Blackmagic Forum

This is just my opinion for what its worth.

I have made some mistakes and learned some hard lessons through the vehicle of a pre-order for the BMPC4k. I invested in accessories and built my camera package around a camera that was not out yet. This was my mistake. But here I am waiting just like everyone else. So I write this because I think at least some of you may be able to relate and in that I take comfort and hope you do too.

The Good:
With BMD's line of cameras they have inspired hope in the legions of low to no budget film makers across the globe. By putting, at least in concept and price point, professional tools in the hands of film makers they open the gates of production value that once held story and vision under the lock & key of those with big money and lots of resources. For this "we" which, I'm sure I am taking liberties with, have followed you blindly down an unknown path filled with promise. Not promises but promise non the less. By investing our dreams and limited resources in your vision you (BMD) give each and every film maker hope and perhaps more importantly the power to create in ways unseen before. For this I believe you have captured our attention, imagination, and hearts. I believe those most vocal and upset are perhaps on the flip side of the coin your greatest supporters and admirers.

The Bad:
By jumping into this arena BMD is dealing with perhaps the most fragile element of the community. You give promise to the dreams of those who quite frankly probably don't have much else. Now I know this doesn't include everyone but I believe those vulnerable people are the target market. To be able to tap it could offer a massive fortune. Are any of these camera a guarantee for success as an artists, professional in the entertainment industry, or any of the other digital media fields that require video work? Of course not. But it is upon the dreams and hopes of those without cash cow resources that you build your own dreams of fortune. Forgive this absurd example, for some situations hold much greater gravity than a camera, but I will use it to illustrate a point. Take the poorest inner city school and make them the promise of the most up to date computers and tools for learning. Promise a way for them to compete with the high end private schools of the suburbs. You will gain instantly their attention, their hearts, their minds, their dreams.Your pitch carries a lot of weight because unlike those schools in the suburbs they need you. You've offered them hope. I don't know how lightly that sort of promise should be thrown about.

The Ugly:
You offer a dream and people prepare for the promise you offer. They build their plans around your word. They essentially do exactly what you've asked them to do. And once they've given their only power, their attention, BMD buttons up like a pea coat on a cold winter day. The children are left out in the cold banging on your door. Wondering what the hell happened. They have not only invested in you they've given up the only sub standard tools they could of had in the mean time because of a promise. They've stopped learning, practicing, shooting, creating because they've put all their eggs in your basket of hope. There's a reason it's called going cold when you stop talking.

Be well dreamers. Take care BMD. You have the most vulnerable film makers in the palm of your hand, breath held, eyes wide, attention fixed to every word you say. Would it be so hard on you to just talk to them?

I'm sure this is on a fast path to the off topic forum. Certainly it has nothing to do with cinematography; or does it?

This is a guess on my part but I think sensor technology is progressing fast enough that there will be more 4k options in 2014 that are affordable. They may not offer everything BMD does/promises, but the fact is 4k is an easy marketing message to consumers, visa vie 1920x1080.

Ben, I understand your feelings about the tools, but I suggest that you really rethink your position.
Don't hang your dreams to a camera - it is only just the device capturing light and shadows. In no way it will make your story any better than it is. The most important thing to create a good feature film is to have the best story writing you can imagine, have the best actors you can get, take care of the audio and use light to paint the pictures. Don't ever take the quality of the camera as an excuse for a bad movie or for not even being able to start a production. Too many aspiring film makers just rely on that excuse not to begin with their work, but just talk all the time how they could have done that great movie if only they had this or that camera at their hands.

I did my first full feature together with a group of 4 other talented but inexperienced guys in 2004, when there was even no HDV available to us. We decided to use a Canon XM2 MiniDV camera with a Century Optics anamorphic 16:9 adapter, because I wanted to spend most of our budget into production values, like costumes, lighting, grip, locations. We spend much more money for feeding the crew, for gas, audio post production and music - well almost 50% of the budget went into the audio, even got an orchestra and a choir for the soundtrack.
And though, the weakest link in our production was the story, we where just to naive and inexperienced to recognize that. The best camera in the world wouldn't have saved our story.
We managed to get our movie into the cinemas in Austria, we found a distributor and one can buy the film on DVD on amazon and most of the big stores in our country. It was neither the big success nor did we manage to earn our investments back. But we all learned a lot from the 3 years we spent with this movie.
We had made the first true indie feature in our country and we paved the way for other young, aspiring film makers to get their movies into cinemas.

So go and create a fabulous story, go out and shoot it with any camera to your avail. Bokeh is not the holy grail and RAW won't improve the acting or the lack of lighting. Audio is much more important - buy a good mic, find a dedicated audio guy for your production. From a technical point of view, nothing screams more amateur than bad audio. But never ever use a camera as an excuse for not making a film.

Beautifully written both of you
And both true.
Nice to read sense on a forum

Great post Ben you put words to my feelings at least.

I too have built all the peripherals around the 4k camera from a loan I can barely afford and we all know what life is like as the money for the 4k sits in the bank unexpected bills will appear to take it away.

Yes my hope is to make a feature film and I am stuck with being unable to test the equipment I bought for the camera or the camera. Hopefully one of those BM has said they want to make the pro tools available too and give us a fighting chance. Instead I am stuck with not being able to move to any next level and I am depressed at being held down when I have so little to fight with in the first place.
BM Have hit me hard with this and I think I am one of the people they say they want to help They could alleviate this with just some information to keep us sane.

Last time they did though there were a few forum idiots who had a go at them and just followed it up with more complaint questions. At the time I said ignore them but I suspect BM are taking a strict line now of "need to know" because of it.

So here I am waiting to move forward and no hope in sight. Very very depressing.


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I know something about this as I'm sure many of us do, although we each might be inspired by different ideals.
My interest in film & TV was inspired by documentary makers like Mark Achbar, David Bradbury and cameraman Neil Davis, though I have yet to achieve creation of a world changing documentary.

For the 4th time, I am investing in a video production setup.
The first time I spent close to $70K on gear and was forced to do corporate video and weddings to pay for it with no time for docos until my gear finally disintegrated.
I don't feel tricked by BMD, not like the way Panasonic sold me cameras and VTR's that were supposed to get upgraded digital outputs that never materialised.

This time, the BMG gear is far cheaper and far better.
I don't need to do work I'm not comfortable doing, in fact I can do anything I want with it.

I believe BMD has taken serious risks in reaching out to low budget film makers.
They have, no doubt invested bigtime in these cameras which is not their core business.
I see a lot of people on this forum biting the hand that is feeding them.

BMD need our support as much as we need their revolutionary gear.

Pablito wrote:I believe BMD has taken serious risks in reaching out to low budget film makers.
They have, no doubt invested bigtime in these cameras which is not their core business.
I see a lot of people on this forum biting the hand that is feeding them.

Sorry - but did you seriously mean that? BMD is in no way in the position to feed me. It is exactly the other way round. If we do not buy their products, than BMD goes out of business in no time. I got my work done before BMD and I will able to do my work after BMD. There is a lot of competition on the camera market and if there wouldn't be the BMCCs I would have a Canon C100 or a Sony FS700, which both are nice cheap cameras with a very good picture quality even though not having RAW. Not to mention both are able to show audio levels, have no black spot and tell you how much time is left on the media.
A camera is not a religion. BMD is not the Messiahs.

Pablito wrote:BMD need our support as much as we need their revolutionary gear.

At first I'd like to see some more commitment from BMD for the first BMCC to earn my support again.
And I really hoped you would have understood my point in the long posting above about gear.