Film and Video.

Georgia Scannell

Film
A series of still images are shown in succession to create the appearance of movement,
resultant of the phi phenomenon.
This form of illusion causes the viewer to comprehend what they are seeing as a continuous
sequence of motion, between individual items or subjects. This will be replayed at a
considerable speed to ensure that it is seamless and appears to flow.
In cinema, a film is formed by photographing the relevant scene with a motion picture camera;
the subject can be a person, object or a models which have been created as a product of
CGI or computer animation.

The work was to be recorded onto a plastic strip which was shown through a projector and
onto a large screen; this is known as the analogue process.
Typically, these would have an optical soundtrack-a recording of the accompanying
conversation, music and sound effects. This would run against the relevant section of footage.
This has been adapted-in projection, the initial 65mm film is replicated onto 70mm segments of
the product. The remaining 5mm is dedicated to storing four magnetic strips, containing six
tracks of sound. Modern variations of this often use digital encoding as the central method of
replaying the conversations etc.

o An original 70mm strip of film, with an additional four

magnetic strips for storing the sound.

o A 70mm film camera.

 The resolution of the footage is dependent on the area of the film used to record the sequence.
As such, medium to large format films are capable of capturing better quality images due to
the fact that have a greater surface area. Consequently, they can create products with a
clarity and definition which surpasses that of top-end digital products.
Despite the above, the implications of utilising this medium are often detrimental to prospective
users. Primarily, there is no way of reviewing the work until it has been processed-meaning that
any necessary reshoots will have to be completed at a later date. Similarly, there is an extensive
processing period, which requires both time and care to achieve the desired results.

In terms of cost, film cameras are becoming cheaper to buy than their digital counterparts, due
to their lessening demand. This does not, however, necessarily compensate for the equipment
requirements-which will have to be maintained-within the production of the film.
Distribution is an issue for film-most cinemas are not suitably equipped to project the 70mm film.
Commercially, this began to become less popular due to the fact that 35mm was adapted so
that the audio quality matched that of its counterpart. The decline has continued into
65mm,also, as the digital production/recording becomes increasingly prolific.
When reproduced for home media, it is most frequently near impossible for the quality of a
70mm print to be replicated on a DVD. As such, 35mm reduction elements are used.

Video:
Video is essentially an updated version of film; it is an electronic means of recording,
broadcasting and displaying media in a digital medium.
How smooth and seamless it appears is dependant on the number of frames per second. The
higher the quality the camera, the higher this will be. To create the illusion of flawless
movement, it is accepted that 16 FPS is required; this does vary to 24 FPS and, in the case of The
Hobbit, 48 FPS.
The resolution available on handheld camcorders is greatly advanced, with many being able
to record in full high definition. As such, this allows even amateur directors to create professional
appearing movies without the expense of processing film.
The antithesis of its predecessor, digital projectors are used to display the footage to audiences;
the movie is presented to the cinema as Digital Cinema Package (usually delivered direct to
the theatre) where, for the conventional feature, this will be between 90 and 300gb of data.
This is translates as being approximately two to six times the amount of information contained
on a Blu-Ray disk. Once this has been copied onto the servers of the system, it will be
encrypted. In order to played, a playlist is created, detailing all of the content to be included in
the performance. Inclusive of this is a play button which can control the sound system, lights,
screen masking etc.

 Assisting its popularity is the ability to review footage as it progresses-opposed to having to

wait until the film has been processed, this can often be watched quickly on the device
itself, or connected to a computer and seen from there.
Unlike film cameras, digital camcorders-especially those of a professional standard-are
more expensive to purchase. Adding to the expenditure is the cost of editing software;
industry standard programs such as PremierPro and Photoshop are frequently only
accessible to those established within the media sectors. Equally, these are constantly
updating, meaning in a years time a 1,300 piece of equipment will not have the new
requirements.
The ease of use, on the other hand, does mean that the investments are worthwhile, for
the majority; altering footage and deleting/replacing sections is simple and means that
when shooting non-sequentially, it is possible to efficiently re-order the scenes.

o A digital camcorder.

 In the following clip, Quentin Tarantino discusses his objections to the disappearance of
film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BON9Ksn1PqI7