Film Formally

Bölümler

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  Digital Colour w/ Dirk Meier, Colourist of 'Secret Agent' 21.07.2026 1sa 47dk

  If any modern colourist has seen it all, it’s Dirk Meier. From the long-take trenches of the early digital masterpiece Russian Ark and the boundary-pushing slow-motion of Antichrist, to emulating distinct formats in Happy as Lazzaro and Romeria, Meier has witnessed many of the key inflection points in digital cinema. Now, he joins Film Formally to share his war stories, the lessons he’s learned along the way, and his philosophy for look-development and aesthetic frameworks in the digital era. We discuss how to conceive and define visual language through an analytical lens, breaking down images into variables of color, texture, and motion. We also dive into insights from Meier’s collaborations with directors like Roy Andersson and Lars von Trier and cinematographers like Hélène Louvart, explore the nuances of celluloid and MiniDV emulation, and the ways in which digital workflows allow for nonlinear image design. 00:00 - Introduction03:14 - Russian Ark and Dirk's Early Projects12:45 - The Evolution from Film to Digital Workflows21:03 - Antichrist and late-'00s digital workflows.36:26 - Defining "Look Development", and working with Roy Andersson49:13 - Working with Hélène Louvart on Happy as Lazarro and Romeria and emulating MiniDV01:01:43 - Working on THE PIMP, HDR grading, and using color references.01:05:44 - Image Attributes, Steve Yedlin's Display Prep Demo, and Demystifying Digital Imagery01:21:12 - Colour Grading Secret Agent Devan's LetterBoxd list on Digital Cinema: https://letterboxd.com/devanagscott/list/digital-cinema/Steve Yedlin's Display Prep Demo: https://www.yedlin.net/DisplayPrepDemo/'The Fog of Log': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IugTH2VwDkThe Hitchhiker's Guide to Digital Colour: https://hg2dc.com/ Edited by Griffin Sheel Shownotes and Resources: https://www.filmformally.com
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  Il Cinema Ritrovato: A Festival Dispatch 30.06.2026 44dk

  In this extra-hot special emergency dispatch episode, Devan's in Bologna, Italy at Il Cinema Ritrovato, the world's premiere archival film festival! Every year, tens of thousands of cinephiles gather in Italy to watch old movies presented anew. He's joined by Tom Charity, VIFF Centre's year-round programmer, to discuss this remarkable festival, the films they saw, and all the questions raised by various methods of film exhibition. Chapters: 00:00 - Welcome to Bologna 01:02 - What is Il Cinema Ritrovato? 02:59 - All the Directors are Dead"07:07 - Old European Cities & Heat Waves10:20 - Festival Highlights: Barbara Stanwyck & Co.18:25 - Pakeezah (1972)23:26 - What Price Glory (1926) & MoMA Restorations26:11 - Ball of Fire (1941)27:58 - The Devils (1971)29:05 - Ludwig (1973)34:23 - Carbon Arc Projection38:50 - 35mm and DCPs: the showdown. Shownotes and Resources: https://www.filmformally.com
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  Large Format Myths (Film Formally is back!) 09.06.2026 1sa 2dk

  Film Formally returns! What's changed? 1. We're a video podcast now! 2. We're a monthly podcast now! Otherwise, you know the drill:  Devan Scott and Willa Harlow Ross - and sometimes a guest - dive deep into the formal building blocks of cinema. Or sometimes preservation. Or sometimes even more niche academic topics! All the stars are here. This week: Devan went and made a video essay debunking myths about shooting format size, and it stirred up some controversy! We're here to sift through the pieces and and answer some questions about exactly we talk about when we talk about format size. We'll discuss the finer points of image formation, perspective distortion, rectilinearity, and why industry icons inadvertently perpetuate misconceptions. Welcome back! Chapters:00:00 – The Return of Film Formally!07:31 – Format Size Discussion13:26 – Breaking Down the Physics: What is Format Size?24:50 – Depth of Field and Image Blur Circles37:58 – Editing Influences: Errol Morris and the "Vlogging" Aesthetic46:21 – Resolution Talk Shownotes and Resources: https://www.filmformally.com WORKS CITED: Devan's video essay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nqa-OBV5ikSteve Yedlin's display prep demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suZtYPIADHMCine Lens Manual: https://store.ascmag.com/products/the-cine-lens-manual
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  Commentary 6 - STILL PROCESSING with Sophy Romvari 19.04.2022 26dk

  FILM FORMALLY is back! This month, friend of the podcast Sophy Romvari’s films are premiering on the CRITERION CHANNEL and to mark the occasion we’ve recorded a set of commentaries for six of these films - NINE BEHIND, IT’S HIM, PUMPKIN MOVIE, NORMAN NORMAN, IN DOG YEARS, and STILL PROCESSING. To listen along, have the film ready to go and hit “play” when prompted within the episode after the introductions. Please note that, due to sync necessities, there are a few gaps in the episode’s discussion: we’ve filled with with snippets of Will’s original score for the film. STILL PROCESSING (2020) A box of stunning family photos unseen for decades awakens lost memories as they are viewed for the first time on camera. In this episode, we discuss: Hybrid documentary and fictional elements. Still Processing’s long production and post-production schedule. Photographic storyboards. Audience expectations and documentaries about grief. Composing the score. What did we learn? Sophy’s films can be seen on the CRITERION CHANNEL - feel free to sign up for a free trial if you aren’t a member.
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  Commentary 5 - IN DOG YEARS with Sophy Romvari 12.04.2022 15dk

  FILM FORMALLY is back! This month, friend of the podcast Sophy Romvari’s films are premiering on the CRITERION CHANNEL and to mark the occasion we’ve recorded a set of commentaries for six of these films - NINE BEHIND, IT’S HIM, PUMPKIN MOVIE, NORMAN NORMAN, IN DOG YEARS, and STILL PROCESSING. We’ll be releasing one per week for the next six weeks. To listen along, have the film ready to go and hit “play” when prompted within the episode after the introductions. IN DOG YEARS (2019) Old dogs are celebrated in ten short stories about love, loss, and letting go. In this episode, we discuss: Why the CBC hired Sophy to make a dog documentary. Cinemascope as a canine-friendly aspect ratio. A talking head documentary without talking heads. Documentary structure. Will and Sophy’s correspondence editing style. Sophy’s films can be seen on the CRITERION CHANNEL - feel free to sign up for a free trial if you aren’t a member.
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  Commentary 4 - NORMAN NORMAN with Sophy Romvari 05.04.2022 13dk

  FILM FORMALLY is back! This month, friend of the podcast Sophy Romvari’s films are premiering on the CRITERION CHANNEL and to mark the occasion we’ve recorded a set of commentaries for six of these films - NINE BEHIND, IT’S HIM, PUMPKIN MOVIE, NORMAN NORMAN, IN DOG YEARS, and STILL PROCESSING. We’ll be releasing one per week for the next six weeks. To listen along, have the film ready to go and hit “play” when prompted within the episode after the introductions. NORMAN NORMAN (2018) A young woman grapples with the declining health of her beloved dog in this film about mortality, cloning, and Barbra Streisand. In this episode, we discuss: Creative “Labour” and filmmaking. Cross-country collaboration. Norman’s TIFF pass. Conceptual cinema. The opportunities afforded by non-traditional modes of production. Sophy’s films can be seen on the CRITERION CHANNEL - feel free to sign up for a free trial if you aren’t a member.
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  Commentary 3 - PUMPKIN MOVIE with Sophy Romvari 29.03.2022 15dk

  FILM FORMALLY is back! This month, friend of the podcast Sophy Romvari’s films are premiering on the CRITERION CHANNEL and to mark the occasion we’ve recorded a set of commentaries for six of these films - NINE BEHIND, IT’S HIM, PUMPKIN MOVIE, NORMAN NORMAN, IN DOG YEARS, and STILL PROCESSING. We’ll be releasing one per week for the next six weeks. To listen along, have the film ready to go and hit “play” when prompted within the episode after the introductions. PUMPKIN MOVIE (2017) Two women trade stories of misogyny while carving pumpkins over Skype as part of a Halloween tradition. In this episode, we discuss: The film’s extremely truncated pre-production and production timelines. Ultra low-budget filmmaking and unconventional production methods. Structuring 45-minute conversations with editing. Documentary, fiction, and the way that PUMPKIN MOVIE inadvertently became a hybrid of the two. Sophy’s films can be seen on the CRITERION CHANNEL - feel free to sign up for a free trial if you aren’t a member.
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  Commentary 2 - IT’S HIM with Sophy Romvari 22.03.2022 16dk

  FILM FORMALLY is back! This month, friend of the podcast Sophy Romvari’s films are premiering on the CRITERION CHANNEL and to mark the occasion we’ve recorded a set of commentaries for six of these films - NINE BEHIND, IT’S HIM, PUMPKIN MOVIE, NORMAN NORMAN, IN DOG YEARS, and STILL PROCESSING. We’ll be releasing one per week for the next six weeks. To listen along, have the film ready to go and hit “play” when prompted within the episode after the introductions. IT’S HIM (2016) An unexpected encounter during an afternoon at the cinema catapults a young woman into a confrontation with her own grief. In this episode, we discuss: Creative geography. The learning process of collaboration. Working with actors on an indie budget. Remastering NINE BEHIND and IT’S HIM. Restructuring IT’S HIM in post-production. The transition from the relatively large production of IT’S HIM to the stripped-down minimalism of PUMPKIN MOVIE.  
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  Commentary 1 - NINE BEHIND with Sophy Romvari 15.03.2022 28dk

  FILM FORMALLY is back! This month, friend of the podcast Sophy Romvari’s films are premiering on the CRITERION CHANNEL and to mark the occasion we’ve recorded a set of commentaries for six of these films - NINE BEHIND, IT’S HIM, PUMPKIN MOVIE, NORMAN NORMAN, IN DOG YEARS, and STILL PROCESSING. We’ll be releasing one per week for the next six weeks. To listen along, have the film ready to go and hit “play” when prompted within the episode after the introductions. NINE BEHIND (2016) Calling her grandfather in Budapest to learn about the Hungarian film industry, a woman instead finds the conversation shifting to her family’s history. In this episode, we discuss: Sophy’s early works leading up to NINE BEHIND. The influences and production of NINE BEHIND. The lessons learned on this set and how they informed Sophy’s next film, IT’S HIM.
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  1-Year Anniversary Q&A [Featuring Wong Kar-wai and Snyder Cut Hot Takes] 29.04.2021 59dk

  It’s our one-year, 43rd-episode spectacular, and we’re once again answering your questions! We go deep on the new WONG KAR-WAI restorations, our thoughts on Zach Snyder’s JUSTICE LEAGUE, the merits of handheld camera operation, film scores, not one but TWO aspect ratio rants from Devan, and more! But first, some NEWS. We’re going to be taking a bit of a hiatus, and we’re adjusting our Patreon to reflect this. In the interests of keeping the quality of this podcast high and sustainable, we’re going to take our time with the next season. It’ll be ready whenever it’s ready, but it will happen! As such, our Patreon will now be structured on a per-creation basis. Our previous tiers will be retired in lieu of $1 and $2 per-creation tiers. In this episode, we discuss: (04:24) Criterion’s THE WORLD OF WONG KAR-WAI box set, and our mixed feelings on the changes made to the films contained within. (29:11) Handheld vs Tripod: the final showdown. (33:58) Will opines on this year’s film scores. (40:43) Zach Snyder’s JUSTICE LEAGUE: it’s out! What do we think? If you’d like to support the show, here’s a link to our Patreon. We’ve also released a bonus mini-episode wherein we discuss PREFACE TO A HISTORY and THE MARTYR.  
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  S3E10 - Rescuing The Good, the Bad and the Ugly with Benji Heran & Jordan Krug 30.03.2021 1sa 8dk

  How an acclaimed director’s versions of a famous film be unavailable for decades — when there’s nothing stopping their release? How can a small group of fans gather the evidence and means to reconstruct those versions? How can they finally have a hand in its official release? Endless passion — and a lot of luck. It’s a subject and film as near and dear to our hearts as any, and we’ve brought on superfans Benji Heran and Jordan Krug to talk about the film prints, continuity scripts, and years of tireless, unpaid passion that they’ve put into preserving Sergio Leone’s The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.
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  S3E09 - Adapting Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy with Tim Brayton 23.03.2021 1sa 24dk

  Adapting literary works to the screen involves a certain amount of translation. There are certain things that are easily conveyed in writing that cannot be conveyed in a straightforward way onscreen; likewise, there are elements of cinematic language that open up new routes to expression. John Le Carre’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a useful case study in this regard: it has been the subject of two acclaimed adaptations that could not be more distinct in the toolkit each uses to translate book to screen. We’ve invited Tim Brayton, film critic at Alternate Ending, to discuss both the 1979 John Irving adaptation as well as Tomas Alfredson’s 2011 take. In this episode, we discuss: Literary accuracy versus formal expressiveness in adaptation. Focal lengths, zoom lenses, and the observational mode. 1970s BBC television house style: is it any good? Narrative obscurity. John Le Carre’s stylistic toolit as a writer and the challenges it poses for adaptations. The construction of performances through lighting and framing. Mark Strong: MVP? If you’d like to support the show, here’s a link to our Patreon. Works discussed during this episode: The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (1965) Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979) Smiley’s People (1982) The Little Drummer Girl (1984) The Tailor Of Panama (2001) Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) A Most Wanted Man (2014)
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  S3E08 - Colour Grading with Andrea Chlebak 16.03.2021 1sa 15dk

  Colour grading, the art of manipulating the colour of a film digitally in post-production, is as omnipresent as it is misunderstood. To help demystify the process, we’ve invited supervising colourist Andrea Chlebak (Mandy, An American Pickle, HBO’s The Watchmen) to discuss the art of colour grading with us. In this episode, we discuss: Where does the colour grading process begin? Pre-production? Production? Development of multiple palettes within individual films. Digital and celluloid image capture and the implications on the colour grading process of each. The future of colour grading and digital imaging. The limits of colour correction: what can we change in post? What can’t we change? Exposure ideologies for fun and profit. If you’d like to support the show, here’s a link to our Patreon.   Works discussed during this episode: Andrea’s Work: An American PIckle Mandy Watchmen Hello Destroyer Elysium Other Work: Hekademia Traffic Game of Thrones S8e03: “The Long Night” Blade Runner 2049
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  S3E07 - The Bourne Series and Chaos Cinema 10.03.2021 1sa 24dk

  Extreme ways are back! In pog form! This week we’ve got a wonderful little discussion about the evolution of the Jason Bourne film series. In particular, we’re here to dissect how Paul Greengrass transformed it into the 21st century’s foremost example of Chaos Cinema. Handheld camerawork, fast editing, questionable focus? It’s all here, and we’re here to sift through the wreckage.
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  S3E06 - Wes Craven's Meta Horror with Mike Thorn 23.02.2021 1sa 25dk

  Geez, it’s been a while since we got spooky on the show, hasn’t it? High time we brought back Mike Thorn to talk about how Wes Craven fused meta storytelling and horror in two franchises: A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream. We’ll permeate the membranes of reality, disassemble Craven’s views on horror’s social and political value, and laugh about how Matthew Lillard yells “BOO-GAH” when he imitates a gunshot. Mike has a terrific new horror novel, Shelter for the Damned, that you can check out in print or e-book format directly through Journalstone, or you can find it on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Walmart.
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  S3E05 - After Last Season and Outsider Art with Bram Ruiter 16.02.2021 1sa 11dk

  An Anti-Masterpiece is, as defined by our own Will Ross, is “an astonishing, essential work of art in spite of a distinct lack of conventional competence on the part of its makers”. After Last Season by Mark Region is one such film, and we’ve invited filmmaker Bram Ruiter to discuss it with us. In what is very much not a “bad movie” episode, we attempt to grapple with the nature of outsider art. In this episode, we discuss: The value of different competent cinema. The many, many mysteries behind the production of After Last Season More realism in cinema: Mark Region’s seeming insistence on pushing the boundaries of acceptable cinematic ‘reality’. If you’d like to support the show, here’s a link to our Patreon. Additional Resources: Jason Coffman’s Article on After Last Season Jason Coffman’s Follow-Up Oral History with the Cast and Crew Filmmaker Magazine’s interview with director Mark Region   Works discussed during this episode: After Last Season (2009) The Room (2003) Street Fighter: The Movie (1994) Inland Empire (2006) The Treasure Planet (1982)
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  S3E04 - Eighth Grade and the Internet with Bronwyn Henderson and Brietta Stewart 09.02.2021 50dk

  For this episode our Associate Producer Paige Smith has relieved Devan and Will of hosting duties so that she can talk about Eighth Grade’s depiction and use of the Internet — and she’s brought on two friends who survived eighth grade with her, Bronwyn Henderson and Brietta Stewart. It's both a dive into how the film interweaves screens and scrolling with its characters and dramatic presentation, and a personal reflection on how strange and hard it is to grow up — and how much "growing up" has changed.
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  S3e03 - Documentary Verite with Sophy Romvari 02.02.2021 1sa 14dk

  In part two of our Verite series we discuss truth in documentary filmmaking with returning guest Sophy Romvari. Sophy’s films have increasingly blurred the line between fact and fiction and are often classified as ‘hybrid’ documentaries. What can we learn from this type of fusion cinema? We go deep on the existential questions that inevitably ensue when one claims to be telling a ‘truth’ and explore the various ways different filmmakers have sought to build ideological frameworks for reaching their truths. In this episode, we discuss: Documentary, the genre: a contract? ‘Hybrid’ documentary and the mix of fact and fiction Cinema Verite and Direct Cinema: they’re different! The Ecstatic Truth and Werner Herzog Errol Morris’ epistemological meat grinder: is truth connected with style? Kirsten Johnson and Cameraperson Ethical representation of documentary subjects. If you’d like to support the show, here’s a link to our Patreon. Additional Resources: Media: Werner Herzog’s Minnesota Declaration
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  S3E02 - Narrative Verite with Whit Stillman 25.01.2021 54dk

  We're doing two episodes on truth in cinema, starting with one on standards of reality in narrative films. Whit Stillman (The Last Days of Disco, Love & Friendship) joined us, largely to register his animosity towards the idea of making stylistic decisions based on realism, and shared his thoughts on aesthetic decline, pretension, and the meowling cat sound in Damsels in Distress.
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  S3E01 - Film Preservation and Home Video with Blake Blasingame 19.01.2021 1sa 28dk

  Welcome to season 3! To kick things off, we’ve brought Duplitech Film Services Manager Blake Blasingame in to discuss film preservation and mastering for home video. Are you ready for 88 minutes of unadulterated shop talk about grain structure, bit depth, oversampling, color grading, and vinegar syndrome? Of course you are! This is Film Formally, after all. In this episode, we discuss: The process of preserving and restoring films for Blu-Ray and DVD releases. Scan resolutions - 4k, and the value of oversampling. Vinegar syndrome: the silent killer. How film elements are sourced for scans - negatives, IPs, IBs, and release prints. Robert Richardson and revisionism. William Peter Blatty and the restoration of the lost Legion cut of The Exorcist III More audio restoration! If you’d like to support the show, here’s a link to our Patreon. Additional Resources: Works discussed during this episode: Snow Falling on Cedars The Exorcist III / Legion The Thing The French Connection The Big Lebowski Blade Runner 2049 Mad Max: Fury Road The Heartbreak Kid Playtime Tree of Wooden Clogs Army of Shadows Ran The works of Wong Kar-Wai