Last month Blackmagic Design asked me to direct a behind-the-scenes documentary for a film they sponsored “Pirate’s Story”, Just premiered yesterday during NAB.
The narrative film I documented was produced by Blackmagic in conjunction with a local production company called Moai Films. The idea was to demonstrate the URSA Mini 4.6K production capabilities in the real world while editing the entire project in DaVinci Resolve 12.
The behind-the-scenes part of this project, which I handled, was handled the same way. We shot the entire BTS sequence using Blackmagic’s Micro Cinema Camera and the footage was edited in DaVinci Resolve 12. The only footage in the BTS video that was not shot with a Micro Cinema Camera was the interview material, which I shot with a URSA Mini 4.6K. The actual footage for the narrative film (shot by Lukas Colombo) was of course also shot on the URSA Mini 4.6K, not the Micro.
I edited and graded this BTS piece entirely in DaVinci Resolve 12, which is becoming my go-to editing platform for many projects. I also used FilmConvert to colorize some of the BTS footage in Resolve, which gave it a nice final touch before exporting.
Please note that the narrative shots in “Pirates’ Tales” were not shot or graded by me. My footage consists entirely of all BTS footage and interviews.
As far as technical details go, I don’t use speed enhancers on my microcine cameras and shoot primarily with the Tokina 11-16mm F2.8 and Canon 24-70mm F2.8. I shoot wide open most of the time, usually with a Tiffen Vari-ND filter on my lens. I use Atomos Shogun to monitor video, but the Shogun is not recorded at all. The footage you’ll see in the BTS videos is all recorded internally to SD card in ProRes 422.
You can view the video here:
Overall, working with Micro Cinema cameras was great – both on set and in post. The camera’s small form factor allowed me to work very quickly and in some cases helped me get into some very tight spaces where I simply wouldn’t be able to shoot with a larger camera.
I’m really impressed with the quality this little micro movie camera brings to the table. In my opinion, it has the best color reproduction of any Blackmagic camera, and although it has slightly less dynamic range than the URSA Mini 4.6K, the images it produces are great.
I’ll be sure to write a more detailed article on microfilm cameras in the future, but for now be sure to check it out My previous test video “MICRO”a small project I put together to try out a new camera.
The full version of “Pirates’ Story” and other Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K footage can be found here Please visit the BMD website.
That’s it for now! Be sure to check back soon for more updates, tips, reviews and news from NAB!
