Interviews

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NanoFlash Investigation with Ben King (parts 1 and 2)

31/08/2010

Rick Young
Broadcast Editor Ben King, investigates Convergent Designs NanoFlash. The aim is to see just how much difference it makes working with full 4:2:2 image processing and at higher bitrates. The NanoFlash is is a portable device which accepts video in via SDI or HDMI. It can be used to record a full broadcast signal out of affordable cameras, bypassing the image compression which these cameras natively employ.

Interview with Bruce Sharpe - creator of PluralEyes

23/08/2010

Rick Young
For anyone who has ever struggled with getting cameras to sync up in a Multicam Sequence, PluralEyes is software which will take this pain away. Created by Bruce Sharpe, former Rocket Scientist and Mathematician, Plural Eyes has seen a tremendous boost in popularity due to the DSLR phenomenon. However, the use of Plural Eyes is for any situation where dual system sound is needed or where multiple cameras are recording at the same time. In this interview we talk to Bruce Sharpe who explains how this software came into being and where it is going next.

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From the MacVideo Archive: Walter Murch, History of Editing

15/08/2010

Rick Young
Walter Murch has worked in feature film production since the 1960's and has seen many changes in the technology behind feature film production. In this interview he talks about how it used to be before computer non-linear technology existed.Murch has earned a reputation as being innovative and daring with his approach to technology. Murch used Final Cut Pro to edit Cold Mountain in 2003, at a time when Final Cut Pro still had to prove itself.

From the MacVideo Archive: Ramy Katrib - the guy who put the word 'Pro' into Final Cut Pro

08/08/2010

Rick Young
When FCP hit the world back in 1999 it was regarded as a video editing application. For those wishing to work with film, this was a formidable challenge. Those at an Los Angeles based edit facility were pioneers who broke through the wall of expensive post production and made film editing using FCP possible.

From the MacVideo archive: M dot Strange - Ultimate Independent Filmmaker

02/08/2010

Rick Young
A look inside the mind of M dot Strange. Hear from the man himself, just what motivates him, the tools he uses and how this self taught 3D animator has become known for producing a full-blown animated feature film single-handedly. What M dot has achieved would normally take a team of people months or years of work.

AVID Media Composer 5: Interview with Deepraj Sandhar

26/07/2010

Rick Young
Media Composer 5 represents a major step forward in the evolution of the AVID editing platform: key features include, AMA (Avid Media Access); full-quality 4:4:4 HD-RGB color space; monitor video externally using the Matrox MXO2 Mini; ProRes support; access low-res XDCAM proxies for offline work; use RTAS audio processing plug-ins.

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Bill Warner - The man who "made" AVID (part 3)

18/07/2010

Rick Young
Bill Warner is the man who had the vision, he's the man who made AVID happen. In this, the third episode of a five part series, Bill explains the frustration he felt at the linear editing process in a tape-based world and how he, turned this frustration to find a solution to the problem. As a result the world of editing has never been the same. Where once tape-based suites and film cutting rooms dominated, now the electronic non-linear way has become the accepted process.

Richard Shackleton - The Foundry

10/07/2010

Rick Young
The Foundry is regarded as being world leading innovator of visual effects and image processing technologies that boost productivity in motion picture and video post production. The Foundry's products support a wide range of award-winning host platforms including After Effects, Autodesk® Media and Entertainment Systems, Avid DS, Nuke, Shake and Final Cut Pro. In 2007, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded a Sci-Tech Award® to The Foundry's development team for the Furnace image processing suite.

Panasonic integrated twin-lens 3D high definition camcorder

05/07/2010

Rick Young
Current 3D systems are large-scale setups in which two cameras are fitted to a rig in parallel, or vertically intersect across a half-mirror. Separate recorders are also required. In Panasonic’s new Full HD 3D camcorder, the lenses, camera head, and a dual Memory Card recorder are integrated into a single, lightweight body. The camcorder also incorporates stereoscopic adjustment controls making it easier to use and operate.

AJA KI Pro: real-world operation

26/06/2010

Sidney Lobb and Rick Young
Recorded in Rome, this interview with Project Engineer, Sidney Lobb, gives insight as to how AJA's Ki Pro can be used in a professional situation. Designed as a ProRes recorder, the Ki Pro can be used to replace traditional decks, and also to enable up conversion, down conversion, cross conversion of video signals. One can use the Ki Pro to bypass the compression of the affordable cameras and achieve superior results to highly compressed codecs.

Stu Maschwitz: DV Rebel (part 5)

21/06/2010

Rick Young
Stu Maschwitz talks about his hugely influential book "The DV Rebel's Guide: An All-Digital Approach to Making Killer Action Movies on the Cheap." This concludes the interview with Stu Maschwitz is a highly regarded director, writer and visual effects artist based in San Francisco. He has worked as a senior visual effects supervisor on many films. He previously worked at Industrial Light and Magic and also co-founded a company known as The Orphanage.

Garrett Brown shows off Steadicam Tango

14/06/2010

Rick Young
Steadicam Tango - an extension arm which connects to a compatible Steadicam to provide crane movements from floor to ceiling.

2 different Steadicams: Steadicam Smoothee and Steadicam Tango

14/06/2010

Rick Young
Two very different Steadicams on show: (i) Steadicam Smoothee - for ultra-light cameras such as Apple's iPhone (ii) Steadicam Tango - an extension arm which connects to a compatible Steadicam to provide crane movements from floor to ceiling. Both these models show just how far Steadicam has come - from ground-breaking technology which changed the world of feature film production forever, to light-weight consumer device for anyone to take advantage of.

Shane Hurlbut - ASC, talks about shooting feature films with the EOS 5D Mark II

07/06/2010

Rick Young
Shane Hurlbut has embraced the DSLR technology, particularly the Canon 5D Mark II, as a cinematic tool suitable for feature film production. Having been the Director of Photography on 35mm feature films, such as Terminator Salvation, Shane understands big budget production and how this kind of movie making happens. Shane has been one of the pioneers of using DSLRs in feature films with a 15 camera system which he tells us all about.

Arriflex Alexa - Stephan Ukas-Bradley

31/05/2010

Rick Young
NAB 2010 and the talk of the show is Arri ALEXA - a digital cinema camera which records native ProRes at standard or HQ ProRes, using SxS as the recording medium. Interchangeable lenses with PL mount, with other options to follow. The camera is a similar size to an Arri 16SR and has captured the imagination of cinematographers and producers due to its ease of use, image quality, and compatibility with Final Cut Pro. This digital motion picture camera comes from ARRIFLEX, one of the great manufacturers of film motion picture cameras.

Rodney Charters: Cinematographer

24/05/2010

Rick Young
Rodney Charters talks about the excitement surrounding the Canon EOS 5D Mark II and other DSRs, with comments on the recently announced Arriflex Alexa and also the RED digital cinema camera. In this piece he talks about the needs of the industry for different types of production and gives his views of where cinema acquisition is going in the near to medium future.

Talk less and shoot more: interview with Vincent Laforet

17/05/2010

Rick Young
Late 2008 and Vincent Laforet gets his hands on a Canon EOS 5D Mark II prototype. In the space of a single weekend a film, called Reverie, is produced - this quickly clocks up over two million views online. In the months that follow the EOS 5D Mark II gains acceptance as a new way of making films; extending the tool-set available to those wishing to produce high quality images without a huge budget. Vincent relives the excitement of that time and gives his views on where technology will take us.

Shooting with DSRs: comments by Ned Soltz

08/05/2010

Rick Young
DSLRs have exploded into the filmmaking world in a short space of time, redefining the toolset available to those seeking cinema-looking images on a budget. However, these cameras are not without their problems. In this interview, digital video expert, Ned Soltz, gives an honest opinion of what it is like to work with a Digital SLR camera - the pros, the cons, what these cameras are suitable for and reasons why one needs to steer clear for certain shooting situations.

Stuart Ashton - General Manager EMEA, Blackmagic Design (parts 1 and 2)

04/05/2010

Rick Young
An in-depth discussion about DaVinci Resolve on the Mac: what this means for the world of color correction, different options offered in the DaVinci range, key features which DaVinci offers and the Blackmagic strategy for making high-end tools affordable and within reach of everyone.

RED Digital Cinema: changing the face of movie making

26/04/2010

Rick Young
RED Digital Cinema has shaken up the production market like no other company in the history of movie making. In the space of 3 short years the RED ONE camera has become used in markets which traditionally relied on 35mm motion picture film. RED has redefined the standard and price for which films can be produced. Now RED is on the verge of releasing EPIC, a 5K digital cinema camera which is smaller than the original RED ONE, produces higher quality, and is capable of producing images which once again will redefine the equipment needed for feature film production.

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