The new high end of post digital intermediates - Technology

Post, August, 2003 by Claudia Kienzle

At an "open house" held at Sunset Digital in June, 200 independent filmmakers showed up to learn about how Sunset's digital intermediate services could help them realize their creative projects. "We made it clear to everyone that it's not about film versus digital," explains Burdett. "HD acquisition and the digital intermediate process are promoting a phenomenal new art form that enables filmmakers to use their creative juices to tell a story using electronic images that could be made to look as good as film."

In many cases, the imagery could not have been produced using traditional filmmaking processes. At the open house, attendees were shown a B&W short film called The Wanted, by independent filmmaker Matt Williams. According to Sunset Digital's COO, Jeff Ross, "People really took a step back when we explained that Matt had shot it in color [using the Panasonic VariCam 720p HD camcorder] and then we 'sucked all the color out' in the digital intermediate process. When it was finished, it was a gorgeous B&W movie that really maximized the dynamic range of the imagery." At the end of the process, the B&W images were recorded onto 35mm color film.

Besides the budget-conscious independent film community, Burdett reports that the economic recession has had an enormous impact on Hollywood budgets and margins, and that many major motion pictures are also benefiting from the cost efficiency of the digital intermediate process.

IO FILM CUSTOMIZES DI PROCESS

"A digital intermediate is a process where all of the creative decisions are made using a digital representation of your original imagery at the resolution that will be your final resolution, not a downconverted or proxy version of it," explains Kevin Mullican, CTO at IO Film (www.iofilm.net) in North Hollywood. "But the key for us is that using our custom hardware and software solutions, we're able to produce digital intermediates at HD resolution with high-quality results.

"But, if you don't have customized solutions to support the digital intermediate process, then you're going to be dead in the water," he continues. "You can't buy off-the-shelf software for every problem because the integration of all the components in the pipeline hasn't all been figured out. At IO Film, we've developed our own custom solutions to bridge the gaps and ensure quality control. If you're only buying off-the-shelf solutions, the only thing you'll be competing on is price, and that's always a losing proposition."

IO Film's custom hardware and software was used extensively on the finishing of This Girl's Life, an independent feature film starring James Woods. The film, which was shot in the Panasonic VariCam 720p HD format, was filmed onto 35mm film and presented at the CineVegas International Film Festival in June.

With This Girl's Life, Mullican says, "Problems that occurred in production showed up in post production, such as low light digital noise, saturation and contrast issues, and more. By writing software (in C ) and applying real color science technology, we were able to fix those problems and ensure our clients the look they wanted. It's not just about the equipment you use, it's about managing the data so that all the color spaces are converted properly without deterioration."