It’s 2025. Is motion picture film still relevant? As little as 25 years ago, film was the only choice for cinematic productions, but is now an alternative to shooting digital. There’s a strong case that digital cinema cameras have surpassed film in terms of quality and convenience. But despite that, the film look remains incredibly popular. Many digital productions are finished with very convincing film emulation grades. Why is the film look so popular? For a lot of people, it’s rich contrast, softer highlights and distinctive grain evokes a timeless, cinematic aesthetic which many associate with high-quality storytelling. The film look is shorthand for ‘this must be a quality production’. But it’s beautiful in its own right. Its unique colour palette and grain adds a patina to whatever you shoot, adding something engaging and dynamic to your image. So, even without film’s rich history, the film look is still a relevant tool. When so much time is spent making digital images look like film, it begs the question – Why not simply shoot on film? To better understand the process of shooting film, we produced our latest video on Kodak Vision 3. Shown here is the opening shot on 35mm 4-perf. Image credit: Leon Barnard Why shoot on film? Realistically, shooting film can add complexity, especially if you’re used to shooting digital. But there are a lot of other filmmaking decisions that also add complexity to shoots! For example: Locations, camera movement, shallow depth of field, and lighting. They all...
Published By: CineD - Today