This is an outline of our technical stuff for the curious. We chose to create our images in the new HDV format because it was a good compromise of resolution and cost. For more effective dialogue and action coverage, we selected two of the Sony HDR-FX1’s. This was the second HDV camera to come to market, and the most advanced prosumer model available at the time we began shooting. The Sony image is the HDV standard 1440×1080i, with conversion to a 16×9 image accomplished in camera. We didn’t shoot in the camera’s 24p mode, as it is not ‘true’ 24p, and actually decreases overall resolution. Hopefully we can run our footage through a pulldown in post, keeping our resolution while also getting the film look. The engineers behind HDV claim that human visual perception is not as acute horizontally, and anamorphic lens technology used for the last 50+ years would seem to bear this out. Still, I would love to have access to a true 1920×1080 camera. Suffice it to say, the pictures are very nice, it doesn’t look like your birthday video.

We used Apple’s Final Cut Express HD software to edit, and while capturing and exporting footage is timeconsuming, editing within the Apple Codec is easy and relatively fast. More that once I encountered a situation in color correction or compositing where I was able to accomplish a task that only a year ago was the province of *really expensive* machines. I even figured a way to create makeshift power windows in the color corrector.

No surprise that HDV footage, almost 4 times the information of traditional video, creates some huge files. We ended up with 500gigs of stored material, split between a Lacie and Seagate drive. Both were trouble free, but we’ve backed up with a Maxtor 500 just in case.

We have a picture lock! What does this mean, why is Jody excited? Is the movie done? It was actually a few days ago, but I’ve rested since then, and can now tell the story of the edit. In short, the picture is edited, the color is corrected, things look the way they will when we output for a release. There is a long way to go with post audio, but this is a big milestone for the production. The film looks better then I ever imagined, and things really worked out for such a small indie movie. There are a lot of outstanding “wow” moments, and none of the dreaded rupture-of-disbelieif moments: the movie never jumps the shark, to use some TV parlance. Run time (minus end credits) is 01:59. I will now begin work on a new trailer, I hope to output in two sizes: I-pod size and something larger, for those with blazing connection speed. Thanks for staying with us…

So last Friday we saw 95% of the movie rough cut (minus the pickups we were to shoot the next day) with some of the sound crew. Big thanks to our composer Rebecca Wolf-Nail who hosted the viewing and thanks to Scott Waters who was our representative sound guy. It was a fun and interesting night. They didn’t go running off into the hills and seemed to be still interested once they saw the rough cut, so I’ll take it as a good sign. We still could use a few more sound people but it’s a start and it’s encouraging to see the movie cut together. Actors, we should be starting ADR soon, get ready.

Finally we are done with Pickups! It took us a while to get everything together and we’ve actually been shooting pickups for over the past month (which isn’t really what you’re suppose to do with pickups, but we’ve had the rare advantage of having the actors live locally, and so we could shoot as we edited). We started in February with a few small pickups, the old man on the mountain, Captain Krais on the mountain, Andreas, Johan, Thomas, Kael, etc. Then we moved on to bigger action pickups towards the end of February. Thanks again to the Seattle Knights for coming out and really providing an added element of realism to the scenes. Then we took a break for editing, and finals (again, don’t recommend grad school and movie making at the same time, unless the two fields are related, psychology and film don’t necessary). Finally we finished up last weekend (April 1st) with an easy 14 hour pickup shoot. A lot of scenes were just small things that needed to be tweaked and were shot at or around my house. I must have some really understanding neighbors to not say anything even when we have a miniature village, and campfires burning, with flaming arrows flying everywhere, and people on fire screaming. So we are done filming! And we’ll have a picture lock in four days! It has been a huge adventure, and I’ve looked forward every weekend, and some weekdays for an adventure in filming, either on a mountain, river, or whatever, but it’s over. Now, for post production and on to sound…