Super 16mm or HDV JVC Brazilian feature, any DOP out there?!?

Greg Alsbury · August 10th, 2004, 07:37 PM

I've noticed that Costco is really pushing HDTV sets now, too. They don't continue to carry anything unless it's really selling well.

I'm preparing to shoot a narrative doc. Although there's a tiny chance that it might get a theatrical release, it's statistically highly unlikely. Docs have a pretty good shelf life if they're informational and the topic is a perennial one.

The nature of business is that it takes five to ten years to reach profitability, and that's if it's the one in ten that succeeds. I think of my doc as if it's a mini business. Which means that maybe, with constant guerilla marketing, I might turn a profit on it in five years. It seems that HD will be fairly ubiquitous by then.

The foregoing logic leads me to the conclusion that it's best to shoot HD, even if all I can afford is the HD10. If my film (my first feature length production) is so good that someone wants to do a theatrical run, then someone else would probably consider me a good enough investment to properly fund my second feature, which I would shoot on 35 with ends, etc. Essentially, this doc would thus be serving as my grad thesis film, a portfolio piece. Rarely do those get a theatrical run. But they do launch plenty of careers.

I'm open to having my math blasted to pieces, though.

August 10th, 2004, 07:37 PM	#61
Greg Alsbury Tourist Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Los Angeles, California Posts: 1	Shelf Life I've noticed that Costco is really pushing HDTV sets now, too. They don't continue to carry anything unless it's really selling well. I'm preparing to shoot a narrative doc. Although there's a tiny chance that it might get a theatrical release, it's statistically highly unlikely. Docs have a pretty good shelf life if they're informational and the topic is a perennial one. The nature of business is that it takes five to ten years to reach profitability, and that's if it's the one in ten that succeeds. I think of my doc as if it's a mini business. Which means that maybe, with constant guerilla marketing, I might turn a profit on it in five years. It seems that HD will be fairly ubiquitous by then. The foregoing logic leads me to the conclusion that it's best to shoot HD, even if all I can afford is the HD10. If my film (my first feature length production) is so good that someone wants to do a theatrical run, then someone else would probably consider me a good enough investment to properly fund my second feature, which I would shoot on 35 with ends, etc. Essentially, this doc would thus be serving as my grad thesis film, a portfolio piece. Rarely do those get a theatrical run. But they do launch plenty of careers. I'm open to having my math blasted to pieces, though.