30 FPS vs 24 FPS

FreddyLongSongs

FreddyLongSongs

So, my editor and I started editing my short film in FCP and I noticed the DP shot the film in 30 fps. I assumed he knew to shoot in 24 fps. It looks and sounds great but it looks like TV and not cinema. Is it a dealbreaker for festivals?

Do anyone here prefer their films shot in 30 over 24?
 
I shoot in 25fps. Don't care to change it to anything else.

I don't believe 30fps would be a "dealbreaker for festivals" but if it's not what you want, it's not what you want. But you got it now so live with it I'd say.
 
MooiTV.com said:
I shoot in 25fps. Don't care to change it to anything else.
Click to expand...

What you neglect to mention is that, being in South Africa, your video standard is PAL, which runs at a native 25fps. That just confuses the issue for someone like Freddy who lives in an NTSC country.

Freddy, never make assumptions that your DoP knows which frame rate you want. Who is this guy, and what is his main bread and butter? If he's shooting primarily for local TV, chances are that he keeps his DSLR parked at 30p. That's a detail that must be covered in pre-production conversations and clearly communicated to your DoP.
 
Assumption is the mother of all f@#$%ps :P
(I know that from real life experiences as well. It still happens to me now and then.)

Go with what you got. Edit in 30fps.
If it is a great short it shouldn't really matter: maybe some filmfestivals don't want 30fps, but technically speaking it isn't impossible anymore to play 30fps in cinemas.
If it is a not so great short is doesn't matter either: you can still post it online :)

Don't worry about it too much now.
Focus on the edit :)
 
AcousticAl said:
What you neglect to mention is that, being in South Africa, your video standard is PAL, which runs at a native 25fps. That just confuses the issue for someone like Freddy who lives in an NTSC country.

Freddy, never make assumptions that your DoP knows which frame rate you want. Who is this guy, and what is his main bread and butter? If he's shooting primarily for local TV, chances are that he keeps his DSLR parked at 30p. That's a detail that must be covered in pre-production conversations and clearly communicated to your DoP.
Click to expand...
He does video and even some film. I just wrongly assumed it was common knowledge that film for cinema is shot in 24. I was very wrong. You live, you learn. Im going to check to see if render can be dial down to 24 fps without greatly messing up the picture in FCP.
 
I ended up having to shoot a project in 30fps once because I didn't have the option to shoot it in 24p. My professor at the time (during film school) also had this idea that frame rates didn't really matter in the first place, so he just had us all shoot with cameras that could only do 30fps.

To some extent, I think he was right. Frame rates probably don't matter depending on the circumstances. If you want, you can certainly compensate and distract your audience to some extent by filming a project in a more cinematic, 2.35:1 aspect ratio, like a Cinemascope wide. This would give your framing a more advanced and elegant quality. I would not try to add black bars to the top and bottom for a film that was not initially shot to be framed in such a way, as mine had been. But, you could also add film grain or grit after the fact to fool the eye some.

Depending on how high your dynamic range is, you could work on some color grading to give your film a bolder appearance despite the higher frame-rate. Plenty of cosmetic changes can be made, and should often be made regardless, to make your project look as polished and fine-tooled as possible.

As long as the final product looks competent, I think a film festival would be the most welcoming to a short or features that shoots in a frame rate outside common conventions. In fact, a few directors in the 90s pioneered producing films on VHS and Beta tape, and those likely looked worse than you believe your film to appear.
 
Last edited:
Of course it is not a dealbreaker for festivals! And this is not the DP's fault, you hired them for their expertise and if you had an opinion on frame rate it should have been discussed.

I'm sure you have great footage man.
 
FreddyLongSongs said:
It looks and sounds great
Click to expand...
That's a huge plus. But what most festivals are looking for is a
great story that will interest an audience. I don't know of any
festival that wouldn't program a terrific short because of the choice
of frame rate. Okay, this wasn't your choice but the festival programmers
won't know that.

I looks great. It sounds great. You have a great story and terrific actors,
right? 30fps will not break the deal with festivals.
 
indietalk said:
Of course it is not a dealbreaker for festivals! And this is not the DP's fault, you hired them for their expertise and if you had an opinion on frame rate it should have been discussed.

I'm sure you have great footage man.
Click to expand...
I don't have an issue with the footage. I watched a panel discussion with Christopher Nolan at Sundance and they were discussing it. I got scared my film would be discarded because of it
 
Your're fine man. If your film and story are good, you can't worry over such minor stuff, especially since it is beyond your control. You can design the car of the future but don't worry what brand tires are slapped on it. Good luck.
 
FreddyLongSongs said:
I don't have an issue with the footage. I watched a panel discussion with Christopher Nolan at Sundance and they were discussing it. I got scared my film would be discarded because of it
Click to expand...
Did Nolan say Sundance wouldn't accept movies shot at 30fps?
 
FreddyLongSongs said:
So, my editor and I started editing my short film in FCP and I noticed the DP shot the film in 30 fps. I assumed he knew to shoot in 24 fps. It looks and sounds great but it looks like TV and not cinema. Is it a dealbreaker for festivals?

Do anyone here prefer their films shot in 30 over 24?
Click to expand...

Most likely no one here prefers their films shot in 30, unless they are going for a stark 9 O'clock newscast, or *gasp* yet another found footage vehicle.

This is not a deal breaker as far as festivals technical capabilities.

This is a deal breaker for selling a filmic look, especially against all of your competitors that definitely shot in 24p.

Red Giant used to make some software that did a real frame rate conversion to get 30p to 24p - I used it once long ago and it did work, but took forever (perhaps a sign of the times). I'd say we've come so far since then that there is either some really good low profile software that can do the conversion for you, or, because most prosumer gear now shoots 24p, the need for it has dissipated all together.

The good news is there is no shortage of DP's out there for your next endeavor. Best of luck.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top