When choosing a camera for his debut feature, “Anywhere, U.S.A.,” filmmaker Anthony Haney-Jardine selected Panasonic’s AG-HVX200 P2 HD camcorder.
The movie will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT, Jan. 17 - 27, as one of 16 entrants in the 2008 Dramatic Competition.
Told in three segments ranging from satirical to tragic, “Anywhere, U.S.A.” takes an original look at American manners, prejudices and family dynamics. The movie was directed and written by Haney-Jardine, who shares the screenwriting credit with his wife, producer Jennifer MacDonald. The director of photography was Patrick Rousseau.
Haney-Jardine purchased two HVX200s for the production, one used solely for backup. The movie was shot on location in Asheville, NC, throughout 2006 and 2007 to accommodate DP Rousseau’s schedule. Shooting took place during the extremes of winter (snow in the mountains) and summer (temperatures at greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit.)
Despite its independent film pedigree, the movie was shot classically, with tripod, formal lighting and a full complement of jibs and dollies. A Panasonic BT-LH1700W LCD monitor was used for on-set monitoring and shot framing.
Rousseau was impressed with the camera’s ability to shoot exteriors using the sun as a backlight while maintaining image detail. He found the camera’s ability to manipulate color rendition through its menus convenient and useful in achieving the look he desired.
Rousseau shot at 720p/24pN direct to P2 cards. The director edited “Anywhere, U.S.A.” on Apple’s Final Cut Pro v5.1.4 operating on a PowerPC G5, with 7TB Apple Xserve RAID system and 250GB OWC FW-800 hard drives for backup. Final color correction is being done at Optimus in Chicago.
For more information, visit www.panasonic.com/hvx200.
