The Importance of Reference

Earlier this month I was approached to work on a “fashion music video” that was used to release a new song while highlighting the Christy Dawn clothing line.  Definitely not something that you come across everyday.  I saw some of the raw footage and checked out the rough cut.  It had a lot of potential –…

Color and Box Office Results

One thing that I have learned over the years is that box office success (or lack thereof) is not a direct reflection upon the quality of the color grade.  Everyone loves to work on good movies.  It’s fun, exciting, and the buzz around them is almost tangible.  But what about the movies that you can…

Dos Equis passing the torch

Over the past 10 years one of the most identifiable campaigns has come from Dos Equis and “The most interesting man in the world”.  Havas Worldwide executed an extremely clever, unique, and sharp campaign that has been called one of the best of the 21st century.  Just this past week Havas announced that they are headed in a new direction and swapping out…

Cinematography Database

I have had a couple of interactions with cinematographer Matt Workman over the years.  He’s originally from Boston, so we have quite a few mutual contacts.  Every now and again, I’m lucky enough to get some of his work in the color suite and it’s always top notch. Recently, Matt has launched Cinematography Database.  It’s…

Advanced Technologies = Enhanced Experiences

As colorists, there is a fine line between the creative and technical aspects of our jobs.  We need to be able to address our work in a manner that allows for an innovative and unique approach.  But at the same time, we need to be aware of the new technology that is constantly changing and evolving. I…

The Story of Sarah & Juan

The funny thing about working in this industry is that even when we’re away from work, we’re never really away.  Television and movies are part of our everyday lives.  It’s really hard for me not to pay attention to the details.  Sometimes I try to turn off the “work” switch and just sit back and…

Technicolor’s workflow on The Revenant

Technicolor recently released an article that offers a behind the scenes look at their contribution to the award winning film, The Revenant.  I haven’t seen the movie yet, but from what I gather it looks like another hit from Alejandro González Iñárritu. The article hits upon Technicolor’s contributions to the film in extreme conditions while working with Alexa…

Pixar Color Palettes

I love these sites that display the color palettes of our favorite movies.  I have posted similar links in the past and they really showcase the subtle decisions that help set the tone and feel of a movie.  The people at Pixar are masters at evoking all sorts of emotions from their audience.  Their entire catalogue is…

Tone and Palette of “Carol”

I came across this article the other day and found it quite interesting.  I don’t know much about the movie, but this writeup definitely piqued my interest.  Colored by John Dowdell on Quantel Pablo Rio the look of the film is incredible.  This quote really grabbed me and I think it’s a perfect explanation of the feel that…

Go Creative Podcast

I was recently asked to partake in a podcast for the Go Creative Show with Ben Consoli to recap all things post production in 2015.  Along with cinematographer Chris Loughran and audio mix engineer Matt Russell we hit upon the trends of 2015 and had general discussions on our experiences throughout the calendar year. One…

Shadow and Midtone Relationships

Lately I’ve had to come up with a lot of creative looks in the color suite that depend on how the black levels are treated.  The lower end of an image can really help determine the overall look and feel of a piece with some detailed finessing.  But it’s not just about the shadows.  How…

Pluralsight DaVinci Resolve tutorials

At NAB 2015 after giving a couple of demos on Resolve 12 I was approached by a man from Digital Tutors about creating some introductory tutorials for their website once the new software was released.  Honestly, I hadn’t heard of the site before, but upon further investigation I was quite impressed.  They offered a vast…

Honoring a classic look

Sometimes in the color suite the desired look has already been established before the grade even begins.  Repeat campaigns, real life product representation, and classic looks all have a predetermined starting point that we do our best to build off of as colorists. The Peanuts Movie recently opened in theaters and does a fantastic job honoring…

Color for the Colorblind

This video is nothing new.  It came out about six months ago and made a pretty big splash.  I know I really enjoyed viewing it.  Colored by Sean Coleman at Company 3, I found this commercial to be very moving and powerful. I have always been curious about what it’s like to be colorblind.  What are people missing…

Adele, “Hello”

Last week Adele’s latest music video was released.  I didn’t know much about it, other than it was her first release in a couple of years.  Upon clicking play, I immediately recognized the format – film.  Director Xavier Dolan opted to shoot 35mm and gave the video a unique monochrome look that we rarely see today.  After…