Date: 18th October 2000

Moviemakers Increasingly Turning To Camcorders


Low-cost digital cameras are increasingly being used in filmmaking to cut costs, CNN's Showbiz Today observed Tuesday. Director Spike Lee told the cable magazine show that he shot his latest film, Bamboozled, with a $1,200 Sony VX-1000 digital camcorder, which allowed him to make faster set-ups than would have been the case if he had used studio equipment.

"We did not have a lot of money to shoot this film, so we really need to move," he said. Director Jon Shear noted that he shot his film Urbania on 16mm film, then transferred it to digital for post-production.

Other films employing consumer video cameras for all or part of the production include the Coen Brothers' O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Lars Von Trier's award-winning Dancer in the Dark.

Source: Studio Briefing