In the latest episode of Denoised, hosts Addy Ghani and Joey Daoud explore the fascinating relationship between traditional film cinematography and modern digital production. As NAB 2025 unfolds, they take a step back to examine why film continues to maintain relevance in an increasingly digital world, the psychological benefits it offers filmmakers, and how the limitations of the medium can actually enhance creative discipline. The conversation spans from recent award-winning productions shot on film to the surprising marriage between analog film and cutting-edge virtual production techniques.

The Discipline of Film: Creative Constraints as an Advantage

One of the most compelling aspects of shooting on film is how its inherent limitations foster creative discipline. Joey and Addy discuss Team 2 Films' recent YouTube video comparing 35mm and 65mm film to digital, which highlighted the psychological benefits of working with a finite resource.

Unlike digital recording where storage is relatively inexpensive and seemingly unlimited, film requires filmmakers to be intentional with every take. Each time the camera rolls, there's a tangible cost associated with film stock, processing, and digitization. This reality creates what Addy describes as "a counter in your head" - a natural discipline that forces directors and cinematographers to be more deliberate.

Joey shares the example of Robert Rodriguez's El Mariachi, which was famously shot on a $7,000 budget. What's less known is that almost the entire budget went to film stock and processing. Rodriguez's previous experience making hundreds of VHS shorts gave him the discipline to know exactly which shots he needed, allowing him to maximize his limited film stock.

Key takeaways on film's creative discipline:

• Film's finite nature creates a natural limitation that encourages more thoughtful shot planning

• Directors spend more time rehearsing with actors before rolling when shooting on film

• The financial constraint of film stock costs promotes efficiency in production

• These habits can translate to better filmmaking even when later working with digital media

The Technical Marriage: Film and Virtual Production

In a surprising development, some of today's most innovative productions are combining traditional film with cutting-edge virtual production techniques. Two notable examples discussed in the episode are Poor Things and Amazon's Fallout series, both of which shot on film while utilizing LED volume technology.

Addy shares an insider perspective on why this combination works so well. When shooting digital cameras on LED volumes, issues like moiré patterns, genlock, and harsh highlights can create challenges. Film, however, offers natural advantages in this environment:

• No moiré patterns since film has no pixel grid

• No need for genlock synchronization

• More aesthetically pleasing highlight handling when light sources bloom

• Better preservation of difficult colors like saturated reds

• Motion blur that feels more natural due to the physical shutter mechanism

"It's interesting because you don't need genlock. There's no moiré. The pixels bloom better," Addy explains. "Film and VP work really well together."

This counterintuitive marriage of old and new technologies demonstrates that innovation doesn't always mean abandoning traditional methods, but sometimes finding new ways to leverage their unique qualities.

The Evolution of Film Manufacturers: Kodak vs. Fujifilm

The episode also explores how the two major film manufacturers have taken dramatically different paths in the digital era. Joey shares his experience at CES, where he encountered two separate Kodak booths—one featuring actual camera products, and another displaying the Kodak brand slapped on everything from boom boxes to smartwatches.

"It was purely the brand," Joey notes about Kodak's approach, suggesting that the company's name recognition might be its most valuable asset today. The hosts even reference Kodak's bizarre foray into cryptocurrency mining hardware, highlighting the company's scattered approach to survival.

In stark contrast, Fujifilm has successfully embraced digital transformation. Their Fujifilm GFX ETERNA camera represents a successful adaptation to the digital cinema world, featuring a 65mm digital sensor in a relatively compact body at a competitive price point of around $7,000-$8,000.

The divergent paths of film manufacturers:

• Kodak has largely leveraged its brand for licensing while maintaining minimal connection to its imaging roots

• Fujifilm has successfully transitioned to digital imaging while maintaining its color science heritage

• Blackmagic continues to support film through products like the $30,000 Cintel Film Scanner

• The archival advantage of film (lasting 100+ years) versus the ongoing costs of digital storage and format obsolescence

The Democratization of Anamorphic Lenses

The conversation shifts to another interesting development in the film industry: the increasing accessibility of anamorphic lenses. Traditionally prohibitively expensive (ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 per lens for professional cinema glass), anamorphic lenses are now being manufactured by companies like DZO, SIRUI, and Atlas at more accessible price points.

"This is the best time as an indie filmmaker to get into this," Addy enthuses, noting that these lenses are now available in the "single-digit thousands" rather than tens of thousands of dollars.

Even more impressive is the development of autofocus anamorphic lenses—something that presents significant technical challenges since the distorted image makes traditional autofocus algorithms struggle. This innovation makes anamorphic shooting more accessible for documentary filmmakers and small crews without dedicated focus pullers.

The hosts suggest that these developments, combined with advances in AI-assisted post-production, are opening up new possibilities for independent filmmakers to achieve a cinematic look that was previously available only to high-budget productions.

The Intangible Quality of Film

Perhaps the most thought-provoking segment of the discussion centers on whether digital can ever fully replicate the aesthetic qualities of film. Addy offers an extended analogy, comparing the film-versus-digital debate to the difference between a photograph taken by a skilled photographer and an AI-generated image:

"You take something like The Brutalist, which was shot on VistaVision, and it just naturally, intrinsically has this cinema feel to it... Of course, the aspect ratio and the contrast and the color shifts, those are the things you can quantify. But then you're consuming this thing for 90 minutes and now your brain is in this style aesthetic choice. Yes, you can totally replicate it with Resolve up to a point, but I think there is a 10% of it that you just can't get."

The hosts discuss technical aspects that contribute to this intangible quality, including:

• Natural motion blur created by physical shutters versus electronic simulation

• The way film handles highlights and shadows with a more gradual, pleasing roll-off

• How chemical film grain differs from digitally applied grain effects

• The unique characteristics of color reproduction in film

Joey and Addy acknowledge that these subtle differences may not matter if the story itself doesn't engage viewers. A compelling story shot on an iPhone will always be more engaging than a beautifully photographed but poorly conceived film on the most expensive format. However, for filmmakers seeking to maximize visual impact, these aesthetic considerations remain important.

The Film Resurgence

The episode highlights several examples of film's continued relevance in contemporary production:

• Christopher Nolan's upcoming The Odyssey, shooting on IMAX with a potentially new, smaller IMAX camera being developed

• Best Picture nominees like "Oppenheimer" and "The Brutalist" shot on film formats

• NFL Films as a significant user of film stock for their cinematic sports coverage

• The growing trend of combining film acquisition with modern post-production techniques

This resurgence suggests that despite the convenience and technical capabilities of digital, film offers qualities that continue to attract filmmakers at the highest levels of the industry.

Conclusion

The discussion between Joey and Addy reveals that film isn't merely a nostalgic format clinging to relevance but a medium with distinct characteristics that continue to offer aesthetic and practical advantages in specific contexts. From the creative discipline it instills to its surprising compatibility with cutting-edge technologies like virtual production, film continues to evolve alongside—rather than in opposition to—digital innovation.

For industry professionals, the key takeaway isn't that one format is superior to the other, but that understanding the unique properties of each allows for more informed creative choices. As production technology continues to advance, the ability to combine traditional techniques with new tools opens up exciting possibilities for visual storytelling.

To hear the full conversation and more insights from Joey and Addy on this topic, listen to the complete episode of Denoised. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts to stay updated on the latest developments in creative technology and filmmaking techniques.