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SUPER-8 FILMMAKING - THE ORIGINAL
DO-IT-YOURSELF FORMAT
What was once considered a format for the '60s
"home-movie" craze is
enjoying a sudden resurgence in the professional film community. Super-8
is back and carving a new niche at the forefront of cinematic photography.
The reason is simple: because it's film.
Texture -- the single most defining characteristic of film -- is epitomized in
Super-8. The grain structure, color saturation, and the sometimes total lack
of control over exposure and film latitude can altogether result in
serendipitous moments of cinematic brilliance that would cost thousands to
consciously attempt with an Arri 535, DaVinci color correction and Power
Windows. Regress to double-8, and you can achieve surreal moments that
ride the fine line between beautiful and bewildering.
Many cinematic moments from films like The Game, Natural Born Killers
and U-Turn were created by the director, his DP and a Beaulieu Super-8
camera. Likewise, Jim Jarmusch's documentary Crazy Horse was shot
entirely on Super-8. And lest we forget, it's the Zapruder film, not the
Zapruder Video. In fact, Super-8 is even being used in the ultra-slick
commercial world. For example, while shooting the "Santa on The Beach"
campaign for Shoppers Drug Mart, I combined Super-8 footage with 35mm
for a cool mix of formats. But to truly appreciate the virtues of Super-8
filmmaking, an understanding of the distinct protocols of video versus film is
in order.
Any piece of equipment that's "idiot-proof" will bring out the idiot in the
user.
Here, we should make a distinction between easy to use (like a Mac
computer) and idiot-proof like an average hi-8 video camera. The "idiot" is
that part of the user that suddenly takes a snooze when picking up a
camcorder because the equipment doesn't necessitate thought.
Ironically, hi-8 - a format that was mean to "capture the moment" - will
consistently undermine and spoil the moment due to the sheer lack of
thought required to capture it. For example, a Super-8 film of a child's first
Christmas will, aesthetically, appear much closer to the memory of the event
as opposed to the flat look from a video camera that, somewhere, at that
same moment in time, just captured all the money shots in Debbie Does
Dallas Part 15. Should you require further convincing, go back and watch
your home videos and see how they defy your memory because it looks
nothing like your recollections.
If you have no choice but to shoot on video tape, treat it like film. Pretend
that each foot of tape is costing you cash, and you can't see the footage until
you get it back from the lab the next day.
Light, rehearse, prepare and think about what you're shooting before you
shoot. In other words, is the subject matter great, or is it just another shot of
Uncle Bill standing in line at the dessert table?
However, it's important to note that a badly shot Super-8 film of a child's first
Christmas, for example, could look like Fellini directing Pee Wee Herman in
a Taiwanese production of Nosferatu which could cause brain damage
upon viewing. A standard rule of thumb is as follows: the margin for error is
directly proportional to the degree that the camera claims to be
"automatic."
The predominant reason is that most "auto" Super-8 cameras aren't
sensitive to the lack of exposure latitude with reversal Super-8 film stock. In
other words, the lighting circumstances have to be just right in order to
achieve proper exposure. Indeed, you can correct for over/under exposure if
you feel like paying extra at the lab or going into a proper transfer suite at
$350 per hour. Otherwise, never trust the automatic features of the camera
unless you're willing to put up with a hit-and-miss exposure scenario most of
the time.
However, great-looking Super-8 film isn't that tough to achieve. All it takes is
1) a camera that has a manual aperture feature; 2) a small lighting kit and 3)
a decent light meter. Then, using this equipment in tandem with your keen
eye and great subject matter, you will go through the exact same protocols
as Steven Spielberg before he yells, "Action."
CAMERAS
The most expensive, high-end Super-8 camera available is the Beaulieu
9008 which retails for about $10K U.S. For all intents and purposes, this is
a professional film camera with a crystal synch motor (see Sound).
However, if you've got 10K burning a hole in your pocket, you can buy a
used Arriflex SR 16mm camera or an Arri II-C 35mm for about the same
price and achieve the same thing, but with a bigger, tighter negative. The
9008 is one of the only cameras that Beaulieu still manufactures. However,
back in the '70s, they made a whole range of great Super-8 cameras that
could be considered "professional."
The 6008, 4008, and 2008 are exceptional cameras and sell for about
$1000, $800, and $500 respectively, offering many coveted features. First,
they usually come with an Angenieux zoom lens with internal light meter (the
same company also makes lenses for 16 and 35mm motion picture
cameras, so they know what they're doing).
Second, you can interchange lenses on these cameras thanks to the
"C-mount" threading; virtually all Super-8 cameras have fixed zoom lenses.
Third, these cameras sport variable speed controls -- anywhere from 8fps
(frames per second) to 70fps. And finally, they have variable ASA ratings
from 40 through 400, meaning the internal light meter will always correspond
to the correct ASA of film. Beaulieus are also capable of fades, single
frame for animation, and have rechargeable batteries.
Another highly recommended camera is the Braun Nizo of Germany. There
are two machines that typify German engineering: the Mercedes-Benz and
the Nizo. The Nizo S8 fits in the palm of your hand, has a Schneider zoom
lens (another good lens company), has single frame, fast and slow motion
capability -- and, incredibly, sports an intervalometer for time-lapse
photography. It also allows for manual aperture control and has an internal
light meter. Braun also made Nizos with bigger lenses for greater focal
range if needed. Cost is anywhere from $250 to $700.
TRIPODS
Due to the small size of the format, you'll need a tripod to create steady
shots. If you plan to do lots of hand-held work, you'll fare better with a smaller
camera like the Nizo S8. The larger cameras tend to be harder to hold and
result in an unsteady image. Any standard tripod will do.
Henry's sells a whole range including the Silk, which can fit in your knapsack
and be set up in seconds. If you're looking for a bigger tripod, make sure it
has a level bubble and fluid head. Test the heads at the store to determine
what feels best. Manfrotto and Velbon are good brands to start with. If you
want to achieve "Steadicam™" fluidity in moving shots, you can purchase
the Glidecam™ 1000 from Glidecam Industries for about $500. This
hand-held device will "fly" cameras weighing up to four pounds. Apparently,
the results are quite amazing.
LIGHTING
When shooting indoors, any strong tungsten light source will suffice. But
most likely, you will need an independent light source that you can move
around. A good camera store will sell "economy" lighting kits for under $50.
A 100 to 500-watt bulb will provide lots of hard, sufficient light. These lights
burn extremely hot, and are a fire hazard as well as physically dangerous if
left unattended, mishandled, or used with a domestic fixture. Properly used,
however, they'll give you a solid exposure.
Outside, on a bright sunny day, you should have no problem getting an
exposure. The best time to shoot is either during the morning or late in the
afternoon - the "magic hours." When the sun is directly overhead, everything
looks flat on film. But when the sun is on an angle, shadows occur and
create dimension and richer color. When the light is ugly, using filters can
sometimes compensate. More on this later.
A good light meter is essential. Simply put, you dial in your ASA speed, then
your frame rate, and then hold it in front of whatever's being photographed.
You push a button and it tells you the corresponding f-stop. Never trust the
camera's internal light meter.
However, a cross reference with your hand-held light meter is a good safety
precaution. If you have cash to spend, a spot meter will not only give you a
reflective or ambient light reading, but a "spot" reading on any surface that's
not easily accessible - like a ceiling, for example. You simply look through
its viewfinder, aim, and press the button. A light meter will cost anywhere
from $200 to $600. You can find a used one for much less.
SOUND
Kodak has stopped manufacturing sound film. You can still find it on the Net,
but it's disappearing quickly. Therefore, paying extra for a sound camera is
not a good idea unless you're going to stock up on sound film. So how else
does one record sound? The only other proper method is to use a camera
equipped with a "crystal synch" motor (like the Beaulieu 9008) -- the same
way Hollywood does it. This is a motor that runs the camera at an exact,
specified speed with no variation. At the same time, the sound man is using
a tape machine that also has a crystal motor running at the exact same
speed. Then, at the lab, the two are synched up to run together. As this is
quite involving, it is only for professional application. There are a number of
companies who will modify a Super-8 camera with a crystal-synch motor for
under $1,000. However, your camera will still make noise when running
(except for the Canon 1014XLS which is virtually silent), and will most likely
bleed into the microphone. So you'd have to figure out a way to cut the noise
level, or else shoot with a long focal length.
Then again, if you listen to your old home videos, you quickly realize that
there's nothing worth listening to. So instead, take pictures that tell the story.
Before you shoot, think about the sound you want and that could help
determine your style of shooting. Another idea would be to simply record
what you're filming with an external tape recorder and try and synch it up
later, or just mix it as ambient sound for the home movie effect.
When sound is needed, you can often go into an editing suite for about
$120 per hour and add all the sound you need via CDs, narration, and
sound effects. For narration, renting a DAT (digital audio tape) recorder is
well worth the money - about $150 for a weekend. The sound is incredible
and can be arranged and edited with ease because it's digital. This is also
a great way of recording your own sound effects, if you so desire.
FILM STOCK
Kodak only manufactures four types of Super-8 "reversal" film stocks: two
color, and two black & white. These film stocks are called "reversal"
because when processed, there is no negative. The film can be projected
immediately though there is less room for improvement if colour correcting
is needed during a professional transfer to videotape. What you expose is
what you get. But it's also a lot cheaper, because you can "transfer" it to
video tape at home using a cheap telecine unit ($40).
A rule of thumb for Super-8 and 16mm stock: the "faster" or higher the ASA
rating, the grainier the film.
The following Super-8 cartridges have an indicator that tells the internal light
meter what the corresponding ASA speed is so that proper exposure is
achieved.
Kodachrome - 40ASA tungsten/12ASA daylight (tungsten balanced)
This is a special stock that Kodak makes exclusively for Super-8. It has a
fine grain structure and rich colour saturation but no exposure latitude.
Processing is done by Kodak (for free) but takes up to two months to
complete. When shooting outdoors, an 85 filter should be used to colour
balance the image. See "Filters" section.
Ektachrome - 120ASA Tungsten/60ASA daylight (tungsten balanced)
This is your typical home movie film. Lots of grainy texture but, again, no
exposure latitude. This film can be processed at any Super-8 lab. Because
the film is tungsten balanced, an 85 filter should be used to colour-balance
the image. See "Filters" section.
Tri-X - Black & White 40ASA tungsten/12ASA daylight
A beautiful, fine-grain film. Using red, yellow or green filters creates great
contrast effects.
Plus-X Black & White 120ASA tungsten/60ASA daylight
A faster stock for poorer light conditions, but effective when the grunge look
is needed. Great for music videos.
OTHER FILM STOCKS
There is a company in L.A. called SUPER-8 SOUND that developed an
ingenious method of enabling Super-8 cameras to use the entire range of
negative film stocks that Kodak offers for the 35mm motion picture format.
They simply slice the 35mm raw stock into Super-8 strips, add new
sprockets, and load them into Super-8 cartridges. In effect, this means you
can choose from a whole range of daylight or tungsten-balanced stocks at a
variety of ASA ratings from 50 to 650ASA.
The only provision is that the camera has a manually controllable aperture to
manage the variety of speeds. There are no "indicators" on these cartridges
to adjust the internal light meter, so the read out on your camera's light
meter will be useless. This is where your hand-held meter comes into play.
Although many of these negative film stocks offer lots of exposure latitude
and fine grain structure, you cannot project the processed film because it's
--you guessed it -- a negative. This means it must be put onto a Rank
Scanner and colour corrected, then transferred to video tape. And only one
company on Earth can do this. That's right, Super-8 Sound. So, by the time
you factor in the cost of the stock ($33 USD per roll), the transfer ($175
USD per half hour), and the fact that you can't attend the transfer (unless you
live in Burbank), the whole proposition becomes rather expensive. Super-8
Sound does offer package deals that include everything except editing for a
cost-effective alternative to 16mm. If you're serious, and money's no object,
you can produce a beautiful-looking Super-8 film in this manner that can
look identical to 16mm when transferred.
FILTERS
When shooting Super-8, the most important filters are the 80 series when
using daylight-balanced film indoors, and the 85 series when using
tungsten-balanced film outdoors (the film boxes specify 80A or 85B, but
anything close will suffice). Many cameras come with internal filters or
switches that let you go from one to the other. Otherwise, tungsten film used
outside will look bluish and daylight film inside looks orangey.
Other important filters include "extenders" for doing close-up work or
animation, and correction filters for normal fluorescent lighting which always
looks greenish without the filter.
If you try looking for new, "screw-on" filters to fit your small lens, you'll
pay at
least $50 per filter when and if you ever find them. The next best approach is
to buy a filter system that utilizes the "matte box" approach, whereby a filter
holder is mounted to the front of the lens with an adapter ring. Then, you can
purchase 3 x 3 filters that simply slide into the holder. This system also
allows for multiple filters. B&W are an excellent filter company that offers this
kind of system, though expensive, and Cokin, a French company, has a
similar, cheaper system. Both can be used on your 35mm still camera as
well.
Individual Cokin filters cost about $20 each. Henry's has an entire
assortment on display with photos on the packaging that depict what the
filter does. Then, when you know the filters you want, go next door to
Broadway Camera and buy them for less.
Useful filters include the UV filter, the "warm" series filters, the solid
colour
filters for black and white contrast, a polarizer to eliminate reflections and to
"tame" harsh, flat light, the sepia filter, and the graduated filters. The
special-effects filters look pretty hokey unless you're after the hokey effect.
The diffusion filters give you a hazy, smoky quality which translates better on
35mm stills than on Super-8.
SHOOTING TIPS
Don't shoot into the light or you'll tend to get
flares and whiteouts,
especially with reversal film. It's a good idea to use your UV filter
outside.
When shooting outside, wait until early morning or
late afternoon for
the best light scenario.
To create a soft light for portraits, add a round,
Chinese lantern onto a
250-watt fixture for a beautiful effect. These are known in the film
industry as "China Balls" and are used on many major motion pictures
and big commercial shoots. I've often found it ironic that the DP is
shooting with an Arri 535 worth half a million dollars, and lighting with
a $12 China Ball that he made in his basement.
Always use your hand-held light meter.
Use a tripod to achieve stability, especially when
using a long focal
length. o When on a tripod, use a "remote release" trigger to operate
the camera so that you're not overhandling the camera and causing
vibration.
Use angles. Don't just stand and shoot. It's
boring. Get on your knees,
on your back, on ladders and create interesting angles. Only "video
people" stand there and shoot.
There are some fog filters that, when properly
used, can create a
cheap imitation of a fancy "swing and tilt" lens that creates selective
focus.
A blue filter, stopped down, can create a cheap
day-for-night that will
"look" something like DiCaprio's death scene in Titanic.
Another approach is to purchase "gels"
and put them over the lights
so your colour effect has depth of field (this was how that Titanic
sequence was actually lit.)
Always remember that a coloured filter will
"soak up" f-stops. So
always open your aperture one or two stops when using a colour filter.
Standard filming speed is 24 frames per second. If
you shoot at
18fps, you'll save film though you may notice more flaws. Shooting
faster than 24fps will result in a slow-motion effect when played back
at 24fps, while shooting slower than 24fps will create a fast-motion
effect when playing back at 24fps.
If you think that you've over or underexposed the
film, you can tell the
lab to "push" or "pull" the processing for a small charge.
If you decide to edit your footage into a specific
order, you can do this
with a Super-8 viewer/editor ($150) and splice the film together
yourself and then project it. This is the cheap way. Or you can have it
transferred to 3/4" tape or VHS via the ab's or your own telecine for a
small cost. If you're really serious, you can take this transferred
footage to a color correction suite and make it look great for a lot
more money via a tape-to-tape transfer.
There are also lots of small editing facilities
that can help you cut your
film together on the computer, adding in sound, dissolves, titles and
fades. These places usually cost about $150 per hour for a simple,
non- broadcast-quality finished product -- slightly more for broadcast
quality.
EPILOGUE
Not only is Super-8 a great cinematic format unto itself, it's the best way to
learn and respect the process of filmmaking because it's filmmaking in its
purest form. It's a great leaning format not because it's easy, but because it
isn't. It just looks easy. The equipment is easy to use but unlike video, isn't
idiot-proof. To get a great exposure, you have to think on your feet. The film
stock isn't tolerant of laziness or a bad eye, and the margin for error is much
greater than shooting on 35mm. By choosing your subject matter carefully,
the finished, edited product, though more expensive than video, will be
something to cherish and hang onto. You could even enter it in film festivals
if you so desire. Then, once you're making great-looking Super-8 films, you'll
make great-looking 16 and 35mm films out of instinct. In fact, on every
35mm shoot, I bring a Super-8 camera and experiment, learning every
time.
(The article
is extracted from CFS) |