
Technicolor PostWorks New York completed the finishing on Cafe Society, Woody Allens first digital motion picture as a director, which was captured by legendary cinematographer Vittorio Storaro. The film opened the 2016 Cannes Film Festival and was released in the United States last month.
Set in the 1930s, the story charts the rise of the nave young Bobby Dorfman (played by Jesse Eisenberg) from his humble origins in the Bronx before seeking fame in Hollywood and returning to New York in triumph. Storaro, working with senior colourist Anthony Raffaele, created looks that reflected the major locations, each in need of a distinctive visual style, and the development of the main character as he navigates a world of dreams and artifice.
When Woody Allen asked me to do Caf Society, he had never done a digital capture before, but I knew that I had to jump completely into this new chance we had, said Vittorio Storaro. I wanted to see images on set that would be very close to the final result and afterwards on dailies even closer, almost 90% of that way to what we would see at the end Anthony Raffaele with Baselight was able to offer that.
Storaro wanted to keep a 16-bit 4K workflow throughout. Due to his previous experience with Baselight on Majid Majidis Muhammad: The Messenger of God and its ability to work in multiple new formats, Storaro was also insistent that Baselight was the ideal system for both the dailies and DI. The project was shot on Sony F55 and F65 cameras and graded using the ACES standard, with Baselight converting to XYZ to retain quality and to allow high dynamic range output to all the deliverables.
A real plus of ACES is that you can achieve every colour and density you could ever want, said colourist Raffaele. Vittorio always wants a crisp black level. But with digital projection you do not get the same quality black level as you do with print. The full support for ACES in Baselight enabled us to emulate film.
Because Storaro insisted on the same colourist for dailies and finishing, Raffaele formed a close working relationship with on-set DIT Simone dArchangelo, exchanging files and notes every day to ensure that what was seen on set was precisely what left the colour suite.
Raffaele made extensive use of Baselights layer functionality, including emulating the original Technicolor three-strip process and colour intensity to create strong key looks, identifying each location.
The Bronx was supposed to be a softer palette. It was poor, lower toned, with muted contrast, Raffaele explained. Los Angeles was more vibrant, new, golden with luminous glow, reflecting the fact that our main character is in a more uplifted place. The New York look was a merging of the two, bringing something back from LA, with a fresher look. Bobby Dorfman has changed his life and so the image is a cleaner colour palette, with more contrasts.
He used a large part of the grading arsenal of Baselight, such as the DFuse tool to soften out skin, particularly to make the main female characters look more radiant and angelic. The Baselight layering tools helped him complete simple VFX jobs too, such as adding lights to a dawn scene and matting out unwanted objects.
Raffaele also pointed to Baselights ability to switch colour spaces readily, allowing him to create the final grade in HDR on HD and immediately apply it to the 4K raw footage inside ACES, then roll out the deliverables to multiple colour spaces.
Anthony Raffaele is a wonderful colourist. He was with us from New York to Los Angeles, from the beginning to the end, said Storaro. Thats something Im used to doing in Italy and I really love it, to have the same colourist doing dailies and doing the DI as well, following the movie through its entire journey.
Storaro had a clear vision of the complete movie, including references to classical painters and photographers, and he also had a very strong understanding of the technologies involved to achieve what he wanted. He went through the exact same process as shooting in celluloid.
Vittorio is an absolute perfectionist. Hes extremely technical and a great storyteller. He is also the most collaborative cinematographer Ive ever worked with, added Raffaele. Plus he insisted on a Baselight grade and that day the stars aligned for me.
Most recent headlines
13/03/2025
WASHINGTON FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced that the agency has launched a massive, new deregulatory initiative that could potentially subject virtually all ...
13/03/2025
SUNNYVALE, Calif. SDVI has announced that it has integrated its Rally media supply chain management platform with the Spectra Vail multi-cloud data management s...
13/03/2025
ATLANTA Gray Media has announced that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted a waiver of its local ownership rules to permit Gray Media to acqu...
13/03/2025
TV Tech: What do you anticipate will be the most significant technology trends at the 2025 NAB Show?...
13/03/2025
Watch Student Naomi Soleils Folk Pop Performance on The Voice The songwriting major sang Stars by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals during the blind auditions.
...
12/03/2025
O Spotify acaba de lan ar o relat rio Loud & Clear deste ano, uma vis o transpar...
12/03/2025
Spotify acaba de presentar el informe Loud & Clear de este a o, una mirada trans...
12/03/2025
Ramadan, a period of profound spiritual significance for Muslims worldwide, is a time for fasting, prayer, reflection, and community. Enrich your experience thi...
12/03/2025
Spotify has just unveiled this year's Loud & Clear report, a transparent loo...
12/03/2025
More than 70% of FAST programming has been produced since 2010, according to new Gracenote report
NEW YORK March 12, 2025 Gracenote, the content data busin...
12/03/2025
GEONA, Nev. Independent digital and linear advertising rep firm Viamedia will adopt cloud-based ShowSeeker Pilot as its primary ad campaign and order management...
12/03/2025
BRUSSELS Mediagenix has announced that Wael Yasin has joined the company as sales director Central Europe....
12/03/2025
LONDON A new study highlights opportunities for shoppable TV and the massive impact online consumer spending is having on the economy, with Omdia predicting tha...
12/03/2025
CUPERTINO, Calif. Interra Systems has announced that Comcast Technology Solutions has integrated recent updates to BATON Version 9 into its operations....
12/03/2025
Nevion announces new 400G addition to its eMerge SDN media fabric offering
Brie Clayton March 12, 2025
0 Comments
High-capacity switch enhances existi...
12/03/2025
DaVinci Resolve Studio Delivers Cinematic Sound for Adam Bol
Brie Clayton March 12, 2025
0 Comments
Feature film relies on DaVinci Resolve Studio for ...
12/03/2025
SVT Leverages Ateliere Live to Pioneer 100% Software-Defined Production at Rally...
12/03/2025
Berklee Awards Fenway Neighborhood Improvement Grant to Four Organizations A total of $17,000 will be distributed among the Boston-based nonprofits.
By
Madd...
12/03/2025
TVBEuropes Jenny Priestley sits down with new SMPTE president Richard Welsh to discuss his aims for the organisation going forward, its efforts to attract a you...
12/03/2025
The new process has significantly enhanced operational efficiencies, with automation freeing up creators to concentrate on higher value tasks
By Matthew Corrig...
12/03/2025
Jellyfish Pictures, which has offices in London and Sheffield, said it has been battling hard in the face of strong headwinds over the last 12 months
By Jenny ...
12/03/2025
Visit Booth #W2213 to Experience the Latest in AI-Driven Content Discovery and Workflow Automation
Bitcentral, a leader in media workflow solutions, is set to ...
12/03/2025
CHICAGO Jeff Lilly has been named WGN-TV director of technology effective March 17, 2025, according to Ric Harris, WGN-TV vice president and general manager....
12/03/2025
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. A new study from LG Ad Solutions indicates that consumers want more features that would allow them to shop for products on the connected T...
12/03/2025
BOTHELL, Wash. The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA) and the Video Services Forum (VSF) will once again present...
12/03/2025
PHILADELPHIA Comcast announced that it has upgraded Xfinity Internet speeds for more than 20 million customers for no additional cost....
12/03/2025
Create with Maxon: Cinema 4D Fundamentals Workshop - March 12-14
Brie Clayton March 11, 2025
0 Comments
Makin' Waffles with Elly Wade
During Marc...
12/03/2025
Ottawa, Canada - March 12, 2025 - Ross Video is pleased to announce the appointment of Aaron Tunnell as Business Development Director, Cloud Solutions, reinforc...
12/03/2025
12 Mar 2025
VEON to release 4Q 2024 trading update on 20 March 2025 Dubai, 12 March 2025 - VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON), a global digital operator, today confirms ...
12/03/2025
Getting set for the Winter Olympics: Inside SVT's ongoing software-based pro...
12/03/2025
THE PLAYERS Championship 2025: AI Commentary, Shared-Reality Viewing at COSM, La...
12/03/2025
Seamless SMPTE 2110: A Discussion on Making the Move to IP Less Painful Leaders from Netflix, Monumental Sports & Entertainment, LinkedI, and Megapixel address ...
12/03/2025
Opening Doors of Perception: Meta's Ajit Ninan on Rethinking AR/MR Perceptua...
12/03/2025
With the 2025 Formula 1 season set to begin in Melbourne on March 16, Sky Sports is gearing up to deliver its most comprehensive F1 coverage yet. Following a th...
12/03/2025
Unicanal and Trece TV revolutionize Digital TV in Paraguay with Rohde & Schwarz ...
12/03/2025
Honoring Service, Celebrating Sport: Rohde & Schwarz UK Sponsors NavyFit Rugby D...
12/03/2025
New HVS-Q12 Represents a Quantum Leap in Switcher Design...
12/03/2025
Telespazio and ABS Expand Partnership to Deliver Tailored C-Band Connectivity So...
12/03/2025
ABC conducts independent audits across the TAG programs. In the March 2025 TAG s...
12/03/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Moonlight: ESA program to create a satellite con...
12/03/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
In 2025, Thales ranks among the top 0.01% of the...
12/03/2025
Consumer show back following hugely successful first series
10 March 2025 Following a hugely successful first series, The Complaints Bureau returns to RT ...
11/03/2025
By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
11/03/2025
Salsa is making a comeback, captivating new listeners with its infectious energy...
11/03/2025
For many people, music can serve as a reflection of their roots and upbringing. ...
11/03/2025
The solution delivers reliable, scalable and secure connectivity for critical pu...
11/03/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Harmonic has announced that Weigel Broadcasting has deployed Harmonics VOS Media Software, which offers playout-to-delivery capabilities, inclu...
11/03/2025
NEW BERN, N.C. Wheatstone will introduce a Linux audio driver for its WheatNet IP audio network during the 2025 NAB Show, April 5-9, at the Las Vegas Convention...
11/03/2025
NEW YORK A new study finds that as TV viewership for women's sports surged by 131% in 2024, the programming also saw a 56% year-over-year increase in ad im...
11/03/2025
Powerful switcher for news studio
FOR-A, a cutting-edge video broadcast technology company backed by more than 50 years experience, has installed its HVS-1200 ...