Yes.
Hollywood has released films shot on go-pro's and the iPhone. Do your best to learn the camera limitations and avoid them.
A good film shot on a low end dslr can be sold. A lot of tricks can be done in post to make a camera hold up on the big screen. Though a better camera won't hurt.
Have you already shot your film, or are you looking to pick a camera for a project?
A one week, one location shoot for a "no budget" feature film costs north of $50K, whether using a T3i or a 5D4 (see http://www.webfilmschool.com/100000-200000-feature-film-aka-ultra-low-bu...). Many no-budget features will add to that the cost of hiring a "name", shooting multiple locations, adding VFX, and all will need post production. On top of that, releasing a feature film isn't just a matter of having a finished film and then suddenly theaters are playing it. Even with a great social media campaign, you have to spend lots of money creating enough interest in the product to get it "released" as a feature film. Suddenly that $50,000 shooting project becomes a $200K-$500K movie budget.
Lost in the noise is the question: what camera should I use? The answer, for a feature film, which is the question you asked, is "whatever the best DP you can hire wants to use". If the DP shows up with a T3i and works magic, great!
At the end of the day, the producer's job is to manage risk. Flexibility and margin for error reduces risk. If you have a camera that can give your colorist more options (because of better dynamic range and color gamut), or your editor more options (because with higher resolution the image still looks good when you punch in), or your crew more options, it will reduce the risk of your $50,000 shoot needing to be a $60,000 shoot. It will reduce the risk of your $25,000 post-production growing to $50,000 or $75,000. Etc.
Yes, there are feature films that were shot for less than $50,000. They are very few and far between, and many of them spent 10x that or more in other phases before release. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low-budget_film for notable examples, and a sense of reality of what goes into even the lowest budget FEATURE films.
A camera is a tool and although some tools have greater advantages than some, you have the power to make anything awesome with whatever you have if you spend the time to see it's limitations as someone said above. I shoot Blackmagic, Sony & Red but I got called the other day to shoot a film on a T5i and I don't have a choice because of the budget and as a DP, I'll just have to challenge myself to make it look awesome!
If you have to ask the question, then probably no. If you understand how to test a camera, you can film on any camera. Your lighting and production design budget will go up if you use a cheaper camera, its ends up costing the same either way, or it ends up looking like shit.
A feature film for YouTube then definitely (Still, wouldn't recommend it, but you can use it). For something that would be shown in a cinema then definitely not. It all depends on what platform you are working with. I would usually spend money on renting better equipment just for the flexibility of showcasing it. A lot of people say you don't need good equipment to create a good film but rather a good DP, which is true but using better equipment just adds to the film.
7 Comments
I don't think a hollywood feature would ever use a T3i at this point in time. But The T3i Is an amazing camera, I still use my T3i
March 1, 2017 at 10:14AM
Yes.
Hollywood has released films shot on go-pro's and the iPhone. Do your best to learn the camera limitations and avoid them.
A good film shot on a low end dslr can be sold. A lot of tricks can be done in post to make a camera hold up on the big screen. Though a better camera won't hurt.
Have you already shot your film, or are you looking to pick a camera for a project?
March 1, 2017 at 2:46PM
A one week, one location shoot for a "no budget" feature film costs north of $50K, whether using a T3i or a 5D4 (see http://www.webfilmschool.com/100000-200000-feature-film-aka-ultra-low-bu...). Many no-budget features will add to that the cost of hiring a "name", shooting multiple locations, adding VFX, and all will need post production. On top of that, releasing a feature film isn't just a matter of having a finished film and then suddenly theaters are playing it. Even with a great social media campaign, you have to spend lots of money creating enough interest in the product to get it "released" as a feature film. Suddenly that $50,000 shooting project becomes a $200K-$500K movie budget.
Lost in the noise is the question: what camera should I use? The answer, for a feature film, which is the question you asked, is "whatever the best DP you can hire wants to use". If the DP shows up with a T3i and works magic, great!
At the end of the day, the producer's job is to manage risk. Flexibility and margin for error reduces risk. If you have a camera that can give your colorist more options (because of better dynamic range and color gamut), or your editor more options (because with higher resolution the image still looks good when you punch in), or your crew more options, it will reduce the risk of your $50,000 shoot needing to be a $60,000 shoot. It will reduce the risk of your $25,000 post-production growing to $50,000 or $75,000. Etc.
Yes, there are feature films that were shot for less than $50,000. They are very few and far between, and many of them spent 10x that or more in other phases before release. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low-budget_film for notable examples, and a sense of reality of what goes into even the lowest budget FEATURE films.
March 2, 2017 at 4:31AM
A camera is a tool and although some tools have greater advantages than some, you have the power to make anything awesome with whatever you have if you spend the time to see it's limitations as someone said above. I shoot Blackmagic, Sony & Red but I got called the other day to shoot a film on a T5i and I don't have a choice because of the budget and as a DP, I'll just have to challenge myself to make it look awesome!
March 2, 2017 at 5:05AM
Watch this video, it's tells the differences between T3i and Arri Alexa Mini
https://blog.productionhero.co/this-video-tells-the-differences-between-...
March 2, 2017 at 10:34AM
If you have to ask the question, then probably no. If you understand how to test a camera, you can film on any camera. Your lighting and production design budget will go up if you use a cheaper camera, its ends up costing the same either way, or it ends up looking like shit.
March 3, 2017 at 4:59PM
A feature film for YouTube then definitely (Still, wouldn't recommend it, but you can use it). For something that would be shown in a cinema then definitely not. It all depends on what platform you are working with. I would usually spend money on renting better equipment just for the flexibility of showcasing it. A lot of people say you don't need good equipment to create a good film but rather a good DP, which is true but using better equipment just adds to the film.
March 4, 2017 at 2:55PM
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