Rococo Film began as a way to celebrate loved ones in their most decadent and romantic moment – lending the warm, nostalgic, and soft aesthetic of 16mm analogue filmmaking to new memories of who we are and who we love. Romance is alive here.
Rococo Film takes its’ name from the Rococo movement which began in France in the 1730’s. It was characterised by playful, sensuous and colourful designs, paintings and patterns. Rococo’s bold and joyous lust for life was evident in its’ whimsical hedonism and expressive theatricality. The Queen of frivolity and excess, Marie-Antoinette led Rococo fashion with huge hairstyles, elaborate pannier skirts and decadent decorative adornments. Any celebration of love deserves romantic opulence!
Rococo Film uses 16mm analogue filmmaking as a mark of decadence and value amidst a digital world. Filming on film elevates your wedding day into a special occasion, celebrating a moment to indulge in your most romantic self.
ABOUT YOUR
GUN-FOR-HIRE
AT ROCOCO FILM
I'm an award-winning, independent, artisan filmmaker working with 16mm/small gauge analogue moving image film.
Based in Melbourne, Australia. Available to travel.
I’m usually found with my 12 year old Icelandic sheepdog in the film lab, developing, tutoring, and making short films that have screened at ACMI, NGV, and film festivals around the world as an artist. But I love the chance to get behind an analogue 16mm movie camera for intimate and special occasions; witnessing lovers and loved ones, finding the unexpected beauty you’ve always had and discovering some special new sentimental moments. Oh, and that sunny light flare on film...gorgeous!
I’ve filmed in -40ºC in northern Canada, amidst hot sandstorms in Morocco, on glaciers, rocky Icelandic shorelines, and in the lush tropical rainforests of Australia, I have a good pair of gumboots and a trusty hand-wound Bolex camera that means off grid destination weddings are a cinch, and I scrub up like a peach (so they tell me) for those posh moments with Aunt Merle who’s a pro at high tea. The oldies (young at heart) are going to have a special nod toward the analogue camera that I use as their nostalgia comes flooding back.
I love love. All love. And film.
Sincerely,
Melody.
ABOUT 16MM FILM
Analogue moving image film comes in 8mm, 16mm, 35mm, 65/70mm sizes - it relates to the width of the film negative. Here is a great video that shows the differences in famous Hollywood films.
Some of the 16mm films that draw on the softer romantic side of 16mm include Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson), Carol (Todd Haynes), and Permanent Vacation (Jim Jarmusch). Chances are any director worth their weight has tried motion picture film - if they do it well they tend to wind up with Oscar nominations for cinematography.
Super 8 film tends to have a lower quality image (albeit still lovely) and it has been avoided traditionally in professional filmmaking, however if it’s your jam - I can use either 8mm or 16mm for you! I tend to use 16mm film simply as it holds a little more quality to its image.
WHAT IS IT?
16mm film is a small gauge, moving image film stock - the negative is 16mm wide. It has become a favourite for artists and filmmakers due to its compact nature for filming on location alongside its superior picture quality to super 8/8mm. One spool (100ft) of 16mm film is equal to just 3 minutes of moving image.
I use Kodak colour film for weddings (stocks of 50D/250D/500T) or Kodak Tri-X black and white negatives.
HOW DOES IT WORK?I shoot film using a 16mm Bolex film camera, a Canon Scoopic, or ARRI depending on the desired look and budget.
I have developed moving image film myself for the last 7 years in a darkroom - all by by hand - but I’ll send wedding footage to a professional developing lab for convenience. Each 100ft (30 metres) of colour film takes around 5 hours to develop by hand; averaged out, it takes me around 1.5 hours to develop one minute of film footage. I can do this for small rush orders instead of sending film away to a processing lab.
I then can do one of two things:
- Scan your footage to digital then edit digitally and deliver your footage, stills, and short film on a USB, and printing a few film stills for you, too.
OR
- Cut and edit the film by hand over a lightbox or use a 1960s Steenbeck editing bench, getting a final print “in the can” for analogue projection on an old 16mm projector from the 60’s. This gives you an archival heirloom film reel to keep and pass down for generations. Analogue projection can be arranged and/or you can also play it back as a digital file and keep the physical film reel in a frame or glory box as an iconic piece of your history.
WHAT ABOUT PRINTED PHOTOS?
I only use a moving image camera, so my negatives are intended for making movies. However, still photos on archival paper can also be printed from the original 16mm film negative - and I can help with that! I have exhibited 16mm film stills in galleries and art fairs, blown up as large as one metre tall.
Using the negatives from your wedding film footage can give you a few digital or printed still photos with a beautiful analogue film feel. Memories should be held close, able to be touched - 16mm film enables this! Both as an heirloom moving image film reel and by printing film stills on to photographic paper.
In the instance of a wedding, I would absolutley insist on an additional professional photographer if still photos are very important to you. If you would love a wedding video, with a few gorgeous film stills as a bonus, let’s talk!
Three minutes of 16mm film footage has 4,320 individual still frames, there will be some nice moments to print, no doubt!
WHY IS ANALOGUE FILMMAKING DIFFERENT FROM DIGITAL VIDEOGRAPHY?
It’s about the look of analogue film - soft grain over hard edged crisp pixels. Light flares, momentary flickers of light, gorgeous colours, and softer projection qualities. It is also about keeping alive a cinematic craft, honoring tradition, appreciating artisan processes, darkrooms, editing by hand, and supporting a local artist (that’s me) who strives to uphold the magic of analogue filmmaking.
A scanned digital copy of your 16mm film means that you get the best of both worlds and your film has a nostalgic style that evokes warm, personal memories when viewed both digitally and by 16mm mothlight (analogue projection is available).
If you need a film projector, I can help! I rent them, you can purchase projectors on ebay or we can utilise a boutique cinema for a screening. I’d be happy to help you to play back your film on a film projector!