Didn't want to hi-jack "Looking for RED DP in Toronto" thread to get on my soapbox!

[Ralph Oshiro]

Didn't want to hi-jack that "Looking for RED shooter/owner in Toronto" thread to get on my soapbox, so I created a new thread in the "off-topic" section.

Too bad I don't live in Toronto, although if I were a struggling young DP, I would MOVE there with my RED to get the job. I expect a few more posts like these showing up after NAB. Then after the first RED feature starts making the rounds, I expect a BUNCH more posts like these!

I've never DP'd a feature . . . but I could. I've ordered my share of 18Ks, 6Ks, 4Ks, 2.5Ks, Jokers, 5Ks, Mighty Moles, Babies, Betweenies, Arri 150s, Peppers, Dedos, Divas, Kinos, Image 80s/40s, ellipsoidals, nook lights, Source4 PARs, PAR64s, PAR 56s, PAR46s, PAR20s, PAR-whatevers around a set. Okay, so I never rented a Musco light. But I can pretty much create any lighting effect, at any desired lighting ratio, and focus them to within a footcandle of any given f-stop. I do it everyday on my day job. Plus, when you work in TV, you learn to light real f--king fast! When I light big locations, I have a grip/electric crew as large as some feature sets. But I'm "only" a TV guy. I'm "only" a video guy. But that's actually a good thing! I'm USED to working under a VERY small contrast-handling range. If I were shooting film . . . oohhhh . . . so many more stops to play with!

If it were a bit earlier in my career, despite HUGE LOUD ARGUMENTS TO THE CONTRARY, owning and really knowing RED could've been a helpful ticket "in." Now, first, you gotta know your stuff. I mean REALLY know it. And you gotta be FAST. I mean REALLY fast. But if you DO know your stuff. And you have a good eye . . . RED can be another "leg-up" in helping to land that first big DP job.

[R. Gonzales]

Too bad I don't live in Toronto, although if I were a struggling young DP, I would MOVE there with my RED to get the job. I expect a few more posts like these showing up after NAB. Then after the first RED feature starts making the rounds, I expect a BUNCH more posts like these!

I don't think moving to Toronto would be such a good Idea... From my caclulations there will be at least 35 - 40 REDS owned by about 20 operators. That's a lot of compitition for very little work. Canadian Budgets and it's film industry just isn't big enough to support. (IMO).

[donatello b]

from my experience one doesn't just drive to canada and apply for work - you'll need permit ... canada does have $$ breaks for productions but the fine print doesn't say hire americans - when US productions company's shoot in Canada if they want X $ break they have to hire a very high percent of Canadians ( more canadians the larger the $ break)

off topic:
i DP'd a commercial back in 2000 in Vancouver for a US company -they also had to have a canadian DP on payroll the same amount of days that i worked ... now the strange thing was - US company hires production services of Canadian company - because sound stages were booked in Vancouver we actually shot in a stage on US soil ..