DV, FCP, and FilmLogic were tested at Magic Film and Video Works

 

 

 

 

One of the largest, if not the largest, negative cutting facilities in the world, Magic Film and Video Works in Burbank CA, recently conducted a very important test of the new DV technology for editing film-based projects using Final Cut Pro and FilmLogic.

Colorist Ramy Katrib and Supervisor of Negative Cutting Edvin Mehrabyan are excited about the possibilities for using the new technology, and wanted to conduct the kind of trial that would prove it to be up to the task.

Traditionally, film has been transferred to Beta SP video, and those who would want to edit with DV would have to go to the additional step of transferring the Beta SP to DV. Ramy believes that there is no reason why film cannot be transferred directly to DV as a standard service. Using the telecine facilities at Magic Film and Video Works, Ramy obtained a DSR-2000 DV deck from Sony and conducted extensive tests of transferring film directly to DV. The tests showed that the equipment all performed as required, and that the edits to DV were 100% timecode accurate.

The second part of the test was to capture the DV into Final Cut Pro, edit a sequence, export a negative cut list from FilmLogic, and conform the negative. Edvin has seen a number of bad lists in his many years of negative cutting experience, and he was skeptical that technology as inexpensive as FCP and FilmLogic could produce the kinds of results that professionals require. He made sure that the test sequence that was edited in FCP contained the kinds of things that might trip up match-back software applications. But after seeing the FilmLogic list and conforming the negative using the Lok-Box system at Magic, he soon became a believer and proclaimed the list to be as good as any from Avid, Lightworks, or D/Vision.

Ramy and Edvin are convinced that their tests show without a doubt that the very expensive technology now in use in Hollywood for feature film editing can be replaced with much less expensive alternatives, and they intend to do their part to make that technology more accessible to the non-professionals as well. We expect to hear more from them in the near future.


FilmLogic Beta Release of FilmLogic Version 2.5 Available on Web

Menlo Park, CA --(March 20, 2000)-- A beta release of version 2.5 of FilmLogic has been posted to the FilmLogic website, and is available for downloading. Version 2.5 contains a number of new features and enhancements, including audio EDL exporting, a missing elements list, three options for handling transitions, a revised and improved optical list, new notes added to the cut list, and enhanced Reverse Telecine.

The new version of FilmLogic, as with all new versions, is a free upgrade to users who have purchased the product. All users are advised to download the new version and begin taking advantage of the new and improved features. Those who are interested in FilmLogic but have not yet purchased it can also download the new version and use it in trial mode.


The new 2.5b6 version can be downloaded from the website, or by FTP with ftp://ftp.filmlogic.com/FilmLogicPPC2.5b6.sit.bin. A read-me file in PDF format can also be downloaded with ftp://ftp.filmlogic.com/Read_Me_2_5b6.pdf.

Download this Acrobat file if you just want to read about the new features of version 2.5. http://www.filmlogic.com


Focal Point Systems, Inc. congratulates the following filmmakers on the recent successes of their films in major film festivals.

  • Catherine Jelski's film "The Young Unknowns" was a recent entry in the South by Southwest film festival in Austin Texas and also the Independent Feature Film Market in New York. The Young Unknowns is a look at a dark day in the life of Charlie Foxx, a brash young commercials director from a show-biz family.

    http://av.sxsw.com/films/filmsindex.php?filmsearch=Show&filmserialnum=362

    Catherine Jelski has directed for theatre and produced for film. She directed the Disney-produced short Angela's Story. The Young Unknowns is her feature-film directorial debut. Gabor Szitanyi edited The Young Unknowns with Adobe Premiere and FilmLogic.

  • David Green's film "George Washington" was a recent entry in the Berlin film festival in Berlin, Germany. George Washington is a coming-of-age drama about a group of young kids growing up in a rural town.

    http://www.fdk-berlin.de/forum2000/filme/george.html

    George Washington was edited at the North Carolina School of the Arts with Final Cut Pro and FilmLogic. Co-editor Steven Gonzales wrote an article discussing the technical aspects of the post-production, and that article appeared recently on the 2-pop.com web site.

    George Washington is David Green's first feature film. It is also showing at the Los Angeles Independent Film on April 15 at 5:00 p.m. (Saturday) and April 17 at 1:15 p.m. (Monday).

    http://www.laiff.com/features-a-e2.htm


  • Terrance Odette's film "Heater" was a recent entry in the Sundance film festival in Park City, Utah. Shot on 35mm colour in 14 days in snowy and cold Winnepeg, Canada, this is Odette's ( from Toronto) first feature film and stars Gary Farmer (Dead Man) and Stephen Quiemette as two "homeless" men trying to return a stolen base-board heater to a department store in suburbia for the refund.

    In addition to Sundance, "Heater" was accepted at the Atlantic Film Festival 1999 and the Vancouver International Film Festival 1999, where it won awards for Best Emerging Director (Western Provinces) and Best Canadian Screen Play.

    Terry edited the film on his Media 100 system, which he uses in his Toronto company Toad Films Inc., a music video production house. He purchased the FilmLogic program specifically for his feature and is thrilled with the program's flexibility and price. "My hat is off to Loran and the people at Focal Point for helping film-makers take control of their vision".


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