Get it in the Edit
Refrain is officially… Half shot! And I’m still standing so that’s good news.
As anyone who’s ever uploaded a YouTube video knows, because of all this wonderous shiny technology, I’m able to see nearly immediately what the fruits of our shooting labours look like. I’m even able to quickly assemble rough cuts of scenes in no time. Oh, what a world.
This is pretty helpful for being able to see if everything’s coming along smoothly or if anything needs to be re-shot and it wouldn’t really be possible if I didn’t have the playback storyboard that I do. All I have to do is repleace the storyboard illustrations in the timeline with the footage and bang; the scene appears the way I’d planned it.
Great method technically but I’ve noticed that it does have one notable drawback. Planning everything to a tee is great on the back end but it’s a little stiffling on the front end, during the shoot. With only one camera trained on one actor’s side for the most part there’s little room to play with improvisation on the fly and still hope to get a matching scene when you flip your setup to get the second actor’s side. That’s a shame because I really wanted to explore that improv with the enormously talented actors I have the pleasure of working with…
Next time perhaps.
Until then, sticking to the script is going to have to do. Which is fine… Because I wrote the script.
There’s really nothing less artistic then the phrase “Don’t worry about it, we’ll get it in the edit,” but at the end of the day the process of making a movie isn’t only about the process of shooting the actors. So it may suck the spontaneity out of things sometimes but I’m trying not to forget the medium I’m working with.
So the question is, with all the immediateness of this technology will I have some small sample of the movie to share with you shortly? … Hmm…
June 5th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
What kind of camera are you using, because the image on your myspace looks fantasticaly crisp.
June 11th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
The camera is a “prosumer” model HD video camera (I’m not going to get any more specific about the model and brand than that on a public forum without some payola!) but any of the higher end models give really crisp images. In fact, that “crispness” is one of the things I try to combat as I find it looks a little too cold and “video” like. So the camera is actually equipped with a lens adapter - again, no free publicity for them either! - that allows me to use old SLR lenses. The collection of SLR lenses I’m using are actually about as old as I am and I love the warmth they bring to the pictures. Those, I don’t mind telling you, are old Pentax K lenses which are all but obsolete! I’m glad the images caught your eye! More soon.
-T