Filmmaker: Alex Sufit (www.lexitricity.com)

Pro or amateur: Professional

Synopsis: Nominated for 2009 Rushes Music Video Award. A young man loiters by Hammersmith Bridge. When a pretty young thing appears they begin a tentative flirtation, until she draws a line between them

Production equipment: Mostly hand-held and tripod, using prime lenses

Editing software: Final Cut Pro

Editing Workflow: We found that converting the files into Apple Pro Res and 25fps before dropping them into the timeline was the best workflow, then exporting using the H264 codec

Favourite shot or clip in this film: As “Chalk Boy” clumsily tries to seduce the girl, by leaning over the brick wall in a bid to grab her attention. I also really like the shot when she draws the chalk-line, filmed with the camera low down on the ground

Tip for 5D MkII filmmakers: The camera has a 35mm full frame digital censor, capable of shooting HD at 30 fps. Combined with the range of Canon EF lenses, this allows effects and depths of field beyond what is offered by traditional 35mm motion picture cameras because of the larger frame size. However, controls are not necessarily where you would want them to be, making focus pulling difficult. The viewfinder/ screen is extremely high quality on the other hand and it is easy to see when something is in or out of focus, which does compensate for its difficulties. Live AF is effectively pointless as it relies on face contrast detection. In other words, the focus is correct when the highest contrast is achieved, which is not reliable auto-focusing so you are better off doing it manually.

Vish Vishvanath, the DoP, is a photojournalist by trade and we both love the camera. From my perspective as a Director, the great advantage is the fact it is so light, portable and discreet. This means you can capture unusual angles that would require  time, preparation and rigging using traditional methods. It is also unobtrusive, making it easy to film in otherwise difficult locations and freeing up the actors’ performance, leading to a more natural result