Light Kit and Film Stock for Super 8 mm

[alchemistfilmmaker]

Dear Mr. Mullen,

Thank you for your time and your patience in moderating this forum. I am personally very grateful for the time you have already devoted in sharing your experience with us.

I have a few questions..

I'm just starting out as a filmmaker: I've shot one short film on Kodachrome, which actually played at the Seattle GLFF and Portland's LGFF: I consider myself very fortunate!

However, the second time around, Kodachrome has been discontinued and I don't favor the 64T as a replacement.

I am shooting on a Canon 518 SV..

I've read that you started on Super 8 which was really encouraging, as I am doing the same. My question is this:

Which film stock would you suggest for interiors? Exteriors?
Do you have a recommendation for a modest beginning light kit? Can you create a DIY light kit with Home Depot lights? If not, what would be the beginner kit you would recommend?

Thank you!!!

Just an aside, Twin Falls Idaho is hauntingly beautiful..

~Sam

 

[David Mullen ASC]

Anything that puts out light is fair game for shooting a movie. When I was a beginner, I had an odd collection of DIY lights -- hardware store reflector dishes and light bulbs, Chinese Lanterns, fluorescent work lamps (although ordinary flos don't work well with Super-8 cameras since many of those aren't crystal-sync and 60 Hz discharge lamps will pulse / flicker.) Also bounce cards, reflectors, etc. are useful.

I recommend finding at least one movie-type lamp just so you can start to find the uses for such a unit, maybe a 650w fresnel, maybe used. I had one cheap quartz-halogen open-faced movie lamp that I found in a garage sale for $5, only to discover a couple of years later when I had to replace the bulb after it finally burned out that the bulb cost $25...

The only similar-looking color reversal stock to K40 is Ektachrome 100D (5285), but Kodak doesn't sell it directly, you have to go through someone like Pro8mm. Fuji Velvia 50D is also a good substitute for K40, but it is becoming rare. I also like the b&w reversal stocks.

Otherwise, you could shoot interiors on 200T Super-8 negative stock, but then you couldn't project the original, it would really be for telecine only and you'd have to spend the money on a Rank transfer. There is also the 500T stock for low-light stuff.

Pro8mm also sells the other neg stocks in Super-8 like 100T, 250D, etc.