PARK RIDGE, NJ — Sony (www.sony.com/professional) recently screened 4K and HD content shot using its two new CineAlta 4K cameras. The event marked the first time audiences were able to view footage captured using the new F55 and F5 cameras, which were introduced a month ago, along with a range of accessories and technologies designed to accelerate the adoption of 4K content creation and production.
At the Los Angeles event, held on the Sony Pictures Entertainment lot, attendees viewed new 4K and HD productions shot by teams at Stargate Studios, Tribeca Enterprises and the USC School of Cinematic Arts. Sony asked Sam Nicholson, ASC, and Stargate Studios to produce a short film to test the F55. Nicholson, along with production teams from Stargate LA and Stargate Mumbai, travelled to Sri Lanka to produce the film, hiring local talent and crew to help in the production. Mahout follows an orphan girl who helps a baby elephant escape an abusive owner and return to his herd in the wild.
Nicholson directed and shot Mahout throughout the challenging environments of Sri Lanka, from crowded urban locales to remote jungles, rivers and beaches, often struggling with monsoon rainstorms, severe humidity and unpredictable weather.
Shot with Sony’s F65 and F55 cameras, Tribeca Enterprises’ 7x6x2 is a collaboration among Gary Krieg, Tribeca’s executive VP, content development and production; Paul Pope, an Eisner Award-winning graphic novelist; Sundance Institute trained filmmaker Sridhar Reddy; and cinematographer Jesse Green, among others. The production presented opportunities to shoot in extreme low-light situations, as well as slow motion scenes.
The USC School of Cinematic Arts shot two productions with the Sony cameras. Safety Zone a chase comedy shot in the bright Southern California sun, while The Contract is s drama shot at night, including inside a car, lit from the lights of Wilshire Boulevard. According to Doug Wellman, assistant dean at the school, the two pieces really highlight the full gamut of the cameras’ capabilities, and the flexibility and performance they can offer on location.
Sony also held an event in Europe, where the company screened two short films at the Plus Camerimage in Bydgoszcz, Poland. The first short was shot using the PMW-F55, and was filmed by Martin Scanlan and Steve Lawes on location in Wales. The second short was created using the PMW-F5, and was filmed by Lucie Hadilovic and Dominique Colin on location in France.