Cinephiles can view Side By Side, a must see documentary narrated (and co-produced) by Keanu Reeves, as either the death of shooting on film or the continued growth of cinema, albeit in a digital form.

The documentary has Reeves interviewing a plethora of directors (Steven Soderbergh, David Fincher, Martin Scorsese, Christopher Nolan, Danny Boyle, James Cameron, George Lucas) and cinematographers (Vittoria Storaro, Vilmos Zsigmond, Wally Pfister) as their opinions of shooting on digital vs. film.  Although wistful movie buffs may believe digital cameras will never reach contain the warm or texture of film (can you imagine Lawrence of Arabia being shot digitally), it’s simply much easier to shoot with an Arri Alexa or a Red camera.  And although directors such as Nolan and Scorsese may see film as their primary visual paintbrush, the vast majority of filmmakers (Soderbergh, Lucas, Cameron, and Boyle in particular) are enamored with the digital revolution.

Side By Side also briefly explores the advent of DSLR cameras such as the Canon 5d and 7d, which consumers can purchase if they have several thousand dollars to spare.  I asked Reeves if he’d shoot a movie with either camera, and here is his response (he mentions DP Michael Baullhaus, who lensed The Departed, in the clip):

Opening in Los Angeles August 17th and Boston the following week, Side By Side will be available on VOD August 22nd.

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posted by Greg Srisavasdi (Twitter: @Gsrisavasdi )