Grading - Football Project in Tokyo with DaVinci Resolve & Dehancer

As a Director of Photography (DOP), there's an inherent thrill in capturing unique stories, and this latest project in Tokyo was no exception. Sponsored by Adidas, the film follows local footballer Kei through Tokyo's bustling streets and hidden corners, exploring the underground football scene. 

Shot on the Sony FX6 with Cooke SP3 lenses in a 4:3 aspect ratio, the project offered a perfect blend of urban grit and dynamic sports action. As a smaller one-day project with a limited budget, I decided to grade the short film myself, with the moral support of director James Copson from the Manchester production house Anattic.

I decided to step away from my usual film emulation LUTs and finally embraced the Dehancer OFX plugin in DaVinci Resolve. I exposed using the S709 monitoring LUT on location via my Small HD monitors.

Choosing the right equipment was crucial, and the Sony FX6 paired with Cooke SP3 lenses was the ideal combination. The FX6's compact form factor allowed for nimble shooting in Tokyo's tight, bustling environments, while its excellent low-light performance was a godsend for capturing the city's vibrance. The built-in ND was a huge bonus, meaning our small crew could keep pace with Kei. 

The Cooke SP3 lenses are still quite well known but, of course, carry the Cooke characteristics, known for their cinematic quality and character. These lenses added a distinctive look that beautifully complemented the urban landscape and the raw energy of the subculture.

I hadn't shot an entire project in 4:3 for a while, maybe even back to the days of shooting on DSR cameras to DV CAM tape. Opting for a 4:3 aspect ratio was a deliberate choice to give the film a nostalgic, intimate feel. James and I didn't want to go into the lo-fi super 8mm look but produce a cleaner 35mm aesthetic using the entire sensor.

This format, of course, harkens back to classic film and television, adding a layer of timelessness to Kei's journey through Tokyo. The narrower frame also focused attention on the central action, making the ravelling sequences more engaging and personal.

Shooting with Ken was an exhilarating experience. We spent an entire day traversing Tokyo, from crowded stores to secluded coffee shops, capturing the spirit of a football subculture more akin to skate culture here in the UK. Kei's passion for the game and deep connection to the local scene were evident in every location we shot. Tokyo's unique blend of tradition and modernity provided a textured backdrop.

For this project, I decided to forgo my usual film emulation LUT in favour of the Dehancer plugin in DaVinci Resolve. The decision was driven by Dehancer's comprehensive toolset, which offered more significant control over the final look. Unlike traditional LUTs, which apply a fixed set of transformations, I could manually control the process using CSTs and dial in the look based on my camera settings directly in Dehancer, giving me more nuanced adjustments and adding film-like characteristics.

The standout feature of Dehancer is its ability to simulate film artefacts such as grain, halation and bloom. These effects added a layer of authenticity and organic imperfection. The plugin's halation effect, for instance, mimicked the subtle red glow that appears around bright light sources in traditional film. In contrast, the bloom effect added a gentle, diffused glow to highlights, enhancing the dreamy, nostalgic quality of the footage. Grain is, of course, grainy and was added in an organic way that mimics the exposure pattern of the film, disbursing more grain into different tones within the image.

Grading this project in DaVinci Resolve with the Dehancer OFX plugin was a game-changer. The combination of the Sony FX6, Cooke SP3 lenses, and Dehancer's seemingly infinite options has allowed us to make a solid start to completing these short films. If you want to elevate your finishing process with a subtle or overate look, I highly recommend trying Dehancer!