Do The Hustle

Working with RED cameras and Final Cut Studio, the in-house digital workflow for TNT’s Leverage is a unique model

By Pat Reid

Labels: RED, Workflow, Apple Final Cut Studio, TV

This Article Features Photo Zoom

All it took was a casual comment at the major network broadcasters’ upfronts in New York, where writer/producer/director Dean Devlin told a couple of TNT executives that he missed classic television shows like The Rockford Files and Mission: Impossible. He had always wanted to do a story about con men who were modern-day Robin Hoods. “Sold!” the exec said. It should always be that easy! Devlin even got his first wish as to who should star in his new series—Academy Award® winner Timothy Hutton.

Now in its third season, Leverage is indeed a mixture of The Rockford Files and Mission: Impossible, with a little It Takes a Thief thrown in. Each week, Nathan Ford (Hutton), a former insurance executive who turned against that world when his company denied life-saving treatment to his son, and his team of erstwhile thieves, grifters and computer hacks use their inside knowledge to scam in the name of righting the wrongs of the greedy and corrupt.

Even behind-the-scenes is an inside job—once the footage is captured on location in Portland, it never leaves Electric Entertainment’s “house” in Los Angeles, until it’s blasted across the TNT airwaves each Tuesday night. And following the trail of Leverage from start to finish is an inside job in understanding the future of motion-picture and television production.

To capture the series, Devlin turned to his The Librarian series cohort, cinematographer David Connell, and the two decided to continue their method of capture with the RED ONE, which started on the third Librarian installment. “That was Build 13,” Devlin recalls. “Not as good in low light, but a remarkable camera. But it recorded to hard drives, allowing me to get rid of tape, which has been a huge goal of mine for years.”

“Now we’re shooting with Build 30,” says Connell. “It includes a new chip with the Mysterium X [sensor] with an 800 ASA. That means the need for fewer lights and the ability to go out and shoot night exteriors with a minimum amount of light.”

Devlin isn’t as conservative, when he talks ASA. He adds that he has measured it at 2000 in post. “The new build has allowed us to do remarkable things,” says Devlin. “We can regularly blow up shots 250 percent, now that we have 4K.”

We can regularly blow up shots 250 percent now that we have 4K.

—Producer/director Dean Devlin on the new RED ONE with MX sensor

This season, Connell is hitting his stride with the RED ONE. All of his cameras are equipped with Preston single-channel iris controls that can afford him the flexibility to be at the waveform monitor to properly set the exposure. “In addition, this allows for very large iris pulls between large exposure ranges, as well as interior-to-exterior Steadicam moves,” he explains. “Otherwise, both A and B cameras are typically tailored to each operator’s needs. The A-camera operator uses an onboard Marshall monitor, while the B camera uses an EVF support with Element Technica brackets in studio mode. In handheld mode, the A camera uses an Easyrig to support an Angénieux Optimo 17-80mm zoom on an ET [Element Technica] Mantis, while the B camera is on primes with an inverted ET Mantis. The A-camera operator flies the stripped-down C body on a Pro-Rig. Downconversion is done through an AJA Ki Pro for onboard monitoring, and a wireless feed is sent through with an IDX Cam-Wave unit. A majority of the support for the body is mostly identical to the original RED release. We still use the drive-carriage and battery-plate assembly due to their robust construction. However, small modifications such as handle risers from Element Technica make everyday usage a little easier to deal with, being that the cameras aren’t what you would call ergonomic. In addition, we use OConnor’s lightest heads for support.”