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Post #318809

Author
zombie84
Parent topic
Indiana Jones IV
Link to post in topic
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/318809/action/topic#318809
Date created
24-May-2008, 2:16 AM
I work in the film industry as a camera assistent (basically, the camera technician), and while HD is definitely creeping up, film is still the center piece of the art. Many TV shows shoot on HD because its cheaper and easier for a series, and its okay because TV is allowed to look like crap, but on big TV series like Lost its all 35mm, and on feature films its pretty much always all 35mm. You still see the odd 16mm TV series actually. Feature films that shoot digitally are experiments in the minority--and most the time they are the decision of the director, NOT the DP, DP's are almost unanimously against digital. People like James Cameron and Lucas and Rodriguez and Singer are making the decisions to shoot digitally, not their DP's, and its creating false propaganda, because its not easier, its not really cheaper in big budget shows, and its pretty much unanimous that it looks like utter shit. Most the time it limits you artistically as well, for technical reasons. People like Cameron and Lucas go on about HD but thats not because they are particularly informed or are making rational choices--its a sort of fetish, they have this obsession with "pushing technology," and they are right when they say HD is the future, but few cinematographers want to or choose to shoot on digitally, and not just because they are stubborn old men afraid of change. HD has much potential but its a slow curve that must be delicately transitioned, not irrationally jumped into for love of technology the way Lucas has done, its created a lot of public misconceptions. But on the indie side of things, its amazing HD has totally transformed budgetary issues on low/no-budget independent stuff.