Camera Operator 2003 Spring/Summer

Volume 12, Number 1 Spring/Summer 2003

The J ournal of the Soc i ety Of CameraOperators

FEATURES

10 Focus on ... Pain Relief

by Darcia Dexter Free yourselffrom the everyday aches and pains you thought well/ with the job. 1sr in new series.

16 Finding a New Solution for Blue Screen and Green Screen

by Emme Headroom ProComp filters will solve the problems of spill and fringing.

20 Taking the Guesswork Out of Telecine

by George BStephenson SOC james Bartle and his "better mousetrap."

24 Multiple Camera Relationships

by Gary Bourn SOC On the set of Will & Grace Relationship between Director of Photography and Camera Operator: 16111 in the eries

28 Operators On Operating

by Georgia Packard SOC Quotations from the great and near great about "the best job in the business."

34 The Puphedzr M

by Mark RLeins How to do an in die film from scratch

42 Safety on the Set: Artificial Smoke, Fog and Haze

by Carol AWetovich What you need to know to protect yourself from this health hazard. 21111 in the eries

48 Book Review DEPARTMENTS

New book by Andrew Laszlo

SO Commentary: When You Meet

Your Ego on the Set, Kill It

by Paul Babin SOC

2 President's Letter

by Georgia Packard SOC

6 News &Notes What's happening in the SOC

What is the camera operator's role on the set?

4 From the Editor's Desk S2 The Shape of Things to Come?

by Rick Mitchell An overview of the widescreen revo/LIIion and the changes in the movie industry.

by George BStephenson SOC

64 Roster of the SOC (Society Of CameraOperators)

President's Letter

0

ne of the mo t challenging a pect of life and career i the 24 hour clock. We must work quickly and efficiently each day in order to film tl1e required page count while eekjng to take the nece ary steps to keep communication flowing in our personal relationship . otto mention doing laundry, paying bill , grocery shopping and triving to stay awake for that precious first school play, champion occer match or perhaps just a afe drive home.

I recently gained an insight into what a truly remarkable man (a weU a a brilliant cinematographer) Ne tor Almendros wa : he would invest each lunch break in getting to know a rufferent crew member on hi production. What an amazing gift thi mall ge ture prove to be! The preenting of one's elf in an effort to expand and explore another inruvidual is the alchemi t' ecret. Thi coUective pirit can far urpa any calculated bottom line and spur an artistic endeavor beyond

Crew relationships are built from proving solid technical skills and the ability to work well with others. one's expectations. Not every conver ation need be earth hattering or reveal one' darke t ecret to be con idered a worthy contribution. Often value i found in the imple act of haring and relating.

Crew relation hip are built from proving olid technical kjU and the ability to work weiJ with others. We must constantly seek out way to network and update/ upgrade our experti e. The 0 is devoted to bringing ew Tool & Technology Workshops to its member so that we can tay current with ongoing advancements and surround our elve with talented people of like minds. eminars and Hand -On Demon tration help keep the my tery out of u ing updated equipment in a range of format a weU a "hot ticket" toys. There is al o the quagmire of the "business;' a never-ending education in it elf, to be negotiated .

2

Things are in flux at the moment.

We have ru covered that one rumenional character aren't very compeUing to watch in a film or to experience in real life if we only wait for the phone to ring.

We must take action and become proactive in carving a path forward.

Generous orporate Affiliate , devoted member , and numerou volunteers collectively a i t in making the 0 a remarkable organization to which we belong. Here the un can hine brightly and help navigate difficultie at hand.

Passing on the baton The past four year as President has afforded me wonderful opportunitie to unite and lead thi group, to ru cover hidden strengths and to reach for new goal . There have been many remarkable hurdle to overcome, including personal los es, threats of trike , productions leaving the country, a troubled economy, terrori m and war, a career demand even more commitment. There alway eems to be "more to do" and "ongoing program to develop."

The time ha come to pa on the baton. I am proud to have erved a a strong interactive President. Thank you for all of your support-and for tho e

Promote the SOC: Share your magazine or better yet tell others they can subscribe too.

Wear SOC Wear with pride, and don 't forget to use the SOC initials on your operator credits - our best publicity of who we are!

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PRESIDENT'S lETTER

other , your bitter judgements helped to make me a marter and more gloriou pearl.

May we all continue to di cover the e ence of what Andrew La zlo derucates his new book :"Fate, good fortune, kindne , and the freedom of the pirit" in our own pro perou and ucce sfullives.

From doctunenting Tibetan monks in exile to capturing Rick Baker' remarkable werewolves leaping into action, "We ee It Fir t" prove to be one of the mo t exciting and rewarding po itions for me to hold. ee you on the et!

GeoJtgia 'Packwul.. soc Society Of CameraOperators Officers Pre ident ........................ .

1 I Vice Pre ident ................. .

2nd Vice President ........ Ernie Reed 3rd Vice President. ...... AIJan Lum Li ecretary .............. Bonnie Blake Trea urer ............... Gary Baum ergeant-at-Arms ...... Howard Block Corporate Liai on. . . . eorgia Packard Magazine Editor . George B tephenson Webma ter ............ Mark R Leins Administrative Assistant . Diana Pen ilia

Board of Governors Michael Chambli David Diano Tom Fra er David Frederick Michael Frediani

Douglas Knapp Deni Moran Philip chwartz Ben Wolf

1 T ision, the essential ingredient that

V we as Camera Operators use in our work, intrinsically bonds us to children with vision problems. Our organization contributes its full support to the Eye Care Clinic of Childrens Hospital Los Angeles.

Contact the OC online at www.soc.org

~路

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AIJ rights re erved.

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The Operating Cameraman Magazine pringl ummer 2003

Editor George B tephen on 0

Assistant Editor Georgia Packard OC

Post-Production Manager Dougla Knapp

Design &Production Lynn Lanning, Double L De ign, Glendale

Cover Design Mark Lein

Production Coordinators The Ingle Group, Brentwood

Advertising Director Dan Dodd

Contributors ary Baum 0 Darcia Dexter Mark R Leins Rick Mitchell Georgia Packard 0 George B tephen on ar I A Wetovich

Photography Mark Forman Michael Frediani hri topher L Ha ton Eric Lee Mark R Leins Georgia Packard Ryan Vani ki opyright Š 2003 by the ociety Of ameraOperator

The Operating Cameraman Magazine i publi hed emiannually by the ociety Of ameraOperator .

Subscription Rates U A 20/year Out ide U A 28/year (U .. Fund Only)

For article submissions, please contact: 0

Attn Magazine PO Box 2006 Toluca Lake, A 91610 Phone (818) 382-7070

For display advertising information, contact: Dan Dodd {323) 856-9100 dandoddnow@aol.com

4

From the Editor's

Desk

G

eorgia Packard' article"On Operating" and the eloquent comment from pre ent and pa t operator and from Directors of Photography in the documentary Visions of Light have brought on a flood of emotion . How many times have you b en asked by a nonindustry person to describe your job a a Camera Operator to whkh they re pond: "That mu t be a really exciting job!" My respon e lately has been, yes, it is an exciting and exhilarating job ... when I'm working. ln the pa t few month l have had two wonderful opportunitie to work on film projects in my home state of New Mexico, only to have my position as amera Operator u urped by the Director of Photography. I can w1der tand lo ing out to teadicam operator as I've cho en not to pur ue that kill, but when the Director of Photography opts to operate the "B" camera preventing the hiring of a highly qualified Camera Operator, that i uncon cionable.

John Bailey A aid it be t in hi peech at last year' OC award banquet: "The degree to which a cinematographer or a director becomes a amera Operator, i exactly the degree to which he or he i reduced as the controlling artist of the film .... It' pretty ridiculou to ee the cinematographer reduced to ferreting out bump on a dolly track-but you know it happens."

(Read the whole peech in Operating Cameraman pringl ummer 2002) The pre ident of our Camera Guild proudly credits himself and the executive board member for having " ecured the Camera Operator' po ition once again" in contract negotiation with producers. If this article in the contract were adhered to, that would be wonderful. Producers ignore it at will in order to ave a buck and more importantly too many of our own Director of Photography abu e it.. We need more DPs like John Bailey to support our position on the crew and to acknowledge our izeable contribution to the production (not to mention the money we can ave the producer). I know they are out tl1ere.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN : FROM THE EDITOR'S DESK

'--------l ~ Then there i tl1e question of ethics. It' one thing when a Director of Photography choo e to jump on the camera for "ju t thi one hot" to check a lighting effect or a make-up flaw. It' entirely different if he or he provide the ervice in order to ave the producer money, thereby denying another amera Operator the right to earn a living and provide for hi family.

Pension and welfare hour are lo t forever, tho e benefit we have all fought o hard to maintain. There are clearly more cinetechnician than there are job today but to hoard an available po ition out of ego or in ecurity or greed is abhorrent.

My dream of becoming a Director of Photography ha never been lo t. From the day I entered film chooll have nurtured that dream and visualized the reality. I hall welcome the opportunity and privilege of electing a fine amera Operator and crew to upport my effort and execute the director's vision. The only time I'll "mount up" will be to line up a shot or check the lighting etup.

I promise!

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Correction to previous issue: John Ford directed the

ivil War egment of

How the West Was Won, but the ivil War battle equence in the film were actually from Rnintree 011111y.

Note on digital photos for magazine reproduction: Mo t digital cameras offer picture at 72dpi. This magazine require photos at 300dpi. Therefore, we re- ize the image in Photo hop from 72 to 300 dpi, effectively cutting picture ize to 25% of original. The e photo u ed in a larger ize look out of focu or pixellated, o we don't enlarge them. That explain the relatively small pictures in parts of this i ue.

2003 Scholarship Applicants Sought

T

he earch i on for high chool enior or college tudent who plan to tudy cinematography. They might be eligible

SOC Special Events Plus8Digital (formerly Plu 8Video)'s Advanced Ia on " reating a Look" for 24P with Sony on ovember 23rd 2002 offered an arti tic in-depth look into menus and memory ticks. Thi wa a pecial cia with Sony and Fujinon!

Holiday Celebration for 0 Member and Friends was held at the Motion Picture Home in Woodland Hill . Screening of The anta Clause 2 on unday December 15th 2002 was fol-

for thi year' William E Hine 0 cholar hip.

Being awarded a cholar hip i an honor. The money i alway u eful, but not everyone has what it take to be the recipient of an award.

Th!! purpo e of the William E Hines 0 Scholar hip Fund i to recognize and educate talented young peopledependent children of active members of the OC-who are dedicated to the art and craft of cinematography. Bill wa an educator as well a a cinematographer and he cho e this method of eeing hi legacy continue.

Applicant for the 2003 cholar hip houJd end a brief letter to the 0 mailbox (see page 2 for the addre ) telling of their education, experience, interest in cinematography, and peranal goal .

The do ing date for accepting appli~o;, cation i July 1, 2003.

lowed by a visit from Mr and Mr Ia us and lots of refre hment !

Toy were collected and taken over to Childrens Hospital Los Angeles Eye Care Clinic by President Georgia Packard the following week.

Membership Breakfast Meeting aturday January 11th 2003 wa a great way to tart our new year. The morning was sponsored by Sony and Canon with plenty of equipment for an in-depth eminar.

March 22nd 2003 had two events taking

William E "Bill" Hines SOC

place at the Motion Picture Home: the 9:00 AM offee/9:30 Member hip Breakfast Meeting ountry Home and the 7:00 PM Screening of Drum line at Loui B Mayer Theatre.

Future Events Calendar I ing date for applications for the 2003 William E Hines SOC Scholarship Fund ha been extended from May 30th to July Ist 2003.

Moviemaking Technology Showcase June 5th 2003. To pre-regi ter, go to www. BirnsandSawyer.com.

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THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: NEWS & NOTES

818.989.5222 www.advancedcamera.com

CineGear will be held on June 6th and 7th 2003 on the Backlot of Universal.

Reel Workshops i offering intensive hand -on work hop tarting in Augu t 2003. Underwater HD and HD inematography, uper l6/16MM and Low Budget feature are in the Line-up.

For an updated chedule of cia e , go to www.thereelworkshops .com .

New Tools and Technology Workshops for 0 Member : TBA Silent Auction will be in the Fall 2003 to help rai e monie for the 0 ' harity, the hildren Eye Care Clinic.

Last year's wa a winner! Be ure not to mi this one!

m

Underwater HiDef

Workshop The Reel Workshop is offering an inten ive hand -on Underwater High Definition Workshop.

Date : Augu t 2003 Location: t Thoma (U Virgin I land ) Participant will have the opportunity to work with tate-of-the-art high definition camera ( ony & Pana onic) and underwater hou ing (Arnphibico & Pace) under the instruction of We kile , Anthony Lenzo, Ro Ambrose, and ubject to availability, Val Rentekin , orbert Wu and Tom ampbeiJ. mall group , each working with a camera and hou ing, will learn from each of the in tructors during a erie of practical exerci e -in fre h water pools and the clear aribbean ea. pecia1 emphasi i placed on u ing practical location in a real working

environment. The e locations provide orne of the be t diving in the world. It i expected that tudents hould be able to come away with a working knowledge of Underwater HD cinematography a well a orne excellent HD footage to add to their reel.

A cour e fee of 3300 cover everything (hotel, meal , all drinks, tanks, air, dive boat, memory tick, one HD and one downconverted tape, and camera equipment). The only additional fee to participant i airfare and B /Regulator rental if needed.

Thi cour e i limited to 15 diving participants eeking to have an in ten ive and immer ive learning experience with these exceptional in tructor .

Participant hould be certified diver with experience handling profe ional video and film camera .

Two existing HD workshops ••• Underwater HD and HD inematography (with the mo t excellent Daniel

Villeneuve helming HD inematography) are both non denominational in that The Reel Workshop u e both ony and Pana onic camera in a ide by ide ituation and have no intere t in promoting one y tern or the other, and that time pent working with the gear in a cia /production environment will allow tudents to come to an informed deci ion that i ba ed on experience rather than hype.

They advi e taking a familarization da with the variou y tern before the workshop a the cour e are geared more for improving one' kill a a DP rather than HD 101 (this button doe thi ort of thing) but they are open to an additional dovetailed cia if needed.

Registration or More Information: For further information or to regi ter for a class, please email them at info@thereelworkshops.com, vi it the web ite http://www.thereelworkshops .com or call The Reel Workshop at 340-513- 1735. ~

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THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: NEWS & NOTES

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Breakfast Meeting Demos

New ~ Notes

ony orporation and anon Len es hosted an Member hip Breakfast meeting and demonstration at the Motion Picture Home.

Dhanemdra Patel ( ony' leading repre entative and a great in tructor), Tom Bender, Ken Ito and Joe Patton all gave informative demon trations on the equipment.

0 Member enjoyed being brought up to date with another of our ew Tools & Technology eminar and hand on demon tration .

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THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: NEWS & NOTES

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WEU-BEING

1st in the Series

Focus On ...

By Darcia Dexter PHOTOS COURTESY OF

IT's YOUR MovE!

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ou've just landed the show ... the good news is you're bock to work, the bad news is that you' re about to put yourself into positions of high stress-literally-on your joints and muscles . You look forward to the work, but not to the aches and pains that you anticipate after a long day of shooting .

Through Feltlenkrais, he tliscoveretl alternate ways ol moving throughout the tlay to prevent pain.

How do you prevent the pain or better yet, recognize the onset and do something about it? Some camera crews ore finding ways to cut the pain using a program of movement re-education called the Feldenkrois Method速.

In 200 l Fir t A i tant Dave egrin finally uccumbed to double fusion neck surgery after year of chronic pain and countless vi its to the chiropractor, acupuncturi t, phy ical and rna age therapi t . He experienced great relief after the urgery and through recovery, but once he wa back on the et he found the arne ache and pain he had before

10

urgery creeping up on him by the end of the day. At the recommendation of another a i tant, he ought le on with a Feldenkrai practitioner who helped him become aware of the movement habits that perhap led him into trouble in the fir t place. Through Feldenkrai , he di covered alternate way of moving throughout the day to prevent pain and to be able to focu on work.

It was egrin' ugge tion that led to introductory Feldenkrais classe being offered by the Motion Picture WeUne Program on a quarterly basi . During one of the e e sions in Toluca Lake, Operator Georgia Packard had orne "A-ha!" moments about her work at camera. After a brief equence of pelvic movement , her houlders and arm felt more comfortable and lighter to lift. he wa amazed that by working indirectly through her pelvi , her neck and houlders felt better. Already a big fan of body awareness and often "stealing moments" to tretch between take , he found Feldenkrais le ons helped her to think of moving in different ways to decrea e discomfort during a hot and getting into awkward po ition .

Developed by phy ici t, engineer and martial arti t Mo he Feldenkrais, the

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PAIN R.EUEF

Method utilize movement a the conduit for learning how our habits contribute to di comfort and how we can realize our full potential by being able to move ea ily in any way we need to at any time. The les on incorporate ubtle and nonhabitual patterns to help increa e elfawareness u ing tl1e two modalitie of Functional Integration速 (hands-on one on one guided movement) and Awarene Through Movement速 (verbally guided group le on ). From the 1940 until hi death in 1984, Feldenkrai created thouand of le on in variou po ition from tanding to sitting to lying on the floor to help people relieve chronic pain, improve balance and coordination and enhance athletic and arti tic performance.

This Method will help you differentiate the millimeter of your own body po ition o that you di cover ea ier way to move not only around camera, but in all activitie . Unlike other form of therapy, with Feldenkrai there i not one ideal way of holding your elf. Becau e the learning take place directly at the nervou y tern level, the new pattern become available without you having to con ciously think about moving "correctly" which is different from a therapi t having you hold your elf in a particular

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...~ A. DO: Body Scan in sitting to sense your beginning neutral position .

DO: Roll your pelvis backward to six o'clock . Bring your look down to your navel.

p ture while performing an action. Try the following Feldenkrai le on to find more comfort in your back, boulder and neck. They ca n be done daily or more often a needed.

Your Back (and Neck) in Action: Pelvic Clock in Sitting: 1. Do a b dy can and en e the weight of your pelvi . Do you feel balanced or a if you're itting more on one ide or the other? Do you notice if your weight feel more forward or back? Where you are right now i your beginning neutral po ition.

2. From thi po ition, begin to roll your pelvis backward a if to lump and return to neutral. Pau e. Roll your pelvi forward, arching your back, then return to neutral. Repeat the forward and backward pelvic rolJing until it becomes ea y and mooth in both direction . Thi i the arne a tilting the camera, imagining yo ur navel a the len . Try the arne movement : fir t the right side, then the left ide, rocking ide to ide, lifting one hip and then the other, a if to move in your pelvi 'dutch .' Pau e in between the movement and repeat each direction five to ten time , going lowly and finding th nuance of your movement .

3. Imagine you have a clock stamped on your eat with forward being 12 o'clock, backward 6 o'clock, 3 and 9 o'clock are right and left re pectively. Roll your pelvi forward and begin to move around in a clockwi e direction going through each hour ju t a a econd hand

12

DON'T: Create more tension in your head, neck and shoulders by keeping your head up.

DO: Roll your pelvis forward to twelve o'clock.

Feel your back gently arching, raising your head and eyes.

would weep moothly around the dial.

Repeat five to ten time and then rever e direction. If there are areas on the clock where you are not moving moothly, like from 6 to 9, rolJ your pelvi back and forth between the number until the quality of your pelvic movement i imilar around the entire clock. Return your

Clockwise

Counter clockwise

pelvi to the center of clock. Are you more upright? Do you feel less train and effort on your back mu de ?

Shoulder Clock in Sitting or Standing Repeat the a me equence of movements for Pelvic lock, imagining the clock i on your houlder. Move one ide at a time and re t between the movement.

Tongue Circles in Sitting 1. otice the po ition of your head. Where are your eye on the horizon? What do you feel in the mu de of your face and neck? Does one ide of your face feel more relaxed?

2. Imagine your tongue i a paintbru h. Reach your

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PAIN R.EUEF

DON'T:: Simply tilt forward . You want to feel your spine articulate through the vertebrae .

tongue out in front of you a far a i comfortable without train and begin to "paint" up and down. Re t and wallow.

Repeat the arne movement left and right. otice if you ten e the mu de in your face in order to do thi and keep reducing the ize of the movement o that it become ea y. Re t.

3. lowly begin to "paint" a circle in fr nt of you with your tongue. tart clockwi e and move five to ten time and then rever e. Do your head and eye move with your t ngue? Move your tongue by it elf and then gradualJy add the movement of your head and eye .

Can you coordinate the movement of these three areas o that they all create a mooth circle and no part move more quickly than another? Re t and wallow.

I the po ition of y ur head different than before? Are your eye on a different horizon? How do you feel the mu de of your face, neck and jaw now?

Variations: Play with ize and peed.

Make larger and maller, lower and fa ter circle . The more variation in movement, the more opti n you will have.

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Stick out your tongue!

"Paint" a circle in front of you using your tongue as the brush .

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PAUSE: Scan and notice any improvement in sitting between movements.

DO: Keep your feet on the floor as you tilt your pelvis from side to side moving from three to nine o 'clock.

Other Tips for Feldenkrais Lessons: ... Easy Does It: o lowly. heck your elf by counting to ten throughout each movement. ... Less is More: Do mall movement .

Do only as many repetition a allow you to pay attention to the quality of movement. .. . No Pain, All Gain: ln i ton light, comfortable movement and keep within a "no pain" range. Remember thi i different from tretching. .... Holding Patterns: otice if there are other part of yo u that are inhibiting movement uch a curling your toe , lifting your houlder , clenching your jaw, or quinting your eyes. ... Breathe! One of the bigge t cau e of tre i hallow breathjng. Try inging a ong while you do the le on .

A passion for movement and language inspires Darcia Dexter's work as a Guild Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner<'". ince 1996, she has been in private practice m1d taught wei/ness programs, including stress management and injury prevention, for tile alifornia university system, as well as

Movement is life••• without movement life is unthinkable."

0

-MOSHE FELDENKRAIS

DON'T: Lean from side to side . You want to differentiate the movement in your pelvis and ribs throughout the lesson .

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major health care corporations. Darcia recently relocated to the anta Ia rita Valley and ca11 be reached at 888-602-0507 or by email darcia99@earthlink.nel.

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Only comprehensive source specific to the set lithtint industry

For more information To find out more about The Feldenkrai Method contact: Feldenkrai Educational Foundation of orth America (FEF A) 3611 WHo d Avenue, uite 100 Portland, Oregon 97239 Phone 800-775-2118 Fax:503-221-6616 guild@feldenkrais.com www.feldenkrais .com

International Feldenkrais Federation 30 rue Monsieur le Prince 75006 Pari , France Telephone/fax 33-1-43-25-36-52

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than25

the Foxy i u ed a a platform or remote to get a dramatic hot off a cliff thi lightight, highgth crane can be et in any configuration by ju t one per on. The air tudio or track wheel allow you to u e the Foxy' ba e tran port cart as a tracking dolly and even a lightweight dolly. Thi mean the Foxy i 5 pieces of equipment.

The Hu y i a lightweight dolly that combines tate of the art de ign and manufacturing. Weighing ju t 60 pound it has a payload of 550 pound . The dolly fold for tran port into uch an ~:;:;.;iii~j â&#x20AC;˘ geniou folding po ition that it erve transport cart for your camera ca e bulky equipment. The Hu ky base for your tripod but &r.oc* tum tile can be

P

roComp camera filter eljminate pill and fringing. They help improve motion blur. and make hooting transparent and highly refle tive material ea ier.

They al o increa e the den ity of the matte which make keying-the proce enabling the pecial Effects Editor to receive a matte by picking the creen color and then replacing the creen with a new backgroundquicker and more traightforward.

Pro omp i manufactured in two color -magenta for green creen and red for blue creen. The e color reduce pill on the foreground object and counterbalance the grey and white o there i no green or blue light in the foreground object. !Sec and 2Scc refer to different level of color correction. !Sec hould be u ed on every blue or green creen hoot. It will help you to get a good key in every ca e and will en ure all the elements are in place for you to create good compo ite .

2Scc hould be u ed for really difficult hot uch a very reflective material , heavy motion blur, watertank hot and badly or awkwardly lit, poorly flagged studio ituation . erman inematographer Kay MacKenneth tated, "A very unlikely

Without ProComp Filter

Ghost pictures: blue screen, motte, and result. These are a worst case scenario because of reflection .

16

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: BLUE SCREEN GREEN SCREEN

With 2Scc ProComp Filter

Without Pro(omp Filter

With 2Scc Pro(omp Filter

been explained in the 'black pattern' ection above. In blue or green creen, reflected light ca u e refraction in the len y tem with a lot of blue or green light hitting the len . Thi create a level of'diffu ion' in the blue or green and thi appear in the image as spill on the foreground object . The ilvering in the urface of Pro omp work again t the e light waves in the len y tem. As the silvering i et at an angle, it i able to catch

Don't white balance lor the filters. Correct the color cast alter the comp.

Motion blur: green screen, matte and result without and with the ProComp filter. mi take in u ing Pro omp ftlter i to color correct the image, either by color balancing the image with video or turning out the filter color in the color correction in telecine or pirit.lf the color i illuminated the effect and the benefit of the ft.lter i lost.

The u e of LScc or 25cc i ubjective and houJd be decided by the individual Director of Photography. When shooting blue or green creen, the light reflecting around the tage can cau e a lot of problem , especially in full blue or green tage where the floor is the same color as the creen.

"There are a number of way of keeping reflected light from flaring into the lens, including etting up flags which block out any parts of the creen that are not being

u ed or by putting ma k onto the matte box. However, the e methods do not keep all the reflected light away from the len ystem which i where pill occur .

"The black pattern on the urface of the filter acts to flag and mask the lens from the reflected screen light. lt ' train ' the amount of blue or green light and blocks it, allowing only the traight light rays to pa s through. The different den itie of pattern are de igned for different focal length . The longer the focal length of the len , the higher the grade and the denser the pattern. If a zoom is required from wide to long or vi a ver a, the denity of filter for the horte t len focal length should be u ed.

"The problem of light refraction ha

the ambient light of the tage. 1t picks the light up and throw a 'flare' of neutral light into the optic which 'wa he ' the blue or green refraction and neutrali e it." hooting a few te ts for ProComp filters, Director of Photography eoff Boyle B kept te ting until he reali ed he was working again t the filter ' design. "I met with Kay, the designer, and his instructions were 'Don't white balance for the filter . orrect the color ca t after the comp.'

"U ing 'one click' keying with Ultimatte we could get a good key with the filter on hot that without it needed a lot of manual intervention. Weal o te ted plain' keyers as well and they showed the rune improvement. ow our hot on film and video clearly hawed the benefit of the Pro omp filter . All hot are imply 'one click' keyed by pickjng the creen color and not manipulating any other etting .

"The e exrunple like the gho t or the fish are worst ca e cenario. Why? The foreground water tank' gla act a a mirror and reflect the blue or green creen back onto the foreground object, in these ca es where the gho t and the fi hare. [Fish pictllres are 011 page 19.]

One can ee clearly within the matte and there ult the improvement Pro omp filters give to the image.

"A common ituation is shooting motion blur a we did in the hot with the ba ketbaJJ playe r. Thi image would cau e a lot of trouble due to the motion and the blurred edge cau ed in the image by the fa t movement called motion blur. The image hot with Pro omp filters i bowing more detail

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: BLUE SCREEN GREEN SCREEN

17

and capture all detail in the motion."

When the "creatives" at The Hi tory hannel came up with the idea of hooting a eries using old black & white Movietone footage, they decided to u e green creen to compo e actor in period o twne with camera equjpment of the day.

However, thi pre en ted Director Chri Purcell with a number

Without ProComp Filter

With 2Scc Pro(omp Filter

With ProComp, the spill was suppressed substantially and there was a marked improvement in the level of fringing. of problem ' not the lea t of wruch wa the highly reflective nature of many of the camera prop being u ed. The e created large pill area where the green light reflected onto the prop from the background and floor. hris knew he would be facing a difficult time in po tproduction.

As ciate Producer on the hoot Paul Darter mentioned that he had recently read ab uta blue and green creen filter produced by Formatt and sugge ted they give it a try. Formatt upplied the Hi tory hannel with a complete et of Pro omp Green creen Filter and the benefit were noticed immediately on the live reference key provided by the tudio. With Pro omp, the pill wa uppre ed ub tantially and there was a marked improvement in the level of fringing.

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Director of Photography Roy Wagner A u ed the filters and commented, "The Pro omp filter are a very efficient tool to acrueve improvements on hooting green or blue creen. But in addition I believe that Kay MacKenneth has

A light collimator directs the light before it hits the first element of glass in the lens set.

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built a light collimator. It direct the light before it hit the fir t element of gla in the len et, much like a strruner would do to water. The light pa ing to the fir t element i collimated po ibly makillg it more coherent in nature. Thi could affect the len e 'ability to focus pecific light rays more accurately. Thi can be very u eful for hooting HD beca use it will give m re detail and definition."

Technically viewed thi i een in lookillg at a hi togram of an image shot with the filter . Every ingle R B color i pitched and is more defined which a ure that ea h pixel in the image is more defined and therefore more definition i achieved. erman Director of Photography and Vi ual Effects upervi or Kay MacKenneth has de igned and patented thi new unjque tool for hooting blue and green creen.

Formatt UK has taken the licen e and i now di tributing this glass camera filter aU over the world. ets of Pro omp Filters have been I a ned out to major companies in the U and anada uch a lairm nt, Panavi ion , White and For-A- nada.

For further contact and updated information, you can reach Kay MacKenneth at Formatt UK, c/o Interaktion GmbH, Thalkirchner tr. 210, D-81371 Munich or contact him at www. filmspecialeffects .de

18

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: BLUE SCREEN GREEN SCREEN

Without Pro(omp Filter

With 1Sec ProComp Filter

With 2Scc ProComp Filter

Fish : another worst case scenario because the glass of the water tank reflects the green screen back onto the foreground object, in this case, the fish . Green screen , matte, and result side by side comparisons show just how much spill is reduced when using the 15cc and 25cc ProComp filters and how much denser the matte is with each filter.

Two books by William E Hines,

soc: OPERATING CINEMATOGRAPHY for FILM & VIDEO "... include a wide diver ity of es entiat information ... on- et protocol, working with other craft , and hot management."

-Dean undey, A JOB DESCRIPTIONS for FILM, VIDEO & CGI, 5 th ed.

The original and authoritative ource for the re pon ibilitie and dutie of more than 250 film, video & computer graphic craft classifications.

Both books are available at cinema and video booksellers or order direct from ED-VENTURE FILMS/BOOKS, P 0 Box 93841, Pasadena, CA 91109-3841 phone (818) 242-2189;

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THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: BLUE SCREEN GREEN SCREEN

19

Taking the Guesswork Out of Telecine

By George B Stephenson, SOC

ames Bartle i the inventor of Pi can Film Leader y temâ&#x201E;˘, the film to tape transfer sy tem for telecine. He i an experienced Director of Photography in hi own right, not imply a "technophile" a one might expect.

Born in Australia, Jame began working a a lighting de igner and cinematographer in ew Zealand, and currently works both in the U and abroad. After working in the commercial field for ome time he leaned toward dramatic film and wa more intere ted in the nature of Light a a subtext and it effect

J

Bartle developed a system which ultimately spans the gap between photochemical and photo-digital technology. on human nature. a Director of Photography, Bartle shared the continual fru tration of inaccurate dailie from telecine with other DP . ece ity being the mother of invention, he began developing a y tem which ultimately pans the gap between photochemical and photo-digital technology. " Pic canFL T>< (film leader system)

20

James Bortle, father of the Picscon Film leader Systemâ&#x201E;˘, AKA PicsconFlS.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: TELECINE

allow you an exact footprint from your film negative to telecine tape tran fer permitting telecine to read ba e plu fog den ity. o one ha ever been able to do that," Bartle explain . "It' a key element in the conver ion of the negative' density to R B of the Digital imaging y tern and ensure no exce ive 'lift' or compre ion which may lo e delicate diffuion or on- et moke atmo phere .

"Director of Photography tend to ay, 'It' on the negative, why can't you find

You can use telecine gamma as a virtual printer light and at any exposure index you prefer. it?' and telecine operator ay, 'What do you want to ee?'

"Telecine y tern have no et calibration like film lab timer have with their timing light . With this y tern, you can u e telecine gamma a a virtual printer light and at any expo ure index you prefer."

The Pic canFL TM consi ts of a hinged color/a pect ratio-framing chart which e entially eliminate the need for conventional gray cale chart hot at the head of each roll. A complete et of in truction accompanie the chart on an

interactive CD-ROM. The cinematographer hoot the Pi can chart during a preproduction te t period. Each film tock and Lighting condition require a epa rate film leader which i then provided to the telecine operator, allowing telecine to et up and reproduce tl1e negative without interpretation. Thi prove a tremendou advantage for TV erie DP who rarely have time to attend telecine e ion after long day on the et. For feature DP on di tant locations the y tern' advantage are obviou . For telecine Pic can allow ea y accurate acce to tile image on the negative related to coloration and expo ure with no black cru rung or exce sive black etup. Timing become fa ter and ea ier allowing finer work within the time re traint .

The chart it elf put a wealth of critical information for the color timer into the leader, including expo ure index, laboratory preference , and telecine gamma control. Of equal importance, the Pic can Leader tay with the product for future timing, format reference and for centering when etting the production title . Additional color and contra t value can be in luded in the Picscan etup enabling pecial I ok to be applied contantly to the daily tran fer .

In case telecine operator might have the impre ion that their re pon ibility i

The PicscanFLS Aspect Chart puts a wealth of critical information far the color timer into the leader, including exposure index, laboratory preferences, and telecine gamma control.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: nLECINE

21

everely limited by thi y tern, nothing could be farther from the truth. The collaborative effort on the part of the tetecine operator and the cinematographer

PicscanFLSâ&#x201E;˘allows for a much more effective method of communication between the two crafts. are of paramount importance during preproduction, production and po tpr du tion.

Pic canF ,.., imply allow for a much more effective method of communication between the two crafts. It do e the gap between photochemical imaging and digital imaging, re ulting in the replication of the final print look and reproduction of tl1i look from the negative for dailie ' viewing on any digital format.

Editor's note: Though this article may tend be of more value for Diredors of Photography than Camera Operators, I've included it in Operating ameraman magazine as I feel all cinematographic information can be of use to us. Many of you are on the verge of or at/east contemplating that ever elusive transition to Director of Photography and thus this type of technical information should be of interest to you.

At the least. how manv of vou ooerators

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RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY

From Will & Grace crew: DP Tony Askins ASC, operator Gary Baum, l st assistant Vito DePalma, operator Trav Hill, loader Joe Cypher, l st assislanl Brian Armstrong .

& CAMERA OPERATOR 16th in the Series

Multiple Camera Situation

by Gary Baum SOC PHOTOS BY CHRISTOPHER L HASTON

ony A kin A is a two time Em my award winner for hi work on Will & Grace. I fir t met him on the et of tep by tep in 1990 when I wa a fir t a i tant cameraman filling in on a day call. Having ju t completed the jake and the Fatnw11 eries run, I had not worked on a multiple camera how before. Mo t of my et time a a fir t a i tant had been on epi odic televi ion and feature .

After the audience how the neA"t evening, Tony thanked the crew for a good h wand aid that we'd keep in touch. The next week Tony called, aid there wa an opening, and a ked if I'd like to join hi crew a AI Bettcher' fir t a i tant on the rna ter camera. Having

T

24

een Al' work on one of my favorite film , Blade Runner, and briefly experiencing Tony' et, I aid" !"

Three year later Bettcher retired and a ked if I would like to move up. I had trepidation of course, not knowing then

On sitcoms the operators must be attentive to the rehearsals, and communicate with the director as a team. that Al had been trajning me by example to be an operator and that Tony had already cleared my promo6on with the

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: DP/OPERATOR

producer and the director, Joel Zwick (My Big Fat Greek Wedding). kin reminded me, ' Bill orton r moved me up from as i tant to operator on Laverne and hirley. Arnie Rich wa my operator then, and he gave me the be t upport you can get."

Joel wa very fa t in hi blocking and wa very preci e with regard to what he wanted. That wa to my benefit a there were no gray areas to grapple with.

Tony wa very upportive. He let me find my own way and told me ju t to do the very be t that I could and above all to be hone t. kin add : " n itcom the operator mu t be attentive to the rehear al , and communicate with the djrector a a team. I try to keep out of the way; that i the mo t efficient way I can concentrate on the lighting without worrying about the interaction between the director and camera crew."

Will & Grace i a broad fa t-paced comedy with high energy. }ame Burr w direct aU of the epi ode , now counting over J 20. oming from theatre, Burrow u e the entire et which i quite large, with a tor running up tage to down tage, in and out of door . Hi fa t pace

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of working spills over to the crew too which really keep the scene ' coverage intere ting.

He ee how the whole how wiJJ cut in hi head before the camera crew even arrives on the et. Working extremely fa t, he can block a typical how in about 31h hours! He not only works fast but will change your coverage within your cene two or three time u ing line cues and re et . Thi way he can hoot a

whole how without going back for pick-ups.

As a four camera crew we have been together over 10 year . We have a mutual re pect for one another and rely on teamwork in order to achieve our common goal of putting together the be t how we pos ibly can. While blocking the how, the operator have to be Askins' "extra eye ,"looking out for mike hadow , len flare , and potential et

constraints. We compo e for 4:3; however we mu t al o protect for I 6:9. Burrow expect everything to be perfect the fir t time which can be demanding on a crew, but everyone enjoy the energy and commitment that he provide .

Getting those unrehearsed shots during a live performance is the most fun lor the camera operators and crew.

On show day we rehearse the program -which u ually con i t of over twelve individual cenes-one time through.

This allows the actor time before the evening filming, keeping them fre h and well re ted. A kin i right there on the et taking our note a well a his, o that he can fine tune the lighting during our break. He frequently works through hi dinner break to make thing ju t right. hoot night i where the real fun begins. Everyone i on the floor: Tony, the camera crew, the till photographer, and many other , ob erving. We normally do only two passes on each scene. The fir t take i u ually a rehear ed, complete with re et , line cue , what have you. n take two, Burrow will frequently pull you over in the middle of rolling to grab a hot he ju t thought of, or more likely had planned. If you are on a rna ter, he wiJJ ay, "Baum, get me a single of Debra, bring her to a two hot with ean, a nice two, and after Eric ays, 'I told you go back to how marks." My a i tant Vito De Palma and my dolly grip Ray Ochoa know intuitively where to go on the fly without any further explanation and get it done perfectly. They are ju t great. Jim Burrows expects thi from everyone, and he gets it. Getting tho e unrehear ed hot during a live performance i the most fun for the camera operators and crew.

Askin notes: "Jimmy (Burrow ) like to keep rolling, re etting when he can, to keep the audience and the actor in the moment. We utilize the 2000 foot magazine that we fir t te ted when we did Tile Family Man. Twenty-two minute without reloading i a big plu ."

Burrow will watch the action from all angles, e chewing the quad plit monitor.

o:

26

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: DP/OPERATOR

Some Will & Grace crew. BoHom Row: David Tolsky, 1 st assistant; Glenn Shimada , operator; Gory Bourn; Trov Hill; Brion Armstrong, Vito DePalma . Top row: John Greene, gaffer; Julie Fleisher, script supervisor.

After he yell " ut!" he will a k, " How wa it, boy ?" reater tru tin your crew i rare. n According to jim, we u e the 24P digital format. Tony ha to keep an eye on the HD monitor for lighting. He can't be looking directly at the et while we are blocking a much a he would Like to.

While the pace of this how i different, the blocking pro es remain the sa me.

As an operator, I prefer lo king through

the eyepiece, a oppo ed to the on board morutor, even though it i a black and white video image. Framing is of cour e the ame. However, the video image i only 16:9. There i n't the luxury of viewing in full aperture a you would in a reflex film camera. The plit econd choice you have eeing peripherally doe n't exi t.

The black and white monitor aJ o makes it more difficult to ee boom hadow and et edge . One po itive a pect i that

Vito DePalma , Gory Bourn , dolly grip Roy Ochoa .

regardle of the light level a video image i easy to see.

With Panavi ion's upport we have learned to work with the new digital equipment. We make it work. A Tony ay , "The re ult will always be the ame: we get the job done with the equipment that is given to u ."

Gory Bourn with director James Burrows.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: DP/OPERATOR

27

Operators on Operating

by Georgia

28

Packard , SOC

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: OPERATORS ON OPERATING

he American Film Ln titute recently held a 10 year celebration creening and eminar for Visions of Light. ancy chrieber, who hot the documentary, and five of tho e cinematographer interviewed: John Bailey A , La zlo Kova A , Vilmo Zsigmond A , Ha keU Wexler A , and Michael hapman gave an wer and in ight to their work behind the camera. A barrage of que tion continued that evening, behind the cene and at the A lubhou e, a king more pecifically about their key moment a operator . Here are orne excerpt to kick off an ongoing conver ation with amera perators on perating. =l>

T

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Technology in Motion

"In the beginning, all there was was the guy with the camera.

There were no directors, there was nothing. There was iust the guy who would shoot the Camera.II -STEPHEN BURUM, opening quote from the dow

tary)

Silent films and the Europeans early on had cranes that went on for ever and ever. They had these kinds of rigs rigged overhead in the studios. This was all a very inventive business they had going on. They had a fluid camera that would just go on and on. While we have the Panaglides now and Steadicam, they were doing that same thing way back in 1926 with Abe Gance's Napoleon when they were moving the camera all over.

-CHARLES o RosHER Or on WeUe and Gregg Toland were both gambler and that' where the mo t extraordinary stuff came through- in that gambling.

-PETER DEMI G

The mysterl of an~les and the grammar o shots m a scene are still the key. These are important tools to learn. I know: I got to watch a genuine artist at work every day, Gordon Willis. This is a man who is as good as it gets. He made a craft into an art. In 1968 Gordon got an offer to do a feature and asked me to change my card and become an operator. It turned out to be a smart move ..â&#x20AC;˘ So all the first movies he did which made him famous, I did, like The Godfather and Klute. There I was turning the wheels and looking through the camera.

-

30

Roman Polan ki had a magnificent background in photography. He underland image , and a] o people and emotion . He wa tied to emotion .

There i a hot in Rosemary's Baby where Ruth Gordon a ks "Where' the telephone?" and Mia Farrow ay "In the bedroom." Roman aid "Billy, give me a POV." When I'd got them framed perfectly, you could ee her on the phone talking. I said " Roman, we're ready! " He came over and looked and aid" o, no, Billy, no. More, more, more ... " We moved the camera and I looked through and aw ju t the back of Ruth ordon eated on the bed. And you couldn't ee her face talking. I aid, "But you can't ee her." And Roman aid "Exactly!" ow we go to the theatre and 800 people in the theatre all [lean way to one ide] to see around the door jamb.

That's Roman Polan ki!

-WILLIA I FRAKER

I wa Connie Hall's operator for 5 year and we did orne really great things back then . Helping me to make mi take acceptable, especially to the tudio head , by using them, blatantly. If a light howed in the len and flared, that was considered a mi take.

The operator had to report that, "Oh, the un hit the len and -WILLIMI FRAKER flared. Ut!" It takes an artist' eye to recognize a "happy accident." And a "happy accident" only happens when you are looking for it in a certain way and when you are trained to see it. What Connie Hall was talking about was when the rain came down and got on [Robert Blake' ) face.

Connie had the eye to actually that and incorporate it. (In Cold Blood) -MIOIAEI.. CHAPMAN

I think the film of the French ew Wave reaUy influenced me the mo t.

They captured the sen e of the life, which i wonderful, by loo ening up the camera and moving with it. They would not think anything about picking up the camera and running with it.

Conrad Hall says it the best: 111 think visually. If you turn down the volume and you are still able to follow ttie story with pictures, then we've done our 1ob as best we can."-WAllY PFlmR We hot one hour of Ne tor Almendro .

He in i ted, "I won't do the interview unle s I can it with the camera."

The art of filmmaking is really a collaborative art. I think the closest collaborator of the director is the cinematographer because we actually create the images of what they are imagining in their heads, what the story should look like, and we put it up on the screen.

- LASZLO KOVA

¡ IODERATOR TODD M

RTHY

e tor's operator on Days of tho e image from the clip hold a tremendou en e of no talgia f, r me. I realize no matter how big the h t was, how mu h information there was in the background, they were all real human being in pace and time and were aU real human weat and blood with the energy it took to create them.

-IOH BAIL!:.!'

l wa

Heaven

Gregg Toland did a film for John Ford, The Grapes of Wrath, which had a very natural feel to it, almost a documentary reality. You could take frames from the movie and put them right alongside the WPA photographs of Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange and Doris Ullman or anytiody. It's really hard to tell the diHerence. -JOH aAJuv

MICHAEL CHAPMAN

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: OPERATORS ON OPERATING

At the time we made Visions of Light, I think a lot of us were able to hear our colleagues speak in detail and with an eloquence and articulateness that astounded us. Seeing it ten years later I realize what a watershed it is.

It ~ives cinematographers a vo1ce and allows the rest of the world to see how deliberate and conscious cinematographers are abOUf the WOrk. - JOHN BAILEY inematographer Ueli teiger A called me in a an additional operator on Rock tar. l had to tay low on two section of track at the foot of the tage o a not to be een by the other camera . We watched a half- peed rehear al with verbal note on pyro and light cue while the standin walked an abbreviation of the ong. A extra were added I tried to place them around my hot, make timing corrections and et up hand ignal to my doUy grip.

Blaring music cued the cene a Mark Walhberg waggered hi amazing entrance onto the tage and we were off.

The performance wa electric a we collectively danced behind the len , spotlighting Mark' rhythm and energy.

The next day' work tarted with dailie . ote were going on in the back a director teven Herek wa earching for all the piece he wanted. uddenly I heard, " h my od! Who e camera i that?" The room hu hed a up on the creen my hot wa ilently playing out. " It' mine, Georgia' ." My face flu hed a I felt that current of exhilaration aU over again.

-GEOR lA PACKARD

Easy Rider wa a very free-form film. A lot of improvi ation. Becau e you can improvi e with a camera a much a an actor can improvi e with a cene. Y, u can shoot a cene o many different way . With a camera an actor can perform differently and o on. I think the Easy Rider vi ual were very important in term of what I wa trying to how.

Get an ambiance for the c two character . how the country. how the beauty and magnificence of thi country, how - LASZLO K VA .. gorgeou .

Touch of Evil u ed the Camaflex lightweight European camera ( 1957). Phil Lathrop wa a young enthusia tic operator who wa very into hand-holding the camera and working with Or on Welle on the compo ition . You look at the scene and you realize how much hand-holding is done on the film that extraordinary and seamJe .

- AilE

DAVIA

I reaUy dete t the idea that we cannot do omething on the et becau e digitally they wilJ be able to do it. I don't reaUy believe tl1at. That in po t-production you can for example do as good a job capturing a scene that get the etting un. I think it can come very do e to it but it will co t ten tin1e a much to do it that way. o why not do the real thing? Why don't we do movie the way we u ed to do them when we had enough time to do thing ?

I'll give you a very good example of what you're calling the new style in the '60s: Robert Surtees' Tlie Graduate. All the reviews shouted "Real! Fresh! Innovative!

New Cinematography! Blah, blah, blah." The film was shot by a 65 year old man.

Because you have new tools, the cinematographer is the kind of person who is always pushing, ex~loring. You want to get yourself in trouble and then see how well you can get yourself OUf of if.

-STIPHIN IURU

I am vulgarly proud of my operating. I've got The Godfather and Jaws to show for it One very classical and the other almost all hand-held I had a wonderful time.

Jaws, once we got on the boat, is almost all hand-held-so it was like a sporting event every day.

We'd go out on a Boston whaler; I would pick up the camera and operate.

There was no Steadicam and no video tap, so they had to listen to what I said because I was the only person who saw everything. And it was genuinely fun because, like a sport, it was a challenge every day and I had a .300 season!

I did it hanging off the mast, all over the boat, anywhere and everywhere! You look at Jaws and see that's operating! I admit this is self-serving, but I was real good -MICHAEL CHAPMAN

This pa t ummer and faU I had the honor and privilege of being Michael hapman' "K perator on a darkJy dramatic film about a erial killer, uspect Zero, ituated in ew Mexico.

Michael tate above that he i "vuJgarly proud" of his operating skill when he was in hi prime. AdmittedJy happy operated the lion' hare of thi film but whenever there wa a particuJarly challenging h t he wouJd cry out: "Where' George?! " Though not alway in hi peripheral vi ion I wa alway viewing hi work on the ound mixer' ony flat creen monitor a it wa uperior to the monitor in video village. I wouJd leap forth with enthu ia m and execute the hot with my own ver ion of unpretentiou verve and acumen.

He'd forgotten that my very first production operating job wa on a movieof-the-week which he directed. Talk about being intimidated!

As I earned Chappy' confidence in my ability behind the len he delegated more and more of the work to me. He does hate to relinqui h the "be t job in the bu ine " though.

EOR E TEPHENSO

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: OPERATORS ON OPERATING

=ÂŁ:>

31

ta e more

My key moment operating? I wa 1ttmg atop a Titan camera crane in mid- ummer 1976 in uthern Alberta, Canada, for the late and beloved cinematographer estor Almendro . The film wa Days of Heaven.

The cene wa the arrival of a convoy of worker and immigrant at am hepard ' ranch to harvest the ummer wheat. e t r wa tanding next to me at eye level a the a i tant director cued the extras and vehicles to move along the dirt road. The camera framed the ornate gate, beyond which the road dropped down to an open prairie and in the distance, atop a ri e, sat in plendid i olation the very Hoppere que main hou e. othing but the gate wa vi ible from camera level.

A the convoy naked through the gate and down the ri e, the camera ro e in one of tho e ethereal arcing lifts that-while dramatic on the cinema screen-take your breath away if you are the per on itting behind the camera, eye in the tube, feeling the weep of the move in the very core of your being. How many of you know what I'm talking about? Yes. That' the point. After Terence Malick called cut and the camera came back down to the ground, he and e tor a ailed me. "How wa it?" Thi of cour e wa in the day before video a i t became tandard, before anyone taring at a IS-inch monitor in video vilJage thought he knew what the camera operator wa doing. I aid omething pretty lame like "You can do it again, but it'll never be better." What I felt, my heart till pounding, wa " I'll never have thi moment again, but it' there on film forever."

- JOJJ BAILEY

32

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: OPERATORS ON OPERATING

I worked for James Wong Howe on a econd unit camera on a picture called Picnic. I remember the la t hot of the film which wa a helicopter hot. Helicopter weren't being u ed for photography [then]. One of the key moment in my life wa when the dailie came on, which wa about three day later. It wa Cinema cope at the time. It wa quite pectacular, e pecially to an audience who wa n't u ed to eeing helicopter hot . Jimmy aid to me, ''Ahh, very good! Very good!" So even now when I hoot and do a hot that I really like, I ay in my ear the way Jimmy Howe aid to me, "Ahh, very good! Very good!" ( miling) -HASKELL\ f.XUR

the happy occasion when it all comes together, a successfully operated shot is like a well imfrovised, deeply satisfying jazz solo/ -DAN GoLD ~ Right: Wes Craven , director of Cursed, takes a look through the lens as Operator Dan Gold and Dolly Grip Bill Wynn stand by. Far right: Georgia Packard SOC ready on " B" camera .

On the set of Cursed, a new anamorphic horror film from Eclipse Productions Inc currently being filmed in Los Angeles . Above : Cinematographer John Bailey ASC, Director Wes Craven , " A" Camera Operator Dan Gold and 1st AD Nick Mastandrea (with Dolly Grip Bill Wynn in the background) are discussing a shot. Crew members not shown on this page : "A " Camera Technician Peter Kuttner, 2nd Assistant Matt Moriarty and Loader Kelly Krotine; "B" Camera Technician Loren Yaconelli and 2nd Assistant Melissa Roth ; Steodicam Operator Andy Shuttleworth. Rick Baker and his Cinovation team are creating the special make-up effects for the story's werewolves .

Skeet Ulrich has a leading role in Wes Craven 's Cursed, written by Kevin Williamson .

Christina Ricci witnesses one of the many eerie accidents in Cursed. Jesse Eisenberg (background) co-stars .

PHOTOS BY ERIC LEE

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: OPERATORS ON OPERATING

33

Frome grabs, kitchen set: wide shot of Cop 1 searching for food; Old Man and Killer at kitchen table (actually a 2nd set for reverse angles).

by Mark R Leins PHOTOS BY RYAN VANISKI AND MARK R LEINS COURTESY OF BRILLIG PRODUCTIONS, LLC

C

areer moves come in many sizes.

Ours are about a foot taU, with a macabre sense of humor. They're Puphedz, and they've taken over our lives. It's kind of an alien invasion, but aliens don't usually make us laugh.

"Puphedz" is a deliberately misspelled contraction of"puppet head ,"inspired by the oversized heads of our puppets. It

The DVD packaging Mark created for the first Puphedz feature, "The Tattle-Tole Heart."

34

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PUPHEDZ

is also a unique and catchy name that could be easily trademarked. The difficulty in pronouncing it correctly led us to the Monty Python-esque tagline: "Not puffedz, you idiot! Pup-hedz!" People appear to enjoy the dry humor.

It eems in the film business you have to make your own breaks. About three year ago a couple of colleagues and I decided it wa time to attempt ours. We needed a project that would leverage our as ets, talents and available resources.

As kids we were enthralled by the magic of puppet shows.

I can remember being glued to the television screen watching Gerry Anderson's "Thunderbird "-filmed in Supermarionation-which u ed marionettes and really cool miniature sets.

This eemed the logical choice for us and would be something well within our abilities. My colleagues work in the effects end of the business and would be able to bring their considerable skills in miniature design and fabrication to bear.

I would concentrate on not only the cinematography, but also the graphic design needed

Moon Dude; the Old Man featuring the large spinning eye; Sun Dude hanging from a deliberately very visible length of twine.

Frame grab of the asylum set.

Cop # l searches the pantry for edibles.

Cop # l sits down to his feast while his partner searches the rest of the house.

for the show's companion Web site {www.puphedz.com) and eventual DVD packaging.

The basic concept for the "Puphedz" involves a zany troupe of wooden puppet performer who travel the country ide in their theatre-on-wheels cart. The cart is pulled along by Pjorn (Actor Clayton Martinez), the only live action character in the how. Each epi ode involves the puppets performing an extremely skewed, darkly humored adaptation of a classic horror story and i wrapped with the cart's approach and departure equence .

The first "Puphedz" show tackle Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell- Tale Heart," which the "Puphedz" have re-titled "The Tattletale Heart." The story involves a young man who is driven to homicidal madne s by the hideous eye of the old man with whom he live . The young man ultimately kills the old man, dismembering the body and burying it beneath the floor of the old man's bedroom. Two policemen

are summoned by neighbors to inve tigate the noise of the cuffle. They find nothing out of order and converse with the young man. As the bantering progresses the young man begin to hear the heartbeat of the old man. The beating become deafening to the point of driving him to confes ion.

The "Puphedz" cript follows the same story line, but quashes, like a wily coyote, any real terror under an anvil of bad jokes, puns, sight gags, and pratfalls. Although the original Poe tory is a period piece, ours is neutral in era.

For "Tattle-tale Heart," there are four puppet "cast" members with new ones to be introduced in future epi ode . They are Woodrow J Larchbottom lii ("The Killer"), Douglas "Chip" Fir ("Cop One"), Leif Applebaum ("Cop Two") and Peter Feidwood ("The Old Man"). As the puppets are uppo ed to be constructed of wood, the names are puns derived from things wooden. For example, Peter

Feidwood spoken quickly, with a Ru ian accent, sounds like "petrified wood," alluding to the fact he' the elderly cast member, although not neces arily Russian.

The director, my friend Jurgen Heimann, has worked for over a decade under Rick Baker, the makeup effects guru responsible for such work in The NuNy Professor, Men in Black and the forthcoming Cursed. Jtirgen brought to tl1e "Puphedz" hi experience with fabricating the intricate mechani ms in large- cale puppets as well as having to puppeteer them. In addition, he wrote, directed, financed and produced "The Tattle-tale Heart."

A makeup effects colleague of Jurgen' , Jim Kundig came on board to co-write the cript, help puppeteer and carry out some of the floor effect .

Another friend, Ryan Vani ki, helped con truct props and ets, improvi e routines and puppeteer. He also provided the voice for "The Killer." ~

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PUPHEDZ

35

Mark Leins films Clayton Martinez as the cart puller for the opening and closing sequences.

head and eye movement and blinks via an articulated handgrip at the base of a control rod e>-.1ending from the puppet's body. Ultimately, the eye blink were controlled with ervos via remote control, which made for le s tre on the puppeteer and allowed us to have fewer people crammed under the floor of the et.

Once the puppet armature were con tructed, the body part were culpted in clay, and mold cast for the final piece . Each torso component wa actually a two-piece hell that would be attached to the puppet armature. Rather

and etting light and - tand .

The stage and et were relatively small and I could ea ily maneuver our limited gear. I have to admit I found it rather cathartic working in such a hand -on manner, at least on thi mall a scale.

Bottom line, three or four people carried out the majority of the work with filming and puppeteer duty, a well as et , props and puppet construction. Jim Kundig dresses the foreground miniature, blending it with the desert floor.

The fir t priority was getting the puppets built. De igning than u e fabric for the puppet' and con tructing them proved challengwardrobe, the clothing wa culpted a ing for Jurgen and Ryan, particularly the part of each body piece. Thi made it Feidwood ("Old easier to clean the shell after equences Man") puppet. It involving fake blood. A colleague of would have an over)urgen's, Mark Killingsworth took on the ized, pinning eyetask of painting all of the puppet part to ball painted with a make them look like wood and clothing.

"Vertigo"-in pired To allow the puppet to emote, everal piral. Thi rotating eyebrow, mu tache and mouth piece mechanism comwere created which could be temporarily bined with the eye affixed to the appropriate puppet with blink functions mu eum wax. Any in- hot change from required some meticone emotion to another would be hanulou fabricating o dled in po t with Avid Technology' a not to inhibit the Elastic Reality. pinning function.

To make the puppets gesticulate, conInitially, all control trol rod were attached to location on for the puppet were the arm and legs. The rods, in turn, accomplished with would be removed from the footage in cable . The puppeteer po t u ing Adobe AfterEffect . From Ji.irgen Heimann works on set design, creating the Puphedz' house. would operate all jorge Falconi handled all PR and marketing, making sure we got noticed by the right people.

Rounding out the rest of the crew proved initially difficult a we filmed primarily on weekends-folks' valuable R&R and family time. More than anyone el ewe needed puppeteer . )ilrgen had profe ional colleagues who offered to lend a hand a needed. As the project progre ed and people saw our footage, we gradually gained a volunteer pool of puppeteers.

The lighting, grip and camera department consisted solely of me. )ilrgen and Ryan helped out a needed, but for the mo t part J found my elf pulling cable

36

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PUPHEDZ

Ryan Vaniski laying floor planks in the "Killer's" bedroom set.

de ign to completion, the puppets alone were a five-month project.

As the puppets were coming together, )i.irgcn and I considered equipment option . One thing we didn't want to do was eek favor or worry about re erving and picking up gear when it wa time to hoot. For thi reason we decided that our production entity, Brillig Productions LL would inve t in some minimal grip, electric and camera equipment.

The camera would be the anon XL-I. From a monetary standpoint, the MiniDV format wa the only way we could get thi project completed. Film and proce sing were financially out of the question. The puppets ultimately proved o difficult to manipulate that we had to leave the camera rolling for extended period while the puppeteer repeatedly went through the motion to get their rhythm.

The XL-I came standard with a 16: I 5.5mm-88mm zoom len . As production progre ed we acquired two other lenses: the 3:1 3.4mm-10.2mm zoom and the 14:1 5.7mm-80mm manual zoom. The 3: 1 wide-angle zoom wound up being the len of choice to enhance the dynamic of the angular ets and othenvi e distort per pective. It al o allowed us to get in tight on the puppet and create the illuion of depth in the et.

The XL-I came with it own set of factory-installed idio yncrasies. A particularly annoying feature wa the "standby" mode. If we were lighting or rehear ing for an extended period of time, the camera would imply hut off.

Ultimately, we got around this by ejecting the tape, a tip handed to u by a colleague familiar with thi problem. The

new model, the XL-I , ha addre ed manipulation from above.

A painted ky backdrop wa created on thi as well a other i sue . Of cour e, ome mu lin and puffy clouds made we couldn't benefit from thi upgrade from polyfiber hung with monofilament. because Canon doe n't ell ju t the With all the e item in place, there wa camera body. You have to buy a barely enough pace left to place lights. whole new package. I ues with the All total there were twelve ets: foreXL-I aside, we adapted and moved ground tree miniature, hou e exterior, right along. Bottom line: it delivered chimney exterior, chimney interior, what we needed. kitchen, attic, hallway, foyer, "Killer' " The Ia t thing purcha ed wa a minimal grip and lighting package. We obtained a few C-stand , flag and lights. The rest of our package wa supplemented with gear owned by fellow 0 member Greg Collier, who allowed us to hold on to hi tuff indefinitely.

Our ound stage, more like a closet, was a small covered patio attached to )tirgen' garage. It wa cramped, but erved the purpo e and was ideal in that we could leave things et up between hoot .

Mark Leins checks the lighting before a shot.

We wrapped the perimeter with black plastic Vi quine bedroom, "Old Man' " bedroom, fire(painter' drop cloth) to block out any daylight. The et were elevated allowing a place and "Old Man's" bathroom. ets were built by eye to order. These conpuppeteer access through the floor. A struction periods tretched our filming four-foot high tabletop stage, mea uring days out over the cour e of three year of ix feet by ix feet, wa con tructed along weekends. ~ with an overhead gantry rig for character

'''

'

f f

The Puphedz stage allowed the puppeteer to sit beneath it during filming .

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PUPHEDZ

37

The Puphedz stage, showing the Canon XL-1, gantry rig , and lighting setup.

For the wraps-the only live action in the show- a full-size "Puphedz" puppet cart had to be built from the ground up.

Thi , again, stretched out over a month of weekends, with )tirgen, Jim, Ryan, and Gregg Quinn hammering and painting away. We hauled this wooden behemoth out to El Mirage dry lake, hitched up Clay Martinez (in cart puller costume), and spent a full day filming. Fellow OC member Ru ell Ofria loaned us a camera tabilizer for handheld filming of the sequences.

For editing, )tirgen built a custom Window NT-ba ed workstation witl1 two RAID hard drive arrays. A separate DV deck wa u ed to import the footage and dump the master for DVD replication.

I felt it important that )tirgen make rough edit as oon as possible after each weekend's shoot. With the chedule as !retched out as it was, continuity was going to be a challenge. The rough cut kept us on track and did indeed ave us a few times.

The how was edited with Adobe Premiere u ing Adobe AfterEffects for basic compo iting and wire and rod removal. ince we did not have the budget for tracking software, most of the show was photographed with a locked off camera. We made up for the static angle with copiou amounts of coverage, peeding up the pace with editing. We were careful

38

to hoot clean plates of each shot requiring rod removal to facilitate the proce in AE. Jtirgen generated an alpha channel matte via rotoscoping and blocked out the rods with the clean plate.

When we had the show locked, )tirgen and Ryan began to ADR the dialog using the guide track recorded during shooting.

Once completed, they proceeded to the tedious task of creating numerous sound effects tracks. At this point a VHS copy was sent off to our composer, Terry Man. [As a side note, Terry had apparently auditioned for the rock group KJ when they were first forming. There is a mention of this incident in the Gene Simmons autobiography.]

While )tirgen and Ryan worked out the sound track, I began designing the DVD menus. ince the di k's content would dictate the number of menu , we had to take a moment to decide ju t what to put on it.

We ended up with two edit for the how, one at 27 minutes and the other 34. We would have at least that much content. We didn't want to be pretentious with the project, but felt there hould at least be some variety to justify the purchase price of the DVD. Ryan decided to produce and shoot a small behind-the- cenes pre s junket piece, which was done over the course of a weekend. )tirgen created a small slide show complete with background music, doing offbeat things like intentionally placing an image on its ide or upside down. As the slide show progre e , the images

The attic set of the Puphedz house was used for only one shot, no coverage.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PUPHEDZ

Frome grabs from the Canon XL-1: Hanging tree foreground miniature, house exterior with dusk and nighttime lighting.

DVD menu designed by Mark Leins. become increasingly faster until illegible.

The final additions were the trailers and a cast bio ection, which brought the total number of needed creens to nine--a fairly good quantity-and we wanted to get everything done for the fa t approaching San Diego Comic-Con comic book convention. With time and money having run out, it was decided that we'd use static rather than the more complex motion menus. Motion menus co t more imply because they're extra footage with extra running time and need to be encoded.

With the number of screens determined, all I needed to do was plan the linking structure for the content. I built thi into the menu with graphic buttons and text with the functionality being handled at the authoring stage.

To lay out the menu I used Adobe Photoshop. It wa important to be aware

Close-up of cart-puller Clay Martinez.

dimensions.

Pixel aspect ratios aside, there were also color gamut and brightness range issues to con ider. I alway choo e to work in the Adobe RGB {1998) color space even when The main menu from the DVD, created the final output is entirely in Photoshop. destined for offset printing. This gives me a wide range of choices with filters of the pixel aspect ratio differences between video and computer pixels. Video and color correction that aren't available pixels are rectangular while computer pix- in CMYK. However, this al o mean keeping a keen eye on what the color i els are square. The workflow involved setdoing to avoid unpredictable and undeting up the initial layout to the dimen sions of 720 x 540 pixels. The completed sirable color shifts during the later confile was then resized to 720 x 480 pixels. version. The Adobe RGB color gamut When viewing from the DVD on an encompas es far more than what can be TSC monitor or television et, the verti reproduced on pre sand o it goes for NT Caswell. ~ cal would be tretched back to the correct

House exterior, with its painted sky backdrop, its polyfiber clouds, and Sun Dude.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PUPHEDZ

39

Early in production, Jurgen promoted the show at Fango Weekend of Horrors convention .

Lorchbottom as the all-knowing fortune teller.

Photo hop come with an TSC color profile, which I used a a proofing pace for checking color. This setup allow me to view any weird color hift or clipping while building the menu . Photo hop al o contains an T C filter that I u ed to run on my image upon completion to place all the color in the proper gamut. The ideal way to check color would have been to output the images directly to a calibrated T C monitor, but I had no way of doing that with my current video card.

My Viewsonic monitor, though calibrated, simply wasn't the same as viewing the image output on an T C monitor.

The final step wa to set output level for the brightnes range. In RGB, 0 is black and white is 255, but not T . To compensate I et my output level to I0 for black and 250 for white. Upon eeing

40

authoring as per our specs, we went and viewed the rough on an emulator. Thi allow you to ee the functionality of the material before dumping the data to tape to make the glas rna ter, the really expenive part. Any concerns I might have had regarding the menu were eliminated upon viewing them on re t' calibrated TSC monitor. Without a side-by-side comparison with my monitor, I believe I got very close to what I intended.

With the DVD completed just in time for Comic- on, Ji.irgen took the show to the convention where we received very good re pon e. ot only did we sell quite a few unit , but were even picked up by distributor Elite Entertainment. A of january 2003, "Puphedz: The Tattle-Tale Heart" can be purcha ed at a number of online vendor including Bestbuy.com, Blockbuster.com and Amazon .com. Elite has already told u they want two more shows for the next DVD. Ji.irgen and Ryan have tarted work on the cripts.

In the meantime, we are hitting as many fe tivals as possible. To date we've won the Scream fest LA award for best animation and the Cine Golden Eagle award for be t non -broadcast. We also keep getting favorable reviews popping up in various places, the most recent being the WasilillgtOII Times. At the 2003 American Film Market, the project racked up strong ales in candinavia, Japan, Germany, and Malay ia.

All thi is more than any of us could have imagined happening and we're very grateful. We just kept plugging away on our project and got it done. Hard work does indeed pay off.

the final re ult on a studio T C monitor, I believe I got a do e a po sible given my capabilities at the time.

To automate this proce s of running filters, making adju tments and re izing the file, I set up an "action" in Photoshop that would execute these proce se at the touch of a button.

I'd like to note that I had some great advice on DVD menu design from fellow OC member Michael Chambliss, who ha exten ive experience in thi area.

With the menu completed we turned over all our materials to re t National in Hollywood for authoring and replication.

Our MiniDV rna ter had to be up-rez'd and transferred to DigiBeta. While Cre t wa authoring, I got the DVD box wrap artwork fini hed and off to the printer thanks to a few late night e sion .

For a ingle- ided di k urface, you can have up to six colors, but to save cost we went with one: black. I created a continuou tone outline image of the "Old Man's" face, integrating the DVD, Puphedz and Brillig logo a well as a mall image of the Cart Puller pulling the cart. Thi artwork was then sent to Cre t via email. I was ent a proof in Adobe' PDF format, which I igned off.

Early concept illustration, part hand-drawn, part Photoshop, for Puphedz web site.

Once Crest had fini hed the initial

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: PUPHEDZ

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Respiratory Safety and Special Effects, Part 2

Artificial Smoke, Fog and Haze

By Carol A Wetovich

This is the second installment in a series of articles that describes the chemicals and dusts used in special effects and the potential health hazards associated with exposure to these substances.

T

he u e of artificially generated smoke, fog or haze to create atmo phere or pecial lighting effects in film , televiion and the performing art ha greatly increased in recent year . A wide range of methods and chemicals are employed to produce these type of effect .

Fog machine that u e either glycol or oil based fluids are the most common systems u ed to create fog, smoke or haze. orne machines heat the fluids and then

42

The hand reaching from The Fog looks menacing, but the real menace is breathing the fog while filming the picture.

disper e the heated droplets into the cooler air forming a cloud or haze. Other machine generate an aerosol of a chemical, usually mineral oil, by "cracking" the oil through a di per ion y tern u ing high-pre ure air.

The e particles of glycol and water or mineral oil can produce thick rolling cloud , heavy fog, or smoke-like effect .

The duration of the e effect depends on the evaporation rate of the chemicals used.

Haze, produced by the relea e of even maller particle , can create a long-lasting

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: SAFETY ON THE SET

ubtle atmo phere to reveal or enhance light beams, create depth of field or produce a soft diffused look on film. The chemical in haze product have low evaporation rate in order to remain u pended in the air for long periods of time, often hour .

Other mean of creating fog or smoke effect are by heating or burning inorganic chloride , uch as "smoke cookie ;' and the use of cryogenic ga e .

It is often difficult to obtain much information on fog fluid from the Material afety Data heet (M D ) provided by

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Black Hawk Down, as all bottle movies do, featured o great deal of artificial smoke. the manufacturer . Many manufacturers claim that the compo ition of their fluids are trade ecrets and that they are not required to li t the chemical in their product.

Glycol and Glycerin Fog Fluids "Water-ba ed" fog flujd formula often contain one or more of the following: • propylene glycol • djpropylene glycol • butylene glycol (I ,3-1 ,4) • triethylene glycol • diethylene glycol • polyethylene glycol • polypropylene glycol • glycerin Glycol are widely used in indu trial application in heat exchanger , antifreeze formula , brake fluid , hydraulic flwd , de-icing fluid for airport runway and ajrplane , and chemical intermediate .

Glycol are al o u ed a olvent for nitrocellulo e and cellulo e acetate and in the pharmaceutical indu try.

The American hemi try uncil, an organization repre enting major chemical companie , and indu try participants of

44

the Propylene xide/Propylene Glycol Panel and the Ethylene Oxide/Ethylene Glycol Panel e tabli hed a product teward hip policy that prohibit the u e of propylene glycols and ethylene glycol for glycol fog and mi t application .

In a report dated July 200 I, "Propylene Glycol- on iderations Again t Use In Theatrical Fogs," the council tates: "Propylene Glycol i ometime u ed inappropriately in the production of mist and fogs for theatrical production . uch u e could re ult in exces ive exposure through dermal and eye contact and through inhalation."

A product afety manager from Hunt man Petrochemical orporation (formerly Texaco hemical) write : "HP (under it current name a well a under its prior names) ha long prohjbited the u e of our glycol products in theatrical fog .

"HP ethylene glycol and propylene glycol are not to be u ed to generate glycol fogs or mists in theatrical or stage performance . The term 'ethylene glycol' refers to ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, and triethylene glycol, and some low

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: SAFETY ON THE SET

molecular weight polyethylene glycol . imilarly, the term 'propylene glycol ' refer to propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, tripropylene glycol, and orne low molecular weight polypropylene glycol .

Blended glycol product and glycol proce re idue areal o included in thi ban.

"Performers repeatedly expo ed to glycol fog may al o have an increa ed ri k of adver e health effects from exp ure to tho e glycol fog ."

D W hemical tates on it web ite

.. .if ~~heated or if a mist is produced some toxic effects could occur from acute anti repeated exposures." that regarding the family of ethylene and propylene glycol it manufacture . if " heated or if a mi t i produced orne toxic effects could occur from acute and repeated expo ure ."

DOW conclude that a a re ult, the u e of the e glycol in application uch as theatrical fog i not recommended.

The ational Toxicology Program ( TP), part of the U.. Department of Health and Human ervice , maintain a database of Material Data afety heet (M D ) on over 2000 chemical . orne of the glycol and glycerin that are u ed in theatrical fog fluid have been tudied by

Glycol exposure has been shown to cause drying anti irritation of the eyes, skin, anti respiratory tract ... [anti] when heated to high temperatures, [glycols] form toxic fumes of carbon monoxide ... the NTP (although not specifically a fog fluid component ). a group, the glycol are con idered hydro copic, which mean they attract water molecule . Glycol expoure ha been hown to cau e drying and irritation of the eye , kin, and re piratory tract. In addition, the NTP tate that mo t of the glycol produce little vapor hazard at ordinary temperature ; however when heated to high temperature , they form toxic fume of carbon monoxide, carbon ilioxide, and in orne in tance , aldehyde and acid .

The NTP li t acute and chronic hazard of expo ure to the e chemical . For example, the TP find that propylene glycol can affect the central nervou y tern in human and state that propylene glycol may be harmful by inhalation, inge tion or kin ab orption. Triethylene glycol i li ted a having po ible effect on reproductive health, and expo ure to high level can have toxic effect uch a coma, re piratory failure, renal damage and death.

The TP li t glycerin as poi onou by subcutaneou route, mildly toxic by inge tion, having human mutagenic data, and an inhalation irritant.

It mu t be noted that when fog or moke i used properly, the levels at which the e toxic effect occur are not expected to be produced. However, there have never been accurate tudie on the levels u ed or the effect of chronic, repeated and lengthy expo-

ure to the e chemical or the combination of chemical commonly found on mo t fum and televi ion production .

There are no tudie on the effects of the lower evaporating glycol u ed in haze when they are inhaled deeply into the lungs.

Oil-Based Fog Fluids Oil ba ed fog fluid contain one or more of the following chemical : â&#x20AC;˘ mineral oil â&#x20AC;˘ liquid paraffin Mineral oil and liquid paraffin are hydrocarbon mixture produced by removing lighter hydrocarbon from petroleum by di tillation. Mineral oil and liquid paraffin are u ed in general indu trial etting a a lubricating oil, a a olvent for inks, a fo d additive , in pharmaceutical preparations, a laxative , and in co metics.

The Material afety Data heet from the ational Toxicology Program tate that mineral oil may be "a human carcinogen by inhalation which produce

ga trointe tinal tumor . A human teratogen by inhalation which cau e te ticular

Mineral oil may be u a human carcinogen ... a human teratogen anti ... can cause aspiration pneumonia." tumor in the fetu . Inhalation of vapor or particulate can cau e a piration pneumonia."

The e complications were often a ociated with expo ure to industrial oil containing impuritie and additive .

Many fog fluid manufacturers tate that the mineral oil in their product i of a highly refined food and pharmaceutical grade and approved by the FDA. This statement may be misleading becau e a product afe to inge tor u e in co meti i not nece arily afe to inhale.

Inhalation of large amount of any grade of mineral oil can cau e chemical pneumonia and ha been known to

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: SAFETY ON THE SET

45

remain in the lungs indefinitely, cau ing re piratory complication . o toxicological studie have been made on the health effects of chronic inhalation of smaller particles of mineral oil that are created by most theatrical hazers.

Inorganic Chlorides Many lighting and special effects companies till ell inorganic chloride (often called smoke cookie , smoke pots, smoke candle , and smoke bomb ) as a means of creating fogs or hazes. The e products may include: • ammonium chloride (sal ammoniac) • zinc chloride • titanium chloride The moke is generated by heating or burning the product The Material afety

Wlrea inboled, hydrogen chloride dissolves in the water in the respiratory system to lorm hydrochloric acids, which can be extremely destructive to mucous membranes and respiratory tract.

Data heets on these chemicals have trong hazard warning about inhalation danger . The warnings state that when heated or burned, the e chloride give off toxic fume of ammonia and hydrogen chloride.

When inhaled, hydrogen chloride dissolve in the water in the re piratory sy tern to form hydrochloric acids, which can be extremely de tructive to the ti ue of the mucous membranes and re piratory tract.

Cryogenic Gases Dry ice (frozen carbon dioxide) i one of the earlie t types of material u ed to create fog effect . Other cryogenic ga e u ed to create pecial effect are liquid nitrogen and a mixture of liquid nitrogen and liquid oxygen. In the ca e of the carbon dioxide only and liquid nitrogen only

46

Haze lends a sense of depth to Jurassic Park Ill.

fog , care mu t be taken to avoid depletion of oxygen levels.

Exposure Standards Current 0 HA and indu trial hygiene tandards do not apply to glycol fog. The 0 HA standards for expo ure to the pecific chemicals are ba ed on evaluation of the glycols at ambient temperatures, with their normal low vapor pres ure , not a hydro copic aero ol . The 0 HA permis ible expo ure level (PELs) and the American Conference ofGovernmentallndu trial Hygienists (A GIH) threshold limit value (TLV ) do not addr exposures to the multiple chemical combinations often found in fog fluid . There are no pre ent standard for concurrent expo ures to more than one chemical.

Acute and chronic expo ure to mineral oil mists is presently regulated by an 0 HA permissible expo ure limit (PEL) of Smglm3 (5 milligram per cubic meter) as an 8-hour time weighted average (TWA) concentration. Additionally, both the ationalln titute for Occupational afety and Health ( I H) and

Tbere are no present standards lor concurrent exposures to more than one chemkal. the ACGIH had establi hed the arne exposure limits ba ed on the ri k of re piratory effects.

However, in 2001, the A IH conducted a complete review of current cientific literature on mineral oil including acute and chronic expo ures and carcinogenicity tudies. On the weight of the evidence,

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: SAFETY ON THE SET

A GIH propo ed to lower the threshold limit value of mineral oil mi ts to 0.2 mg!m3, and to a sign an A2, u pected Human arcinogen de ignation to all

Particuhltes 2.5 miaons or less can get into the deepest portion ol the lungs [and then into the] bloodstream. mineral oil mi t . Thi notice of intended change (NIC) i till in effect but ha yet to be approved.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tudie have hown that particulate I 0 micron or le in ize are mall enough to be inhaled and accumulate in the respiratory sy tern. EPA studie al o how that particulates 2.5 microns or le can get into the deepe t portion of the lung where ga exchange occurs between the air and bloodstream. These types of particulate are con idered e pecially dangerou by health experts becau e the body ha no efficient mechani m for removing them and they may enter into the blo d tream.

Fog fluid manufacturer tate that the particle ize of their products can range between 0.25 to 5 microns. Oil-ba ed haze products can be 0.5 to 0.7 micron in ize.

With inorganic chloride , current 0 HA tandard et very tringent exposure limit to the olid chemical , du t particle , and toxic ga e generated by the e chemical .

The Debates ln 1990-91, the ational In titute for Occupational afety and Health ( I H ) conducted a limited analy is of theatrical

effect u ed in three Broadway mu ical production . According to thi fir t tudy, when actor in moke production were compared to actor in non- moke production , increa ed rate of occupational a thma in the moke exposed group were noted. In a follow up tudy in 1994, 10 H stated that becau e a maller percentage of actor participated fully in this

The AEA Study bas been criticized because it tested exposure levels and established exposure guidelines ... based on controlled conditions and not under performance conditions. econd pha e, they could not draw a reliable conclu ion.

In 2000-0I , Actor's Equity As ociation and the League of American Theater and Producer spon ored another tudy on moke and haze used in theatrical production . Thi tudy found reduction in lung capacity and report of wor ening a thma from actors exposed to theatrical effects. everthele , the tudy did not link these health problem with normal theatrical fog expo ure . However, inve tigator did conclude that high peak exposure produced measurable health effect : "The result of thi tudy of the effects of theatrical moke, haze, and pyrotechnic indicate that there are health effects a ociated with expo ure of Actor to elevated or peak level of glycol moke and mineral oil." -AEA Report The AEA tudy has been criticized by many occupational health speciali ts becau e it te ted expo ure level and e tabli hed expo ure guideline for all theatrical moke and fog effect ba ed on controlled conditions; mi twa generated for a hort period with a ingle generator in an open room with no ventilation; and not under performance conditions. ritic tate that the tudy al o did not take into account the variou glycol and different grade of mineral oil u ed in theatrical effect . It i al o noted that the tudy did not determine the particle size of the mi ts.

Many fog fluid manufacturer correctly claim that the chemicals used today have been te ted to be of a lower acute toxicity than the chemical u ed in the past.

However, many of the e claim are ba ed on animal studie not human expo ure , and many of the newer chemical simply have not been tudied enough to have any expo ure data available. The e claims do not account for the fact that even nontoxic chemical can cau e evere allergic reactions in orne people or that chronic expo ure to chemical can cause health problem to develop over time.

Proponents of fog effects al o tate correctly that the fogs or hazes produced are often at or below exposure limit et by 0 HA PEL standard . It mu t be noted that mo t 0 HA P L tandards were developed more than thirty year ago prior to the availability of exten ive chronic toxicity data for many chemicals.

The tandard are not based on modern cientific methodology; co ts, fea ibility and political concern were incorporated.

According to a 1998 tudy by the ational Advi ory ommittee on Occupational afety and Health ( A 0 H), 0 HA's standard etting process has

Film and television crews deserve the right to ... eye, skin, and respiratory protection. become inefficient and ineffective to the detriment of a healthful workplace.

A 0 H also reported that the average time for 0 HA to develop and produce a new tandard i ten year and that the exi ting PELs are outdated.

Increa ing number of law uit , workers' com pen ation and di ability claims due to health problem from expo ure to the chemicals used in fog fluid have been reported in several tates, including New York, ew Jer ey, evada, and California.

Becau e of the mounting medical evidence of adver e effects of chemical fogs to performers, workers, and even audience members at the an Franci co Opera, in December 2002 city supervi or propo ed a total ban on the use of such special effects in an Franci co. This action was ba ed not only on the complaints of

tho e affected, but al o by recommendation of researcher , physicians, and industrial hygienist from the California Department of Health ervices.

This proposal is pre ently under debate. Among tho e opposed to such a ban are theater owners, entertainment producers, union repre entatives from the film indu try, and nightclub owner .

Protection Two types of particulate filters or filtering facepiece respirators (dust rna ks) can be u ed during expo ure to glycol and mineral oil fog and hazes.

R-Series Filters: These filters can have 95%, 99%, or 99.9% efficiency ratings at removing oil particulate . These filters do have a time-u e re triction in atmosphere containing oil (or glycol particulates) of eight hours of continuous u e.

P-Series Filters: These filters can be found with 95%, 99%, or 99.9% efficiency ratings. ln atrno pheres containing oil or glycol particulate , these filters should be u ed and reused for no more than 40 hours or 30 days, whichever comes first.

It must be noted that in theca e where the fog fluids are overheated and fumes of carbon monoxide are produced, the re pirators are ineffective at protecting from possible carbon monoxide poi oning or exposure to other toxic decompoition fumes.

Occupational exposure to industrial chemicals should be a concern for all tho e working in artificial fogs or hazes.

Film and television crews deserve the right to full di closure of the chemical in the fog effect , information on the hazard of the chemical , the right to eye, kin, and re piratory protection, the right to air quality monitoring, and the right to make an informed decision about working in such an environment.

Carol Wetovich is a camera operator who has been working professionally for over 20 years. Currently she is based out of New York. Recently she WON a law suit for "accident work conditions" that sent her into the hospital while working on pin ity (4 years ago in New York) and that has left her permanently lung disabled.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: SAFETY ON THE SET

47

ndrew La zlo i hining brightly as a tar "triple threat": a prominent cinematographer, a distinguished technical writer, and a delightful pinner of tales cro sing internatio nal border in the celebration of mankind' pirit in hi new novel The Seven Graces of God. The tory reminds me of being a child in tl1e We t, li tening around the campfire as the elder would "hand down tradition and way of dealing with life's conflict ."

The pages fly by as Laszlo create a fa cinating main character in hi even year old Mikail Mozkvoczny, a refugee of World War II , a he arrives in ew York with hi mother in 1947 "to take advantage of another po ible Grace of God." Luck, destiny, and a lot of hard oul- earching work goe into thi lifedeveloping tory as Mikail i quickly Americanized.

When his mother dies he mu t find employment as a cook in a local diner.

He wins the jackpot-though thi may

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THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: BOOK REviEW

have been fixed-on The Twenty-FourThousand-Dollar Question televi ion how and an ali-expen e-paid vacation to Rome. There he meet a beautiful woman, a econd-rate con man and hi partner, an un crupulou young prie t and get involved with them in an ambitiou gold heist.

Returning to the U , he buy the diner and marries his childhood cia mate.

They raise a family and he help him cha e down a crooked lawyer who mishandled his uncle's e tate, and reclaim and u e a izable inheritance to build a va t re taurant and food chain empire.

The Seven Graces of God i an in pirational and thoughtful book. It leaves Ia ting impre ion of the challenge we face in living life to the fu.Ue t.

La zlo provides a remarkable example of a per on triving to be true to one' own ble ing while enriching other ' lives along the way. Bravo!

-Georgia Packard 0

Commentary

When You Meet Your Ego On the Set, Kill It

by Paul Babin

soc

"Lord, * make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.

"Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life."

- t Francis ofAssisi*

I

'm on location, riding to work in the van this morning; I begin to reflect on the day before me. I come aero thi well-known prayer attributed to t Francis.* The movie I'm on is one of the good one : the exceptionally gifted director of photography i a dear friend with whom l've done everal picture ; the director i a young, talented, creative, energetic, flexible, appreciative oul who make coming to work a plea ure. Pr duction i run by experienced, capable people with reali tic expectations. The ca t i populated with performers who breathe life into their character and behave like profe sional on the set.

In pite of all the e plu e , I am grap-

â&#x20AC;˘ Don't stop reading because you don't address God as "Lord" or because you don't think Francis was a saint.

The words are those of a good man.

And this isn't about saints or about religion - it's about movie people!

-Editor

50

piing with my own ego, an ego that crave appreciation and demands prai e and recognition.

What a burden.

Ego and creativity eem to be inextricably linked and in con tant battle in mo t arti t . And let' face it, there are a lot of artist involved in the production of a movie. I'm continually amazed at

I've maintained for a long time that the position of camera operator is one of the best for learning how to direct a movie. the creative talent one finds on a typical film crew. We've all eros ed path with the electrician who i completing hi umpteenth spec spot, the cript upervi or who ha crafted a dozen creenplay , the production de igner who will oon direct hi fir t film.

Then there are we camera operators.

I've maintained for a long time that the po ition of camera operator i one of the be t for learning how to direct a movie.

We are always in earshot of vital decision making. We mu t execute the wi hes of the director of photography and the director in a manner that leave both happy. We have to interact with the actor , persuade, honor and encourage them without interfering with the relation hip they have with the director.

We're instrumental i11 moving the work forward, keeping an eye on the call heet and what the day' chedule entail .

Depending on the project we are called

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: COMMENTARY

on by many departments to offer opinion and keep track of detailed information. We have to rely on in tinct when there isn't time to figure out why. And when there isn't time to explain why, brevity mu t be the oul of our wit.

I've now reached the point in my 20 year career a an operator where my credit list eclip e that of most of the director I work for. Has this made me a little cocky? Ye . I have to make a concerted effort to practice humblene s.

Which takes us back to t Francis of Assisi.

How do I get through the day, when that day is liable to bring ignorance,

Beyond pan, tilt, invoice, what is my role on the set? judgment and intolerance? How do I put up with childi h behavior on the part of tho e higher on the food chain? How do I ju tify coming to work when the product we're making i crap? Beyond pan, tilt, invoice, what i my role on the et?

During my first months and years in the movie bu ines , I watched the veteran who had been doing it for a long a I've been doing it now. orne of them were bitter and unhappy. Their bitterne s eemed to increa e when I expre ed joy about the work. l vowed never to become one of them. Of cour e, how they got there ha become all too clear in the intervening year . It' only through conciou effort that r too keep from taking that road. t Franci ugge t that it is in our power to have a healing effect on tho e around us by imply bringing joy, light, pardon, faith and love to work. However, in order to pull that off, he say we've got to let go of our ego , allow the whole concept of "me" to die and supplant our blinding needs with a pirit of giving.

Not an easy ta k-for me at lea t. But one that perhap bring greater reward than an "'atta boy" or a movie that kicks a at the box office.

Enough phil ophizing! There's a grip putting a tand and a flag in my hot, and I've got to go chew hi head off.

-Paul Babin, 0 motionstory@aol .com

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Co-directors Jennifer Joson Leigh and Alan Cumming on the set of Fine Line Features' The Anniversary Party.

Digital films such as this ore the newest technological development to concern the film industry.

The Shape of

By Rick Mitchell

accelerated tremendou ly; the rudiment of the youth culture that wouJd explode in the mid-1950s also began in this decade; automobile were increa ingly affordable, offering a mobility and acce to recreationaJ activities Lmavailable to many in time pa t. Movie were still

. lc:f~

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Mâ&#x20AC;˘

c,-.~ "

'

duction and pre entation, it' intere ting to take a look back. In aJl the e in tance the industry was facing either a leveling or drop off in attendance, but in those pa t year it was not a re ult of the indu try being e entially in competition with itself a it is today with theatrical versus home video.

By the beginning of the 1920 , movies were the mo t popular form of entertainment in the United States, and began to be taken for granted. Thi decade wa a period of major ociologicaJ change for the United tates: the move from a motion picture indu try deal with a simi- ruraJ/agricuJtural to an urban/industriaJ Jar technological development, digital pro- ¡ ociety, begun lowly after the iviJ War,

F

ifty year ago, the theatrical motion picture indu try wa in a tate of high tension over new technological development that threatened to be a battering a a imilar technological development 25 year earlier. A today' theatricaJ

By the beginning of the 1920s, movies were the most popular form of entertainment in the United States.

52

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: WIDESCREEN

Efforts to ac/c/ sound anc/ color to motion pictures went back to the earliest clays of their invention. popular, but they had to compete with other intere t , including radio, and attendance stagnated. The indu try fought back with ex, which only tarted the cen or hip battle that continue to thi day, and pectacle: not until the 1960s would there be an equal outpouring of big, pectacular road how fum . ucce wa achieved with ound. iven the popularity of radio, the addition of ound to ftlm wa inevitable.

Effort to add ound and color to motion picture went back to the earlie t day of their invention. The major tumbling block had been amplification within large

u j

8 ~ ~

~ ~ ~

~ Color Cinematographic Camera, circa 1912 : 35mm, hand-cranked, with a body of walnut, brass and polished aluminum, it had a triple gate with three colored glass filters (red, blue, green), three lenses with fine screw adjustment and a film transport movement with a double-claw mechanism and disc shuNer for each color. The external geared film take-up system is missing.

auditorium , olved by Lee De Fore t' invention of the audion tube in the early 1920s. Although De Fore t, an early ound film pioneer a well, had pre ented hi Phonofilm in a number of Eastern theater , the industry giants, Paramount and MGM, which had built a huge infra tructure around ilent pictures, weren't intere ted. Only Warner Bro and the Fox Film orporation, then minor player , tentatively gambled on ound as a means to achieve economic parity. Their initial effort consisted primarily of adding mu ical score and ound effect to ilent film , though Warner embarked on a erie of musical horts and Fox introduced a "talking" new reel. Then on October 6, 1927 The Jazz inger wa relea ed.

Earlier hi torian have implified the effect of thi film, attributing it e entia1ly to one line uppo edly ad -Jibbed by AI Jol on. It impact ha recently been tudied more closely. The fum tart off like a tandard ilent film of the period, with title card for etting the cene and dialog, except that it mu icai core is recorded. A reel or so in there i a cene in a nightclub in which a patron, a ri ing vocali t played by }ol on , i induced to ing. Thi etup i ba ically the same as in

54

the Vita phone mu ical hort Warners had been making, and indeed Jol on had uttered the uppo edly landmark "You ain't heard nuthin' yet, folks" in such a hort the year before.

The cene that hattered the movie ' ilence forever came a reel or o later.

The now ucce ful ]ol on ha returned home and greet hi mother in the kitchen. Thi portion of the cene i ilent with mu ical accompaniment and title card . On the reel change they move into the parlor where jol on it down at the piano and before launching into a ong, exchange orne patter with Eugenie Bes erer, the actre who play his mother. Thi wa the moment that apparently hocked audience . There had been peech in fum before: orne of De Fore t' Phonofi)m , Will Hay ' introduction to the fir t Vita phone program, comic routines in later Vita phone hort , the Fox Movietone newsreel , even a couple of word in the Vitaphone mu icaUy cored feature The First Auto ( 1927}, but not an exchange of dialog by characters in a dramatic film! As anyone who has had the plea ure of properly experiencing a ilent film pre entation, with appropriate mu icai accompaniment, it i omething unique and fanta y-like. ound brought to film an even greater reality than that of tl1e stage, one that

wa in tantly embraced by audience , no matter how poor the quality of the ound, the acting, or the film.

The de truction of the particular ambience of watching a ilent film with mu ical accompaniment wa apparently not the intention of either Warner or Fox. It did induce the former to add talking equence to evera1 of their ub equent film , but their motivation wa more to encourage exhibitor to in taU ound equipment by providing them with omething beyond one feature and the Vita phone horts. It should be noted that Hollywood the production center

As more and more theaters were wired lor sound, films with sound effects and even more so talking sequences would outgross all but the biggest silent roadshows. wa urpri ingly late in being exposed to ound a Warner wanted to completely retool its Hollyw od Boulevard flag hip theater fir t. ot until April 1928 would tho eon the We t oa t ee and hear a Vitaphone part-talkie, Glorious Betsy, and while ome found the quality of the

lobby card showing the scene that shocked audiences and truly created "Talkies" : Jolson's character exchanged some dialog with his mother before singing to her.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: WIDESCREEN

The effects of changing from silent to sound were satirized in Singin' in the Rain (1952), starring Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds .

recording to be wanting, the fact that the actor were heard peaking from the creen made a lot of people nervou , and not ju t actor with Lina Lamont voice .

One of the many tradition film companie borrowed from the tage wa the concept of a ea onal relea e pattern. The

[The transition to sound] actually led to the creation ol the position ol camera operator. ew York theatrical ea on ran from eptember to June with its theater do ed during the hot summer month .

The film indu try adopted thi pattern and each pring had convention for exhibitor in different part of the country at which they would ann unce their planned slate of films for the coming ean. In the pring of 1928, the upcoming films announced by variou companie , even Warner and Fox, were till mo tly ilent , many already in production. Only

a handful of tho e two company' project were to have recorded musical score and ound effect , even fewer with talking equence . But a more and more theater were wired for ound, film with ound effect and even more so tho e with talking equence would outgro all but the bigge t ilent road how . ther tudio began adding mu ic and sound effect to orne of their completed ilent , talking equence of varying length to other . [n the ummer of 1928 Warner relea ed the fir tAll-Talking feature The Lights of New York and tl1e ound Revolution was on.

The period of ummer 1928 to ummer 1929 wa one of major turmoil in Hollywood and ew York. Except for quickie we tern and film aimed for small town market not likely to be wired for ound immediately, all future production were to be fuJl or partial talkie , depending on the peed with which ow1d equipment could be acquired. Early in 1929 b th Fox and Warner announced they were no longer making ilent ftlms, with other tudio following uit. The mall independ ent that could not afford ound record-

ing equipment went out of bu ine s as did mall theater which couldn't afford or physically could not in tall ound equipment. By 1930 the handful of American theater till hawing ilents, usually on a revival ba i , were a much a novelty as Hollywo d' ilent Movie Theater i today.

The direct effect all thi had on film production wa atirized in ingin' in the Rain ( 1952), but to tho e who lived through it, it wa n't funny. oi y camera had to be enclo ed in oundpro f and airproofbooth , making photography a tortuou physical experience for the cameraman and the a i tant who would be cramp d into them for a long as ten minutes during a take! the ound track could not be cut initially, e pecially on di c y tem like Vitaphone, cene had to be staged a if for a play and covered by multiple camera hooting all po ible de ired angles at once.

(My, how hi tory run in circle !) Thi actually led to the creation of the po ition of camera operator. Previou ly, the cinematographer operated his camera a

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: WIDESCREEN

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well a upervi ing the lighting. ow, he wa al o upervi or of a battery of operator , and hi title wa elevated to Director of Photography. The immobility of the

Soon cameramen and camera technicians began working on ways to silence the camera ... microphone meant ene had to be taged o that actor were either directly under it or clu tered around ome obje t in which it could be hidden, like a teleph ne or va e of flower , further limiting both the mobility of the actors and the camera.

Thi kine ta i did not Ia t long. oon non-dialog cene were oon being hot ilent, to be covered with mu ic and nonpecific ound effect in the final ver ion.

Unfortunately they were often shot at the 20-22 fp peed that wa tandard for ilent at the time, which cut awkwardly with the 24 fp ound scene . Dire tor

Michael urtiz had rubber tire put on a camera booth and had it moved during a hot by hoele grip . on cameramen and camera technician began working on way to ilence the camera it elf, fir t by covering it with blanket , then in encloures of various types filled with sound dampening material , finally by replacing the metal gear and roller with alumjnum. The Mitchell Camera o developed it B C (Biimped oi ele amera) e pecially for ound production, and it became the workhor e camera e peciaUy for American and Briti h production from then into the early 1970 . Directors Dorothy Arzner, Lionel Barrymore, William Wellman, and MGM executive Eddie Mannix are among tho e credited with the idea of hanging the microphone from a movable pole. Much of the arti try the ilent film had achieved before the ound Revolution wa being re tored by late 1929.

The indu try urvived the Depre ion, though all but M M uffered corporately, and during World War II achieved it

highe t level of attendance, a the public had few alternative . In 1946 it aw it greate t number of admi sion , 90 million, a figure not equaled ince. The following year there began a precipitou drop-off. Hi torian who have impli tically blamed thi on televi ion have overlooked the fact that there were few TV

Drop-off [in movie-going] was primarily among 25-40 year olds, the group that had fought the war ... et and fewer TV station broadca ting in 1947, thoughT would become a factor in future audience ero i n. Though there wa not an official demographic breakdown at the time, ub equent re earch reveal the drop-off wa primarily among 25-40 year ld , the group that had fought the war and wa now takillg advantage of po t-war pro perity to get their live back on track. They were tarting career ,

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Cecil B DeMille's Samson and Delilah ( 1949}, starring Hedy Lamarr as Delilah, Victor Mature as Samson, with George Sanders, Angela Lansbury and Henry Wilcoxon, sparked a trend toward spectacles. As a side note, Russ Tamblyn played Saul, future king of Israel, while George Reeves had a brief appearance as a wounded warrior. tarting familie , and via the GI bill, going to college in greater number than previous generation . Thi wa al o till the period of the ix day work week and many people imply did not feel like dre ing up to go out to a movie every aturday night. And for many it wa not convenient a they had moved to uburban tract communitie who e hopping center did not have movie theater as would be tandard a couple of decades later. Drive-in , who e number ro e enormou ly during thi peri d, did recapture orne of this audience, e pecially tho e with mall children. Television, when it became a major national phenomenon, al o gave many people an excu e for not going to the movie .

The indu try tried to lure audience back with color; there wa a major increa e in three trip Technicolor and at o two color ine olor and Tru olor, al o of film hot wholly or partiaUy in exotic location , both contemp rary and co tumer . The leeper ucce of ecil B De Mille' amson and Delilah ( 1949) parked another trend toward pectacle ,

both religiou and ecular. It all worked for individual film . But the indu try's slump continued. urprisingly, the technological change that would next hake up the indu try were even le heralded than the Talkie Revolution. It' po ible that ome notice

~~This

Is Cinerama!" and the curtains parted...and parted...and parted... of their development or a review of a demon tration might be found buried in ome early 1950 i ue of Variety or ome imilar trade publication, but thi author found nothing in i ues from early-to-mid 1952 that would prepare the indu try for what would happen in ew York on ept 30, or in Lo Angele two month later.

During that ummer ew Yorkers were bombarded with ad for omething called Cinerama, but its opening night audience at the Broadway Theater wa tillle prepared for what it wa about

to ee than tho e who'd attended the premiere of The jazz Singer a quarter century earlier. And that opening introduction in black-and-white on the tandard 1.37:1 creen, with Lowell Thoma giving what appeared to be a lecture on the hi tory of motion picture didn't help. But then he aid, "Ladie and gentlemen, This Is Cinerama!" and the curtains parted ... and parted ... and parted ... and uddenly they were in the front car of a roller coa ter, alma t literally if they were sitting at tl1e right pot. urpri ingly that opening drew gasp and cheer from contemporary audience when a re tared print of the fum wa hown at Pacific' inerama Dome in the fall of 2002, e pecially from tho e too young to have experienced the proce in its heyday.

The hi tory of inerama ha been well documented el ewhere (an immediate reliable online information ource i widesceenmuseum .com) and mo t definitively in David trohmaier' upcoming documentary Cinerama Adventure. A with ound, its impact wa not felt as immediately in Hollywood becau e it

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: W1DESCREEN

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The Robe (1953) was already in production when Darryl Zanuck decided to shoot it in the new CinemaScope process . wa only being hown in New York. The success of Bwana Devil in 3-D, which opened in Lo Angele on ov 30, 1952 did have an impact, though a qualified one. Even then Bwana Devil was viewed as essentially a bad film and there were que tion ab ut how long audiences would tand wearing the cumber orne and often cheaply made gla es to have any free object at hand on the creen thrown at them. Warner and Columbia were the fir t to jump at 3-D with the former at one point even announcing aU future production would be in the proce . Other companie stuck a tentative toe out of the creen but their indepth exploration of it po ibilitie were idetracked by event of greater cope.

Among tho e who had seen inerama were Earl ponable and Herbert Bragg of 20th Century-Fox' technical re earch department, which wa headquartered in ew York. inerama's commercial liability was that it could only be pre en ted in pecially et up theater ; thi had been turned into an asset by roadshowing the films. Bragg rememb red an anamorphic len that had been promoted in the late 1920 which theoretically could allow a inerama-like panoramic view to be preented in the average movie theater. He and ponable tracked down the len ' developer, Prof Henri hretien, in witzerland, hot orne te t in Pari , and howed them to Fox pre ident

58

pyros Skoura , who enthusia tically How to Marry a Millionaire, a ophi ticated bought the right from Chretien. Fox comedy that would demonstrate how the pro e s could be used on more intimate production VP Darryl Zanuck wa equalubject ; it was e entially a photographed ly enthu ed when he aw the te t , and immediately declared it would be u ed play. Becau e The Robe' et had to be rede igned for inema cope, Millionaire on their about to go into production religiou spectacle The Robe. Fox rejected went into production a week earlier and Chretien' name for his len , the fini hed first though the intention had Hypergonar, for the more exploitable alway been to introduce inema cope " inema cope." to the public with the more pectacular Fox initially took a low key publicity approach to inema cope. They remembered the problems caused 25 year earlier by two competing ound formats: on film or on di c, and the un ucce ful attempt to introduce wide film in 1930, with each studio proposing a different width.

(The inema cope test were hown in a creening room on Fox' We tern Avenue lot that had originally been et up for its 70mm Grandeur proce .) Cinerama Motion Picture Camera , circa 1960, from California . It has a 65mm electric powered mechanism, They wanted a perfected format that other tudios a white-painted metal case, footage counter, frame speed would have no objection setting lever, two 1000-foot film magazines, an internal to accepting a an indusviewfinder, an internal adjustable focusing Schneider try-wide tandard. To Componon f/5 .6 60mm lens, a detachable pulse synchronised motor and a magazine motor drive unit, with that end, they cho e a camera and motors contained in two fitted cases . their econd project

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: WIDESCREEN

The Robe. They al o announced that all their future production would be"/\' pictures in inema cope and color.

The off-the-lot rumor and peculation

[In widening framesL image cut-off turned out to be not as big a problem as feared. about Fox's new proce shad been un ettling to the other studio ; thi announcement ent them into a panic! Ju t a at Fox, many of their executive had gone through the ound Revolution and remembered how their inventorie of unrelea ed ilent film had become ob olete overnight.

While they salvaged orne by adding music, ound effect , and dialog equence , how

2o

could they widen the frame of an already hot film? Well, maybe they could imulate the effect by reducing the height of the image and projecting there ult onto a creen a high, but wider, than the standard 1.37:1, if important picture information wasn't cut off.

Aside from the problem of re olution and increa ed vi ible grain re ulting from this increa ed blowup, which weren't given much con ideration at thi point, image cut-off turned out to be not a big a problem a feared.

Very few film had totally verticaJ compo ition . Mo t hots with actor , e pecially medium hot and do e-up u ed a portrait composition which put their heads in the upper ÂĽ3 of the frame.

By u ing pecial milled aperture plate in the projector and concentrating the

framing on this area, films already hot and compo ed for 1.37:1 could be projected in "simulated" wide creen. How wide would depend on how much of the image it wa con idered acceptable to cut off. Thi could be a real problem for mu icaJs, for in tance, a in tho e day dance were u ually photographed in full hot and the dancers' head or feet might be cut off. Paramount, which had the large t backlog of unrelea ed film at the time, figured the "Golden Ratio" of 1.66:1 was the be t "compromi e" between a wider creen and not losing too much of the original compo ition.

It was at this ratio that they previewed hane on a specially et up ound tage in March 1953.

Earlier that month, inerama had opened in Hollywood and the day before

nl ry foa nl

The sophisticated comedy from 20th Century Fox, How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) , should have been the 2nd CinemaScope film, but because The Robe's sets had to be re-designed to the wider format, it was actually the first on the market.

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: WIDESCRÂŁEN

59

20th Century Fox's third CinemaScope film Beneath the 12-Mile Reef (1953) starred Robert Wagner (2nd from right), Terry Moore, and Gilbert Roland, with J Carrol Naish . Directed by Richard D Webb, it was shot almost entirely in Florida . the hane creening, Fox had pre ented the fir t publi demon tration of it Cinema cope, an wering any que tion about " How wide wa wide?" The inema cope te ts-pre ented double sy tern with 4 track magnetic tereo ound-were hown full aperture, giving it an a pect ratio of 2.66: I, wid r than Cinerama's 2.59: I (which looked narrower becau e the curvature of it creen wa deeper than inema cope' ). The addition of magnetic and later optical oundtracks to inema cope print would reduce the projected a pect ratio fir t to

Shots hod to keep all important action within the studio's preferred '~masked" ratio via special markings in the Iinder.

2.55: I, then to today' 2.35:1/2.40: I. Thi prompted other tudio to experiment with further height reduction to achieve projected image proportion do er to inema cope. The following week niver al previewed Thunder Bay at 1.85: I, al o on a ound tage with a larger than normal creen, and hawed te t footage campo ed for projection at

60

2:1. Other tudio began having their current relea es hown at variou ma ked off ratio in their fir t run engagement , and after Univer al announ ed aU future production would be campo ed for "Wide creen" projection, the other companie followed uit. Paramount, RKO, and Republic cho e 1.66: I; Di ney, M M, and Warner Bro . 1.75:1 (a ratio comparable to today' HDTV' 16:9); Allied Artists and olumbia 1.85:1; Univer al 2: I. United Arti t , which di tributed the project of different independent producer , left the choice of a pect ratio up to them and later in the year, when Fox et up a divi ion to make low budget non-Cinema c pe film , they would be campo ed for 1.66: I. That ratio would ultimately become the tandard for non-anamorphic production in other countrie , except Ru sia, which tayed with 1.37:1.

Thi po ed an intere ting problem for cinematographer and camera operator .

Becau e mo t ub fir t run theater were till running film at 1.37:1, hot had to be campo d o they'd look good at that ratio, while keeping all imp rtant action within the tudio' preferred "ma ked" ratio via pecialmarking in the finder.

Thi i a problem that confront cine-

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: WIDESCREEN

matographer and operators today hooting TV material for both J 6:9 and 4:3 creen . After mo t theater began projecting non anamorphic films "ma ked off" in 1954, many operator were allowed to ignor the area out ide

Until early in 1954, all anamorphic lenses were supplemental elements that went in front of the prime lens, and required two assistants to follow locus .... the marking . Thu the light deck, microphone and dolly tracks were often included in the frame, to later be vi ible when the fLim were hown in 16mm or on TV at 1.33:1. Although mo t theater adopted 1.66: I a their preferred ratio, by 1955 mo t American film were being "protected" for 1.85:1, the maximum ratio a Univer al had relented on 2: I becau e of the grain and re olution problem created by uch a large degree of blowup; it became a de facto tandard that exi t to thi day. inema cope pre ented it own prob-

lem for camera crew . Until early in 1954, all anamorphic len e were supplemental element that went in front of the prime len , and required two a i tant to follow focu , one for each len . iven the low peed of the early Ea tman olor egative 5247, about A A IO,fo u wa critical; one hot in The Robe i totally out of focu and everal are borderline apparently becau e either the actor or

The basic patent [lor the anamorphic lens] was in the public domain ... camera primarily u ed in tho e daysMitchell B and and one of Fox' own de ign-were all non-reflex, o initially compo ition at the far edge of the frame often inv lved a bit of gue work.

De pite thi , cinematographer Edward ronjager A and hi crew were able to ucce fully film the third inema cope picture, Be11eath the 12-Mi/e Reefalmo t entirely on location in Florida.

To add to the confu ion, Fox di covered it had only acquired tl1e pecific patent of hretien and H idney ewcomber, who al o attempted to introduce an anamorphic len in the early 1930 . The ba ic patent, written by arl Zei sand Ern t Abbe in 1898, wa in the public domain, which meant that a oon a the ba ic principle of the inema cope len were announced, anyone could orne out with a competing len . And in fact Abbe did. Hi len , called the inepanoramic, would be the ba i of the anamorphic len y tern used in urope: Dyali cope, Franscope, Total cope, etc; in 1955, Republic, a latecomer to true wide creen would licen e the American right and u e it under the name aturama. Denied the purcha e of a half intere t in inema cope, Jack arner announced hi own rival y tem, Warner uper ope, with len ordered fr m Zei . When they were late in arriving for the producti n of their fir t anamorphic film, Warner u ed the Vi tarama len es developed by indu trial film produ er Carl Dudley, and when the Zei len e proved inferior, joined M M, Di ney, Univer al and lumbia

in licen ing inema cope from Fox. All of the e rival len e did u e the 2x queeze ratio e tabli hed by hn!tien, the only tandard Fox wa ucce ful in e tabLi hing. The next year, when the Tu hin ky brother announced their uper cope proce s, which allowed a queezed image to be extracted optically from pherical photography, th y al o tuck with the 2x queeze, but initially cho e the narrower a pect ratio of 2: I for their projected image. The rea on they gave wa that a urvey taken earlier that year had revealed that mo t non movie palace c uld only fit creen of that ratio in their pro cenium , but it may have al o been to minimize the lo s of image quality by not blowing it up too much. (Thi i the forerunner of today' uper 35.)

If that weren't enough, another whole new format wa announced by the end of the year, Todd-AO. Di satisfied with the inability to eliminate the visible join in three panel inerama, a well a per nal problem with it executive , Mike Todd, who e ballyhooing had essentially made that proce a uc e , et out to develop

hi own " inerama out of one hole," which would initially involve 65mm negative and wide angle len e photographing image at 30 fp on a 2.29: I frame.

Thi would be reduced to 2.2: I with the addition of magnetic tripe for 6 track tereophonic ound on 70mm relea e print , and with other modification , including a reduction to 24 fp filming peed, 65/70mm would become the format for road how film in the 1960 . As with inema cope, there were other y tern which used the ameba ic format, including two from Panavi ion, one of which incorporated 1.25x queeze anamorphics for an a pect ratio of2.75;1, the widest ever u ed in commercial production. All of the e could be optically converted to 35mm anamorphic for general relea e, and 65/70mm produ tion would ultimately be doomed when it became po ible to blow up both 35mm anam rphic and pherical image to 70mm. This ended the practice of roadhawing tllough 70mm had a brief revival of popularity between 1977 and 1994 because its magnetic sound wa of

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better quality than the tereo optical ound introduced for 35mm in the late 1970s; this practice would be doomed by the introduction of digital ound.

But that's in the future. Fifty years ago audience who aw the masked off spherical film in their first run engagements were as impres ed by the apparently

DigitDI projection of film origintJtetl mtJteriDI is t1 m11tter of ttJste, but it reDIIy ctJnnot comp11re to t1 well shot 3Smm t1nt1morphic or 70mm im11ge on DIDrge screen••• "wider" image a today' video viewers are by a 16:9 display, overlooking the compromised compositions, additional grain, and los of focus and Light from the increa ed projection blowup. The Robe didn't have the e problem though orne hots were photographically soft.

First night audiences found inemacope a impre ive a inerama, with the benefit of being more adaptable to telling a story, able to handle do e-ups a well as long and medium shots, and able to be put into aU first run and mo t econd run theaters.

The first three Cinema cope pictures to be released, Fox's The Robe and How to Marry a Millionaire and MGM's Britishshot Knights of the Round Table, were all big hits in their fir t run engagements in major citie , and in theater in smaller market a they converted to Cinemacope. As more films were made in the proces , income varied; while the fir t Cinema cope film a theater howed u ually brought audiences out, they became more di criminating with subsequent films. Other than Fox, MGM and Warner relea ed the mo t CinemaScope films in 1954 and in the aggregate they apparently did not outgro their spherical release . Thi has proven to be the ca e in subequent year , audiences not choosing their film based on pre entation format.

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The one exception, at least through the 1960 , were 70mm roadshow films shown like Cinerama in specially et up movie palace . Box-office among older adults continued to erode, e pecially with the release of recent films to TV starting

In the 1970s, exhibitors beg11n reducing the size of thetJters 11ntl screens••• in the early 1960s and the introduction of home video in the 1980 .

Beginning in the 1970s, exhibitor began reducing the size of theater and screens, further reducing the impact of big wide creen pre entation (a trend that fortunately seems to be rever ing) and the perva ivene s of video in production and post-production has resulted in filmmakers not making their projects with consideration of how they will look on even average size theater screens.

Digital projection of film originated material is a matter of ta te, but it really cannot compare to a well shot 35mm anamorphic or 70mm image on a large screen; only HD originated come anywhere near that quality with digitally originated material.

The ound Revolution wa a major boon to the indu try; the Wide creen Revolution provided what proved to be a temporary lease on life. Whether digital will provide a re u citation i till a ubject of debate.

~

Specific research for this article came from Karl Thiede; The Shattered ilent by Alexander Walker; The Speed Of ound by cott Eyman; and Wide creen Cinema by john Belton.

Copyright 2003, Rick Mitchell

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Richard A Cullis Michael l Culp joseph C 0'Alessandro Richard W DaVIS Mark T Davison Ray de Ia Molle Kris Andrew Denton David Olano Troy Dick jerry Dugan Keith I Duggan Simon Duggan, ACS lou1s R Duskin Dav1d E Elkins Oav1d Emmerich!

Kevin 1Emmons Steve Essig james Ethendge Brant S Fagan Tom Fa1gh Benjamin Sean Fairburn David B Fang Yuen D1ane l Farrell Randal Feemster MIChael Ferns Kenneth Ferro Dick Fisher lance Fisher Cra1g Fiske Aaron Fitzgerald Houman Forough lan Foster Thomas Fraser MIChael Fred1an1 M1ke Freeman Buddy Fries Michael RIChard Frill Oav1d Gaspenk Rusty Geller Michael Genne Wayne Getchell Vito Giambalvo Wilham Gierhart Laune K Gilbert Knst1n Glover Allen Gonzales lee Grover john Gunselman Anette Haellmigk Denn1s Hall Chns Hayes David Haylock Steven F Heuer Sean Higgins Ronald High Charles M H1ll, jr joach1m Hoffmann Abe Holtz Robert Chapman Home Casey Hotchkiss Gary Huddleston jeffrey G Hunt Philip Hum David Insley Levie C Isaacks MIChaeljarocki S1mon jayes Tom jensen MIChael A johnson Steven jones jacques joutlret john H Ioyce David judy

Mark 0 Karen Michael Karp Wayne l Kelley Glenn M Kirkpatnck Douglas H Knapp Dan Kneece Rory Robert Knepp Robert Kos1tchek Kns Krosskove Erwin landau George F lang Robin Lawless joshua lesser MIChael levine Ken libby Hugh C litfin MIChael little lynn lockwood

Thomas loizeaux George loomis Allan lum li Ken;1 luster Viocent C Mack Heather MacKenZie PaulS Magee james Mann Richard Marks Stan McClain Donald M McCuaig Michael McGowan Maurice K McGuire Martin Mclnally Robert l Mehnert Anastas N Michos Andrew Mitchell William Molina lawrence P Moody Robert Moore Oems Moran Don Mu1rhead Marty F Mullin Sean Murray jon Myers Thomas W Myrdahl julye Newlin William R N1elsen, jr Randy Nolen Tamas P Nyerges William O'Orob~nak Russell Olna Andrew William Oliver Lucio Olivieri john Orland Rafael Ortiz-Guzman Georg1a Packard Charles Papert Oav1d Parrish Philip Pastuhov Aaron Pazanti M1ke Pierce joseph P1scltelh Robert Presley Kevin Riley Randall Robinson Rick Robinson David Robman Andy Romanoff Abraham Romero Peter Rosenfeld Andrea Vittorio Rossetto Michael S Roth Andrew Rowlands Tony Salgado

THE OPERATING CAMERAMAN: SOC ROSTER

Tom 0 Sanders Michael Santy Richard I Schaefer Gregory 1Schmidt Chuck Schuman Philip SchwarU Alicia Craft Sehnng Brad Sh1eld Floris Si;besma Osvaldo S1lvera lr Jamie Sitverste1n Philip S1ndall Guy Skinner john Sosenko Mike Spodnik Sandy Spooner Edward B Spnnger Stephen Stjohn Greg Stjohns George B Stephenson Oav1d Stump Bnan Sweeney james H Sweeney Bill Sw1nghamer Gene Talvin Stephen Tate David james Thompson Richard Tiedemann john Toll, ASC Tsuneyukl Tometaka john Trapman Ma.s.similiano Trev1s jeffery I Tufano Chns Tufty Pernell Tyus Robert Ulland joseph Urbanczyk RIChard C van N1;natten, MBKS Paul D Varrieur Bill Waldman William Webb Aiken Weiss Kit WhiLmore, CSC Brian Keith Wilcox Bill Williams Chad Wilson Rl Wise ian 0 Woolston-Sm1th Noel Adrian Wyatt Warren Yeager Elizabeth Z1egler

ASSOCIATE David S Adelstein Samuel Ameen Gary Armstrong Peter Bon11ia David Boyd Maja Broz Douglas Busby Bruce Cardozo Kirk Chiswell Stephen Mark Ciappetta Ed Clare Greg Collier Robert E Collins Richard Crudo Chnstopher Dawson Ronald Deveaux David Dibble George Spiro Dibie, ASC Kevin Downey Paul A Duclos

Bert Dunk, ASC MIChael Escobosa john C Flinn Ill, ASC Mark Forman Peter F Frintrup Richard Garbutt james Garvey Harvey G nkins Wayne Goldwyn AI Gonzalez Ph1l Gnes Wynn Hammer jamesWHart Robert Hayes Anthony Hellinger john H1ll Ken Hilmer Chris Hood Kent Hughes lim Hunter Carne lma1 Gregory Irwin Chris Ishii john Chancellor jenmngs Frank E johnson, ASC Broderick jones Douglas Kirkland Michael Klimchak Robert La Bonge George La Fountaine, ASC Thomas Lappin Stevan lamer, ASC Lee David laska-Abboll Mark R Leins Alan I levi Mark levin llya lo lie-Nielsen Stephen Ughthiii,ASC long lin Roland I Luna Duane C Manwiller Richard Marks Dr Ellen Matsumoto Ray McCort MIChael P McGowan

Nick Mclean, Sr john McPherson, ASC Charles Minsky K Adnana Modlin RIChard Mosier joshua S Nanos Sol Negnn, ASC john Newby Nicholas Nizich Andrew Parke Randy Peck Matthew A Petrosky Ted Polmanski Serge Poupis Andrea Quaglio Udo Ravenste1n Richard Rawlings jr, ASC Marcia Reed Bill Reiter Brian D Reynolds Oav1d Rosner Marvm Rush, ASC Mehran Salamat1 Carl Martm Schumacher, Sr Robert Seaman jan Sluchak Don Sp1ro Owen Stephens

Tara Summers lleven Van Hulle Cra1g W Walsh Brian Watkins Haskell Wexler, ASC Shaun Wheeler Tony Yarlett Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC

LIFETIME Wilham E H1nes

HONORARY john Bailey, ASC james Burrows Dean Cundey, ASC Bruce Doering Wilham A Fraker, ASC jack N Green, ASC Ron Howard Ron Kelley Kathleen Kennedy-Marshall jerry lewiS RICk MitChell A linn Murphree MD Oav1d Myers lay Roth Steven Sp1elberg Robert A Torres George Toscas Roy Wagner, ASC Robert Wise

RETIRED Eugene Ashbrook lou Barha Rupert Benson lr Bob Berry AJ Bettcher james Blanford Howard Block Vee Bodrero Don Burch Phil Caplan Bruce Catlin Cliff Concialdl jim Connell james A Dennett Sam Drummy Robert Feller Mike Ferra Gerald Perry F~nnerman, ASC jerry Fuller Gil Haimson lutz Hapke Bob Keys joseph Longo Steve lydecker Owen Marsh Bob Marta Michael McClary Ron McManus M1ke Me1nardus Emmanuel Metaxas King Nicholson john G Nogle Robert H Peebles Arnold RICh Sam Rosen Frank Ruttencutter Richard Salvatore lou SchwarU Hal Sh1ffman

Phil Stern

Sven Walnum Ben Wolf

CORPORATE AEROCRANE Greg Pednck ARRIFLEX CORPORATION Bill Russell BIRNS &. SAWYER, INC Bill Meuer CENTURY PRECISION OPTICS/ SCHNEIDER OPTICS, INC Bill Turner CFI Robert DenniS CHAPMAN &. LEONARD STUDIOS leonard T Chapman Chnstine 1Huenergardt CLAIRMONT CAMERA Denny Cla1rmont DELUXE LABORATORIES lim Carter DOCGICAM Gary Thieltges EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY Curtis E jones FUll PHOTO FILM USA Andy Coradesch1 FUIINON,INC Chuck lee CEO FILM GROUP, INC George Nolan HYDROFLEX, INC Scott Greene ISAIA&. CO Roy lsa1a ll FISHER COMPANY james l F1sher LEE FllTERS (A DIVISION OF PANAVISION, INC) Sean H1se NETTMANN SYSTEMS, INT'L Ernst "Bob" Nettmann OCONNOR ENGINEERING LABS Cary Clayton OTIO NEMENZ INTERNATIONAL, INC Karl Kresser PACE TECHNOLOGIES Vlocenzo M Pace PANAVISION Frank Kay PHOTO-SONICS, INC Conrad K1el SONY ELECTRONICS, INC leffCree TECHNICOLOR, INC Adam Chuck VINTEN, INC Peter Harman

Roster Current as of 4/25/03

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