FOOTAGE: Red One, Mysterium X, 800 ISO, and Snappy

Amidst a global international economic crisis of increasing proportions it seems that one company has developed a sure fire solution to cure financial woes.

Demon Shrimp.

The Red Digital Cinema company, makers of the best selling Red One digital camera, have announced the impending release of Snappy.

'Snappy comes after months of intensive research by our devoted engineers into cutting edge human-devouring demon shrimp technology,' said leader of Red, Jannard.

'We are changing the way people think about evil anthropomorphic fish.'

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So, now for some footage. Red has been kind enough to film this malevolent shrimp and release us a short quicktime for our viewing delight.

Specs:

• Camera -Red One using the new MX sensor.
• Capture resolution - 4.5k
• ISO - 800
• Download clip from http://red.cachefly.net/snappy.mov

Red recently released this footage to give us a tease of the quality of the images coming from the very same sensors that Scarlet and Epic will use. Essentially camera-geek jack off material.

Now that you have downloaded the clip (and cleaned up) pay special attention to the black areas. Yes. This is at ISO 800. Yes. 4.5k. And yes, no grain. What this means for low light situations is immense. To have the baseline ISO at 800 is unthinkable for a digital video camera.

David Fincher, who is shooting his upcoming Facebook-film, the Social Network, is using this exact same Mysterium X, or MX, sensor also had a few words to say about Red One.

We really like the images that we're getting out of the Red, we really like... I really like the sense of what the picture is, I like that its not so clean that it looks like video tape, like "digital", and when I put airquotes around it, I mean that it doesn't have that plasticky waxworks-like look that makes faces look oddly plasticky. But for me, its so much more than just about the camera. I enjoy an extremely fast-response relationship with Red, they've been incredibly helpful. I think in terms of what I've seen, where the Epic is headed, it looks to me like the Model-T of digital recording devices.

-David Fincher

If it's good enough for Fincher... Well, you know.

EVENT: Ted, Red, and Epic in the flesh... kind of

Ted Shilowitz from Red dropped by Tokyo today to chat a little about Red and their path onwards into the coming years.










"You mess with me, you mess with Epic... Questions, bitches?"




I did have a few questions for Ted, Nate and Travis (who were also there from Red) and they happily obliged.
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Q) Film sets are hectic places. Sometimes stuff gets knocked about and bumped. The modular system sounds, well, amazing. But seriously, should I be worried? How sturdy are these clip on modules?

A) We designed it with this in mind - there is a locking mechanism and a hook that slides it on which makes it very difficult to accidentally knock off.

Q) Can Red Rocket handle future Epic formats... 5k and beyond?

A) We will jump that hurdle when we get to it. As a company we have always pushed the limits of what the technology can do and will continue to do so. What this means in regards to Epic's later formats is that there will be solutions there once we get there.
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There you have it. But now I want to ask you all to think about something.

Given the current economic climate, the very likely possibility of companies like Canon, Nikon, Sony developing competing affordable technology this coming few years may possibly turn into one of the most interesting filmmaking has seen for a while.

So what are you waiting for?

And now that you no longer have the excuse of unaffordability to throw about, why don't you get out there and make that project you've been dreaming for what seems like forever?

We may even love it.

PRE-EVENT: Red Epic in Tokyo - RedDay

As I write this, I am on the train on my way to Tokyo station, late to a presentation to be given by the Red leader of propaganda, Ted Shilowitz.

The mind drifts...

I catch myself wondering what wonders he will divulge. Will we see the new Red Epic camera? And even if we do, what does this mean to the film industry at large? Does one product have the power to change the way we see the world?

Yes.

It does. Aspirin, iPhone, bandaid, IBM, xerox, and even Michael Jordan.

A new product can send shockwaves through an entire industry.

At first everybody saw Red as an hoax. After release Red became a target for smear. And now on the dawn to the next gen Epic and Scarlet releases Red is seen as a threat. Which is exactly what an industry changing product should cause.

Fear.

I hope the others are listening. They have a lot of homework to catch up on.

Don't you think?

BATTLE: Why the Red Epic and Scarlet is the Canon 1D, 5D and 7D killer

Today you should be excited to be the underdog filmmaker.







In the last two years we have seen nothing less than an industrial revolution. And we can thank the Red One Digital Cinema camera for this. For the first time in history both you and I have access to the very same tools as the likes of Peter Jackson, Steven Soderberg, and Lars Von Trier. Finally, a chance to play with the big boys.

But then Canon came along and spoiled everything. The 5DmkII. Sure it only had a useless 30 frames per second. But it shot in 1080p HD. Maybe one day, they'll release a firmware upgrade, we dreamed. So we all went out and bought one. Instead of updates they realeased a MUCH cheaper camera. The 7D. And it had better features. So we all traded our 5Ds in for 7Ds. Then Canon released the 1D... I believe the following line should be, "And we wept."

Is either the Canon 1, 5 or 7D really a Red-killer at all (whatever that means)?

In short, no. In long, no.

WHY CANON CAMERA VIDEO IS BUNK:
- Abysmal colour space
- compressed to hell mpeg4 image
- average dynamic range
- I dare you to even try to shoot with this baby handheld. I double dare you. Expect tears.
- no real way to judge exposure in camera
- insane image skew
- crazy moire
- no RAW mode for video.

Now, let me be the first to say that I have a canon 7D. Does this make me a hypocrite? Absolutely.

I have even used it on shoots before. But I also have a Red One. And if you are comparing the two to each other, you are an idiot.

Yep. Idiot.

It would be like comparing a Panavision 35mm film camera to a bolex. 2 entirely different mediums with entirely different uses.

Yet right now the Canon 7D is certainly a valuable compliment to my arsenal. Despite its semi-retarded functionality.

The Canon 7D is a stills camera with the happy accident of convenient HD video. It is NOT designed to be a video/film camera. I truly believe that Canon had no idea what they were doing when they first released the 5DmkII and afterwards scrambled to discover why. And they are still scratching their heads as to why they struck such a nerve with so many people out there.

Would I use a my Canon to shoot a feature film? Hell no. But would I use it as a crash cam? Without batting an eyelid. Or even a high end web viral video.

Now on anything smaller than a 32 inch LCD your Canon should look fine 2/3 of the time. It's the other 1/3 that worries me. It's that other 1/3 which is why I would never take it along to a major production as my A camera.

Once Scarlet and Epic come out with 3k, 5k and 6k resolution with none of the problems that Canon has plus an insane array of features (insane dynamic range, insane high speed shooting, insane few seconds start up time, insane gps, insane motion/gravity sensor, insane wireless, insane RAW, insane touch screen that automatically tracks focus, and not to mention full 3D shooting integration to name a few) ...Well, once these babies come out it's game, set and match.

Scarlet/Epic = iPhone on crack, steroids and new experimental drugs = I fucking love modern technology.

And for the same reason that iPod has become synonymous with mp3 player, Red will become synonymous with Digital Cinema.