At BIRTV 2024, Kevin Shaw, President of the Colorist Society, chaired a panel hosted by the Chinese Society of Cinematographers (CNSC) to discuss the use of High Dynamic Range (HDR) today. Links to segments from the discussion appear below.)

Here, Kevin shares is thoughts:

HDR has been debated since its launch in 2016, but as it evolves, we are still discovering the part it will play in tomorrow’s visual universe.

Here are five themes that arose in the recent panel discussion about how HDR is shaping filmmaking in 2024:

Removing limitations

HDR's ability to remove the limitations of Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) filmmaking is giving creators more range – literally. HDR allows cinematographers an easier way to deal with sky and other naturally high contrast situations, and to access a broader spectrum of colors which enhances the overall depth and realism of their visuals. HDR is about much more than just brighter images – it’s about creating a more immersive experience for viewers. By harnessing the new HDR display technologies, filmmakers can involve audiences in a much more emotional way.

Pursuing aesthetic goals

HDR fundamentally shifts the focus from overcoming technical challenges to pursuing more aesthetic goals. With HDR, cinematographers are empowered to explore creative visions using modern lighting and the improvements in color management from recent years. This evolution means that filmmakers can capture stunning narratives that resonate on a deeper emotional level. The increased dynamic range translates into more nuanced storytelling, allowing subtle details to shine through in both shadows and highlights.

Enhanced visibility

HDR not only enhances the viewing experience for audiences, but also equips cinematographers with tools to see more of what they’re capturing. The improved visibility of image capture means that professionals can finetune their shots in real time, ultimately leading to a more polished final product. This advancement creates an exciting opportunity for cinematographers to push the boundaries of their craft, especially when collaborating with the finishing colorist early in production.

More affordable, more ergonomic

Although HDR displays were once deemed prohibitively expensive, the BIRTV 2024 panel celebrated the newer, increasingly affordable and ergonomic solutions. This opens the door for a broader market, enabling emerging filmmakers and smaller production companies to access the same tools as major studios. With HDR, high-quality production is no longer the exclusive domain of the elite, allowing for a more diverse range of voices and stories to be told with unprecedented quality.

Heightened inspiration

As the discussion drew to a close, it became clear that HDR is more than just a technological advancement; it's an inspiring tool that rekindles great passion within the filmmaking community. Many panelists expressed how hard it is to revert to SDR after experiencing the freedom and vibrancy that HDR provides. The emotive power of HDR allows filmmakers to express their visions with less labor and more creativity, leading to a more enjoyable and fulfilling production process.

The BIRTV 2024 panel was a call for filmmakers everywhere to embrace HDR. By removing limitations; enhancing color management; and making this technology more accessible; HDR empowers cinematographers to elevate their art. As we move forward, HDR will undoubtedly play a crucial role in defining the future of visual storytelling – making this an exciting time to be a part of the cinematic world.

By Kevin Shaw, CSI

Kevin is President and Founder of Colorist Society, Co-Founder of the International Colorist Academy, and a globally renowned expert on color grading and related technology.

Watch the panel here:

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 1 "What HDR Means to You"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 2 "First Experience of HDR"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 3 "HDR on Set"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 4 "Expansion of HDR"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 5 "Producing HDR"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 6 "Expectations & Hopes for the Future of HDR"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 7 "Debunk the Myths of HDR"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 8 "Start to Create an HDR Project"

HDR: The Future Is Here" Part 9 "Advice from the Veterans"

Filmlight is hosting two events in New York City this month.

On Tuesday, October 15th, the company will conduct a free Baselight training workshop for color assistants, conform artists and online editors. Running from 9AM to 3PM at the Dolby Screening Room, the course will cover the fundamentals of building timelines, media management, and working with color spaces and grading layers in Baselight. Space is limited. Register here.

Also on October 15, Filmlight will hold an evening panel discussion featuring some of New York’s top colorists and DPs. Panelists Elodie Ichter, Senior Colorist, Light Iron; Nat Jencks, Supervising Colorist, PostWorks NY; and Cinematographer Chris Teague will discuss look development, cross-city color workflow, and Dolby Vision HDR delivery involved in FX’s Shogun and Disney’s Star Wars: The Acolyte. The event begins at 6:30PM at the Dolby Screening Room. Register here.

Colorist Society Hollywood recently hosted an event in tandem with Barco on the latter’s Lightsteering Technology for HDR projection. The new technology, which promises to improve the picture quality of films shown in theaters, includes a color grading plug-in optimized HDR color grading that integrates into DaVinci Resolve and FilmLight Baselight.

More than two dozen colorists attended the event held at Barco’s demo facility in Hollywood. After an introductory presentation from Barco’s Joachim Zell, Iris Wu and Anders Ballestad, attendees were given a chance to test drive the system themselves.

CS Hollywood’s Troy Smith, CSI says that most people came away impressed. “For me, the biggest takeaway was how vastly different HDR projection is from current theatrical projection,” he observes. “I hope it’s adopted by more theaters. It might give people a reason to return to movie theaters. The HDR image combined with Atmos sound makes for a different theatrical experience.”

John Daro, CSI had attended demonstrations of Barco’s HDR projector before, but this was the first time he’d had a chance to try out the color tools himself. “It was cool to have the Resolve setup and be able to turn the wheels, see what the projector is actually capable of,” he recalls.

Daro foresees intriguing possibilities for HDR color grading. “It opens up a different way to work,” he explains. “Say I’m doing a Barco HDR grade, and I notice the image is clipping out on an actress’s face. Instead of bringing down the entire picture, I could bring down just a hot spot in the background to shift more range to the actress. It allows you to pull and push light where you want it.”

He cautions, however, that adding Barco HDR to a film mastering workflow means more than a simple trim pass. “To get all that you can out of that projector, it has to be a regrade,” he observes. “That adds time to the grade, which may get pushback from those who control the purse strings. Hopefully HDR theatrical versions will take over, and the 48nit pass will become the trim.”

Budget considerations notwithstanding, Smith says most of the colorists in attendance agreed that HDR projection comes with a “wow” factor. “If you have a chance to see a demo, you should definitely do it,” he insists. “It’s the coolest thing I’ve seen in a while. I want to see more and hope we can host an event like this again.”

Attendees have a chance to win more than $25,000 in prizes

Colorist Society will host its IBC Colorist Mixer on September 14^th at IBC 2024 in Amsterdam. Produced by the International Colorist Academy, the hugely popular event will run from 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM at 'Dam, Arti et Amicitiae in Rokin, historic home of a Dutch artist's society. The event is open to all and includes an optional dinner at 6.00 PM.

Tickets are available at coloristmixer.com. Capacity is limited, so act soon.

“Our Colorist Mixer at IBC is always a great time,” says Colorist Society president Kevin Shaw. “It brings together color professionals from around the globe for an evening of great food and drink, wonderful prizes and fun. If you love color, you don’t want to miss it.”

A celebration of the art of color, the Colorist Mixer is a unique opportunity to connect with friends and colleagues, new and old, chat about latest innovations in color grading technology, and perhaps take home one of the event’s many incredible prizes.

Event sponsors include ACES, Adobe, ProArt by ASUS, Blackmagic Design, Colorfront, Dell Technologies, , Flanders Scientific, Kaurus, Louper, MASV, Pixelview, PVA (Professional Video Alliance), Small HD, Sony and UHA (UHD World Association). This is a great opportunity to meet some of the biggest names in the business.

The Colorist Mixer will feature a Color Quiz and a raffle with a total of more than $US 25,000 in prizes:

• DM160 16” RGB OLED reference display – from FSI
• Pen Display 15.6” PA169CDV – from ProArt by ASUS
• 3x $3000 towards SmallHD Quantum 32 OLED Monitor – from SmallHD
• Micro Color Panel – from Blackmagic Design
• 3x Streamer subscription 1yr – from Colorfront
• Video Calibration Training & Certification 4 day course – from PVA
• Private HDR consultation (online) with Kevin Shaw – from UWA
• Free Transfers 1yr (10TB) – from MASV
• Louper Pro Subscription 1yr – from Loupe
• Pixelview Subscription 1yr + 4K Encoder – from Pixelview
• Creative Cloud Subscription 1yr – from Adobe
• Mystery goodie basket – from Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ACES
• Larq Water Bottle – from Dell

Attending IBC 2024? Be sure to connect with our wonderful sponsors:

Colorfront

Colorfront will showcase their latest technology at the Okura Hotel.  Live demonstrations will feature Colorfront Transkoder's powerful capabilities directly from the cloud, highlighting the seamless handling of RAW camera footage, IMF, and DCP packages as they are de-bayered, processed, and streamed in ultra-low latency UHD HDR, all via the public internet.

Contact Laura Castelli (laura@nachomf.com)  for a chance to see their latest technology in action! 

Louper

Remote Color Grading, Live Reviews & Watch Parties. The cost-effective solution for streaming, monitoring, and collaboration. Discover why Louper is endorsed by professional colorists and post-production supervisors worldwide.

A Special Offer for Color Society & iColorist: Take 50% off any Louper Plan! 

Visit Louper.io, sign up for a free account and use coupon code: IBC2024

• Offer valid for Louper Plus, Pro, or Team tier upgrades. 
• Offer valid for first time customers only. 
• Expires September 30, 2024

Learn More

Please use the same URL for the image: https://bit.ly/3MeV5bY

FSI

Visit FSI at IBC, Hall 10, Stand F28. You’ll find our complete lineup of professional monitors on display including our 31.5”, 55”, and 65” QD-OLED UHD HDR reference monitors and our affordable, but feature-packed, lineup of HD-SDR displays. We’ll be showcasing these latest products as well as several powerful new features for these displays.

ASUS ProArt

ASUS ProArt invites all industry professionals to visit our booth (Hall 2 #A29) and experience our next-generation innovations, including the ProArt Display PA32KCX, the world’s first 8K HDR Mini LED professional monitor; the ProArt Display OLED PA32UCDM, featuring 4K QD-OLED technology for creators; and the ProArt Display PA27JCV, a stunning 5K monitor. Additionally, join us for ProArt Masters’ Talks, where we’ll feature insights from industry-leading experts from renowned companies such as NVIDIA®, Scan Computers and more. We look forward to showcasing our cutting-edge products and engaging discussions with you

Learn more

Tracking link: https://asus.click/IBCMIXER

BLACKMAGIC DESIGN

Whether you’re just getting started or are a professional colorist, DaVinci Resolve color control panels let you work faster and be more creative. The panels give you fluid, hands-on control over multiple parameters at the same time, so you have more creative options and can work much faster than is possible with a mouse.

Designed in collaboration with the world’s leading colorists, all panels feature a logical layout that puts the most important controls under your natural hand positions, which allows you to work quickly. All knobs, dials and buttons are high quality and have been custom designed to produce the perfect amount of resistance, so you can accurately fine tune any parameter.

url link: https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/nl/products/davinciresolve/panels 

Sony

Visit Sony in Hall 13 at IBC to discover our latest professional monitors, the BVM-HX3110 and BVM-HX310. See these cutting-edge displays in action and talk to our experts about how they can enhance your projects.  

Tracking link: https://pro.sony/en_GB/events/ibc

Pixelview.io - Back to Work Streaming Kit

As we settle into new work patterns, stay ahead with our Pixelview Streaming Kit. Perfect for colorists collaborating remotely with clients.

Our Back to Work bundle includes:

• 6-month Pixelview.io subscription
• SDI hardware encoder
• All for just $1,199 USD
• You save $510 USD

Enjoy clearer communication and real-time feedback, enhancing your remote coloring workflow.

See it in action at IBC! Visit our booth for a live demo.

Get your kit

Tracking link

https://www.pixelview.io/product?ss_source=googads&ss_campaign_name=colorist-mixer

Colorist Society is very excited to announce the launch of a Chapter in China. Chapter officers include Colorist Ming Gao, CSI (The Wandering Earth, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) and Zoe Chang (Til Death Do Us Part). The Chapter will receive support from Zunzheng Digital Video, partner of Colorist Society sponsor Flanders Scientific.

Based in the Peoples Republic of China, the Chapter is open to Mandarin speakers throughout East Asia. A China/Mandarin Chapter page, currently under development, will feature Mandarin language features about Colorist Society, information about locally sponsored events, and showreels from chapter members. The Chapter will also have a WeChat group.

Kevin Shaw teaches prospective colorists in China.

“We are thrilled to introduce Colorist Society to China,” says CSI president Kevin Shaw, who recently hosted several training sessions for aspiring colorists in China. “Colorist Society can make its biggest impact at the local level. The China Chapter will support the development of a strong community of colorists through networking opportunities, educational events, awards sponsorships and other activities. We also look forward to forging ties with CNSC, Chinese SMPTE and other industry organizations.”

Next session scheduled for September 21 in Köln.

Pioneering color scientist and Colorist Society Fellow Dr. Charles Poynton and colorist Laurens Orij from Crabsalad, Amsterdam are conducting a series of professional workshops on color science at sites across Europe and North America. The next session is slated for Saturday, September 21 in Köln, Germany. Register here. Future events are planned for Toronto, Warsaw and Rome. Discounts are available to CSI members, but space is limited.

Titled Applied Colour Science for Film Production, the workshop covers both deep fundamentals and important current topics in color science for film. “By ‘film,’ we mean both photochemical film and digital film,” Poynton explains. “Classic photochemical film is enjoying a resurgence, and in any event, the color processes of film have set the cultural expectations of what a movie looks like. By ‘movie’ we include theatrical motion pictures, but also streaming programming where a cinematic look is desired.”

Poynton and Orij will explain in detail camera technology and camera image coding. They will describe the pipeline of post-production and mastering, including scene rendering transform, and show how and where art is introduced using illustrative examples. The radiometric (linear-light) internals of modern grading systems such as Baselight and DaVinci Resolve will be explained.

The focus is also on the color pipeline. Key aspects will be discussed: acquisition color space, grading space, and various mastering and distribution spaces, particularly the DCI X’Y’Z’ scheme with its standard DCI P3 primaries, and commercial HDR distribution schemes including HDR10, HLG, and ICtCp-based Dolby Vision.

The two presenters explain why BT.2020 primaries are not directly suitable for mastering or presentation. They will also introduce emerging modern post-production systems such as ACES 2.0 and OpenColorIO 2.0, and present recent developments in Color appearance models (CAMs).

Laurens Orij is an accomplished colourist based at Crabsalad in Amsterdam: “MONOS” (Sundance World Cinema Special Jury Award winner), “Close” (Oscar-nominated and Cannes Grand Prix winner 2023), and “All We Imagine as Light” (Cannes Grand Prize Winner 2024).

Charles Poynton is an independent researcher and Color scientist based in Toronto. He wrote the book “Digital Video and HD Algorithms and Interfaces,” now in its second edition. He earned his PhD in 2018 with a dissertation entitled “Color Appearance Issues in Digital Video, HD/UHD, and D-cinema.”  

FilmLight is inviting Colorist Society members to a private event featuring Eric Whipp’s work on the color grading of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. The event is slated for on August 19 at the Dolby Cinema Vine Theatre in Hollywood.

The event will begin with light refreshments and networking, followed by an in-depth presentation on the look development, VFX, color workflow across cities, and Dolby Vision HDR delivery of the fifth installment in the Mad Max series and including a Q&A session.

It is an unique opportunity to explore the artistry and collaborative work behind one of the year’s most visually striking films – demonstrated live on Baselight.

The event is free. Register here.

When: Monday 19 August, doors open at 6pm, presentation 7pm

Dolby Cinema Vine Theatre

6321 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028

HDR Vivid is a relative newcomer to the field of HDR technology. Like HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, HDR Vivid sets specifications for dynamic HDR metadata to achieve accurate tone mapping approved by the colorist. Developed in China, there are more than 40,000 hours of HDR Vivid content streaming in China. HDR Vivid has been broadly adopted by Chinese OEM manufacturers and OTT operators. It’s important to be aware of this option, particularly if you are a colorist mastering media for the Chinese market.

“HDR Vivid is based on ST.2084 and comparable to other HDR standards in terms of depth and brightness. Its advantage is that it supports a wider range of output deliverables,” says Tracy Tsui of the UHD World Association (The UWA), an association of enterprises, scientific research institutes, and professional institutions in UHD product manufacturing, video transmission, content production, application and service working to promote HDR Vivid—and a new CSI sponsor. “It is also a fully open standard. Manufacturers can incorporate HDR Vivid into their products without royalty fees for HDR Vivid 1.0.”

For colorists, producing deliverables in HDR Vivid is easy as the trim tools are already supported, and it’s included as an output option in DaVinci Resolve and Baselight. To promote greater awareness of the standard, The UWA is looking to partner with post houses in the US, Europe and elsewhere in hosting demonstration events. It is also developing a certification program for post houses and individuals to signify their expertise in delivering HDR Vivid content.

“HDR Vivid is a good option for colorists and post houses,” says Tsui. “Ultimately, we believe that HDR Vivid has the potential to become a global standard. It is easy for colorists and post houses to incorporate into their workflows, it’s a low cost alternative for OEMs and operators, and it benefits consumers with great content and experience.”

Colorist Society Hollywood is hosting an event in tandem with Barco on its Light Steering Technology for HDR projection. Slated for August 6 from 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm at Barco’s demo facility in Hollywood, the event is free and open to all Colorist Society members.

BARCO’s Joachim Zell, Iris Wu and Anders Ballestad will demonstrate the new technology, which promises to radically improve the picture quality of films shown in theaters. Barco’s system includes a color grading plug in that integrates into DaVinci Resolve and FilmLight Baselight for optimized HDR color grading with full creative control. Colorists in attendance will have an opportunity to try the system for themselves.

Barco’s demo facility is located at Deluxe Studios (formerly Glen Glenn Sound) at 900 Seward St in Hollywood. Beer, wine, water and snacks will be provided.

Register here.