLRs ensured a highenergy production for Gary Allan: Live at The House of Blues. Chris Leavell used a GoPro HD HERO to capture Lucas Euser on his favorite ride in Napa, California for CyclingNews.com. Matt Katsolis (bottom) and Austin Blasingame (top) in Danita, Uganda with the children of the women who make jewelry for Light Gives Heat, the organization featured in Moving On. Photo by: www.lightgivesheat.org
www.markeemag.com
All the lenses used on the 5Ds were Canon L-series models, including EF 24mm and 28mm fixed-focal length wide-angle primes, an EF 24-70mm standard zoom, 70200mm telephoto zoom and a 16-35mm ultra-wide zoom. The 7D was outfitted with a Canon EF-S 10-22mm ultra-wide zoom. “In the lead up to the show we did a lot of interviews in the back corridors of the House of Blues,” says Bear. “With the 5D’s low-light capabilities we were able to follow Gary as he had a tattoo put on his neck then went out on stage, all in one shot. He went from the dark hallway onto the lit stage with his neck still bleeding.” Bear says “what’s fun about the 5D is that you can strip it down to the body and lens and shoot amazing things or throw all kinds of accessories on it: matte boxes, handheld rigs, a 32-foot jib arm, sticks. It’s pretty versatile in terms of what you can do with it.” The introduction of the 7D brought “some improvements to live HD monitoring while you’re recording, which is a great feature,” he reports. But there’s still room for further upgrades. “Now that Canon has created this professional tool for us, I’d like to see professional connectors: HDMI is usually the weakest link on the set,” he reports. “I think people would be willing to pay for real professional-grade connectors if they were offered as an option.”
[Above] Extreme flexibility of movement with Canon EOS 5D Mark II HDSLRs allowed Rhet Bear and his camera crew to shoot moments like this during Gary Allan: Live at The House of Blues.
GoPro Captures POVs on the Move Chris Leavell, supervising producer at Indigo Films in San Rafael, California (www.indigofilms.com), which is now in its third season producing I (Almost) Got Away With It for Investigations Discovery, started using smaller cameras about two years ago on a side project. “I dabbled with Flip cams [video camcorders] but there was too much waviness any time there was movement in a shot. Often there was a lot of movement where I wanted to put the camera, so that defeated the purpose,” he recalls. “The first time I used GoPro’s HD HERO was for brief cutaways for a special. It gave us angles we couldn’t get otherwise because of its size and flexibility. HD is getting cheaper and cheaper, but GoPro takes it to the next level.” November/December 2010
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[Above] Judd Van Sickle, Lucas Euser’s coach, joined the Napa ride documented by Chris Leavell with a GoPro HD HERO camera for CyclingNews.com.
[Above Right] Citizen Pictures’ director Frank Matson at work on Race Across The Sky.
[Below] The mountain-biking competition in Race Across The Sky climbs almost 3,000 feet to summit near 13,000 feet.
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High Quality, Low Cost
Billed as a sportscam or wearable HD camera company, GoPro offers the HD HERO line of wearable and gearmountable cameras and accessories. The compact size and amazing utility of HD HERO have made it a popular choice for all types of applications, including riding on the rescue capsule to capture the journey of the Chilean miners to the surface. “You get a spectacular image for the size and price,” says Leavell. “The lack of full HD that you have in other cameras is forgiven for the shots you get. We can buy six GoPros for a shoot and have a car roll over one of them; as long as we can recover the chip we’ve got that moment of impact – a shot we’d never be able to get otherwise because of too much risk.” A former semi-pro cyclist, Leavell does a series of short films for CyclingNews.com featuring pro cyclists showcasing their favorite rides. “They’re very much beauty travelogues,” he explains. “My ‘A’ camera for the films is a Sony HDV camera, but the GoPros are great for perspective: I put them on a helmet, looking back at the handlebars, on a stick in a car riding alongside the cyclist. The ability to get a good quality image and give the cyclist’s exact perspective make GoPro a very powerful tool. As a producer and director, it’s what I’ve always dreamed about. GoPro delivers a really wonderful, visceral feel that’s eerily like being there.” Leavell notes that “the beauty in how simple and small GoPro is” also accounts for the sole drawback he can point to. “There’s no display on the camera to show you what you’re looking at. So you have to unplug it from its mount, plug it into a computer cable, work out how to position the camera, frame the shot, unplug the camera, remount it and start recording.” Alternatively, “you can just blow up the image to frame it the way you want – the resolution is high enough that you can do it,” he reports.
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When it came time for Denver-based Citizen Pictures (www. citizenpictures.com) to produce its second consecutive Race Across The Sky feature (www. raceacrossthesky.com) for theater chain National Cinemedia, the 25-year-old production company wanted to improve upon its coverage of the annual Leadville, Colorado mountain biking competition that starts at about 10,200 feet and summits at about 13,000. “Lance Armstrong chose to ride last year and helped us put this little race on the map and get [our feature] into theaters,” says director Frank Matson. “The strong mountain biking audience was ready for a sequel so for the 2010 race we put Sony F900 and Panasonic HDX900 HD cameras in the helicopter, motocross and throughout the course and added 10 GoPros at various angles and on competitors and their bikes.” Matson, who’s been shooting HD for the last decade, was “blown away” by the discovery that “a camera with GoPro’s price point had the resolution and obvious flexibility in size” that he sought to give a unique perspective to the sequel. “And it’s not the end of the world if the camera gets totaled,” he notes. “You can bury it in the ground and have a bike run over it, stick it up in a tree or dangle it from a boom pole out in front of the riders.” For Race Across The Sky 2010 the director also gave several Flip UltraHD video camcorders to bikers to document their own diaries of the race. “It’s amazing to see the quality of their self-portraits,” he reports. “The Flip cams and GoPros look great in the context of the rest of the HD footage we shot.” Matson mounted GoPro HD HERO cameras behind bike saddles pointing at bikers trailing the rider, on handlebars looking up at the rider, on the wheels, fork and at the top of the tube between riders’ legs looking forward. ‘We tried to capture every unique view we could think of,” he says. “The cameras come with plastic housings that can be used in a few feet of water so we even used them in water crossings; the camera can rise out of the water like the Creature from the Black Lagoon. “It doesn’t freak everybody out to put the camera in dangerous situations,” he adds. “That allows us to take more chances and be more creative.” Matson believes the GoPro HD HERO could use a threaded tripod mount and thinks the menus for getting different resolutions on the camera “isn’t as user-friendly as it could be.” He’d also like to be able to see what he’s capturing on the fly in playback. Still, he’s dazzled by the resolution offered by the camera and doesn’t want to jeopardize “the benefit of keeping it so small” by adding on features. Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
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[Far Left] Curious children in Danita, Uganda surround Matt Katsolis as he executes a jib shot for Moving On with his Panasonic HVX200A. Photo by: www.lightgivesheat.org
[Left]
Panasonic Goes the Distance for Non-Profit Documentary Florida filmmaker Matt Katsolis, who heads Jacksonville Beach’s Interpret Studios (www.interpretstudios.com), was named grand-prize winner in Panasonic’s “Shoot It. Share It” video contest in November for his documentary, Moving On: Love is Winning, which was shot with a pair of Panasonic AG-HVX200A P2 HD handheld camcorders (www.movingonmovie.com) Katsolis directed the doc for Light Gives Heat, a nonprofit founded by Dave and Morgan Hansow, a young American couple who, after almost losing a child at birth, quit their jobs and moved to Uganda in what became a transformative experience. “It was a story that had to be told – moving to Uganda with a dream and making a difference – but they had a limited non-profit budget, and we didn’t want to compromise picture quality or the integrity of the film,” he explains. Katsolis assembled a crew of three close friends: Jesse Schluntz, assistant director and editor; Austin Blasingame, creative director; and Nic McLean, DP, with whom Katsolis shared shooting duties. “Everyone worked the equivalent of five jobs,” he says. “I knew a lot of production would be in remote areas without power sources. We needed an HD camera that could withstand brutal heat and rain and could be used discreetly, without a shoulder mount, in market areas.” He selected the HVX200A which had become his “go-to camera” for previous international projects. “I wanted to honor the Hansow’s story with really beautiful imagery that’s normally reserved for high-end films. The HVX200A could do that,” he states. “It records uncompressed HD to solid state so it could take a beating, and it had held up under demanding conditions in the past, so I wasn’t worried about Uganda. And it offered high production value in a discreet package.” A Cinemek G35 lens adapter enabled Katsolis and McLean to put Nikon primes on their cameras to achieve shallow depth of field. “We were able to achieve very cinematic shots with minimal lighting, and the HVX was compatible with all our grip gear, including the jib and dolly tracks that were crucial to pull off the big shots.” www.markeemag.com
A pair of 64-gig P2 cards gave him and McLean 180 minutes of recording time per camera – “almost a full-day’s recording,” he notes. Every night, footage was downloaded to external hard drives and backed up; although data management was done on location, no editing was done on site. The doc is now in post at Interpret Studios. As far as Katsolis is concerned the HVX200A once again proved itself in challenging circumstances. “It’s such a workhorse: It held up amazingly under grueling conditions. And the benefits of reusable P2 media are many. You only get one shot in a documentary to capture the moment. And I know that when it comes to capturing the moment the HVX200A has always performed for us.”
November/December 2010
Matt Katsolis shooting establishing shots for Moving On with the Panasonic HVX200A at Independence Monument, Grand Junction, Colorado. Photo by: www.lightgivesheat.org
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[Left] Paul Barth at the Atlantis Resort, Paradise Island for Nik Wallenda’s world-record, wirewalking attempt.
[Below Left] Rick Shuster flying over Monument Valley with a SpaceCam mount.
[Below Right] A sweeping aerial by Rob Gunter showing the Atlantis Resort, Paradise Island.
[Far Right] Rob Gunter’s fixed-wing Wilga carries a Flir UltaMedia HD camera mount.
BIRD’S EYE VIEW
[Below] Rick Shuster shot a spot for Jeep at Mammoth Mountain, California with a SpaceCam mount.
BY MARK R. SMITH
Mobile production isn’t just trucks hitting the road. Helicopters and fixedwing aircraft offer perhaps the ultimate in mobility taking to the air to capture the action, record spectacular vistas and provide unique viewpoints. Three leaders in the field of aerial cinematography talk about what it takes to go mobile – way above any road. 28
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Island Century Media Gets ‘That’ Shot Rob Gunter has made his living by lensing a variety of projects from the skies, mainly for entertainment and sports. The owner of Island Century Media (www.icm4hd .com) often shoots from his fixed-wing Wilga, a speciallybuilt airplane designed for slow flying – which “makes it ideal” for carrying the Flir UltraMedia HD camera mount with a 5-axis gyro-stabilized gimbal. Inside the flying machine is a Sony Cine Alta F950 with a Fujinon telephoto wide-angle lens that extends to more than 800mm (9.7mm on the wide side). Gunter also takes to the skies in various helicopters, notably the Hughes/McDonnell Douglas MD 500, a fivebladed, turbine-powered craft that’s “ideally suited to shooting video, due to its maneuverability and smooth ride,” he says. Other favorites include the Bell Jetranger 206 with an AirFilm nose mount and the EuroCopter AS 355 (known as the “Twin Squirrel”) with an AirFilm sidepole mount. Gunter has worked from these aircraft to shoot events such as The British Open, the LPGA’s Nabisco/Dinah Shore Open in Rancho Mirage, California and The Breeders’ Cup for ABC/ESPN as well as documentaries for The Discovery Channel, National Geographic, A&E and other networks. Also in the mix were exteriors for a to-be-named Bravo reality series shooting in Miami; A&E’s Billy the Exterminator on location in Shreveport, Louisiana; SEC college football for CBS; and post-season Major League Baseball for TBS. Gunter also covered high-wire artist Nik Wallenda as he set twin world’s records at Paradise Island in the Bahamas cycling more than 100 feet on a wire strung between two hotels at the Atlantis Resort and walking about 2,000 feet across a wire suspended over the resort’s marine habitat stocked with sharks and piranhas. “We flew [the Twin Squirrel] at low levels but at quite a distance, a good 300 yards, away from where he was walking,” he recalls. “It was really amazing that there were rain showers that came through the area www.markeemag.com
so that delayed his long walk. Also, his father had a medical issue in between the bike ride and the long cable walk, so that was another concern. This was the scariest event I’ve ever shot, yet I was told to stay focused on Nik – no matter what.” Weather and rather remote venues always pose challenges. “The British Open can be tough due to the rain and 40- to 50-mph winds, which even suspended play at St. Andrews during the telecast this year,” notes Gunter whose fixed-wing aircraft had to land about 25 minutes away. For the British Open Gunter acted as shooter with Chad Palmer, who has served as a blimp pilot for the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan for the last 15 years, at the controls. Once the duo was airborne, they stayed that way for “four or five hours at a stretch,” Gunter reports; live microwave transmissions were done via the Vislink L1500. “Ultimately, we were airborne for more than 30 hours for the four-day tournament, so that’s two stints of about four hours each a day,” he says. “We circled the course and, depending on where the coverage was at the moment, we’d focus on that area. We made laps and altered orbit depending on who they were covering. It’s the same drill at the LPGA Solheim Cup.” In the end, Gunter’s part of the broadcast is about logistics. “We have to coordinate with the production. We’re working with the producers, just like the handheld and hard-site camera operators on the ground,” he says. And, despite the altitude, “We get close ups just like they do.”
[Above] Rob Gunter often uses the Flir UltraMedia HD camera mount on a Hughes/McDonnell Douglas MD 500.
[Bottom Left] Top - Rob Gunter captures Nik Wallenda as he prepares to set a world’s record cycling on a wire at the Atlantis Resort, Paradise Island.
Middle - Rob Gunter’s POV of Nik Wallenda’s wire walk.
Bottom - Rob Gunter caught Nik Wallenda mid-wire as he walked across the marine habitat.
Camera Copters Racks Up Frequent-Flyer Miles As befits the company name, Camera Copters (www.cameracopters.com) offers full-service aerial production at any location in North America – mainly from helicopters and usually from the Hughes/McDonnell Douglas MD 500. November/December 2010
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Mobile Production
[Above] Camera Copters’ NASCAR-style tractortrailer transport unit with MD 500; Paul Barth pictured at left.
[Bottom Right] A camera crew prepares for a Navy project shot by Rick Shuster with a SpaceCam mount.
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Bird’s Eye View
“We use a variety of copters,” says owner/operator Paul Barth, “but our two transport trucks are designed to move the MD 500. That’s the copter we use about 75 percent of the time and bring to locations. “No one else in the film industry operates the way we do, since no one else has a NASCAR-style tractortrailer transport unit. It makes for a tighter, more efficient package; the aircraft is less costly to operate.” The other main copter in the stable is the EuroCopter AS-355 (or the Twin Star). “That’s used for most of the rest of our work, since it can accommodate bigger camera systems, like the SpaceCam with its action arm and the Pictorvision eclipse camera mount, due to its bigger camera payload,” he explains. Barth and company use a variety of aerial camera systems for custom nose and side bracket mounts; he can also sling the camera system on a cable, the Longline, for specialty applications, on the MD 500. To underscore Camera Copters’ full-service approach, Barth reports that he also flies the occasional fixed-wing boat plane, the Cessna 206, but mainly for scouting. Barth had several ship-themed assignments recently. For the new Adam Sandler/Al Pacino feature, Jack & Jill, he worked with Pat Longman of Active Camera Systems as co-aerial DPs capturing shots of the Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas as it cruised and upon its arrival in Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale. Then the duo lensed plates while the ship was in port to show “one of the film’s characters exiting the ship by helicopter on a rope ladder.” Barth also captured aerials in Nassau for the feature, The Cruise, shot aboard the Costa Atlantica. For Outdoor Network Barth handled aerial photography for Beau Knows Outdoors, starring Ted Turner’s son. “We traveled to the Turner property in Bozeman in October with our Big Rig turnkey aerial unit and used the gyro-stablized Cineflex HD camera system with Warm Springs Productions’ director/producer Chris Richardson and Steve Cassidy, who owns and operates the camera,” he recalls. “We spent a week there
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filming Beau hiking, hunting and riding on horseback on the ranch and, in general, shooting all over the vast, beautiful protected area. That offered us the opportunity to shoot many bison and capture the breathtaking scenery of the mountains. It was a bit challenging since it was starting to get cold, but we work all over and we’re trained and geared up to handle the elements.” Other aerial credits for Barth include USA Network’s Burn Notice, the CBS CSI franchise, VH1’s Football Wives reality show, the Yosemite camping segment for Oprah, and segments for JM Associates, producers of the Bass Masters fishing tournament. While the work seems to be finding him, Barth still deals with budget concerns. “For some jobs, production has to be tighter and more efficient,” he says. “Productions want to squeeze more into a work day and get more content for less.” One Camera Copters client who effectively deals with the bigger picture is Chris Richardson, a principal in Warm Springs Productions, who produces outdoor TV series. He combines resources and sets up shoots where similar aerial shots are lensed for different shows; thus, he maximizes his aerial budget. “Some features still have plenty of money, but the smaller shows often don’t,” Barth says. “Many shows want an aerial shot, but even many experienced producers don’t understand what they really want or need, or the costs. But I work with them and help them understand how to acquire high-end aerial shots.”
Shuster Knows the Thrill of the Game No one can accuse Rick Shuster of not going the extra mile, or across the extra continent, for that matter: He’s worked in 10 countries, with credits that include Hollywood features such as X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Batman: The Dark Knight. 2010, however, has been a period of mostly domestic work for Rick Shuster Aviation Services Inc.
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(www.moviepilots.com), based in Thousand Oaks, California. This fall, it even had a stretch working in seven states during a two-week period. When Shuster, president of the Motion Picture Pilots Association, takes to the skies, it’s in a helicopter 98 percent of the time. His transportation of choice? His own AS 350 Bravo-2, or A Star, “the Corvette of that model of helicopter. That name carries a lot of weight in the business.” Why? “It’s very user-friendly due to its ability to carry heavy loads,” possibly including the DP, producer, pilot and director; a 600-pound camera system; and fuel, “and still go out and complete the job.” Shuster has had as many as five people in his A Star, witness one recent gig for FX. “We were shooting highlights for the next season of Justified in Knoxville, Tennessee and carrying a 600-pound mount, plus 500 pounds of fuel (which is good for 90 minutes). “We flew down in a canyon over a river, as low as possible. Everything for that show is crazy and dramatic,” he says. “In this shoot, we were as low, fast and close as we could be over the mountainous terrain, trees and water. If we weren’t the shot would be boring to the viewer. It’s all about speed and the thrill.” He often employs SpaceCam gyro-stabilized mounts for ARRI2 35mm and RED One cameras, among others. Cineflex and Gyron systems are standard for newsgathering copters due to their smaller stabilizer balls. Selecting the appropriate mount is “the decision I make,” he explains. “What camera we use is determined by the director/cameraman. We get all of the players involved to select the right copter, right mounts and the right cameraman and cameras. I’m basically the coordinator. That’s the big deal here.” Another big deal is his owning his helicopter. “When you own your own equipment, people feel better about letting you use theirs,” he says. “Then, they know that you’ll take care of their equipment and the job.” Shuster’s recent credits include the features Faster and John Carter of Mars, the ABC TV show Private Practice, a variety of auto spots for Chevrolet, Cadillac and Audi, which aired during the last Super Bowl, and a spot www.markeemag.com
for the video game Call to Duty. He found that Call to Duty was similar to the Justified shoot. “Not only were we in really tight quarters in an open field in an old rundown mining camp northeast of Palm Springs, we had to be watchful of explosions and people running out of our helicopter with machine guns and into the midst of a large gun battle.” The biggest challenge this year, though, has been dealing with the sour economy. “The most expensive stuff is what often gets cut and I have felt that this year,” Shuster admits. “For instance, when cars aren’t selling that hurts my spot business – although business has picked up lately, and I’m optimistic about 2011.”
November/December 2010
[Above] A Cineflex camera mount is attached to the front of Rick Shuster’s copter in Loveland Pass, Colorado.
[Middle] Rick Shuster shooting with the SpaceCam mount in Tennessee.
[Far Left] Rick Shuster shooting an explosive scene for X-Men Origins: Wolverine in New Zealand.
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[Above] Lyon Video’s new MU-11.
[Left Top] Metrovision’s new HD-2 on the road in Canada for TSN’s Sportscentre show.
[Left Middle] F&F Productions’s new GTX-16.
[Bottom] CSP Mobile’s HD3 transitioned from a Standard Definition truck.
Mobile Vendors
KEEP ON TRUCKIN’ The rubber met the road for a number of new HD production trucks and support vehicles this year. Major vendors introduced expandos, hybrids and
BY CHRISTINE BUNISH
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B units packed with the latest gear to handle any sports or entertainment assignment. Designed with forward-thinking 3G and stereo 3D-ready infrastructures, they represent the first of a new generation of multi-purpose trucks to meet client demands today and tomorrow.
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and an array of Fujinon glass, including 101x and 88x lenses. MU-11 offers triax, SMPTE fiber and ST fiber for cameras. “We feel loaded for bear technically, but we wanted to give peoplespace due credit as well,” Lyon stresses. “When you’re designing a truck it’s very important to consider the input of clients’ production teams, operating engineers and our own EICs to make a truly userfriendly environment.”
Lyon Video Expands With Super Expando Bob Lyon, president of Columbus, Ohio’s Lyon Video (www.lyonvideo.com) says the company’s new MU-11 HD truck is “the largest we’ve built to date: 53-feet with a 51-foot expanding section. It’s physically about the largest expando you can do in a trailer.” MU-11 continues Lyon Video’s “tradition of updating our fleet with the latest generation of equipment,” he reports. “We built the truck to do stand-alone events as an A unit and interface via fiber with our B-5 unit which was built for it.” B-5 is a new 53-foot B unit with 40-foot expanding side. “We went for people comfort,” says Lyon. “The big shows require B units for support for more slow mo, graphics, separate audio mixes and more carts and equipment.” MU-11’s first job was a pre-season Bengals/Colts NFL game in Indianapolis. Major League Baseball coverage for FOX Sports, when the Cincinnati Reds headed into the playoffs, followed along with NCAA football and NBA coverage for ESPN and ABC. The truck has also been used for ESPN’s SportsNation show. “MU-11 can do entertainment, too,” Lyon adds. His company does all the Antiques Roadshow programs in HD for WGBH/Boston. Gerling & Associates in Sunbury, Ohio built the trailers for the new trucks; Lyon Video handled all the integration for B-5 and shared integration on MU-11 with Bennett System, also in nearby Sunbury. MU-11 is wired and engineered to be 3G compliant and 3D ready. MU-11 boasts a full-featured Grass Valley Kayenne switcher, Calrec Apollo audio board with Bluefin – “the largest mixer on the road today,” says Lyon – six 6-channel EVS media servers with XFile and Hub systems, a Chyron Duet HyperX3 and optional Vizrt graphics. The truck is pre-wired for 24 cameras and is stocked with 16 Grass Valley LDK-8000 Elites, two Grass Valley LDK-8300 Live Super SloMo cameras for three-times super slo-mo www.markeemag.com
[Left] Audio room in Lyon Video’s MU-11 with Calrec Apollo board with Bluefin.
[Bottom Top] Replay/tape/edit room in Game Creek Video’s Larkspur.
[Bottom] Audio room in Game Creek Video’s Larkspur boasts a Calrec Alpha audio board with Bluefin.
Game Creek Trio Debuts Hudson, New Hampshire’s Game Creek Video LLC (www.gamecreekvideo.com) introduced three new trucks within a span of three weeks: Larkspur, a 53-foot HD single expando which debuted in July and Dynasty, a 53-foot HD double expando, and GCV B-1, a B unit, both of which hit the road in September. According to president Pat Sullivan, Larkspur is committed to ESPN covering its College GameDay football show then moving on to college basketball in tandem with B-1, although Larkspur was designed “to be able to operate without a B unit to save clients transport costs.” Larkspur represents a “nextgeneration design effort” with a 3G-capable backbone and embedded audio, he reports. “It’s a step up from what we’ve built in the last five or six years.” Dynasty is largely devoted to YES Network programming. During the Major League Baseball season it covered all the New York Yankee games at Yankee Stadium as well as team dates in Boston, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Toronto. It was assigned to the National League championships in Philadelphia then to the World Series in Texas for FOX. The truck next covers eight weeks of NFL Network games. Dynasty is very similar to Game Creek’s Liberty double expando, which was rebuilt last year after a devastating fire. “We made Dynasty 3G capable and added quite a few features we think will withstand the test of time over the next five years,” says Sullivan. November/December 2010
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Mobile Production [Right] Audio area in F&F Productions’ GTX-16 is equipped with the country’s first Calrec Apollo board.
[Bottom Top] HD-2 from Metrovision was home to TSN’s Sportscentre show at various communities in Canada during the summer.
[Bottom] Inside Metrovision’s new HD-2.
Mobile Vendors
After Gerling & Associates built the trailers, Larkspur and Dynasty were integrated by Hudson-based Icon Broadcast in Game Creek’s shop. They are outfitted with Sony HDC1500R HD cameras, Canon lenses, Grass Valley Kayenne switchers, multiple EVS media servers and Calrec audio consoles. By building two trucks simultaneously Game Creek was able to secure “pretty aggressive pricing” for equipment. “We got two-fers,” Sullivan points out. “Anybody coming to the table wanting two sets of everything is clearly a lot better off than somebody wanting just one.” Although B-1 typically works as a hauler, it also features production space and graphics and videotape gear “so it becomes a supplementary production tool for clients,” he explains.
F&F’s Sweet 16 GTX-16, a 53-foot HD double expando from Clearwater, Florida’s F&F Productions (www.fandfhd.tv), debuted August 22 doing U.S. Open Tennis for CBS and ESPN. “Demand from customers made it the right time to build a new unit,” says senior vice president Ryan Hatch. “We were tired of telling clients we weren’t available and having them go elsewhere,” adds Marc Orgera, vice president of sales and marketing. The new truck is almost identical to F&F’s double expando GTX-15, which covered the opening and closing ceremonies at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. But GTX-16 features the “latest and greatest” equipment available and packs substantial “firepower,” notes Orgera, including the first Calrec Apollo audio board in the country, a Grass Valley Kayenne with K-2 Summit video server, five 6-channel EVS media servers and a full virtual monitor wall in production and tape. It is 3G compliant and pre-wired for 24 cameras and 25 decks; it currently offers 12 Ikegami 79EC cameras. “An entertainment show, like the Artist of the Year Award for CMT in November, requires a large amount of decks, and it’s no problem to install them along with extra cameras,” Orgera reports. “They’re all in a single unit, not in a B unit, which makes it easier for the operator.” GTX-16 is now covering ‘A’ college football games for CBS Sports and is booked for the Biathlon World Cup in Maine (with 31 cameras) and Division One Men’s Rounds 1 and 2 of the NCAA’s March Madness; it will serve as the main truck for CBS during the Final Four. “The truck has been very well received by CBS and ESPN,” Orgera points out. “In fact, we’ve got so much good feedback on GTX-16 that we’re considering building GTX-17 in 2011.” 34
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F&F integrates its own trucks; builder SPEVCO of Winston-Salem, North Carolina delivers a rack-ready shell of the company’s design, then F&F equips it as required. “GTX-16 was delivered to us on July 23 and less than a month later we were the main truck at the U.S. Open,” Orgera notes. “We can turn around a truck quickly and still deliver a flawless production.”
Metrovision Packs Horsepower in a Hybrid The latest truck at New York City’s Metrovision Production Group (www.metrovision.tv) is HD-2, a 40-foot expando hybrid HD production and satellite truck that made its debut on the New York Yankees’ opening day. “We built HD-2 after getting more and more calls for our HD-1 40-foot expando for visitor and split feeds for international broadcast,” notes John Brown, vice president of mobile production. “We decided to put a dish on this truck for a turnkey solution at venues without transmission or fiber.” Built at L-3 ESSCO in Ayer, Massachusetts which also integrated the Tandberg HD/SD transmission components, HD-2 has a unique configuration and many new features, Brown says. “The dish is countersunk between the cab and the front wall to keep the height of 13.6
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feet with a full 31-foot expandable section; other HD satellite expandos are notched in the back losing valuable height and rack space. The dish also has the capability of rotating 360º making it easier to park and find the satellite.” HD-2 is equipped with a Grass Valley Kalypso switcher, two 6-channel EVS media servers and a Calrec Omega audio console with Bluefin. The truck is wired for up to 10 cameras and currently has eight Sony HDC1500 HD cameras with Fujinon lenses. HD-2 did a lot of baseball coverage last season, including MLB international split feeds and the Little League Cal Ripkin and RBI tournament championships. Its biggest test came last June as the game truck for the New York Mets/Florida Marlins series in Puerto Rico where it provided “a turnkey solution for the Mets” servicing the games and offering a transmission platform for broadcast, Brown explains. Beyond baseball, HD-2 covered the western spur of the Kraft Celebration Tour in Canada where TSN’s flagship sports news show, Sportscentre, was televised from various communities; just finished Ivy League football; and is now covering some NBA and NHL visitor feeds. Coming up are the MLB winter meetings in Orlando and spring training. “HD-2’s interior design supports all the production and transmission activities of a 53-foot truck without feeling like a 40-foot unit. We often get feedback on the roominess from the EVS and tape crews,” Brown reports.
more equipment and a lot more elbow room,” Chase reports. “Since we plan to do more professional sports we needed an expando.” CSP HD1 is being built by Calutech in Hammond, Indiana and will be integrated by Little Bay Broadcast Services of Madbury, New Hampshire. It will be wired for five EVS servers and 14 cameras. Both HD3 and HD1 offer fiber and triax. “HD1 is 1080/60p-ready so we can go into the 1080p realm down the road,” says Chase.
[Above] Production area in CSP Mobile’s HD3.
HD Times Two at CSP Mobile CSP Mobile Productions LLC in Saco, Maine (www.cspmobile.com) recently transitioned a 53-foot Standard Definition straight truck, built in 2004, to HD “changing over pretty much every piece of equipment” and christening it CSP HD3, says president Len Chase. “Most of our clients have moved or are in the process of moving to HD broadcasting,” he reports, citing ESPN, FOX and Comcast. “A large part of our business is college sports, but now we’re starting to branch out into regional pro sports, too,” such as NHL and NBA coverage in the Boston market. CSP HD3 was built and designed by CSP. It is wired for 12 cameras and now carries eight Ikegami HDK-77EC HD cameras; six Ikegami super expanders for hard-camera conversions; and one 100x, two 86x and three 72x Canon lenses. Other key gear includes a Grass Valley Kayenne 400 4.5 M/E switcher with internal still store with KlipCache, 6- and 4-channel EVS media servers, a Calrec Omega audio board with Bluefin and Chyron Duet HyperX3 graphics. CSP HD3 will soon have an HD companion: The company plans to launch its first expando, the 53-foot CSP HD1, January 1. “It will be similar to HD3 but with www.markeemag.com
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Spotlight
West Coast
The West Coast: Still Golden BY MARK R. SMITH
[Above] Shooting the romantic mystery feature, The Burning Plain, on the dramatic Oregon coast.
[Far Left] Bucolic scene in Calaveras County, California.
[Left] The feature, A Letter to Bill Gates, on location in Spokane. Photo by: Jason Ganwich
It’s been a hundred years since California began luring moviemakers to its sunny clime. Its film heritage, impressive infrastructure and varied landscape still make it the nation’s number-one film and TV market. Neighbors Oregon and Washington are part of the West Coast action, too, with the former making significant strides and the latter holding strong despite its proximity to productionfriendly Canada. 36
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[Above] Driving through California’s Death Valley. Photo by: Geoff Juckes
[Left] Yosemite in winter.
[Bottom Left] San Francisco’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge.
California: Land of Plenty?
Ferrari Follows New Indie Path
In a state as expansive – and important to L.A.-area indie filmmaker the production industry – as California, there’s Alex Ferrari is making his latest play for mainstream suconly one way to get the right information to the cess with the release of an right people in an expeditious manner: form 11-minute short, Red Princess partnerships. Blues, starring Richard Tyson (Black Hawk Down), Rachel And that’s what Amy Lemisch, executive Grant (Die Another Day) and director of the California Film Commission, Academy Award nominee relies on to facilitate projects. The California Robert Forster (Jackie Brown). Shot in two days for less than Regional Film Office Partnership is a network of $10,000 with the RED One 50 local film offices spanning the Golden State camera, the film had an all-RED workflow with and offering production companies access to effects and post completed at Ferrari’s post boutique, Numb Robot (www.numbrobot.com). locations and logistical support. The short (www.redprincessblues.com) has “No one can know every detail about every already been accepted at more than 40 film festistretch of the 810 miles of coastline and the vals and is based on a feature screenplay of the same name. “We’ve done something really cool 163,707 square miles in our state,” Lemisch says. here,” Ferrari says. “I think Red Princess Blues is one Approximately 315 sunny days per year add to Calof, if not the first, independent short films to selfifornia’s well-known and often romanticized allure. distribute through an iPhone app. I think this is the future for indie filmmakers; we hope to garner But the big news is that since“Governator” enough attention by going this route to get a feaArnold Schwarzenegger’s term is over now, oddly ture-length film made.” enough, it’s back to the future with former (and new) governor, Jerry Brown. But the question is, will the Brown administration keep in play the $500-million, five-year incentive package, which has created an economic impact of $2 billion in additional production spending during its first two fiscal years? Lemisch says that “it’s too soon to tell” what the approach of the new administration will be regarding the business of making movies (i.e., incentive funding). “I look forward to working with the administration on keeping California’s entertainment industry healthy and growing,” she remarks. As it stands, California has a limited amount of funding “and a huge number of potential productions.” Current rules dictate a minimum spend of $10 million, though productions with budgets of greater than $75 million are not eligible. “I’d like to see our program extended and enhanced,” says Lemisch, “because it triggers an immediate increase in levels of production.” www.markeemag.com
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Center Stage at Hollywood Center Studios Business at Hollywood Center Studios (www.hollywoodcenter.com) often revolves around Disney Channel programs, such as Wizards of Waverly Place and Sonny With a Chance. But president Tim Mahoney says the operation has branched out to other cable programs, such as TV Land’s new sitcom, Retired at 35, and Nickelodeon’s game show, Brain Surge. Working with those clients required the studios to convert to HD. Also new is a dedicated 4,400square-foot greenscreen stage (pictured) plus a virtual insert set used to broadcast online discussions after episodes of Showtime’s The L Word aired last summer. “That facility will be used for Internetbased programming,” says Mahoney who added that its equipment “can migrate to a larger stage” as well.
All told, Hollywood Center Studios house 11 soundstages ranging in size from 8,000 to 20,000 square feet. They also host spot shoots for advertisers such as L’Oréal, Clairol and Old Navy. The fullservice company offers complete lighting packages and Sony audio equipment.
Kaboom Gets Creative for Yahoo! A recent four-spot branding campaign for Yahoo! designed for viewing in theater multiplex lobbies is a showcase project for San Francisco’s kaboom productions (www.kaboomproductions.com). The company’s directing team, sausage (John Benson and Ward Evans), developed the content and helmed the project which was presented on interactive, six-foot displays. The integrated live-action spots (see photo) were shot with Canon’s EOS 5D Mark II and cut on Apple’s Final Cut Pro HD; Monster Media programmed the interactivity. “What’s exciting about this project is that it is emblematic of the shifting roles within our industry and here at kaboom,” founder/executive producer Lauren Schwartz explains. “We want to be a resource for whatever our clients need. In this case, it extended to developing the creative, as well as producing the spots. This was a perfect project for sausage leveraging their alter ego as freelance agency creatives.”
Pendulum Swings Into Action
[Above] Downtown Los Angeles. Photo by: Lori Balton
She pointed to mid-budget titles in the program recently, such as The Social Network, You Again, Jackass 3D and Dinner for Schmucks and upcoming releases Burlesque, Drive and Faster. On the small screen are FX’s Justified, which shoots in Santa Clarita and Terriers, which shot in San Diego. While the state still gets “a handful of the larger-budget movies of more than $100 million,” such as the Iron Man franchise, Transformers 3 and the soon-to-be released The Green Hornet, Lemisch says that California still loses projects “of every size to other regions in this country” as well as to Canada, “which is still a main part of our competition.” As always, the issue comes down to incentives although “many producers will tell you, over and over, that they would rather stay in California due to convenience, the crew base, the vendors and the ease of working here [because] the industry [is] entrenched here.
It’s all in the animation at San Diego’s Pendulum Studios (www.studiopendulum.com), which focuses on cinematic elements and trailers for such video games as Tron: Evolution for Disney Interactive and Propaganda Games of Vancouver (pictured); Red Faction: Armageddon for THQ; and Marvel’s Iron Man 2 for Sega. “One thing that’s unique about what we do is that we offer turnkey solutions for game cinematics, from storyboard and motion capture using our 5,000-square-foot, full performance stage through final delivery,” says executive producer and co-owner Rob Taylor. He and partner Michael McCormick use realtime engines such as Unreal for software that includes Autodesk Maya and MotionBuilder, eyeon Fusion and Pendulum’s AlterEgo, a proprietary facial-performance system. “We are an animation and storytelling company, not a games company,” Taylor stresses. “We used to work on the music video/film effects side and as directors, and we see this arena as the one where we can use all of our skills.”
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Birns & Sawyer Now a One-Stop Shop – Literally Birns & Sawyer (www. birnsandsawyer.com) has always been a one-stop shop with customers able to buy or rent film and video cameras (camera tech Krissy Thorsen preps a film camera package in photo), lighting and grip equipment from the company. But its recent expansion means everything can literally happen under one roof. The one-stop shop mandate has been around since Birns & Sawyer opened in 1954, says rental agent Jeff Jackson. “But the grip and lighting equipment was separate from the camera location until this fall,” when the newly-remodeled location in central North Hollywood’s NoHo Arts District opened. One reason for the consolidation is that the size of equipment, such as video-capable HDSLR cameras and LED lighting, keeps shrinking. Birns & Sawyer offers everything from the ARRI ALEXA digital cinema camera and RED One cameras to high-end prosumer video cameras, notably the Canon EOS 5D Mark II and 7D HDSLRs. Panasonic’s new AF105 Micro Four Thirds camcorder and accessories are the latest offerings.
“Due to the limited funding,” however, “we were only able to accommodate half of the applicants” for incentives, Lemisch reports. Still, “all told, California’s incentive program is working.”
Oregon Shows Results The news in Oregon isn’t so much bumping up the main film incentive program: It’s the economic impact. The increase happened almost two years ago when what is known as the Oregon Production Investment Fund was boosted from $5 million to $7.5 million and produced $62 million in economic impact for 2009. Also available is the Green Light Labor Rebate for projects that spend more than $1 million. “With that, we’ve been able to land a couple of TV movies and basic cable TV shows with modest budgets, ranging from $1 million to $25 million,” says Vince Porter, executive director of the Oregon Governor’s Office of Film & TV.
TEAK Lights a Bonfire for JanSport TEAK Digital partner/ executive producer Greg Martinez and director Annie Sloan liken The Bonfire Sessions, a JanSport event captured on video by the San Francisco-based company (www.teakdigital.com) to “a tour doc to highlight the brand.” The event, whose location on the property of Bear Creek Studios near Seattle was revealed via alternative press sources, showcased a JanSport-sponsored concert by The Cave Singers. “The challenge for TEAK,” says Sloan, “was working in an uncontrolled environment, with no actors, and the band appearing as themselves with no studio lighting, in a docu-style show.” TEAK
used four Canon EOS 5D Mark II and 7D cameras for the shoot, which required considerable planning and choreography to fit the brand’s image. The cut and color correction by editor Brian Zalewski, in Apple’s Final Cut Pro HD, added a dreamy, adventurous quality to the final product.
[Left] Timothy Hutton stars in TNT’s Leverage, which shoots in metro Portland.
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Workshop Guests Asked to Picture This in 3D Picture This Production Services & Stage (www.pixthis.com) recently hosted an in-depth stereo 3D workshop to introduce the Portland production community to 3D camera, projection and postproduction solutions. Panasonic’s Bill Kupferle, stereographer Craig Adkins and Picture This president Perry Loveridge were on hand for extensive demos and displays on the company’s soundstage. “We are the first rental house in Oregon to acquire and rent the new Panasonic AG-3DA1 3D dual-lens camera with 3D accessories,” says senior account executive Sari Loveridge. “We’ve been studying this format for two years now. Workshop participants were guided through how physical science combined with aesthetic choices and art direction can produce successful and compelling 3D video imagery.”
Digital Foundry, located across the street from Picture This, gave an Apple Final Cut Pro 3D editing demo using the Dashwood Stereo3D Toolbox plug-in. Following a catered lunch at Picture This, participants got hands-on time with equipment and the opportunity for one-on-one sessions with the experts. “The workshop was a great success,” Loveridge reports.
Funnelbox Gets Playful with Wacom Two online branding videos for Wacom, a consumer computer peripherals manufacturer, are new and hot at Oregon City’s funnelbox (www.funnelbox.com). The :45 videos, created for Wacom’s Bamboo product line, update the company’s marketing approach. The content integrates a studio shoot with the RED camera in a loft near funnelbox headquarters with “some really playful” 3D graphics crafted with Autodesk Maya; Adobe After Effects was employed for 2D compositing and motion graphics. The graphics “depicted hand-drawn cartoons, sketches and doodles in the work spaces of users,” says Robb Crocker, funnelbox CEO and senior creative director. The company partnered with inhouse cohabitant Klink, a creative motion graphics company, to complete the project. Crocker says funnelbox, which has 30 employees, was the eighth-fastest growing company in Oregon in 2009, according to the Portland Business Journal.
Oregon’s incentives “offer the rare cash rebate instead of a tax credit,” Porter explains. Combined, both programs equate to a 20-percent rebate on Oregon’s goods and services, and a 16.2percent rebate on labor. The impact of the package has been evident in the TNT series, Leverage, which will soon start production on its third season, the second shooting in metro Portland. “The producers have put 500 local hires on the payroll during the show’s second year here,” Porter says. “That represents more than 200,000 man hours.” And that’s not all. The producers of Leverage are “committed [to Oregon] and Electric Entertainment, the production company, has been prepping to shoot the pilot of a onehour ‘dramedy,’” he reports.
[Top] The NBC TV movie, A Walk in My Shoes, shot in Portland last May.
[Right] Commercial shoot in the snow at Oregon’s Mount Hood.
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Getting Small Means Big Business at Bent Image Lab An ongoing campaign for Koodo, a Canadian mobile phone company, has been huge at Portland’s Bent Image Lab (www. bentimage lab.com) where executive producer Ray Di Carlo reports the company is working on the 10th spot in a series for Toronto agency Taxi. The campaign, directed by Bent Image Lab’s Rob Shaw, is based on the over-the-top antics of El Tabador, a Mexican wrestler who stands all of 4.5 inches tall (pictured). Bent Image Lab shot the live action on a RED One MX-2 in Toronto, cut the spot in Apple’s Final Cut Pro HD and created El Tabador with Autodesk 3ds Max with V-Ray, Adobe After Effects and various proprietary software. Other recent work includes “a couple of hundred” VFX shots for Hollywood and indie films, says Di Carlo, including the title sequence for Lance Black’s What Wrong With Virginia.
A third TV program that’s set to debut in January, Portlandia, is a sketch comedy show airing on the Independent Film Channel and produced by Lorne Michael’s Broadway Video. The two main producers are Carrie Brownstein, a musician from the rock band Sleater-Kinney, and Saturday Night Live’s Fred Armisen. The show presents a series of vignettes shot in and around Portland with cameos by the likes of Kyle McLachlen, Steve Buscemi, Selma Blair, director Gus Van Sant (whose new movie, Restless, shot in Oregon in late 2009, will soon hit the big screen) and singer/songwriter Amy Mann. A Walk in My Shoes, an NBC TV movie that’s part of the network’s Walmart Family Moments series, shot in Oregon last May. And Porter says “a second major feature” is coming. “This one is animated and is not only in production but will be the largest project ever in Oregon.” The animation industry is growing fast in Oregon, due in large part to the suburban Portland studio Laika, which produced the Academy Award-nominated film, Coraline, directed by Henry Selick. Other noted animation shops include Bent Image Lab (see above), Fashion Buddah and Double Barrel Motion Lab. The state also has attracted lower-budget indie films: The Wait, starring Zooey Deschanel and Jenna Malone, which shot in Central Oregon, Wake Before I Die, and Shiver, which is currently in production. House of Last Things, directed by Michael Bartlett, shot in late 2009 and recently complet-
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[Bottom Left] The independent feature Meek’s Cutoff shot in eastern Oregon.
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Sweet Sixteen for Koerner Camera Systems Its 16th year has been the best for Portland rental house Koerner Camera Systems (www.koernercamera.com), reports owner Michael Koerner. That’s due, in part, to Oregon’s stepped-up tax incentive program, which has led to work on TNT’s Leverage, among other projects. “That’s a big deal for us,” Koerner says of the show, which has ordered more RED One cameras in its second year shooting in Portland than it did last year (the show’s first season was lensed in California). Another highlight was supplying an ArriCam LT package and Cooke primes plus an ARRI BL4S to the new Kelly Reichardt film, Meek’s Cutoff, a period piece about a group of settlers negotiating the Oregon Trail (pictured).
ed post; Meek’s Cutoff premiered in competition at the Venice International Film Festival this fall. Porter also reports “a fair amount of car spots” that choose the scenic state. “We’ve even created a page called The Roads of Oregon on our website.”
South of the (Northern) Border
In 2009, there was the Washington State Film Office, which offered location and production support to the community. And there was Washington Filmworks, the private, non-profit organization that managed the state Koerner, which also has an office in film program and offered incentives. Seattle, currently has one ARRI ALEXA, with three more on order; a Phantom Flex But then came the merger, and now it’s just Washto complement the company’s Phantom ington Filmworks. “In most states, the incentives and the HD camera is coming soon. But the marfilm office are presented within one entity,” says Amy quee purchase this year will be high-end Leica Simulux prime lenses for the Lillard, executive director. “So to delete [duplication] of ALEXA, RED and 35mm cameras. effort, we merged.” The result has been “streamlining the process for filmmakers,” says Lillard, which can only help when competing with a production behemoth like British Columbia on your northern doorstep. “The office had different services before. Producers would get permitting and location info at the state office, then information on production incentives from Filmworks,” which now has 52 film liaisons across the expansive state. Like many big cities, Seattle has its own film office; and the Olympic Peninsula has a film liaison in its convention and visitors bureau. [Right] Lillard says that the new office raises $3.5 million annually and Production company Anonymous Content shooting a producers get a 30-percent Campbell’s Chunky Soup comreturn on their in-state spend for mercial in Washington. Photo by: Andrew Clark Washington-resident cast and crew, “plus anything spent on the ground, such as materials for sets, equipment and location fees. “We started raising funds in 2006 before we launched the program, then incentives launched in February 2007,” she recalls.
NXNW Heads East for Two-Spot Montana Campaign Spokane-based North By Northwest Productions (NXNW; www.nxnw.net) headed for points east to shoot a two-spot campaign, from agency Partners Creative, outside Missoula for the Montana Department of Transportation. “Sober Friend” and “Smart” focus on discouraging drunk driving and illustrate other options for people who are hitting the road, such as traveling via horseback (see photo) or using a smart phone to note one’s alcoholic intake first. Both commercials were lensed with the RED One and cut in Final Cut Pro HD, with Adobe Photoshop and After Effects elements added to the second spot. Producer/partner Matt Jaime reports that about 60 percent of the company’s work comes from outside of Washington, which makes sense because NXNW runs a second full-service facility in Boise. Now in its 20th year, NXNW focuses on spot and long-form markets and also produces four or five independent features annually.
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ALEXA’s Popular at Oppenheimer A rental house “that also manufactures accessories,” such as carry handles and yoke mounts, and has served the industry for three decades, Seattle’s Oppenheimer Cine Rental (www.oppenheimercamera.com) offers ARRI, Sony, Panasonic and RED One cameras, plus “all of the top lenses,” says managing director Marty Oppenheimer (pictured). The most recent acquisition was an ARRI ALEXA that was immediately rented into 2011, followed by a second camera which arrived in December – hence the additional five cameras on order. Oppenheimer also rents lighting and grip equipment, including Tyler helicopter mounts and Mako heads for boats, for shows like Discovery’s Deadliest Catch. Recent clients include Crossroads Films for Chevy spots, Damon Live Action for Toyota spots and indie production
companies North By Northwest and Bad Apple Films. Although business “could always be better, we’re happy,” Oppenheimer reports. “The state’s incentives have helped us, since they apply to the spot market [with a $150,000 minimum spend], too.”
“However, the program sunsets next year and we’re looking for more money.” The good news is that 57 projects have been shot in the state since 2007, which she feels is what state legislators need to hear. “We don’t know what to expect” as far as continuation of the program goes, she [Top Left] says. “To date, the money has come from businesses and tax liability in the state.” LA’s A Catch 22 Production shoots The 57 projects include 20 to date in 2010: six features and 14 spot campaigns. Just a commercial in Washington. Photo by: Jim Boyd more than $5 million (since funds roll over if they are not used the previous year) has been committed in rebates for an economic impact of $16.9 million for the current fiscal year. During the past year, Washington State has hosted indie movies such as John Car- [Bottom Left] penter’s The Ward, which shot in Spokane and premiered at Toronto Film Festival, and The Details, starring Toby McGuire and Laura Linney, shot at Lake The Details which shot in Seattle and stars Toby McGuire and Laura Linney. Washington, Seattle. While there isn’t much happening on the TV programming front, numerous commer- Photo by: Jan Cook cials have lensed in Washington, including 14 spots/campaigns for advertisers such as Chevrolet, Target and Microsoft. With that information in hand and mind, Lillard is preparing to approach the politicians. “We’re building our economic-impact case. Our metrics are jobs and dollars. “We offer a cash-rebate program, so once funds are allocated, they’re guaranteed to a production, promptly,” she notes. “It’s cash back in 30 days. That’s the reality of what we do.” As for crew, “we’ve haven’t had a problem crewing up for productions,” she says, “and the more productions that come through, the more our crew base gradually increases.” Getting those points across to the powers that be is often the challenge. “It’s always an education when we go to [the state capital of] Olympia, but we tell the legislators that the Canadian market is Among noteworthy projects at different than ours,” Lillard says. “They target huge Seattle audio house Bad Animals Hollywood movies, and we’re after the $2 million (www.badanimals.com) is the National Geographic reality series to $10 million market.”
Bad Animals Gets ‘Real’ in Alaska
Alaska State Troopers, which principal and sound mixer Dave Howe deems “a Yukon version of Cops.” The show focuses on their often unusual day-to-day experiences. “They’re always looking for poachers,” Howe says. “They all use planes and boats, as well as squad cars. One officer can canvass up to 50,000 square miles in their territory. Also, numerous concealed weapons are around with a frontier mentality to go with them. Many of the people that they pull over are armed.” Bad Animals works with Seattle-based PSG Films on the series. “We receive OMF files from Final Cut Pro HD and deliver 5.1 surround and stereo mixes via Pro Tools HD,” explains Howe. “We also add Foley, record and edit the narration and clean up the dialogue – as well as pop in the occasional bleep.”
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In the
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Newsroom
EDEN FX DELIVERS VFX SHOTS FOR HOLIDAY-THEMED COMMUNITY EPISODE Santa Monica-based Eden FX (www.edenfx.com) welcomed the holiday season early when it designed and produced 85 VFX shots for the December 9 episode of the NBC sitcom, Community, which featured a tribute to classic, holiday-themed stop-motion animation. In the show the character of Abed wakes up in a world reminiscent of Rankin-Bass specials such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman and sees it as a sign to rediscover the meaning of Christmas. The stopmotion animation (pictured) was created by award-winning Kelli Bixler, puppet fabricator Justin Hilden and production teams at Burbank’s Bix Pix and Starburns Industries. Only a week prior to airtime, “we received raw Canon camera files of the stop-motion puppets ‘doing their thing,’ often against greenscreens,” says Eden FX VFX supervisor Steve Pugh. “I had never previously thought of stop motion as being VFX-heavy work, but it makes sense to shoot the puppets against greenscreens if your background has not yet been approved. That’s what happened with this project.” For an entire scene on the roof of a train, Eden FX composited puppets, the
roof, train track, a cliff face on a turntable, and the distant sky then added a digital blizzard. The company gave the view from Santa’s Castle a night sky and composited digital candy ammunition in a ‘shootout.’ “We got to create some really wild and crazy stuff!” declares Pugh whose company has been providing VFX to Community since the show’s first episode. “The
producers are always pushing the envelope of things you’re not supposed to be able to accomplish within just a half hour.”
KIT COOL COMES TO BOOM OPERATORS’ RESCUE Preparing for the latest season of HBO’s award-winning In Treatment, veteran production sound mixer Jeff Pullman and his crew sought a solution for the show’s 15-20 minute takes, often back to back. Set in a psychiatrist’s office, the intensive therapy scenes are boomed by operators Neil Danziger and Teferra McKenzie; Pullman feared that the physical demands of the production could lead to requiring other forms of therapy for his crew if they had to hand-hold their booms. He consulted with Peter Schneider at New York’s Gotham Sound and decided 44
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to try the Kit Cool boom pole support system from France’s Boom Audio & Video. The easy-to-use, body-wearable support system can support any boom pole and allows complete freedom of movement and mic cueing; Boom Audio & Video products are distributed in North America exclusively by ATS Distributors of Silver Spring, Maryland (www.ATSdistributors.com). “After recording three or more hours of actual material per day, the boom operators still have energy to spare,” Pullman reports. “We have purchased two [Kit Cool systems]. It appears to us that the future of TV in the digital format
November/December 2010
has now pushed the sound department to its physical limits. On this show, where 95 percent of the dialogue can be recorded with a boom mic, the Kit Cool has saved the day!”
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MTI FILM EXPANDS OPERATIONS
SONO STUDIOS ACQUIRED BY BRET STERN PRODUCTIONS
Hollywood’s MTI Film (www. mtifilm.com) recently moved to a new, larger facility and expanded its service offerings to include television, film and commercial postproduction with cutting-edge MTI technology delivering a unique, all-digital workflow. The facility has already completed post for the first season of TNT’s hit Rizzoli & Isles and is working on the CBS courtroom drama, The Defenders. Both shows were technically challenging thanks to myriad camera sources, including RED, ARRI, Sony F23, Sony EX1/EX3, Canon 5D and 7D, GoPro, Phantom and Nanoflash. “A large part of our success so far is due to the fact that we were able to build a facility from scratch using the best of the current technologies and fit together a workflow that isn’t hamstrung by any legacy equipment,” notes chief engineer John Stevens. MTI Film boasts an adaptable infrastructure with 5.1 Dolby sound and Davio-calibrated plasma monitors in every room, as well as a KVM framework that allows any station to perform any function. The facility offers support for both Avid and Apple’s Final Cut Pro; final color is completed using the latest Nucoda Film Master from Digital Vision. “The workflow is stunning. We’ve really pushed it right to the edge,” Stevens says.
Norwalk, Connecticut-based Bret Stern Productions has acquired SoNo Studios (www.sono studios.com), the largest, full-service soundstage and TV studio in southern Connecticut. The stage features lighting grids, camera packages (RED, Sony XD, Canon and others) and production offices; it also houses a complete grip truck and new post suites outfitted with Apple Final Cut Pro, Adobe Creative Suite, Autodesk Maya, Digidesign Pro Tools, Lightwave and other tools. “I had been using the stage for years when it was known as Stage 18 and always felt that it was an undervalued production resource, especially when you consider Connecticut’s generous 30-percent tax break for filmmakers,” says filmmaker Bret Stern. “When the opportunity came up to buy the space I jumped at the chance to remake it into
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a state-of-the-art facility comparable in every respect to the mid-sized production facilities in New York City.” SoNo’s recent clients include Louie, the FX series starring comic Louie C.K; CNBC’s dLife; and a series of webisodes for Yellow Tail wine via The Ryan Partnership/Wilton, Connecticut. The 4,000-square-foot soundstage features a three-wall cyc, 16-foot ceilings, silent AC/heat and drive-in access. Amenities include new production offices, a client lounge, dressing rooms and a working kitchen.
NATHAN LOVE REVEALS WHAT’S IN SANTA’S BEARD Playing the Oregon Lottery’s “What’s in Santa’s Beard?” holiday scratch-off game couldn’t possibly have been more fun than watching the :30 spot, “Beard World,” directed by Anca Risca of Mothership’s Nathan Love animation studio in Venice, California (www.mothership.net). The fully-animated commercial from Borders Perrin Norrander/Portland (BPN) features a virtual fly-through of Santa’s beard, revealing the characters – and prize winnings – stuck within his whiskers. The all-CGI spot is rich in detail, with a handcrafted feel and stop motion-style animation. Risca and her team imagined Santa’s beard as a clay-sculpted world inhabited by characters carved from wood and environments given the look of miniatures. One continuous camera move plays out like a theme-park ride as viewers tour different ‘rooms’ inside the beard and spy a snowman by the fridge, a fir
tree decorating a man, French hens gossiping over wine in a nest café, and local Oregon legend D.B. Cooper who disappeared in 1971 after parachuting from a Boeing 727 with a suitcase full of cash. Software utilized included Autodesk Maya 2011, Chaos Group’s V-Ray for rendering, Adobe CS4, The Foundry’s Nuke X and Pixologic’s ZBrush 3.5. Nathan Love also produced the audio working with sound designer and composer Drew Skinner. Chip Sloan at Portland’s Digital One mixed.
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Film & Video Gallery Credits:
Client: Hocevar Video, Inc.
Production Design: Louis Hocevar
Producer: Liliana Kurpanik
VO Talent: Christopher Flockton
Avid Editor: Louis Hocevar
Hocevar Video once again took home multiple CRYSTAL REEL awards from the 2010 Florida Motion Picture and Television Association Gala recently held in Orlando. Garnering FIVE individual awards in the Marketing Category, the HVI team were especially proud to receive THREE CRYSTAL REELS for “Experience 30 Years” a (5 minute) retrospective demo reel spanning their 30 years of international location production. The “Experience 30 Years” program won for BEST MARKETING and also for PRODUCTION DESIGN & EDITING.
Hocevar Video, Inc. 205 Manuel Court • Saint Augustine, FL 32095 904-810-5300 www.hocevarvideoinc.com
Credits:
Client: Arnold Advertising Carnival Cruise Lines
Director/ Cinematographer: Mark Kohl
Fun for all - All for fun 14-day shoot all over the Caribbean using real families instead of actors.
Kohl Pictures, Inc. 1580 Beach Ave. • Atlantic Beach, FL 32233 Phone: 310.699.6924 • Mark Kohl (mark@kohlpictures.com) www.kohlpictures.com
Credits:
Client: Landry’s Kemah Boardwalk
Director/DP: Everett Gorel Editor: Marco DuBose Animation/FX: Mike Ribble
South Coast Film & Video 5234 Elm Street • Houston, TX 77081 Phone: 800.229.3550 • F: 713.661.4357 www.scfilmvideo.com
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“Perfect Day” Cameras mounted on carnival rides, stingrays splashing our lens, screaming kids tweaked on cotton candy. We had a blast shooting this waterfront complex- restaurants, hotel, amusement park and aquarium. Plus, no children or animals were injured during the filming. All in all, a “perfect day.”
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
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advertisers’ index page# company phone & website 16
American Music Company, Inc.
MARKETPLACE EQUIPMENT
516-764-1466 www.americanmusicco.com
23
Atlanta Rigging 866-355-4370 www.atlantarigging.com
C4
Camera Copters, Inc. 800-463-7953 www.cameracopters.com
C3
Comprehensive Technical Group 888-557-4284 www.ctgatlanta.com
27
Crew Connection 800-35-CREWS www.crewconnection.com
35
Gerling & Associates 740-965-2888 www.gerlinggroup.com
46
Hocevar Video Inc. 904-810-5300 www.hocevarvideoinc.com
31
Island Century Media 888-373-4539 www.icm4hd.com
13
Killer Tracks 800-454-5537 www.killertracks.com
46
Kohl Pictures 904-448-8811 www.kohlpictures.com
15
Omnimusic 800-828-6664 www.omnimusic.com
41
Picture This Production Services 503-235-3456 www.pixthis.com
1
ProductionHub 877-629-4122 www.productionhub.com
C2, 5
Sony Creative Software www.sonycreativesoftware.com
46
South Coast Film & Video 713-661-3550 www.scfilmvideo.com
17
Superlux 404-525-0700 www.superlux.com
MUSIC LIBRARIES
FOR MARKETPLACE ADVERTISING DETAILS... Contact Gayle Rosier at 386.873.9286 or email: gaylerosier@gmail.com www.markeemag.com
November/December 2010
| Markee 2.0
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Inside View
Randall Dark Productions | by Christine Bunish
Randall P. Dark President and CEO – Randall Dark Productions, Austin http://randalldarknews.blogspot.com/ Markee: You just finished your first stereo 3D project, 3 Cities in 3D, the first shot with Panasonic’s AG-3DA1 fully-integrated HD 3D camcorder. What was that experience like? Mr. Dark: “I had mixed feelings about 3D and felt it was improper to talk about [them] before I’d shot and edited 3D. I was interested in trying the 3DA1 because of its side-by-side lenses. I thought it could be a new, cost-effective way of creating 3D. “I had worked with Shane Marr on a Dolly Parton PSA and asked him if there was any interest in a tourist-center 3D video in the Smokey Mountains. There was, so I phoned my friends at Wealth TV and asked if they’d be interested in airing a few 3D documentaries if I did them – they were. I met with Panasonic at NAB and told them I’d like to get my hands on one of the first 3DA1s to do a real-world, client-driven project. Panasonic got me a camera last June, and we began 3 Cities in 3D, a co-production between Randall Dark Productions and Shane’s company, Cinemarr Entertainment in Sevierville, Tennessee.” Markee: How did you pack three cities – Gatlinburg, Sevierville and Pigeon Forge – into the 24-minute documentary? Mr. Dark: “We talked to each city’s Chamber of Commerce and asked them to pick seven locations to showcase; Shane and I looked for areas for B roll, too. The doc shows in broad strokes the unique attributes and attractions these cities offer to people who have a week or three days to spend in the area. “We shot 82 locations in 10 days – we were runnin’ and gunnin’. The camera allowed us to shoot many locations quickly because we didn’t need a big crew: Its form factor is very easy to move, and you can use Steadicam, jibs 48
Markee 2.0 |
and dollies but don’t need big set ups. At the end of the day, if I saw a beautiful sunset I could capture it alone, with just a tripod. That’s unheard of when shooting 3D.” Markee: Did you encounter any challenges? Mr. Dark: “We were shooting at Ripley’s Aquarium in Gatlinburg during normal business hours so I couldn’t get in the way of paying customers with lots of lights and equipment. Because the camera is so portable, I was able to get what I needed without displacing anybody. I shot people going up and down a zip line in the Smokeys then got myself rigged up with the camera, too. With the 3DA1 I didn’t have to think in terms of traditional shots. “We used high-capacity, 8-gig media cards that had 45-minute loads, very much like the HDCAM loads I’m used to. We treated the cards as master tapes, keeping the files of raw footage safe until we could transfer them in post with card readers and create files to edit with. Cinemarr and I co-own all the raw footage so we’ll be able to market 3D stock footage later with FootageBank as our rep.” Markee: What surprised you the most during the project? Mr. Dark: “The quality of the images and the ability to do positive and negative 3D and see it in realtime in a very portable environment. We were so mobile, yet we could do convergence in the field in realtime with this technology. “We were also able to go into environments without a gigantic crew and lots of equipment. You can work very intimately and subtly in public places with a camera that small.”
November/December 2010
Markee: What’s next for 3 Cities in 3D and for you? Mr. Dark: “Cinemarr and I co-own a 3D post facility in Sevierville, Dark Marr Productions, where Shane is working on the edit using CineForm Neo3D and an Adobe CS5 editing system. We communicate about the cut interactively with Video Skype when I’m traveling. “The Sevierville Chamber of Commerce loved 3 Cities so much they wanted their own half hour; so we shot one with all new footage, and that’s currently in post, too. We’re marketing the concept to other cities across the U.S. – everyone’s looking for innovative ways to attract visitors. “I’d like to do more experimenting with 3D – it’s really in its infancy. I always say ‘just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should,’ and I think that applies to 3D. I want to test its limits and scope for storytelling and get a better understanding of when and how to use it.”
Film • Video • Animation • Audio • Locations • People
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