Sometimes a free upgrade may cause a problem.
Have you ever arrived at the rental car counter and discovered that they are out of the car class that you reserved and paid for? I have. And most times I would benefit from the rental car company’s inability to manage their inventory versus their reservations. If you can relate to this then you probably have experienced what we might call the “premium upgrade”. In many cases a “premium upgrade” is fair compensation for not getting the car you wanted. The car rental company will offer you what they view as a better car for the same price. They view this as a way of compensating you for their error. After all, you are getting something that would normally cost more.
For example, what if the rental car company is out of Toyota Corollas? They may instead offer to let you take a Dodge Challenger. But what if a family on vacation booked an SUV? What if they offer a two-door sports car as an upgrade? In that situation the sports car has no value as the family needs the SUV. It’s hard to fit a child’s car seat into a two-door sports car.
Early in my career I frequently traveled for work. I figured out that if you book the cheapest rental car possible it is likely that you will get an upgrade. The rental car companies like travelers like me. That’s because I will take whatever they have. Since I can drive anything and I don’t need four doors or extra room I can take a sports car or a truck. In Orlando, for example, the family haulers and SUVs are in short supply and high demand. However they always have extra two-door coupes. If you are flying into Orlando, just reserve a sub-compact economy car and you will probably be able to drive off in a sports car.
A RED Digital Cinema upgrade in the video production world.
Imagine if we attempted to upgrade a project to RED Digital Cinema at no additional charge. What if a client’s budget and timeframe called for shooting a video on a Canon C200 or a Panasonic GH5? If so, they should be thrilled to get a free upgrade to a RED. What if the client learned that the crew was going to shoot their video on a RED or an ARRI Alexa at no additional cost? Years ago when we first started shooting on RED we considered doing this. We were going to use it on projects where clients were expecting us to shoot on the Canon C300. That’s when this discussion and the rental car “premium upgrade” analogy came up.
Before I take this analogy any further I have an important disclaimer. The Canon EOS series or Panasonic GH5 cameras are great. We own several of them. Videographers who shoot on this gear are the backbone of the video production industry. I am certainly aware that there are talented cinematographers who are doing killer work using cameras other than RED or ARRI.
With that, in many cases a “premium upgrade” in video production could cause more problems for the client than benefits. At first, the idea to offer the “premium upgrade” was to build up a sizzle reel of images shot on RED. Also, we wanted our clients to see its capabilities first hand. Initially we thought our clients would like the upgrade. After further discussion we considered the problems that could cause. Here are a few scenarios where showing up with a RED instead of a Canon C200 could cause a problem.
What if the client is editing the footage?
In some cases clients hire a videographer or video production company for the shoot but they plan on editing themselves. There are many times we work for agencies, broadcasters or even other video production companies. If you are delivering the raw footage directly to the client you need to specify beforehand what kind of files you will be delivering. As with all video projects and assignments the specs and production details are worked out in advance of the shoot. Any surprises or changes at the last minute can cause problems. Few clients like the uncertainty caused by deviating from the initial plan.
There are some clients in these scenarios who might embrace or would appreciate a “premium upgrade” to the RED. Most would not, especially if it were a surprise. In a news stringer type assignment delivering an 8K RED raw file would not be appropriate. Certainly advertising agencies with in-house video editing capabilities can handle 1080 video and some could probably handle 4K. But, what if an agency hired us to shoot a simple corporate video with an interview and b-roll and they are expecting 1080 footage from a Canon C200? What if at the last minute the production company decides to shoot on RED? Even if the footage could be transcoded and delivered in a format the agency could handle the extra time to do this may cause a problem. Frequently clients are posting videos on a regular schedule as part of a content strategy so the turnaround time and making deadlines is important. In almost all of these cases a “premium upgrade” would be more of a problem than a benefit.
What if there are multiple scenes, setups and shots that need to be acquired quickly?
A Panasonic GH5 mounted on a lightweight, handheld gimbal can move through a shoot much faster than a camera crew shooting on RED. While some clients may like the idea of spending extra time at each scene or setup many clients directing a corporate video or local TV commercial shoot want to move it along. Some prefer a quick interview and then run-and-gun b-roll. Others prefer a crew doing an interview while a videographer shoots b-roll at the same time. In these scenarios the client may be irritated with the additional time it takes to turn on and/or move the RED rig and lose interest in the idea or benefit of cinema quality images.
With the RED all the other elements of cinema style production need to be involved.
To match the production level and image quality expected from production on the RED all the other elements of high-end production need to be involved. RED Digital Cinema production workflow will likely need a DIT, a camera support crew, focus-puller and more. For example you should really have a makeup artist and sound technician. The shot isn’t going to make the RED sizzle reel if the talent looks bad on camera. In other words if it’s for the glory and not the money then you need a full crew, talent, proper lighting and more. Any benefit from shooting on RED will quickly diminish if there isn’t a full crew. Most importantly you need a project with a purpose. Ideally, you need subject matter and an intended audience that are worth the effort. Shooting a short documentary or fundraiser video for a local non-profit would be a better fit than shooting a local commercial for a used car lot.
What if the video project needs to be edited and released right away?
If you are working on a video project that needs to be turned around quickly then the RED is not the right fit. Unless you shoot 4K ProRes footage with it (which the RED can do) the files are going to be so big it is going to double or triple your edit time. In most cases, editors working with 8K RED raw files will create proxies and edit from there. But even that takes additional time. The editing workflow slows tremendously when working with RED raw files.
Give the customer what they asked for.
Imagine if a car rental customer booked a compact car and the car rental company gave them a “premium upgrade” to a full-size SUV. Let’s say the customer really wanted and preferred the compact car. For some the full-size SUV is an inconvenience because of its size, poor gas mileage and overall driving experience. What if the customer viewed the “premium upgrade” as a hindrance to instead of a benefit? Like the compact car, a Canon C200 or GH5 is a more efficient and more nimble way of maneuvering through a shoot than using a RED or ARRI Alexa. Each has their own place. Family vacationers want a minivan or an SUV. Travelling professionals may want a Toyota Corolla while others want a Ford Expedition. Our job is to understand their needs and be sure to have what they want.
There were just a handful of existing projects where shooting a few key scenes on the RED as a “premium upgrade” made sense. The footage shot on RED blended beautifully into these projects. However, we concluded that the RED ecosystem and workflow should live separately from the rest of our production work. Ultimately we decided to just go out and create our own projects and content to build the RED sizzle reel. Like everything else in this business we must follow the basic rules. Plan everything out. Spend more time on pre-production than anything else. Give the client what they want and put their needs before ours. Create great content at every level. Do this and there will be no last-minute confusion and no need for any kind of upgrade, premium or not.