Blackmagic Design announced that its Cintel Scanner was used to help digitize archived footage held on 16mm and 35mm film for new Channel 4 autobiographical documentary “George Michael: Freedom.”
Documenting the life of one of the most influential artists in modern history, the 90-minute film narrated by George Michael himself reveals candid details about everything from his ill-fated first love to his infamous court battle with Sony, which challenged the way the music industry approached the standard recording contract.
The documentary incorporates never before seen archive material alongside present-day interviews with the likes of Elton John, Stevie Wonder and James Corden. Tasked with bringing all of those different sources together in post initially was Headjar Productions’ Gwyn Moxham who completed the first assembly of the film.
“Our biggest headache was how we would bring together all of the different archived material so that we could mix that with recently acquired interviews shot on the URSA Mini 4.6K,” explained Moxham. “We were working with everything from Video 8 camcorder tapes and Betacam SP through to HDCAM and a variety of film stocks.”
He continued: “There were around 60,000 feet of rushes from the ‘Freedom! 90’ video alone! Not only that but we also uncovered reels of George performing on the FAITH tour as well as rehearsing for MTV unplugged, and we had to scan everything before we could sort through it and decided what was useful. Not only that but we also discovered a South Bank Show that George took part in around the time of ‘Listen Without Prejudice’ that was archived on 16mm film. There was a lot held on film to get through.”
Rather than using telecine to digitize the films, the team decided to use the Blackmagic Cintel Scanner to scan in both the 35mm and 16mm footage at a fraction of the cost. Moxham drew from his previous experience working with film as a projectionist early on in his career to help in that process.
“Of course, handling negatives made me a lot more nervous than prints ever did, but I needn’t have worried,” he said. “The Cintel scanner worked like a dream. It was straightforward to set up and very intuitive to use once plugged into our iMac. Even if you’ve never previously handled film stock it is very simple to operate.”
Using the Cintel Scanner, Moxham digitized more than 30,000 feet of final reels for the documentary in 4K, all in real time. Each shot was then compared to those in the original music video to ensure accuracy, and later, fully restored before the editing process was completed by Jerry Chater. “It was an incredible experience to have worked on this project not least because I got to see an industry-defining music video in Freedom! 90’ remastered in 4K,” concluded Moxham. “It truly was a sight to behold.”
The documentary was graded and finished in DaVinci Resolve Studio by London-based colorist Dan Moran of Coffee and TV.
How The Hollywood Awards Calendar Has Been Affected By The Wildfires
Hollywood's awards season has all but come to a rare halt as the wildfires continue to disrupt life and work in the Los Angeles area. There are near daily updates from the Hollywood guilds and organizations that put on awards shows as the industry navigates the ongoing crisis.
Here's an overview of the major upcoming awards shows, from the Oscars to the Grammys, including updated dates for nominations.
Producers Guild and Writers Guild award nominations
Postponed, no new dates announced
The Writers Guild of America nominations were to be announced Jan. 8, a date that was pushed to Jan. 13 and then postponed indefinitely. The Producers Guild of America nominations for feature films were to be announced on Jan. 10, which was pushed to Jan. 12 and then postponed to an unspecified date this week.
Academy Award nominations
Jan. 23
The Oscar nominations have been twice-delayed — they were initially slated for Jan. 17, then Jan. 19, before being delayed again. The delay in the announcement accommodates an extended voting deadline, as many Academy members have been affected by the wildfires.
The nominations will be announced via a "virtual presentation," eschewing press on site.
Critics Choice Awards
Jan. 26
Originally slated for Jan. 12, the awards were set to take place at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, only miles from the Pacific Palisades neighborhood where fire was raging.
The awards will be broadcast live on E!, hosted by Chelsea Handler.
Grammy Awards
Feb. 2
By virtue of announcing their nominations back in November, the Grammys' schedule has largely been unaffected by the wildfires. Some... Read More