Chinese Feature Film Dream Forest Shot with Blackmagic Design Cameras

MidiCinema/
Manchester, UK – Monday, April 3, 2023 – Blackmagic Design has announced today that the entire long-length Chinese film “Dream Forest” was shot with Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2, Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K, and Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K digital film cameras and graded with DaVinci Resolve Studio color grading, visual effects (VFX), and audio post-production software, along with DaVinci Resolve Mini Panel.

Directed by Fan Chao and starring Niu Ben, Du Yuan, Shi Ke, and Ma Su, “Dream Forest” is about an autistic child and his family who relentlessly pursue their dreams with the help of different community members. The film will be released in all cinemas across the country on April 1, 2023.

The film’s cinematographer, An Chuncheng, used four Blackmagic Design cameras during the shoot, including two URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 as the main camera, one Pocket Cinema Camera 4K mounted on a camera sled and vehicles for special angles, and one URSA Mini 4.6K mounted on a Steadicam system for moving shots.

An explained, “We wanted to create the general atmosphere of this story, which is emotionally sad and depressing, by using the unique grain and texture of 16mm film, just like we did in the 2016 Oscar-nominated film ‘Carol’ to express delicate emotions. Therefore, we needed cameras that could mimic film images.”

“I have been using URSA Mini 4.6K since 2016. I know the camera’s image quality and features very well. I had no doubt that the URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 camera, which carries the original model’s cinematic appearance and 15-stop dynamic range and has new features such as high frame rate recording and built-in ND filters, would be capable of handling this production,” An added.

Impressed by some test shots he took with the URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2, Pocket Cinema Camera 4K, and URSA Mini 4.6K equipped with classic lenses, Fan decided to use these cameras for the film.

An pointed out that some features of URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 helped improve shooting efficiency, saying, “The ability to apply LUT to the viewing output is fantastic. I created six LUTs for different moods using DaVinci Resolve Studio, loaded them onto all Blackmagic Design cameras for color consistency, and allowed the director to see whether the image matches his vision. Additionally, these LUTs allow the colorist to anticipate the desired look and serve as the starting point for color grading work.”

The built-in ND filters of URSA Mini Pro 4.6K G2 also made the shooting process much easier. An emphasized, “The production was shot in the summer, and it was great to easily reduce exposure with the physical buttons on the camera body by using ND filters while shooting outdoor scenes under the scorching sun. The position and shape of the dial are very user-friendly for changing ND filters…”