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[Wednesday at NAB]
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Rise of the Digital Filmmaking Revolution
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by Melissa Sullivan,
~ April 16, 2008
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TV TECHNOLOGY
With the introduction of more affordable quality digital filmmaking products the independent filmmaking industry has accelerated, giving filmmakers more options to get their projects produced.
The Super Session, “A Million Dollar Look on a Thousand Dollar Budget!” today, 1 p.m., brings together five experienced professionals from the digital film industry who want to share with the audience the latest tools of the trade.
Brian Valente, partner of Redrock Micro, a company that designs and distributes cinema accessories for independent filmmakers, will moderate the session.
Valente said the Super Session will explore the emerging revolution for indie filmmakers, where advances in equipment and technology have created a whole new level of production value and independence for filmmakers not possible even two years ago.
“We are starting to see this widespread, not just switch from film to video, but to really see the idea that filmmaking as an occupation, or as a profession, or as an aspiration is now turning into an individual capability where people have all the tools of production they need,” Valente said.
He said the session will summarize current state-of-the-art production, including 35mm adapters, post-production tools, and real-world experience from filmmakers who are utilizing these technologies to create astounding images with minimal costs.
THE MAGIC OF MASCHWITZ
The keynote speech will be given by Stu Maschwitz, director, visual effects supervisor, author and co-founder of The Orphanage, a VFX and film production company in San Francisco.
Maschwitz “is perhaps the most uniquely qualified to speak to the breadth of options now available for indie filmmakers,” Valente said.
Maschwitz is currently serving as second unit director and visual effects supervisor for “The Spirit,” directed by Frank Miller. He was recently The Orphanage’s VFX supervisor on the “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer” and prior to that led a team of artists on the film “The Last Mimzy.”
Before The Orphanage, Maschwitz spent five years at George Lucas’ Industrial Light & Magic, where he was a member of the “Rebel Mac Unit.”
Valente said Maschwitz is perhaps best known for authoring Magic Bullet software for post-production “film looks,” and for his latest book “The DV Rebel’s Guide.”
Maschwitz is credited with creating The Orphanage’s Magic Bullet software, which is now sold by Red Giant Software. Magic Bullet software is a video editing plug-in that gives inexpensive digital video the lush look of film. It is compatible with Adobe After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Premiere Pro, Motion and Avid.
Published in 2007, Maschwitz’s “The DV Rebel’s Guide: An All-Digital Approach to Making Killer Action Movies on the Cheap” explains how to make your own low-budget feature film from planning and selecting a camera to creating specific effects to editing and onlining.
Filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, with whom Maschwitz worked on the movies “Sin City” and “Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over,” said in an online review, “I’d been wanting to write a book for the new breed of digital filmmakers, but now I don’t have to. My pal and fellow moviemaker Stu Maschwitz has compressed years of experience into this thorough guide.”
PANELISTS’ PERSPECTIVE
Valente said the keynote speech will be followed by an audience Q&A session with a panel of similarly talented technologists, industry people and filmmakers who are right in the middle of this digital revolution.
Panelists include Taylor Wigton, director of photography for 447 Productions; Dave Basulto, chief executive officer of Clarity Pictures; and Alex Lindsay, founder of Pixel Corps.
“Dave Basulto and Taylor Wigton are both accomplished filmmakers who leverage these technologies and techniques and have real-world experience with the tools and techniques discussed,” Valente said.
According to his bio, Basulto fell in love with digital filmmaking and this prompted him to immerse himself in the process of making quality feature films on a micro budget.
Prior to forming Clarity Pictures, he founded Basulto Entertainment Group and produced the feature films “Love and Action in Chicago” and “Wish You Were Dead.” He also produced “Perfect Romance” with Alexander/Enright & Associates for Lifetime Television.
Basulto said he would love to see the audience “get inspired and go out and make the film they have longed to do. It’s extremely possible now to make commercially viable features for micro budgets.”
He speaks from experience. Basulto said he has produced, directed, edited and delivered two feature films that were made from micro budgets. Both received worldwide distribution deals.
Basulto’s Clarity Pictures landed a domestic distribution deal for “The Clique,” a privately funded horror film with Maverick Entertainment. It was renamed “Death Clique” and released in 2005. The film, which is also Basulto’s directorial debut, was made for less than $15,000.
“Fiesta Grand,” his second film in the director’s chair and his first in HD, was recently picked up for worldwide distribution. Basulto also owns and hosts the Filmmaking Central Podcast, which discusses the process of filmmaking from development to delivery.
Basulto said at the session he hopes to cover the various tools available for digital filmmaking, as well as the workflows that will get your movie “in the can and on the shelves.”
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