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Member LoginACS becomes IMAGO Associate Member
Amsterdam - 17 February 2008
On behalf of the ACS I recently attended the IMAGO (European Federation of Cinematographers) Annual General Assembly in Amsterdam where the delegates unanimously ratified our Associate Membership. It was a great honour to be so warmly welcomed into the IMAGO family by 48 delegates representing the cinematographers of 36 countries. The conference I found most enlightening and it confirmed to me that as cinematographers, regardless of nationality, we are all on the same page.
The major agenda item was a presentation by IMAGO’s lawyer, Dr. Cristina Busch from Spain, of a Model Contract entitled Guidelines for Authorship and Working Conditions for Directors of Photography. This paper makes extremely interesting reading and can be downloaded in PDF format from the IMAGO website - www.imago.org. I suggest you all have a look at it. It is quite a lengthy document that covers most of the bases, particularly for those working in the Features/Drama area. The document is regarded as ‘guidelines’ that can be adapted to the individual’s needs. It covers most contingencies and also attempts to address the thorny issue of authorship rights of the cinematographer.
There was much discussion about this Model Contract and it was agreed that some form of compromise must be considered in the long run. Producers will always want at least a ‘buy out’ clause in any contract. The Austrian society (AAC) suggested that IMAGO should put together a ‘wish list’ of working conditions that covered all cinematographers in all genres. Quite a task, but then that is what IMAGO is all about. Obviously, while the same issues affect us all in one way or another, many items may have to be tailored to the individual’s country.
There was a report from the IMAGO Technical Committee by Kommer Kleijn of the SBC (Belgium) on a number of matters. First was the suggestion that IMAGO write a list of criteria to define what is acceptable as a ‘digital film camera’. He suggested that as well as ENG and EFP there should be a third category known as DFC to incorporate this. He tabled a list of minimum requirements for an electronic camera to fit this category. It included such things as variable frame rate, optical viewfinder with a minimum visible area outside picture area, minimum 4k resolution and so on. Obviously this list of criteria was a tall order, however before digital acquisition could truly replace 35mm film the cameras had to compare to a 35mm film camera in all aspects.
Other items being looked at by the technical committee include a proposal to initiate a standard ‘Digital Film Negative’ file format for future digital cameras so that all material can be processed by any digital lab and a proposal that the new digital cinema projectors be able to project 24, 25, 48, 50 and 60 frames per second and not just 24 and 48 as presently suggested by the Digital Cinema Initiative (DCI) from the US. SMPTE is currently working on this issue and they have requested the support of IMAGO. The reasons for the increase in projection rates are many but basically the increased frame rates will improve projection quality in the cinemas and also overcome difficulties with TV transmission and DVD compatibility.
There was also a discussion about Droit Moral or Moral Rights of filmmakers. Swedish TV4 was recently forced to pay €60,000 damages to two Swedish film directors after the Court of Appeal upheld a finding that the commercial breaks interrupted the “continuity and dramaturgy of the cinematographic works and introduced settings that are alien and unmotivated”. In Sweden, at least, the Court of Appeal considers the making of films as serious an art form as visual art, music, theatre and literature. This may be a hard one to impose on the TV industry here in Australia, but it did precipitate much discussion about the ‘vandalising’ of credits on many television stations where they are squeezed into such a small area of the screen as to be illegible. The topic of broadcast in original format (e.g. 2.35:1) and the quality of many DVD transfers also came under this same heading. The consensus was that all films should be broadcast in their original format and that the quality of the DVD transfers should be monitored to make sure that the standard of the original release is maintained to the satisfaction of the cinematographer.
The best way to sum up the general mood of the conference would be to say that one of the biggest concerns facing cinematographers today is the decline in quality and ethical standards being imposed upon us by the digital revolution. We, as the ‘authors’ of the original image, must strive to make sure that that doesn’t happen by maintaining control over our pictures as best we can. As IMAGO grows I believe we may have a reasonably fair chance of making an impression in this regard. We may not win all the battles but at least we will be listened to.