Providing an efficient workflow for film ‘The Snail’

In bringing the various emotional and psychological twists of The Snail to life, the production team faced multiple challenges, including the need to achieve premium visual quality to effectively portray the emotional intensity while ensuring smooth on-set operations in a production operating to a tight timescale. The key technical requirement was to have reliable, high-quality monitoring and recording equipment that could facilitate an efficient production workflow, and deliver the recording in RAW to extract maximum quality from the Sony FX9 camera, supported by accurate color displays for effective scene monitoring.

“Atomos significantly enriched our overall production quality and operational efficiency, ensuring that the emotional depth and narrative of the story were fully captured and conveyed.”

To support the production, a range of Atomos Ninja V, Ninja V+ and Sumo monitors were employed to achieve superior recording quality in RAW, ensuring that the visual output was in keeping with the emotional intensity of the scenes.

The integration of the Ninja with the Sony FX9 ensured that the team could extract the most out of their footage, while the Sumo, known for its bright and accurate color display, functioned as the director’s monitor. It supported the usage of LUTs in each scene, providing the real-time, accurate visualization that was critical for on-spot decision-making regarding scenes and shots. Backed by ease of use and highly effective customer support, Atomos made a significant contribution to the success of the production process during a busy schedule.

Producer Eugénia Neto reflects on the impact of this collaboration, sharing: “After two years of really hard work, The Snail was licensed to its first streaming platform, and we are completely over the moon about it. As independent filmmakers, bringing our first major project to life and securing distribution was definitely not easy. Atomos played a vital role in making this possible. Having high-quality professional equipment on set not only improved our production but also strengthened our collaboration. Being able to showcase this partnership is very important to us.”

The utilisation of Atomos products delivered a range of benefits in the production of The Snail including enhanced visual quality, where recording in RAW with Atomos Ninja enabled the team to preserve and leverage the highest possible image quality from the shots.

The Sumo supported not just the director but also the entire crew with its bright and color-accurate display, ensuring everyone could visualize the shots irrespective of on-set constraints.

The high quality visual recording of the monitors not only influenced the final look and feel of the film but resulted in excellent feedback from members of the crew. They were easy to use, which ensured a seamless operational flow during shoots. The crew were also able to maintain an optimal working distance, fostering an effective working atmosphere with efficient communication.

Director Evgenii Liubarskii said: “The Snail is a great example of the role that robust, high-quality technology, like that of Atomos, plays in translating meaningful stories into visually stunning cinematic experiences. Atomos significantly enriched our overall production quality and operational efficiency, ensuring that the emotional depth and narrative of the story were fully captured and conveyed.”

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