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Comedy Central to air Friends in true HD

No really, true HD and 16:9. Honestly. (August 2011)

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WP
WillPS
Quote:
• Mon-Sat 0800-0859 (2 episodes)
• Mon-Sat 0900-0959 (2 episodes)
• Mon-Sat 1400-1459 (2 episodes)
• Mon-Sat 1700-1759 (2 episodes)
• Mon-Sat 2000-2059 (2 episodes)
• Mon-Sat 00:00-01:00 (2 episodes)
• Sun 1500-2059 (12 episodes)


So it's going to be on 6 times a day Monday to Saturday?! I'm guessing the edition which goes out at 8am will be 'yesterday's' edition, with the first airing of 'today's' episodes at 9am?

But wow, around a third of Comedy Central's airtime going to Friends...

Also,
Quote:
Comedy Central is the only comedy channel in the UK.

What's Gold then?
MI
Michael
Interesting.

I hope they kept all the cameras, microphones and lighting stands out of the 15:9 safe area or you'll have a Buffy Season 4 problem (filmed in 16:9 but only meant to be broadcast in 4:3, but the BBC wanted the 16:9 prints, with the result that equipment is visible in shots etc. etc.)
PE
Pete Founding member
And no doubt they'll be taking timeslots away from good stuff like Frasier rather than the tat like King Of Queens.

Quite amazing though, like when they remastered Star Trek (off of the 60s) from the 35mm prints.

Were TNG /DS9 done on 35mm film? I presume they same sort of thing would have to be done there as the graphics would be done for SD / 4:3

OOH so obviously all the captions have been redone for Friends as the originals would have been SD. Suddenly twigged why it looked so clear.
VM
VMPhil
harshy posted:
Those pictures look like from TNT Serie Germany?


Yes, I, ahem, acquired them online.
DE
derek500
Brekkie posted:
It's surprising then they weren't available to C4 or Sky in this format - wasn't ER shown in "widescreen" at least from the beginning?


The original broadcast version of ER wasn't 16:9 until season seven (2000-2001) - and that was in 4:3 letterbox format.
NW
nwtv2003
derek500 posted:
Brekkie posted:
It's surprising then they weren't available to C4 or Sky in this format - wasn't ER shown in "widescreen" at least from the beginning?


The original broadcast version of ER wasn't 16:9 until season seven (2000-2001) - and that was in 4:3 letterbox format.


As originally broadcast you are correct, but the only time I've seen Sky Atlantic I've seen a mid 1990's episode of ER in 16:9 HD, with only the titles being in 4:3.

Don't forget C4 have probably had the same copies for years on end, if they were to have continued with Friends then surely they probably would have been offered HD copies.
DA
davidhorman
Pete posted:
Were TNG /DS9 done on 35mm film? I presume they same sort of thing would have to be done there as the graphics would be done for SD / 4:3


Both were shot on film, but edited on video, and the effects were either shot on film and processed at 30fps (certainly for the first few seasons of TNG) or shot on video - I can't remember which. They are apparently in the process of remastering TNG like TOS, working from the original film and the original cut lists (which were, luckily, meticulous).

I've had a look at a torrentable episode of Friends in HD, and it's at 25fps so everyone's squeaky (probably how we originally got in on 4?).

David
IS
Inspector Sands
Gavin Scott posted:
It was multi 35mm camera - full-on panaflex heads on dollies - 2 operators per camera.

It wasn't cut until it got into the edit suite, and although there was a shooting script, the cuts were determined by the best shot taken, and whether or not someone drifted out of frame.

One assumes every print was kept so it could be scanned.

Or possibly it was edited on film and then TK'd down onto video so there's a 35mm master?
DE
derek500
nwtv2003 posted:
derek500 posted:
Brekkie posted:
It's surprising then they weren't available to C4 or Sky in this format - wasn't ER shown in "widescreen" at least from the beginning?


The original broadcast version of ER wasn't 16:9 until season seven (2000-2001) - and that was in 4:3 letterbox format.


As originally broadcast you are correct, but the only time I've seen Sky Atlantic I've seen a mid 1990's episode of ER in 16:9 HD, with only the titles being in 4:3.


Correct. The whole run on Atlantic has been 16:9/HD.
PE
Pete Founding member
davidhorman posted:
They are apparently in the process of remastering TNG like TOS, working from the original film and the original cut lists (which were, luckily, meticulous).


It'll be interesting to see how they cope with the notoriously poor lighting in the first season. (Black cardboard anyone)
UK
UKnews
Inspector Sands posted:
Gavin Scott posted:
It was multi 35mm camera - full-on panaflex heads on dollies - 2 operators per camera.

It wasn't cut until it got into the edit suite, and although there was a shooting script, the cuts were determined by the best shot taken, and whether or not someone drifted out of frame.

One assumes every print was kept so it could be scanned.

Or possibly it was edited on film and then TK'd down onto video so there's a 35mm master?

Saw a documentary on 'Friends' years ago- seem to remember it showing them editing on video tape.

Now Warner Bros, enough messing about with Friends- you've got the HD downloads of 'The West Wing' sorted, hurry up and release it on Blu Ray (and 'Studio 60' whilst you're at it!) Wink
GS
Gavin Scott Founding member
davidhorman posted:
Pete posted:
Were TNG /DS9 done on 35mm film? I presume they same sort of thing would have to be done there as the graphics would be done for SD / 4:3


Both were shot on film, but edited on video, and the effects were either shot on film and processed at 30fps (certainly for the first few seasons of TNG) or shot on video - I can't remember which. They are apparently in the process of remastering TNG like TOS, working from the original film and the original cut lists (which were, luckily, meticulous).
David


OMG really? I had read they hadn't retained the master film of TNG and so couldn't rescan it.

Just peed in my pants a little at the thought.

Mind you, I saw a lot of the props (even the "hero" ones used for close ups) at an exhibition, and would be surprised if they resolved well in HD. Lots of sticky tape and "plant-ons" used for detail.

UKnews posted:
Inspector Sands posted:
Gavin Scott posted:
It was multi 35mm camera - full-on panaflex heads on dollies - 2 operators per camera.

It wasn't cut until it got into the edit suite, and although there was a shooting script, the cuts were determined by the best shot taken, and whether or not someone drifted out of frame.

One assumes every print was kept so it could be scanned.

Or possibly it was edited on film and then TK'd down onto video so there's a 35mm master?

Saw a documentary on 'Friends' years ago- seem to remember it showing them editing on video tape.

Now Warner Bros, enough messing about with Friends- you've got the HD downloads of 'The West Wing' sorted, hurry up and release it on Blu Ray (and 'Studio 60' whilst you're at it!) Wink


Yes, that's what I saw. The printed reels were encoded into a non-linear disc system for editing, and a lot of the creative decisions were left purely to the editor.

Loved Studio 60 too. Why it didn't continue is beyond me. Easily the best thing Matthew whatsit had done since Friends.

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