Cinematographic Video What is it?

A cinematographic video is that video (by definition it is the one recorded and processed with video equipment) to which a cinematographic treatment is applied. That is, it can be a video treated from the beginning, or only in parts (mostly in editing), as a film project, only recorded with video equipment.

At EL CLAROSCURO FILMS we create and produce cinematographic videos. But what is a cinematographic video?

What is a cinematic video?

In this video we help you, with examples, to understand the difference between the two concepts. Videos that can be turned into cinema, and purely cinematographic projects. Which is better? Both are valid, but the decision will depend on the purpose of each one.

Difference between video and film

The difference between video and film equipment is more than remarkable. Although today they are apparently more evenly matched, video equipment has always been very different from film equipment.

With the advent of digital cinema, the difference is smaller, but that does not mean it does not exist. A video camera of the 90s, for example the Sony Handycam, was nothing comparable to a film camera of the 8, 16 or 35mm era.

To begin with because they are two almost opposite worlds. The capture of light in film cameras was (there still are) chemical, and video cameras are electronic. An abysmal difference in every way. And of course there is also an abysmal difference in texture and image quality that both types of cameras offer.

Today, it could be said (being an outrage) that all digital cameras are “the same”. Since the camcorders used today, and the film cameras work “the same”. It is true that they all use electronic sensors to capture light and convert it into an electrical signal, but the secret, and the biggest difference is in the sensor, and in its size. Not to mention the type of processing of the signal obtained.

A video camera gives us directly the image ready to be visualized, while images from film cameras need a complex and specialized post-production treatment before being visualized in their final aspect.

Well, having said that, it is clear that shooting video is not the same as shooting film. The main differences are dynamic range and the ability of digital cinema to process the images during editing.

Example of a cinematic video

This video clip below is an example of what a cinematic video is. It was shot with video equipment. In fact we shot it with a “normal” video camera. Camera that we equipped with photographic lenses, but that gave us a “look” similar to the cinema. We also adjusted the necessary parameters so that it would record as much “cinema” as possible. Later, in editing, we have given it the touch with an image treatment that gives it that cinematic look. And this is the result:

At El Claroscuro Films we make films

In El Claroscuro Films we make films. All our works are digital cinema. That means that among other features:

• We use cinematographic equipment. As cinema lenses both anamorphic and spherical. And of course we use professional film cameras.
• We make choices, and use settings and resolutions in our equipment that are compatible with the projection of our projects on the big screen, on a cinema screen.
• We process the images to give them a more cinematic look and feel.
• We perform color grading to adjust the colorimetry of each shot to the project’s objective.
• We shoot the projects following the guidelines and mechanisms of film shoots.
• We treat the whole project (scripts, planning, pre-production, etc) as a film project needs. We even create the cover and miniature film of the project.

Cinema is not just fiction

Although it is obvious, it should be emphasized that cinema, the art of filmmaking, is not just fiction. Cinematographic films are surely the greatest standard of cinema, but not the only one. Therefore, we can make a cinematographic work without being exclusively fiction. A documentary can be cinema, what we call music video or corporate video can be cinema. For it to be cinema, it has to fulfill the steps we have mentioned in the previous list.

Color Grading and Color Grading

Film cameras record images in logarithmic, which means that the images have to be processed to obtain the desired final look. This requires the process of color grading and color grading. This means adjusting each shot of the project in terms of light and colorimetry, taking into account the psychology of color, the visual narrative, the final objective of the project and the desired aesthetic style.

Cinema, better on the big screen

Of course, the digital cinema projects we produce can be destined for cinemas or large screen projections. We take care of preparing the versions for cinemas (DCP, etc) or other types of projections.

Understanding El Claroscuro Films

Chiaroscuro is the way in which darkness makes us appreciate light. It is from this contrast that our storytelling style is born: revealing the light and, with it, the story that lives in every scene, every shot, every frame… Building a narrative and cinematic universe that brings meaning and depth to every project.

We are artists, technicians and film creatives with a deep appreciation for the art that communicates through the image: cinema, painting, light…

Creating audiovisual projects in the form of cinematic works where storytelling, technique, visual aesthetics and emotion come together so that each story transcends and is understood by the audience.

Using the language of cinema and visual narrative as essential tools. We integrate cinematographic and photographic techniques that allow us to construct solid, evocative and visually powerful narratives.

We are a small team, and therein lies our strength: we concentrate talent, work with agility and create with freedom. This allows us to engage more closely, more honestly and more deeply with every project, every idea and every emotion.