nofilmschool » format

Opening Up 4K: Sony Expands Consumer 4K Market Compatibility with XAVC S

Dave Kendricken — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 00:24:36 +0000

Sony’s tight cluster of NAB 2013 4K-centric announcements featured some of the most affordably priced UHD TVs yet seen all the way over to the external recorder-enabled 4K shooting capabilities of its FS700. The latter announcement also made it clear that Sony is looking to put a wide variety of encoding and format options into the hands of shooters — and beyond, potentially. Aside from external and third-party recording expansion, Sony is opening up its efficient 4K XAVC codec — native to the F5 family — to the consumer as well as the prosumer. Read on for some details regarding these new ‘lite’ encoding/wrapper options, dubbed XAVC S. (more…)

IMDb's Technical Specs Not Technical Enough for You? Check Out the ShotOnWhat Database

Dave Kendricken — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 20:28:21 +0000

Ever wondered what format, camera model, lens type, finishing format, lens manufacturer, etc. was used to create a certain film? You may have found yourself punching in IMDb as your default movie trivia database, and you may have found some or all such information in the film’s technical specs page — or you may not have. While IMDb has a lot of other coverage to keep itself occupied logging (particularly cast and crew lists), you may find yourself wanting a more detailed and dedicated technical breakdown — enter ‘ShotOnWhat?‘ (more…)

Use Screenplay Format Limitations to Define Your Writing Style

Christopher Boone — Thu, 31 May 2012 20:00:17 +0000

There’s a rumor going around the interwebs that there’s a prequel/not-prequel to Alien coming out soon. Perhaps you’ve heard this rumor, too? Anyway, all this chatter reminded me how difficult it is to create a new world, especially a science-fiction world, when writing in screenplay format (perhaps one of the myriad reasons why I don’t write sci-fi scripts). By virtue of the format, screenplays are economical in their language, and not necessarily conducive to describing entire galaxies yet unseen. And while this certainly isn’t the first time this has been covered, I think this is a great opportunity to revisit screenwriter Walter Hill’s screenplay for Alien and how he used the format’s limitations to his advantage. Instead of long descriptive paragraphs, Hill’s script uses short, clipped descriptions in quick succession to paint this stark new world. Check out a screenshot of the script here: (more…)