All posts by Vertical

Above Category

By Vertical On April 5, 2012 In Branding, Digital Cinema, Post Production With No Comments Permanent Link to Above CategoryPermalink

We’ve just completed a brand film for Above Category. Above Category is a leader in the trend towards a smaller, more intimate bicycle shop focusing on top flight hand picked products. Chad (the founder) and his staff rigorously test every piece of kit they sell out on the coastal roads of Northern California. The team at AC provide an unparalleled level of service because of their knowledge and love of the sport of cycling.

Here are a few production details: We shot this on our RED Scarlet-x with a set of Ziess ZE primes and the Canon 70-200 f/2.8 II. The Canon 70-200 performed great, but we did learn one important lesson about relying too much on the image stabilizer. If you do any excessive panning shots with IS ON you will be fighting the stabilizer tracking. Luckily, we got some stunning shots and absolutely love that lens.

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ONE OF Collection

By Vertical On March 15, 2012 In Branding, Digital Cinema, Post Production With No Comments Permanent Link to ONE OF CollectionPermalink

We’ve just completed production on a brand film for ONE OF. These are absolutely beautiful garments, all made by hand in Northern California. Each piece in the collection is unique and individually crafted by owner Kenlynn Wilson.

This project was shot on our RED Scarlet camera with a variety of Ziess ZE prime lenses. We shot everything in 4k, using 8 REDVolts for power and 4x 64GB RED SSD cards. We’ve had the camera for a few months now and it has been flawless, we’re pretty excited about its capabilities.

This project was cut on our NLE of choice, Final Cut Pro X. With the recent release of version 10.0.3 and the improved XML support we have developed a post production workflow that is both super fast and flexible.

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RED Scarlet-X

By Vertical On February 25, 2012 In Digital Cinema, Red With 2 Comments Permanent Link to RED Scarlet-XPermalink

We’ve had our RED Scarlet-X for over a month now and we’ve been doing some extensive test shoots with it. The camera has been rock solid, easy to operate and the results are absolutely incredible.

Our Package consists of

  • Scarlet-X Brain
  • AL Canon Mount
  • 8 REDVolts
  • 2x Travel Chargers
  • 4x 64GB SSD REDMAGs
  • Side Handle
  • Touchscreen LCD
  • Wireless REDmote

    • The Scarlet is a S35mm camera that shoots 4k resolution. 4K is an emerging standard in digital film and is four times the number of pixels as full HD. There are additional imaging advantages to shooting in 4k, even if you are doing a 1080 finish, because of advantages of supersampling from 4K to HD. The Scarlet can use Canon, Nikon, Leica and PL mounts.

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    Final Cut Pro X version 10.0.3

    By Vertical On January 31, 2012 In Apple, Post Production With No Comments Permanent Link to Final Cut Pro X version 10.0.3Permalink

    Apple just released Final Cut Pro X version 10.0.3, and it’s a pretty significant release. Some of the new features include:

  • Advanced Chroma Keying
  • Broadcast Monitoring (beta)
  • Layered Photoshop File Support
  • Media Relink
  • Multicam
  • XML 1.1

    • We have broadcast monitoring working here in the studio with an AJA Kona 3 card and it’s great to finally have proper monitoring in FCPX. Multicam is clearly an improvement compared to Multicam FCP7 and the updated Media Relinking works well. The one missing feature that I’m still dying to see implemented is support for RED R3D files.

    I’ve been a pretty big supporter of Final Cut Pro X since day one. I got my head around the inner workings of media management and the new paradigm after the first few days of its release. It’s also great to see third party announcements from the likes of AJA, Red Giant, GenArts, Blackmagic Design, Intelligent Assistance and Marquis to name a few. The ecosystem is starting to develop.

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    TED | Ads Worth Spreading

    By Vertical On December 31, 2011 In Branding With No Comments Permanent Link to TED | Ads Worth SpreadingPermalink

    We are pleased that our Tellason Brand Film was part of the amazing TED Ads Worth Spreading project. TED’s Ads Worth Spreading initiative is a brilliant showcase of a concept we truly believe in, the idea of creating Advertising and Branding Films that communicate the values, philosophy and ideas of the brand.

    Unlike traditional TV ads (push), a Brand Film (pull) can transform the viewer into a committed brand advocate. By revealing what the brand stands for this type of longer-form storytelling can help humanize a company and encourage members of their community to share that story.

    RED Scarlet-X, Canon C300

    By Vertical On November 5, 2011 In Digital Cinema, Red With 2 Comments Permanent Link to RED Scarlet-X, Canon C300Permalink

    What an exciting couple of days for camera announcements! Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard that Canon and RED have sent shockwaves throughout the film industry leading up to these announcements. I went to the RED Scarlet launch event at RED studios, as well as the Canon event at Paramount Studios in Hollywood.

    RED Scarlet-X

    The Scarlet launch started with a series of RED reels playing in 4K while the RED team were in another room getting ready to spill the beans on reduser.net. Right when the announcements went live the RED servers went down. Jim Jannard returned to the studio where we were and he was clearly disappointed but he quickly recovered as he started to give the announcements to a slightly bewildered crowd.

    What followed was an amazing and inspired presentation. Jim said “OK, you guys are our voice” and out popped the iPads and we went head down, tweeting the news. The mood went from confusion to excitement.

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    RED Scarlet

    By Vertical On October 27, 2011 In Digital Cinema, Red With No Comments Permanent Link to RED ScarletPermalink

    November 3rd is looking like a pretty big day for creative professionals in the film industry. Canon, RED and Avid all are all expected to make announcements.

    We will be in attendance at RED Studios in Hollywood for the Scarlet launch event. Here is a rip from the RED Scarlet press release:

    On November 3rd at 6pm PST, details surrounding the SCARLET will be announced on REDUSER.net and RED.com. Technical specifications, shipping, and purchasing information will be revealed, putting to rest all of the lingering speculation and anticipation.”

    RIP Steve Jobs

    By Vertical On October 5, 2011 In Apple With No Comments Permanent Link to RIP Steve JobsPermalink

    Canon – The Story Begins

    By Vertical On September 15, 2011 In Digital Cinema With No Comments Permanent Link to Canon – The Story BeginsPermalink

    Canon is set to make a major announcement on November the 3rd at Paramount Studios in Hollywood. Everyone expects a new camera, like the long awaited 5D Mark III, or a new Super 35 sensor camera with a proper codec. Get your credit cards ready.

    REDCINE-X Professional

    By Vertical On August 31, 2011 In Digital Cinema, Post Production, Red With No Comments Permanent Link to REDCINE-X ProfessionalPermalink

    RED Digital Cinema announces REDCINE-X Professional. REDCINE-X Pro is an application that allows you to manipulate the RAW R3D files natively on your Mac or Windows system and has the ability to transcode R3D files to the most common self-contained formats (e.g. Quicktime, Avid MXF, and DPX).

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    Final Cut Pro X

    By Vertical On July 31, 2011 In Business, Post Production With 2 Comments Permanent Link to Final Cut Pro XPermalink

    A little background

    I’m AVID certified, have multiple Adobe Premiere Pro licenses, owned several Media 100 systems and have been a Final Cut Pro user since version 1. I have edited network television, TV spots and high-end corporate films. I’ve also directed, produced and edited material designed for interactive, web and mobile applications. I was a beta tester of the original version of Final Cut Pro. Not trying to brag – just some context related to my experience. I would consider myself a pro user for the markets I serve.

    The start of the FCP eco-system

    While I was beta testing Final Cut Pro the majority of the editing I did was on Media 100. I was efficient with Media 100 and enjoyed the growing community of editors using that system. I started to see the industry move to FCP as more agencies and clients would hand off projects that were built in FCP. I made the switch full time as the eco-system and community began to move to Final Cut Pro.

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