Convergence - Short Film shot on Sony PMW-F3 on Vimeo

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4. Convergence - Short Film shot on Sony PMW-F3

by Martin Scanlan

1 year ago

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1. 137C

by Martin Scanlan

3 years ago

Directed by Martin Scanlan
Director of Photography Steve Lawes
Music by Micah Berek

Convergence is the first short film in the world to be shot on the new Sony PMW-F3 camera. For more information please visit our blog at convergenceblog.co.uk.

*** For those interested we've made a sequel of sorts to Convergence on the Sony FS100. Providence - vimeo.com/33911056 ***

facebook.com/pages/Convergence/172685292760310
martinscanlan.com
stevelawes.com
hearfilm.com

vimeo.com/16897383 PMW-F3 UK launch film with interview with Steve

Credits

Martin Scanlan
Director
Micah Berek
Music
Steve Lawes
Director of Photography

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Bo Mikael Hall 1 year ago

looks promising. can't wait to get my hands on one of those cameras. thansk for posting.

btw: first.
Jon Sands 1 year ago

as I said on dvxuser, first off great story and directing! had me paying attention rather than pixel peeping. But man that highlight retention and lack of noise is fantastic!
Jean Daniel Villiers 1 year ago

For the highlight retention I think we will have to wait a little bit, because gray gray uk weather is no testimony of dynamic range.
Jon Sands 1 year ago

Definitely, but you can tell in some shots that with the way they exposed, the skintones remain very very natural with no brink of highlight loss, like the speculars on the forehead and such. I want more footage!
Nino Leitner 1 year ago

I agree, I followed the story more than the looks, and that is a great compliment for everybody involved!
shane kinsman 1 year ago

Stunning!!!! need I say more?
Ivan George 1 year ago

This does look good! Where can I get more info?
Henry Olonga 1 year ago

This is AWESOME
Matthew Bennett 1 year ago

Wow! Sony absolutely got it right here!

This is a lovely test, but on a camera technical level, the feel of this camera's imager is incredible!

I don't care what it costs - give me!!!!!!!
Guy Sclafani 1 year ago

Wow! Very very nice.
Joe Walker 1 year ago

What lenses and how was it recorded?
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Hi there. We used Arri Ultra Primes and recorded in 10 bit 4:2:2 to HDCAM-SR in linear colour space. We used the SxS files to offline
Arash 1 year ago

So they said it can have 4:4:4 in future, how can it be? sensors has 12micron pixels, there's no room for 4:4:4, what am i missing?
Sam Eilertsen 1 year ago

I assume that's after deBayer (which some people argue isn't "real" 4:4:4, although RED and Alexa also use it.
Clayton Haskell 1 year ago

Nice work on the short, looks promising the camera. Cheers.
AB Productions 1 year ago

Okay, so it looks like the camera nailed skin tones, depth of field, and overall look! This wont be a 5D killer because of the price, but it certainly has a much better look.

On the non-technical side of it, I thought your lead actor was great. I could read his emotions without him saying a word.
Dennis Dillon 1 year ago

Martin,
Terrific job. I loved the range. Skin high lights were as natural as could be. Did you store your LUTs on the SxS? I'll be heading to NJ Sony for an intensive in two weeks on the F3. This is a great day.
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Thanks Dennis.

No LUTs involved, just a Sony EX picture profile. The white balance on the test unit wasn't working properly so we were stuck with presets which were a little green. Graded fine though. Mostly shot in Cine Gamma 1 with a bit of Cine Gamma 4 when we were shooting in the dark.
Dennis Dillon 1 year ago

Martin,
Thanks again. I have convinced many clients to go with a real video camera/Pro 35/Zeiss when desiring the DOF look, but many try to convince me of using a 5D to save $$$. They always pay more in the end. So now my 5D goes back to covering family events, and special moments for small form when needed.
Crooked Path Films 1 year ago

Wow, wondering what workflow you're using to have it end up costing more in the end as you say.
Will Blank 1 year ago

Wow! Looks really fantastic!
iamkalaniprince 1 year ago

I think it looks way better than the AF100..
johnflattopfilms 1 year ago

agreed
Tom Guilmette 1 year ago

hard to say only seeing it on the web, but there is a big price difference and the sony footy looks amazing for sure. plus, very expensive primes were used!
Roundabout 1 year ago

My thoughts exactly, this blows the AF100's footage out of the water, this is MUCH more of what I've been looking for, I guess I'm shelling out those extra thousands for this baby. Now this is only a peak from the internet, but I can already tell this is some MAJOR competition for any camera in any price range below $30,000. This footage is beautiful.
editman 1 year ago

I notice most blacks are crushed. It looks great and I suspect it mask some noise also.
iamkalaniprince 1 year ago

I hate to say, but to date, I think I've seen better looking footage coming out of the GH2 to be honest.. I guess it's only a matter of time before someone makes a really great looking piece for the AF100..
Marco Aslan 9 months ago

Sorry, but people rely way too much on just the camera… What about the DP?? Don’t you think that perhaps the DP made a difference? Saying that *this* blows the AF100 footage out of the water is wrong. I’ve see stuff shot with a GL1 or HVX that blows interchangeable camcorders out of the water. DPs don’t get credit anymore, it’s the manufacture.
Chris Santucci 1 year ago

Yes please.
Mark Nicholson 1 year ago

Wowzer.
Cosimo Bullo 1 year ago

RED, GH13, 5d owner (and frequent varicam user) attempting to reel his jaw up off the floor. In short, amazing, even with the vimeo compression.
Philip Bloom 1 year ago

Great stuff!! Look wonderful on big screen
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Hi Philip, sorry I didn't get to say hi at the screening. Glad you liked it
video1 1 year ago

I just watched this on my 1080p "big beast" editing monitor and I am still trying to pick my jaw up. This video single handedly sold me on buying this camera. The footage is just so lovely even with TONS of compression just to get the thing to stream on the internet, you can really see how powerful the imager really is on this camera. I was either going to buy an AF100 and wait for the new RED's to come out, or buy and older RED One, but this is the best of both worlds. I've been a panasonic man forever owned Varicam, HPX500's and more, but I may have just jumped ship. This stuff just looks huge for so many reasons.

oh and, hey Phillip haha
Tom Guilmette 1 year ago

great composition and depth in this. loved the look of the camera, even compressed on the web!
DP/Operator Carl Weston 1 year ago

I need this camera.
Philip Johnston 1 year ago

Loved the footage on the big screen today, great job, bet you were chuffed when Sony asked you to shoot with the F3.
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

To be honest, they didn't ask me, they asked Steve who's a top DP. Fortunately, he's also a mate so I managed to hijack the exercise for my own purposes. Keep it quiet though ...
Kain & Abel 1 year ago

LOL @ "I managed to hijack the exercise for my own purposes. Keep it quiet though" ...

My 2 cents worth...

On a postive note, I am loving the grade. Got a spooks look to it.

Familiar with Molinare post house if its the same London based house. They do excellent high end broadcast work.

On a downside, the camera's native recording at 35mbits, 4:2:0 does not justify a £16k price tag from my understading unless I am mistaken. Recording via external hdcam-sr is not really an option, its an absolute necessity and an added expense which is abit of a piss take at that.

All in all, I loved the film, grading and fantastic imagery.
Very well done.
jonathan woods 1 year ago

Sensational pics. Well done for turning that around in a couple of short days. You say the F3 has a lot of the feel of the EX's. I'm not a big fan of the X build quality - though the pics are great. Is the F3 casing as light weight/ plastic'y?
mvakleko 1 year ago

I want to play with it :)
Nino Leitner 1 year ago

Really great stuff. Beautiful images, but I really loved the story & performances too.

Looking forward to shooting with this puppy. The fact that it's made for PL mount lenses means that it will be more interesting for rental than for purchase.
Caleb Jonasson 1 year ago

That was great. I was focused on the story until the very end. Nice work!
Phase 3 Productions 1 year ago

Looks amazing... This camera will be very popular for rental houses
Bass Pig 1 year ago

Well it sure blows away D-SLR video, and in general, it looks very good. I'm not completely certain that the color rendering is all that great though.. the way it handled certain lighting gave unnatural color casts. But who can remember a theatrical film with realistic color in it? The F3 is sure to be an indie filmmaker hit.
Scott Wellington 1 year ago

have they told you anything about trying the NXCAM for them? about to buy an AF100, just put down my deposit today with abelcinetech, and thought it was a good idea...
Philip Bloom 1 year ago

NXCAM is next summer..check out my blog for more details..
Scott Wellington 1 year ago

Of course I read your blog Phillip, it's the reason I am buying the AF100, he just did such a great job with this short, I'd imagined they already offered him a test run with the NX but nevermind, I'm sure you will test it too. but will 4/3's lenses end up working on it with a full frame sensor? am I investing in the wrong format lenses?
I am buying the 4/3 mount f2.0 14-35mm olympus zuiko as my main lens, and was amazed by it in your kyoto piece...
Philip Bloom 1 year ago

that lens is 4/3 only Scott am afraid...
Creating Film 1 year ago

I'm kind of confused.. haha what happened at the end?
Curtis Busker 1 year ago

My take on the film is that this is a guy who's strolling alone. He's imagining meeting the "perfect" girl for him, where he can use his qualities to woo her. Or maybe he doesn't have any qualities, and imagines himself having qualities of charm and humor. In the end, when he sees the kiss, it's the final moment he realizes he's not in that world.

Or if you want to go another route: it's the story of twin brothers. One is a charming ladies man, the other is a "daddy doesn't love me" loner. At the end he sees his brother getting yet another lady, only to think "That son of a bitch."
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Interesting thoughts. I like both ideas. Anyone else have a different interpretation?
Joe Farani 11 months ago

I think hes remembering moments of his girlfriend who is either dead or has left him for a Samoan guy like myself
rbrtsn 1 year ago

O-u-t-s-t-a-n-d-i-n-g!!!
Brian Potter 1 year ago

Love this! Would you mind sharing some more information about what lenses you shot with?
Sam Painter 1 year ago

Very Nice!
Its an exciting time.

What ISO did you have camera set at?

Has anyone had a chance to do comparison to the AF100?

I wonder when Canon will get their butt in gear?
Zoltan Maraczi 1 year ago

Excellent shots, good job, congratulations.
Manuel de Teffé 1 year ago

Very well directed! Congratulations! Excellent actors as well. Their names please?
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Neil Henry and Evie Bicker. They were both terrific. Huge thanks to both of them.
Manuel de Teffé 1 year ago

Thank you Martin. They are really great actors. Hope Neil and Evie are going to have success. They are very very particular. Have a great day.
video1 1 year ago

Please Please make the original H264 file be made available to download on vimeo, at the moment its locked. Would really love to see the original and download it from vimeo.
Dan Forsley 1 year ago

Yes, please! The original pre post.
Laurent Gauthier 1 year ago

A very nice moment, great!
Tommeo 1 year ago

I was wishing to hear them talk. Would be happy to see this nice piece expanded!
Pepê Figueroa 1 year ago

Looks amazing... I just can't wait to have this camera in my hands. Congratulations ! Rio de Janeiro/ Brasil
Dean Harrington 1 year ago

As all have mentioned a very nice short film ... great story composition and good actors. Question for you ... does this camera do ramping ... I imagine is doesn't but ... no one has said anything about that yet?
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

I don't think this camera is going to ramp. We shot everything at 25P as the Slow/Quick Motion wasn't working on the test unit
Amila C. Kumarasinghe 1 year ago

Hay dude, This Quality Killing me . . Awesome, definitely this is my next choice . .

Thanx for the video . .
Pascal Despeaux 1 year ago

Very well, I find the image more sensual, less digital, which is very good.
video1 1 year ago

I completely agree, there is a silkiness to this image unlike the competition.
German Libenson 1 year ago

Excellent short. Great image quality. I like the F3 more than the AF 100. My humble opinion.
Walter Fischer 1 year ago

For me the story counts, if it is recorded on a arri or a canon HF 100. And this story is full of dreams and no hightech.
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Thanks. That's one for the directing. Wicked
GREG LE DUC 1 year ago

I saw the camera at USC last night and some of the fine videos shot with the camera by students and faculty. It looks to be a contender with the Red One
and will make people think seriously about buying the Panasonic 4x3
chip camera.
theWilsonian 1 year ago

i feel like i'm in the twilight zone....contender with the red one??

35mbit/s 4:2:0 1080p does not even come close to contending with 42MB/s 4k.....
does not even contend with alexa's prores 1080p at such a similar price point
James-Alexander Adair 1 year ago

Gorgeous, gorgeous footage.
Ethan Duffy 1 year ago

What's the point of putting this gorgeous sensor in a cheap camera if you have to hire an expensive recorder because of really low-quality on-board recording?

I should mention, nice film.
Sebastian TR 1 year ago

Fantastic short - really loved the performances / subtle lighting in many shots. Nicely crafted - looking forward to seeing more!

What Arri Lenses did you work with most? Man the shot at 2:59 .... wowzors.

congrats!
Hans Hijmering 1 year ago

I think the shot at 2:59 was made with After Effects ;-) Looks great!
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Trust me, I'm not that good
Hans Hijmering 1 year ago

It was just that I noticed some lining around the actors nose that I cannot explain. That's why I thought this was done with some kind of chroma keying.
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

It's just something optical that's happening because he's not sharp and there's a big out of focus highlight. The focus is on her eye and he's about 3 inches behind which on a 135 at T2 is soft. You can even see the same thing happening on her nose. The only sharp thing in the frame is her eyelashes. It does look comped though. I quite like it like that
Hans Hijmering 1 year ago

Thanks for the explanation! The shot is beautiful!
Hans Hijmering 1 year ago

FANTASTICO! How is the F3 in low-light compared to the Canon 5D? Did you use lighting equipment in this film?
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

It was okay in low light, Sony claim 800 ISO, but I'd say the gamma curve knocked out a stop and I don't know whether the claimed ISO is with no shutter in. We shot at 180 shutter. Some of the night shots in the film had 9 dB of gain in. I'd say it was better than the old RED One (haven't seen the MX), not up with the Alexa. I think the footage holds up much better than the 5D personally
Brice Clocher 1 year ago

Loved the storytelling and cinematography! Super!
Dominic DeSantis 1 year ago

Lovely film. Tastefully done. Also showed off the look of the camera. Well done!!
Marvin Suarez 1 year ago

Nothing the 5D Mark 2 Can't do. I'm sorry. Looks great but I can get that now for $2500 with a 50mm 1.4
Check out this clip which was done with the 5D MK 2 50mm 1.4 with just "AVAILABLE LIGHTING" with "NO COLOR CORRECTION" vimeo.com/15922407
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Hey I'm a big fan of the 5D and have shot on it extensively, but when you see the two projected side by side there's little comparison for me. The main problem with the 5D is keeping it sharp which is essential for drama and features. I should know, I've been a focus puller for 6 years. Try shooting the 1st shot in this film on a 5D - its 135mm at T1.9. I don't think I could get that sharp on a 5D no matter how many goes I had. In terms of colour correction, you want to colour correct, that's why these cameras are designed like this. You want a camera with latitude, not a contrasty picture. That's why we have RED Raw, S Log, Log C and the like. I'd love to be able to shoot proper drama on a $2500 camera, I just don't think you can yet. Just my opinion.
theWilsonian 1 year ago

marvin has a great point about price. there is limited value gained from paying so much more for an F3 and its weak codec. 5D can give close results for dramatically lower price. Filmmakers who want to pay more are better off stepping up to a RED or Alexa.
San John 1 year ago

Why does all the Video Makers shoot with Red or Sony F35 ?
Travis Guerra 1 year ago

I really like this. But to me and this is just me. It doesnt beat the 5dmk2 in terms of what each can do dollar for dollar. Great job! The editing is fantastic.
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Don't get me wrong guys, I'm not about to throw away my DSLR any time soon, I just think this camera is a step in the right direction, albeit at a price. To my eye the pictures are closer to the F35 than the 5D, but that's me. Thanks for the great comments
pilkazo 1 year ago

:(
pilkazo 1 year ago

Image quality is excellent, I liked very much the history, congratulations ...
Marvin Suarez 1 year ago

Aside from my comparisons with the 5D MK2, the filmmaker is what makes the movie, not the camera and your film is superb! Great content, and love the magic! Honestly, I would love a camera that gives me more latitude and more options, 5D is somewhat limited in much respects. If the price was right i'd probably invest in this camera :-)
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

Thanks man. I'd love to be able to afford one too, but I don't think it's going to happen soon.
Erik Nordlund 1 year ago

In comparison with the 5d this one obviously handles the shadows a lot better, however it seems to be suffering from the same horrible "earthquake phenomenon" from the CMOS-sensor which to me is the most annoying part with the 5D. I feel very constricted when working with the 5D because of this. Look at the shot in this film where the camera is mounted on the truck. Quite nasty yello-effect there. Looks fucking awful. Any comments from you guys that have experience with both the 5D and the PMW-F3?

vimeo.com/16943320
Martin Scanlan 1 year ago

The F3 is CMOS so the rolling shutter is going to be there. From what we saw it's better than the 5D, but we didn't really test it. I'm sure people will be able to answer this question better in the upcoming months. I've got a shot in the rushes that shows the hardest test we did in terms of that, a panning shot of them walking shot through railings. I'll happily post that if people are interested
Erik Nordlund 1 year ago

That would be interesting to see Martin. As far as I'm concerned this is the major issue with the 35-chip cameras.