HD Expo Q&A

HD Expo Asks is a straightforward Q & A from leaders in the industry about the issues and concerns from our technology and entertainment community. (click for PDF)

HD Expo: What capture, editing and/or graphic technology advancements, if any, do you see reshaping our industry in 2007?

Randall Dark: Our industry is experiencing a radical change. No longer will we be dependant on traditional image capture, editorial and most importantly distribution methods. Although we have constantly said"Content is King," the financial truth historically has been"Distribution is King" and the creative content suppliers were always at their mercy.

Technology is allowing creative minds to have more control over the entire food chain. I can shoot and edit a killer product and have 10 million viewers download it worldwide within hours.

Presently the quality of these downloads is primitive and image resolution during the capture phase is almost irrelevant. That will soon change.

The real quandary is how to monetize this new distribution chain.

HD Expo: How do all the technology choices impact the end user/consumerand what should we, the creators be aware of ?

Randall Dark: The Achilles heel of the content creator is resolution. With the advent of prosumer technologies like HDV that can rival DigiBeta, where do you draw the line? How low is the benchmark? I firmly believe thatfuture sales will be hampered by limited resolution. Content needs toremain robust no matter what the native resolution of the display is.

The $10K HDV camera appears to be an incredible buy. Don’t get me wrong - for certain uses it is. I don't want to risk future revenue on the possibility that the resolution of this technology isn't goodenough. Most HD broadcasters limit the amount of HDV content they'll allow in their HD programs. Display devices are getting better daily. Will the lower bit rate devices hold up in the long run? Time will tell. The good news is that the high-end cameras and editing systems are improving greatly while their price points are dropping. The bad news is you get what you pay for. A $100K camera gives you a $100K image and a $10K camera gives you a $10K image.

HD Expo: What area(s) of our industry do you see as a leader in future technologies? Do you have any examples of what would demonstrate this?

Randall Dark: The internet has changed our daily lives more then any other technology since Television. The future technology that gets my high quality content into the consumer's hands while bypassing the traditional gatekeeper/distributor will be the killer product.

In the very near future, it will be common practice for programs to be downloaded to a display or listening device with the content creator in control of it all. Take a look at what YouTube is doing as the first level example. Right now it's a mess and is mostly used for sensational 2 minute clips. Even in its primitive development it has had an amazing impact! It has generated millions of dollars of venue for early adoptors and creative minds that have figured out a way to monetize that particular service.

We are about to enter a Platinum Age where content is truly King and we the originators will have more, if not complete control over the distribution.

Dark gives keynote address

Randall P. Dark will give the keynote address at the Playback Production Innovation Forum in Toronto. A Canadian, the trip will be a return (of sorts) to Dark's roots. In 1986, he was given the opportunity to work in High Definition in Toronto and knew it was the future of images. A few years later he founded HD Vision in New York City. The company's mandate was to specialize in the growth of HD. Dark has never looked back since, becoming an undisputed pioneer and leader in the emerging industry.

HD Insights

While at the High Definition Summit in Los Angeles, Randall Dark was interviewed by Dale Drewery for High Def Consult.

HD INSIGHTS

Randall Dark knows a good thing when he sees it. Introduced to high definition back in 1986, he was convinced it was the future. Two decades later, HD is very much the present, and Randall Dark is one of the technology’s biggest pioneers. The creative force behind HD Vision in New York City / Dallas and HD Vision Studios in Los Angeles, Dark has recently launched his new company, Randall Dark Productions.

Dale Drewery met with Randall Dark in December at the High Definition Summit in L.A. They began by talking about Dark’s latest film Closing Escrow, a mocumentary lampooning the real estate business.

Randall Dark: “The method we used was having the cameras (HDW-F900/3 CineAltas) feed a G4 loaded with Final Cut Pro. So when shooting a complicated dinner scene, for example, we were able to edit it in real time. Then, at the end of the scene, I’d bring our first-time director into what we called “the temple”, which is where we had our HD gear. We’d look at a rough edit of the scene, agree that we needed a master shot here or there, or perhaps it was perfect, and we’d be able to move on. So, by understanding and maximizing the technology we were able to shoot an incredible amount of material (57 hours of footage, using two cameras, over fourteen days) and get exactly what we wanted.”

“On top of that we were color-timing as we went. Two reasons why this is important - number one, you are saving a ton of money in post because it’s already pretty close to being perfect. That’s because it so quick to adjust things in the field, like the lighting and the paint menu in the camera, and really nail your look. The other reason is that when you are setting up a scene that connects to something you shot days earlier, you can pull up your edited version on the G4, which allows the DP, director and actors to look at and say, “OK, I’ve got the feel, got the look, let’s light this”. And that saves a lot time.”

Dale Drewery: “What about that often-heard caution that one should wait until post to really commit to a look?”

RD: “As an artist, I just find it bizarre that, if I’m creating an oil painting and I get it close to what I want, I have to give my work to some stranger in post to finish it for me. I don’t want that to happen to anything I create, so that’s why I love the immediacy of high definition – I see what I get. That being said, if I’ve changed my mind I can still strip it down, and add and subtract. Because I’m in a digital world, I can almost do anything I want.”

DD: “How much do you estimate you saved on “Closing Escrow” by shooting it in HD and all that entailed?”

RD: “Because our movie was well under a million dollars, and we pulled the trigger a lot, we probably saved about 38%. But then every project I’ve ever done in high definition has been under budget and on time. One of the things that people don’t often take into account is that, when you shoot film, you shoot for 10 minutes maximum and then you have to change mags, which means that the director goes out for a cigarette, the actress/actor gets coffee, etc. I’ve been on film sets where they are shut down for 20-minutes, even though it only takes them four to five minutes to reload. When I’m directing, and we’re shooting 50-minute loads, we don’t let anyone know when we’re changing tapes. My AD just comes up and touches me on the shoulder, and I talk a little longer. That’s 15 to 20-seconds out of your shooting day, versus 20-minutes.”

DD: “You’ve talked about high definition technology leveling the creative playing field. How so?”

RD: “Film stock is very expensive, and so is processing. Shooting film takes years to understand and perfect. High definition is very immediate, and you can learn to shoot with it very quickly. The other thing I love is that we are looking at very different distribution streams. You no longer have to rely on the kindness of strangers, like the studios. Now if you can’t get your foot in the door, you create your own studio. Give me a camera and Final Cut Pro and I can make a movie, and one that is good enough technically that you can enter it into any film festival in the world. At the end of the day, when a movie-goer is sitting in the theatre eating popcorn and watching your story he or she doesn’t care which technology it was shot with. As long as the willing suspension of disbelief kicks in, they enjoy the ride.”

DD: “HD is also opening up new revenue streams. What has been your experience with those?”

RD: “A good example is “evergreen” material. Since I had never been to Hawaii, I wanted to go and do a half-hour show about the islands. I started by talking to technology manufacturers to see whether they needed any eye-candy for CES (the Consumer Electronics Show) or some (equipment) testing. Some did, so I got a little bit from here and a little bit from there, and put together enough financing to break even. I created Wild Hawaii and then approached broadcasters, and they bought it. Then I hooked up with Footage Bank and said, “I’ve got 40-hours of incredible Hawaii raw footage, can you sell it?” They said, “Of course.” So something that may have cost me $40,000 has already paid for itself a few times over from the auxiliary streams. And, more importantly, for the rest of my life, people will be buying my digital, widescreen, high-resolution images. You’ve got to love that.”

from High Def Consult

Randall Dark Opens Production Company

HD PIONEER RANDALL DARK OPENS PRODUCTION COMPANY

Randall Dark has gone his own way again. After nearly 14 years with HD Vision, he's opened Randall Dark Productions in Los Angeles. His inaugural projects include documentaries in China and music videos for cell phone and iPod screens--all in HD.

Dark said he sold out his interest in HD Vision to Steve Wiener, who became Dark's partner in 2002. Wiener, in turn, has rolled the HD Vision studios and broadcast center into Illuminate, a high-end production/post-pro facility in Hollywood. Dark said he was ready for name "HD Vision" to be put to rest because HD is no longer visionary. Everyone's doing it.

Dark, however, was one of a handful of people shooting high-definition projects in the 1980s, starting with a miniseries shot in Toronto.

"I bought all the first-generation HD gear," he said, including analog open reel VTRs at $350K a pop, and tube cameras. "Then everything changed from 15:9 to 16:9... so I got killed constantly."

At the time, however, Dark was more focused on pioneering HD than turning a profit. He recalled doing live HD broadcasts more than 10 years ago for Network Event Theater. The shows were broadcast via satellite to college campuses and dubbed "broadcast cinema" because d-cinema was not yet a part of the vernacular.

Dark founded HD Vision 1992 in New York, "when HD was user hostile and unbelievably expensive," he said. He eventually moved the business to Dallas to embark on multicamera productions.

"In the early years of HD, we could only afford one or two trucks, so we had to be in the middle of the U.S.," he said.

Dark intends to open offices in Austin, Texas later this year, and in New York a year or so after that, to be "positioned to see what's coming over the next 10 to years."

"The world is going digital HD widescreen broadband," Dark said. "Ten years from now, you'll be able to search for 'Randall Dark Productions,' and get our stuff," which might very well include HD videos for cell phones in China.

"We're in a world where you can close your eyes and imagine it, and you can do it. And now," he said, "it's cost-effective."

from TV Technology

Capturing HD Eye Candy

LG Electronics will soon release a brand new line of 1080p-capable flat-panel digital HDTVs—more than a dozen plasma and LCD models—which the company will showcase during the upcoming CES tradeshow, Jan. 8-11 in Las Vegas. Since these new displays have superior image resolution capabilities over previous models, the manufacturer naturally wants to strategically illustrate those capabilities at tradeshows like CES, and at retail locations. Therefore, as is common in the industry, LG commissioned specially shot imagery for such display applications.

In this case, LG turned to HD acquisition and production experts Randall Dark, president of Los Angeles-based HD Vision Studios, and Kristen Cox, president and CEO of 16x9 Productions, also in LA, to provide what Dark calls “eye candy”—brilliant footage LG could use to illustrate the capabilities of its new line of HDTVs.

Read the entire article at Digital Content Producer Magazine.

Dark takes the heat for LG Electronics

High Five
HD Pioneers Cox and Dark Take the Heat and Capture Spectacular Footage

Spectators at a drag race in Tucson, Arizona rubbernecked in amazement as an unusual looking vehicle crossed their paths over and over again throughout the day. It wasn’t a top fuel funny car or even a jet. It was an all-terrain vehicle with a portable high definition VTR, a nine-inch HD monitor, a tripod, a ton of batteries and motley HD crew piled on.

HD pioneers, Kristen Cox and Randall Dark were hired by LG Electronics to capture HD demonstration content in 1080p at 4:2:2. The content is destined for use in retail stores nationwide where it will demonstrate the capabilities of LG’s 2007 flat-panel digital HDTVs.

Equipped with Sony F-900 Cine Alta cameras owned by HD Vision Studios, Cox decided to rent the SR-1 VTR and cart the machine and monitor around.

The production team members varied from location to location. In all the production shot five separate demo programs for LG. “Nature” was shot on location at the LA Zoo, Three music videos, “Legacy,” “One Day” and “Like an Ocean” by artists Dennis Lamar and Angie Paris, were shot on location in Waco, Texas and the drag race, “Speed,” was shot on location in Arizona.

Arizona was the location where ATVs were utilized.

In Los Angeles and Waco, Cox and her team traveled on a rolling cart and a Mag Liner. Shooters Dark, Allan Westbrook and Dave Nash were tethered by coaxial cable to the cart or ATV where DIT, Sean Fairburn managed the images being recorded directly to the SR.

Cox directed from the vantage point of the nine-inch HD monitor. The cart carried the VTR, monitor batteries and small sundries. They also carried lenses, additional batteries, chargers, and other gear.

“Each location presented its own set of challenges. The one common thread was that we went through batteries very quickly and all but one of our set-ups were outdoor locations where power was not available. We had to get pretty creative when it came to finding a place to charge batteries. In Waco, we used Baylor University’s campus and had to be prepared to shoot between classes or else deal with a herd of college students passing through. The drag race presented us with a very large venue to cover and some tricky camera angles .Oh yeah, and there was the catastrophic bodily harm risk as well,” says Cox.

“Kristen Cox and Randall Dark are pioneers in HD program production, true experts in their field, always pushing the envelope of creativity and HD production techniques,” says John Taylor, vice president, public affairs, LG Electronics, USA. “So it made perfect sense for LG to reach out to HD Vision Studios and 16x9 Productions to produce unique and compelling 1080p programming for our newest full HD flat-screen HDTVs.”

from Digital Cinema Report

Pioneering Shoot in Native 1080p

LG Electronics, HD Vision Studios and 16x9 Productions Shoot Pioneering HD Content

Spectators at a Drag Race in Tucson, AZ, rubbernecked and queried each other in amazement as an unusual looking vehicle crossed their paths over and over again throughout the day. It wasn’t a Top Fuel Funny Car or even a Jet. It was an all-terrain vehicle with a portable HD VTR, a 9-inch HDTV monitor, a tripod, a ton of batteries and a motley high-definition (HD) crew piled on.

Such attention isn’t unusual for HD pioneers Kristen Cox and Randall Dark, who’ve done their share of shooting with the latest HD technologies manufacturers have to offer. When hired by digital television leader LG Electronics to capture HD demonstration content in 1080p at 4:2:2, the adventure was on. Equipped with Sony F-900 Cine Alta cameras owned by HD Vision Studios, Cox decided to rent the SR-1 VTR and cart the machine and monitor around.

The HD production team, whose members varied from location to location, shot five separate demo programs for LG. “Nature” was shot on location at the LA Zoo; three music videos, “Legacy,” “One Day” and “Like an Ocean,” by artists Dennis Lamar and Angie Paris, were shot on location in Waco, TX, and the aforementioned drag race, “Speed,” was shot on location in Arizona.

Arizona was the location where ATVs were utilized. In Los Angeles and Waco, Cox and her team traveled on a rolling cart and a Mag Liner. Shooters Randall Dark, Allan Westbrook and Dave Nash were tethered by coaxial cable to the cart or ATV where DIT, Sean Fairburn managed the images being recorded directly to the SR. Kristen Cox directed from the vantage point of the 9-inch HD monitor. The cart carried the VTR, monitor batteries and small sundries. The Mag Liner was loaded with lenses, additional batteries, chargers, etc.

“Each location presented its own set of challenges . The one common thread was that we went through batteries very quickly and all but one of our setups were outdoor locations where power was not available. We had to get pretty creative when it came to finding a place to charge batteries. In Waco, we used Baylor University’s campus and had to be prepared to shoot between classes or else deal with a herd of college students passing through. The Drag Race presented us with a very large venue to cover and some tricky camera angles—oh yeah, and there was the catastrophic bodily harm risk as well,” said Kristen Cox, Director.

The content is destined for use in retail stores nationwide, showing off the capabilities of LG’s 2007 flat-panel digital HDTVs, which will include more than a dozen “Full HD” plasma and liquid crystal display (LCD) models with 1080p display capability. LG Electronics is the world’s largest maker of TV flat panels and longtime leader in HDTV technologies, meaning that LG is well positioned to bring the latest high-definition technologies like progressive-scan 1920 x 1080 screens to market.

“Kristen Cox and Randall Dark are pioneers in HD program production, true experts in their field, always pushing the envelope of creativity and HD production techniques,” said John Taylor, vice president, public affairs, LG Electronics, USA. “So it made perfect sense for LG to reach out to HD Vision Studios and 16x9 Productions to produce unique and compelling 1080p programming for our newest Full HD flat-screen HDTVs.”

With post production complete and the demo programs in their finished form, customers will marvel at the clarity and resolution a lion’s golden, yellow eyes. They’ll see flesh tones accurately represented as Dennis Lamar walks across on a sunlit suspension bridge or as Angie Paris stands among a garden of roses. And they’ll be blown away by the contrast of a jet engine at night that suddenly lights up white-hot when flames blast at ignition.

reposted with permission from TVB | Television Broadcast