[Boyd Mccollum]

Editing with film was the original NLE…

[Boyd Mccollum]

I wouldn’t just assume that the gaffer was being rude or condescending to you or just out to embarrass you. Perhaps he was just frustrated that you weren’t as prepared as you could have been.

“1. Now, first of all…I was originally taught that focal length was the distance between the focal plane on the camera/lens to the Subject in focus. If I am wrong, I apologize, but this is a film school! We are aloud to fail. If I wasn’t correct, someone please correct me. “

As has been covered in this thread, the question is really an issue of framing, e.g., wide angle, telephoto, etc.

“2. How could we have determined focal length without a camera set up? We dont have any viewfinders in our class.

This was probably the crux of you issue and it’s a lesson that you need to learn, not just the gaffer or the DP. You don’t need a camera set up to tell framing. You don’t need a viewfinder. That’s what pre-visualization is for and it’s a key element of what a director needs to learn how to do. You should already have broken down the script, done a blocking diagram with a general idea of camera placement, a rough storyboard of the scene, and a shot list. Even in the context of your class, you should have done this, at the very least, when the set was being built.

3. Was it right for the cinematographer to just stand there and allow me to be embarrassed? He never asked about the focal length.

He may have been just as curious as the gaffer was. As a director, you need to learn to have a thick skin. Why are you embarrassed? Why blame the DP? You are all learning.

4. Why does the gaffer need to know the focal length?

For framing. It tells him how much of the set needs to be lit. DPs usually don’t hang lights, the gaffer and his crew do. And this takes time, and it waste time when you are waiting for the camera to be brought in and set up first. It’s about time management. If you’re some artiste director, do what you want, but most directors need to be aware of time constraints and making things happen – especially in film school.

Not to mention that if your DP wasn’t very helpful to you, he may not have been offering any guidance to your gaffer. Is your gaffer a lighting student? Is he a fellow directing student? You should consider other things outside of your own viewpoint.

5. Was the “focal length question” a serious, innocent question of importance? Or did this gaffer ask simply to throw me off base? He never asked anyone about focal length before. Why was he so concerned? Is focal length EVER determined before the director or cinematrapher even turns on the camera and puts it in place? “

Yes, ALL the time. Maybe not in beginning film classes, but in real life. And film school is the time to learn how to do this. For instance, you’re shooting in a bathroom in tight quarters. Based on the blocking, you know you are going to need a wide lens. Do you wait until you are ready to shoot with your camera to realize that that 25mm lens isn’t going to cut it? Is that the time to call for a wide angle converter or another lens? It doesn’t mean you don’t look at what you are getting and change your mind, but it is considered in advanced.

Even more importantly, focal length is an aesthetic tool critical to conveying key emotional and story elements of a film. Different focal lengths will have different psychological impacts on an audience. It’s an invaluable tool in the director’s arsenal. Focal length comes into play even before you even have sets. Some directors don’t care at all about focal lengths (Penny Marshall comes to mind), others (Stanley Kubrick) are very specific. When directors leave it up to the cinematographer, the DP will think long and hard on the focal lengths he/she will use and incorporate it into their visual storytelling ideas.

“This class is full of competitive sneakiness that makes me sick to my stomach. People have been contradicting and disagreeing with eachother solely for the purpose of ego, with nothing to do with “right or wrong.” the size of ego’s and the amount of thick headedness in our class is absurd for a film school. “

And you are standing outside of all of this? I’ve been in film school, and it can be dysfunctional at times, but I wasn’t immune to that dysfunction. Part of the learning process is to understand what’s going on and try to influence it in other directions. So the question is “was your gaffer trying to embarrass you or were you just embarrassed and instead of confronting your own embarrassment, you’re blaming the gaffer,and to a lessor extent, the cinematographer?” If you’re embarrassed, then that means your ego is involved, too. As a director, you need a strong ego, as in a strong sense of yourself. You might want to look at your own insecurities. We all have them. As for other students, just ignore it or use it as a lesson in understanding human nature. Remember, preparation goes a long, long way to the smooth running of a film set. It is the rare director that is really as prepared as they can be. Stay focused on being as prepared as you possibly can be and don’t worry about things outside of your control.

I’d also really recommend that you go and chat with the gaffer, not in a blaming way, about what happened and how he was feeling or what he was thinking. You could say something like “hey, about that situation, I didn’t give you want you needed, but I’m still learning. What do you think I should have done?” This isn’t a reality show where someone’s getting voted off, is it?

In a larger sense, a director is like a servant to everyone on the set. He/she plays the father, the mother, the maid, the psychologist, the minister, etc., in addition to making the film.

[Boyd Mccollum]

You may want to look at the new Sony Z7. From all the reports that I’ve heard, it has great low-light capabilities, especially for the prosumer-level HD(V) cameras. It records to tape (HDV/DV) and CF cards so it might be a good transition camera for the next couple of years.

[Boyd Mccollum]

To follow up on Greg’s advice, as a producer, you really should be able to write up a short treatment and the first page of a script yourself. It’s not brain surgery, it’s basic communication. It’s nothing more than telling/showing your client how you plan to meet their business needs with the video. The “idea” is the key, not your price. It’s also the information you should be able to give to any writer you hire.

If you are too unsure of yourself, then hiring a writer is something that you should do and you should look at it as a business investment, not as throwing money away. And you don’t need to have him/her do the whole script, just the treatment. Even if you don’t win the contract, you’ll have a treatment that you can use as a model moving forward with the next client.

[Boyd Mccollum]

I heard somewhere that SxS stands for Sony by SanDisk. If this is so, I’m not sure they will do a “knockoff”.

[Boyd Mccollum]

thanks Walter – I’m still using 6.01 and don’t have an issue with it. I wonder why this got put into 6.02?

[Boyd Mccollum]

which “snapping” behavior is that?

[Boyd Mccollum]

Not sure what is causing that. You might want to check in User preference to see what actions are selected on capture for both drop frame and timecode break. This kind of sounds like a timecode break.

Try moving forward on the tape – sometimes the beginning and end of tapes have more dropouts. See if the problem happens elsewhere. Also see if it only happens with this tape or any other.

[Boyd Mccollum]

Francesco,

I don’t have FCP 6 in front of me, but for HDV, use the Easy Setup for whichever flavor of HDV you have. Then when you are in the log & capture window, click on the middle tab at the top. There should be a check box at the bottom for the dv start/stop detection. I thought the Easy Setup actually defaulted to it. Not sure. Again, I don’t have the app in front of me, but look at those tabs, it’s in there.

Hope this helps.

[Boyd Mccollum]

I’d never seen these interviews, so I had to google them. I like the concept.

Off the top of my head, I’d suggest having a dedicated sound guy with good mics – gotchas include interference and picking up too much ambient noise.

I’d make sure that you have the focal length on the cameras to get the tight shots you want from a distance. Also you’d want to have some type of communications worked out between the camera crew, not to mention deciding on your angles and coverage. A good PA would be helpful.

A good location scout to maximize the available light would be good, though in the ones I saw, it didn’t seem like they were too worried about matching lighting across the cameras, in fact, almost the opposite. You’d also want to make sure you set up in an area that has good movement, where people will travel through the shot, rather than stop and gather.

Anyways, those are just some things off the top of my head. It looks like a great technique to use.