Blackmagic Design have been giving us Hollywood grade image quality in their cameras since the first Blackmagic Cinema Camera back in 2012; a camera I hold very dear to my heart as it was the A-cam on my debut feature film. Since then, Blackmagic Design as we all know have released a few more cameras, but it’s not question that the URSA Mini 4K and 4.6K models are the ones that have been a hot topic among indie filmmakers and small production companies. Last month, I had the chance to spent an afternoon with the URSA Mini 4.6K and was blown away by the images that I was getting. More on that you can read my initial thoughts here. We also posted about a recent music video for the band Feeder that was shot on the URSA Mini 4.6K. Earlier today I came across an awesome new mini doc called “Story of Becoming” shot on URSA Mini cameras by Swiss-based DP Klaus Pedersen of Gaffa Media. Check out Klaus’ doc below about the story of 3 times kickboxing champ Katalin Konya.
Story of Becoming from Gaffa Media on Vimeo.
“Story of becoming” is a documentary of girl meets kickboxing, but you should know from the start that this is not a sport story. The girl, Kat, grew up in a family of other 9 siblings in Hungary and started out practicing kickboxing, after her mom was advised that it might be a good idea to channel the girl’s extra energy into something constructive. The girl grew up believing that one “is” not a person, but that one becomes a person.
So, whichever challenges or hardships will come up during the “becoming” journey, one should have faith in himself. The girl will later achieve 3 times the title of World Champion in WKU Amateur Kickboxing. However, Kat’s story is not a story of the spotlight, of the multiple won titles. It is rather a story of being knocked down emotionally, of going really down into the inner darkness abyss to be able to resurface stronger to the light. It is a success story, but not against a fierce opponent; it is a story of winning against one’s own mental barriers.
Kat’s story is a story of humanity, a story which others can connect with. It transcends the journey of just one person to become the story of the contemporary individual, who aspires to become a better person for herself and for those around her.
“Story of Becoming” is a Gaffa Media production, directed by Klaus Bjarner Pedersen. The documentary was shot on a BlackMagic Design URSA MINI 4K and 4.6K using Canon L-glass and Angenieux Optimo Style zooms, powered by Anton Bauer batteries. Motion control systems powered by Kessler Crane. Colour management by Datacolor.
Cast featuring:
Female kickboxer – Katalin Konya (herself)
Male kickboxer – Mathias Smestad (himself)Crew:
Director of Photography: Klaus Bjarner Pedersen
Producer: Andreea Barin
1st Camera Assistant : Thomas Sinbæk
2nd Camera Assistant: Sebastian Duus
Editor : Dorel Mihaila
Sound mastering and design: Erik Olsen
Make-up Artist / Hairstylist: Ann Borghelt
Check out the following behind the scenes videos that Klaus prepared in which he explains his reasons for choosing the cameras, batteries, and support gear and his experience shooting the documentary with the various kit.
They may not be perfect, but these Blackmagic cameras sure can create some lovely images and seeing Klaus’ doc and experience, I can’t wait to get another chance to shoot with the Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K.
I think Klaus did a great job of capturing Katalin’s journey and brought a real slick aesthetic to the whole thing; and also the behind the scenes were quite insightful; I know that they must have taken quite some time to put together so I really do want to thank him for putting in the effort and hard work to create these behind the scenes videos as they can be very helpful to those who are considering these cameras for an upcoming job.
Sure, testing the cameras beforehand is the best way, but not all of us have that luxury. Thorough and insightful BTS like these can be the next best thing.
[via Cinescopophilia]
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Very informative. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, glad it was useful. All thanks to Klaus from Gaffa Media.