Ever since I was a child I can remember going to the movies. The first vivid memory of one such event was going to go see E.T. with my dad. I can remember being immersed in the world I saw before me- becoming scared when the men in suits came to take E.T. away, being excited when E.T. enabled the bike to fly so they escape their pursuers, it was quite the adventure. There is something magical about film, and the worlds they create.

As a cinematographer, it has always been my desire to create compelling images that both reflect my own personal style (in keeping with the style and taste of the production and director) and embody a cinematic feel or essence to them. Through out this pursuit I have been involved in various productions that want their project to be as cinematic or film like as possible. In my opinion, the best way to get there is to light, stage, and move the camera like a film production regardless of the format being employed. Doing this will go a long way in taking a production to the next level, and enable it to have the look and feel of film. On the technical side of the production, being able to shoot in 24p will also help add to the over all feel and look. However, if the lighting, staging, and camera movements are not up to par, then shooting in 24p will not help one bit. But the cadence of 24p does help the production feel more film like.

With all of the development over the last 10 years in enabling professional and prosumer cameras to shoot in 24p, I have often wondered why is there a continual demand to get 24p? I know that the studios shoot in 24p, since the majority of films are shot on actual film, and that is the standardized frame rate. But technology has enabled us to go beyond that. This is especially true as we enter the all-digital age of filmmaking. Now I’m not saying that film is dead, but I am wondering if we will continue to see films at the standard 24p that we have all been accustomed to? With technology and cost becoming non-issues, why do we continue with 24p?

That leads me to do some research to figure out why 24p has been set as the standard for film productions throughout history. The following is a condensed version of what I found online, and in various books. (The most prominent resources used were: www.filmmakers.com and Charles Clark’s Professional Cinematography.) The moving picture comes about through the flashing of light onto a piece of film through a projector. Flash enough of these still images in sequence and the perception of motion is introduced. At 10 frames per second (fps) the human eye perceives a continuous motion, however there is significant flickering in the image. In the early days of motion pictures various frame rates were use, ranging from 10fps up to 18fps. It wasn’t until 1926 when the SMTPE set the frame rate at 16fps, or 60 feet per minute, that a standard was introduced. It was this standardization that brought about the reliability of a consistent filming and playback speed when the final film was projected. From what I can tell, 16fps was decided upon as a happy medium between reducing the flickering effect, while not using up a lot of film. After all, in the beginning of the motion pictures, the cost of film and developing was very expensive, and the studios were in favor of conserving resources.

Then in 1927, sound was introduced to motion pictures. With the ability to record the sound to the filmstrip, a new frame rate had to be found since 16fps was to slow to support the recording of audio. Many tests were conducted, and they found that at 30fps all of the flicker that was previously present at 16fps was removed. They were also able to record the audio track to the filmstrip. However, further testing a compromise was struck at 24fps. It is at this minimum frame rate that most of the flicker is removed, and sound can still be recorded. This compromise again afforded a great savings in overhead cost to the studios in film stock and processing.

So it seams to me, that our current notion of 24p containing one of the elements of the “film-look” is based on technical and financial decisions made back at the beginning of the art form, rather then on any artistic, or aesthetic preference for that speed. Now if one is shooting on film, then this standard has to be followed in order for the projected image to play back correctly. But as we move towards a completely digital workflow, I wonder if this standard will ever be challenged, and if it to will evolve with current technology.

With the ability to bypass the cost of film, and with the cost of digital storage dropping, the original financial reasons for shooting at 24p are being removed. That coupled with the ability to distribute digitally (Theaters, Computers, Internet, etc.), means that the correct frame rate can be imbedded into the production to ensure proper playback. So the barriers to the standard of 24p are being removed.

And that leads me to question why we continue to shoot in 24p? Now I know that we are not in a completely digital age yet. And if your production is destined for a film out, then it would be wise to keep within the tried and true standards. But for those that choose a completely digital workflow, will the current assumption that 24p is “the way” be challenged? If film is art, and those who practice this art continue to push the limits both in terms of content and in technical aspects, ever attempt to subvert the 24p standard? With the broadcasting standards of 30p (60i) and 60p in 720HD, I wonder if those frame rates will ever be seen as “film-like”? Or will they continue to be associated with the “video-look” of the nightly news that it is so often associated with.

Now I say this all tongue in cheek. As a cinematographer who was born and bread on films shot at 24p, I can help but associate that frame rate with feature films. I wonder if this is true of our greater consciousness- and if everyone has been so ingrained with this frame rate, that trying to overcome it would just be too much. After all, with over 100 years of history behind it, when we see a feature film, we come to it with certain expectations- and the cadence of 24p is definitely one of them.