FYI, DIT is a dead job now.

[Doctor Wu]

The 2nd AC is often the data loader / unloader on small indie shoots.
On larger, well budgeted usually union shoots, you have multiple DITs. Those that are responsible for data management, camera management, and then those that are doing "on-set dailies" "scratch lab", even Baselight is getting into the action of on-set daily grades - applying luts and looks, transcoding and doing basic grading before sending it to post houses like Company 3, EFILM. If anything, the role of the DIT seems to be expanding, not becoming obsolete.

 

[CharlesPapert]

A DIT shouldn't be hired to fill in for a DP who isn't capable of doing their job - a different DP should be hired. A DP who needs a DIT to function in the digital realm is not qualified to shoot digital, IMHO.

Building LUTs should be part of the DP's prep, and applying those LUTs for one light dailies during shooting is easily done by the Loader. After principal photography is over, the colorist takes over image manipulation and should be capable of doing so whether the DP is there looking over their shoulder or not.

Not every show can or should be accommodated with pre-built LUT's. I'm doing one that has 68 distinct looks over a seven week shoot. We build them on set via Pomfort Livegrade and HDLinks, with the director's approval (he's very involved in the color process). In addition, my DIT tweaks the color temp and green/magenta shift on the cameras depending on the ND's in use (sad but true--those Tiffen IR's have a lot of variation in them) and helps me keep an eye out for critical focus. The setup is a bit unorthodox, but it allows me to keep my attention on things other than knob-twirling.

 

[Postmaster]

Anyone that can describe to you the physical illness that sweeps your body when you realize that you've lost footage on a budgeted production would probably agree with me, one hundred.

Oh yeah, I know that feeling of sweeping fire and ice - made me kind of data paranoid.