March 9, 2000

Transferring From DV to Film

by James Monohan

The first thing the digital filmmaker must consider when deciding whether or not

to transfer video footage to actual film is the potentially painful price tag. At the

well-known Swiss Effects tape-to-film transfer house, located in Switzerland, a

10 minute transfer of PAL video to 35mm will cost $5,216. At FilmTeam, a similar

establishment located in Austin, Texas, ten minutes to 35mm goes for $3,750. At

Efilm located in Los Angeles, ten minutes with sound will cost $17,500 (the high

cost being attributed to Efilm's deserved reputation for excellence in quality).

Thus, for a 90-minute feature, one is looking at over $30,000 dollars for a

transfer to 35mm.

If these costs are not enough to dissuade the filmmaker from going ahead with a

transfer, then the next issues to consider are technical in nature and center

around one question: How does one plan and execute video production for an

optimal transfer to film? Here are some tips:

One of the most frequently heard tips related to shooting for film is to shoot on

PAL video, which has 25 fps, closer to film's typical 24fps than NTSC's 30fps. A

better quality will result with PAL.

The choice of video format on which to shoot has a huge impact on the final

product as well. On Swiss Effects' "Good, Better, Best" list, formats like DV and

BetaSP are on the "Better" list, while D1, Digi Beta and DVC-Pro 50 are on the

"Best" list.

Digital cameras offer many options that affect the captured video image during

production. Swiss Effects give specific recommendations for video camera

alignment.

1. Lower the detail setting.

2. Switch on the DCC (dynamic contrast control).

3. The shutter speed should not be faster than 1/60.

4. Switch off the digital zoom.

5. Don't use the electronic picture stabilizer.

Another tip related to camera technique is to avoid fast camera movement when

the subject is stationary or moving in the opposite direction. According to David

Hays at Efilm, "When the frame is moved quickly or someone moves quickly within

the frame, movement is picked up between the video's interlaced fields. When

video is transferred back to 24fps, some field information is taken out, resulting

in a strobing effect rather than a smooth motion."

Additionally, when the speed of a shot is intended to be manipulated, either

slowed down or sped up, these changes optimally should be accomplished

in-camera during production or during the actual film-to-tape transfer. Otherwise,

speed changes as typically accomplished in video will create field-based artifacts

which will be apparent in the transfer to film.

According to Efilm, "Telecine transfer, all edits, as well as dissolves and

composites should be complete at first-field dominance." This advice helps one to

avoid flicker and is especially important for people who originally shoot on film

and are completing effects work digitally; however, it also applies to those who

shoot on video. First-field dominance is also known as odd- or upper-field

dominance. In NTSC video, for example, the frame is composed of 60 interlaced

fields that result in 30fps. The first field is the first upper/odd field, and the next

field is the first lower/even field.

In addition, transfer houses advise that, when creating an NTSC spot exclusively

for cinema release, the piece should be edited on whole frames to avoid adding a

3:2 pull down. However, it is important to realize that the material will appear

sped up when viewed at 30fps. (PAL doesn't have this problem, since it is 25fps.)

A spokesperson for Swiss Effects said, "Moving titles, especially rolling titles, are

in most cases not suitable for transfer to film and should be made on film." David

Hays at Efilm agreed that, "Rolling titles created in the video realm are updated

on a field-by-field basis. In effect, a full image is not available at all times. Hence,

if rolling credits have to be created in video, it is more labor intensive, and the

credits must be created on a frame-by-frame basis." Efilm also cautioned that

titles created on video should avoid saturated colors with fine edges, since video

does not support the resolution of film in the color area.

A digital filmmaker must decide whether to shoot video with a standard 4:3

aspect ratio or an HD 16:9 ratio. Then the film aspect ratio must be determined,

the common options being either 1:1.66 (European standard) or 1:1.85

(American standard).

If the video were shot at a 4:3 ratio, then transferring to a 1:1.66 film format

would require either cutting out a portion of the top and bottom of the frame or

curtaining off the right and left of the screen without losing any of the image.

If the movie were shot at a 16:9 ratio, then a transfer to 1:1.66 would entail that

the right and left portions of the frame would be cut out. If a 16:9 video is

transferred to 1:1.85, then either the top and bottom portions of the frame will

be cut off, or the right and left portions will have to be curtained off without

losing any of the image.

The Future

As time goes on, the cost of video to film transfers will decrease, and the

technology will become cheaper and more advanced. According David Hays at

Efilm, "The programs that do interpolation from 30 to 24fps are getting more

sophisticated, such as Efilm's proprietary technology." Shooting video for film will

become increasingly common.

Presently, two high-profile filmmakers are finishing up digital projects. Spike Lee

shot "Bamboozled" with multiple Sony VX 1000s and Mike Figgis shot "Time

Code 2000" with four MiniDV cameras.

The following is a list of prominent tape to film transfer facilities:

Cineric

Contact: Bob Freeman

212-586-4822

Colour Film Services

Contact: John Ward

DuArt Film and Video

Contact: Domenic Rom

212-757-4580 x690

EFILM: Electron Filmworks

Contact: Carrie Holececk

323-efilm.com

Film Craft Lab

Contact: Dominic Troia

248-474-3900

FilmTeam

Contact: Drew Meyer-Oakes

310-362-8616

Four Media Company

Contact: Beverly Brooks

818-840-7144

Soho Digital Films

Contact: Russ Robertson

888-764-6344

Sony High Definition

Contact: Alexandra Anderson

310-244-7434

Ringer Video Services

Contact: Gail Ringer

818-954-8621

Lukkien Digital Studios

Contact: Marco Fredriksen

Telephone +31-318-698000

Fax +31-318-698099

Swiss Effects

Contact: Jerry Poynton

212-727-3695 (New York)

+41 1 307 10 10 (Zurich)