RED means GO

For a DoP (Director of Photography), or Cinematographer as we are, as freelancers, can go for weeks without working. It's tough at times, you have to have other things to do, you have to have hobbies. Luckily, I have many major ones.

Work has been sparse this year. Corporates and music videos. But I just landed a feature project that I convinced them to shoot on a RED. I also had to negotiate a fee. It's low budget comedy feature. Good script. Commercial. The most commercial script i have come across in my 7 years and seemingly the most viable feature to make it to major festivals and a strong possibility to get a theatrical distibition.

I wanted to shoot it but there was a discussion regarding formats as they wanted to shoot on a 5d mk 2 which is a DSLR. Not a professional format and with a large sensor, focus issues and other. I managed to converse with the director and producer who are both good guys and clued up and they took it on board. I was first choice but still, these things can go either way.

Shooting a commercially viable feature on a professional foramt is something I have been waiting to do since I started. Sure I like the creative shorts and idiosincratic but at the same time I need to make a decent living and make work headin that way. And this has possibly come fore.

We hope for things and hope they will materialize though not knowing when. I managed to get a living wage from this feature and it seems it will be great to do. I am excited.

I am just about finishing a feature on Super16mm this year (which begand last May '08). A project I have loved to been a part of. It's an idosyncratic piece of work which stems strongly from mine and the directors mind.

It's a slow crawl but it's worth it. Enjoying what you want to do and getting paid doing it. After shooting and editing corporates and promos this year, I am ready to do a feature 5 week shoot. It's been 4 years since i did a stint like that long. We become a family sorts on shoots. For 5 weeks, it's just heaven. But it is, 6 day weeks with a constant level of managable stress everyday.

I needed more experience on the RED and doing this feature now is fantastic. It can push my often stagnated career forward. But, your work (cinematography) is only as good as the finished film is.

I am still amazed that I can do this for a living. Just about...

- J