American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 12

President’s Desk

Photo by Douglas Kirkland.

The word heard less and less on motion-picture sets is, “Cut.” You know,
“Action” and “Cut” are the commands reserved for directors. “Keep it
rolling” is heard with increasing frequency, and we wonder where the producers are when it is said. “Keep it rolling” used to be reserved for those moments
when an actor needed protection from the interruption of a camera stop and
reset — nudity or tears were usually involved — but today, in the majority of
cases, there seems to be no acting or directing emergency prompting this
command.
We think producers should be alarmed, because “keep it rolling” is
an expensive expediency. We recently learned of a production on which the
time of recorded takes was doubled by the recorded moments of camera reset
and blather that should not have been recorded. It amounted to a terabyte of
data that the editor had to view in order to find and cull the “real” takes.
There are considerations apart from economic ones. The moments
between takes are most useful. Actors have time to recoup their energy and
focus their performances, and actually, that is true for everyone on set, including the director. Stop the camera at the end of a take, think for a moment and
roll again. That is the discipline encouraged by film running through the
camera instead of ones and zeros.
Of course, the commands and other lingo used on set have been
bizarre from the beginning. For example, how silly is the command, “Get me
400 feet of 35-millimeter film”? Why mix two different standards of measure?
And today, “filming” is usually an inaccurate word, but we can’t really substitute “image capturing.”
And what is an “Abby,” anyway? Why, it’s the second-to-last shot of the day, named after Abby Singer, the
legendary first assistant director and production manager.
A student from Europe recently complained to me that he was asked on a set to “get a stinger and a Baby and put
it on that Cardellini.” He had no clue what he’d been asked to do.
Language can obscure or illuminate, but surely, we do not want to bring in a new technology and at the same time
throw out the solid procedures and craft we have all learned. Someone recently observed that film shoots were quieter and
more focused on the work than digital shoots. The “luxury” of digital cameras and recording with cheap media is not actually cheap, however. Data must be duplicated, moved into the post pipeline, sorted, catalogued, synced and protected.
And if on-set efficiency has really declined, how can that cost be quantified?
More importantly, how does it affect efficiency in the cutting room? A producer of television dramas recently told
me that his editorial staff had doubled because the amount of dailies had doubled. This was due in part to the keep-itrolling syndrome, but also to the fact that cheap media had encouraged more coverage of scenes, creating more “footage”
(goodbye to that quaint word). One-hour dramas are still one-hour dramas, but they now require more than one editor to
manage the volume of images.
More hands on the material do not necessarily make for improvements in storytelling. Send us your tales from the
cutting room or the set and help us propose suggestions for best practices in this new world.

Stephen Lighthill
ASC President

12

March 2013

American Cinematographer



American Cinematographer - March 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - March 2013

American Cinematographer - March 2013
Contents
Editor’s Note
President’s Desk
Short Takes: Die Antwoord’s “I Fink U Freeky”
Production Slate: Lore
Trials by Fire
Strong Foundations
Tech Savvy
New Products & Services
International Marketplace
Classified Ads
Ad Index
In Memoriam: Charles Austin, ASC • Alfred Taylor, ASC
ASC Membership Roster
Clubhouse News
ASC Close-Up: Russell Carpenter
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - American Cinematographer - March 2013
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 1
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 2
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Contents
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 4
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 5
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 6
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 7
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 8
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 9
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Editor’s Note
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 11
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - President’s Desk
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 13
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Short Takes: Die Antwoord’s “I Fink U Freeky”
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 15
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 16
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 17
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 18
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 19
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Production Slate: Lore
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 21
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 22
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 23
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 24
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 25
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 26
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 27
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Trials by Fire
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 29
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 30
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 31
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 32
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 33
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 34
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 35
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 36
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 37
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 38
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 39
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Strong Foundations
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 41
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 42
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 43
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 44
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 45
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 46
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 47
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 48
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 49
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Tech Savvy
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 51
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 52
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 53
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 54
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 55
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - New Products & Services
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 57
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 58
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 59
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 60
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 61
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 62
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 63
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 64
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Classified Ads
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Ad Index
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 67
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 68
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - In Memoriam: Charles Austin, ASC • Alfred Taylor, ASC
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 70
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 71
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - ASC Membership Roster
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 73
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Clubhouse News
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - 75
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - ASC Close-Up: Russell Carpenter
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - March 2013 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1218_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1118_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1018_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0918_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0818_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0718_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0618_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0518_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0418_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0318_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0218_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0118_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1217_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1117_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1017_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0917_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0817_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0717_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0617_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0517_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0417_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0317_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0217_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0117_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1216_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1116_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1016_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0916_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0816_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0716_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0616_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0516_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0416_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0316_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0216_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0116_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1215_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1115_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1015_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0915_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0815_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0715_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0615_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0515_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0415_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0315_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0215_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0115_v2
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1214
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1114
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1014
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0914
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0814
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0714
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0614
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0514
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0414
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0314
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0214
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0114
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1213
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1113
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1013
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0913
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0813
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0713
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0613
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0513
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0413
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0313
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0213
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0113
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1212
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1012
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0912
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0812
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0712
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0612
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0512
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0412
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0312
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0212
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1211
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1111
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1011
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0911
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0811
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0711
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0611
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0511
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0411
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0311
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0211
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0111
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1210
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1110
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac1010
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0810
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0710
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0610
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0510
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0410
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0310
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0210
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ac/ac0110
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com