Kodak On Campus Day Draws Students from Across Ontario

March 2006

Kodak recently went back to school in a big way. Ryerson University in Toronto was the site of Kodak On Campus Day, which featured a Stop By Shoot Film workshop that gave students a hands-on opportunity to shoot various film stocks, a demonstration of the Kodak Look Manager System (KLMS), and a preview of the Kodak VISION2 16mm Film Kit, which combines motion picture film, processing and telecine transfer services at one price.

Kodak's Colette Scott addresses students.

One of the day's highlights was a panel discussion by cinematographers Luc Montpellier, CSC (The Saddest Music in the World) and Gerald Packer, CSC (This is Wonderland) and post professionals Eric Myles of Technicolor Creative Services in Toronto and Mark Branch of Deluxe in Toronto. The discussion, moderated by writer David Heuring, centered on the workflow choices filmmakers face when making decisions about format, post paths, display and distribution options. Another hot topic was how budget and time constraints affect these decisions.

Montpellier noted that he could save time and money by moving more quickly on the set when he knew that a digital intermediate (DI) would allow him to adjust light, shadow, color and contrast during postproduction. Packer noted that shooting on film brings much more image information into the post realm, making digital intermediate technology much more powerful and resulting in high-quality images in any display format. One student asked how her small student project could benefit from DI technology. The panelists agreed that while DI might not be currently affordable for a small student film, smart students would seek out information and insight about DI in order to be prepared for the professional world, where DI costs are becoming more affordable.

Cinematographer Luc Montpellier, CSC works with a student.

Approximately 300 students, faculty and staff from all over Ontario attended Kodak On Campus Day. The day was enlivened by a number of contests and promotions. Anise Merchant of Toronto won a cinematographer mentorship prize. Gregory Jacobsen, Peter Pasqualino, Ryan Kenny and Sarah Solo, students at Confederation College, traveled all the way from Thunder Bay to attend the event. Pasqualino's long journey was rewarded with the two-day basic lighting package prize.

"This was actually the first thing I've ever won," said Pasqualino, who is in his last semester of film production at Confederation. "My favorite aspect of the event was the people. Everyone shared valuable information and they took the time to explain everything. I was very impressed. I had a wonderful time and I met a lot of great people in the film community. I'm grateful to Kodak for putting on such an event." "We were most impressed with the pro-film attitude everyone had," says Kenny. "It was refreshing to hear just how good film is. I walked out with 400 feet of film and a lot of ideas for my next short film. I must take my hat off to Kodak for such a great experience."

Kodak's Workflow Panel

Kodak's On Campus Day was presented in collaboration with The Film School Consortium, an association of Canadian film schools dedicated to the advancement of educators and emerging filmmakers. The event also served as an opportunity for teachers from around the area to gather and discuss issues facing educators and Kodak's role in filmmaking education.

"The purpose of this event was to help educators and students cut through the hype and learn about the advantages of originating on film in today's workflow environments," said Colette Scott, worldwide education segment manager for Kodak's Entertainment Imaging Division. "We're pleased with the success of the event, and we're planning similar events at schools across North America."