Anything you can do with film I can do with HD

TheMacB

TheMacB

Veteran
according to IMDB, Sidney Lumet said that. Although i can't find it anywhere else.

But assuming he did say that, wadaya think?
 
what do you do with film? you make people feel emotions, see stories, cry, laugh, think. why cant HD do that?
 
How about HVX + letus EX + Nikon 17-35, 50, 80-200mm and me
 
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Should have let it go Como - you were on a hight note.
:)

That said - the only thing I can think of that you are limited by in HD is dynamic range.
And I don't remember the last time I walked out of great movie and said
"you know, that would have been much better if they'd has another stop or two of lattitude"
 
ok ok ok .... auteurs........ Let a DP chime in. there is ALOT you can do with film that cant do with HD. Like chemical processes, Optical printing effects, and yes, 4 more stops of dynamic range that looks both organic, and still razor sharp. NOTHING looks like film. not even red.
 
Shoulda let what go?

If you have everything proper, you can make your films look awesome.

Acting, lighting, composition, audio are a huge part.
 
A car can't do everything a truck can do (or vice versa), but they both get you from point a to point b.

It's not aboout replacing anything. It's about a different technology's application in telling a story.
 
TimurCivan said:
ok ok ok .... auteurs........ Let a DP chime in. there is ALOT you can do with film that cant do with HD. Like chemical processes, Optical printing effects, and yes, 4 more stops of dynamic range that looks both organic, and still razor sharp. NOTHING looks like film. not even red.
Click to expand...

Okay, fair enough - in which case I'll revise my original statement and say I don't remember the last time I walked out of great movie and said
"you know, that would have been much better if they'd had another four stops of lattitude"
:)

Just giving you a hard time Timur - you bring up some valid points.
But in the end I think these are small things compared to where we were just a few years ago... the gap may still be there, but each year it is much smaller.
But yes, you're right - its still there in some respects.
 
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Luis Caffesse said:
I don't remember the last time I walked out of great movie and said
"you know, that would have been much better if they'd has another four stops of lattitude"
Click to expand...

:Drogar-BigGrin(DBG):Drogar-BigGrin(DBG):Drogar-BigGrin(DBG):Drogar-BigGrin(DBG):Drogar-BigGrin(DBG)

A wise man once said 'video (DV and HD) is what the eyes see, but film is what the mind sees.

Its true you cant really compare film and video, even though the new HD cameras offer a higher resolution then the DV they still dont come close to the 35mm. But they are good enough. But the new HD cameras out there some of the theaters are adding digital projectors, so you can see that while film is still dominent in the industry, digital will still take over soon.

Film - Apparantly i don't see any other format that is equivalent to a film look. It all depends on your budget.

The minute-for-minute cost of 16mm and 35mm film and processing is hundreds of times more than the cost of HD recording.
 
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i find the physical chemical processes to impart a look thats all its own. you cant really, truly replicate it in post. you can get close, but never truly the way silver crystals choose to react to bleach, developer, and temprature changes.
 
These conversations always remind me of a quote I read from Robert Rodriguez a few years back, in regards to whether or not HD could replace film he said something to the effect of - "The thing to remember is that HD looks as bad as its ever going to look right now. It will only get better from here."
 
I love the "Evening With Robert Rodriguez" on the Once Upon A Time In Mexico DVD where he talks about shooting HD. I used to be very anti-digital, until I saw that. it wasn't really the look of HD that sold me on it, it was probably everything but that, in fact. What sold me is the creative talk. He compared shooting a movie on film to painting in the dark, that with digital, you can see what you're getting, and move along with confidence. I like the idea that a good film is made because of the system, not in spite of it. I can't remember who called digital an actor's format, maybe it was Mann. I say, just shoot with what you know and prefer. I love shooting digital. I wouldn't trade it in for all the latitude in the world. Does that make any sense?
 
ok, i'll give you that, but theres something to shooting on film that i liken to navigating a submarine with a compass a map and a stopwatch. sure you could use a periscope, but wheres the fun in that.....
 
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