British Cinematographer - Issue 28

ISSUE

28

JULY 2008

SUPER TROOPER #24: CAMERA CREATIVE THE METEORIC HARIS ZAMBARLOUKOS BSC DISCUSSES HIS EXPERIENCE OF SHOOTING SUPER MUSICAL MAMMA MIA!

ALSO INSIDE #18: GREAT DEBATE - INDUSTRY LEADERS GIVE THEIR PREDICTIONS ON PRODUCTION INDUSTRY IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS #13: ON THE JOB - SEAN BOBBITT BSC TALKS ABOUT SHOOTING THE CAMERA D'OR WINNING HUNGER USING 2-PERF #08: CANNES DIARY - WHAT THE BRITS GOT UP TO ALONG THE CROISSETTE #22: SHOOTING THE FUTURE REVIEWS OF CINE GEAR EXPO IN LA & THE BSC 2008 NEW EQUIPMENT SHOW

#28: PRODUCTION FOCUS INSIGHTS INTO THE FILMMAKING SCENE IN BARCELONA

RRP: £4.00

Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire SL0 0NH, UK Tel: +44 (0) 1753 650101 Fax: +44 (0) 1753 650111 PUBLISHERS Alan Lowne Tel: +44 (0) 1753 650101 Stuart Walters Tel: +44 (0) 121 608 2300 EDITOR Ron Prince Email: ronny@dircon.co.uk SALES Alan Lowne Tel: +44 (0) 1753 650101 Email: alanlowne@britishcinematographer.co.uk Stuart Walters Tel: +44 (0) 121 608 2300 Email: stuartwalters@britishcinematographer.co.uk DESIGN Paul Roebuck, Open Box Publishing Ltd, info@openboxpublishing.co.uk contact: Stuart Walters Tel: +44 (0) 121 608 2300

>> C O N T E N T S UK P03 P05 P06/38 P08 P10 P16 P31

President's Perspective: Gavin Finney BSC says cinematographers will need to care and share like never before in an age of constant flux Letters Page: update on the BBC's Digital Media Initiative Production / Post & Techno News: the latest updates about what's going on out there?

Cannes Diary: in search of sprouts and a UK Pavilion!

Who's Shooting Who?: the unique resource about which DPs are currently shooting To Live & Let DI: discover who's delivering the DI grades right now GBCT News: the chairman's statement, plus other news from the Guild

THE PUBLICATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE comprises of Board members from the BSC and GBCT as well as the Publishers BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER covering International Cinematography is part of Laws Publishing Ltd, Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire SL0 0NH, UK The publishers wish to emphasise that the opinions expressed in BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER are not representative of Laws Publishing Ltd but the responsibility of the individual contributors.

INTERNATIONAL P?14/22 P26 P28

Shooting The Future: the latest news from Cine Gear Expo and BSC New Kit Show IMAGO: Nigel Walters BSC reports on progress across the board, across the world Production Focus: the filmmaking scene in Barcelona

FEATURES P13 P24

Cover Photograph: A shot from Universal's Mamma Mia! lensed by Haris Zambarloukos BSC.

On The Job: Sean Bobbit BSC tackles 2-Perf cinematography on Hunger Camera Creative: so how did Haris Zambarloukos BSC get to grips with the musical phenomenon that is Mamma Mia!?

British Society of Cinematographers – Board Members: President, Sue Gibson. Immediate Past President, Gavin Finney. Vice Presidents, Joe Dunton MBE, Alec Mills, Chris Seager, Nigel Walters. Governors, Sean Bobitt, John de Borman, John Daly, Harvey Harrison, Tony Imi, Phil Meheux, Nic Morris, Tony Spratling, Mike Southon, Derek Suter, Robin Vidgeon. Secretary/Treasurer, Frances Russell.

Guild of British Camera Technicians – Board Members: Jamie Harcourt (Chairman), Trevor Coop (Immediate Past Chairman), Peter Hughes (Vice Chairman), Darren Miller (Vice Chairman - North), Tim Potter (Vice Chairman), Caroline Sax (Vice Chairman), Jacob Barrie, Steve Brooke-Smith, Jason Coop, John Keedwell, Rupert Lloyd Parry, Suzanne McGeachan, Keith Mead, Shirley Schumacher

>> Editorial Team

Mamma Mia! (Here we go again)

Ron Prince: has many years experience working in the film, TV, CGI and visual effects industries. He is the editor of British Cinematographer magazine and runs an international communications company (www.princepr.com).

Carolyn Giardina: is the technology reporter at Hollywood Reporter in the US. She previously served as editor of Film & Video and as senior editor of postproduction at SHOOT. Her work has also appeared in IBC Daily News, Digital Cinema, Post and Below The Line.

David Heuring: has been writing about cinematographers and their work for 20-plus years. He is the former editor of American Cinematographer Magazine.

John Keedwell: the GBCT's Eyepiece Editor, is a documentary and commercials cameraman who has worked on many productions over all the world. He crosses over in both film and tape productions and has great knowledge of the new formats and their methods of production.

Kevin Hilton: is a freelance journalist who writes about technology and personalities in film and broadcasting, and contributes film reviews and interviews to a variety of publications

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Dear Readers Only in this magazine, this very edition indeed, can you read what industry-leading figures have to say about the production business, and how things are likely to unfold in the next five years.

We canvassed opinion from a broad scope of individuals, companies and trade bodies. There are some notable omissions, perhaps all the more conspicuous for their absence, in our Five Years On feature. But those who did contribute provide a picture of an ever-changing, ever-unfolding, complex and fascinating future.

Obviously, the big issue is how digital will affect things. From the cinematographer's camera to the viewer's screen-of-choice, digital looks set to be all-pervasive.

Depending on your place in the

business, this might mean considerable challenges or brand new opportunities.

next five years as marriage of convenience, rather than a bitter feud.

However, one theme that keeps coming back, never seems to go away in fact, is the longevity of film the enduring love of celluloid. We asked five years ago, in our very first edition, how long film had left. Some thought film would be dead and buried within two years. Others, perhaps more wisely, felt film would be around for another ten years.

For cinematographers, however, the future will throw up many challenges - of keeping up-to-date, learning about new technologies and new techniques. Remaining sharp. The challenge of continuing to share experience, knowledge and skills. The challenge of retaining a status on set, and a status as the guardian of the image after the production wraps. As Sue Gibson, the new president of the BSC points out; the means of capture must not override that artistic integrity and image quality.

Well, we have reached the halfway point and I'd hazard a guess that film and digital will enjoy somewhat of a symbiotic co-existence for a considerable length of time - the benefits of each supporting the other's weaknesses and inadequacies from capture, to post, to exhibition, to distribution. Film stalwarts and digital neophytes might do well to see the

The tail wagging the dog, as it were.

In fact, the tools are far less important than the artist's ability to tell great stories and entertain audiences. Here we go again, same as it ever was.

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president’s perspective

Gavin Finney BSC President BSC

Change is a constant Welcome to this special, 5th anniversary edition of British Cinematographer magazine, and my last column as president of the BSC as I hand over the reigns to the very talented and capable Sue Gibson BSC. Anniversary milestones inevitably raise the question of “What do the next five years hold?”. If I could predict that with any sort of accuracy, I would be writing this from my private island in the Indian Ocean, rather than my modest inner-city, terraced house in North London.

Five years ago, pundits told us the future was all HD, and film was dead (they're always telling us this), even though few at the time could watch full HD at home, and certain camera manufacturers conveniently skirted round the fact that High Def is still considerably lower def than good old 35mm.

Sharing knowledge, a n d ke e p i n g a b r e a s t o f change, will become ever-more crucial if we a r e t o ke e p o u r p l a c e as authors of the moving image At my first film school in the mid 1980s we were all keen to get the school's only 16mm film camera out to play. “Oh don't bother with that”, we were told, “you'll all be shooting on video when you leave”. Twenty years later and there's still life in the old girl as they say, whilst HD has almost been and gone as a high level image acquisition format as we move towards raw data recording. If you want to see what we'll be doing in the near future, just have a look at how stills photographers work. They all shoot raw, beaming their images to a nearby laptop where they are postprocessed and converted to whatever format is required. Some movie cameras already generate multiple files; low res ones for editing, high-res for rushes projection and quality control, and raw for subsequent on-line grading and processing. Postprocessing raw data will help keep the camera size down. Live processing and converting of the image data from the sensor takes a lot of processing power, and generates heat, which has to be dissipated through fans or large heatsinks. Raw files can also take up less space on a hard drive or flash card.

Unfortunately, each camera manufacturer has a different idea of what a raw file should be, so there is

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still no standard or compatibility. As you'll read in this issue, the BBC has already peered into its corporate crystal ball and decided on the future as it sees it; the goal is for everyone to record, edit and archive onto the compressed Panasonic codec, AVC-Intra 100.

Whilst the move towards a standardised system makes sense, whether this 'new' codec will still be new and cutting edge in five years time is another matter.

There's almost too much choice, leaving producers understandably confused as to what the best system is for their production. In addition many cameras are appearing on the market as 'beta' models that productions are expected to debug for the manufacturer. The DPs choice of camera can now also affect the editor's choice of editing software, as well as challenging the workflow of the visual effects department. Film will continue to provide the most streamlined, flexible and established workflow until a common digital standard is agreed.

Just as the HD-DVD / Blue-ray battle prevented many consumers from buying into High-Def at home, and as more new digital cameras come along that feature incompatible recording formats and proprietary workflows, the more likely it is that in five years time important productions will still be photographed on film. In the next five years, I'd like to see a common raw format used by all digital cameras along with a single universal workflow and an archive solution that at least equals the longevity of film.

Apart from a plethora of recording formats, we are also facing an increasing range of screen sizes and quality levels on which our work will be viewed. Film studios looking for ways of saving money during the awards season have begun to look at on-line streaming of 'For your Consideration' movies, rather than sending DVDs out to the thousands of AMPAS and BAFTA members. Registering on a website to download a 'For your Consideration' movie will allow the studios to track not just how many watch it, but exactly who as well. But then again, do you really want someone judging your cinematography as a streamed QuickTime movie on a laptop?

This brings us on to how our own work will be watched in the next five years. You can now buy movies from Apple's iTunes store and watch them on your iPod, iPhone or stream them in sub-HD to your TV, and the BBC's iPlayer (what is it with all these 'i's'?) will let you catch up with the latest episode of Doctor Who. But nothing will get round the fact that watching films on a small screen is no fun once the novelty has worn off (it's no surprise that a programme that lets you transfer video to your iPod is called 'iSquint'!). So

If you want to see what we'll be doing in the near future, have a look at how stills photographers work.

T h e y s h o o t r a w, beaming their images to a laptop where they a r e p o s t- p r o c e s s e d a n d converted to whatever format is required.

whilst more people buying big screen TVs, home cinema projectors and going to the cinema should all mean that our efforts aren't reduced to a postage stamp-sized screen viewed on a bus, maintaining image quality over such a wide range of systems is going to be a real challenge.

The one thing that will never change is that talent is the key to beautiful cinematography, not equipment.

Whatever the manufacturers tell you, a bad script, untalented director or mediocre DP will remain that way irrespective of the equipment they use. However, every craftsman must be a master of his tools, and this is the challenge to every DP facing the tide of new equipment coming ashore each month. Although most of us don't have the time to test and learn every new camera that comes along, collectively the knowledge is there. From on-line forums such as Cinematography Mailing List to organisations such as The BSC, ASC and IMAGO, sharing knowledge and keeping abreast of change will become ever-more crucial if we are to keep our place as authors of the moving image.

Gavin Finney BSC President British Society of Cinematographers

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letters

Changing before our eyes As we are all aware the film and television landscape is changing before our eyes.

A recent internal meeting at BBC Television Centre (attended by members of BBC Drama Dept, representatives from outside post production, plus two freelance DPs, Sean Bobbitt BSC and me) on the BBC's long term digital strategy revealed a key part of this change, and discussed ways in which this will affect productions in the future. The purpose of this meeting was to begin a dialogue with industry and help inform professionals of the impending change.

The BBC's Digital Media Initiative (DMI) forms part of a multi-million pound digital vision, which will include multi-platform delivery systems, a digital archive storing the BBC's content in file format, and a standardisation of codecs. This was presented by Jon Attard the BBC's technology controller of vision production and technology lead of DMI. DMI will have a phased roll-out across production areas starting in 2009 with Children's, Natural History Unit and sport, to be followed by drama and comedy in later phases of the project. The thrust of the initiative is to simplify the workflow of all digital content, so that it can be easily accessed and used to produce a variety of different content. Its aim is to give programme makers not only the freedom to focus on linear television broadcast, but also to be able to maximise their content for all platforms.

It is hoped that by collecting and adding metadata to content during the course of the production process, it will simplify the flow of information and make it easier to create anything from web content to clips on mobile phones.

The expectation is that by standardising digital file formats, and by creating a digital end-to-end work flow, it will streamline the whole production process, and eventually make it possible to store and retrieve all BBC content.

Digital formats The future is “tapeless”, therefore the latest industry debates revolve around the relative merits and quality of different codecs. Simply put, codecs are the mathematical algorithms that are used to compress large amounts of (picture and audio) data into file formats. From the large range of codecs currently available on the market, such as RED Code, DVC pro 100, AVC Intra, MPE2, MPEG 4, H-264 etc. the BBC has chosen four, each of a different quality threshold, to store media in DMI .

The top end codec is AVC Intra 100, a 10-bit, 100-mega bits per second 4.2.2. 1080 50p, which is a member of the H264 family of codecs. From this codec the BBC intend to extrapolate MPEG 2 for SD (Standard Definition) broadcast, MPEG 4 for HD (High Definition) broadcast and other standards for web, mobile phones, DVDs, etc.. Panasonic, with its P2 format, is the only manufacturer that currently produces a camera that complies with this technical spec. The BBC hopes that over the coming years, other manufacturers will include this codec as part of their specified options. It was not made clear if this is an open source codec, or if its use is dependent on the purchase of a license.

During the course of the presentation it was reiterated that Super16mm film was not a highenough quality format to be used for HD Productions. Indeed on Jon Attard's chart of image quality, Super16 was classed below DVC Pro100.

same way your film rushes travel to the lab. At that DS the rushes would be entered into the digital system in the form of an uncompressed master and a low resolution copy, so that the production team can view rushes, begin desktop logging and start editing .

Once fully downloaded, the rushes would be erased from the portable hard drives and those drives returned to location for reuse. It is accepted that the exact details of rushes transfer responsibility and security, have still to be finalised.

The programme makers could then access their material via a 'Work in Progress Area'. In some cases they are then able to rough-cut their material before transferring it to a craft edit, where they can post produce in a similar way to how wide areas of Children's and Factual already do, on Final Cut Pro. After the content has been edited, the various versions can be generated, transferred to the digital archive and ultimately distributed across different platforms. As more departments become compliant, they will all work from and add to, this central 'Digital Archive”. All material from this database will be made accessible to elements in the production and transmission chain. This includes all the new forms of access to BBC content - BBC iPlayer, broadband, mobile phones, DVD, Blue Ray, etc..

A grand design

Digital workflow

The BBC's Creative Future strategy of multi-platform delivery is daunting in its scope and complexity. While it is reassuring to see some attempt to begin to standardise the runaway and fragmenting HD market, and to have a vision for the future, many serious questions will have to be answered over the coming months. It has enormous implications for all who work within British television, and will spark debates that we should be part of if we are to help maintain traditional skills and control the quality of our work throughout all platforms.

In the (not too distant) future, the BBC's vision will mean that your rushes would leave location in some form of solid state hard drive, and be transported to a digitisation station (DS), in the

Matt Gray Director of photography

For a more comprehensive overview of the Digital Media Initiative, including a podcast with Jon Attard visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/news/archives/2007/08/backstage_podca.html For more information about AVC intra and other codecs, see Wikipedia where you can also download technical specs, at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AVCIntra

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production news

Elle presidente: Gibson is adamant that DPs must stay in charge of the image

Sue Gibson becomes BSC's first lady The British Society of Cinematographers (BSC) has elected cinematographer Sue Gibson BSC as its new president. Gibson, who takes over the role from Gavin Finney BSC, is the society's first lady president. She was also the first woman to be invited to join the society in 1992, and was elected to the board of governors in 2004.

After graduating from the National Film and Television School in 1981, Gibson began her career photographing TV commercials worldwide, receiving recognition from the British Television Advertising Awards, the Designers and Art Directors Association and the Cannes International Advertising Festival.

Her first feature film was Hear My Song, directed by Peter Chelsom in 1989, which won the Evening Standard Award for Technical Achievement, followed in 1990 by Secret Friends, the last film directed by Dennis Potter, which garnered her an additional Evening Standard Film award in 1992.

Gibson has since photographed many more features including Mrs Dalloway, Londinium, The Search for John Gissing and Mrs Caldicot's Cabbage War, as well as 2nd unit for Resident Evil and Alien 1. Her TV credits include Amongst Women, which won the Irish Film and TV Academy award for Best Craft contribution, The Forsyte Saga (2002 version), Miss Marple, Poirot and Jericho for Granada, and Riot at the Rite for BBC 2. She also set the style for the highly successful BBC series Spooks for Kudos Films.

In addition to her work as a DP, Gibson has also been mentoring students at the National Film and Television School and London College of Communication (LCC), helping to encourage new talent into the industry. Recently, she was extensively involved in filming comparison tests between

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various digital and photographic image capture systems for presentation at BSC Film, Digital and HD Day events. These are open to all departments of the industry and designed to explain the current choices for broadcast and theatrical image-making

Gibson is supported in her new post by Finney, vice presidents Joe Dunton, Alec Mills, Chris Seager and Nigel Walters, along with governors Sean Bobbitt, John Daly, John de Borman, Harvey Harrison, Tony Imi, Phil Meheux, Nic Morris, Tony Spratling, Mike Southon, Derek Suter and Robin Vidgeon.

ELP technology help’s Gladiators’ TV return ELP has supplied over 100 tonnes of equipment for TV show Gladiators, which made its TV return this May on Sky One, in a package that includes 560 moving lights and 750 LED fixtures. The new set occupies over 30,000 sq/ft across two giant sound stages at Shepperton Studios and contains one of the largest lighting rigs in TV history.

Lighting director Mark Kenyon chose ELP to supply all the moving, LED and generic lighting systems for the production. “This is a massive set with all manner of technical and engineering challenges. I went to ELP because of all their additional rigging experience and expertise in structural design.”

The job of engineering solutions to all the on-set challenges fell to ELP's MD Ronan Willson. “The introduction of a swimming pool into the new series was perhaps the biggest challenge of all. Several games including Hang Tough, Joust and Hit & Run took place above the pool and so we had to figure out how to fly in the different set components for each game and how to get the contestants on and off safely.”

The solution came in the form of a motorised I-Beam

monorail track system. This allowed set components including an over-water suspension bridge to be lifted into position and cleared away quickly. The overhead rail system included two additional tracks to carry a hot-head camera into positions over the pool for a bird's eye view. The track system also provided a quick and safe means of lifting contestants and technicians into position over the water.

ELP also designed, built and lit the pool, which weighs in at 450 tonnes when full, with the assistance of a diving team from Dive Services Ltd from Pinewood, who constructed the pool tank and supplied the water heating and filtration equipment.

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UK

production news

UK Film Council splashes out

ASC re-elects Okada as president

Lottery: Edge of Love, starring Keira Knightley and Cillian Murphy, was a windfall winner A film starring, written and directed by an exciting new filmmaker, an art-house biopic and a Lebanese film have all received Lottery funding from the UK Film Council's P&A Fund.

The UKFC's most recent round of awards to film distributors aims to help gain exposure for films which might otherwise only have a limited distribution, and increase viewing choice for audiences.

Pathé Distribution received £210,000 for Adulthood (DP Brian Tufano BSC) starring, written and directed by hot new talent Noel Clarke and the follow-up to the Clarke-penned Kidulthood (DP Brian Tufano BSC). A fast-paced urban drama with a pounding soundtrack by Chad Hobson, Adulthood sees Sam battling to end the cycle of violence he started.

The film was also co-funded in production by the UK Film Council's New Cinema Fund.

Lionsgate UK received £200,000 for John Maybury's The Edge of Love (DP Jonathan Freeman) the true story of Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, starring Keira Knightley, Sienna Miller, Cillian Murphy and Matthew Rhys. Momentum Pictures received £155,111 for Caramel, a Lebanese film set in and around a busy Beirut beauty parlour, which follows the lives and loves of five Lebanese women. The award allowed the release to widen from 30 to 50 screens and receives enhanced national advertising.

Park Circus and the British Film Institute are releasing a number of films made by one of Britain's greatest filmmakers, Sir David Lean as part of a nationwide centenary tribute tour to the filmmaker. Park Circus has been awarded £17,200 to Blithe Spirit, Brief Encounter, In Which We Serve and This Happy Breed and the BFI has been awarded

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£17,180 for Oliver Twist, The Passionate Friends, Great Expectations and Madeleine. Last summer, the UK Film Council awarded P&A support to seven British classic films beautifully restored and released with high-quality digital prints UK-wide via the UK Film Council's recently launched Digital Screen Network (DSN) under the banner of the Summer of British Film.

Further awards have been made to a range of independent and classic films allowing them to broaden their availability to audiences through the Digital Screen Network, including Optimum Releasing - £175,000 for Where In The World Is Osama Bin Laden?, Morgan Spurlock's follow-up to SuperSize Me, The Works - £150,000 for Mongol - The Rise to Power of Genghis Khan, a spectacular historical epic which charts the early years of Genghis Khan, and Park Circus £5,000 each for The Apartment, Billy Wilder's classic romantic comedy starring Jack Lemmon and Shirley Maclaine, and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, Sergio Leone's spaghetti western featuring a definitive performance from Clint Eastwood. A full list of the UK Film Council's National Lottery awards can be found on our website at www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk

Daryn Okada ASC has been chosen by his peers to serve a third one-year term as president of the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC). The other officers are vice presidents Michael Goi ASC, Owen Roizman ASC and Richard Crudo ASC; treasurer Victor J. Kemper ASC; secretary Isidore Mankofsky ASC; and sergeant-at arms John Hora ASC. The board members include Curtis Clark ASC, Caleb Deschanel ASC, John C. Flinn III ASC, William A. Fraker ASC BSC, Stephen Lighthill ASC, Robert Primes ASC, Nancy Schreiber ASC, Dante Spinotti ASC AIC, and Kees Van Oostrum, ASC. Okada was 21 years old when he earned his first narrative film credit as a cinematographer for Nomad Riders in 1981. A short list of his subsequent credits includes Anna Karenina, Lake Placid, My Father the Hero, Dr. Doolittle 2, Cradle 2 The Grave, Mean Girls, Stick It, Just Like Heaven, Baby Mama and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay.

Credit crunch!

Bums on seats: UKFC's P&A Fund aims to give more exposure to films like Adulthood

Further to Gavin Finney BSC's column in Edition 24 ofBritish Cinematographer Magazine, the BSC is urging all of its members, GBCT members and readers of this magazine, to continue to complain to the BBC and ITV about the practice of squeezing credits at the end of television programmes.

Broadcasters listen to, and take note of, complaints, so write in. You can do this online, and tell them that you want legible credits back on the screen immediately after the relevant programme.

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UK and Indian film industries join forces The UK and Indian governments have successfully completed negotiations which will enable a UK-India film co-production agreement to come into force. As part of this work, UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) will also run a series of workshops for Indian filmmakers who are interested in co-producing with the UK and making use of the treaty.

The treaty will enable UK and Indian filmmakers to work together to co-produce films that will be eligible for national status in both countries. The agreement provides an economic incentive for filmmakers to work together because it provides access to benefits of national status for the film. As a direct result of the treaty it is expected that up to 10 UK-

Indian co-productions could be made within the first two years.

our film industries will be able to work more closely together to develop this further."

The four UKTI workshops aim to provide all stakeholders - the national bodies, trade associations, individual production companies and professional advisers - with a better understanding of how the treaty works and how potential coproducers can benefit from the same.

John Woodward chief executive officer of the UK Film Council said, “The aim of the treaty is to build on the existing cultural ties and encourage greater collaboration. Aside from the clear economic benefits to filmmakers the treaty also aims to increase the diversity of filmmaking, giving filmmakers the opportunity to tell new stories that reflect our shared history and culture.”

Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Andy Burnham said, “India and Britain both have vibrant film industries, and bringing them together in this way opens the door to some exciting new collaborations. Our countries have close cultural and historical connections and it is great that

Shooting on Fujifilm…

These productions are all using Fujifilm stocks: The Descent 2, DP Sam McCurdy; The Damned United, DP Ben Smithard; Looking for Eric, DP Barry Ackroyd BSC; Five Minutes of Heaven, DP Ruairi O'Brien; Ondine, DP Christopher Doyle HKSC; Fiona's Story, DP Daf Hobson BSC; Margaret, DP David Odd BSC; Wuthering Heights, DP Ulf Brantås; The Commander, DP Nigel Willoughby; Blue Murder, DP Andy McDonald. A full range of 35mm and 16mm Fujifilm motion picture stock is now available to buy at Black Island and Dukes Island Studios in West London. All stages offer sync sound options, drivein access, cycs, pre-lit green screen, camera & grip hire, motion control rigs, lighting facilities and on-site catering.

Shooting in Kodak…

The following features are shooting on Kodak stocks: Shanghai, DP Benoit Delhomme; 44 Inch Chest, DP Dan Landin; The Big I Am, DP Shane Daly; Harris Tweed, DP Tony Pierce Roberts BSC: Shine of Rainbows, DP Vic Sarin; and Cracks, DP Jon Matheison BSC. Television productions include: Frost, DP Robin Vidgeon BSC, Lewis III, DP Paul Bond; Midsomer Murders XII, DP Colin Munn; Merlin, DPs Geoffrey Wharton, Dale McCready; Primeval III, DP Mike Spragg; The Four Seasons, DP Tony Imi BSC; Spooks VII, DPs Damian Bromley, James Welland, Giulio Biccari; Taggart, DP Grant Cameron; Survivors DPs Tony Miller, Graeme Frake; Jonathan Creek Xmas Special, DP Geoff Harrison.

Manaki and Camerimage festivals call for entries Two festivals dedicated to the art and craft of cinematography, taking place later this year, are calling for submissions. The 29th Manaki Film Festival, based in Skopje and Bitola, in the Republic of Macedonia from 27 Sept to 4 Oct 2008, and the 16th Plus Camerimage Film Festival, taking place in Lodz, 29 Nov to 6 Dec 2008, both have a range of awards and non-competitive screening programmes for experienced cinematographers, as well as students, across different production formats - longform, short film and documentary.

Participation at either festival requires a DVD copy of a film with English subtitles, production information (trailer, synopsis, film credits, stills from the film, dialogue list in English, bio-filmography of the cinematographer and the director, as well as personal photos of both of them), plus any press and promotional materials, although the organisers are urging entrants to check their festival regulations online. For more information visit www.manaki.com.mk, www.pluscamerimage.pl, or IMAGO the European Federation of Cinematographers at www.imago.org.

Cannes 2008 Diary Brits in Cannes? Just a few! There appeared to be more than ever in 2008, but was this through lack of work/jobs, or were they trying to get projects off the ground?

Cannes Film Festival 2008 experience well, as in the same restaurant in La Napoule are three or four tables of execs from Deluxe, Deluxe Digital, Quantel, Panalux, Panavision, Hat Factory and more.

A little of both, probably, but generally it appeared there were fewer people in town than in previous years, and they certainly stayed for less time. Corporates are too busy these days to spend too much time away from the office, and independents find Cannes very expensive.

Saturday 17th May

Friday 16th May

Wet and costly: did the punters stay at home this year?

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Check in at Heathrow for the BA 354 to Nice. Some of those present are… Andy Birmingham, Darren Smith, Jackie Rowden, Julie Wickes, Derek Suter BSC, Terry “Lou” Lewis (with wife Jackie), amongst others. The rumour was that film director John Hough and Kishor Ladwa of Technicolor were seen heading for an earlier flight. We are met at Nice airport by François Becharef's team of Espace cars, to whisk us all to our hotel through driving rain unfortunately. Someone forgot to tell our driver to follow the rest. And yes… he took the scenic route. So on arrival at the hotel, Joe Dunton and David Tresize had caught us up (they had been on a later flight out of Luton). Friday evening dinner starts our

An early AM start into town (with dodgy weather forecast) for accreditation badges to the festival, and a visit to the UK film centre for delivery of British Cinematographer Magazine (which is also delivered to the Kodak Pavilion, Kodak boat, Pinewood boat, American pavilion, Century Club and major hotels along the Croissette. Quantel, in the shape of Geoff Mills, are holding court at the Century Club with many clients coming and going through lunch into the afternoon.

Some find a convenient pub or restaurant to watch the UK football cup final. Kodak's boat party for Production Guild execs and BSC members, hosted by David Webb and David Luxford of Kodak, proves a great success attended by 30 to 40 guests, including Colin Brown the British Film Commissioner. Saturday evening sees a visit to the Hostellerie du Golf by Anna Lee, and dinner in a nearby restaurant hosted by Joe Dunton and Hat Factory.

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UK

production news

Cannes 2008 Winners The official Jury of the 61st Festival de Cannes, presided over by Sean Penn, revealed the Prize winners during the closing Ceremony of May, 25th. Édouard Baer hosted Robert de Niro on the stage of the Grand Théâtre Lumière to award the Palme d'or to the best film among the 22 in competition. Barry Levinson's closing film What Just Happened? starring Robert De Niro, Sean Penn and Bruce Willis, was screened at the end of the ceremony.

In Compettion - Feature Films

Winner: Hunger by Steve McQueen, lensed by Sean Bobbitt BSC wins the Camera d'Or

Sunday18th May A tour of the major pavilions - in the rain again. After attending the always-entertaining director Mike Figgis' seminar (in the UK Film Centre), it's off to join Deluxe for their annual Rado Plage beach lunch, hosted by Terry Lansbury, Ian Robinson, and Clive Noakes - always with excellent food. At 17:00hrs it's back to the old port for Pinewood's boat party, hosted by Nick Smith. It is so popular, that numbers have to be restricted and guests are on the keyside being passed food and drink. It's a hard life as we next head to the Weinstien terrace at the Gray d'Albion, overlooking the bay of Cannes for Fuji's party, which proves a great hit with all guests, as it is such a great view and is hosted by the effervescent Millie Morrow, Rachel Baker, Simon Baxter and George Parcher over from the States.

pavilion, to gather in, to meet at, and to focus world attentions on - especially as we were the first to build a national pavilion at the festival in 1985. Now all we have is the UK Film Centre, but most people in Cannes spent ten minutes there, as it seemed to be full of British Council, UK Film Council, BFI and Screen Commission folk meeting with one another on the tiny terrace - leaving no room for anyone else. This must have been the wettest and least well-attended Cannes for 25years.

The brollie sellers on the Rue d'Antibes did well. Still no sprouts found anywhere in Cannes! But you can't have everything.

PS: on arriving home it was really good to hear that the Cannes jury, headed by Sean Penn had chosen a British film Hunger as the winner of the top prize the Camera D'Or.

Monday 19th May Kodak host their annual lunch in their own pavilion, which is as crowded as ever, followed by a lunch for production execs hosted by Kishor Ladwa of Technicolor on the beach. In the evening the ever-popular Quantel / Hat Factory party at the Hostellerie attracts its usual mix of post and production execs, with a live band and wonderful food, that goes on till late! The hosts are Geoff Mills, Mark Horton and Richard CraigMcFeeley of Quantel and Joe Dunton and Dave Tresize from Hat Factory. By the way, the annual Deluxe football match took place (3-2 to USA, winners over European team, with a goal in last minute!). There was rumour of a certain large boat in the old port with a party hosted by Mr Ron Perelman.

CINEFONDATION First Cinéfondation Prize Himnon (Hymn) by Elad Keidan (The Sam Spiegel Film and TV School, Israël)

Wednesday 21st May A mass exodus of execs from the Croissette. Is it anything to do with the impending French workers' strike, due to hit the roads, airports and ports on Thursday?

Second Cinéfondation Prize

Thursday 22nd & Friday 23rd May

BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

Palme d'Or Megatron by Marian Crisan Jury Prize Jerrycan by Julius Avery CAMERA D'OR Hunger by Steve McQueen (Un Certain Regard) Mention Spéciale Caméra d'Or Vse Umrut A Ja Ostanus (They will die all but me) by Valeria Gaï Guermanika (International Critics'Week)

Un Certain Regard Prize Tulpan by Sergey Dvortsevoy Jury Prize Tokyo Sonata by Kurosawa Kiyoshi Heart Throb Jury Prize Wolke 9 by Andreas Drese The Knockout of Un Certain Regard Tyson by James Toback Prize of Hope Johnny Mad Dog by Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire

Believe it or not the sun shone for the first time in days!

Maybe for the great, traditional Technicolor lunch at the Carlton, which again provided such wonderful food and service.

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IN COMPETTION - SHORT FILMS

UN CERTAIN REGARD

Tuesday 20th May

Really quiet days! But giving time to spend in the international pavilions. It's such a shame that our British contingent has no

Palme d'Or Entre Les Murs by Laurent Cantet Grand Prix Gomorra by Matteo Garrone Prize of the 61st Festival de Cannes ex-aequo Catherine Deneuve for Un Conte De Noël by Arnaud Desplechin Clint Eastwood for The Exchange Award for the Best Director Üç Maymun (Three Monkeys) by Nuri Bilge Ceylan Jury Prize Il Divo by Paolo Sorrentino Best Performance for an Actor Benicio Del Toro for Che by Steven Soderbergh Best Performance for an Actress Sandra Corveloni for Linha De Passe by Walter Salles, Daniela Thomas Award for the Best Screenplay Lorna's Silence by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne Le Prix Vulcain de l'Artiste-Technicien Luca Bigazzi and Angelo Raguseo for Il Divo by Paolo Sorrentino.

Pavilion: surely next year the Brits need to band the drum harder?

Forbach by Claire Burger (La fémis, France) Third Cinéfondation Prize Stop by Park Jae-ok (The Korean Academy of Film Arts, Corée du Sud) Kestomerkitsijät (Signalisation des routes) by Juho Kuosmanen (University of Art and Design Helsinki, Finlande)

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UK

who’s shooting who?

Who’s Shooting Who? Text maniac: Mike Southon BSC is bringing a filmic feel to SMS thriller U Be Dead using an ARRI D-21

The news from United Agents, where Lynda Mamy, Alice Dunne, Silvia Llaguno and Andrew Naylor are now based, is…Haris Zambarloukos BSC has completed shooting Richard Eyre's new film, The Other Man, starring Antonio Banderas, Liam Neeson, Laura Linney and Romola Garai, before grading Mamma Mia! in London and New York (Read all about Haris' work on the new musical extravaganza, in this edition!). Marcel Zyskind is taking a well-earned break at home in Denmark after completing Mammoth for Lukas Moodysson. Genova, which he lit for Michael Winterbottom, screened in Cannes. Peter Middleton BSC has shot a corporate film in London with director John Strickland. Tony Slater-Ling is working with director Kenny Glenaan again on Wired, a new three-parter for Granada. Paul Sarossy BSC, CSC, has been in Croatia shooting a feature film called The Duel with director Dover Kasheshvili. Carlos Catalan, a new United client, is in India shooting Luck By Chance with director Zoya Akhtar until mid-July. Alan Almond BSC has recently completed a block of Silent Witness for director Diarmuid Lawrence on 35mm. Charlotte Bruus Christensen is working on her next feature in Denmark, Zophia With A Z, which she has written and will co-direct with her husband

Stefan Mork. Danny Cohen is currently shooting Richard Curtis's The Boat That Rocked, with Philip Seymour Hoffman heading a star-studded cast, followed by a well-deserved holiday. Felix Novo de Oliveira is busy with commercials in Germany - Nintendo most recently. Neus Olle is doing some early prep in Barcelona on her next feature film, a Catalonian family ensemble drama that follows the highs and lows of various relatives coming together for a patriarch's funeral.

Meanwhile, Lukas Strebel has begun work on the Andrew Davies BBC1 adaptation of Little Dorritt, directed by Dearbhla Walsh. Tim Maurice-Jones has been away in Palma shooting a Romerquelle commercial with Rankin and Chris c/o Film Deluxe before flying out to Capetown for a Blood Donor commercial with Peter Webber at Serious Pictures. Daniel Bronks was responsible for the Cadbury 'Trucks' commercial with Juan Cabral through Blink Productions on location in Mexico. Alwin Kuchler BSC recently shot a Carling commercial with Fredrik Bond for Sonny in Spain. Alex Melman has lensed a Strongbow commercial with director Sam Cadman through Rogue in South Africa, and Dulux, with director Patrik Bergh in Buenos Aires through Partizan London.

Tat Radcliffe is currently shooting TV show Balloon Wars

with director Yann Demange in London through Zeppertron.

Alex Barber recently shot a Nokia commercial with directors Pleix through Blink Productions in London, an Audi spot with Paul Hunter through Prettybird LA and a Panasonic commercial with Brett Foraker c/o RSA. Simon Chaudoir did a BMW commercial for director Jann Jones at HSI in Argentina. Colin Watkinson has been busy on commercials in LA, and is doing a Carling commercial with Rane Tiukkanen through Sonny in Spain. Brendan Galvin lensed a Nike commercial with Tarsem c/o Radical Media in China and US. New client Philipp Blaubach's feature The Escapist, directed by Rupert Wyatt and starring Brian Cox and Joseph Fiennes, is on at a cinema near you now.

Ed Wild: I can see your house from here!

Martin Kenzie: is lighting 2nd unit on Boat That Rocked

Eigil Bryld: shot beer ads in Shanghai

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Mmm… over at McKinney Macartney… Balazs Bolygo has finished shooting the thriller Whitechapel and will leap on to Warp Films' new project Bunny And The Bull to be directed

by The Mighty Boosh veteran Paul King. Denis Crossan BSC recently shot an Xbox commercial for Ulf Johansson, and has also been working for directors Carolyn Corbin and Susie Roberson. Lately, Shane Daly has been in Wales shooting The Big I Am for director Nic Auerbach, a crime thriller dealing

ISSUE 28

BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

UK

who’s shooting who?

Clive Tickner: keeping warm on a mountainside with the shady world of human trafficking.

John de Borman BSC is re-teaming with director Bharat Nalluri on the ABC television show pilot Cupid, a modern version of the titular fabled god of love in New York. Gavin Finney BSC recently shot commercials with Vadim Jean and John O'Driscoll. Graham Frake is lensing Survivors for director Andrew Gunn - a remake of the classic postapocalyptic drama for the BBC. Richard Greatrex has been out on the ocean waves with Mike Barker's crew on The Seawolf adapting Jack London's celebrated novels for a television miniseries. Hong Manley's film Baby Doll Night, for director Adel Adeeb, premiered in Cannes and might just be one of the most thought-provoking dramas of the year. Phil Méheux BSC has been prepping his next film with director Martin Campbell, Edge of Darkness, a thriller about a police officer investigating his own daughter's death. Mark Partridge is continuing to shoot the second series of Lark Rise to Candleford the hit BBC television show for director Alan Grint. Jake Polonsky has returned from Spain where he was filming with directors Si & Ad through Academy.

Chris Seager BSC is exploring the sad story of musician Marvin Gaye with Bob Blagden in the documentary Marvin and Me, which is currently shooting in America. Clive Tickner BSC has been working on commercials with directors Ben Sedley, Chris Gabrin and John Lloyd. Darran Tiernan has been solving crimes in rural Ireland on the third Single Handed with director Anthony Byrne. He is currently shooting a commercial with Rory Kelliher directing. Michael Wood recently traveled to India to shoot a Hyundai commercial, and has also been working for directors JJ Keith and Nicholas Reynolds.

Dinedor's… Florian Hoffmeister has finished Sleep With Me for ITV, goes on to short film Kingsland for Bureau Films and writer/director Tony Grisoni, and from there to the long-awaited remake of The Prisoner for Granada and AMC. Steve Buckland starts block I of Shameless for Company pictures and Channel 4, and then he's off on Hotel Babylon for Carnival and BBC1, while

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Peter Butler takes over from him on block II of Shameless. Andrew Johnson is preparing for series III of M.I. High for Kudos and the BBC, and Ian Moss has finished on Caught in a Trap for Greenlit and ITV. Grant Cameron continues shooting the last ever series of Taggart, and Peter Thornton finishes the HD feature Ryan and Ronnie for Boomerang Films and S4C. Mike Fox BSC has shot commercials for Wessex Water, and Mike's son Matt Fox has shot a promo for Funeral for a Friend, as well as commercials for PC World and Nissan. Steven Hall is operating on Apparitions II for Lime Pictures, Peter Field continues 2nd unit operating on Quantum of Solace back at Pinewood.

Steadicam op Dion M Casey has been working for Nokia, and for band Mutual Friends. Ed Mash has shot campaigns for Becks Beer in Brazil, and for Feasters Burgers, Tom Townend has been in HK and Vancouver shooting for Vodafone. He has also been busy for McDonalds, Barclaycard, Meteor and Primal Scream. Eric Maddison

Michael Wood: on the road for car ads

BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

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UK

who’s shooting who?

Caramba! Vision at Wizzo's… August Jakobsson is shooting in London with Tom Carty for HVP, following a Tescos shoot with Outsider's Pedro Romhanyi, featuring England footballers Frank Lampard and Kelly Smith. Control DP Martin Ruhe has been shooting with Academy director Seb Edwards for COI, as well as a Coke ad for directing duo Style War at Stink. Magni Agustsson, is back from his still unnamed Icelandic feature, and just shot a fabulous Supergrass promo with Keith Schofield at HIS, plus a Smart Car ad with Roar Uthaug at Great Guns. Mik Allen lit up MacDonalds with Chris Dada at Academy. Keith Goddard BSC, a food specialist, shot a spot for Old El Paso for Quiet Storm. Ian Murray recently shot Scottish Executive with Kjetil Njoten at HLA, and is presently in Miami shooting Red Stripe. Ed Rutherford has just finished shooting for The Guardian with Max and Michael at Home. Franck Tymezuk also joins the Vision roster this month, Franck has done some great beauty and fashion-orientated work, working with the likes of Jean Baptiste Mondino.

BRUCE CHUN CAPTION NEEDED FOR IN HERE FSF is back from the continent, shooting for Rexona, and also shoots for KMS Goldwell, while Adam Frisch FSF has ended the month shooting for Q Fort, Talk Talk, King.com and Migra, as well as promos for David Jordan and Julian Velard.

Congratulations to Ben Filby, who became a dad last month, and continues his corporate campaign for Ernst and Young.

Garry Turnbull has been on a commercial for Renault, David Raedeker was on the BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend in Kent, shoots for Carphone Warehouse, and has jetted off to South Africa for Nokia. Pete Ellmore shot a promo for Roisin Murphy, as well as commercials for Nutrigrain, McDonalds and Starbucks. Trevor Forrest has started prep on a documentary following Massive Attack on their upcoming European tour, and Stephanie Hardt finishes on Blakeway Productions' Peaches' Magazine for MTV. Matt Cooke shoots music promos for Keith Caputo, Nick Harrison and The Whip.

Franklin Dow has shot a corporate for Coutts, Steve Annis was assisting on Caught in a Trap and lights for Nokia, and Damian Daniel lit a commercial for Agent Provocateur, and more 2nd Unit on Fur TV for Warp Films and MTV.

Rob Hardy: a little something for the mantalpiece

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Independent Talent Group's… Ulf Brantas has just been to South Africa on a shoot with director Garth Davis for Anonymous Content. Eigil Bryld just got back from China where he was on a big Tyskie Beer shoot with Barney Cokeliss for Joy at RSA. Busy Ben Davis BSC recently completed a Knife Prevention campaign with director Guy Mannering for Sonny London. He has also been in Mexico with Jeff Stark for Another Film Co, and was last seen heading off to the Bahamas with Stuart Rideout for RSA on a Bahamas Tourist Board shoot. Jess Hall is working hard. He lit an Adidas shoot with Psyop for Stink, and an Anti-Smoking campaign with Chris Palmer for Gorgeous, and was shooting in and around London in June with Traktor for a T-Mobile commercial for Partizan. The film Brideshead Revisited, directed by Julian Jarrold, which Jess shot last year, is due to be released in the UK later this year. Mattias Montero has been working with JC Thibaut for Neue Sentimental in Germany. He spent most of May working on a big Boots job with Jake Scott for RSA before flying to Prague to work on a Swatch shoot with Jeff Thomas for Sonny London. Mark Patten lensed the Channel 4 promos for River Cottage with director Chris Woods, and a Street Crime series with Brett Forraker. He has also been working with director Matt Kirkby for RSA. Joost Van Gelder recently completed a shoot with Trevor Robinson for Quiet Storm, before flying off to South Africa with Johnny Green on another Mercedes shoot for Knucklehead. After finishing up on the TV drama Mr Eleven, Ed Wild got straight back into commercials and promos including Ministry of Sound with Ryan Newey for Fold 7, and a Sony shoot with director Baillie Walsh for Homecorp. He has also graded Justin Kerrigan's I Know You Know. Anthony Dod Mantle BSC, DFF is working with Lars Von Trier on his new project, Antichrist, shooting this summer. Martin Kenzie is currently lighting and directing 2nd unit for Richard Curtis on The Boat That Rocked. Easy Virtue starring Jessica Biel and Colin Firth will be released next year. Dan Landin is shooting Malcolm Venville's 44 Inch Chest. Darius Khondji ASC, AFC recently wrapped on Stephen Frears' romantic drama Cheri, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Kathy Bates. Sam McCurdy is busy shooting the horror sequel, The Descent II. Ashley Rowe BSC just started work on Charles Shyer's Eloise in Paris. Based on the classic 1950s children's book by Kay Thompson and starring Uma Thurman, they begin shooting this summer in New York and throughout Europe. Ben Seresin is shooting Michael Bay's Transformers 2 over in the States. Oliver Stapleton BSC is lighting The Proposal, starring Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. Nigel Willoughby recently finished shooting Gillies MacKinnon's The Commander for ITV.

The news from Creative Media Management… is that Mike Southon BSC is working with director Jamie Payne on the feature-length thriller U Be Dead. Elinor Day is producing for Darlow Smithson. Mike told British Cinematographer he is “totally loving” the camera. U B Dead is based on the true story of a woman who destroyed a man's career and relationship via phone text stalking. She's now doing eight years inside. Mike said he's getting great reactions to the dailies from ITV, and creating something much more featurelike than TV. “Most of the D21 fun is in the shadow detail which is where we've been narratively this week, and I've enjoyed exploring that,” he said. Gavin Struthers is shooting Tiger Apect's second series of Secret Diary of a Call Girl. Colin Munn is lighting series twelve of Midsommer Murders for ITV. Casarotto's … Sean Bobbitt BSC shot Hunger, the debut feature by Steve McQueen that premiered at Cannes and won the Camera D'Or Prize for Best First Feature. Read all about Sean's work in the edition! Benoit Delhomme flew back to Bangkok to complete the shoot on Shanghai for dir Mikael Hafstrom and the Weinstein Co. Matt Gray has started Philip Ridley's Heartless for Cross Day productions, starring Jim Sturgess and Noel Clarke. Congratulations to Rob Hardy who won a BAFTA for his work on Boy A, directed by John Crowley.

Chris Menges BSC has completed his work on Stephen Daldry's The Reader. Tim Palmer is due to start work shortly on La Plante Productions new venture Above Suspicion, with director Chris Menual.

Hollywood-based agency Lenhoff & Lenhoff Agency's....

Bruce Chun is currently prepping to shoot De Pere En Flic in Montreal for director Emile Gaudreault. The film stars Michele Cote, Rémy Girard, Louise Jose Houde. Bruce recently photographed Nitro and the international hit Bon Cop, Bad Cop. Both films garnered Genie Award nominations for best cinematography.

Phil Méheux BSC: is now prepping for Edge of Darkness

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

FEATURE

on the job

Bobbitt Cuts To 2-Perf Hunger may be a low-budget production, but it has made a little bit of history, and not just for its subject matter. Lensed by Sean Bobbit BSC, it was the UK's first feature film to be shot using 2-perf, and the first to have a 2perf DI grade. It won the Camera d'Or at Cannes 2008 and also received the international Critic's Choice award. Kevin Hilton reports.

In an ideal filmmaking world directors and cinematographers would have the opportunity and the money to use all tools and resources available to them.

And no outside influences would have any bearing on the creative process. As anyone in the business knows this idyll does not exist, but filmmakers are adept at finding ways round a problem, as director of photography and BSC member Sean Bobbitt proved on his most recent feature Hunger

Little perforations: a major factor in the renaissance of 2-perf is the shift away from the lab to DI “Super 16 would not have only produced a grainy effect, making the film look more like a documentary than a drama,” Bobbitt says, “it would also have given use of an 1.85:1 aspect ratio.

Steve is an artist and has an advanced sense of composition, and the 2.35:1 frame is more exciting to work with.”

Powerful performances The answer appeared to be 2-perf film, which was introduced in 1963 for the Techniscope widescreen format. Despite being used on Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West (1969) and George Lucas' American Graffiti (1973), the process fell out of favour because the pictures had to be blown up for projection, producing a result that Leslie Halliwell once described as "awful".

Bobbitt explains he had been “keeping an eye on 2-perf” and was attracted by the cost and good picture quality. “The difference in price between shooting 35mm 2-perf 2.35:1 and Super 16 in 1.85:1 was only £12,500,” he explains. “The difference in look is quite marked as well because 2-perf 2.35:1 gives almost a three times bigger picture area, but without having to go through any blowing up process, which would happen with Super 16.”

A major factor in the renaissance of 2-perf is the shift away from optical lab processing for film to DI post-production. “We would have had to use DI for Super 16 so there was no extra cost in terms of post,” Bobbitt comments. “2-perf died in the 1960s

Hunger, was originally to have been shot on 35mm in 2.35:1 Cinemascope aspect ratio, but when the subject matter of the film had a direct effect on how much money was available for the shoot, the DP had to think about viable alternatives. The film is about the last six weeks in the life of IRA member Bobby Sands, who refused food while in Long Kesh prison, Belfast during 1981 as a protest against the authorities' refusal to give him and his fellow Republican prisoners political status. Sands died after 66 days on hunger strike, followed by nine other inmates during that summer.

BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

The sets on Hunger were built to give the closed-in sensation of being in a prison cell. This meant there was not much room for manoeuvre, so these scenes were shot using an Arricam LT. Other sequences were photographed using an Arricam ST, with handheld shots on an Arriflex 235. Bobbitt says care has to be taken using 2-perf stock, including checking for hairs in the gate.

“Conor Hammond, the focus puller, was painstaking in doing that,” he recalls, “and we had no hairs in the telecine and only three through the whole film.”

Because 2-perf film has a common frameline, any lights on the edge of a frame will encroach on the next. “I did push hard with what I was putting on the stock,” says Bobbitt, “but there was no bleed-through. You have to monitor closely what you're doing and there is no standard to which the cameras are set up. You also have to be careful in the transfer because images can be scanned into other frames. Really you use the same care as you would with Super 16. Apart from that 2-perf is much like working with normal 35mm.”

Bobbitt observes that the DI process is now an integral part of cinematography, allowing final touches to be added that could not have been done previously in post. “That's not so much the lighting, but adding little bits of shadow here and there that we weren't able to get at the time,” he explains.

Avoiding a documentary look

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Other advantages of 2-perf are not having unused space between frames, which saves on film stock, and extended reel times. This last feature allowed Bobbitt to work in longer takes, which he says was important to McQueen for the style of the film. One scene, set in a cell with only two actors, lasts for 16 and a half minutes. This was shot in four complete takes, reducing considerably the number of edits there would have been with other film stocks and tightening the dramatic tension, drawing what Bobbitt calls “powerful performances”.

The film was colour graded by Geoffrey Case at Dragon DI in South Wales on Quantel iQ, with 2K digital projection to a 7m x 3m cinema screen. Dragon DI also provided the film scanning and film outs via its ARRIScan and ARRILaser machines.

A film about Sands was always going to be difficult to get made, and although some of the notorious 'H' Blocks are still standing at Long Kesh, more commonly known as The Maze, the producers of Hunger were refused permission to film there, and were banned from other locations around Belfast. Sets had to be built to reproduce the cells and hospital wing, taking a large part of the budget from other parts of the production.

Hunger is the first drama to be directed by Turner Prize-winning artist and experimental filmmaker Steve McQueen, who did not want a documentary look. The most obvious solution to the problem of money would have been to shoot on Super 16, but that would have resulted in exactly what McQueen and Bobbitt were trying to avoid.

because of the blow up process, but with DI there is much more sense in looking at it now. No one would think of going 2-perf without DI because any quality in the picture would be lost in the optical blow up.”

Care: 2-perf stock needs constant supervision for things like hairs-in-the-gate

Hunger is a low budget film, shot for only £1.4 million, most of which came from Channel 4 Television and Channel Four Films, the Northern Ireland Film Council and the Welsh Film Fund. Sean Bobbitt says 2-perf helped get away from a low budget look and so impressed was he with the result he's already worked in the format since finishing Hunger, on a series of shorts for Amnesty International.

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INTERNATIONAL

shooting the future

BSC Show 2008 Review The BSC show has gone from strength to strength over the years, and has now become the “must visit” show for UK camera crew professionals. It all started as a relatively low key event to help small companies and engineers demonstrate their emerging technology to a highly regarded audience of the BSC members and professional camera crews. The show now takes over the George Lucas stage in Elstree studios for two days, with almost 60 companies and organisations taking part, with a great range of diverse companies exhibiting from around the globe. Joe Dunton MBE, BSC has been a tremendous driving force for this event over the years since it started. It is with this background in mind that we delve into the exhibition and take a very brief look at what caught my eye, writes John Keedwell GBCT.

Visual Effects Company - Motion Base On arrival at the Elstree stage, the first thing to see was what looked like a large mechanical bucking bronco. However, on closer inspection this was seen to be a device from The Visual Effects Company which can be input from a joystick with seven axis of motion that can be used to import and export 3D data with full repeatability. This is used to create “impossible” scenarios, such as the movement characteristics of any creature or object and can be captured to create a “ride on” effect to move an actor in an identical manner. www.thevfxco.co.uk

Cammotion - Vortex Another rather different tool for camera movement came in the form of the Vortex from Cammotion. This unit is able to propel a stabilised camera up to 50kg vertically to thirty meters in 15 seconds, silently and smoothly. The unit is trailer mounted and weighs only 3,400kg, and is therefore excellent for location work.

It arrives with a Land Rover kitted out for location work, and has an impressive rig and de-rig time of only 30 minutes, so can be used in different locations for different set ups on the same day.

It has a maximum wind tolerance of thirty knots, so it is flexible in operation and can be used where other units have to stay put.

The camera can be overslung for 360º panning shots or underslung for ground level shots www.cammotion.co.uk

ARRI - LED Technology Perhaps the most apparent change over the past few years has been the introduction of LED lighting units, and there was a great selection of new LED lighting concepts on display. Rosco and Gekko Technology were both there demonstrating their innovative LED lighting products for discerning cinematographers. Possibly one of the bigger displays was from Timo Muller from ARRI who were demonstrating some of their units that were still in development after four years of research. Their small individual

Bright: ARRI light block with Timo Muller demonstrating

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BSC Show: started as a modest affair – now it's a 'must-visit' attraction

units consisted of a light engine, which is a series of LEDs with different but very accurate colour characteristics. When carefully mixed together with the correct algorithm in the software they are able to able to accurately match the colours of any of your favourite lighting gel, filter, or conventional fixed colour temperatures, such as daylight and tungsten lighting. For example the unit can accurately match Storaro filters, Rosco and Lee filters etc. Magnets are used to hold the front diffuser onto the individual units. The unit itself is very small, and can be stacked together to make a larger source of light, or can be used as a single unit. They have DMX control, and this was ably demonstrated by a large wall of LED units, all backlighting a screen and changing colours in waves. www.rosco.com, www.gekkotechnology.com, www.arri.com

2-perf One of the interesting things I have noticed over recent years is a workflow tending more towards the “electronic” post production route, compared to the conventional film production route. Having said that, it is safe to say that shooting on film is here to stay for some time yet, as was demonstrated by ARRI and their investment in the 2-perf film shooting format. Whilst not exactly a new concept as such, due to 3-perf being the hot idea only quite recently, the development has meant the ARRICAM Studio, Arricam Lite and the Arriflex 235 all are now available with 2-perf movements.

Shooting 2-perf means a radical saving in film shooting costs, literally more than halving the costs over shooting 4-perf in 1: 2.35 format. The 2-perf format achieves a natural Cinemascope aspect ration of 1: 2.39 on standard 35mm film stock by eliminating the previously unused space between the frames. It is only a minimal reduction of negative area as compared with 4perf film. It is also suitable for 1:1.85 and 1:1.78 productions.

possible more recently due to a combination of factors coming together. Kodak and Fuji are constantly pushing to produce better quality filmstocks each year that are far finer grained than ever before. Also the lens manufacturers like Cooke and ARRI are producing ever sharper lenses to focus on the filmstocks. This and the advent of the Digital Intermediate have combined to play a large part producing superb quality images. www.arrimedia.com

Codex Digital - Portable Recorder Digital movie cameras are already available that have resolution and performance arguably comparable to 35mm film camera stocks. As technology advances at the current rate and digital cinematography becomes more widely accepted, the biggest issue will be acquisition and workflow practices more than resolution and technical matters. A 35mm film magazine with modern film stocks is still one the most compact high quality recording mediums available, although there are digital recording units being developed all the time. One such development is the Portable recorder from UK company Codex Digital A main challenge with high-resolution digital cinematography are the high data rates which are encountered. The Dalsa Origin has a data output of up to 600Mbytes per second, which makes it impossible to store the data from the camera on any current tapebased recording medium, and most hard disc recorders would struggle.

The 2-perf concept, it must be noted, has only really become

In terms of a truly UK product that is leading the world, the Codex Recorder has had great successes already. The recorders were used to record the output for a technically remarkable visual effects sequence for the latest James Bond 007 film Quantum of Solace. This involved eight Codex Digital recorders capturing the raw 4K output from eight shutter-synchronized 4K cameras. The use of Codex systems enabled the production to take full advantage of the uncompressed, high-resolution output of the

Big: in terms of image quality and camera size, they don't really get bigger than Dalsa

VFX demonstration: mechanical bucking bronco

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

shooting the future

Dalsa cameras and to extract the maximum amount of detail from those scenes in post production.

The shoot resulted in over 40TB (40,000 Gigabytes!) of data being recorded in a single day.

Paul Bamborough, a co-founder of Codex Digital. “It allows the maximum possible resolution and dynamic range to be passed down the production pipeline from the camera into post production. This is a great fit with data-oriented systems such as the Codex Recorder because, unlike tape, Codex is not tied to one standard. We can record whatever format is given to us, and then immediately produce all the traditional deliverables that may be needed.”

The new Codex Portable is the first portable disk-recorder to handle all formats up to 4K at cinemaquality, and the first to handle both video and data-mode cameras. Features include two dual-link HD 4:4:4 inputs, Infiniband and Ethernet data-connections, 10Gbps optical I/O, timecode and control ports, eight channels of audio, HD and SD monitoring of all formats up to 4K, and MP4 wireless video output. It weighs a mere 9lbs /4kgs. The portable recorder ships in June 2008. www.codexdigital.com

Movie Intercom Lighting - Effects Tools Flicker Box Tucked away in a small area near distributors Cirrolite was an interesting flicker box, which was ably demonstrated by Olaf Michalke. One big problem for DPs is mimicking lighting effects and making them look realistic. The randomness of a candle flame, for example is different to that of a campfire.

Olaf showed a box of tricks that could mimic the flicker from a TV screen, a cinema projector, a candle, a flame, welding, lightning, and many other effects besides, and even a dodgy flickering fluorescent light was able to be reproduced with a fluorescent light fitting itself. It can be altered to be as smooth or as aggressive as the user wants, is DMX compatible, and can therefore control just about any light with DMX. A lighting sensor / spot meter device was also able to be fed into the system and control the flicker from a light source such as a candle and translate that input into the main light source. Also, this can be used to trigger a light switching on from a practical light switch, so no more trying to time the switching on a lamp by an actor with a keen eyed electrician waiting intently with a second switch to try and attempt synchronous activation, as the unit can now do this for you. www.movie-inter.com

DALSA - 4K Origin Camera Rob Hummel, the president of Dalsa's czmera division, was at the BSC show to meet and discuss the company's cameras. In terms of image quality and size of camera, they don't really come bigger than the Dalsa Origin - 4096 x 2048, 4k resolution on a 35mm sized sensor, and now there is a second camera called the Evolution. The company has its roots in NASA and the Hubble space telescope, so they are no strangers to high-quality imaging, yet when Rob took the helm of the company he actually felt that the cinematography side of the imaging systems could actually improve, so he set about doing just that.

As a testament to this cinematic quality, and already noted in this piece, the latest James Bond 007 film Quantum of Solace recently used eight of the Dalsa Origin cameras for a complex visual effects shot, recording onto Codex recorders. www.dalsa.com

Pirate, Take 2 Films & Vision Research - High Speed Cameras With the introduction of the Vision Research HD High Speed cameras, there have been a few companies lucky enough to get hold of the cameras and they are now reaping the benefits. Pirate and Take 2 now have them available for hire, and were both demonstrating the quality and instant high quality replay capabilities at the 2008 BSC show. Read more about their use in the Direct Line commercials, lensed by John Pardue, in this edition. www.pirate.co.uk, www.take2films.co.uk, www.visionresearch.com

Polecam Polecam has announced several new HD cameras for use on or off its Polecam systems. The IK-HD1E from Toshiba is a remote head 3 CCD 50/60HZ switchable 1080i camera which has good sensitivity and excellent colorimetry and resolution. This goes straight on to Polecam, and Polecam engineers add a second HD-SDI output to the camera to feed the HD monitor on the rig. Camera Corps, who distribute their products through Polecam, have released a new CMOS sensor HD Mini-zoom camera, 50/60 HZ switchable 720P/1080i. Polecam requires a simple modification to fit this onboard. The camera features a 10:1 optical zoom lens. The popular Iconix multi-format HD camera has a new version with 2K output to add to its already available dual link output. The previous version will still sell alongside. Both these cameras go straight on to Polecam. Polecam also has a new 3D head, used

by Axis Films for a Reebok commercial shot with boxer Amir Khan. www.polecam.com

Rosco VIEW - Variable Intensity Exposure Control System In terms of a, “Why wasn't this thought of before now?” moment, the Rosco VIEW system certainly wins the award. A simple concept of a rotating polarising filter on the lens, combined with an identical polarizing filter gel over the window creates an exposure control for windows or other backgrounds that is unsurpassed. When the filters are in line with each other, a loss of only one stop is recorded, compared with two stops or more with most other polarising filters. A rotation of the VIEW olarising filter on the lens will dim the background without altering the foreground lighting intensity. The system is stocked by LCA in the UK. www.rosco.com

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

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live and let DI

To Live and Let DI The lads at Cine Image recently completed the meticulous restoration and 2K/HD remastering of the classic British romantic weepy Brief Encounter (1945) for Park Circus, using its combination of film scanning, dust-busting and DI colour grading systems. Other recent projects to get the Cine Image restorative makeover include The Ipcress File, The African Queen, Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence, The Last Emperor, Insignificance and The Hit. For future reference, Cine Image has relocated, from Covent Garden, to new premises at 68a Delancey Street, Camden, London NW1 7RY. Smoke & Mirrors has completed the DI on a UK independent production called City Rats, directed by Steve Kelly, with Adam Levins the DP. It's the story of eight haunted people whose lives are falling apart, but who find redemption and hope in each other. S&M has also worked on the trailer of The Tournament, starring Ving Rhames and Robert Carlyle, which was lensed by Emil Topuzov, and Taxidermy a short film backed by the East Midlands Film Council.

Dragon DI in South Wales completed the DI and picture post for the Steve McQueen-directed feature Hunger, lensed by Sean Bobbitt BSC, and produced by Robin Gutch and Laura Hastings-Smith. Hunger follows the slow and harrowing demise of IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands, played by Michael Fassbender. It was the opening night film in the 'Un Certain Regard' section at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, and went on to win Camera d'Or award. (You can read all about Sean Bobbitt's work in our On The Job section).

“This is wonderful for us', said Dragon DI's MD Tony Ray. 'It's a very special film, and to be such an intrinsic part of it says a lot about the quality of the people and the service at Dragon.'

The first British facility to develop a 2-perf workflow, Dragon DI went to some considerable effort to get things right.

Extensive testing was carried out in conjunction Bobbitt, which revealed, for example, that particular attention had to be paid to framing and stock calibration during the scanning process. Scanning and film-outs were done using Dragon DI's ARRIScan and ARRILaser machines, with grading performed by peripatetic colourist Geoffrey Case on Quantel iQ, assisted by 2K digital projection to a 7m x 3m cinema screen. Case graded the film in close collaboration with Bobbitt, and told British Cinematographer that a lot of sensitivity went into the grade. “Whilst we wanted to achieve a distinctly 80's feel, it was also important that the film didn't look 'graded' - the subject matter was too powerful in its own right to allow any kind of distraction,” he said.

"Obviously they shot the film beautifully. But there were so few "problem shots" on this film that in our two week grade we had plenty of time for experimenting, not just with different grading ideas, but also with some special effects

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Dragon DI: Hunger was given an 80's feel, but avoided a 'graded' look

shots. Steve, the director, and Sean obviously have a great relationship and trust each other a lot. Thanks to this, the grading process was one of the most collaborative I have ever been a part of. They fully embraced and, in fact I believe, suggested the same approach I prefer to grading features repetition. We tried our best to grade through the entire film many, many times. The first pass was very basic - primary corrections throughout. Then we went back through the entire film again, beginning to end, and dug in a bit deeper.

This entailed anything from adding a bit of blue to the eyes, to tweaking the colour of some blood in some scenes. Seeing the scenes in the context of a nearly graded film, we were all able to discuss what worked and what didn't and, in a few cases, change the basic grade accordingly."

Reflecting on the experience of working at Dragon DI, McQueen commented, “My initial scepticism about working in Wales was not only short-lived, but was completely thrown out the window! Let's face it - it takes at least an hour to get from A to B in London, and for only an extra hour's travel, I found myself in quiet surroundings, able to focus on my project completely.”

In a bid top save film as a format for TV drama, Ascent Media recently made an agreement with Fujifilm that will see the post-production group offering a deal on 2-perf 35mm film. The announcement is a direct response to broadcasters putting a ban on prime-time TV dramas being shot on Super 16 for HD channels, and means that by purchasing film stocks,

processing and telecine transfer through Ascent Media, DPs can get a price for shooting on 2-perf 35mm that is comparable to shooting on Super 16.

3-perf, which shoots 25% less stock than conventional 4-perf 35mm, is already well accepted, but 2-perf is now emerging as an option, shooting 50% less stock, with an increased emulsion area over Super 16. In terms of the measurements for 1.78:1 widescreen television, Super 16 delivers a frame size of 12.2mm x 6.86mm; 35mm 2-perf gives 16.29mm x 9.15mm (78% more emulsion area than the Super 16); and 3perf 35mm gives 24mm x 13.49mm (four times the emulsion area of Super 16).

“We wanted to find a technical and economic solution that satisfied the market, and with 2-perf running at 500ft for the equivalent of 400ft in Super 16, and delivering a superior emulsion area, we feel we've found a way to keep film alive in the TV drama sector,” said David Barrett, senior director, business development for the creative services division of Ascent Media. “With our two labs, Todd-AO and Soho Images, we have historically processed a majority share of the broadcast market. By this time last year we'd already processed just under two million feet of film, for the same time this year we've processed around 900,000 feet - that's a huge drop in processing in Super 16 because of the shift to HD.” The current deal is an exclusive pilot for a six-month trial period to gauge whether there will be take-up from the industry.

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

UK

live and let DI

Lipsync: busy on many DIs including the fantasy adventure The Secret of Moonacre, lensed by DP David Eggby

Moving Picture Company in Soho provided the DI on Is There Anybody There, starring Michael Caine, Anne-Marie Duff, David Morrissey and Rosemary Harris, for Big Beach Films,/Heyday Films. The film was directed by John Crowley and lensed by Rob Hardy. Prior to moving into its new home in Lexington Street in Soho, Technicolor Creative Services provided the DI grade on the HBO/BBC production House Of Saddam, directed by Alex Holmes and Jim O'Hanlon, with Florian Hoffmeister the DP. Lipsync Post has been really busy. The Soho facility recently completed a full DI, encompassing all scanning, film outs and all international HD/SD deliverables (not to mention additional digital VFX) on fantasy adventure The Secret of Moonacre, lensed by DP David Eggby.

The overall brief of the grade was to “keep it magical, moonlit and not be too scary.� The challenge facing Lipsync's grader Stuart Fyvie, who used Quantel Pablo, was to balance a lot of the scenes that were taken over different times of the year, with autumn leaves requiring correcting so they that they appeared lush and green. The Secret of Moonacre releases in February 2009, and was directed by Gabor Csupo, produced by Michael Cowan, with David Brown the executive producer, as stars Ioan Gruffudd, Dakota Blue Richards, Tim Curry and Natascha McElhone.

Lipsync also did a full DI on gory sci-fi adventure Mutant Chronicles, directed by Simon Hunter, shot by Geoff Boyle. The film goes to the very heart of darkness a leads Ron Perlman and Thomas Jane attempt to save the planet from marauding hordes of deathless mutants. The production was mainly captured on the Viper camera in Filmstream 4:4:4 mode, with some SI2K, Sony F23 and high-speed Phantom for good measure. Set in the future, this often-bloody film has a decayed, oxidised, rusty environment reflected in the grade done by Stuart Fyvie.

Other projects to get the full DI include: How To Loose Friends and Alienate People, releasing in October, with the stylish lenswork of Oliver Stapleton BSC getting a glamorous and glossy boost; Skin, the true story of a black girl born to two white Afrikaner parents in South Africa during the apartheid era, lensed by Dewald Aukema; the thriller Knife Edge, lit by DP Daniel Bronx, starring Joan Plowright, Hugh Bonneville and Tamsin Egerton, which was graded by Lee Clappison to giving a rich contrast of retro style to match the original16mm look and texture; and Dean Spanley, a surreal Edwardian comedic tale of canine reincarnation that explores the relationship between master and dog and father and son, lensed by Leon Narbey.

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Five Years On It's British Cinematographer Magazine's fifth birthday.

So we asked cinematographers, film directors and producers, manufacturers and industry bodies about the changes they foresee in the next five years, and ways to adapt to those changes. We thank those who took the time and trouble to reply. Here's what they said… logy has ce for new techno Given that the ra cularly in ch a pace, parti been going at su s, it may ar the last few ye the TV industry in motion o int ill spill over be that this w oment m e th At way. pictures in a big an st dard seen as the gold 35mm film is still g may lon d l acquisition, an in terms of visua pport su to rd ould work ha that last. We sh nsist co ly on w no h rs, whic will film manufacture film at jifilm, or I fear th my of Kodak and Fu in t slo t of the top be squeezed ou lifetime. n it's winds of picture productio nnot expect the dards of motion and an ill, st That said, we ca w up rs he ep ot ke s. If we don't, blowing. To ge op an st ch l to s ica ge log an ch techno DP becomes les s keep abreast of the role of the n he w e m important that DP bla to ly have ourselves then we will on tion. isi qu ac of ns ea em important than th e future. The help influence th to st pa e th of ledge pture must not s must use know the means of ca d an d, ays ve er Cinematographer es pr long as the DP st age that must be ally is better. As re try w us ne ind quality of the im at e th th re technology, up to us to ensu ufacturers of new an m override that. It's e th an th image, rather in charge of the rant place. vib a will remain C Sue Gibson BS t en id es Pr BSC

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Today we are asked to shoot w ongoing le ith arning curv e. We thou computers - I guess brought ou ght it was it's an t a new st enough wh ock every have to ke en Kodak few month ep updatin s, but now g our "bra different e we just in" softwa lectronic c re a to deal w p ture meth great now ith the ods. Digita and will ke l projectio ep on imp still be cap n ro looks vi turing the ng I'm sure real emoti . I think film yet. Cinem on of the st atographe will ory for quit rs m which serv e a while e to enhan ust stay focussed on ce the sto creating im Alan Trow ry. ages BSC

It's safe to assume that things will change in every way, and in no way. Good taste and good sense will continue to be in short supply. And with the ongoing ascendancy of the bean counters (a reversing into the future, so to speak) filmmakers of every stripe will have to fight harder than ever to produce quality work. Fortunately, cinematographers are a resilient and resourceful bunch, and always seem to find a way through.

Adapting to the changes? By doing what we've done since the very beginning: conducting ourselves with the native competence, artistry and dignity that set us apart from everyone else. But now there's an added twist. We can't afford to take anything for granted. Our job has expanded greatly with the advent of digital technology, so it's incumbent upon us to take every opportunity to learn and grow our experience with these new things. We also need to broaden how we think about what we do, not least of which is in following through on our images to the very last moment of the post process.

Richard Crudo ASC

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

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the great debate

Over the past five years, we have witnessed an array of technological advancements for both traditional and digital filmmaking. New 35mm and 16mm film cameras as well as High Definition cameras have been introduced, film stocks have evolved to coincide with the digital age, and giant leaps have been made in post-production.

Currently the choice on offer for filmmakers is better than it has ever been, and we expect such advancements to continue over the next five years.

There is a reason why cinematographers choose to shoot on film. In this uncertain age of technology, it is reassuring to know that the unmistakable, tangible quality of film will always remain constant. DPs choose film for creativity and for the art of cinematography. Film users have a passion and an understanding of film’s palette, which is why we will continue to develop and release emulsions geared specifically to the requirements of the cinematographer over the next five years.

Millie Morrow Product Manager - Motion Picture Film Fujifilm

From my perspective, the motion picture industry will fundamentally change how it acquires images, and then distributes them.

Highresolution digital capture will b e c o m e mainstream. RED Digital is leading the pack on this front with the RED ONE, now shooting projects all over the planet, and with Scarlet and Epic coming next. Digital distribution will replace film distribution, offering higher resolution, no “bob and weave” effect you get from film projection, lower costs of theatrical distribution and less environmental impact (no film prints, no chemicals and no physical distribution of heavy film prints in heavy metal cans). REDRay, and other future offerings from RED, will play a significant part in that future.

RED is constantly adapting, refining, re-learning and rethinking. We don't like to stand still, and we don't like to lock ourselves into anything. We embrace change - our company mantra is: “All specifications subject to change… count on it”. RED is looking into the crystal ball of digital movie making and digital delivery of those movies every day. We dig massive resolution and mind-blowing clarity, and we constantly challenge ourselves to improve the tools that allow as many people as possible to have access to super-high-resolution movie-making without having to break the bank to do it.

Ted Schilowitz Leader of the Rebellion RED Digital Cinema

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The fact is that good stories will still have to be recorded on some light-gathering tool, with methods that mimic the way movies have been made for over 100 years.

The tools are less important than the artist's ability to tell great stories and entertain audiences.

I'm not trying to downplay the qualities of some of the new workflows. I just finished a major movie with the Genesis Camera and found it more like shooting a film camera than any other digital capture method I have used. I had the extraordinary experience of seeing the Genesis material on a screen next to another movie that I had shot on the new Kodak 5219 stock. The two were nearly indistinguishable. That says a lot in relation to the very high dynamic range of the 5219 film. No longer did I have to worry about the highlights on this digital format. That's a first.

I was told when I first got into this business that "film is dead." And that was in 1972. I was also told, "You traditional cinematographers are finished now that video is taking over. Us guys who know about video will be the ones taking over because we have the knowledge." Well, I'm still shooting movies, happily so.

And many of those 'video guys' are helping me shoot them, happily so.

What is important to us in relation to new technologies is to train every member of our camera community.

Every camera loader, second or first assistant, every camera operator or cinematographer must be offered this training so that we all will be ready to service the

productions when we are needed. This is happening in the United States, offered to every International Cinematographers Guild Local 600 member. The ICG is also preparing to train members in the methods of recording modern 3D stereo images.

This seems to be the next speeding train coming down the tracks straight at us. We will be ready when it stops at our station.

Yes, there are many new methods of making movies.

And each one of them is “better then the last”. We can all learn to use them. That's the easy part. But what is more important is our ability to make the stories we put on the screen effectively enough to make us laugh and cry.

Steven Poster, ASC National President International Cinematographers Guild IATSE, Local 600

Using the last five years as a barometer, digital will continue its march towards parity with analogue processes.

This could include electronic cinematography, but also the myriad of production, post production and distribution services. It will also lead to a blurring of traditional distinctions. Now we're seeing decisions being made in the planning/pre-production stages that would have, only a few years ago, been the provenance of post. With the digital processing speeds we're now seeing, the concept of “real-time” creative decision-making is becoming the norm - both on set and in post production suites. It is also clear that time is becoming even more of a premium and that travel is increasingly more prohibitive.

Further, this “real-time” model, file-based processes will likely dominate within the next decade. As creative decisions are made earlier (and now living as metadata), colour-grading decisions can flow through the entire digital pipeline to the DI suite and beyond - saving time, money and allowing for consistency throughout all the various distributions channels emerging.

We've responded by bringing our services closer to the creative community - hence our plans to relocate our digital “creative” services to Soho and our laboratory operations to Pinewood Studios.

As new electronic cameras have come on-line, we've responded by creating proprietary services geared to those nascent technologies that keep the creative decisions in the hands of the creatives. We've launched a business unit dedicated to on-location services and bridging the technology gaps that have emerged.

Also, through our high-speed TPN production network and standardisation of the tools and displays, we now have the ability to serve the creative community in a “virtual” worldwide fashion. It's becoming rather common to conduct real-time colourgrading sessions from multiple continents and time zones. The idea of having to get on a plane to finish a grading session could be perceived as being right out of the last century.

Our mandate is to strike a healthy balance between who and how we serve - while also continuing our commitment to innovation in the photo-chemical domain that is still very much in demand.

Simon Wilkinson Managing Director Technicolor Creative Services - Soho

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It's likely that the changes we see taking place today movement from film to digital cinema projection; shift from film to digital capture; reliance on digital post-production rather than photo-chemical; internet-based distribution of films; compressed release windows - will continue without much interruption and at an accelerated pace.

More interesting to me is how the fundamental macroeconomic dynamics of the motion picture industry will shift during this time period. More questions than answers are apparent. For example, where will the funding for feature films come from?

Private equity, the engine of the past few years, is learning the hard lessons of film industry ROI calculus, along with the perils of high leverage in general. What will take its place? In many markets in Europe, the demand for original programming for pay-television has flowed capital into film production. How are these dynamics shifting as the pay-television industry itself undergoes technological change? Various tax incentive schemes have provided stimulus to film production in the form of reducing costs. Production costs are skyrocketing, marketing costs are out of control, and film attendance worldwide by most measures is struggling to maintain. The DVD industry is clearly shrinking in size in major world markets. These issues are some of the leading indicators of change and the potential disruptions to the motion picture industry as we know it today. How will the puzzle fit together five years from now? One particular image emerging is a “race to the bottom” in terms of production costs, with those involved in below-the-line activities shouldering much of the burden.

There are some very simple and positive ways for Panavision to continue to adapt. At the top of that list is continuing to improve the quality of our service. Whatever the landscape looks like in five years, the survivors will be there primarily because they maintained the confidence and loyalty of their customers. We are also investing in our employees and focusing on training to build their confidence in handling service and field issues. The third element of our formula for dealing with the industry dynamics over the next five years is continuous technological innovation and invention. Panavision emerged as an industry player 54 years ago with the invention of anamorphic projection lenses. Today, we continue to push the boundaries of image capture, including upgrades to our flagship Millennium XL film cameras, new anamorphic and spherical fixed and zoom lenses, and radically improved versions of our industry-leading Genesis camera. As the industry's largest player, our customers look to Panavision for guidance on new technologies and we will gladly continue to take on this serious responsibility.

Bob Beitcher President and CEO Panavision

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There will be a fu rther polarisation of the films being at one end the sm made aller, serious cont ent movies, and other the larger at the budgeted special effects-reliant film middle ground s. The films (traditionall y mid-budgeted serious content, films of but of scale) will be rare an impossible to se d near t up. The increas ing commercial independent sect risk of the or will probably mean belt-tighten these films beco ing as me more difficult to finance and bu decrease. Many dgets of the smaller ind ependent films pass traditional will bytheatrical release (or find such a impossible to ac release hieve) and be se en on DVD and inc as computer dow reasingly nloads. Normal ch annels of distribu change, following tion will the path of the music business. end of movies w The top ill implode as the mammoth special budgets present effects more and more, “too many eggs basket ” risks to in one the studios, and the convergence and video games of cinema continues to dom inate the cinemas expense serious at the filmmaking.

In the serious film making arena, dig ital technologies more mobile, sp have come on lea ontaneous and ps and bounds in swifter filmmaking traditional precon every area allow . This will create ceived camera se ing it's own aesthe t-ups, and compli be better, but th tic, less reliant cated and subtle ey will fit in to th on lig hting. It's doubtfu e economic para downloading will meters that will l if the films will allow them to be all ow th dis em to be made tributed.

Sir Alan Parker and computer Director

Digital capture and distribution will certainly be much further advanced in the next five years and, for professional filmmakers, this represents major change. It is just a matter of time before digital becomes the norm. It’s a possibility that the next Bond film may go digital in terms of acquisition, there are a couple of camera capture systems that look good, but we will have to wait and see what happens over the next couple of years. Digital cameras are not quite up to the quality we want yet – issues with contrast and high-speed shooting are keeping us from going in that direction, and we’ll ultimately take the advice of our cinematographers.

In terms of exhibition, digital is a good thing as after a week or so a film print can get chewed up and the pictures can look appalling. However, the biggest challenge ahead is probably that of piracy, especially in Southeast Asia. In many countries legitimate distributors of DVDs are disadvantaged as they must sell censored copies, whereas pirates can sell the real thing. In effect, there is no ancillary market for DVDs throughout most of Asia because of piracy. We must ensure Europe and the US do not go the way of Asia with distribution over the Internet. Without proper security protocols digital distribution will be a haven for piracy.

Michael G. Wilson Producer, 007 Quantum of Solace

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

UK

the great debate

y and there ture is very trick Predicting the fu only way “th e old adage, e is some truth in th ent it.” inv lp he to ture is to predict the fu s, but ist ainly as technolog We're known m s too, en pp y about what ha ve a we care personall ha n't did u our life. If yo w because this is ver ork industry you'd ne passion for this ly asking e are constant the hours. W help push t can we do to ourselves “Wha e British tim e ” About th things forward?

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

We are already seeing changes in how the Hollywood studios are having to operate.

They are downsizing the huge overheads they have traditionally carried in the name of physical production. They will become more compact, rather like book or music publishing companies, investing more in intellectual copyright, with tried and proven partner companies providing private equity/hedge fund cash and production know-how.

They will do less directly with production, although they will certainly continue to maintain content control. Dollar-for-dollar, the safest investment will be the “blockbuster” format, which has enough star-power and visual effects trickery to burn through the very crowded leisure choices available to global consumers.

In the independent sector we shall start to see networks and clusters starting to happen where they have never made sense before. Co-production relationships with other filmmakers, particularly in Europe, but also in North America, will become essential for survival. Digital delivery will encourage more user-generated content and websites like You Tube will continue to be a major diversion for internet viewing. Piracy will continue to be a hole in our bucket for years to come.

I can see VFX technology and its related technologies becoming more and more sophisticated as we move towards high-definition 3D movies and the beginnings of truly “experiential” cinema. Web delivery will increasingly depend on trusted portals that will deliver audiences to filmmakers and advertisers. It is perfectly feasible that most independent films in the future will be aired for free, and will be funded through online advertising. In this sense I can see a kind of 'uber-televisonising' of the film industry as it becomes more and more global.

As for adapting… the UK has an enviable filmmaking infrastructure; a facilities base and a level of specialist skill and talent, that deserve to compete in the worldwide shakedown in production that has been taking place over the past fifteen years. The UK film industry has to continue to argue for intelligent government tax incentivising that will maintain our ability to compete in Europe and beyond, where core costs will be much less than our own, for some time to come. Our future success will depend on the quality of our crews and facilities as well as the talents of our writers, directors and cast. Training and education will be crucial.

I believe it will be necessary to increase the number of silent stages available in the UK, and their support facilities, as more and more films will be made in VFX dominated environments. Post production will tend to become more and more the centre of the filmmaking process, with major creative choices being made after traditional live-action shooting has been completed. Again education and training will be critical.

Finally I believe that there will be an emerging concern for national cultures to seek to redefine themselves using film, and we will see more European initiatives supporting distinct national cinemas within the widening world. These subsidised or incentivised national “cinemas” will also act as a seedbed for new and emerging talent, and will help to develop a sustainable independent industry. It is crucial that the film industry in all its forms maintains a strong link with UK and European government, ideally through the UK Film Council.

Iain Smith Producer

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INTERNATIONAL

shooting the future

Mad Dogs & Englishmen: this year's Cine Gear Expo was the hottest in memory as temperatures soared well above 40ºC

Cine Gear Expo The British Society of Cinematographers and the UK filmmaking community were once again key participants in Cine Gear Expo, writes Carolyn Giardina. In its 12th year, the Expo, the hottest in memory as temperatures soared well above 40ºC, and the subject of some criticism, was held at the Universal Studios backlot in the Los Angeles area.

Steadicam inventor and cinematographer Garrett Brown received a Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by Haskell Wexler, ASC. “I love getting an award from my friends and dear colleagues in the technical side of things,” he said. “But I have to say there's still a lingering part of me that is slightly irritated when the Oscars brush over our Technical Oscars. I think what we do is more important than that.”

“At its very best we make instruments for those who make films,” Brown continued. “You can't do that unless you visualise what they do to a very fine point. I'm very proud of all of our colleagues here. I'm proud of all of our years spent in the trenches actually making this business work. … My friends, what we do is just as important as what they do.”

A number of milestones were recognised during Cine Gear.

l-r: Derek Suter, Wally Phister, Joe Dunton

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William Fraker ASC BSC, was feted for his work on Rosemary's Baby, on the occasion of the film's 40th anniversary. Cine Gear honoured Bron Kobold for its 50th anniversary, while Photosonics was celebrated in its 80th year.

The UK Pavillion was a centre of activity. Visitors from America included ASC past president Richard Crudo and Wally Pfister ASC, who served as director of photography on upcoming The Dark Knight.

Exhibitors in the UK pavilion included Bickers Action, specializing in stunt engineering, mechanical special effects and vehicle and stunt action camera tracking. During its first year as a CineGear exhibitor, the company's Clive Noy reported on upcoming productions that Bickers Action is involved with, including Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, Angles and Demons and James Bond 007 Quantum of Solace.

Knight, with speakers including Pfister, who offered a behind the scenes look at the making of the film, which was was lensed in anamorphic and, for the first time on a Hollywood feature, IMAX. Six action sequences were lensed in IMAX. When screened in an IMAX theatre, the aspect ratio will change for those sequences to fill the screen.

“Chris (Nolan) and I both believe strongly in putting the best image quality on the screen,” Pfister said. “We wanted to enhance the theatrical exhibition experience. … At a time when we all have Blu-Ray players and flat screens at home, you need to up the ante a little bit.”

Pfister explained: “We generally carried three IMAX cameras.

The longest film load is a three-minute load. We did everything with IMAX cameras that we'd done with 35mm cameras. We did everything people told us we couldn't do with those cameras.”

The Cine Gear programme included a preview of The Dark

He added that work with the Imax cameras included Steadicam work. Pfister also discussed why the team chose not to use a digital intermediate process in the postproduction. He said that he and Nolan share the philosophy that “you get it as best you can in camera. Chris does that with effects too. He does mechanical effects before visual effects. … The DI, I believe, is a great tool if you are using it for creative reasons.”

Mole Richardson stand at Cine Gear

Carolyn Giardina talking to Gavin Finney BSC

Mark Roberts Motion Control showed its newest Talos motion control rig. The Talos is an eight-axis motion control system that is a more compact system than its Milo brand, but offers a similar design.

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

shooting the future

Distributor TMB showcased the Finnlight and Spacebag, which Bruce Finn reported has been used on such upcoming features as State of Play, The Soloist and G-Force.

Rosco demonstrated Rosco View, a two-part filtering system that offers control of exterior brightness as seen through a window without affecting the lighting in the set.

Panther demonstrated its Twister Dolly, with three steering options to supply precise movement in all directions. J.L. Fisher highlighted its skateboard wheels, which maintain contact on the track for control and stability whether a straight or curved path. The wheels are designed for quiet operation.

Matthews Studio Equipment showed its Red Dolly (the colour of the dolly is red), which is designed for a variety of cameras and equipment, such as a Steadicam, and can perform circles and 'crabbing.' The company also showed new brackets for flat-screen monitors.

Pictorvision's Tom Hallman was on hand with the company's gyro-stabilised Eclipse aerial camera system. Bogen Imaging highlighted the Long John Silver hoisting system, Manfotto carbon fiber tripod and new additions to its Formatt filters line.

Et tu Brute?: Ledz unveiled its 16-LED lighting fixture

Commenting on Dark Knight, he said, “To scan an anamorphic negative at its highest quality you'd have to go to 8K. We all know that generally scanning is at 2K or sometimes ideally 4K. So we are not getting enough resolution in there. Plus, the way I photograph I manipulate it with the lighting and the contrast. Call it an old-school process, but we are putting the best quality image on the screen-it's large format.”

Gavin Finney, immediate past president of the BSC, observed that this was an evolutionary year for products in the exhibition. “The great power of digital is it can be very malleable,” he said.

“That's its great plus points and minus points. For a cinematographer, our job is to create and then preserve the vision that the director has. We want to make sure our vision is delivered to the audience in the cinema.”

Stalwart Kodak hosted Stop By Shoot Film workshops, allowing attendees to examine 35mm on its latest Kodak Vision3 colour negative films. Meanwhile, representative from Kodak-owned post house Laser Pacific discussed its accurateImage (AIM) colour calibration system. Fujifilm highlighted its Eterna line of motion picture film.

K-Tek showecased its K-123 six-section boom pole , which is designed to ease storage and transport of the pole. It also emphasized its 'Soft-Touch' grip. With the high level of interest in stereoscopic 3D, in Hollywood and around the world, it is no surprise that 3D made its way to CineGear. Iconix demonstrated its 3D camera rig, as well as 3D postproduction and workflow tools. A 3D monitor enabled expo attendees to examine its capabilities. Cine Gear also hosted its second annual film series and competition.

The winner of the independent features competition was Broke Sky, directed and produced by Thomas Callaway; lensed by Thomas Callaway and produced by Jeff Burr, Karchi Perlmann, Dan Golden and EricMiller. First place for independent shorts went to Parachute, directed and produced by Lucas Fleischer and Paul Grellong, and photographed by Damian Acevedo.

Tatterson won the student shorts category. It was helmed by Michaela Danby, produced by Danby and Yen Yang, and lensed by Velinda Wardell. The judges panel included Gabriel Beristain BSC, ASC, producer Barry Isaacson, Isidore Mankofsky ASC, producer John Michaels and production designer Mark Tanner.

During the expo, David Stump ASC, observed that there is an increasing dialogue surrounding 4K. That is particularly in the area of digital cameras, as well as the entire workflow.

Among the latest camera news, Dalsa previewed three beta versions of its Evolution 4K camera. A total of six will be available for testing next month. Dalsa also previewed what it calls “visualiser” software with tools such as colour conversion in real time. Dalsa's Dan Rosen said, “We don't see this as an on-set colour corrector; we make cameras. This offers a fast way to check your shots on set.”

ZGC showed its Cooke Red set of S4 /i lenses and the Skater Junior camera dolly from P+ S Technik. Now available, the Skater Junior can be used with a variety of smaller camera heads from manufacturers such as Cartoni, Sachtler, O'Connor and Manfrotto.

The Cooke Red set, which includes three primes and one zoom lens, are standard, PL-mounted Cooke S4/i lenses. The lenses come with Cooke's /i “Intelligent” Technology that enables film and digital cameras to automatically record key lens and camera data for every film frame, which can then be provided digitally to postproduction teams.

Band Pro showcased its 135 prime and 52 prime lenses, which round out its DigiPrime line. It also highlighted the new Sony F35 as well as F23 digital cinematography cameras, along with the Codex Portable and Cine-Tal monitors. Codex also maintained a stand, where it displayed its Codex Recorder and Codex Portable recorder, which can accommodate cameras including those from Dalsa, Sony, ARRI, Panavision, Panasonic, and Thomson.

In lighting, Ledz unveiled it Brute 16 LED lighting fixture, which the company's Malcolm Mills reported could “produce light powerful enough to be compared with a 200w HMI light in the flood position.” He added that as the Brute 16 is LED, it is “far more energy efficient and produces very little heat.”

Luminys exhibited its SoftSun series of lighting systems and Lighting Strikes line. It previewed a smaller, lighter 50K SoftSun, planned for a Fall release. Further out, plans include a 100K version of the product.

Mole-Richardson's product lines were on display, highlighted by a new 12K Tungsten par and 24K Daylite Fresnel. K5600 showcased a prototype of a 1200 watt HMI fixture.

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FEATURE

Divas:

camera creative

(L-R) Christine Baranski, Meryl Streep, and Julie Walters in a scene from Mamma Mia!

Mamma Mia! Makes the Leap to the Big Screen Since its debut in 1999, Mamma Mia! has become an international entertainment phenomenon. The stage play, which weaves a romantic tale around the music of the Swedish pop group ABBA, has been seen by an estimated 30 million people and earned an astonishing $2 billion around the globe, writes David Heuring.

Phyllida Lloyd is the acclaimed theatre and opera director who guided the musical as it conquered the West End, Broadway and the rest of the world. Lloyd had previously

directed a television film of the opera Gloriana. The cinematic version of Mamma Mia! is her big-screen debut. To translate the story to film, Lloyd assembled a top-flight team that included production designer Maria Djurkovic, editor Lesley Walker and cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos BSC. Zambarloukos' filmmaking experience includes collaborations with other directors with theatrical backgrounds. “I think it helped that I had worked with Roger Michell (Venus, Enduring Love) and Kenneth Branagh (Sleuth),” he says. “I could interpret staging

Who's the daddy?: (L-R) Stellan Skarsgard, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Amanda Seyfried

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and other concerns to a cinematic form quite easily, based on a common language and aesthetics.

“Phyllida's unique vision of the project comes from the fact that she was there at the inception and has lived with the play for nine years. She knew every line, every note and every nuance of emotion, and was determined to achieve something magical.

Her enthusiasm was contagious.”

Theatre and magic The story follows a young bride-to-be who attempts to learn the identity of her father.

As her wedding approaches, she invites three men, each of whom might be her father, to the fictional Greek island where the ceremony is planned. Affairs of the heart involve many of the characters as events unfold, and themes of parenthood and familial love are strong. The cast includes Meryl Streep, Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan, Amanda Seyfried and Stellan Skarsgård. The actors did all of their own dancing and most of the singing.

Zambarloukos was eager for the opportunity to film a musical. “The story has a magical aspect, as a wedding in the Greek islands ought to have,” he says. “But theatrical and magical are two different things. In order for the film to work, settings and characters had to be grounded in reality. We knew it was important to avoid overt theatricality.”

Complicating matters was the fact that the production would spend six weeks on locations in Greece and 11 weeks on the 007 stage at Pinewood Studios. Bright Mediterranean sunlight and vistas would be recreated onstage, and some sequences would need to cut smoothly between location shots and stage shots.

In part because of the horizontal nature of the bigger dance numbers, Zambarloukos and Lloyd decided to frame the story in a 2.40:1 widescreen aspect ratio using the Panavision anamorphic film format, also known as 'Scope. Film grammar - camera movement, lens choice and lighting - had to meld with choreography, while maintaining the essential emotional connection between the audience and the faces of the actors. All the principals agreed that a long and thorough preproduction period was crucial to success.

The prep period lasted nearly 20 weeks longer than the shoot itself. During extensive rehearsals in a space laid out to mirror the stage where they would eventually film, Zambarloukos and his operators, including Philip Sindall and Simon Baker, participated in detailed run-throughs to synchronise their movements with those of the cast. In certain situations, sets were designed with specific crane shots in mind.

“The choreography had a raw energy and we needed to conform to and capture that in the

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FEATURE

camera movement,” Zambarloukos explains.

“It's sensual and dynamic and you have to be able to show that. We were all present in rehearsal to design the shots and the choreography to suit each other. It has to be glamorous, as any musical should be, but it has to be glamorous while the actors are doing the severely difficult work of dancing. If it works, it looks effortless, and no one notices how difficult the choreography is. If it doesn't work, it looks awful.”

Lighting The prep time was also used to assemble and programme an elaborate system for projecting back light on a massive, 11-by120-metre screen, which formed the backdrop for most of the stage work.

Zambarloukos used Martin MAC 2000s and MAC 700s with customised gobos that cut or refracted light. Each element was programmable and connected to a dimmer system made by Light By Numbers. The lights could be panned and tilted, and fitted with almost any colour. The focus of the lamps was also controllable, a feature Zambarloukos would sometimes use to create the illusion of more or less depth-offield in the photographed image.

The system could be used to project seascapes, rolling waves, clouds, twinkling stars and moonlight reflecting on water. After months of prep, Zambarloukos could instantly switch from day to night, dusk to dawn, and from greenscreen to bluescreen.

To light the actors and the stage in front of the backing, a second, separate computer system controlled 330 Filmgear Space Lights, and about 40 20Ks and Molebeams, sometimes used in combination to effectively communicate the feeling of hard Aegean sunlight.

For closer work on the actors, Zambarloukos chose lamps to suit the subject. “On Meryl, we used an OctoDome and a Photoflex Starlite,” he says. “The OctoDome is a large, soft source made by Dedo(light) that is very thin, so it doesn't take up a lot of space. We used the Starlite to get light into the eyes and faces. For the dance routines, and often within the same moving shot, we were

Life's a beach: Haris Zambarloukos BSC checks the light on location in Greece

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camera creative

always striking a balance between hard light and soft light, and between what works well for the face and what works well for the body. On many of the dance numbers, my gaffer John Higgins simply followed actors with a bare bulb in a Chinese lantern on the end of a broomstick.”

Lenses and filmstocks Most scenes were covered with three cameras, which were mounted with older Panavision C and B series anamorphic lenses and varying degrees of Schneider Classic Soft diffusion, depending on the shot and focal length. Longer lenses took less diffusion. On dance sequences, the focal lengths tended to be wider, with the 30 and 40 mm lenses getting heavy use. Portraits and closer shots were often on a C-series 150 mm and an E-series 85 mm.

“I tested lenses at Panavision and found the ones that have a sharp centre and soft edges,” he says. “I chose them because they're the most flattering. They have a certain quality that I love that is difficult to describe. They're like guitars - the older ones are sweeter somehow. They worked well in combination with the diffusion. We found that what seemed like too much through the viewfinder didn't feel unnatural or out of place projected on a 70-foot screen. We used the diffusion to a degree that was never noticeable, so it feels like the natural softness of the lens.”

The majority of the film was photographed on Kodak Vision2 500T 5218 film. “The 5218 negative is my favorite stock,” remarks Zambarloukos. “It's a colourful, contrasty, grain-free film, especially in anamorphic. You shoot at 400 ASA at a T4 easily, which is the stop for me on a 'Scope shoot.”

Turning day into night In the Greek islands, a bold decision was made to shoot all night work as day-for-night, meaning that the night sequences were filmed in the daytime and made to look nocturnal through photographic techniques.

“We wanted to recreate the depth where you can see three islands down the archipelago, but it's impossible to light that,” he says. “After I demonstrated the technique to Phyllida, she agreed that it was the right choice. The ideas for working with projected backgrounds on stage and shooting day-fornight come directly from classic Hollywood films, the kind of lessons I learned from watching the films of John Alton (ASC), Robert Surtees (ASC), and Conrad Hall (ASC). But we re-interpreted these techniques in a modern way using contemporary tools.”

Zambarloukos says that the old-school technique of day-for-night depends on carefully tracking the position of the sun to keep everything backlit and on carefully controlled lighting ratios. “The correct ratios are the same ones you'd use at night, but you boost them to a much higher level,” he says.

“One giveaway in day-for-night shooting is too much depth-of-field. Since we were shooting 'Scope, our depth-of-field was

BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

Crazy paving: Pierce Brosnan and Meryl Streep in a scene on location in Greece

comparatively minimal. We went further with neutral density and polarising filters, so that we could shoot at a stop of no more than 5.6/8.

“We shot all of the day-for-night work on Kodak (Vision2 50D) 5201 film, and it really helped because it took the light levels down immediately, making the night effect more realistic. Key grip Adrian McCarthy also really came through in the clutch for us.”

Dailies and post The crew saw their handiwork each night in the form of projected film rushes, which were overseen by Clive Noakes at Deluxe in London. “Clive does a fabulous job,” says Zambarloukos. “That assured us that we were on target.”

A Digital Intermediate post production path was followed at Technicolor New York with digital colorist John Persichetti and DI lab timer Lee Wimer. Scanning and film out was handled at Technicolor in Los Angeles.

Zambarloukos used the DI to fine tune shots that cut between location, stage and visual effects work. He says the day-for-night scenes required very little adjustment.

“We managed to secure original DI negatives for some of the prints, rather than going the IP/IN route,” he reports. “That's fantastic because you gain two generations. It's the proper way to get good results from a DI. The grade is quite daring. We pushed the colour and the saturation as far as we dared.”

Zambarloukos enjoyed unstinting support from the project's producers. “We often talk about the collaboration between the cinematographer and the director, but just as key is the collaboration with the producer,” he adds. “Our producers were wonderful on this film, especially Mark Huffam, who immediately saw the benefits of shooting day-for-night. A producer who trusts your decisions as a cinematographer is crucial to success on a project like this.”

Mamma Mia! is the first film Zambarloukos has photographed since becoming a member of the British Society of Cinematographers in the Summer of 2007. “Joining the BSC was one of the proudest moments of my life,” he says. “We make films for an audience, but for me the best audience is my family. They watch a film with the thought that in some small way it was made for them. The BSC is a family of colleagues for me, and I watch the films my friends (there) have shot with a special joy. I know that I'll always be able to talk to those cinematographers about their accomplishments, and that they will share their experiences too. That is a very important part of why I want to be a filmmaker, and the BSC has opened a whole new forum of exchange for me.”

Zambarloukos plans to concentrate on television commercial assignments in the near term. Mamma Mia! is slated for a July 2008 release.

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INTERNATIONAL

The President’s Progress Japan has become the latest society to join the IMAGO family of cinematographers. Whilst filming there last year, Luciano Tovoli AIC made initial contact, but it was as a result of letters written in Japanese by the wife of Imago general secretary Louis-Philippe Capelle SBC, that he was able meet with the JSC in Tokyo. They later voted overwhelmingly in favour of affiliation, which brings our total nations to 37. The issue of authors rights is an ongoing debate within the JSC. Interestingly, in Japan there is a shared credit for cinematography - one for the cinematographer who operates, the other for the cinematographer who lights the film. I await a response to an invitation from IMAGO to the Canadian Society of Cinematographers.

IMAGO is determined to continue the Austrian initiative of Kurt Brazda, of moving forward improvements in our industry through the European Commission. The Progress programme requires a submission by September 1st for funding later this year. With the assistance of BECTU, which recently passed a resolution at its AGM to support IMAGO's Model Contract, and other European Societies und Unions, it is expected a submission will be made on time for a share of the €1,013,780 Euros available. Among the specific issues that Progress is committed to examine is an improvement in the working environment and conditions, including health and safety at work, and reconciling work and family life. It is also concerned with the impact of new technology, and promoting the financial participation of workers. IMAGO has organised a conference of more that 100 young cinematographers to be held in Copenhagen on the weekend of November 1st, when the representatives from over 25 European countries will have an opportunity to debate the issue of “Europe Now and the Future”.

The eDIT Film Makers Festival and IMAGO have announced that, at the Gala Opening on September 28th in Frankfurt, the Italian Guiseppe Rotunno AIC will be honoured by IMAGO for his outstanding contribution to the art of cinematography. It will be presented by our founding father Luciano Tovoli AIC .

This initial IMAGO collaboration with the festival authorities gives the cinematographer a fresh window on Europe for our craft. This year Aardman Animation, Roger Pratt BSC, Double Negative, Barry Ackroyd BSC and Reiner van Brummelen NSC are hoping to participate, amongst others. It is hoped that a restored copy of Rotunnos film The Leopard will be shown during the three-day event. The eDIT festival is committed to promoting the role of the crafts of the cinematographer, as well as other crafts, and the ACE has also joined IMAGO at the festival for the first time. Distinguished American editors are expected to participate in discussions involving cinematographers, visual FX supervisors, special FX , and directors, designed to illustrate the interaction and dependency of our related crafts.

on the job

Sydney Diary The Iranian taxi driver was happy. Sydney was smiling and he shared its sunshine.

Ahead stretched a street demonstration. We were far enough away not to be able to read the placards, and he had no idea anyway why this slow moving wave of humanity was protesting. The meter was ticking. I had to suppress a desire to leap out and join the demo. When did we last have a decent one on London? My memory went back many years to marching alongside Wolfgang Suschitzky BSC in support of nurses. Somehow the French have managed demonstrations with panache since 1789!

My journey to Australia was to share in celebrations of the 50th year of the Australian Society of Cinematographers (ACS). I was, by invitation of the ACS, to represent the BSC and IMAGO. The last time I shot in Sydney there was little time to stand and stare. A walk along the magnificent waterfront revealed the reason for the demonstration. It was to commemorate Sorry Day. Two aboriginal sisters were recalling to the crowd their forcible separation and subsequent reconciliation. The electronic didgeridoo accompanied them dolefully in the distance.

Their new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has recently apologised for the hurt caused to the indigenous Australians. Might Blair and Bush, in years to come, issue the same apology for the million plus dead and injured in Iraq and Afghanistan?

The thought of apology returned to me on the last day of the Conference whilst appearing on a panel which included Daryn Okada ASC president, Andrew Lesnie ACS, Louis-Philippe Capelle SBC and IMAGO general secretary, John Galt of Panvision, and John Bowring ACS. Our debate was named “Looking At The Future Of The Industry.” The thought was, shouldn't the manufacturers of digital cameras be saying sorry for the complete disruption they have caused in the lives of cinematographers in the past years.

We had been listening to our fellow panellist Geoff Boyle FBKS expound on a 3D feature he had shot with ten cameras, one the Sony S23 requiring in his words, “a copper cable direct to a power station.”

However, IMAGO also remains committed to support for the only festivals exclusively established to promote the art of cinematography, Camerimage, Lodz, Poland and the Manaki Brothers Festival in Macedonia.

An IMAGO board meeting will be held on September 28th in Frankfurt, where we shall be guests of the Frankfurt eDIT festival. This will probably be the last until the next IAGA occurs in Bradford, Yorkshire on the week-end of February 13th 2009.The BSC will be our hosts and are preparing an interesting programme.

IMAGO is in desperate need of funding to continue its work effectively. We have commissioned a European firm to find us a well-known corporate sponsor - on the basis of no finds, no fee.

We need as much input from all our societies to our website as possible. It is not good enough to communicate once a year with one another. Please send Tony Costa your latest news on Tonycosta@imago.org. Let us together make the web-site IMAGO.ORG a site to enjoy and learn from, share information and experiences.

Finally thank you to our sponsors. We need to find even more financial support to move forward to meet the challenges of globalisation.

Nigel Walters IMAGO President

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Snap: Probably the largest collection of film camera ever assembled in the southern hemisphere

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on the job

Nigel Walters BSC, president of IMAGO, reports from Sydney on the 50th year of the Australian Society of Cinematographers.

Calvin Gardiner ACS chairman of organising committee, post production artist Mike Seymour, Andrew Lesnie ACS ASC and Dean Semler

Daryn Okada ASC president with Louis-Phillippe Capelle SBC IMAGO General Secretary

“The Ins And Outs Of The Red” had been the heading of a previous session. It was revealed that the Red, which I have nothing against, as I like the name, is on its sixteenth modification! In previous times the manufacturers of the Mitchells, ARRIs, Éclairs, Aaton, Panavisions tested their product before thrusting them on to the market. Even the BBC, in its better days, insisted on quality control. The manufacturer would be told to take it away and return when it was working properly.

compete, but I later discovered she was an animation gaffer) ; a discovery of my old colleague Butch Calderwood ASC, a legend in the UK for his cinematography during the Vietnam War; lastly, but not least, recollections of happy days with my fellow traveller around the world, Ian Pugsley ACS who assisted me in the seventies. He and his wife Ros had flown in from especially for the occasion from Perth.

To the detriment of the standards of our profession these days cinematographers and their crews have become the guinea pigs. We are being dictated to by manufacturers to take a backwards step back before, hopefully, being able to move forwards. However Calvin Gardiner ACS, the inspiration behind the conference, later confirmed to me that the Red service had dramatically improved.

IMAGO had been invited to give a short presentation. There was a good-enough attendance to make it worthwhile, but only after Ted Rayment ACS president had rounded up a posse and worked miracles by threatening anyone hanging about the bar with deportation to the UK. Earlier it has seemed an idea for Daryn Okada, Louis-Philippe and I to visit the bar and have a chat.. The lectern had no lights, to the extent that even my headline notes were invisible, which was a good experience curve. Fortunately there was considerable interest in IMAGO and particularly the subject of authors' rights. I had to disappoint a few cinematographers present by informing them that, as they were not members of the EU, their films would not attract payments in Europe. Louis-Philippe Capelle, general secretary of IMAGO assisted splendidly, and our presentation was well received.

The enthusiasm of the ACS for IMAGO seemed to herald the federation's introduction to the world stage. The vision of IMAGO for the future must be to maintain the highest standards of cinematography through collaboration on an international basis, way beyond the frontiers of Europe. We still have a vital role to play in Europe, but boundaries and problems go further.

As with any experience in life the memories one values most are dependant upon the individuals you meet: the “Bushman” from the RSC (Romania) Josef Demian who insisted on having many photographs taken with Louis-Philip whilst talking about Alex back home (I assumed this was Alex Sterian RSC); the lady gaffer from Greek extraction with a handshake of iron (even Howard Hawks would have been hard pressed to

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A huge appreciation is owed to the ACS for giving us this opportunity to promote IMAGO as a voice of international cooperation between cinematographers. We must build our reputation by closer dialogue with our established affiliates in India, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, and Cuba as well as encouraging new members. Louis-Philippe has held constructive talks on his return from Australia with the Japanese society, to whom the issue of authors' rights is also contentious. In Sydney, a special screening was arranged and well attended earlier one morning of his excellent short films, Depart and Serial Killer. These had been previously shown in Wellington and were a co-production between Belgium and our youngest member, New Zealand.

Don Mc Alpine ACS ASC and Mrs McAlpine share beer and a joke with old friend

John Leake ACS Only survivor of founders of ACS

At the Gala Dinner on the final evening I sat next the guest-ofhonour Dean Semler ACS, ASC. His inspirational speech was half-interrupted by a firework display under the Harbour Bridge. However his message that there was no turning back from capturing images through the digital camera was loud and clear (who was I to question the cinematographer who had shot Dances With Wolves and Apocolypto?).

The welcome and generosity of the ACS to their guests and visitors was magnificent. It was a privilege to be there and an overwhelming experience. There had never been a gathering like it before in Australia. Peter James ACS, Bruce Beresford, Dean Semler ACS, Don McAlpine ACS and the director George Miller, under moderator Peter Thompson, had earlier enthralled in a presentation under the title “The Collaborators”. The Oscar winners absent would have been enough to make any normal country happy, Dion Beebe ACS and John Seale ACS.

Awards were presented with clips illustrating the high standard of cinematography in their country, but I stated in a short address the real winner that evening had been the Australian Film Industry.

I had the honour of accepting the Australian Cinematographer of the Year award on behalf on Roger Deakins ASC BSC, who had said eloquently everything to be said in his recorded speech. The BSC had asked me to present the Golden “Presidential Pan glass” as I named it (designed and made by Joe Dunton) to the President Ted Rayment ACS and “Outstanding Stills” to Calvin Gardiner ACS former president to whom the success of the week was a tribute in itself. Many

The taxi driver to the airport was Chinese. The weather had turned stormy. “Sydney is crying”, he stated with Confucian wisdom. I reflected on memories of my friend Ken Hannam, who directed one of the greatest Australian films A Sunday Too Far Away, and who would have loved to have been able to share the joy of the week, and also on the sad news of the death of my old friend Curly Bird, whose funeral would be taking place whilst I was flying home. And I had to agree.

Louis-Philippe Capelle SBC Imago General Secretary

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production focus

Perfume: Barcelona's Gothic quarters, can and often do, easily double as 17th or 18th century Paris

Production Spotlight - Barcelona It is amazing how many films, television productions and commercials are lensed in Barcelona, and the surrounding Catalonia region, reports Michael Marshall. As Ventura Pons, an acclaimed Spanish director says, “I've been filming in Catalonia for thirty years and I am convinced that Barcelona has everything that you can ever need, and that you can never reach the end of this country.”

Manuel Huerga, director of movie Salvador is on record as saying, “Filming in Barcelona is very comfortable and pleasant because of the light and the climate - which means you can work at any time of the year. In Barcelona you get clear images.”

Many of the landmarks in the city have an almost iconic status - The Guell Park, Las Ramblas, the Sagrada Familia landmark, by the architect Antonio Gaudi, 1882-1926.

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“I have discovered that Barcelona is Malaga, Marseilles, and Naples rolled into one,” says director Pedro Almodovar.

Perfume directed by Tom Tykwer, from the best-selling book

by Patrick Suskind had many sequences shot in Barcelona's Gothic quarters, which can and often do easily double as 17th or 18th century Paris.

Other sequences in the film were lensed in surrounding Catalonian towns, including Gerona, Besalu, and the Figueres old town.

Most recently the Barcelona - Catalonia Film Commission helped Woody Allen to find locations for the filming of Vicky Cristina Barcelona (DP Javier Aguirresarobe), which had a showing at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. As Julia Goytisolo, director of the Barcelona - Catalunya Film Commission says, “We can sort out all your needs, and help to arrange all sorts of essential assistance for filming projects, such as online processing of shooting permits, and providing data on all

experienced professional organizations, companies and service providers.

In Barcelona, films, videos, and professional television recordings other than advertising, can get the exemption from public fees for shooting in the streets, squares and public gardens of the city. Furthermore, the Film Commission work on non-commercial productions can enjoy total or partial reduction of rates for shooting in public buildings".

Last year the Film Commission helped more than 40 feature films, 15 television shoots and half a dozen documentaries in Barcelona and the surrounding areas. With commercials and other short films counted, the numbers tot up to 1,358 shoots in the last 12 months.

With locations as diverse as seaside beaches, national parks, and mountains, which have been used as a double for Norway, the area has everything for everybody.

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Life really is a beach: an Italian production shoots on the sands near Barcelona.

Image courtesy of Barcelona Film Commission

Peaks: The Frost, a Spanish/Norwegian co-production shoots in the local National Park. Image courtesy of Barcelona Film Commission

Bernat Elias of Mediapro Group, which co-produced the Woody Allen picture, explained his company's activities. “Besides the large slate of national productions, Mediapro helps with foreign management rights, as well as all production necessities for foreign producers.” This company has its own production facilities and studios, and recently picked up the TV rights to Spanish soccer clubs, including Real Madrid and Barcelona.

for his work on the recent Spanish film El Orfanato. Produced in 2007 this horror film drama was directed by Juan Antonio Bayona, with Oscar Faura the DP. This follows other Goya awards for digital VFX, including best SFX for the Spanish film Transiberian. The Last of the Just, another Spanish movie to get treatment from Infinia, will be premiered at the Sitges film Festival..

Camera kit Jaume Roures, Mediapro's managing director recently stated that his company was aiming to produce bigger films on lower budgets, and new talent-driven projects.

Mediapro also owns Mediaparc, at Bullidor S/n, St. Just d'Esvern, a region outside Barcelona with studios of up to 1,850sq/m, and production offices. Mediaparc 2, owned by the same company, is located in Cornellà, near to downtown Barcelona with good access to the airport.

Mediapro has another project on the go in the new district between Torre Agbar and Pl. Glories, where a new studio complex is slated for September.

Other studios, under different management, add to the facilities offered by the city, including Estudios Idea, and Estudios Gala at c/ Perù 230.

Barcelona is well-serviced with production equipment for cinema, TV and commercials.

Alcicam, which has branches in Barcelona, and in Madrid, is a specialist in film cameras, and supplies all ARRI equipment, including the ARRICAM LT, ARRIFLEX 535, ARRIFLEX 435 advanced, and the MOVICAM compact, along with a full complement of ARRI 16mm and AATON cameras. David Peyus, the amiable head of Alcicam's rental department in Madrid, told me that demand in Barcelona remains very solid.

Service Vision, has just opened new offices in Barcelona at Rios Rosas 22 in Cornellà. Service Vision has become well-known for its Scorpio Stabilised heads and super Scorpio Cranes - film equipment which is used all over the world. A few years ago Service Vision opened premises

Post production In post production, Video Efecto SL.and Molinare in Barcelona and Madrid should be mentioned as major service providers in the region, offering post production facilities for film and video, HD broadcast, editing and music production.

Apuntopospo, a vibrant new cinema, commercials, TV and DVD post production house, situated at Escola Pies 132, at the northern edge of the city area, towards the Tibidabo hills, was recently awarded a Sant Jordi prize for its work on cinema innovation in post production.

Apuntopospo is the first Spanish company to post a feature film using the Red One camera.

Maria Rosé Fuste, the owner and Alonso Par, the commercial manager, emphasised that because it offers 'tapeless' services, huge quantities of data can be easily shared between workstations. Innovative processes integrated by Apuntopospo include its “Big Eye” SAN (storage area network system) for high resolution images, enabling a range of SD, HD, 2K and 4K realtime workflows, without any image compression, along with telecine transfers, colour grading and VFX. Recently the company added The Magic Tale, an IMAX 3D stereoscopic fantasy production to its list of credits. Vertice 360, the Spanish content service provider, recently acquired Apuntopospo. Vertice 360 also owns the well-established Madrid post house Telson.

Infinia SA is another leading post production company in Barclona, and has its headquarters at Portbou 6, which is easily accessible by metro and other transport. Infinia offers high-quality allround film and television services, including a 2,400sq/m studio, plus facilites for posting cinema, TV, and commercials, as well as DVD authoring.

Gabriel Jorges, the very able and enthusiastic communications manager at Infinia showed me around the promises, and I also met with Lidia Martinez, the young and glamorous chief of its film division. Infinia offers a whole range of the HD editing, DI colour grading and VFX facilities for commercials and television visual effects. In addition, Infinia hosts live TV shows, and has sister facilities at centres in Madrid. Infinia's kit list includes 2K Sprint telecine, with 2K da Vinci colour grading, recently upgraded with Resolve non-linear workflow, Quantel Henry and eQ, multiple flame compositing and Avid editing suites with Unity storage, sound studios, as well as Shake and Combustion desktop compositing, and Maya for 3D CG work. The company has also formed a strategic union with the Deluxe Image Film Laboratory, and initiated the Baarcelona I Film project entirely dedicated to Digital Intermediate. Infinia Restoration, is an offshoot of the company's film department, based around Snell & Wilcox's Archangel system.

Jordi San Augustin, digital effects supervisor at Infinia SA, was recently awarded the Goya Prize

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production focus

Overview: Parc Audiovisual De Catalunya (PAC) audiovisual centre at the entrance of the National Park

All the world's a stage: one of the shooting stages at the PAC

Looking good: international model Judith Masco on a commercial shoot at the PAC

in Hollywood. The founding brothers, André and Alfred Valles have steered their company to major success in manufacturing and rental for more than 20 years. Their cranes and stabilisers have been used on 007 James Bond shoots, and have been sold all over the world. Service Vision's rental department can also supply all of the ARRI range, Movicam, HMI lights, Scorpio heads, cranes, hot heads, helicopter mounts, and camera cars and dollies. At its premises in Barcelona there is also a 1,000sq/m studio. Its technicians speak English, Dutch and German. Pedro Povill, of Service Vision, told me about their extremely successful export market to new areas such as China and Japan. They have recently been contracted to supply stabiliser systems at the Beejing China Olympics.

where it supplies daylight and tungsten fresnels, spotlights, Kinoflex, grip equipment, tripods and other accessories.

Southern Sun SL, is a new lighting company managed by Roberto Sacristran, the son of Gregorio Sacristan who ran the very successful Mole Richardson franchise during the 1950s and 60s, which saw Spain become a major shooting area for foreign producers. Southern Sun's offices are in Barcelona, Alicante, Madrid and Malaga. The company offers highlyqualified technicians and a wide range of lighting equipment, HMI fresnels, all of ARRI's compact lighting range, Kino flos and Cinemagic tubes. Southern Sun also pledges to offer an assistance team for each project to accompany a project through all its stages. Their new office is situated in Barcelona at c: Terol 7. Pol. Industriel Salinas, San Bol de llobregat. Their branch situated in Alicante is at the new large studio complex in Alicante , Ciudad De La Luz Estudios..

dating from after the war, which has been used successfully for drama, horror, science fiction projects, and as a backdrop for communist military and bureaucratic establishments with an area covering in all around 100,000sq/m.

For Panavision aficionados equipment is supplied by EPC Equipos Profesionales Cinematograficos in Madrid - I was informed by Eduardo Perez one of the owners of EPC, situated at V. Virgilio, within the Ciudad De La Imagem complex just outside that city.

Lighting Barcelona has two major suppliers of lighting equipment within its precincts. Zeferino SA has its new operational office at Can Buscarons de Baix, Pasatge De La Industria No.1. from

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National park Parc Audiovisual De Catalunya (PAC) is the important audiovisual centre at the entrance of the National Park of Sant Llorenç del Munt. I was pleased to meet Oriol Moreno who showed me around the studios, offices and the location areas.

With excellent road connections to Barcelona, which is about 20 minutes away, one finds large studios, a complex of production offices, location areas, including a ruined church with monastic style gardens, and an adjoining military hospital

Two sound-proofed, air conditioned studios, one 600sq/m, the other 1,200sq/m. are already hosting a wide range of audiovisual productions, and PAC plans on building another four studios. In the last few years, an average of forty productions a year have been shot in Terrassa. Around 1,700 sq/m of space is available for production offices, dressing rooms, make-up and green room areas for production staff and actors, catering facilities, board rooms, and storerooms for costumes. There is also a fibre-optic infrastructure enabling fast worldwide communications. Productions are frequently undertaken in conjunction with Filmax TV, Mediainternational and Sky. Currently in production are projects with, Castelao-Filmax, a television series on Catalonia, and an advertising campaign from agency McCannErickson.

As they say… “location is everything”, and Barcelona and the wider Catalonia, so much admired by foreigners, can give you all you want in the audiovisual arts. You can have a pleasing time too with pleasant people, doing your business with ultramodern technologies, but a marvellous historical landscape.

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GBCT - The chairman speaks It doesn't seem five minutes ago that I was jotting down some rhubarb or other for the last edition. How time flies, when you're working in the garden.

One of The UK Greats

More and more frequently we are hearing about the miracles that focus pullers are expected to perform without proper procedures being respected and applied - whilst they have to contend with long lenses, sandwiches of neutral density filters to lower the exposure to wide-open apertures, barely a proper line-up, let alone a rehearsal, and even directors hurling abuse.

If you want sharp images‌ give the focus puller a decent chance of success, with proper line-ups, decent marks, a sensible aperture and full rehearsals.

Unable to deliver the impossible, some of them are parting company with the production mid-shoot. Even with sophisticated remote focus controls and range finders, it's not possible to get stuff sharp without proper marks and rehearsals. Relying on even a top-end monitor is dodgy, especially on an HD camera where there is a split second time-lag on the picture. Once you see the image on the monitor, if its soft, it's already been recorded - soft.

So, my point is to directors and DPs, especially those who may not have done much focus-pulling in their earlier careers; if you want sharp images - and presumably if you're shooting on an HD camera, that's what you're after - give the focus puller a decent chance of success. Proper lineups, decent marks, a sensible aperture and full rehearsals.

In my experience it saves time and, equally important (including for the actors), it saves precious energy, and the focus puller is more likely to feel that his complex job is appropriately valued and supported. By the end of a long day there is only so much a human brain can cope with - and you've still got an hour drive home.

Jamie Harcourt GBCT Chairman GBCT

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We continue our look at the Great British, and those who have shaped the British and world film business.

This time I am taking a closer look at Cooke, the Leicester based lens manufacturer with a very interesting history.

Cooke lenses are well known throughout the world as being exceptional quality, and have a 'look' that makes them distinctive to use, and a first choice for many of the top DPs. The history is synonymous with quality imaging, and many historical events have been photographed with Cooke lenses throughout the last 115 years of the company history.

Cooke History As the optical manager of T. Cooke & Sons of York, at the time makers of astronomical telescopes, H. Dennis Taylor 1893 designed and patented the revolutionary, and now famous, triplet design (British patent no. 1991). The Cooke Triplet concept was a simple and elegant solution to design issues that plagued lens designers of the era.

Having no desire to enter the photographic lens business, T. Cooke & Sons offered the manufacturing rights to Taylor, Taylor & Hobson of Leicester, optical instrument makers who had a reputation for producing quality optical products since 1886 when William Taylor founded the company in Leicester with his brother, Thomas Smithies Taylor. William Taylor's philosophy: "Don't do what everyone else can do; go out for something new," coined in 1886 holds true at Cooke Optics today.

The first Cooke photographic lens was made by TT&H in 1894 based on Dennis Taylor's Cooke Triplet patent of 1893.

TT&H went on to produce subsequent lens designs by Dennis Taylor through Series V. The licensing agreement stated that the lenses would be sold under the trade name "Cooke". The very first lenses made were brass and included the inscription "H.D. Taylor's patents."

Today, triplets of various kinds are used almost universally for lenses of intermediate aperture sold on smaller still cameras.This was the beginning of a legacy of superior and

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innovative lens design and manufacture under the Cooke name that continued throughout the 20th century.

1914 The ability to withstand extreme climatic and atmospheric conditions made Cooke lenses the choice for many expeditions beginning with the famous Shackleton Antarctic Expedition.

The expedition's official photographer, Frank Hurley, chose a Graflex camera fitted with a Cooke 12 inch f 3.5 lens and 6 3/4 x 8 1/2 inch and 4 3/4 x 6 1/2 inch glass negatives to capture the day-to-day life endured by the men. When the expedition's ship, The Endurance, became lodged in ice, Mr. Hurley was forced to leave most of the photographic plates behind, which ultimately sank with the ship. The plates he chose to salvage have been beautifully developed and exhibited at museums in the U.S., including the Museum of Natural History in New York City and the Field Museum in Chicago as well as in the U.K. at the Fox Talbot Museum.

With the onset of World War I, there arose an urgent demand for aerial reconnaissance lenses. At first, the need was satisfied by the British government purchasing German lenses from the public. Then Arthur Warmisham designed a new Cooke lens (British patent no.113590) that was accepted as superior in performance to foreign lenses.

1921 Cooke Speed Panchro. Horace W. Lee designed the Cooke Speed Panchro, a cine prime lens that chromatically enhanced an image when filming under restricted illumination. Developed several years before 'talkies' came into being, the advent of sound films created a great demand for faster lenses because arc lamps could no longer be used, making much existing equipment obsolete. Cooke Speed Panchros combined a relative aperture as wide as f2.0 with an angular field of view and definition previously impossible with much smaller apertures.

Before the Speed Panchro, Cooke Series VIIIB Telephoto Anstigmat, f 3.5 lenses "were used extensively at Hollywood for Cinematograph film production," according to an early Cooke lens catalogue.

1922 Everest Cooke lenses were also used to document the Mt. Everest expeditions in 1922 and 1924. Captain John Noel, the expedition's photographer, used a Newman Sinclair camera, specially made by Mr. Newman, weighing 40 pounds. Its rigid frame construction was designed to hold 400 feet of 35mm film and a specially made 20 inch Cooke Series VIII f5.6 Telephoto lens. A Cooke product catalogue of 1930 said that the lens "made a fine reputation when they were used for motion pictures of the climbers from a distance of two miles."

A letter to the company from Captain Noel in 1985 says that the highest station he reached at Everest was 23,000 feet and another was a rock ledge at 22,000 feet. He was able to get a "very clear view "of the signal sent to them at base camp number 3 "by Odell at No. 4 camp to tell us of the death of Mallory & Irvine, last seen ascending only 600 feet from the very top of Everest then hidden by the driving snow."

Twenty-nine years later, Tom Stobart, official filmmaker for John Hunt's Mt. Everest Expedition with Sir Edmund Hillary, achieved 35mm standards of quality while shooting "Conquest of Everest" entirely with 16mm Cooke lenses.

Technicolor The year 1931 marked a further achievement. During the development of the Technicolor colour process, it became evident that the provision of a beamsplitting prism behind the objective in the Technicolor 3-strip camera made it impossible to use the wide angle objectives generally available at that time.

The problem then, was to provide a lens of short focal length and wide relative aperture having the long back focal distance necessary to clear the prism whilst maintaining the high standard of definition expected from a Cooke lens.

Taylor, Taylor & Hobson, Stoughton Street factory, 1900 to 1948. In spite of two world wars, this was the site of continuous manufacture of projection, zoom, Cooke range of lenses as well as military and government optics. Special processes were incorporated into the building design by founder and inventor, William Taylor.

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Horace W. Lee's 1931 design (British patent 355.452) for the inverted telephoto lens did more than was demanded from it,: its unusually high correction for chromatic aberrations and remarkable vignetting characteristics rendered it suitable for colour photography and contributed to the success of the Technicolor process.

"The most notable feature of these lenses, however, is the inclusion in the 30mm design of what might be called the inverse telephoto principle,

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front element that eliminated the risk of dirt and moisture being drawn into the lens and allowed for easy fitting of matte boxes and filter holders onto the front. The lens was enhanced with anti-reflective wide-band Varomag high performance coatings. This advanced technology achieved new standards in shadowed area definition, light transmission and durability, in addition to giving ghost and flare-free characteristics.

Gordon H. Cook received the 1988 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Gordon E. Sawyer Award for this and other technological advancements during his career as an optical designer. Cooke became an independent company in July 1998.

In 1998, designs were completed and production began on the Cooke S4 Prime, T2.0 lenses. In 1998, the S4s won a Cinec Award in Germany. In 1999 the mechanical designers and optical designer of the S4 lenses earned a Technical Academy Award for mechanical and optical excellence, and in 2000 were awarded a Technical Emmy from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

In 2000, Cooke Optics Limited won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Engineering Development for the Cooke S4 35mm Prime lenses.

Cooke S4/i Lenses In September 2004, Cooke launched the new S4/i electronic lens data system at IBC 2003 in Amsterdam. The first /i lenses made are the 135, 150 and 180mm focal lengths. As of February 1, 2005, all Cooke S4 lenses are made with /i electronics for lens data display and are workable with any motion picture camera.

The present In recent years, Cooke lenses have become synonymous with quality motion picture work, and they have become a firm favourite with camera crews around the world, and there are many reasons for this. The lenses are designed so that a suitably trained technician can take them apart and examine them on site without fear of disturbing the optical nature.

King George V and Queen Mary with William Taylor, founder of Taylor, Taylor & Hobson, arriving at the Stoughton Street factory for an hour-long visit in June 1919. whereby the back focal length is considerably longer than the equivalent focal length." (The Technicolor Process of Threecolor Cinematography, by J.A. Ball, vice president and technical director, Technicolor Motion Picture Corp., Journal of Motion Picture Engineers, Vol. XXV, August 1935, No. 2, pp.

127-138.)

1940s Ansel Adams

Walt Disney gained exclusive rights to the Technicolor technology for animation for the next three years, taking the opportunity to win two Academy Awards for short films: Flowers and Trees (1932) and The Three Little Pigs (1933).

Ansel Adams, famous American landscape photographer, shot many of his most famous images using this lens, as documented in his book "Examples: The Making of 40 Photographs." He appeared on BBC-TV stating that he used a convertible lens for many of his photos, then said, almost as a throw-away line, "A Cooke of course." This lens was made between 1935 through about 1962. The Series XV lens is difficult to find on the used market today, but is still soughtafter by 8x10 inch format photographers due to it exemplary performance.

The First Zoom Lens for Cinematography The first non-telescopic complex zoom lens for cinematography was the Bell & Howell Cooke Varo 40120mm Lens (British patent 398,307, Arthur Warmisham) for 35mm format. The lens was manufactured and sold by Bell & Howell.

The lens came equipped with a special saddle that attached to a standard tripod plate. The saddle held the Varo lens and the camera ensuring correct alignment. The definition is critical at all parts of the zoom, at a standard much higher than previously attained with other contemporary zooms. The lens had adjustable stops and the focal length of the Varo lens was changed by rotating a crank.

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In 1932, Horace W. Lee patented (British patent 376,044) the Cooke Series XV Triple Convertible, which provided three focal lengths, with each half comprising two cemented doublets.

The components gave excellent performance throughout the various focal length combinations.

In 1971 lens designer Gordon H. Cook designed the 35mm Cooke 20-100mm, T3.1 Varotal zoom lens. It was the first high quality zoom designed for professional motion picture photography that incorporated a totally new design concept that has remained the basis for all Cooke zoom lenses subsequently produced.

When the lens is manufactured they are first made without any lens markings, unlike other more mass produced manufacturers. The lens is then put on a test bench, then various measured distances are focussed on the lens, and only then is the lens engraved with the absolute distance. This is why a set of two otherwise identical lenses may have different lens marking on them, and care must be taken to use the correct focus ring with that particular lens.

In keeping with their forward thinking, in 2007. Cooke Optics Ltd. announced the Cooke RED Set, a package of four standard Cooke S4/i lenses offering a range of focal lengths from 15mm through 100 mm, specially engraved with red lettering. The lenses incorporate /i metadata capture technology that can be read directly by the /i contacts of the RED camera lens mount.

More recently Cooke announced that Silicon Imaging, a leader in IT-centric high-definition digital camera and RAW workflow solutions, has incorporated support for the Cooke-developed /i Technology into its SI-2K™ digital cinema platform. Cooke's /i Technology enables film and digital cameras to automatically record key lens and camera data for every film frame shot and provide it to post-production teams digitally.

The technology streamlines both production and post, saving significant time and costs and eliminating guesswork.

Silicon Imaging's SI-2K digital cinema platform offers 2K DCIcompliant resolution, direct-to-disk CineForm RAW portable recording, 11 f-stops dynamic range, embedded IRIDAS SpeedGrade and Silicon DvR software support, and a universal lens mount. This fall, the company plans to ship the

The lens was made with a sealed front focus unit and fixed

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SI-2K with support for /i Technology, enabling the camera to read /i metadata directly.

Ari Presler, CEO of Silicon Imaging, said, “Bringing /i Technology to the SI-2K platform is just one more tool that we're offering to help streamline processes and preserve useful metadata among pre-production, on-set, post-production and visual effects. Along with 3D stereoscopic camera control, direct ingest to editing platforms, and support for integration of on-set grading, /i is an important link in the powerful non-linear workflow that the SI-2K okatfirn offers, spanning from the initial concept to final delivery.”

Cooke Optics Chairman Les Zellan said, “Silicon Imaging has taken a pioneering role in bringing a whole workflow together within the design concept of the SI-2K platform. Giving users access to extremely accurate frame-by-frame lens and camera metadata captured with /i Technology improves the efficiency and quality of the entire workflow.”

Silicon Imaging joins Aaton, ARRI, Avid, Cinematography Electronics, CMotion, Dalsa, Mark Roberts Motion Control, Preston Cinema Systems, RED, The Pixel Farm and Service Vision in supporting /i Technology. Cooke Optics has also incorporated the protocol into its own S4/i series of Prime and Zoom lenses, providing cinematographers and camera operators with vital information on lens setting, focusing distance, aperture and depth-of-field, hyperfocal distance, serial number, owner data, lens type, focal length in both metric and footage measurements, and zoom position for zoom lenses.

Cinematographers recognized for creating some of 2007's most lasting images used Cooke lenses to help them achieve their vision. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, American Gangster, and The Bourne Ultimatum -- all recognized for multiple awards by the ASC, BAFTA, and AMPAS-were shot using Cooke S4 Prime lenses.

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Nominated for the year's Best Film and Cinematography awards by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), American Gangster was shot by director of photography Harris Savides, ASC. The Bourne Ultimatum also gained a BAFTA Cinematography award nomination for director of photography Oliver Wood. A film nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS) and the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC), The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, has also earned Cinematography award accolades by numerous film critics' societies for director of photography Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC. All relied on Cooke's S4 Prime lenses.

Deakins, who has used Cooke lenses on a number of notable films, including Jarhead, noted, “I did a great deal of low light work on Jesse James and was working wide open for much of the film.

The train robbery shots are where the Cooke lenses really shine. We shot so much with practical lamp sources and we never had any flare problems. Even the front lamp on the oncoming train - a 5K par lamp right into the lens-never caused a problem. The entire approach of the train was shot with that light and some atmosphere in the air. The Cookes really allowed me to achieve that. They showed detail where there seemed to be only blackness.

They're a great advance in terms of resolution and clarity.”

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UK

post and techno

Ascent 142 rebrand and DI expansion Ascent Media has pulled together several companies and rebranded them under the name Ascent 142 in an effort to better service the needs of the entertainment community in London.

Ascent 142 offers a full complement of feature film, television, DVD and content management services. The new facility is the culmination of the merging of One Post, St. Anne's Post, Stream and Wardour Street's Media Management services.

Over £2 million has been invested in Ascent 142's facilities, including the creation of two Digital Intermediate (DI) suites. The new DI suites feature Resolve R350 digital mastering suites by da Vinci, Smoke editing systems, a Bright SAN, two ARRI film scanners and two ARRI laser recorders.

The Resolve R350's belong to da Vinci's new family of powerful digital mastering suites unveiled at NAB 2008.

“We are expanding our services under one roof to accommodate our growing business and our customers changing needs,” said David Barrett, Ascent 142's senior director of business development. “There will be no redundancies and no change in the management structure. The merging of these companies into one new brand represents a clear and strategic business move.

All of our customers will now have one main point of contact for all our services.”

“In the feature film area especially, it makes sense that all the services relevant to the workflow and data management are in one building,” added Adrian Bull, chief technology officer for Ascent 142. The new DI workflow at Ascent 142 has been designed specifically to align with its US

DALSA harnesses Sohonet workflow

counterparts. “With so many more projects working internationally, we are perfectly positioned to work with our Santa Monica and Hollywood facilities. We now have a 2.5-gigabit pipe in place, which allows grading information and other data to be securely shared between London and the US. The transatlantic divide is starting to disappear thanks to technology, and we provide a benefit no one else can offer.”

The new 007 James Bond, Quantum of Solace, film will be Ascent 142's first DI project. The new facility intends to go on expanding its high end DI work; as well as working with smaller, independent films. Rob Pizzey will continue as Ascent 142's lead DI colourist, with Trevor Brown coming up behind him.

da Vinci collaboration with Gamma & Density To provide cinematographers with the ability to perform on-set colour correction and calibration, da Vinci Systems has teamed up with US developer Gamma & Density Co. to make the 3cP (Cinematographer's Colour Correction Process) fully-interoperable with da Vinci's Resolve and 2K Plus colour grading systems.

3cP is a laptop-based system that allows colour grading decisions to be made on-set by the cinematographer. Settings can then be accurately passed on to the dailies timer and to the colourist involved with post-production, enabling precise preview of colour decisions for dailies, pre-post, matching special effects, and the final DI final grade. 3cP has been used by leading cinematographers on major motion pictures, including 2008's first summer blockbuster Iron Man, as well as The Tudors, The Kite Runner, and 10,000, B.C., among others.

4K camera manufacturer DALSA has formalised a relationship with Sohonet Solutions, the new production services division of Sohonet, that sees Sohonet Solutions become a preferred partner to manage the data workflow generated by the new generation of DALSA cameras.

"3cP's integration with the Resolve and 2K systems will make it even more useful to solve the problem of colour consistency in today's post-production environment, particularly when it comes to DI work," said Yuri Neyman, DP and CEO of Gamma & Density.

"There is often a disconnection between what a cinematographer expects and what actually occurs during the final colour

Jon Ferguy, a senior partner at Sohonet Solutions, explained that Sohonet Solutions can deliver 4K data generated by DALSA faster and more efficiently than HD camera-to-tape workflows, even though HD uses much lower data rates. "This will mean that DALSA users will benefit not just from the higher quality of the DALSA images, but substantial savings in time and resources, both on set and into Post,” he commented.

Films of the UN Refugee Agency's work in Sudan and Chad were back projected on the windows and windshields of Rob Hummel, president of digital cinema at DALSA added, "I two Toyota vehicles during the “Experience Darfur” have worked with the Sohonet team since I was with Warner exhibition, set up on 17th of May, in Trafalgar Square.

Bros, where they had the distinction of being the only supplier Cinegel Silent Frost and Rosco's grey screen were stuck that actually delivered on what they said they would. At on the inside of the windows and projectors were DALSA we recently used Sohonet Solutions for a major effects mounted inside the vehicles to provide the image. shoot for the new Bond production Quantum of Solace, and could not have completed that project without them."

Tents, sacks of food and a replica of a burnt-out village hut

correction process, a problem our two companies have worked together to eliminate."

The new system, which is packaged as a laptop computer loaded with 3cP software, works with film, DI, video (NTSC/PAL) and HD productions to perform on-set colour correction with live settings.

These settings are saved to a USB memory stick as ASC CDL XML files, which are then transferred to the Resolve suite for finishing.

The ASC CDL (American Society of Cinematographers Color Decision List) protocol was developed by members and contributors of the ASC Technology Committee, including Gamma & Density Co. and da Vinci.

"More and more, 3cP is becoming a lifesaver for DPs who want to communicate their vision accurately into the DI world," said Dean Lyon, marketing director at da Vinci Systems. "The perfect communication between the 3cP system and the Resolve and 2K that's enabled by the ASC CDL promotes workflow efficiency, technical accuracy, and perhaps most importantly, artistic quality."

State of Play, starring Ben Affleck, Russell Crowe, and Helen Mirren, is the first film to use the system, and will employ the ASC CDL protocol.

Cinegel Silent Frost in the “Experience Darfur” Exhibition

Sohonet Solutions was formed to allow the expertise developed by Sohonet, in moving high volumes of data around the world, to be applied to productions using digital capture and the new types of data workflow.

Sohonet Solutions has already completed consulting assignments for the Moving Picture Company, Capital FX, Midnight Transfer, Pinewood Sound and Animal Logic, and the feature films Speed Racer and James Bond: Quantum of Solace.

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appeared in Trafalgar Square as the tourist and pigeon hotspot became a refugee camp to highlight the plight of millions of people displaced in Darfur and elsewhere. The display marked World Refugee Day, and came as the UN refugee agency reported a record 11.4 million people were driven from their home countries last year.

Cinegel Silent Frost is a relatively dense diffuser that creates a smooth field of soft, shadowless light. Excellent for frames and overheads, this filter is particularly useful outdoors when wind causes a noise problem with other plastic diffusers. Rosco's grey

screen for rear projection was selected because of its neutral colour - for good image contrast and has wide viewing angles without loss of picture brightness.

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BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

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