V for VendettaNight shoot takes over London

The CloudPostproduction at ARRI Film & TV

KankBollywood hits New York

New ProductsARRIFLEX 416 Ultra 16 lensesMaster Zoom

THE DA VINCICODE

VisionARRIThe Biannual International Magazine from the ARRI RENTAL & POST PRODUCTION ENTERPRISES

06/06 ISSUE 2

Interview with DoP Salvatore Totino

AUSTRALIAARRI Australia, Sydney CamerasKate Walton, Bill Ross T +61 2 9855 4300kwalton@arri.com.au bross@arri.com.auAUSTRIAARRI Rental Vienna Cameras Gerhard Giesser T +43 (1)877 6938 18rental.moviecam@aon.atCZECH REPUBLICARRI Rental PragueLighting, GripRobert KeilT +42 023 431 3012rkeil@arri.deGERMANYARRI Rental BerlinCameras, Lighting, GripFritz SammerT +49 30 34680024fsammer@arri.deARRI Rental CologneCamerasStefan WeiT +49 221 170 6724sweiss@arri.deARRI Rental MunichCameras, Digital, Lighting, GripThomas LoherT +49 89 3809 1440tloher@arri.deARRI Film & TV Services, MunichFilm Lab, Digital IntermediateVisual Effects, Sound, Studio,Cinema

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UNITED KINGDOMARRI Lighting Rental, LondonLightingTommy MoranT +44 1895 457 200tmoran@arrirental.comARRI Focus, London Short term lighting hire for commercials & promosMartin Maund, George MartinT +44 1895 810 000martin@arrifocus.comgeorge@arrifocus.com

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USAARRI CSC, New YorkCameras, Digital, Lighting, GripSimon Broad, Hardwrick JohnsonT +1 212 757 0906sbroad@cameraservice.comhjohnson@cameraservice.com

ARRI CSC, Florida Cameras, Digital, Lighting, GripEd StammT +1 954 322 4545estamm@cameraservice.com

Illumination Dynamics, LALighting, GripCarly Barber, Maria CarpenterT +1 818 686 6400carly@illuminationdynamics.commaria@illuminationdynamics.com

Illumination Dynamics, North Carolina, Lighting, GripJeff PentekT +1 704 679 9400jeff@illuminationdynamics.com

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The ARRI Rental Group and ARRI Film & TV Services canprovide you with a complete service that can see yourproject through from start to finish. An extensive network ofARRI rental companies, as well as ARRI rental partners andassociates, ensures the latest high quality equipment isavailable throughout the world. ARRI Film & TV Services

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THE WORLD JUST GOT SMALLER

ARRI SUBSIDIARIESBULGARIABoyana Film Studios, SofiaCameras, Lighting, GripLazar LazarovT +359 2958 2766director@boyannafilm.bg

CYPRUSSeahorse Films, Nicosia, PaphosCameras, Digital, Lighting, Grip, StudioAndros AchilleosT +357 9967 5013andros@seahorsefilms.com

CZECH REPUBLICDEBRA, PragueCamerasIvan JiranekT+42 022 056 1684ivan@debrarental.com

FRANCEBogard, Paris Cameras, Digital, GripDidier Bogard, Alain GrellierT +33 1 49 33 16 35didier@bogardsa.comalain.grellier@bogardsa.com

GERMANYMaddels Camera GmbH,HamburgCameras, GripMatthias NeumannT +49 4066 86390maddel@maddels.com

HUNGARYVision Team, BudapestCameras, Ligthing, GripGabor RajnaT +36 1 433 3911info@visionteam.hu

ICELANDPegasus Pictures, ReykjavikCameras, Lighting, GripSnorri ThorissonT +354 414 2000snorri@pegasus.is

IRELANDThe Production Depot,Co Wicklow Cameras, Lighting, GripJohn Leahy, Dave LeahyT +353 1 276 4840john@production-depot.comdave@production-depot.com

NEW ZEALANDCamera Tech, WellingtonCamerasPeter FlemingT +64 4562 8814cameratech@xtra.co.nz

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SOUTH AFRICAMedia Film Service, Cape Town, Johannesburg,Durban, NamibiaCameras, Digital, Lighting, Grip, StudioJannie Van WykT +27 21 511 3300jannie@mediafilmservice.com

14THE POWER OF 416The ARRI Rental Group introduces you to thelatest Super 16 camera.

18THE ART OF ULTRA 16Five new super fast wide-angle primes for Super 16.

19 DID YOU KNOW?19 TAKE 1020TELLING STORIES WITH COLOURS

Digital or Analogue? DI Symposium 2006.

22KANKDoP Anil Mehta discusses shooting a Bollywoodproduction in New York.

25LIGHTING DARK STREETSLos Angeles sets the scene for period musical.

26DRESDENARRI Film & TV take part in eight months ofpostproduction on one of the most expensiveGerman television productions ever made.

30 ARRIFLEX D-20Catch up on the latest activities of the D-20.

33MEDIA FILM SERVICESouth Africas leading equipment rental company.

36THE MASTER ZOOMFind out about the ARRI Rental Groups mostpowerful zoom.

38 ARRI STOPS FORMULA ONE IN ITS TRACKSARRI Film & TV work on time-slice sequences.

40MOMENTS IN TIMEDas Boot and the birth of the IIIC.

44 TIBOR SANDS, A LIFE IN FOCUSARRI CSC reflects on an extraordinary career.

46PRODUCT UPDATE48 NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD54 PRODUCTION UPDATE

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VisionARRI would like to thank the following contributors;Stephanie Ahlen, Mo Biddle, Susanne Bieger, Simon Broad, Andreas Berkl, Maria Carpenter, Jochen Hhnel, Mark Hope-Jones, Ingo Klingspon, Dianne Koronkiewicz,Judith Petty, Sandra Pirchmoser, Angela Reedwisch, Claus Richter, Tibor Sands, Jeremy Sassen,Marc Shipman-Mueller, Michelle Smith, An Tran, Sabine Welte, Jannie van Wyk.

CONTENTS

4SECRETS BEHIND THE ARTDirector of Photography Salvatore Totino talks about hisexperiences shooting The Da Vinci Code.

8THE CLOUDDirector Gregor Schnitzler and DoP Michael Mieke reflect onputting The Cloud through DI.

12THE BRIGHT LIGHTS OF LONDONLondons landmarks feature in V for Vendetta.

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SECRETS

BEHIND THE ARTDirector of Photography Salvatore Totino on The Da Vinci Code

VA: This is your third film with Ron Howard.How has the working relationship and theway you communicate developed?

ST: Trust. Trust has developed over that time and ourcommunication has continually evolved. Ron reallylikes to plan, to go over things and come up with agame plan that we review over the course of theshoot, so theres a constant dialogue. Anunderstanding has grown over the three films. Heknows where Ill go and how far Ill go, so therestimes when hell say nothing at all because he truststhat I wont do anything to hurt the film.

VA: Howard has given you film references asvisual guides on previous projects how didyou work together to decide upon theguiding principles of your visual approachto Da Vinci?

ST: References were something that we all came upwith together; theres always films that Ron will sayhey, check this out, check that out, but generallywith film references it was sort of a collaborativepool; it would be Ron, it would be the Producer, itwould be myself. Certain things in films wed watchmight remind us of individual portions of our script,though maybe not in a literal way. The visualapproach was something that evolved as we startedprepping. We scouted Paris and a bit of London inJanuary 2005, for filming at the end of June. Thatwas a little preliminary scout; then we came back inApril to scout everything again and over that timeperiod ideas started to develop. It was not a pre-decided or easily defined overall approach, it wassomething that evolved out of location decisions,script revisions, the input of the actors - it was adeveloping idea.

First published in March 2003, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown has been aninternational publishing sensation, with sales exceeding 50 million copies to date.The story, which follows symbologist Robert Langdon and cryptographer SophieNeveu on a 20-hour life or death chase across Europe, compellingly mixesreligious and hermetic conspiracy, secret societies, art history and code-breakingwithin a classic suspense thriller structure. Competition to acquire the film rightswas fierce in Hollywood, with Sonys $6 million bid eventually emergingvictorious. Producer Brian Grazer and Director Ron Howard were brought in bySony to take control of the project; the two have made 15 films together and theircreative partnership is a billion dollar industry. An all star cast was assembled,including Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou in the lead roles, and Howard turned tothe man who had photographed his last two films (The Missing, Cinderella Man) totransform the written words into moving images.

The production shot in France, England and Scotland, with ARRICAM Studio,ARRICAM Lite, 435 and 235 cameras supplied by ARRI Media, London.

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VA: Youve said before that lighting shouldnot stand out on its own, unless youredoing a very visual piece. To what degreewas Da Vinci a visual piece?

ST: There are definitely visual moments in it, but youknow, its a thriller, so it was important to keep it darkand moody. I took some visual references from thephotographer Brassai; I looked at his oldphotographs of Paris where he had a very bright lightfar in the background and I took a little liberty indoing that in Paris, for certain scenes. Putting a sortof angelic light at the very back of the image.

VA: On Any Given Sunday you used awarmer lighting approach for Al Pacinoscharacter, in order to evoke a sympatheticaudience response. Did you use differentlighting approaches for different characterson this film?

ST: I used different lighting approaches to differentiatelocations rather than characters on this film. The streetsof night-time Paris have a yellow look, created by thesodium vapour lighting and I thought it was veryimportant to keep that true to life. I didnt put anycharacters in different coloured light, but more theenvironments. For example; the interior of the SwissBank is a blue green colour; very sterile, cold anduninviting. That was something Ron and I discussedbeforehand; we wanted it to feel slightly creepy.

DoP SALVATORE TOTINO sits at the camera as Ron Howard directs

DIRECTOR RON HOWARD with A and B cameras

DIRECTOR RON HOWARD describes a scene as Salvatore Totino is handed an S4 lens

I USED DIFFERENTLIGHTINGAPPROACHES TODIFFERENTIATELOCATIONSRATHER THANCHARACTERS ONTHIS FILM.

THE DA VINCI CODE

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VA: Can you talk a little about how youutilised the different cameras you had?

ST: We had two ARRICAM Studios, two Lites, a 235and a 435. I found that shooting sound with the Litewas fine; its very versatile. And the fact that thecamera is lighter - you know I love to hand-hold thecamera or throw it on a little jib arm, so its veryconvenient and a lot of times the Lite would be thecamera Id operate. Wed have one Lite set up forSteadicam, one Studio as the A camera, and useboth a Studio and Lite for B camera; which I wason. I also loved the 235 and I use it a lot now oncommercials. If that camera had been available tome on Cinderella Man, I would have been veryhappy to use it.

VA: As with your previous film, you chose touse Cooke S4 lenses on Da Vinci. What is ityou like about them?

ST: I like the sharpness of them, but also the fact thattheyre not so crisp as say the MK III Super Speeds,which I used to use. I love the narrow depth of fieldand the fall off of the Super Speeds, but working inreally low light as we did on Da Vinci - it wouldhave been very hard on the Focus Pullers, and I wasalready putting them through enough hell!

VA: You have a tendency to get in amongstthe action as a cameraman in a veryphysical way on your movies, whether thatbe on an American football field (Any GivenSunday) or in a boxing ring (CinderellaMan). Were there opportunities for a similarstyle of shot-making on this film?

ST: The style of shot-making was different to previousfilms; the only similar aspect was that I used at leasttwo cameras on every set-up, sometimes more. It wasa less physical style; I tended to use a jib arm a lotmore on this film whereas Cinderella Man was muchmore hand-held. On Da Vinci we often had onecamera on a jib arm and another on a dolly, alwaysmoving. Whether that movement was very slight andsubtle, or substantial; there was always movement,and always two cameras. Its a way to keep the daymoving, to get the coverage for Ron, and to ensurethat were not all there for 18 hours.

VA: This is the first film you have shot inEurope. How was that experience, and wasit difficult leaving a lot of your regular crewin the States?

ST: Its always a little nerve-racking when you go anyplace without your people. I had worked a lot inEurope on commercials and I do travel a great deal,so although I was nervous, I didnt think it would be aproblem. Shooting in France was challengingbecause we had to submit lighting diagrams andcamera positions to the city authorities almost three

VISIONARRI

THE STYLE OFSHOT-MAKINGWAS DIFFERENTTO PREVIOUSFILMS; THE ONLYSIMILAR ASPECTWAS THAT I USEDAT LEAST TWOCAMERAS ONEVERY SET-UP,SOMETIMESMORE.

months before shooting, which was a first for me. InEngland we had the best crew I ever worked withanywhere in the world fantastic incredible FocusPullers, great Gaffer, great Grip. And Ive worked inNew Zealand, Australia, South America, all overAmerica, Canada, Mexico, Greece, Italy, France andSpain. The English crew were incredible; I wish Icould have taken them home with me. The FocusPullers John Conroy and Simon Hume were the oneswho were really under the gun. John was on Acamera with my Operator, and Simon was with me,and we developed a great relationship; he wascontributing in a tremendous fashion. A lot of the timeI was setting up lights and running to and from thecamera during rehearsals, but Simon had more timeto think about certain images and he came up withsome really great ideas.

VA: You had the challenge of shooting inLincoln cathedral, which doubles forWestminster cathedral in the film. How didyou approach lighting such an enormouslocation interior?

ST: It was sort of frightening at first. First of all its athousand years old, so theres going to be somerestrictions right away; and then you look at it andthink how am I going to be able to control the sun?Especially in northern England, where the clouds arealways moving and the sun is in and out, in and out.We worked a ten hour continuous day on the film, soI was very concerned about keeping things moving

without delays. We had to come up with a gameplan that would control the sun, allow me to light theinterior in a consistent fashion and not restrict us. Thesolution was a series of black-outs on high windowsand lower stained glass windows, and a sort ofcurtain system, so we could lower black-out materialto keep the sun out and put up our lighting.Unfortunately the ground all around the cathedral isnot sufficiently stable to support cherry pickersbecause of the catacombs and cellars, so we neededextra time to build scaffolding and in the end itlooked like it was under construction for a rebuild.

VA: The film was put through a DigitalIntermediate process in post. What are yourexperiences and thoughts regarding DI?

ST: Ive used the same Colourist at EFILM inHollywood for the DI on three films and its a reallyimportant working relationship for me. I like to bethere for the grading, and the reason is that on theday of filming, I might forego doing something on setfor the sake of saving time if I know that it will beeasy and quick to take care of it afterwards. Its anadded paintbrush, and its something to embrace. Ican see why some cinematographers are cautiousabout DI, because theyre worried that they mighteasily lose control; that someone from the studiomight go into the grade and not like the way itslooking, and actually change it. Well, I think youhave to trust your relationship with the Director andbelieve that he wont let that happen.

Mark Hope-Jones7

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Director Gregor Schnitzler (What to do in case of fire?, Soloalbum) picks up the controversial topicof atomic energy in the feature film The Cloud,based on Gudrun Pausewangs bestseller by thesame name. The story focuses on two young adultswho have to leave their hometown because of anuclear meltdown, finding hope in their love foreach other during their struggle to survive.

The film was shot on 35mm Kodak NegativeVision2 (100T, 200T, 500T and 250D) using 3-perforation cameras from ARRI Rental Munich,including two ARRICAM Lites, an ARRIFLEX 235and ARRIFLEX 435, as well as a complete set ofCooke S4 lenses (14mm-135mm). During theentire project we had the full support of ARRI andits fantastic and highly qualified employees throughout the shoot in particular, from ARRI Rentaland Managing Director, Thomas Loher, and fromTechnical Director Manfred Jahn, says DP MichaelMieke. Not least because of that, the entire shoot,and the following postproduction at ARRI in Munichwent smoothly without a problem. continuesproducer Markus Zimmer.

Storytelling with ColoursColours play a central role in the film and wereselected as a stylistic tool, to communicate thecarefree feeling of life before the disaster and theoppressive, claustrophobic situation afterwards. Forthe Producers, the Director and the DP it was clearfrom the beginning, even in the planning stages,that the entire film was to be put through DigitalIntermediate (DI). One of the reasons forproceeding digitally was the advantage of betterintegration of the VFX shots, in this case thethreatening nuclear clouds, which had to beanimated in 3D and inserted into the film.

I consciously worked with specific colours andcontrasts which became increasingly softer orstronger. For the beginning of the film we usedstronger colours; the young adults wear yellow,orange and light blue. After the catastrophe, thecolours are reduced to black, blue and red. Theentire look, therefore, had to be optimally realizedwith the help of colour timing in Lustre, explainsDirector Gregor Schnitzler.

THE CLOUDDisaster strikes as a murderousblack cloud threatens millions ofpeople with radioactive falloutafter a meltdown at a nuclearpower plant. The fear and panicamong the population, the liesand attempts at deception frompoliticians are all portrayed in astory reminiscent of the nuclearreactor catastrophe in Chernobyl20 years ago.

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ON LOCATION during shooting of The Cloud

DIRECTOR GREGOR SCHNITZLER and DoP Michael Mieke

The concept was for the camerawork to be inconspicuous andto have a strong touch of realism, with the look fullydetermined by dramatic composition. The creative approachin the film follows the natural light, as the clouds darken thesky and the earth underneath. This makes for a discreet,almost unnoticeable, creeping change of light, therebycreating the mood. In the film this is symbolized by the timeafter the nuclear accident. says Gregor Schnitzler andMichael Mieke.

We shot mostly in Bavaria with gorgeous sunshine, under analmost constantly blue sky. But the story is set in Hesse andtherefore the Alps, which in some cases could be seen in thebackground, had to be eliminated during DI and the blue skyhad to be replaced with dark, threatening clouds. Wegenerated the gloomy look and the outdoor threat after themeltdown entirely in the postproduction process throughdigital colour grading. Because the film is very naturalistic,those qualities could under no circumstances jump out, whichwe accomplished exceptionally well, says Gregor Schnitzler.

The different formats for subsequent TV and DVD exploitationwere an additional argument for utilizing the digital route.Accordingly, the HDTV mastering for the formats 1:2, 35 and1:1,78 was carried out at ARRI.

WE COULD PRE-VISUALIZE THELOOK AND VIEW ITON THE BIG SCREENIN THE LUSTRE SUITEAND IMMEDIATELYSEE THE FILM THESAME WAY ITWOULD LATER BESEEN IN THEATRES.

THE CLOUD

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Digital Colour Ttiming in the Lustre CinemaThe artistic and creative elements were optimallyrealized at ARRI Film & TV, where, as part ofpostproduction, the colour timing and the digitalintermediate process of The Cloud took place.Traudl Nicholson completed the digital grading on ARRIs Lustre Master Station, under movietheatre conditions.

We discussed various suggestions about how toaccomplish the change of the natural colours. Withthe support of ARRI we also had the chance to tryvarious approaches meaning we could pre-visualize the look and view it on the big screen inthe Lustre Suite and immediately see the film thesame way it would later be seen in theatres, saysMichael Mieke and Gregor Schnitzler. We werealso told that digital colour timing on a monitorholds no comparison to working on the big screenat ARRI.

It was great, the communication and therelationship between us and our Colourist inregards to the expectations and demands on thelook of the film, worked out very well. With thehelp of reference pictures and scenes, which werepre-selected jointly, Colourist Traudl Nicholsoncould continue the colour timing on her own. Thisway, we were able to work quickly and efficiently.concludes Philip Hahn, ARRIs DI Producer &Supervisor on The Cloud, who not only co-ordinated the colour grading, but also theintegration of the visual effects and the animationof the opening and closing credits created byARRIs Title Designer Lutz Lemke.

Lustre is simply ideal, to be able to realize thedramatic composition of colour in a film like The Cloud and to fully control it. It workedperfectly, the result is impressive. all agreed. The analogue process of colour timing or workingin camera i.e. with various filters would haveinvolved incredible effort and would not have been as successfully accomplished. explainsMichael Mieke.

The Principle of Digital Colour TimingFirst of all, one has to compile colour referencesfrom individual scenes of the film and thendetermine the colour timing for them. The colourcorrected scenes are then recorded onto 35mm filmwith the ARRILASER film recorder and a coloursample is created. A test in the ARRI cinema willthen show if there are differences on the film copyto the version created in the Lustre suite. Differencescan be adjusted if necessary. Then the Colouristpre-grades the entire film to steer it in the desireddirection. Then, in individual steps, the film can begradually worked through until its final version isreached. Filter and masks can be applied to workwith partial and with secondary colour correction.

According to Gregor Schnitzler it is important,That for each frame the ARRISCANNER iscalibrated in a way, that unlike in an HD scan the zero value of 1:1 is really there, so that onedoesnt lose any detail of the picture, making itpossible to do anything with it in postproduction.

Shooting the Film Again in the DI Processand Taking Better Care on SetThe look, as it is known from the advertisingworld, is finalized at a later time in the DI process.During the work on the Lustre and the resulting,almost endless, possibilities of colour separation,the film is, in a way, shot again. says MichaelMieke, going on to explain: But, despite all this, it is important that during filming of the scenery,colour concepts etc. work. Because there is nogenerational loss during the scan and thedigitalization, which would alleviate little mistakes,as was the case in analogue processing. Hereeverything is and stays pin-sharp. Therefore, thedemands on the camera department, most of all theFirst Assistant, have increased significantly becausethe DI process and the scan are unforgiving when it comes to blurriness and mistakes. One has to usestate-of-the-art lenses. Older equipment fails in thiscase not least because of the film material, which has improved enormously in recent yearsand has adapted to the new digital demands in postproduction.

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Teamwork in All AreasARRIs teamwork is always exceptional in all areas, becauseARRI is extremely focused on customer satisfaction. For me, itwas fantastic to grade a film on the Lustre. One walks into asuite for the first time and sees an image that is digital butlooks, nevertheless, like a film image. It is simply incredible!You sit in a small theatre and can stop images and optimallycolour time them. For me, as a Director, this was a new andfantastic experience. I ventured into territories here that wereunknown to me until then. says Director Gregor Schnitzler. It is a lengthy process, because it simply takes longer tocolour time a film this way, but it was great fun. And mostimportantly, the result is incredible.

In the future the Director and the DP of The Cloud want tocontinue, if possible, to work on the Lustre. It is thetechnology of the present these days you cant even call itof the future anymore. We would want to do it this way allover again and especially on the big screen again!

Gregor Schnitzler was an ARRI customer with his previousfilms, What to do in case of fire? and Soloalbum. Heconcludes, It is always my desire to work with ARRI, becausemany competent people work there, who take their workseriously and who love film. One can discuss questions on thehighest level in a sophisticated manner, and there is awillingness to try things out, i.e. to approach a particular look

step-by-step. I have only experienced this at ARRI. I am notexaggerating, but at ARRI there is always the desire to havethe best meaning the best people with the best technology,because the employees have a true passion for film and areeager to ensure that the results are good. And that is just greatand it is really hard to find.

Jochen Hhnel

Gregor Schnitzler, Director

Marco Kreuzpaintner, Writer

Markus Zimmer, Clasart Film, Producer

Michael Mieke, DP

Concorde Filmverleih, Distribution

Traudl Nicholson, DI Grading

Philip Hahn, DI Producer

Lutz Lemke, Title Design

Bianca Stumpf, Colour Timing Film Laboratory

He cautions, as many of his colleagues have before, not tolook at the DI process as a cheap repair shop, Whoeverbelieves that everything can be fixed in post and that allmistakes made on set can be ironed out is wrong. A lot, butnot everything is possible out of focus shots can not be pulledinto focus during DI, even if all the colours are being turnedaround. The DP and Director agree. Also, one doesnt wantto sit through the DI process only to fix scenery and to correctfocus mistakes on the Lustre, instead one wants to determine thecolour and look and to work creatively! After all, this is avaluable and very expensive time for a production, the twopointed out.

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THE BRIGHT LIGHTS OF LONDONLondon landmarks feature in V for Vendetta

The London skyline was never brighter than when Director James McTieguedirected the recently released Warner Brothers movie V for Vendetta.

Set against the futuristic landscape of totalitarian Britain V forVendetta tells the story of mild mannered young woman, Evey(Natalie Portman - Star Wars, Episodes I-III & Closer) who isrescued from a life threatening situation by the maskedvigilante known only as V (Hugo Weaving - The Matrixand Lord of the Rings Trilogy).

Created and produced by Joel Silver and the WachowskiBrothers, the films main character V ignites a revolution

when he detonates two London landmarks and takes over thegovernment controlled airwaves, urging his fellow citizens torise up against the tyranny and oppression.

The screenplay is based on the acclaimed graphic novel of the same name by Alan Moore and is a UK / German co-production between Warner Bros Productions Ltd and Fnfte Babelsberg Film GmbH filmed on location in Berlin and London.

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Although the majority of the film shot in Berlin, an eight dayshoot took place at some of the most prestigious landmarksaround London, such as Trafalgar Square, Whitehall,Parliament Square and Hatfield House. The shooting schedulesaw one of the largest and logistically challenging filmingoperations that London has ever seen.

Director of Photography Adrian Biddle BSC, with over twenty-five feature films to his name (Aliens, Thelma and Louise,1492: Conquest of Paradise, The Mummy, The World Is NotEnough) had a vision of how he wanted the piece to look.

We tried to have a fairly dark look that came from theoriginal comic book and reflected the dark subject of revengeand retribution and a certain kind of justice. As always thereis collaboration between the costume design, make-up, thecolour of the set and the lighting and you have to keep thesein mind when you decide on the approach.

ARRI Media supplied the cameras including ARRICAM Studiosand Lites. Adrian commented, I found the cameras veryadaptable and reliable, especially features like the swing-overeyepiece which came in very handy, we had a whole rangeof toys but did little steadicam and mostly stayed with dollyand crane work. The fire scene was a little tricky but if youknow what youre doing its not a problem.

Security was tight during the packed eight day schedule withroad closures kept to a minimum number of hours in order notto disrupt the capital. Added to that was the fact that allscenes were to be shot at night, during the summer that meantthat the shooting time was limited to about four and a halfhours before sunrise. Timing was crucial.

Adrian explained. It is only possible to shoot such scenes asthese if you have a very experienced crew. You have to lightby instinct and trust each other as the time you are allotted isso small. I was lucky enough to have two very good andexperienced Gaffers, Albrecht Silberberger in Germany andKevin Day in London.

Gaffer Kevin Day and Rigging Gaffer Pat Miller have knowneach other for eighteen years, collaborating on features suchas Bridget Jones, the Edge of Reason, Reign of Fire andShanghai Knights (UK) to name only a few.

Not unaccustomed to working on large feature films, thelighting and the rigging had to be well planned in order to runsmoothly due to the sheer size of the shoot. With over fivehundred extras, eighty Electricians and ninety security staff, anhour to rig and the limited allotted time to shoot the scene, thelighting department had to ensure that they were organisedand ready for all eventualities.

Kevin explained: A production of this size and complexitymeans that there is a lot of preparation to make sureeverything goes to plan. The planning took some time but oneach night when it mattered it went like clockwork.

The road closures didnt happen each night until just beforemidnight with strict instructions from the local authorities tohave all areas cleared by 4.30am. This meant that thewindow of opportunity for the shoot was minimal and therewas no room for error.

Kevin continued, We liaised very closely with the localauthorities such as the Metropolitan Police and WestminsterCity Council who were informed of our plans every step of the way.

Pat Miller explained the finer details of the planning, Thenight we shot the scene at Trafalgar Square we had to ensurethat we were fully prepared, a strategy was put in place priorto the shoot. We had to run it like a military campaign.

Battersea power station became the holding centre for thelighting equipment, all lighting crews were then given theirfinal briefing before travelling to the location. There weretwelve generators and ten cherry pickers (pre-rigged) allnumbered, each one containing two and sometimes three ARRI 18Kw HMI lamps. With a Charge Hand a team ofElectricians, a Rigger, Gennie Operator and Crane Driverallocated to each one, each team had their own supply ofspares including lamps, ballasts filter etc, to ensure they wereself-sufficient and ready for any eventuality.

Lighting and distribution was supplied by ARRI Lighting Rentaland to those standing by, the site of the ten cherry pickers withtheir cargo lit, slowly rising from the behind the landmarkbuildings made quite a spectacle. One on-looker said itlooked less like a film-set and more like the invasion scenefrom War of the Worlds!

Pat continued, All the mains distribution was cross-linked sothat at any given moment we could turn off the power toreduce the sound near the cameras and the supply could comefrom another generator further away, out of ear shot.

Tommy Moran, Managing Director of ARRI Lighting Rental,concluded: As an exGaffer I was most impressed with KevinDay and Pat Miller and their crew and the enormous amountof skill they showed in the planning and co-ordination on thisproject. With the time constraints, high security aspect and thelogistical challenges they faced, their professionalism ensuredthe shoot went without a hitch.

This article is dedicated to the memory of Director ofPhotography, Adrian Biddle BSC.

Judith Petty

GAFFER KEVIN DAY,and RIGGING GAFFER PAT MILLER(right to left)

14

When many are talking about the great digital trend, saysFranz Kraus, General Manager of the ARRI Group, somecompanies have perceived a kind of counter-trend in the lastyears. 35mm film is as strong as ever, but we have also seenan increased use of Super 16mm film. Kodak has reported acontinued high volume of Super 16 sales, while showingincreases in some markets, and our rental facilities tell us thattheir 16mm cameras are constantly working. The reason issimple: Super 16 is a high quality, low cost originationmedium. The equipment is small, robust and provides a greatnumber of creative options. Film has inherently the film look,a dynamic range in excess of 16 stops and is also a globalstandard that can be archived well into the future.

Marc Shipman-Mueller, ARRIs ProductManager for Film Cameras and Lenses,adds: Various technological advancesin the last years have improved theimage quality of Super 16tremendously: there have been new filmstocks, new telecines, new scanners,new lenses and, of course, the DigitalIntermediate (DI). We have seenproducers take advantage of thesedevelopments in two ways: first, Super16 is a great image capture mediumwhen shooting for SD (standard

ARRI is bringing features previously onlyfound in high-end 35mm cameras to Super 16 productions with the introduction ofa new Super 16 camera, the ARRIFLEX 416.

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VISIONARRI

definition) or HD (high definition) broadcast. And second,independent features have shot on Super 16 and gone DI,which gives them the option to create a high quality 35mmrelease print. As a result, for some years nowcinematographers have asked us to update the 16SR 3 withthe features they use daily on our 35mm cameras.

The result is the ARRIFLEX 416, a lightweight modern Super 16 film camera with a 35-style viewfinder and a sound level similar to that of the ARRICAM. The 416 has acompletely new lightweight ergonomic design, integratedelectronic accessories and is compatible with the same lensesand accessories used by its 35mm siblings. It runs from 1 to 75 fps, and has a manually adjustable mirror shutter from 45 to 180 degrees.

The 416 ViewfinderThe 416 viewfinder optics have been re-designed toincorporate fewer lens elements of a higher quality and ashorter optical path. The result is a brighter image withsignificantly higher contrast and higher resolution, so judgingfocus on set will be a lot easier.

The viewfinder ergonomics are based on the ARRIFLEX 235viewfinder, incorporating the same freedom of movement andfeatures. With its large exit pupil, the 416 viewfinder providesthe operator with more freedom to move without losing theimage - a great advantage when operating hand-held orshooting action sequences. In contrast to its predecessor, the 416 accepts almost all of the large diameter 35 formatprimes, including the new Master Primes, because itsviewfinder is located higher above the lens mount.

A new RGB ARRIGLOW has been built into the 416viewfinder, so you can choose any colour you like. Choosemagenta framelines when shooting green screen, red forjungle, yellow for blue skies.

The 416 viewfinder is accompanied by a video assist that hasthe same image quality and features as the ARRICAM videoassist, with the addition of some added benefits such as colourbars, adjustable electronic image enhancement and manualwhite balance. Using the same optical layout already provenin the ARRIFLEX 235, the viewfinder and video assist areindependent of each other. This makes a switch from hand-held to Steadicam quick and eliminates the need for a 100%video top. Additionally, two 12V accessory outputs on thevideo assist can power an on-board monitor and a videotransmitter at the same time.

Sound DesignThe 416 uses a completely new sound insulation design thatmakes it as quiet as the ARRICAM. An outer shell contains aninner skeleton that is suspended by symmetrically positionedrubber insulators. The cameras movement and other parts,which create vibrations that cause unwanted sound, aremounted to the inner skeleton. The insulators prevent anysound from the inner skeleton reaching the outer shell. Thesymmetrical positioning of the insulators ensures that the flangefocal distance stays constant so there is no change in depthfrom heat or cold.

A brushless silent torque motor powers the 416 magazine, so there is no noisy mechanical linkage between camera andmagazine. And just like the camera, the magazine consists of an outer shell with inner skeleton separated by rubberinsulators, making it the quietest 16mm magazine ever built.

THE POWER OF 416

16

Ergonomic FlexibilityCinematographers and producers choose to shoot in Super 16because of the flexibility provided by smaller and lighterequipment. One of ARRIs goals has been to further increaseportability, while providing many of the features crews havecome to expect from 35mm cameras.

The weight of the 416 has been reduced by an amazing 25%in comparison to the 16SR 3 Advanced, when comparing aconfiguration including body, viewfinder, IVS and magazine.Its shape has been completely redesigned to make it smallerand to give it a lower profile, while providing a cut out that fitssnugly on the shoulder. To avoid all the clutter of extra boxesand cables that tend to hang off the camera, the video assist,lens motor drivers and a wireless radio can be integrateddirectly into the camera body the camera then becomes anARRIFLEX 416 Plus.

A new split bridgeplate means that the camera can beremoved from a zoom lens/tripod configuration in two quicksteps: open the lens mount, split the bridgeplate and thecamera pops off. The second assistant can then dismantle thezoom lens, while the operator is already shooting hand-held.

LensesAlmost all PL mount lenses for the Super 16 and 35mm formatscan be used on the 416, including the high-speed, highquality Master Primes and the Ultra Primes.

In addition, five brand new T1.3 prime lenses have beendeveloped specifically for the Super 16 format: the Ultra 16lenses. With focal lengths of 6, 8, 9.5, 12 and 14 mm theUltra 16 lenses further extend the Ultra Prime family. The Ultra16 lenses are a perfect match for the 416; they exhibit thesame resistance to flare as the Master Primes and giveunprecedented image quality even when opened to theirmaximum aperture of T1.3.

Control & PowerThe 416 control panel should be familiar to anyone who hasever worked with a modern ARRI camera. The 416 hasinherited the control panel design and illuminated buttons of the235, so the camera can be operated without further training.

The new, powerful and smart Lithium-ion on-board battery OBB-2 can run up to five magazines while keeping cameraand video assist in standby for more than 2 hours. With a built-in power gauge the state of an OBB-2 can be quicklydetermined, and since the OBB-2 communicates with thecamera, the 416 can accurately display its current voltage,remaining capacity or how many more magazines the batteryscharge can run.

The 416 Camera SystemThe 416 is compatible with an extensive range of new andexisting ARRI accessories that follow the same design philosophyused in the creation of 416 body and magazines: increasingefficiency on the set. Two new handles have been designed, onefor normal and one for remote use. These include such details asa flip-up tape hook and different height platforms for Steadicamor for under-slinging the 416 on a remote head. Like the 235,the 416 has extra 3/8 attachment points with location pin holesfor twist free attachment of accessories or extra secure rigging.

First Reactions

Its great that a companylike ARRI, which is on theforefront of digitaltechnology with the D-20,still recognizes howvaluable film is with the416 camera. This is aterrific new product forfilmmaking and for indiefilms, this is huge.

DoP Woody Omens, ASC

Saw the demo atNAB2006. Its a littlesmaller than the SR 3, butbe prepared to drool overthe viewing system....thats the big sell, and theARRIGLOW even changescolour, just in case youcouldnt see your framebefore when shooting thatred scene...

DoP James WestFrom a discussion group on Cinematography.com

The Quietest 16 mm CameraSound less than 20 dB(A)

35-style ViewfinderBrighter, higher contrast, higher resolutionBigger exit pupil allows more eyemovementMulti-colour RGB ARRIGLOWAccommodates even wide diameter PL mount lensesExcellent optical quality with eyepieceextension

High Quality Video AssistImproved image qualityAdjustable electronic image enhancement2x 12V accessory power outputs

Compact & LightweightSmall camera bodyLow profile design25% lighter than 16SR 3

Ergonomic DesignErgonomic shoulder cut outViewfinder removes quickly for Steadicam and remote applications Optional integrated radio & lens motor drivers Split bridgeplate for fast switch from tripod to shoulder

Main Features at a Glance

VISIONARRI

416 Plus 416 16SR 3 Advanced HS

Speed Range (fps) 1-75 1-75 5-150Shutter Angle 45-180 45-180 45-180150 Degree Shutter Yes Yes NoAngle (1)Sound (dBA)

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The Ultra 16 lenses and Ultra Primeshave exactly the same lens rings for fullmechanical compatibility. The Ultra 16lens scales are distinctly colour coded inorder to avoid confusing the differentlens types and have yellow scales forfocus and aperture, while the UltraPrimes traditionally have white scales.The Ultra 16 lenses also have a bluering next to the PL-mount, while the Ultra Prime barrel is completely black.

Five Super Fast Wide-angle Primes for Super 16The Ultra 16 lenses have the new ZeissT* XP multi-layer, anti-reflection lenscoating, which provides greaterresistance to flares and ghosting, aswell as improved contrast. The lenseshave an exceptional resolution, truecolour fidelity and their optical quality ismaintained over the whole image fieldand across the entire focus range.

The colour balance of the Ultra 16lenses is Super Colour Matched to otherARRI Zeiss lenses, including the UltraPrimes, Master Primes, Variable Primes,Master Zoom and the Lightweight ZoomLWZ-1. Consequently, they can beeasily mixed with the longer focallengths of the 35 format Ultra Primes.The advantage of using the Ultra 16lenses and adding Ultra Primes, startingwith a 16 mm Ultra Prime, is that justone matte box is required as the Ultra16 lenses and the Ultra Primes from 16 to 135 mm have the same frontdiameter of 95 mm.

The introduction of the ARRIFLEX 416also brings with it five brand new primelenses that have been developedspecifically for the Super 16 format, theUltra 16 lenses. The new Ultra 16 lensset consists of five high-speed primeswith focal lengths of 6, 8, 9.5, 12 and14 mm. All cover the full Super 16format and match the optical qualityand ergonomics of existing ARRI ZeissUltra Prime lenses.

Much of the design of the Ultra 16lenses is based on research carried outfor the creation of the Master Primes.One of the outstanding features of thesenew lenses, unmatched by any otherlens manufacturer, is the fact that theUltra 16 lenses are super fast at T1.3,while showing excellent optical qualityover the whole T-stop range. In addition,T1.3 allows for the creation of ashallow depth-of-field, a look that isinherent in the Super 35 format, andoften sought after in other formats.

VISIONARRI

19

Did youknow?

Dianne KoronkiewiczAssistant Camera Person

1 What film first inspired you to work in this industry?Fellinis La Strada. The perfect combination of energy and chaos.

2 Whats your cure for the morning after the wrap party feeling?Late night cigar bars.

3 Name three things that make you smile?Fine wine, good cheese, spicy sopressata in good company,& progressive techno, preferably somewhere in the tropics bythe sea.

4 What was the first car you ever owned?A gas guzzling, metallic green, 1972 Plymouth Valiant.

5 Whats the one thing you cant live without?Two things in fact, Italian boots and Negroni beer.

6 If your life was a film, what film would it be and why?Predator meets Afterhours, a blend of the jungle and the city.

7 Most embarrassing moment?While on location in Manuel Antonio, having the crew tell methe second week of shooting that they enjoyed the old, redstring bikini more than the new, more sporty ones I hadsomeone make especially to work in.

8 Who inspires you?Fritjof Capra, a physicist who has written about the parallelsbetween ancient traditions and 20th Century physics.

9 Three people (living or dead) youd most like todine with?Natalie Wood, Sander Kleinenberg and Fidel Castro.

10 What was the last film you saw?The Costa Rican premiere of Brokeback Mountain in San Jose.

Diane thrives in the cement jungle of New York city workingon movies and commercials, but to balance her life shelikes nothing better than disappearing into the tropical rainforests of central America to escape from it all.

Diane is currently working on her suntan. Her other mostrecent credits are Jonathan Demmes concert feature filmNeil Young: Heart of Gold and multiple televisioncommercials.

Take

10The Agony and the Ecstasy 1965Directed by Sir Carol Reed (The Third Man, Odd Man Out),this adaptation of the identically titled biographical novel wasshot in both Todd-AO and Cinemascope.Charlton Heston pushed a steel rod up his nose to make itresemble Michelangelos broken proboscis, while RexHarrison refused even to grow a beard for his portrayal ofPope Julius II, who was the first unshaven Pontiff.

The Thomas Crown Affair 1999The Claude Monet paintings featured in the film: San GiorgioMaggiore at Dusk and Wheatstacks, are not actuallyowned or displayed by the Metropolitan Museum of Art inNew York. San Giorgio Maggiore at dusk was bequeathedto the National Museum and Art Gallery, Cardiff, Wales in1952 and forms part of their permanent collection.Wheatstacks is in the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. The painting of a man wearing a dark suit and bowler hat,with an apple covering his face, is entitled Son of Man, and was painted by Rene Magritte in 1964.

How to Steal a Million 1966Director William Wyler initially wanted to make this film as afollow up to Roman Holiday (1953), with Gregory Peckplaying the male lead opposite Audrey Hepburn. Envisioning adark and moody look for the film, he even approached StanleyKubrick, who had recently shot The Killing (1956), for ideas.Peter OToole would eventually get the part instead of Peck.George C Scott was originally cast as Leland, but was firedby Wyler when he arrived late for his first day of filming. His replacement was Eli Wallach.

Pollock 2000Starring in and directing this biopic of artist Jackson Pollockproved so exhausting for Ed Harris that he collapsed on theset and had to be taken to hospital. Harriss father had bought him a book on the painter, purelybecause he felt Ed bore a strong physical resemblance toPollock, which prompted the actors fascination with his lifeand work.The August 8th, 1949 issue of Life magazine which featuresin several shots is genuine, though the pages of the JacksonPollock article inside are reproductions of the original, withEd Harriss image substituted for Pollocks.

Lust for Life 1956Director Vincente Minnelli had a portion of a field painted yellow to make it match the bold colour in Vincent Van Goghs painting.

Many of the locations used for filming were places Van Goghreally visited in his life.

The colour process used for the film(Ansco Color, but labelled in the creditsas Metrocolor) uses dyes that haveproved to fade more rapidly than thoseused in other processes. Subsequently,many prints have lost the vivid colourpalette of the movies original images.

Anthony Quinns performance as PaulGaugin is reputedly the shortest ever towin an Oscar. He is on screen foraround 10 minutes.

20

DI Symposium 2006 in the ARRI Cinema

Telling Stories With ColoursDigital or Analogue

The following questions were addressedby ARRI experts and discussed with the audience:

When and where does digital colourtiming make sense?What creative possibilities does DI offer?What are the pros and cons?What are the differences to colourtiming in an analogue film laboratory?What is the cost-benefit ratio of the twotypes of processing?D-20: When is the use of digitalcameras appropriate?

The event was moderated by Angela Reedwisch, Key AccountManager of ARRI Film & TV. She alsolectured, as part of the DI symposium,on prices meaning the cost-benefitratio of the two postproductionprocesses, using a 90-minute featurefilm as an example.

But first ARRIs General Manager, Franz Kraus, welcomed the guests to theevent and provided an outlook ongeneral developments and issues thatare emerging in the international filmbusiness, not just those related todigitalization. He reported on thetechnical redesign of the D-20, ARRIsdigital film-style camera, of which 20additional units are currently beingmanufactured for worldwide rentalthrough the ARRI Rental Group.

The Head of the Film Laboratories, Josef Sepp Reidinger, moved thediscussion on to practicalities; initiallyexploring the traditional photo-chemicalroute and the diverse creativepossibilities of analogue colour timing,as well as how various particularprocesses can create unusual andinteresting looks. Furthermore, heexplained how analogue processing inthe film laboratory and digital colourtiming can be combined. To achievethat, Lustre from Autodesk is the idealtool to digitally complement and refinethe already existing look from analoguegrading. With Lustre one has almostendless creative and technical

ARRI Film & TV, as part of its schedule ofregular informative events, co-hosted aDigital Intermediate symposium with theGerman Society of Cinematographers (Bundesverband Kamera (bvk)) on March11th, 2006 at its in-house ARRI cinema inMunich/Schwabing.

Telling stories with colours digital or analogue was themotto of the practice-oriented discussion of colour timing. ARRIFilm & TV experts illustrated the various possible workflows inlectures and presentations with clips from current films. Thepros and cons of Digital Intermediate (DI) and traditionalanalogue colour timing in the film laboratory were examined.The creative, artistic, aesthetic and financial rather thantechnical aspects were the focus of the event.

TRISTAN & ISOLDE,a Scott Free Production

THE ROBBER HOTZENPLOTZ,a Collina Film Production

ES IST EIN ELCHENTSPRUNGEN, a SAM Film Production

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VISIONARRI

composition possibilities, commented ARRI Colourist TraudlNicholson, who has extensive experience in analogue as wellas digital colour timing. Josef Reidinger and Traudl Nicholsonillustrated and commented on these issues with the help ofclips from the following films: Der Neunte Tag (Prod: Provobis,Dir: Volker Schlndorff, DP: Tomas Erhart), NVA (Prod: BojeBuck, Dir: Leander Haumann, DP: Frank Griebe) as well asDer die Tollkirschen Ausgrbt, a black and white film (Prod: XFilme Creative Pool, Dir: Franka Potente, DP: Frank Griebe). Itis our goal to maintain the classical film look, even if a digitalroute is chosen for film finishing, reassured Josef Reidinger.

Afterwards, Rainer Schmidt, an experienced and seasonedARRI Colourist, and Florian Utsi Martin, a digital LustreColourist, discussed the colour grading on Organize Isler(Prod: BKM, Dir: Yilmaz Erdogan, DP: Ugur Icbak) and Tristan& Isolde (Prod: 20th Century Fox / Ridley Scott, Dir: KevinReynolds, DP: Artur Reinhart).

The following films were used as additional highly instructiveexamples to illustrate modern colour timing: Requiem(Prod: 23/5 Filmproduktion, Dir: Hans-Christian Schmid, DP: Bogumil Godfrejw), Die Wolke (Prod: Clasart Film, Dir: Gregor Schnitzler, DP: Michael Mieke), Reine Formsache(Prod: Independent Players, Dir: Ralf Httner, DP: HannesHubach), Der Ruber Hotzenplotz (Prod: Collina Film, Dir & DP: Gernot Roll), Es ist ein Elch entsprungen (Prod: SAMFilm, Dir: Ben Verbong, DP: Jan Fehse) as well as Der Fischerund seine Frau (Prod: Constantin, Dir: Doris Drrie, DP: Rainer Klausmann).

Afterwards, Markus Kirsch, Department Head of TVPostproduction at ARRI Film & TV, spoke about the state ofHDTV and its future in television. As an example, thesuccessful and multiple award-winning documentary DieGroe Stille (Prod: Philip Grning Filmproduktion, Dir & DP:Philip Grning) followed. The film was mostly shot on 24PHDCam and was colour corrected and colour timed at ARRI.Henning Rdlein, Head of ARRI Digital Film, discussed amongother things the HD tape-to-tape colour grading on Pogle OiXiand the recording with the ARRILASER onto 35mm, as well asthe making of the release print in the film laboratories.Producer Jrg Schulze and Colourist Stefan Ciupek, who werein the audience, reported on stage about the shoot and thecomplications it faced, the linking of postproduction and thelocation shoot, as well as the colour grading itself, which wasdone at ARRI by Stefan Andermann.

After lunch, Henning Rdlein ran through the individual stepsof the Digital Intermediate workflow and high resolution digitalwork environment within postproduction from the shootingmedium to the data file. He discussed all possible processingsteps such as colour grading, the seamless integration of VFXshots, titles and the mixing of various recording formats, alsothe exploitation for TV and DVD and finally recording with theARRILASER onto 35mm film stock.

He pointed out, in reference to increasing digitalization, therelevance of digital score masters for distribution in digitaltheatres: It will become more and more important to finish theentire film digitally, because when the digital theatre becomesa reality, which will sooner or later be the case, digitalfinishing will be a necessity, due to the fact that only digitalinformation can be projected in digital theatres.

ARRI offers its customers two alternatives for digital colourtiming - the more cost-effective colour correction on the so-called RGB Lustre grading station; for primary colour timing,and the Deluxe Version on the big Lustre master station; withsecondary grading. Digital colour timing can now be carriedout, even in the more cost-effective primary RGB suite, underconditions similar to a theatre - on a large screen and with 2Kprojection. Opticals (i.e. dissolves, motion events, frameduplications etc.) will continue to be digitally processed withthe primary version of the Discreet Lustre in connection withthe ARRISCAN.

Henning Rdlein also pointed out in his lecture the importanceof analogue material for film archiving purposes. Hecommented: In the U.S. most big films are being archivedanalogue, because digital storing is simply too insecure andtherefore too dangerous. For that reason, we stronglyencourage all our customers to have their film negativerecorded multiple times. Kodak, for example, estimates alifetime of 100 years for its material.

Finally, Prof. Jrgen Schopper, Creative Director & VFXSupervisor at ARRI Film & TV, made a clear and informedpresentation - with the help of clips from Der RuberHotzenplotz - about the many visual effects (VFX) and creativetasks ARRI completed during the digital postproduction of thissuccessful childrens movie.

To sum up the conclusions of the DI event at ARRI, it can besaid that there isnt one clearly superior process in either theshooting stage or the postproduction stage of filmmaking. Thetechnical processes and the creative possibilities constantlydevelop and will continue to evolve. It will therefore continueto be an art to select the appropriate formats for recordingand film finishing for individual projects. These choices involveaesthetic, technical and economic parameters, which all haveto be considered and fulfilled. Producers and Directorstherefore face certain demands; we, as service providers, offer the technical products and as a service to our customers,make the necessary know-how available, concluded Franz Kraus, General Manager of the ARRI Group.

Jochen Hhnel

THE ARRI TEAM, Utsi Martin, Josef Reidinger, Traudl Nicholson, Henning Rdlein, Angela Reedwisch, Rainer Schmidt, Jrgen Schopper (left to right)

22

VA: Have you filmed in New York before?

AM: Yes in fact I have, in 2003 for another Hindi feature filmKal Ho Na Ho.

VA: What were your impressions on this occasion?

AM: New York is such an intense cataclysmic sensorium that itleaves me gasping for breath. Trying to fit a vertical city intoan anamorphic frame, trying to film through changing seasons(September to December 2005), trying to create rain in sub-zero temperatures, trying to make a predominantly outdoorschedule work when after 4.30pm it is not even T2 these aresome of the impressions that will remain, along with the greatsushi, an Ethopian dinner and the Belgian beer.

A BollywoodProduction Filmingin New YorkManhattan has seen manyamazing things, but even the citythat never sleeps wasunprepared for the impact of afull-scale Bollywood productionfilming on its streets.

Kank is the latest feature film project from Dharma Productionsand stars some of the biggest names in Bollywood. Theirpresence at any of the New York locations and the spectatorsthat they drew could bring the area to a complete halt, areminder never to underestimate a film industry with anaudience estimated at 3.5 billion.

Kank stars the legendary Amitabh Bachchan along with ShahRukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, Preity Zinta, Abhishek Bachchanand Kiron Kher. It is directed and produced by Karan Johar,the son of the Dharma founder Yash Johar. Amongst the filmspreviously directed by Karan Johar, Kabhi Khushi KabhieGham entered the US and UK Top 10 box office charts andhad long running mainstream releases in France, Germanyand Poland.

Kank was shot over 70 days at 60 locations throughout New York and New Jersey. It was photographed by AnilMehta, one of the leading Cinematographers in India. Havingpreviously used an ARRICAM from ARRI Media in London onUK Producer Charles Salmons production Marigold, Anil waskeen to repeat the experience when filming in New York andat Charles suggestion he contacted ARRI CSC.

In addition to his use of the ARRICAM, Anil chose the Super35 format, and a Digital Intermediate process in postproduction. Both of these choices are relatively new to theIndian film industry, where anamorphic is traditionally theformat of choice.

VisionARRI caught up with Anil back in India whilst he finishedprinciple photography on Kank earlier this year.

Kank

I FEEL THAT THEARRICAM IS AVERY VERSATILEBLEND OF CAMERADESIGNS.

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VISIONARRI

VA: What are the most distinctive differencesbetween filming in India and in New York?

AM: The difference is that in India we plan, then letcircumstances and chance take over, madness ensues andfilms get made. In New York we plan, distribute paper, talkmethodology, distribute paper, plan some more, distributemore paper, then chance and circumstance take over,madness ensues and films get made. As long as films getmade and not a Kafkaesque castle, I sleep well. Our LineProducers in New York, Anadil & Driss worked very hard tobridge the cultural gaps and make our filming possible. JoeWhite, our Location Manager also adapted rather well to ourorganic approach. Without them New York would have beenan impenetrable castle.

VA: You used an ARRICAM on Marigold prior toKank. What drew you to making that decision?

AM: I feel that the ARRICAM is a very versatile blend ofcamera designs as they have evolved. I enjoy its compactness,its lightness (as the Lite), its reliability (no down time at all, oneither film), its simplicity with the user-friendly electroniccontrol panel and film transportation and its versatility inSteadicam or hand-held mode. For a sync. sound project it willdefinitely be my first choice.

VA: What lenses did you choose for Kank?

AM: I chose the Zeiss Ultra Prime range, for the simple reasonthat they were the sharpest set available to me. Since the filmis Super 35 and going through a DI process, I chose to staywith the sharpest image capture available to me.

DIRECTOR KORAN JOHAR and DoP Anil Mehta (left to right)

ACTRESS PREITY ZINTA with Anil shooting from above

ASSEMBLED CAST Preity Zinta, Abhishek Bachchan, Rani Mukherjee (left to right)

KANK IN NEW YORK

24

VA: You tested examples of the new ARRIMaster Prime lenses while you werefilming. What were your impressions?

AM: I did get a chance to lay my hands on someMaster Primes while at work, and though I cannotclaim to have tested them systematically I was quitetaken by their vivid clarity the image in theviewfinder was a delight. In addition the ability toeye focus even the wide lenses at long distances,the complete lack of breathing and the clarity ofthe markings were all very reassuring.

VA: You have pioneered the use of theSuper 35 format. What do you see as itsadvantages on this production?

AM: Super 35 is being used more and more inIndia. It would not be right to say that I havepioneered it in any way. In fact I have probablywaited for the technology to be primed beforeusing it.

VA: You are also using the DigitalIntermediate process in postproduction. Is this common practice in Bollywood?

AM: Digital Intermediate is still in its stabilizingstage in India, although an increasing number offilms are taking this route. With Kank I willprobably be scanning at 4k then down sampling to2k, an option only recently available to us. TheDigital Intermediate chain is gaining currency veryrapidly in India. Almost every movie has somecomponent of DI (titles, VFX, opticals) andincreasingly features originating on the Super 16or Super 35 format are taking the DI option (Zindaand Rang de Basanti). Also films originating on 4perforation. anamorphic (a very popular format inIndia) have chosen to go DI for the look (Black &Paheli). The DI chase in on; the technology andthose who operate it now need deliver.

VA: The Indian film industry is easilyunderestimated. What would you like tosee from a company like ARRI in terms ofsupport for such a prolific market?

AM: We have a forum in Mumbai called TheCinematographers Combine which has beeninteracting with ARRI over the years. The one thingwe have not tired of repeating is that ARRI needs adirect presence in India, to support all the ARRIequipment that is the Indian market standard. Alsoto further develop the sale & distribution of newproducts and to recognize a significant market thatneeds to be nurtured.

With thanks to Anil Mehta and to Anadil Hossainof Dillywood Inc. of New York for their cooperationwith this article.

Simon Broad

I DID GET ACHANCE TO LAYMY HANDS ONSOME MASTERPRIMES I WASQUITE TAKENBY THEIR VIVIDCLARITY THEIMAGE IN THEVIEWFINDERWAS ADELIGHT.

What Does Kank Mean?Director Karan Johar is known for frequently usingacronyms of his films titles. This is also the case here,where Kank stands for Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna loosely translated: Never say Goodbye.

DoP Anil Mehta