Part of the process of acquiring representation as an artist is building up a portfolio of work that will prove you're worth representing. Much of the last few months of living in LA has been spent ping ponging between paid work and unpaid creative projects.
Leftovers was a creative, unpaid project that I cinematographed and color graded. The final version is below.
I enjoy the opportunity of using "side" projects to try new methods or gear. This project was highly experimental. In addition to testing the workflow of the FS700 and the Convergent Design Odyssey 7Q (footage was recorded in 8-bit 4:2:2. This was before the 4K>HD downsampling true 10-bit option was released), I also went into this shoot with minimal electric lighting and instead relied heavily on the use of home-made bounces.
Sam Vargas gaffed for me. The two of us were the entire camera/grip/electric department. Our Saturn Ion grip truck worked exceptionally well when most of our light sources were made of foam. Our high-tech dolly in in the right corner of the photo.
We had 1 Mole LED fresnel and two Mole 650w fresnels. The rest of the light sources were bounced in from the floor to ceiling windows using foam insulation board from Home Depot at a cost of $2.50 per 2x4' section.
When we shot into the windows I employed 12x12' unbleached muslin to diffuse the windows and allow them to softly blow out to white.
When we shot into the windows I employed 12x12' unbleached muslin to diffuse the windows and allow them to softly blow out to white.
Dir. Jay Weneta (a student at UCLA) talks with actor Joshua David Bishop. To keep the shoot moving fast, and because I had no camera crew, I used the Sony SEL 18-200 powered zoom. I was actually surprised by the sharpness and close focusing ability of the lens. On the left are some of the home-made bounces.
When it came to color grading I didn't have much experience with DaVinci Resolve so I decided to use the opportunity to learn. The color grading process, therefore, took a few weeks longer than it could have. But the process allowed me to explore how the art of color grading can make such an impact on how a story is told.
Before is on the left. After on the right. I found that along with color correction, a layer of 35mm film grain was needed to make the sharp, correct, look of the Sony Exmor sensor look "filmic, gritty and almost noir," which was the desired look for the film.
The shoot had a nearly miroscopic budget and turned out to be an extremely rewarding experience. No matter how many paid shoots I work on, I know I'll need to keep working on projects like this to remain creative, sharp and explorative in my artform.
