Why Are We Still Making Film the Old Way?

Let me start with a full disclosure. I work for a company that makes some of the products I’m mentioning here. I don’t want you to take that the wrong way. I’m still a filmmaker and actively use tools like these to produce content on literally a daily basis. But I know sometimes people get fussy, think I’m just promoting a product. In this case, that is true, but for all the right reasons.

The Old Ways Are Dead

I’ve been in the industry for over 30 years now, which means I started off in the days of film, when post production was inherently compartmentalized, because it had to be. Each element of film production was using its own technology. A film camera shot the material, a lab had to process the negative to be viewable, make dailies (or rushes as we also called them), then, when video became a thing, the film was transferred to video, and then cut, etc. Nothing was handled even in the same room, much less the same system.

But that isn’t the case anymore. Now, with computers in the mix, and software, we actually live in a world where you might work with the camera original file all the way to the mix. Sure, a camera shoots the footage, but that data is immediately transferred, via computer, to a storage device, and that material lives in the world of computers until delivery (and often even after delivery).

So why are people still treating the industry like the old ways? Mostly because of habit. I ask editors all the time why they cut in AVID, and the answer is, “because its what I’m used to.” I get it. Learning new stuff isn’t necessarily hard, but it can be disruptive, just like trying a new camera, or buying new shoes. Nobody likes change if they can avoid it.

But sometimes change can be good.

The problem with some of these older editing packages, for example, is they only do one thing well. Sure, many try to also offer other tools, but let’s be honest, do you ever think of grading in AVID?

How Can the Mysterious Cloud Help You?

Everybody is talking about the Cloud, almost as much about AI, though we won’t delve into the latter here. Cloud services have really become the go-to solution for a lot of industries. Being able to offer a shared resource to anybody you want that has internet makes a lot of sense, but as with any crazy technological advancement, it’s critical to figure out how the tool will work to make your work better, easier, cheaper.

Recently, I began playing with Blackmagic Cloud, which is integrated into DaVinci Resolve, along with Blackmagic Storage. It is such a strangely unique solution that I don’t think a lot of people know about it. The basic idea is this: You shoot your footage and load it into Resolve (like while on set), which uses a shared Cloud project database. When you load the footage into Resolve, it copies the footage (proxies only or, if you want it to, proxies and camera originals) to Cloud Storage. Now, anybody who has Resolve and is added to that project can access not only the footage but the project itself. An editor can be cutting on a timeline while a colorist is grading… on the same project at the same time.

Pretty cool.

Recently, I was working with two filmmaking groups (shout out to LeagueofFilmmakers.com and CinematographyforActors.com) that were holding their Film Challenge, a contest where filmmakers must produce a film in 72 hours. I attended the screening at the end, and was shocked by how many films were ungraded, how many didn’t have sweetened audio, or simply how many filmmakers said they had run out of time. I mean, I get it; making a film that fast is hard, and with production often absorbing the bulk of your time, its sometimes just a challenge to get a decent edit done, much less having time for any finishing.

But I started thinking: Why aren’t people using modern tools to make these fast turnaround contests a cakewalk?

I’m actually trying that now with a small student group through the non-profit TrueColorsCollective.com. The idea is that several teams of students join up; a director, cinematographer, DIT, editor, and colorist. Each project is set up with a Blackmagic Cloud project and some storage. While shooting, the DIT uploads proxies via their laptop to the Resolve project, and the editor immediately begins to edit. I mean, they edit WHILE the shoot is going on, actually while they are shooting that same scene. The DIT messages within the system with the editor, and can share with the director and DP a rough cut of the edit before they break that setup and move on, ensuring they didn’t miss something, or prefer to redo something. This goes on throughout the shoot, and then throw in the colorist who can grade those rough cuts throughout the day as well, meaning the DP can see their shots graded AND cut in context to ensure they are getting what they need.

It’s like magic. When the shoot is done, there is already a rough cut of the film (if not one that is on the way to a polish) as well as graded shots. Everybody is on the same page. No mysteries, no “wait until editorial” to discover problems. The art of filmmaking suddenly becomes truly collaborative, instead of the truncated, compartmentalized thing it used to be.

So Why Aren’t People Using This More?

Good question. Ummm, lack of knowledge? Fear? Stuck in old ways? I get it. What editor wants to learn a new program? What director wants to have an editor whispering in their ear while still shooting? It can be annoying if approached poorly, but that’s the key. The approach and attitude are what make it work.

Years ago, I was a visual effects supervisor and Executive Producer at a visual effects house in New York. We were doing a lot of early Netflix work, Marvel shows like “Jessica Jones” and “Daredevil.” It was about that time that the new paradigm of “Binge Viewing” was coming into play, mostly started by Netflix itself. It’s so common now that you may not realize it was so new then. Most shows came out with an episode once a week, so you’d have to wait for the next installment. Like a WHOLE WEEK! Some didn’t mind this, but I guess Netflix had other ideas. They began delivering EVERY episode at once, which allowed a fan to watch the entire season like a very long movie. Binge Watching.

But with that new paradigm also came something I began calling Binge Delivery. In the past, for all of post production, a team would work on an episode or two at once, often in various stages of delivery. An editor might be doing an assembly of one episode while working with a director on another episode, and also doing final polishes on a third. But ultimately, one episode delivered at a time.

With Netflix’s new approach, we would be delivering every episode in one massive batch, just before the release. Many thought this was a horrible idea. For one thing, billing had to be changed because we used to bill each time we delivered an episode, but since we were holding them all until the end, we found we were floating the costs of the work for months, which is no way to run a company.

But what we began to realize is that Binge Delivery was a good thing. As artists, we found we might re-open an episode because we learned something new in a later one, which made the whole show better. We could work longer on complex VFX shots, even if from an early episode, and get them right rather than just getting them done. The idea of working on the show as one whole product rather than each piece allowed us to be more creative, and the shows were better because of it.

Let’s Call It Binge Production

We are faced with a similar world these days, with tools like DaVinci Resolve and Blackmagic Cloud. While there might be growing pains, learning a new editing package, discovering how to best communicate in real time without being disruptive, the ultimate gain, just like Binge Delivery, will be a better project, no matter what size it is.

I’m honestly not sure why studios and network shows haven’t picked up on this. In addition to making a better show, you deliver that show much faster! Which saves money. Who doesn’t like to save money?

But for us indie folk, it's about something else. We always want to make a better product, and sometimes technology provides us with a solution that really costs nothing much, but will enhance our work tenfold. I think this solution is that technology.

And to be fair, there are other solutions around that provide something similar, at least in part. The beauty of Resolve, though, is that it is one integrated solution, all packaged up nicely. You can even use the free version of Resolve!

Back to the disclaimer: I work for Blackmagic Design. But looking past that, I use Blackmagic Cloud and Resolve to work on projects with people from around the world, so if you can look past the slight bias, you can see that I use the product all the time, and know many others (who don’t work for the company) that do, too!

I think, despite any bias it's always important to be open to new things, to find ways to make your projects better. The effort will always pay off, and what’s more important than your film or series being the best it can be?

Nothing.

So, embrace the Cloud, any cloud, and use the tools that are out there. You might learn something, and you might find that the new ways are often better. As Bradley Cooper sang in “A Star Is Born”…

Maybe it’s time to let the old ways die.

Let's hear your thoughts in the comments below!

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