[Release by Well Above]
The Lab Sydney reveals details of the unique DI workflow used on the latest Nurofen TVC entitled ‘Ned Kelly’ for Euro RSCG Sydney, and their client Reckitt-Benckiser.
Veteran award winning director David Denneen said, “The two-day shoot took place in an old gold mining town. An original prospector’s hut set the scene perfectly for the ensuing gunfight between police and Ned Kelly. Once the shoot wrapped, Toby Denneen edited the 30-second spot on Final Cut Pro and it was so good we decided to also cut a 45-second one.”
With the spots cut, Senior Colourist at The Lab Sydney, Marcus Timpson, was brought in to grade the commercial on C-Reality. Timpson said, “The grade went exceptionally well and the cinematic look we ended up with was so well received by David, Rowan Dean and the Euro RSCG team that we began to discuss doing a high-end cinema version using our Digital Intermediate (DI) facilities.”
Earlier this year The Lab made a major multi-million dollar investment in a DI infrastructure complete with Northlight 2 film scanner, two Baselight colour-grading systems and a purpose-built theatrette utilising a Barco 2K projector.
Timpson added, “The DI equipment and facilities at the Lab are second-to-none. The kit and set-up is by far the best amalgamation of systems in this region and beyond. Particularly the Northlight 2 scanner which is the only one in the Southern Hemisphere and the best in its class.”
The Northlight 2 scanner embraces a 4K workflow and digital cinema projection delivering six times the scanning speed of its predecessor the Northlight 1 and boasts an 8K internal resolution. It was this amazing piece of kit that was to be the centrepiece of the groundbreaking workflow.
With the decision made to create a cinema version of the commercial Marcus Timpson again took up the reigns. He added, “We didn’t want to do a traditional Kine as there is always such a huge loss of quality. This was a great opportunity to treat the TVC with the workflow usually associated with a feature. So we scanned the 35mm film on the Northlight 2 to keep the quality and integrity of the original as high as possible. The results from this 8K scanner down res-ing to 2K were stunning. The files retained more information and detail than any other scanning process I’ve ever worked with.”
The files were then conformed and graded in the Baselight 4 theatrette with all the effects also produced in 2K by Lab Senior VFX Supervisor, Tony Cole, to perfectly match the rest of the commercial.
For the first viewing of the results from this groundbreaking new workflow, David Denneen brought editor, Toby Denneen, and Filmgraphics Senior Executive Editor, Sue Schweikert with him to the Lab.
The initial reaction was one of amazement with David Denneen commenting, “The filmic clarity, contrast and delicate image treatment were outstanding with all the subtleties still in there. It looked as good as any film transfer I have seen.”
Self-confessed film purist Sue Schweikert added, “When I first saw this I was impressed. Certainly the first time for me and Filmgraphics. What we saw reminded me of when we used to edit on film then look at the projected image and ‘feel’ it. It held all the qualities of the original film – truly amazing. The success of this digital process now means you can get a true film look that was previously unobtainable. Everyone has tried to make video look like film but the results just haven’t been good enough. This will delight DOPs who will finally get their creative power.”
Editor, Toby Denneen, agreed, “I can see the difference between this and SD, the way it holds the whites, blacks and contrast levels is amazing. Comparing SD and the Baselight 2K is like chalk and cheese. Side-by-side it makes SD look like the old VHS.”
David Denneen concluded, “Commercial directors can now successfully scan, work and post in a feature environment at film resolution. The Northlight 2 scanner can emulate a telecine and gives the best quality data files possible. There is no longer the need for a 3rd party to get involved in a Kine which will look far worse than the original. Now, we can lock off the print and see exactly how a commercial will look on the cinema screen and know that it will match the quality of the movie that follows it.”
View the Nurofen Ned Kelly TVC here.
CREDITS
Client: Reckitt-Benckiser – Nurofen
Marketing Director – Mark Cooper
Senior Brand Manager – Conor O’Brien
Agency: Euro RSCG
Executive Creative Director – Rowan Dean
Group Account Director – Andrew Knox
Senior Account Director – David Bailey
Agency Producer – John Lamble
Production Company: Filmgraphics
Director – David Denneen
Producer – Anna Fawcett
D.O.P – Matt Stewart
Editor – Toby Denneen
Senior Executive Editor – Sue Schweikert
Post Production: The Lab Sydney
Client Services Director – Michael Eder
Executive Producer – Steve Marolho
Producer – Anna Greensmith
Senior Colourist – Marcus Timpson
Senior VFX Supervisor – Tony Cole
Picture credits
Stills from Nurofen Ned Kelly TVC
Lab DI theatrette: (l-r) Toby Denneen, David Denneen, Marcus Timpson and Sue Schweikert viewing the Nurofen Ned Kelly TVC in the Lab’s DI theatrette