720x480, 640x480, 1920x1080... what is the significance behind these and other aspect ratios we sometimes love to hate? This Artbeats document presents a straightforward introduction to the significance of video aspect ratios, and how video differs when presented on computer screens and televisions, and captured on camcorders. Unfortunately, knowing a lot of these tedious factoids becomes invaluable when working with different format (SD vs. HD, NTSC vs. PAL) video. There's no such thing as a universal pixel aspect ratio, and learning the differences between formats will give you a better understanding of exactly how video is displayed.
Steven Mullen at Digital Content Producer takes a hard look at methods of de-interlacing after examining the so-called "Full HD" marketing program used to promote televisions, camcorders, etc. with 1920x1080 resolution and 60p display / capture capabilities. It's a heavy read, but if you want to gather a better understanding of types of de-interlacing, and how they differ from each other, this is a useful explanation. Mullen concludes that a Full HD device must be capable of displaying or outputting a 1080/60p signal.
Within the past month, both HD DVD and Blu-Ray's AACS protection scheme has been bypassed, and now news has broken of a researcher cracking Vista's DRM scheme. Mind you, Vista hit shelves all but one week ago. Boing Boing sums it up very nicely:
"As with previous multi-year DRM development efforts, this one disintegrated like wet kleenex on contact with the general public. Now that Vista, HDCP, Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are all broken, it seems like the millions of dollars and thousands of work-hours sunk into these systems was mis-spent. The only benefit that these anti-copying systems confer to the companies that developed them is the right to sue competitors -- and that benefit could have been had by shellacking a one-atom-thick layer of token DRM onto their systems, just enough to be able to invoke the DMCA. Everything else was just gold-plating, wasted money."
So the trend continues. Anything meant to be protected will always be cracked. Researcher Alex Ionesco's hack bypasses Vista's anti-copying technology and allows for full-res, unencrypted high-def video streams. Due to legal concerns, he has not yet released his code. Check out Boing Boing's summary for the full scoop.
Knowing your keyboard shortcuts will take you to the next level in your mastery of Final Cut Pro. For some help with memorization, try printing out this shortcut document and keep it on your desk while you edit. Thankfully, it's nicely organized so you can learn a block of shortcuts at a time. Thanks to Flippant for the tip.
Posted Jan 29th 2007 6:41PM by Brian Liloia Filed under: DIY
Another valuable interview is up at the Workbook Project, this time in the form of a roundtable discussion with Mark Stolaroff of No Budget Film School and Paul Harrill of Self-Reliant Filmmaking. Along with Lance Weiler, the group approaches the topic of DIY, low/no budget-style film production. Lots of topics are covered, including tips regarding fundraising, producing, directing, casting, and more. A worthwhile listen here.
Here's a fascinating find via Scott Simmons: David Bordwell admits to being a frame counter, and his calculative observations of edited sequences reveals the differences between film and video formats. Bordwell counts exact frames in tightly edited sequences from 35mm/16mm film prints and reveals the arithmetical precision used by directors and editors to create a specific rhythm. Watching the same film on different video formats (VHS, DVD, and Laserdisc) Bordwell then observes the differences in precise sequence lengths in frames due to differing video frame rates and 3:2 pulldown. It's an excellent read highlighting the differences between film and video frame rates, NTSC vs. PAL, and interlaced versus progressive formats, and how all of these different factors affect the actual rhythm of film editing.
At the World Economic Forum on Saturday, Bill Gates forecast the demise of television in five years with the increasing popularity and greater flexibility of online video. "I'm stunned how people aren't seeing that with TV, in five years from now, people will laugh at what we've had.." While not exactly an earth-shattering prediction, it is still brave to suggest that TV will be irrelevant. While there is certainly something of a benefit to be had in being able to choose viewing content on the internet, there is still a gap to be bridged between traditional television and online video. In addition to this, online content needs to mature before it can "take over" television, and Download Squad makes a good point in saying that a "convergence device" (read: something like the Apple TV) will be needed to really merge internet video and TV. But then again, there is also the issue of bandwidth. So, maybe it's not that simple... what do you think? What will become of television over the next five years?
Ok, so I really quite like Children of Men. Partly because it is one of the most convincing films I have seen in a long time, in more ways than one. With other films, I sometimes doubt what I am witnessing, in due part to visual effects that are simply unnatural, for lack of a better word. However, in Children of Men, the implementation of CG and special effects is nearly seamless and unidentifiable, undoubtedly in due part to the overall fluid nature of the film. Nevertheless, CG is there, and this fxguide article does a great job in highlighting how special effects studio Double Negative handled implementing CG into several of CoM's key (and long) scenes. Ordinarily, visual effects artists deal with source footage in several second cuts, but DNeg was faced with compositing shots that went for up to nine minutes. The article also has great technical details regarding the camera rig used during the infamous car chase scene. Very enlightening stuff here. (Here's hoping for a feature-loaded DVD release.)
In yet another recent interview, David Lynch talks about the creative processes behind filmmaking with The Onion. Among discussions regarding the progression of ideas, cinema as a tool for expression, and transcendental meditation, Lynch again gives another nod to digital video, claiming "There were no cons. Only pros," during the production of Inland Empire.
Rooftop Films is a Brooklyn, New York-based non-profit festival series that hosts dozens of screenings and film programs throughout the summer months in parks, schoolyards, and of course, on building rooftops. They have grown to become a pretty serious organization, and their lineups are always filled with top notch independently-produced shorts and features from established and up-and-coming filmmakers, students, and others. (I did some volunteering for them two summers ago, and was definitely impressed with their approach.) Anyway, they have launched a blog that brings attention to films that they have previously screened, and other notable shorts worth watching. Worth a scope.
We might be guilty of associating successful distribution to landing films in major cities and established venues. But it doesn't necessarily have to be this way. Filmmaker Magazine has a great article detailing Jay Craven's experiences self-distributing his film, Where the Rivers Flow North in rural Vermont and applying his strategies and successes to his second DIY film release, Disappearances. "...I decided to launch a 100 Town Tour of the state. We needed cash, so while we waited for movie theaters to clear their schedules, we started playing town halls, granges and old opera houses. You can rent most of them for $50 and set up the show in less than an hour. And you take home all the cash at the end of the night."
Definitely an interesting look at alternative distribution strategies.
ffmpegX is an extremely robust open source video and audio encoding application for Mac OS X that supports a great number of formats, with Flash Video being the newest addition to the program's encoding capabilities. The number of options and settings within ffmpegX can be a bit daunting at first, but Jake Ludington has a sweet and simple little tutorial for how to successfully convert videos to Flash format while still maintaining acceptable quality. Worth knowing. And if you are not familiar with ffmpegX, be sure to check it out and experiment a bit.
You might remember reading about Doom9 member Muslix64's successful attempt at bypassing the AACS encryption system of HD DVD, resulting in his BackupHDDVD software that enables users to extract files from the discs. Slyck News has interviewed Muslix64 to gather his thoughts on fair use, and clearing the misconceptions about "hacking". Muslix64 also explains the differences between content and copy protection, and decryption differences between HD DVD and Blu-Ray. All in all, it's a fascinating and enlightening read.
Videomaker has whipped up a "best of 2006" list for consumer and low budget video creators, including a bunch of notable cameras, software, and other gear that stand out from the rest of the crowd. Camcorders receiving attention include the Canon Elura 100 (best consumer camcorder), Canon HV10 (best high-def consumer camcorder), JVC Everio GZ-MG505 (best hard drive camcorder), Sony HDR-FX7 (best prosumer camcorder), and the Panasonic AG-HVX200 (breakthrough camcorder of the year). Check out the full story for some other useful recommendations. 2006 has been another big year for upping the quality in affordable video production equipment.
Wow. Ok, I'm not going to claim that this is representative of all film trailers during the same time period, but the original Star Warstrailer is surprisingly poorly done. Something that has always irked me about many modern movie trailers is the fact that they practically give away the whole film within a couple of minutes. It seems like trailers have become Cliffs Notes versions of the actual film, sometimes with major plot points and scenes revealed. Why do I mention that now? Well, this Star Wars trailer is so far removed from that idea, so amazingly cryptic and scatterbrained (and just plain ol' cheesy), that it looks like it's for a half-finished film. I wonder if someone spent more than like 20 minutes editing this thing. Something like this would never get by today's standards. Anyway, totally worth watching! I mean, it was "a billion years in the making", after all.
720x480, 640x480, 1920x1080... what is the significance behind these and other aspect ratios we sometimes love to hate? This Artbeats document presents a straightforward introduction to the significance of video aspect ratios, and how video differs when presented on computer screens and televisions, and captured on camcorders. Unfortunately, knowing a lot of these tedious factoids becomes invaluable when working with different format (SD vs. HD, NTSC vs. PAL) video. There's no such thing as a universal pixel aspect ratio, and learning the differences between formats will give you a better understanding of exactly how video is displayed.
Steven Mullen at Digital Content Producer takes a hard look at methods of 
Within the past month, both HD DVD and Blu-Ray's AACS protection scheme has been bypassed, and now news has broken of a researcher cracking Vista's DRM scheme. Mind you, Vista hit shelves all but one week ago. Boing Boing 
Knowing your keyboard shortcuts will take you to the next level in your mastery of Final Cut Pro. For some help with memorization, try printing out this shortcut 
Another valuable interview 
Here's a fascinating find via 
At the World Economic Forum on Saturday, Bill Gates 
Ok, so I really quite like Children of Men. Partly because it is one of the most convincing films I have seen in a long time, in more ways than one. With other films, I sometimes doubt what I am witnessing, in due part to visual effects that are simply unnatural, for lack of a better word. However, in Children of Men, the implementation of CG and special effects is nearly seamless and unidentifiable, undoubtedly in due part to the overall fluid nature of the film. Nevertheless, CG is there, and this 
In yet another recent interview, David Lynch talks about the creative processes behind filmmaking with 
We might be guilty of associating successful distribution to landing films in major cities and established venues. But it doesn't necessarily have to be this way. Filmmaker Magazine has a great 
You might 
Videomaker has whipped up a "
Wow. Ok, I'm not going to claim that this is representative of all film trailers during the same time period, but the original Star Wars 
