So you’re in the Film/Video
department and you think you’re
pretty hot stuff. Well, cool it,
lady. You won't be making your
Pulp Fiction inspired treatise on
disaffected youth for major the-
atrical release in wide screen sur-
round sound just yet. Take it
from a dude who thought he
was going to cheat the system
and make a big, big, big movie
in school and pretty nearly self
induced an aneurysm making a
ten minute art film. Here's a
word of advice: You may not
think it when you're a cocky young Turk in second year
but Jan-Marie is right about everything. Listen to what she
says and take her advice. She’s not trying to keep you
back, she’s trying to keep you from flying off into outer
space. If you scoff, it’s your own doom.

Anyway, on to the real purpose of this little advice
column which is: how can | make a film, a video, do the
remainder of a full course load, and eat proper lunches
until the end of the school year?

Tip # 1: It’s remarkable how many students have no
idea that they are exempt from paying provincial sales tax
on every item they purchase as a “school supply.” | talked
to people during the last month of fourth year and they
just had no idea. P.S. This applies to every student in every
department. Here’s how you do it. Go down to the
Accounting Dept. and ask for a PST exemption form. Take
this form with you to every store where you purchase your
tapes, pens and pencils, processing tanks, electronics parts,
whatever. Before they start ringing in your purchase,
produce this form and announce your immunity to the
PST. Forewarned, you may have to haggle occasionally
with some flunky who doesn’t know you from a hole in
the wall and will argue your right to a discount of any
kind until you are both in your graves. Argue with people
like that. They don’t know what they're talking about. |
remember one occasion where | used the store phone and
demanded that the manager talk to the Accounting Dept.
at school who was only too willing to take my side. You
can also use your form at Alpha Cine and Gastown for film
processing and prints. Tax is 7% which doesn’t sound like
much but it adds up to a lot over the course of a year. Tax
on a $75 purchase is $5.25. That's a good lunch. Before
long, lunch will become the most important thing in your
life.

Tip # 2: Buying film stock: If you’re dealing with Fuji,
you’re on your own. I’ve never dealt with them before.

You can order stock from the Kodak office on Howe St.
You'll be speaking to Eileen and she’ll ask you to fax her
both sides of your student card and a PST exemption form.
You can make local faxes using the machine behind the
reception desk as long as you aren't a jerk to the secretaries.
This will give you an excuse to make a little collage and will
entitle you to a 20% discount on stock. When you're order-
ing film from Kodak, you have to go and pick it up at this
warehouse which is just off the Lougheed Highway in
Burnaby. Therefore, it’s good to have a car or know someone
who does. Here’s a corner cutter that may not be for every-
one but if you’re “experimental” (ie. cheap) like | am, it’s a
life saver. Print stock can be shot in camera! Granted it has
an ASA of approximately 6 so you have to film with your
aperture wide open on a sunny day but (and this is a big but)
it costs about $6 for 100 feet! This film is also great for
optical or contact printing or just refilming a projected
image off the wall. OK, there’s another but: if you’re order-
ing from Kodak, there’s a minimum order of 6000 feet. So if
you and three friends go in together, you'll end up with 1500
ft. for $90 each. Even if you don’t use it all this year, throw it
in the freezer and pull it out whenever you feel the need to
be “experimental.” Alpha Cine will sell you this stock in
whatever quantity you like but it'll probably cost you $8 per
100 feet. Ask for 7385 or 7386 (colour) or 7302 (B&W).

For purchasing regular film stock, think “short ends.”
Angie Latta has a business purchasing the bits of film which
the industry doesn’t use and selling it back to us ... cheap!
Her # is 451-9889. Also, peruse the bulletin board at Alpha,

&
By Terry Dawes, Alumnus 1996 : m

Gastown, and Cineworks. Quite often people have stock and
other stuff for sale that they haven't used and it’s cheap.

Tip # 3: Process your own damn film! Somewhere in
Richard Bidwell’s cavernous expanse (the video workshop, |
mean), there exist two rewind tanks in which you can process
Super 8 or 16mm film in 100 ft. batches. If you suck up to
Richard, he'll let you use it but he'll probably insist that you
don’t use it on school property for “safety reasons.”
However, if you talk to Gary Coward or Bill Cupit, they might
let you sneak into their darkrooms. It used to be that these
tanks were a part of the curriculum but Richard axed it
because his responsibilities are enormous. If you can per-
suade a couple of other students to petition the forces of the
dark, you can probably get it going again (PS. Jan-Marie,
David, and Jim Breukelman will be on your side.).

Anyway, Richard has the handouts from Kodak on film pro-
cessing as well as some great experimental techniques by
Toronto film maker Gary Popovitch who'll teach you all you
need to know about processing in tanks, bathtubs, jars,
whatever; and he'll teach you how to tone film for kooky
psychedelic effects.

Getting chemistry is no problem. Call Alpha Cine and ask
to speak to Jack Beatty. Jack is one of the most helpful and
sincere behind the scenes people in Vancouver and deserves

December 1996 / Planet of the Arts 41

a medal. He's a wealth of infor-
mation and, if you ask him just
right, tell him what kind of pro-
cessing you're doing, he'll fill up
a few jugs of chemistry for you
for free. He’s been doing this for
students for years. He’s interest-
ed in what you're doing and will
even come see the work when
you screen it. What a guy.

Tip # 4: Noise and Light. This
place is great! What they can do
for you is transfer your final mag
stock sound mix to an optical
soundtrack. These guys run their operation out of their
house in Seattle. Once you've met Chris or Ela, you will not
be requiring the services of Cinesound in Hollywood,
which is the standard place that Richard currently sends
everyone's soundtracks to. Cinesound sees students as a
hassle because they make piddly little weird films and I’ve
heard several stories of them treating students shoddily in
the past. In short, they don’t care if you live or die.
Actually, they’d prefer it if you died. By contast, it’s a plea-
sure for a student to take a bunch of his or her fellow stu-
dents’ soundtracks down the I-5 to Noise and Light and, a
couple of days later, someone else can go down and pick
them up. You can have a beer with Chris, he'll show his
setup, and you can hang out in Seattle for the day. Quality
wise, they're just as good if not better than Cinesound.
Chris has run a battery of comparative tests to prove this.
Best of all Noise and Light are probably interested in what
you're doing. Their phone # is (206) 528-5577.

Tip #,5: Here are a few places that offer student dis-
counts. Students get 50% off equipment rentals at
Commercial Electronics. Most of their equipment is stuff
you can get at school, however | found a very handy
device which | ended up using several times: a Super 8 to
video transfer machine. The last time | used this contrap-
tion, it cost $60 (50% of $120) per day. You can rent it ona
Friday and not return it until Monday morning and get 10
people to go in on it with you. That way, everybody can
transfer their Super 8 to video and it'll cost them $6 a pop.
This device is the size of a projector so it’s easy to carry
across the Burrard St. Bridge or onto the Granville Island
Seabus. It’s a professional quality digital image and it has
sound capability. The only problem is that someone is
going to have to agree to let you use their credit card
number. Stupid plastic!

Matrix video at the corner of Manitoba and W. 7th
avenue will give you a 10% discount on video tapes and
boxes.

Then you can walk a couple of blocks to Gastown Post
and make use of your 50% discount on services like film to
video transfer. All you have to do is get a teacher or
Richard to fill out a Gastown form.

Tip # 6: Cut your own damn A &B roll! This is tedious,
mind numbing work during which you’re inhaling cement
fumes. If you’ve got the money, | would recommend getting
a real negative cutter to do this job. However, why are you
at school? Are you here to learn how to make films or are
you here to learn how to pay other people to make your film
for you? Jan-Marie has all the info you'll need to cut your
negative properly. Do it at least once and then next year try
and keep aside enough money to call up Ingrid Rosen at her
bakery (681-1428). She'll do a lovely job but it'll cost you
probably in the neighbourhood of $300 for an 8-10 minute
film.

Tip # 7: $40 will get you a ten double bill and ten
popcorn student pass at Cinematheque. Buy a couple of
these right away when you have money at the beginning of
each semester. This may not seem like a production tip but it
helps your mental health at that point in the year when you
don’t have a dime to call your own. All you need is your pass,
a bike, and you can take in a double bill and eat popcorn. It
goes a long way toward making you feel like a human being
again. @®&

Design project by John Ngan

So you're in the FilmVideo
department and you think you're
pretty hot stuff. Well, cool it
fady. You won't be making your
Pulp Fiction inspired treatise on
disaffected youth for major the:
‘trical release in wide screen sur
ound sound just yet. Take it
from a dude who thought he
‘was going to cheat the system
‘and make a big, big, big movie
in school and pretty nearly self
induced an aneurysm making 2
ten minute art film, Here's 2
‘word of advice: You may not
‘think it when you're a cocky young Turk in second year
bout Jan-Marie fright about everything. Listen to what she
says and take her advice. She's not trying to Keep you
bac, she's trying to keep you from flying off into outer
Space. if you scof, it's your own doom.

“Anyway, on to the real purpose ofthis litle advice
column which i: how can I make a film, a video, do the
Femainder of a ful course load, and eat proper lunches
Until the end ofthe school year?

Tip # 4: 1s remarkable how many students have no
{idea that they are exempt from paying provincial sales tax
‘on ever item they purchase a a "school supply” | talked
to people during the last month of fourth year and they
just had no idea. PS. This applies to every student in every
department. Here's how you doit. Go down to the
‘Accounting Dept. and ask for a PST exemption form. Take
this form with you to every store where you purchase your
tapes, pens and pencils, processing tanks, electronics parts,
whatever. Before they start ringing in your purchase,
‘roduc this form and announce your immunity to the
PST. Forewarned, you may have to haggle occasionally
with some flunky who doesnt know you from a hole in
the wall and will argue your right to a discount of any
kind until you are both n your graves. Argue with people
like that. They don’t know what they're taking about. |
‘emember one occasion where | used the tore phone and
‘demanded that the manager talk to the Accounting Dept.
at school who was only too wiling to take my side. You
‘an also use your form at Alpha Cine and Gastown for film
‘processing and prints. Tax is 7% which doesnt sound like
‘much but it adds up toa lot over the course of a year. Tax
‘on a $75 purchase is $5.25. That's a good lunch. Before
eng, lunch wl become the most important hing in your

‘Tip # 2: Buying film stock: If you're dealing with Fuji,
you're on your own. ve never dealt with them before
You can order stock from the Kodak office on Howe St.
‘You!l be speaking to Eileen and shel ask you to fax her
both sides of your student card and a PST exemption form.
‘You can make local faxes using the machine behind the
reception desk as long as you arent a jerk to the secretarie
‘This will give you an excuse to make alittle collage and wil
‘entitle you to'a 20% discount on stock. When you're order-
ing film from Kodak, you have to go and pick it up at this
‘warehouse whichis just off the Lougheed Highway in
Burnaby. Therefore, i's ood to have a car or know someone
‘who does, Here's a corner cutter that may not be for every-
‘one but if you're “experimental” (ie. cheap) like am, its 8
Tite saver Print stock can be shot in cameral Granted it has
‘an ASA of approximately 6 so you have to film with your
‘aperture wide open on a sunny day but (and this sa big but)
itcosts about $6 for 100 feet! This film is also great for
‘optical or contact printing or just refilming a projected
image off the wal. OK, there's another but: if you're order-
ing from Kodak, there's a minimum order of 6000 feet. So if
{you and theee friends goin together, you'll end up with 1500
ft. for $90 each. Even if you don't use Ital his yer, throw it
in the freezer and pull it out whenever you fel the need to
be “experimental” Alpha Cine wil sell you this stock in
‘whatever quantity you ike but iil probably cost you $8 per
100 feet. Ask for 7385 of 7385 (colour) oF 7302 (B&W).

For purchasing regular film stock, think “short ends.”
‘Angie Latta has a business purchasing the bits of film which
‘the industry doesn't use and selling It back tous... cheap!
Her # is 451-9889. Also, peruse the bulletin board at Alpha,

LJ Ra
By Ter Dawes, Alumnus 199 im ] 20

Gastown, and Cineworks. Quite often people have stock and
‘other stuf forsale that they haven't used and it's cheap.

Tip # 3: Process your own damn film! Somewhere in
Richard Bidwels cavernous expanse (the video workshop, |
mean), there exist two rewind tanks in which you can process
‘Super 8 or 16mm film in 100 ft. batches. If you suck up to,
Richard, hell et you use it but he'll probably insist that you
‘don’t use It on school property for “safety reasons.”
However, if you talk to Gary Coward or Bil Cupit, they might
let you sneak into their darkroom. it used to be that these
‘tanks were a part ofthe curriculum but Richard axed it
because his responsibilities ae enormous. you can per-
Suade a couple of other students to petition the forces ofthe
dark, you can probably get it going again (PS. Jan-Marie,
David, and Jim Breukelman wil be on your side).
“Anyway, Richard has the handouts from Kodak on film pro-
esting 28 well as some great experimental techniques by
Toronto film maker Gary Popovitch who'll teach you all you
need to know about processing in tanks, bathtubs, jar,
Whatever; and he'll teach you how to tone film for kooky
psychedelic effects.

‘Getting chemistry i no problem. Call Alpha Cine and ask
to speak to Jack Beatty. Jack is one of the most helpful and
sincere behind the scenes people in Vancouver and deserves

December 1996 / Planet of the Arts 41

‘a medial, He's a wealth of infor-
mation and, if you ask him just
Fight, tell him what kind of pro-
‘essing you're doing, he'l ill up
2 few jugs of chemistry for you
for fre. He's been doing this for
students for years. He's interest
ed in what you're doing and will
leven come see the work when
you screen it. What a guy

Tip # 4: Noise and Light. This
place's great! What they can do
for you is transfer your final mag
stock sound mix to an optical
soundtrack. These guys run their operation out of their
hhouse in Seattle. Once you've met Chris or El, you will not
be requiting the services of Cinesound in Hollywood,
which isthe standard place that Richard currently sends
‘everyone's soundtracks to. Cinesound sees students as 2
hhassle because they make piddly little weird films and Ive
heard several stories of them treating students shoddlly in
the past In short, they don't care if you liv or die.
‘Actually, they'd prefer it if you died. By contast, it's a plea-
‘sure fora student to take a bunch of his or her fellow st:
dents’ soundtracks down the I'5 to Noise and Light and, 3
‘couple of days later, someone else can go down and pick
‘them up. You can have a beer with Chris, hell show his
setup, and you can hang out in Seattle forthe day. Quality
wise, they're just as good if not better than Cinesound.
‘Chris has run a battery of comparative tess to prove this
Best ofall Noise and Light are probably interested in what
you're doing, Their phone # is (206) 528-5577.

Tip # 5: Here are afew places that offer student ds:
‘counts, Students get 50% off equipment rentals at
‘Commercial Electronics. Most oftheir equipment is stuf
you can get at school, however | found a very handy,
‘device which | ended up using several times: a Super 8 to
‘ideo transfer machine. The last time | used ths contrap-
ton, it cost $60 (50% of $120) per day. You can rent it on a
Friday and not return it until Monday morning and get 10
people to goin on it with you. That way, everybody can
{ransfer thee Super 8 to video and i'l cost them $6 a pop.
This device isthe sizeof a projector so ts easy to carry
across the Burrard St. Bridge or onto the Granvile sland
Seabus. t's a professional quality digital image and it has
sound capability. The only problem is that someone is
going to have to agree to let you use their creditcard
number. Stupid plastic

‘Matrix video atthe corner of Manitoba and W. 7th
avenue will give you a 10% discount on video tapes and.
boxes

‘Then you can walk a couple of blocks to Gastown Post
and make use of your 50% discount on services like film to
video transfer. All you have to dois get a teacher or
Richard to fill out a Gastown form.

Tip # 6: Cut your own damn A & 8 roll! Ths is tedious,
mind numbing work during which you're inhaling cement
‘fumes. f you've got the money, | would recommend getting
‘2 real negative cutter to do this job. However, why are you
at school? Are you here to learn how to make flms or are
you here to learn how to pay other people to make yout film
for you? Jan-Mar has all the info you'll need to cut your
negative propery. Do it atleast once and then next year try
{and keep aside enough money to cll up Ingrid Rosen at her
Bakery (681-1428). She'l do a lovely job but Wl cost you
Brobably nthe neighbourhood of $300 fran 810 mine
il,

Tip # 7: $40 will et you a ten double bill and ten
popcorn student pass at Cinematheque. Buy 2 couple of
these right away when you have money atthe beginning of
‘each semester. This may not seem lke a production tip but it
hes your mental heath at that point in the year when you
don't have a dime to call your own. All ou need is your pass,
‘bike, and you can take ina double ill and eat popcorn. It
‘90es along way toward making you feel like a human being
again. ®

H
H
H
I
i