Let Them All Talk

[Christoffer Glans]

Big fan of Soderbergh and his no bullshit way of tackling filmmaking. This is done just in the way I imagine many indie movies will be made with the Komodo. I believe it was done before R3D implementation, so SDI recording, but good to see a pro at work doing narrative with it. Looks really good for the way it was shot!

[rand thompson]

Looks good I just hate that it's so diffused.

[Christopher A. Bell]

The 'available-light-in-the-dark stuff' looks looks like complete $%#&. Not the fault of the camera, but the way that it was shot. If you're shooting a down 'n dirty doc, that's one thing, but if you're shooting narrative with named actors for a major network/studio, light it. It doesn't look natural. It looks like so much other crap out there that gets shot by people thinking that anything can be fixed in post. And what makes it so bad, this was done by people that know better(or should know better), but still did it anyway. If for no other reason, because they can/wanted to, NOT because it was going to make a better(looking) end product.

If you wanna sell cameras, this isn't one you'd put on the demo reel or the "shot on" list.

[Christoffer Glans]

The 'available-light-in-the-dark stuff' looks looks like complete $%#&. Not the fault of the camera, but the way that it was shot. If you're shooting a down 'n dirty doc, that's one thing, but if you're shooting narrative with named actors for a major network/studio, light it. It doesn't look natural. It looks like so much other crap out there that gets shot by people thinking that anything can be fixed in post. And what makes it so bad, this was done by people that know better(or should know better), but still did it anyway. If for no other reason, because they can/wanted to, NOT because it was going to make a better(looking) end product.

If you wanna sell cameras, this isn't one you'd put on the demo reel or the "shot on" list.

I agree that it doesn’t look good compared to a controlled shoot, but I’m thinking back at Dogma 95 and how Komodo can work in favor of a similar style without looking like complete rubbish. It makes it possible to achieve good results with a very small production. I think this is what this production is a good example of.

In an age where people are spoiled with the perfection of super budget production cinematography, I like that someone just does something like this.

Looks good I just hate that it's so diffused.

Diffusion has been a look Soderbergh has been using a few times, not a fan either.

[sam karr]

I agree that it doesn’t look good compared to a controlled shoot, but I’m thinking back at Dogma 95 and how Komodo can work in favor of a similar style without looking like complete rubbish. It makes it possible to achieve good results with a very small production. I think this is what this production is a good example of.

In an age where people are spoiled with the perfection of super budget production cinematography, I like that someone just does something like this.

One of the most beautiful movie of these last years, The Rider, was shot under the same conditions with an Amira and it looks gorgeous. "Let Them All Talk" looks terrible.

[Christoffer Glans]

One of the most beautiful movie of these last years, The Rider, was shot under the same conditions with an Amira and it looks gorgeous. "Let Them All Talk" looks terrible.

You're comparing apples to oranges. If it's the one I think you mean, it's shot in mostly magic hour or natural environments with natural light. Comparing that to something that's shot on location, on a cruise ship with mixed lighting, and features lots of in-door practicals with little to no ability to be controlled, is just wrong.

Find me a movie that's shot in similar conditions with just one person (the director) operating the camera and handling the cinematography. I agree that I don't like some of the color choices or the diffusion filter applied to it, but shooting in magic hour environments and natural lights is a whole other thing compared to stepping on a boat with thousands of unwanted extras and manage to get all shots for a feature-length movie in a consistent form.

I rarely see anyone except the top names in the industry being able to get mixed lighting uncontrolled cinematography looking good, it's hard, probably the hardest shots to get right and Soderbergh just didn't care, which is his point. It's why he made Unsane and High Flying Bird on iPhones. It's a statement about the industry, just as much as a way to free up the shooting pressures. I don't think most people in here would be able to shoot a film like "Let Them All Talk" under the conditions it was made and be remotely close to what he achieved. As I mentioned, people are spoiled by the precision of large budget productions today. Shooting in natural light in beautiful locations is not what this is about and should be compared to.

[Ash Worth]

Exteriors look great, so there's that.

[Björn Benckert]

Agree with Christoffer. We done tons of low budget commercials on cruse ships between Sweden and Finland. The light on boats like that is terrible, lot of low level strange energy saving spotlights that has all kind of odd mixed color temps and then you got the daylight crashing in trough windows that are often tinted with really shitty sun film that colors the external light similar like the worst variable ND polarisers. So yes I think Soderbergs aim was not to make this film to show any kind of skills in cinematic photography but to tell a story with a new / somewhat different approach. To me its seams like he is more of a story teller and does not always want to be tied by the strings that large studio productions comes with. But yes, I can also agree, a lot of the shots would have been quite easy to light in a way that would have made them tons better. Seams like a few led fixtures and a one man light department would have been enough...

[sam karr]

Find me a movie that's shot in similar conditions with just one person (the director) operating the camera and handling the cinematography. I agree that I don't like some of the color choices or the diffusion filter applied to it, but shooting in magic hour environments and natural lights is a whole other thing compared to stepping on a boat with thousands of unwanted extras and manage to get all shots for a feature-length movie in a consistent form.

There are thousands of videos on YouTube and Vimeo, shot with dslr, rangefinders, or any other camera type, shot with no lighting kit at all, by one guy, which look better than that trailer. Maybe he should not handle the cinematography at all. Some guys are talented to shoot with nothing. He has other talents.

[Bob Gundu]

Props to Soderbergh for shooting a feature in sequence in 2 weeks.