(SECAUCUS, New Jersey--November 30, 2007) Stimulus Films (Atlanta, GA) is completing post-production of "Grilling Bobby Hicks", a whodunit with a whiff of romance shot with Panasonic’s AJ-HDX900 multi-format DVCPRO HD camcorder.
Grilling takes a post-mortem look at trailer-park bully Bobby Hicks, who is found shot to death and cooked on his still-warm barbecue grill. The town’s laid-back sheriff and his deputy investigate the crime, with suspicion first falling on Bobby’s unfaithful wife, then on a local artist with a not-so-secret crush on Bobby’s niece, a local waitress haunted by her father’s “accidental” death at Bobby’s hands. Stimulus Films president Tommy Wood is co-writer/director/co-editor of Grilling, with Scott Sweeney serving as Director of Photography and co-editor.
“We chose the HDX900 (rented from Wexler Video) largely based on its ability to shoot 1080 24p HD,” said DP Sweeney. “The image quality is astounding, and we felt it was the easiest format to edit with Final Cut Pro. Also, because of the camera’s FireWire (IEEE 1394) out, we were able to record directly to a Firestore FS-100 Portable Direct to Edit (DTE) hard drive. Overall, the cost versus the quality was perfect for our budget.”
Most shooting was completed in the fall of last year, with locations around metro Atlanta ranging from Gwinnett County to Hollywood, GA. The production team shot six pick-up days last spring with Panasonic’s AG-HVX200 P2 HD camcorder. All HDX900 footage was recorded direct to the Firestore, recording on tape as back-up. “The HDX900’s ability to reach into the black portions of the picture and bring out the detail is amazing,” Sweeney said.
“We shot in the north Georgia mountains last October, with some 20-degree nights,” said director Wood. “We never had an issue with the camera reacting to cold, heat or anything else.”
Regarding the pick-up shoot with the HVX200, Wood said, “We knew that the HVX200 has the ability to shoot the same resolution, and we wanted something a little smaller than the HDX900 to keep the pace of production up. The workflow was perfect for us. We would stop every hour or so to download. While waiting, we could setup the next shot or even do an on-site edit of the scene.”
“Editing the HVX200 footage with the HDX900 footage has been basically a non-issue,” he added. “We start forgetting what we shot with which camera. The image quality of both is superb. The HDX900 has light handling characteristics like no other camera I've worked with, and the HVX200 is great for patching holes guerilla-style, as we did.
Wood is using Final Cut Pro’s internal color-correction for general enhancements and is in the process of applying Red Giant's Magic Bullet to the whole film. He anticipates completion by the end of the year, and will then enter the full-length feature in up to a dozen festivals.
“I consider the HDX900 in the same league with any top HD camera, and it’s even better from the aspect of being able to go FireWire out,” Wood said. “I love shooting digital--it has immediate gratification and it’s highly cost-effective.”
For more information about Grilling Bobby Hicks and Stimulus Films, visit www.stimulusfilms.com.
About the AJ-HDX900
An indispensable, cost-effective tool for global content creators, the AJ-HDX900 DVCPRO HD camcorder supports 1080 59.94i/50i/29.97p/25p/23.98p/23.98pA and 720 59.94p/50p/29.97p/25p/23.98p recording. The HDX900 features a native 16:9, 2/3" HD, 1-million pixel 3-CCD system that assures stunning images and produces a high sensitivity of F10 (at 2000 lux) and outstanding low-light shooting down to 0.032 lux (at+62 dB gain). It is equipped with 14-bit A/D DSP circuits that provide optimum picture quality, color reproduction and luminance gradation. The HDX900 offers superior 4:2:2 color sampling and independent frame compression. The well-balanced camcorder offers impressive built-in, image-enhancing features including three Cine-like gamma modes to replicate the look and feel of film, and is compatible with a wide range 2/3" quality lenses and accessories.
About the AG-HVX200
The ultra-versatile AG-HVX200 records in 1080i and 720p in production-proven 100 Mbps DVCPRO HD quality, with the ability to capture images in 21 record modes. The camera records video on a P2 card as IT-friendly MXF files in 1080/60i, 30p and 24p; in 720/60p, 30p and 24p; in 50Mbps DVCPRO50 and in 25Mbps DVCPRO or DV. The HVX200 can capture fast or slow action in 720p at various frame rates--the first time this function is available in a hand-held camera. The shooting frame rate in 720p native mode can be set for any of 11 steps between 12fps and 60fps including 24fps and 30fps.
About Panasonic Broadcast
Panasonic Broadcast & Television Systems Co. is a leading supplier of broadcast and professional video products and systems. Panasonic Broadcast is a unit company of Panasonic Corporation of North America. The company is the North American headquarters of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (NYSE: MC) of Japan, and the hub of its U.S. marketing, sales, service and R&D operations. For more information on Panasonic Broadcast products, visit www.panasonic.com/broadcast.
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