Shooting Dexter with the Sony F23 - HighDef

ShootingDexter withthe Sony F23an interview withRomeo Tirone andDaniel ApplegateAmbitious EndeavorFor Gm Campaignby Bob FisherKingdom of theblue whaleby Christie ParellMad Men: ACinematic Look forHD Broadcastby David Heuring

© Kodak, 2009. Kodak and Vision are trademarks.c o n t e n t shighdef.com6F e a t u r eShooting Dexter with the Sony F23an interview with Romeo Tirone and Daniel Applegate612Ambitious Endeavour for GM Campaignby Bob Fisher14Kingdom of the Blue Whaleby Christie Parell1215Ski Patrol in High Definitionby William Wheeler16HDTV Forum: No OLED TV’s from Samsungby Steve Sechrist17RED One Under Waterby Michael Piotrowski1918HD Tips: Exposureby B. Sean Fairburn19Mad Men: A Cinematic Look for HD Broadcastby David Heuring20Decoding Christianityby David Royle2021High Definition Makeup: A Star is Bornby Bradley M. Look22Scientific Discovery in HDby Andrew Scafetta22Front Cover: Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan. Photo courtesy of Showtime.Vol. 11, Issue 1 | HighDef Magazine is published bi-monthly, free for professionals in all areas of video and film production, nationally by American Press Services, 2247 15 th Avenue West, Seattle, WA98119. PUBLISHER: Conrad W. Denke EDITOR: David W. Thompson PRODUCTION: Gina Griffin Hanzsek DISPLAY ADVERTISING: Call David Thompson at 1-888-282-1776 or e-mail david@highdef.com. Deadline for advertising mechanicals is fifteen(15) days prior to publication date. Current and back issues and additional resources, including subscription request forms, are availableon our website: www.highdef.com. Address changes can also be done online at www.highdef.com/subscribe or mail changes to: HighDef Magazine, 2247 15 th Ave. West, Seattle, WA 98119.

Shooting Dexterwith the SONY F23Photo by Peter Iovino/ShowtimeAn interview with Romeo Tirone – Director of Photography and Daniel Applegate – Digital Imaging TechnicianQ. Romeo, tell us about the production of Dexter and the use of the Sony F23?RT: This is my first TV series and first HD project of this scope. It was definitely my decision toswitch to F23. Last season Dexter was a hybrid show, shooting on HD and film. Sometimes itbecame complicated going back and forth between one and the other so I was looking for anew camera. The way F23 looks and the latitude on it is so broad I feel like now I have to lightit more like film, where last year with the first generation 24P camcorder I had to bring my highlightsdown, where I would use a 20k I used 10k. It allows for more contrast, the esthetics aremore pleasing. It really captures all the information especially in highlights.Q. Daniel you’ve been with the show from the beginning. Were you happy with the switch?DA: It’s frustrating when you are shooting and look at the window and it’s just a white hole, so Itold them about F23. The producers actually looked into RED but everyone felt it wasn’t readyfor the television show, so we kept pushing F23. We finally got it through Panavision and wepretty much were able to keep everything the same - just switched the camera.Q. How was the post-production process affected?RT: If the F23 made it harder for post it would have been a problem. What we do is shoot withHDCAM SR tape and dub down to HDCAM, so their post workflow stays exactly the same.(L – R) James Remar as HarryMorgan, C.S. Lee as VinceMasuka, Michael C. Hallas Dexter Morgan, LaurenVelez as Lt. Maria Laguerta,David Zayas as Angel Batista,Julie Benz as Rita Bennett,and Jennifer Carpenter asDebora Morgan6 7

Michael C. Hall as DexterMorgan and Jimmy Smitsas Miguel Prado8However, post loves what we are getting,because there is so much more range, so muchmore detail so they have more wiggle room.DA: Of the newer cameras, the F23 is theonly one where we can actually burn the lookin without making LUTs, otherwise we wouldmake the LUTs, send them in, and then hopethat in dailies, the right LUTs are applied tothe right scenes. We don’t protect the highlightsor the shadows. If we want somethingblown out we blow it out. We’ve been toldthat they want the dailies to look like theshow is going to look, so that’s what we do.I do try to have a little bit more informationthere so if they do want to bring it down theyhave the option, but overall if it’s going to besunny, we want a hot background.RT: There is a distinctive look to Dexter. Idescribe it as a graphic novel with Scorsese/Cronenberg/Kubrick influence. And we reallytry to keep it that: low wide angle lenses, lotsof movement in the camera, the drama of thelighting. We really try to create different looks;I change the color completely for kill scenes,flashbacks and now for flash-forwards for thisseason. In flash-forwards we are using a neton the rear of the lenses to create a dreameffect look, but then sharpening it up with theshutter.Photo by Peter Iovino/ShowtimePhoto by Peter Iovino/ShowtimeWe are shooting hyper gammas and arefinding they are working really well for us. Ittook us sometime to learn them. There arefour different ones for different purposes, andI think now we have a really good handle onit. We can look at a situation and know whichhyper gamma to go to and get the informationwe need. The F23 gives me the freedomto create the look on set rather than havesomeone else do it in the final color correct.It’s the only place where I can really stamp it inand not have to worry about someone doingsomething completely different in post.I try to use color as an emotional underlineof what is going on in the show. If Idecide to make a certain scene warm or coolor green, post understands that and uses the‘painted in’ look as a basis for color correctingthe scene. With night scenes we’ve been turningdown the gain of the camera to -3 ratherthan pushing as we had usually in the past.This of course meant that I have to add morelight, and the result is much richer and moredetailed shadows, plus reduced noise comparedto the normal +3.Most of the time I shoot wide openbecause of depth of field. I light by eye not bymeter so it tends to be wide open whether Ilike it or not. I think it’s getting closer and closerto film. I am curious whatthe F35 will bring us with beingable to use 35 mm lenses andusing film lens language.Q. Do you do any in cameraeffects?RT: A lot of Dexter’s point-ofviewsare done with speedchanges, so we’ll go fromnormal speed to 48 fps orsometimes from 12 fps to 48fps, and we’ve been doingthis with F23 flawlessly. Whenwe were doing this beforewith a film camera, you’d endup doing two or three extratakes, just to make sure yougot the right effect. Wherewith this you shoot it, youplay it back and you know younailed the right moment. I’musually the one who does thespeed changes, so I’m rightbehind the camera turningthe knob, which is actuallyvery helpful, because I’m rightthere with the actors and cansee the line and really hit it.Q. In which areas would youlike to see improvement?RT: With F23, we still havesome physical limitations, thehand-held devices are still alittle awkward, it balances correctlywith the tape deck on it,but when you remove the deckall the weight goes forward.On some of the sceneswe’ve incorporated the smallerEX1 with the F23, like in an elevatoror car interior. It’s actuallypretty amazing how well thecamera cuts with the F23.I think HD is getting betterand better. I embrace HD,I like it, and I never shy awayfrom it. When I got this showit was mandatory to shoot onHD, but because of all thespeed changes that we do,there were times when I’dshoot the film camera andHD camera side by side. Weno longer have to do this.And that’s cost effective forproducers. Also, I find youreally feel the benefits in yournight exteriors or the low lightwork. On the other hand thereis a little bit more romancein film it makes things look alittle nicer. Like for example,because of HD’s amazingdetail, it’s unforgiving to people’sfaces and we embracethat. However we do try toplay with filters to try to helpskin tones, but the show is nota glamour show. It has thathard edge to it. Although wedo try to make people on theshow look good, that’s not thefirst priority. Visual storytellingto compliment the script isour main goal. HDRomeo Tirone seized theopportunity to go freelance asan Assistant Cameraman onthe groundbreaking hit musicvideo for Run DMC Aerosmith’sWalk This Way. His commercialreputation for “TabletopCinematography” as well as“Live Action Cinematography”steadily grew, workingwith nationally recognizedcompanies such as Giraldi,Red Tree and Radical Media.Shooting Feature Films remainsRomeo’s passion. His work hasbeen in the Sundance FilmFestival (L.I.E. 2001) and TheToronto Film Festival (Twelveand Holding 2005). Romeohas always embraced newtechnologies.Daniel Applegate’s recent DigitalImaging Technician experiencesinclude: Flirting with Forty(2008), Sons of Anarchy (2008),Austin Golden Hour (2008) andThe Riches (2007-2008).Michael C. Hall asDexter Morgan andJames Remar asHarry Morgan9

We never leave wellenough alone.As we always do, we’ve taken our hottest product and made it better. Westarted with the 1920 x 1080 recording and SxS PRO memory cards of thePMW-EX1 camcorder. Then we added the versatility of interchangeablelenses, the fl exibility of Gen Lock and Time Code jacks and the power of8-pin interface for full studio remote control. Presenting the EX1’s biggerbrother, the PMW-EX3. To see all the other ways Sony is exceedingexpectations, visit us online.click: sony.com/prohdna© 2008 Sony Electronics Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited.Features and specifi cations are subject to change without notice. Sony, HDNA, the HDNA logo and SxS PRO are trademarks of Sony.

AmbitiousEndeavor for GM Campaignby Bob Fisher(L – R) Director Tim Damonand cinematographerBill Bennett, ASC withgaffer Dennis Wehr (back)contemplate a shot for theirGM running footage project.William (Bill) Bennett, ASC recentlycompleted shooting his “mostambitious endeavor” for directorTim Damon of Damon Live Action. Bennetthas earned more than 1,000 cinematographycredits for shooting television commercials incollaboration with a who’s who list of directorsat locations around the world.Bennett and co-cinematographer GregBaldi shot 100,000 feet of running footageof General Motors cars and trucks that isbeing used to create national, regional andlocal commercial campaigns introducing 54Chevrolet (Buick), Saturn (Pontiac) and BPG(GMC) vehicles in both HD and standard televisionformats, and also for video displays atdealerships and DVDs.The package was produced by DamonLive Action, and marked Bennett’s eighthproject for Damon during the past year anda half. Caroline von Weyher was executiveproducer, with Nancy Fulton fulfilling line producingduties, and Scott Luhrsen as 1st AD.The Damon Live Action team spent monthsplanning the effort, and collaborated closelywith creative directors from ad agencies,including Campbell-Ewald, Deutsch, Inc. andLeo Burnett.“Television commercials are about lifestyles,”Bennett observes. “You have just 30seconds to connect with individual viewerson an emotional level. We want them to feelwhat it’s like to drive these vehicles in beautifulenvironments.”The running footage was produced atlocations in and around Salt Lake City, Utah,and Denver, Colorado. These locations werechosen by Damon because they providedan array of attractive backgrounds, includinghigh-density residential and retail neighborhoodsin urban settings, and country roadssurrounded by trees, farms and lush greenPhoto by Ambar Capoorgrass. The agencies also wanted deep blue,sunlit skies. Production was scheduled duringmid-mornings and late afternoons whenthe sun was low in the sky, yet still above thehorizon.“It was obvious that we needed the latitudeand nuanced palette of colors, contrastand textures that film provides,” Bennett says.“We captured the footage mainly on a 250-speed (KODAK VISION2 5205) four-perf film,which enabled us to use longer and slowerlenses when they were needed. We also shotsome scenes at higher frame rates for slowmotioneffects. The images were composed in4:3 aspect ratio while protecting for 16:9.”Choreographing the shoot was like producinga complex ballet. There were some120 people involved, including teamsters whoused 14 tractor-trailers to haul and deliver thepicture vehicles to the right places at the righttimes. Four camera crews were working simultaneously.Damon created “shopping lists” ofthe desired interior and exterior shots, includinginstructions for close-up, medium andlong shots, camera angles and movement.The shopping lists consisted of still images ofexterior and interior shots, including anglesthat art directors at the agencies requested.Features of people inside the cars aren’tvisible because the agencies want audiencesto imagine themselves behind the wheel.Windows were coated with a 50 percent“transmission” gel that turned drivers intosilhouettes, with the exception of close-upsof hands pushing buttons, opening compartments,etc.Bennett recorded images with anARRIFLEX 435 Xtreme camera mounted withan Angenieux 17-102 mm zoom lens. Thecamera was on a Technocrane with a FlightHead. Baldi’s unit filmed moving cars withan ARRI 435 ES camera mounted with anAngenieux 15-40 mm Optimo zoom lens. Thecamera was on a Filmotechnics Pro ActionArm and Flight Head mounted on DamonLive Action’s Porsche Cayenne. The third unit,headed by Thom Cox, concentrated on filmingcar interiors with an ARRIFLEX 235 camerawith Zeiss Ultra Prime and Revolution snorkellenses on a miniaturized, motorized dolly thatBennett designed. The fourth unit was shootingcars on Damon’s turntable with a custom,carbon fiber arm used to place it in a fixedposition 10 or more feet from the car.Front-end lab work was done byFotoKem in Burbank, California. RIOT inSanta Monica handled telecine transfer andprovided dailies. HDA shot of the ChevyColorado for theGM running footagecampaign.12 13Photo by Tim Damon

Kingdom of theBlue Whaleby Christie ParellPhoto credit © Dave Adams / NGTAbove: Dr. Bruce Mate,Director of the MarineMammal Institute atOregon State University,and John Calambokidis,Research Biologist ofCascadia Research, prepareto tag a whale.Right: Supported by theNational GeographicSociety, scientists embarkon a revolutionary missionto find, Identify and tagCalifornia blue whales usingDNA samples.Blue whales are the largest creatures toever live on our planet – larger thanany of the great dinosaurs. They are sorare that even experts know little about them.National Geographic Channel’s new high-definitionspecial, Kingdom of the Blue Whale,takes us on a journey over thousands of milesthrough remote waters to unlock the secretsof blue whales and investigate why more aredying than ever before.Filmed during sea voyages off the coastsof California and Costa Rica, and culled fromhundreds of hours of original spectacular HDphotography, the two-hour special followsthe crew as they discover where the EasternNorth Pacific Blue Whales mate, calve, andfeed in the winter.Using National Geographic’s cuttingedgeCrittercam®, an integrated videocamcorderand data logging system thatattaches to the whale’s back with suction, thisspecial features the first-ever footage of theblue whale gulping krill – from the whale’sperspective. Five other HD cameras were alsoused, including the Sony F900, Sony PMW-EX1, Panasonic HDX900, Panasonic P2, andPanasonic Varicam.The rare Blues spend virtually all of theirlives underwater and surface for only secondsat a time. Regarding access to film them,producer Sue Houghton says, “There are onlya limited number of ‘approaches’ for endangeredwhales on each scientific permit, andthe scientists would rather use them for theirown research… Filming whales is the hardestthing I’ve ever done, because they’re so big,so fast, so few, and there are so many limitationson what film crews can do, and whenand how they do it.”In one season alone, four blue whaleswere killed by apparent ship strikes. Aswhale expert Steve Palumbi says, “It’s probablyharder to be a whale than it’s ever beenbefore…I think we have the power to protectthem and let them have that chance.” HDKingdom of the Blue Whale premieres Sunday,March 8, 2009.Photo credit © Dave Adams / NGTSki Patrolby William WheelerProducing Ski Patrol: Crystal Mountain,a new HDTV “reality” series about thedaring rescuers of skiers on treacherousalpine slopes, is a current assignment of LosAngeles-based Varuna Entertainment. Theseries (on truTV) features dramatic HD videoof avalanches, rescues, and skiiing in extremeenvironments. Capturing the cinema veritéstyle of the series in HD necessitated the useof a compact, lightweight camera.“Canon’s XH G1 HD camcorder workedgreat for this series,” notes DP Chun MingHuang. “Its 20x zoom lens is fast. And youcan start off pretty darn wide and go in prettydarn tight.”“Some of the skiing shots were capturedby our camera operators holding the camcorderson monopods,” explains producer PremaBall. “Occasionally the operators would fall,and it was much better that they were holdingthe lightweight XH G1 than a heavier ENGcamera, which could cause as much damageto an operator as the fall itself.”“The XH G1 is light enough to be heldin High Definitonwhile skiing but also produces excellentimage and sound quality, even though we putthem through a pounding for 12 weeks on themountain,” says Bryan Stratte, director of theseries. “Shooting this type of show doesn’tgive you the luxury of set-up times or secondtakes. It’s all in the moment.”Features of the three-CCD XH G1includes multiple frame rates and industrystandardconnections for genlock, HD-SDI/SD-SDI output, and SMPTE time code I/O.“The XH G1’s time code connector is alife-saver for reality production,” Ball elaborates.“We shoot a tremendous amount offootage, and time code gives us the abilityto jam-sync multiple cameras. On Ski Patrol:Crystal Mountain we had four camera crewsspread out all around the mountain. In anemergency they’d all get a call over the radioto get to a certain location. If all the XH G1’shadn’t been jam-synced at the beginning ofthe day, they’d all be on different time codesand it would have been a post nightmare.”HDSki Patrol being shot in HDby DP Chun Ming Huang.14 15Photo by Brooks Werner

hdtvForumb y s t e v e s e c h r i s tSteve Sechrist isan editor/analystat Insight Media, atechnology basedmedia firm specializingin large format andmicro display andrelated industries.Prototype Canon SEDDisplay couldn’t beatthe odds.No OLED TV’s from SamsungSamsung vice president, H.S. Kim in the FlatPanel Development division, announced thatthey will not bring OLED TVs to market anytimesoon. The reason, the technology is currentlyconsidered too expensive, and customerswould not pay the premium, as OLED setswould cost 10 times as much as equivalentLCD or plasma HDTVs, Kim says.In a compelling story in Mobile DisplayReport, display analyst Ken Werner wrote:“The odds against successfully bringinga new display technology to market areimmense, if not quite infinite. The problem isthat the entrenched technology – CRTs nottoo long ago, LCDs and PDPs now – developssuch a massive manufacturing infrastructure,such an efficient supply chain, and sucha wealth of processing know-how for enhancingyields and reducing costs that it’s virtuallyimpossible for a new technology to directlycompete.”In the large display AMOLED space, wemay be facing similar odds, and the Samsungannouncement could be the canary in thecoalmine. While small OLEDs have establishedgood traction in portable products likecell phones and personal devices, migratingthe emissive OLED technology up stream hasproven much more challenging. Adding tothe problem, the life/color and yield requirementsfor large display TVs is much morerigorous than that of small cell phone screensand the like, as evidenced in the recentSamsung announcement.So what will Samsung do in the meantime?In an Electronista article it was stated,“Instead the electronics giant will continueto focus on developing its current LCD andplasma TVs, improving their performancewhile making them thinner and more efficient.This will involve working on integrating 200Hzpanels and LED backlighting into its sets, withmore advanced local dimming LED backlightingand LED edge-lighting to be used in higher-endsets in order to make them super-thin.OLED panels can be just 3mm thick, thoughthe TV itself would need to be 25mm thick(just over an inch), which is what LCD HDTVsare approaching.”Samsung with multi-generational LCDfabs and billions of dollars already invested,has that luxury to choose between the twotechnologies; and given the current economicclimate, the safe bet is on making LCD morecompetitive, and more profitable.But others like Sony don’t have thatluxury and are committed to making (largesized) OLED-TVs a reality in 2009. For Sony’ssake let’s hope those process engineersknow something about making large OLEDdisplays that the Samsung boys haven’t figuredout. Suffice it to say, it’s going to be aninteresting year in the display industry. HDRED OneUnder Waterby Michael A. PiotrowskiRecently, Jordan Klein Jr., veteran underwatercinematographer, collaboratedwith Tampa Digital Studios, a large digitalmedia production company in Florida, tosubmerge underwater, for the first time, RedDigital Cinema’s RED One to capture swimscenes for a television commercial.The 10-pound camera was placed insidea housing made of 6061 aircraft aluminum.Klein built the red-colored casing, knownas Liquid Red, that weighs 80 pounds. Theencased camera was hoisted into a pool setusing a crane device to remotely control thecamera’s movement from dry land.“I noticed a need in the industry, and Iwanted to develop it first,” said Klein, whooperated RED One. “From a technologystandpoint, I feel that the professional housingfor the RED One is as important to theindustry as the Steadicam or Technocrane.”In December 2008, the RED One waslowered into a home pool for the filming ofa 30-second spot for Pinch A Penny, a largeretail pool supply company in the Southeast.The camera’s underwater housing used threeelectric motors to control the lenses—focus,Iris and Zoom. Klein shot the action usingan electronic viewfinder, also housed in anunderwater casing, and electronic cameracontrols.Because the camera and lens functionsare electronically controlled, the housing iscapable of being fully remote controlled.Klein said this makes Liquid Red ideal toshoot in hazardous environments or withcrane operations.“The folks at Red Digital helped us withthe wiring schematics for the camera controlfunctions,” Klein added. HDMichael A. Piotrowski is a producer and publicrelations director at Tampa Digital Studios. www.tampadigital.com, 813.241.2012Above: An underwaterscene from the completed30-second Pinch A PennyPools spot.Top: DP Jordan Klein, Jr.(left, operating camera)and commercial directorRob Tiisler (right, on pooldecking) planning a shot.16 17Photos courtesy of Tampa Digital Studios

hdTipsb y B . S e a n F a i r b u r n S O CB. Sean Fairburn, SOCDirector of Photography,Role Model Productions,LLC. rolemodel@earthlink.netSeanfairburn.com818-621-3912Local 600,Agent Steve Jacob,323-460-4767Day exterior scenes likefestival rides properlytuned maintain color andcontrast.ExposureExposure is a recipe made upof a variety of ingredients.Blacks, gammas or midsand highlights are the basicelements. Most people don’tever take a moment to adjustthe ratios any more than theway the camera was set upwhen it was purchased.To properly take advantageof the wealth of choices concerningexposure, the questionto ask yourself is “What do Iwant to properly expose?”The main subject ofthe shot generally gets theprimary consideration, buthighlights are what can’t befixed in post. Therefore sethighlights with the iris keepingwhites around 100-103.Turning on DCC (DynamicContrast Control) will help getmore information out of yourhighlights.Actors flesh tones generallyfall in the mids and shouldbe considered next. Underexposing is safe, but using thegamma dial on the camera tolift or drop the gamma leveltakes only a few seconds toget what you want it to looklike exactly. Black pedestalshould not be touched after itgets set at 0.However a similar effectcan be done with tweaks tothe black gamma that will giveyou a rich contrasty look (loweringthe level) or by raisingto show you more informationin the dark grey areas of theframe. You must get familiarwith how?, when? and in whatdirection? to make thesetweaks. Your image will greatlybenefit from the extra care.For instance bright dayexterior: Expose for highlights(sky with a ND.6 Grad) at 103IRE, take gamma down to -20and black gamma set at 35%to -40. This will make the scenea bit more colorful and add abit more contrast.Night exterior streetscene: Expose for brightestlights, take gamma up to +30and black gamma set at 50%to +50. This will pull out moreinformation in the dark areasand provide an overall brighterscene without gain and excessivenoise.You have my permission toexperiment. HDMad MenA Cinematic Look for HD Broadcastby David HeuringThe television phenomenon that isMad Men was born in fits and starts.Series creator Matt Weiner wrote thepilot prior to becoming a key player on TheSopranos. After that show’s amazing six-seasonrun, Weiner resurrected Mad Men, whichbecame the first episodic series to air on theAMC (American Movie Classics) cable channel.In its inaugural 2007 season, the showwas nominated for 16 Emmys, the third highesttotal in history, and went on to becomethe first basic cable show in history to claimtop honors in the best drama category. It wonfive additional Emmys, including one for cinematography.Mad Men is set in 1960’s New York andfollows the lives of the men and women at acut-throat Madison Avenue ad agency. ChrisManley, ASC, photographs Mad Men in threeperfSuper 35 format, which trims about 25percent of raw stock and lab costs withoutsacrificing image quality.“Mad Men airs on a movie channel,”Weiner says. “We want it to look and feelcinematic because many people are watchingthe show on big, high-definition screens.”Manley photographs most interior sceneson 500-speed KODAK VISION2 5218 film,and most exterior sequences on 200-speedKODAK VISION2 5217 film. “These films giveus the latitude to record colors, contrast anddetails in highlights and shadows the waythe human eye sees them in the real world,”Manley says.The negative is developed at LaserPacificin Los Angeles. Mace Johnson transfers the filmto 4:2:2 HDCAM SR format using the MTI dailiessystem. Color timer Tim Vincent uses theLustre color grading system to time the film.Weiner, postproduction supervisor NathanielSmith and producer Blake McCormick supervisethe trim pass with Vincent.Mad Men airs in high-definition format onthe AMC HD channel. The series was pickedup for a third season with new episodes airingin 2009. HDMad Men star Jon Hammin the episode “A Nightto Remember.”Photo by B. Sean Fairburn18 19Photo by Carin Baer/© 2008 AMC

A Star is Bornby Bradley M. LookDecoding Christianityby David RoyleAbove: Crucifixions in thePhilippines.Top: The Hill of Crosses inLithuania.20At the television market at MIP inCannes just over two years ago,we were preparing to launch theSmithsonian Channel and I was searching forHD programming. I was surprised to discoverthat it was a rare commodity.Even in 2006, despite the rapid movementto HD by a number of prominentAmerican channels, Europe appeared reluctantto embrace the new technology. UnlikeNorth America, they hadn’t suffered for yearswith the second rate NTSC system and so thejump in picture quality was less appreciable.Surprisingly, one of the companies pioneeringhigh definition in Europe was a smallDublin based company, Tile Films. They startedshooting HD nearly four years previously,as a way to break into the North Americanmarket. Their managing director, StephenRooke, recognized the potential of the newvideo format.Tile’s documentaries were beautifully shotand the Smithsonian Channel soon decidedto embark with Tile and VisionTV Internationalon a major 6 part series DecodingChristianity. Filmed in eleven countries, theseries decodes the signs, symbols, myths andmiracles of Christianity.Decoding Christianity was shot at 25fpson the Sony HDW F900R HD Cam using fairlyneutral settings. This enabled the greatestlatitude for grading in post-production, allowingthe blacks to be crushed and the colorssaturated and enhanced using a Da Vinci 2Ksystem, the look Rooke and his cameraman,Mick O’Rourke, were seeking.Tile Films laments the continuing disinterestby many European broadcasters inHD, but their initiative has paid off. Not onlyhave they built a large future-proofed library,but their programs are selling worldwide.Decoding Christianity was launched on theSmithsonian Channel this month, and isalready scheduled in four other countries. HDhas given this small Irish company, a big competitiveedge. HDDavid Royle is Executive Vice President forProgramming and Production at the SmithsonianNetworks. Decoding Christianity premiered inearly January.Photos by Stephen Rooke / Tile Films, Ltd.On October 3rd, 2008at eleven thirty, themost recent star onHollywood’s Walk of Fame(the 2,370th to be exact) wasunveiled at 1645 Vine Streetin Hollywood. Whereas thisceremony generally honorsan individual, this star paidhomage to true Hollywoodroyalty, the Westmore Family.The Westmore family,as documented in thebook, “The Westmores ofHollywood,” are consideredthe first family of makeupin Hollywood. GeorgeWestmore is credited asstarting the first makeupdepartment at Selig Studiosin 1917. He was paid $25.00a week! George had six sons,Mont, Ern and Perc (twins),Wally, Bud, and Frank. Soonthere wasn’t a studio thatdidn’t have a Westmore incharge of it. The Westmoresdefined the very look ofbeauty and glamour. The7 Basic Face Shapes was aWestmore creation that wasadopted by hairstylists andmakeup artists alike.During the ceremony,honoring the Westmorefamily, noted Producer A.C.Lyles spoke of his first handaccounts of the family members,which, to those who listenedon from the crowd, waslike taking a step back intoHollywood’s glory days!Both Michael and MarvinWestmore spoke on behalfof the family at the ceremonygiving their recollections ofhow their father Mont anduncles shaped not only someof Hollywood’s famous faces,but continue to influencemakeup artistry even today!It was a wonderful opportunityand I consider myselfvery lucky to have had a brushwith a makeup dynasty suchas the Westmores! HDPhotos by Bradley M. LookLeft: Michael Westmoreproudly holds theplaque dedicating theWestmore star.Below: The WestmoreDynasty finally receivestheir star on Hollywood’sWalk of Fame.21

Scientific Discovery inHD© 2009 Discovery Communicationsby Andrew ScafettaScientists work on the SiliconStrip Vertex Detector.22From becoming more eco-friendly andinventing new products, to seekingcures to disease or famine, science andscientific discovery is the engine poweringadvancements around the world. On Brink,The Science Channel is examining how thisengine is changing or will change the way welive.Designed as the source of interactivescience based information on television,Brink is immersing viewers on the frontlinesof cutting-edge breakthroughs and mysteriesof the scientific world. For instance, physicistand former astronaut Franklin Chang-Diaz hasdeveloped, and is working to perfect, plasmarocket propulsion with his company Ad AstraRocket Company. The plasma technologycould increase the speed of rockets morethan three fold, and make the trip from Earthto Mars 39 days as opposed to almost oneyear. Another company has designed a newweapon in firefighting. The FIT-5, a grenadelikedevice that uses chemistry to knock downflames in small areas rapidly, limits injuriesto firefighters and victims and helps reduceoften costly property damage.And the breakthroughs aren’t onlycoming from elaborate research facilities.Science innovation is also coming from“backyard inventors” who are pushing thelimits of science in their own way. One suchgroup, Illuminati Motor Works, consists ofcar enthusiasts who are trying to win theAutomotive X Prize by building a practical,clean car that gets 100-miles-per-gallon.Potential advances in solving severalproblems are also coming from mushrooms.Researcher Paul Stamets believes mushroomshold the key to cleaning up pollution,providing fuel for our cars, combatingchemical weapons, treating bacterialinfections and much more.Filmmakers rely on the Panasonic HDX900 HD Camera and the Sony HDV HVR-A1 inthe field, and the HDC-1500L in the studio tocapture vivid detail and inner workings of theexperiments, inventions and research that willchange tomorrow. HDRegardless of the important role you play in the creation of content,from conceptualization through production and post-production, theNAB Show delivers the tools and techniques to give life to your nextaward-winning vision. Experience a wealth of hands-on educationalopportunities designed to expand your know-how and abilities. See,touch and test the advancements influencing today’s edgiest content,from HD to 3D, editing, and the latest in animation, gaming, widgets,social networking and more.Conferences: April 18–23, 2009 / Exhibits: April 20–23Las Vegas Convention Center / Las Vegas, Nevada USAwww.nabshow.comFrom big screen to small screen to no screen and beyond, the NABShow is the ultimate venue for exchanging solutions and strategiesfor creating award-winning content to be viewed by local, nationaland global audiences. Join the world-wide community of professionalswho share your passion for entertainment excellence. For moreinformation, visit www.nabshow.com.FREEExhibitsPassportUse code A510 whenregistering online