How to Use A Film Slate

[@reign8428]

I'm about to graduate film school in Melbourne. Coming out as an AC (among other roles) and the one thing they didn't cover is how to slate properly. This has been incredibly helpful. Thank you!

[@occulusrexmedia]

Your channel is just fantastic. I’m an aspiring filmmaker working on my first projects, and your channel has rapidly become my favorite, in depth resource. So many of the channels out there are more focused on the latest gear, or the story around their own projects. While those channels are great, your channel is like an encyclopedia of detailed information and the hows and whys of doing this. Thank you so much. You are a saint.

[@ThePauseMenuVlog]

Thank you. As a boom and mixer I've worked on a few sets where the slate will only address the DP or ACs words and won't wait for me to state speeding. It's crazy how important sound is yet most people will forget about that job. Your comments and order of operations is pleasant to hear!

[@alvinburrell]

This is the 4th video I've watched in a row - very helpful and a great presentation style.

[@YxungHermes]

Thanks for your tips! I never would have thought there are this many moving parts for slating

[@andraeelite4638]

This video is now saved in my favorites, fantastic insider knowledge. Thank you.

[@flickcine]

You're very welcome 😊

[@dallasdandigitalproduction393]

Love this vid. I haven't slated in a year+ . This really was a great reminder

[@penguinYT1]

Excellent tutorial. Thank you.

[@MartinVlog444]

love this channel ! more content please ! thank you

[@KrzysztofGepard]

Hey Felicia, I'm so happy that I've found your channel. Your videos are so useful!

[@Aliafj]

very informative , thank you alot , loved the idea of wiping the number to not get confused , thumps up .

[@HarryHoran]

This is the best tutorial out there! I’ve been watching so many and the person either talks too fast or it’s not helpful. You described everything well and covered everything needed to know. Well done! 😀

[@flickcine]

Thanks Harry! Glad you found it useful 😊

[@KoozlickMedia]

Good grief. Your content has completely inspired my determination to try again.. Thank you so much kid.. I really appreciate your help. XXX

[@nathanksimpson]

Really helpful and comprehensive. Some sets I worked on the order of operations was sound, camera, slate called and shown, then clapped. Although with a younger director they did it they way you mention in this video which seems better because rolling camera before a shot is set up to a certain degree seems wasteful of film/card space, so it actually may save money doing things that way.

[@jcdijan6396]

We used those numerical numbers per shot and it really does get confusing at a certain point when everyone is tired haha. Love your content by the way, still learning and hopefully I could learn more.

[@IntiFeelmaker]

Great! Thanks a lot. Awesome tips. By the way, you DO know how to talk to the camera👍

[@mitchellkasdin1899]

I like the swipe through the take. Thanks. I’m a newbie at slates

[@jamesfansdesigncrossing4184]

Your videos are very informative and up beat, they set a good reference for my videos on architecture and design.

[@ehvway]

And by the way, the video was not boring. I went in like... Let's see if I can learn something ... In the first minute I was like: gotta start over don't want to miss a single word !

[@eigaproductions]

this video is a lot more helpful than the others I seen

[@foxtrotbravo4495]

btw, MOS stands for MOTOR ONLY SYNC or MOTOR ONLY SHOT, means in this shot only the (camera) motor is running, or even simple: only pictures, no sound

[@anthonywall1228]

great video, I did learn something. I'm doing a web series and never knew what the slate was really for. Thanks, bye Felicia.

[@flickcine]

😎👋

[@moyosorejimba]

This is the only video that has helped me

[@aungkolatt-ulatt5725]

Thanks for sharing

[@wwonders3]

THANK YOU FOR THIS

[@filming284]

Thanks learnt alot pls how do I slate if it's a series

[@milesm7397]

This is really helpful. Thank you Felicia

[@GDoggProductions]

Great video Flick 👏👏👏

[@stephenszklarski5446]

Thank you

[@arachosia]

Thanks for the helpful tutorial. I’m confused by the tail slate part. Why would you ever have to do a tail slate?

[@jessarose2339]

Fantastic Video! I always use my knuckle to wipe a line through the slate. That way I don't have marker on my fingers when I go to clean something. Or eat something....

[@Skopefilms]

Very instructive, thanks a lot!

[@jonathanmacc281]

AA AB AC What’s next after AZ??😮 Is it BA BB BC…etc.? Do we need to skip the letters I, O , S , Z for the “Double Letter”

[@PeaLoop]

Excellent.

[@percewoodbury1893]

Felicia, what about when the director see the actors are in the "zone" and says "keep going from the start again" so the moment and feel isn't lost, ie multiple takes within the one audio and camera take?

[@flickcine]

As long as cam and sound keep rolling, it's still the first "take". Once you cut cam/sound you roll and mark again as a new take.

[@BrianLeLion]

Great Video

[@flickcine]

Thanks, Brian! Glad you liked it.

[@vigneshd1302]

Love your Tips...

[@janedagger]

I think it would be much easier to just carry a bunch of arms tied together around your neck when you need to measure out a few feet from the camera, and get you noticed, and thereby also called back cos you were so... interesting ! :)

[@joanhlbod.o.p7752]

جيد

[@alexanderevgin28]

Thanks so much for awesome videos! A quick question: what can I do if the depth of field on a certain shot is rather small? I don't want to interfere with object (an actors face for example) and I don't want to ask camera op to rack focus for me. What can I do?

[@Tritoon710]

Thank you so much. Where did you buy your pen marker from? with that eraser at the end. Thanks.

[@flickcine]

The marker is a Staedtler chisel tip whiteboard marker and I just taped some cloth to the end to use as an eraser 😊

[@Tritoon710]

@@flickcine Thank you 😊

[@nvledgevblemedia]

thank you

[@alexanderaudio8383]

When slating both cameras, do you mark it twice? (open and close the slate twice), or do you just run over to Cam B with the slate STILL CLOSED, after you mark Cam A, so the time codes will stay the same?

[@footycheck]

Love it

[@dareckwook7191]

Dumb Quesh - Can I slate even if theres no dialogue from the actors?

[@marklatos8660]

Dear Felicia, if i would like to take markers into the timecode during the shooting because of it could help in the post prod. is there any way to do it? Thanks, Mark

[@ianzhao5693]

Hi Felicia, let’s say if you’re slating for an unscripted scene in a documentary production, and you’re using multicam setup. Should you match the scene shot and take number amongst A B C cameras? The problem is that in documentary sometimes you will film a scene only with a b camera or use c and d cam for a in car segment. So if you would end up with different scene and shot number on different cameras even if for the same shot they are filming simultaneously. If you use matching scene and shot number, it might seem to the editor that you’re missing shots because not all cameras are used for every scene. What would you do in this situation and how should I ID the clips so they are organized and not confusing? Thanks so much

[@flickcine]

That is something that is also case by case. As long as everyone is on the same page you could come up with a common slate number between all cameras and note it down in your camera sheets. It's definitely something that can be confusing. I don't really do doco but if I'm on a drama with a script supervisor I would have a quick chat with them so we are all on the same page.

[@knoptop]

Great tips! Thanks for sharing!

[@flickcine]

You're very welcome!

[@stephaniely657]

For 12:52, would you mark B camera tail slate first by: saying "B marker", mark it , then say to the boom operator " 12Alpha take 1, tail on B, head on A" ? Or do you say that to the boom operator before you mark tail slate for B camera? And for that tail slate for B camera, would you turn the slate upside down at the end?

[@flickcine]

Yep, mark it first so camera can cut, then say the slate to the boom op. It’s more imperative for camera to cut first so always mark for camera first when they are ready. As for upside down slate. Some people do it differently. I’ve seen people start with the slate upside down , mark and then turn it the right way up. I’ve seen others just flick the slate to the side immediately after marking, and I’ve seen some mark the right way up then turn the slate over. Personally I did the latter as an assistant.

[@stephaniely657]

​@@flickcine Okay, so just to make sure I understand this correctly, in this scenario for the upside down tail slate: you'd mark it for the camera, do whatever upside-down slate technique you'd prefer, then say the slate to the boom operator?

[@flickcine]

Correct. "Cut!" "Tail slate!" Position the slate "Mark it" "B mark" Flip the slate or whatever method has been used on that production. Camera can cut "12 alpha take whatever head on A, tail on B" 😊

[@stephaniely657]

@@flickcine Thanks so much❣️

[@KeckerErt]

CAPTAIN HERE MOS btw. stands for "Missing Optical Synch(ronisation)" - because there is no clap in the shot. The more you know... Whats your local myth about what MOS means? I know there are plenty out there. FLIES AWAY

[@dutchvideoshooter]

Thanks for the great info! :)

[@ianzhao5693]

What color do you use to represent the C cam? For some it's green, some it's yellow.

[@flickcine]

Productions I've been on have all been green from memory.

[@ianzhao5693]

@@flickcine Thanks, that's what i thought

[@flickcine]

@@ianzhao5693 I guess if someone wants it different, for the sake of consistency you could make it different. As long as it's consistent.

[@fbidady]

Ok

[@JohnyTFK]

Any tips to use markers and keep slate clean? Love this channel BTW ;)

[@flickcine]

Cheers! Yeah I have a template I've made using illustrator, I just enter the details of the production and print, laminate and cut to size a few of those. Then I just tape one to my existing slate and keep one or two spare depending on the length of the job and how many I think I'll go through. Then just switch them out when they get dirty. Also change your cleaning cloth that you wipe the board with often and refrain from cleaning permanent marker from your board using the same cloth you use for whiteboard marker. That way you shouldn't get much mucky looking transfer. Hope this helps!

[@HannesFamira]

Heya Felicia, could you do an amendment for slating with a timecode slate please? Thanks so much.

[@flickcine]

Ah yeah. I'll pop it on the video ideas list and see if I can find someone with a TC slate! :)

[@HannesFamira]

That would be awesome, @@flickcine. Maybe as an addendum to the Slating video… Thanks so much.

[@flickcine]

No worries at all! Might take me a while to find one. Asking around though :)

[@HannesFamira]

Another question and I might have missed that in your video, but when you film with video there are no "rolls" what would you write instead? Also if you are in the NY area I'd be happy to lend you my Denecke slate. Thanks again, I am learning a lot here, @@flickcine.

[@flickcine]

I'm actually in Australia so almost the furthest away from NY. :) When you film video, that is correct, they aren't technically Rolls but we still refer to them as such. Other terms that could be used are Card and Mag (magazine)

[@fbidady]

Wow 🖤🥀🎼 🇱🇾Libya

[@flickcine]

Check out this blog post which goes into heaps more detail: lensnotes.com/cine/clapper-loader/ Welcome to the new subscribers! Read the description for a few more tips! Also I am genuinely sorry for the slightly off focus, my usual KZbin camera is in for repair and has been in for a long time so I'm: 1. Stuck filming things in the studio with my FS7 and as a result 2. Don't have good, reliable autofocus. Thanks for understanding! 😘

[@mikel9567]

Very informative video but a suggestion for you would be to slow down on your speaking. You speak really fast and it comes across as rambling and is hard to follow for the viewer. Maybe script your shots or have not cards up. Take a deep breath and relax, it isn't live TV.

[@sunsetmotionpictures1418]

Thank you