Jake Fruia
Blackmagic Design’s DaVinci Resolve has been a key factor in the dark and gritty FX series Taboo, as well as an upcoming Amazon series “Please Tell Me I’m Adopted!”. A bonus for LA area residents, Blackmagic will also be holding a demo day at MelroseMAC in Hollywood.
DaVinci Resolve On FX’s “Taboo”
The Tom Hardy drama from Hardy, Son & Baker and Scott Free Productions and distributed by Sonar Entertainment used the post production software on the very dark (content and visual style) series. Goldcrest Post worked with “Taboo” cinematographer Mark Patten to create the look the series would use from the beginning.
Goldcrest Post colorist Adam Glasman and senior online editor Sinéad Cronin explain the extensive use DaVinci Resolve saw on the series:
“The first frames I saw of ‘Taboo’ were when we started to do camera and grading tests last summer,” explains Cronin. “Soon afterward we began working on a 20-minute teaser. This also helped with all of the conform and VFX tests, as well as ironing out any initial issues among the different areas of the project.”
“We also carried out a good number of DI style VFX fixes such as paint outs and the new tools enabled most of this work to be performed in Resolve rather than going out to other software packages,” concludes Glasman. “Such work is now an essential part of the DI process.”
For more information on the team’s use of DaVinci Resolve on “Taboo”, see the press release below.
DaVinci Resolve On “Please Tell Me I’m Adopted!”
DaVinci Resolve Studio was used to edit, grade and finish the upcoming comedy series “Please Tell Me I’m Adopted!,” coming to Amazon on March 6th. In this case, the full breadth of DaVinci Resolve (editing, color correction, etc.) was used on the series by executive producer Chris Sobchack.
Due to the series’ quick conception and creation, Sobchack described DaVinci Resolve’s tools as “lifesavers”, using them to salvage otherwise unusable footage. “We would find something in the trash folder and think, ‘Wait a minute, we can use that!’ We would stabilize it and zoom to cut out anything not needed. We also used temporal noise reduction,” he continued. “For example, there was one shot with three people on a couch, and we cut that into single, twos and threes, zoomed in because everything was shot in 5K, and thanks to the temporal noise reduction, you can’t tell it was done that way”. Sobchack also noted Resolve’s ease of use as an NLE, praising its layout and simple workflow.
For more on DaVinci Resolve’s use on the upcoming series, see the press release below.
Blackmagic Design Live LA Demo
Blackmagic Design is holding a live demo of their “latest solutions for video, television and film production” at MelroseMAC in Hollywood this Wednesday, March 1st from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm. Blackmagic staff will be on hand to answer any questions you may have regarding their products, making this a perfect time to learn all you want to know on Blackmagic products.
MelroseMAC Hollywood is located at 6614 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles CA 90038. You can RSVP at www.Facebook.com
For more information on all things Blackmagic, be sure to visit BlackmagicDesign.com
Goldcrest Post Delivers BBC’s Taboo with Blackmagic’s DaVinci Resolve Studio
Fremont, CA – February 23, 2017 – Blackmagic Design today announced that Goldcrest Post has completed picture post on “Taboo,” a major new BBC drama series starring Tom Hardy, using DaVinci Resolve Studio together with the DaVinci Resolve Advanced Panel.
Produced by Hardy, Son & Baker and Scott Free Productions and distributed by Sonar Entertainment, “Taboo” is a tale of intrigue and revenge, where a haunted man, James Keziah Delaney (Hardy), newly returned to 1814 London after ten years in Africa, discovers that his father has left him a mysterious legacy.
Goldcrest Post became involved during pre production, working with cinematographer Mark Patten to create a look up table (LUT) which Patten would subsequently use on set during principal photography. “With a base look established, we then carried out a series of look dev sessions not long into the shoot,” explains Goldcrest Post colorist Adam Glasman.
The workflow between Patten and the team at Goldcrest, namely Glasman and senior online editor Sinéad Cronin, was a particularly tight relationship, enhanced by Blackmagic’s DaVinci Resolve.
“The first frames I saw of ‘Taboo’ were when we started to do camera and grading tests last summer,” adds Cronin. “Soon afterward we began working on a 20-minute teaser. This also helped with all of the conform and VFX tests, as well as ironing out any initial issues among the different areas of the project.”
Using DaVinci Resolve’s editing toolset, Cronin was able to access all of the episodes and make editorial changes live during the grade, including cuts, opticals and VFX inserts without the need for rendering or exporting to another application, which saved an enormous amount of time.
For the DI Glasman was tasked with delivering a dark, cinematic grade that would complement the rich blacks and gritty details captured by Patten, while also complementing the show’s impressive production design.
“Much of the night time interior material was candle lit, so the challenge was to keep the darkness while retaining texture in costumes, some of which were black, and the sets,” he explains. “Heavy vignetting was also required in many exterior daylight scenes to keep a brooding, stormy feel.”
Glasman mainly works on features and says it’s a different challenge with broadcast drama. “Generally speaking the time constraints are greater,” he admits. “As a result I worked alongside my colleague Rob Pizzey who helped to grade some of the later episodes.”
Those time constraints played right into the strength of DaVinci Resolve. “For ‘Taboo’ at least four episodes were on the go at any one time,” adds Cronin.
“We also carried out a good number of DI style VFX fixes such as paint outs and the new tools enabled most of this work to be performed in Resolve rather than going out to other software packages,” concludes Glasman. “Such work is now an essential part of the DI process.”
Press Photography
Product photos of DaVinci Resolve Studio, the DaVinci Resolve Advanced Panel and all other Blackmagic Design products are available at www.blackmagicdesign.com/images.
About Taboo
Set in early 19th Century London, Taboo is a tale of intrigue and revenge, where a haunted man, James Keziah Delaney (Hardy), newly returned to 1814 London after ten years in Africa, discovers that his father has left him a mysterious legacy. Delaney finds himself in a face-off against the all-powerful East India Company, while playing a dangerous game between two warring nations, Regency Britain and the post-revolutionary USA.
About Blackmagic Design
Blackmagic Design creates the world’s highest quality video editing products, digital film cameras, color correctors, video converters, video monitoring, routers, live production switchers, disk recorders, waveform monitors and real time film scanners for the feature film, post production and television broadcast industries. Blackmagic Design’s DeckLink capture cards launched a revolution in quality and affordability in post production, while the company’s Emmy™ award winning DaVinci color correction products have dominated the television and film industry since 1984. Blackmagic Design continues ground breaking innovations including 6G-SDI and 12G-SDI products and stereoscopic 3D and Ultra HD workflows. Founded by world leading post production editors and engineers, Blackmagic Design has offices in the USA, UK, Japan, Singapore and Australia. For more information, please go to www.blackmagicdesign.com.
DaVinci Resolve Studio Used to Edit, Grade and Finish Please Tell Me I’m Adopted! Series
Fremont, CA – February 23, 2017 – Blackmagic Design today announced that DaVinci Resolve Studio was used to edit, grade and finish “Please Tell Me I’m Adopted!,” an original shortform comedy series from Wraptastic Productions premiering March 6, 2017 exclusively on Amazon. DaVinci Resolve Studio was used by Chris Sobchack, executive producer, to handle the entire post production process.
Created by series star Nicole Sobchack, “Please Tell Me I’m Adopted!” follows free-spirited, wide-eyed, disaster-magnet Tiffany (Nicole Sobchack). Tiffany loses her boyfriend, job and home all in one day and is forced to move in with her newly married sister Emma (Andie Karvelis) and Emma’s husband Bob (Ben Kacsandi). When Tiffany tries to regroup, she ropes Emma and Bob into her crazy, often culturally-current escapades with outrageous and hilarious consequences, and a parade of quirky characters follow.
What began from a Second City Conservatory graduating class sketch, “Please Tell Me I’m Adopted!” was eventually reimagined as a one-off YouTube video. However, after the first production meeting, Nicole awoke the next morning with the vision that it was actually a shortform episodic series. “When it came down to it, we just wanted to make the series,” explained Chris. “What was amazing was the outpouring of support. The entire production was crowd funded by the generous support of friends, family and strangers. Because it was a DIY, indie project, we needed to keep costs down, but still get a professional workflow, which is why we chose DaVinci Resolve Studio.”
According to Chris, because it was an indie project, there were limitations on the time they could spend shooting and the resulting amount of footage. “We shot quickly, and several of DaVinci Resolve Studio’s tools were lifesavers when it came to repurposing footage,” he said. “The sharpening and blur tools made shots come alive that otherwise weren’t usable, and image stabilization was huge.”
“We would find something in the trash folder and think, ‘Wait a minute, we can use that!’ We would stabilize it and zoom to cut out anything not needed. We also used temporal noise reduction,” he continued. “For example, there was one shot with three people on a couch, and we cut that into single, twos and threes, zoomed in because everything was shot in 5K, and thanks to the temporal noise reduction, you can’t tell it was done that way.”
Chris also benefitted from DaVinci Resolve Studio’s streamlined workflow. “It’s an easy-to-use NLE, and it’s laid out to be a great workflow that’s as simple as bringing footage into the media page and then moving it along through the edit page, into color and finally, delivery,” he noted.
As the Drum and Percussion Technician for Elton John, Chris completed much of post production while on tour, editing and grading in hotel rooms and even on tour buses all on a MacBook Pro using portable drives, USB hubs and Blackmagic Design’s UltraStudio Express capture and playback device.
“The whole project took roughly two years to complete, with Nicole and I doing everything in post ourselves: CGI, sound design, foley, dialogue, the score, VFX, color, editing, titles, output and mastering,” said Chris. “I would edit and grade both on tour and at home, but as the creator, Nicole had final cut on the footage. DaVinci Resolve Studio’s trim tools were great because she could provide direction in the post suite, and I could instantaneously pull left and right a little, cut back or move around to finesse the edit.”
DaVinci Resolve Studio’s Power Grade album in the Gallery also aided greatly for shot creation and continuity between episodes. “Being able to reorganize the timeline on the fly based on clips, either in timeline or by timecode, was amazing. I could check multiple sections and make minute adjustments very quickly,” he added.
During grading, Chris took advantage of DaVinci Resolve Studio’s Power Windows to create dusk out of daytime, to make the characters’ faces glow to help focus the audiences’ eyes, and to enhance plot points to create mood and tone. “We wanted overall warmth because it’s a comedy and for the colors to pop naturally for some vibrant excitement,” he explained. “Power Windows with HSL qualifiers were amazing for pushing the skin tones. I could make a quick Power Window, set the HSL qualifier to match, and DaVinci Resolve Studio tracked it seamlessly.”
Chris concluded, “On a technical level, taking all the raw elements, putting them into DaVinci Resolve Studio and then seeing our vision come to life was very rewarding. On a personal level, for Nicole and I to be able to do this ourselves and be able to tinker to our hearts’ content in order to get it perfect was equally as rewarding.”
Press Photography
Product photos of DaVinci Resolve Studio, UltraStudio Express and all other Blackmagic Design products are available at www.blackmagicdesign.com/press/images.
About Blackmagic Design
Blackmagic Design creates the world’s highest quality video editing products, digital film cameras, color correctors, video converters, video monitoring, routers, live production switchers, disk recorders, waveform monitors and real time film scanners for the feature film, post production and television broadcast industries. Blackmagic Design’s DeckLink capture cards launched a revolution in quality and affordability in post production, while the company’s Emmy™ award winning DaVinci color correction products have dominated the television and film industry since 1984. Blackmagic Design continues ground breaking innovations including 6G-SDI and 12G-SDI products and stereoscopic 3D and Ultra HD workflows. Founded by world leading post production editors and engineers, Blackmagic Design has offices in the USA, UK, Japan, Singapore and Australia. For more information, please go to www.blackmagicdesign.com.
