And from the low-end to the highest-possible-end: my cinematography teacher said "see and drool yourself over" the Dalsa Origin digital cinema camera. It has 4096x2048 resolution (twice the resolution of Star Wars HDCAMs), a 35mm-sized sensor (so you can set the aperture / depth of field the same way you do in a film camera) that captures 16bits per channel (which means latitude - working with 48bit colour you can sub/superexpose as with film), and an adjustable frame rate. So if you do the math, each second recorded with this monster at full resolution, colour and at 24fps will take up 1.2GB disk space. The website doesn't say the price, but I wouldn't be surprised if it is more than a million dollars / euros, as a regular 35mm cinema camera costs around 200 thousand euros. Add the fiberoptic link and a harddrive rack the size of a fridge, and the fact that this camera will be out of business in less than 10 years (while working 40 year old 35mm cameras aren't at all uncommon), and you better shoot a lot of movies with that or it'll be much more expensive than the already ultra-expensive 35mm camera + film + processing combination. However, the nice part is to consider that D1/DV was invented in 1986 with an outrageous price tag, and that now MiniDV is cheap video camera standard. In 10 to 15 years we might be able to buy UltraDV (or whatever they will call it) cameras as powerful as the Dalsa Origin in any shopping centre, and the days of film will be over. Unless Hollywood brings forth a DRM dystopia, the cost of making an high image-quality movie will soon drop to near zero (consider that a typical 4 minutes 35mm roll costs around 250 euros / dollars, then add processing charges, intermediate and distribution copies etc.) - to the point of being much harder and more expensive to have good sound than good image quality - and will allow minor or inexistent industries (such as the portuguese) to make more movies and to distribute them much easier as digital projection systems also become more affordable, and distribution becomes frictionless via networks or cheap media (i.e. UltraDVD or whatever it will be called). Of course making a good movie will still require lots of money (to pay for professional technicians, artists and actors, and all other production costs - sound and lighting equipment, set design, food, etc.), but the sheer effect of being free from the finantial shackles of 35mm film will have a resounding effect on things, unless those evil greedy men behind desks at grim skyscrapers try to pull an Edison and charge a patent fee for every minute recorded with digital cinema cameras. ¶

Well, the 16mm film is going reasonably ok (although some of the staff means more hassle than help), with only couple of scenes still left for tonight. We have been shooting at the old Sá da Bandeira theatre, as the movie is a really depressing drama that takes place in the dressing rooms. The really interesting bit is that Sá da Bandeira is now a porn movie theatre (and also a venue for those hip and trendy electroclash parties some Saturday nights), so while we were shooting our movie behind the stage we kept listening to all those grunts, sighs and moans coupled with 70s easy-listening. Anyway, I took a few pictures of the set, and will post them as soon as I have a chance to run them through Photoshop. ¶