DP BEN DOLPHIN SHOOTS A HI-SPEED HIGH-DEF PROJECT

Dancing with Phantoms

 

Director/cinematographer Ben Dolphin recalls a DGA demo for HD that took place about ten years back, when the projection systems were still in their infancy. “They projected HD on a screen, and, well, it looked like TV on a big screen,” says Dolphin. “I said as much, and their response was, ‘Oh, no … you’re film-biased.’ To which I said, ‘No guys, I’m quality-biased.’”

His bias remains unchanged today, but the range of tools he employs has broadened as technology develops further. Dolphin’s cinematography skill sets include Steadicam and motion-control, but he is best known for work shooting liquids and high-speed, for which he’s developed very specific lighting schemes. Shooting film below 500 fps he may use a “1.5 to 1 ratio of HMI over Unilux,” he explains. “There is crystalline sharpness with the powerful Unilux strobes, while the HMI light introduces some degree of motion blur for appetite appeal and prevents the image from becoming medical-looking.”

While shooting a spot in Chicago for Black Cherry Vanilla Coke last year, Dolphin combined 35mm film elements with high-speed macro captured HD on a Vision Research Phantom camera. “There is an iconic look and feel to the Coke glass, so that had to be done with film,” he states. “But the high speed pours and many post elements turned out just fine using the Phantom. When shooting digitally, I can control the exposure time and therefore edge detail by adjusting a drop down menu on the camera. While capturing Golden Beer Bubbles in Prague with a Phantom camera, the material also wound up being re-employed as branding tools. After that, I started developing the idea of a project that would use high-speed shots that could be played back live.”

Wallpaper From the 70’s

I really think Art directors are going to like this company and, we cinematographers are going to enjoy working with them with this kind of wallpapers.

The good old wallpaper is back and she dressed to impress. She put on her patterned clothes and brightest colours. This way she first became the star in bars and clubs and it didn’t take long until more and more new friends invited her home. And those who have ever shared the privacy of their home with her don’t want to let her go.

wallpaper, 70’s, retro, 70’s style, 70s design, seventies, vintage, psychedelic

Surely, we are all wallpaper enthusiasts, actually even old pals who have known her since our childhood days. That’s why also her other mates visit our shop. And they all have one thing in common: They enjoy the style of the 70s and chuck out their white walls to get a thrill from the wallpaper.

Sourece: Wallpaper From the 70’s

DAVID TATTERSALL, BSC CAPTURES ANIME-STYLED LIVE ACTION FOR SPEED RACER

By Renee Dunlop for CGSociety

 

“The Brothers have a real sink or fly daring when it comes to aesthetic choice,” says David Tattersall, BSC, in describing the unique look directors Andy and Larry Wachowski were after for their live action resurrection of the classic animated series Speed Racer.

Originally broadcast in the late 1960s and early ‘70s, Speed Racer was the English language adaptation of the Japanese anime series Mach GoGoGo. Created by anime pioneer Tatsuo Yoshida, the series was one of the first anime programs to find success in the West. The easy translation of the series for American consumption was in part due to Yoshida’s affinity for American popular culture. Inspired by Viva Las Vegas and Goldfinger, Yoshida gave his characters Western physical attributes, including Speed’s Elvis-style black hairdo and racing neckerchief as well as sports cars loaded with gadgets straight out of the James Bond franchise.

Unlike domestically produced animation of the era, Speed Racer was an action program with fast cars, fist-fights and plot lines that often involved corporate conspiracies and dark family secrets. US audiences welcomed the show eagerly and it enjoyed a long run in syndication, but in other countries, such as Germany, the program was considered too violent and pulled from broadcast.
“I wasn’t aware of the source material having grown up in England,” says Tattersall, but added that he was thrilled when producer Grant Hill called to offer him the project. “I was flattered, just to be thought of and the chance to work with the Wachowski brothers is a great opportunity. That was my main interest. I almost didn’t care what the show was about because it was a chance to work with Larry and Andy. I have a great respect for them and their work.”

 

From his initial conversations with the directors, Tattersall knew the project would break new ground visually. The Wachowskis are

best known for their dark and gritty Matrix trilogy, which forever altered the look of action movies. Since Speed Racer is a family movie, it marks something of a departure from their previous work and Tattersall said they embraced the opportunity to create something new.
“It’s quite different to what the Brothers are known for because it is aimed at a younger audience,” explains Tattersall. “It’s lighter and brighter. It’s got these outrageous racing sequences and monkey kung-fu and a lot of humor—it’s quite different from the Matrix.”

For this project, the Wachowskis wanted to explore an aesthetic that ran contrary to expectation. According to Tattersall, they wanted a look that was “super deep-focus, super color-saturated and very smooth, clean and sharp—quite different to the gritty, grainy, realistic thing that is happening in cinema at the moment.
“The Brothers are very techno-savvy fashionistas—they follow all the fashions and the trends, but they’re also sort of pioneers themselves,” Tattersall explains. “They like to sort of mix and match and there’s a lot of anime iconography dotted throughout this project.”

Making off Dove Commercial

I had to bring this commercial to this web site as it has very interesting post-production

Link to the commercial

 

Krakatoa on VFX-Intensive Ad for Snickers via BBDO Moscow

You have to see this commercial of Snickers, you will not expect this from BBDO Moscow, is soo good you will play it over and over, just get it after the jump

Source: CG Society

Speed Racer VFX Behind the scenes

For the ones who have not seen the film and the ones who have seen the film, here after the jump you can see some examples of how the Wachowski brothers, did some of the special effects in the Speed Racer movie

Source: CG Society