BURBANK, California (Mar. 8, 2016) – Motion picture and television professionals hungry to know what gear was used to shoot the latest Star Wars epic or Netflix’s hottest new show are quickly turning ShotOnWhat? into one of the production industry’s most popular destinations on the web. The production and post production database site, which includes detailed information on everything from the camera lenses to the sound equipment to the visual effects software used to produce particular movies and TV shows, has pushed past 100,000 page views per month. And site founder James LaViola predicts that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

“The response from the professional community has been overwhelming,” LaViola says. “If you want to know the names of the stars and crews of a movie, you can look that up on other major movie websites. But if you want to know what cameras, lenses and other gear were used to make that movie, you go to ShotOnWhat? For cinematographers, editors, colorists and other pros, technical details related to production and post production are very important. We’ve built a database where all that information is freely and easily accessible.”

Steven Poster ASC, President of International Cinematographers Guild calls ShotOnWhat? an indispensable tool. “ShotOnWhat? takes off where IMDB stops,” he observes. “It is a technical reference to everything about how movies are made, far above any other.”

ShotOnWhat? collects data submitted by crew members and others about gear, technology and processes used in movie and television productions. The information is verified, classified, indexed and made available through the site. Since its launch in 2012, the site has gathered information on more than 20,000 TV and movie productions. That includes data on more than 3500 items in 85 categories, with new data added at an accelerating pace.

In terms of its depth of information on filmmaking technology, there’s nothing like it. And, it’s not just information related to current and recent films. ShotOnWhat? makes a concerted effort to gather data on movies of the past by encouraging older and retired pros to share their recollections and submit data, as well as film historians. That makes the site valuable not only as a production planning tool but as a rich repository of information about movie-making’s past.

“If we don’t capture this information, it is likely to be lost forever,” notes LaViola. “No one else is collecting information about how early movies were made and the tools that were invented or pioneered on individual productions.”

ShotOnWhat? recently spawned a companion site ShotOnSet!, a collection of thousands of behind-the-scenes photography from TV and movie sets. Both sites are built through communal collaboration with expenses met through manufacturer participation and sponsorships, advertising and donations.

In its little more than three years of existence, ShotOnWhat? has developed into an invaluable resource and planning tool. “Cinematographers who want to emulate the look of a particular movie scene come to our site to find out what cameras and lenses were used,” LaViola explains.

Similarly, the site has drawn praise from technology manufacturers. “If you’re a dolly manufacturer, you can quickly find out which movies have used your product,” LaViola observes. “That information was previously unavailable. It’s a great marketing tool.” LaViola adds that the site has also built a dedicated following among researchers, film students and movie buffs.

LaViola has plans to expand the site and increase its features. One planned upgrade would connect location data to Google Street View so that visitors can get a bird’s eye view of the places where a movie was shot.

While the site’s database is expanding quickly, site visits are growing even faster. LaViola expects the number of visitors to the site to more than quadruple this year. “As traffic increases, we’re getting more interest from advertisers and investors,” LaViola says. “That in turn will help us further develop the site and add more of the features our users are clamoring for.”

About ShotOnWhat?
ShotOnWhat? is dedicated to preserving detailed data about production and post production aspects of motion picture and television production. It includes technical information about cameras, lenses, gear, post, sound, VFX and other associated elements, processes and notations. Information is verified, searchable and cross referenced. Since its launch in 2012, ShotOnWhat? has become an essential resource for professionals, researchers, students, and movie-buffs alike. https://shotonwhat.com

ShotOnWhat? Announces New Features for the Motion Picture and Television Production Industry

BURBANK, California (June 7, 2013) – The recent release of ShotOnWhat? beta .3 includes new features designed to enhance both the breadth and depth of information and the ease of use by contributors to this ever-growing compendium of information related to production and post-production aspects of filmmaking. ShotOnWhat? has added many new categories to the system, including Camera Rental, Audio Facilities, Monitoring, Grip & Lighting Companies to name a few. 

An important new feature just added, Groups, allows equipment and other tools used during filming to be associated and annotated which provides insight into the solutions chosen by production for a specific look, effect or process.

Created to be the central repository and historical archive about equipment, processes, stories and facts of the technical aspects of the movie industry, ShotOnWhat? is currently collecting 75 categories of information, from the simplest aspect of a production to the variety of complex solutions for the entertainment production industry. 

As people continue to find how useful ShotOnWhat? has become, more and more professionals are making contributions to the archive. This collaborative and sustained value comes from the participation by experienced and seasoned craftsmen with rich history and great memories to share with future generations.

Get involved in ShotOnWhat? today.  https://shotonwhat.com

About ShotOnWhat?

Making its debut in late 2012, ShotOnWhat? is the only in-depth production and post-production knowledgeBase for the industry, developed to fill a much needed gap for the technical side of the industry. ShotOnWhat? has created the most extensive and comprehensive framework for the collection of often unrecorded technical information related to the creation of entertainment programming; a reference site for in-depth recording and research of the relationship between the final delivered product and the many associated processes and products used during filming and post-production.

 

BURBANK, Ca. February 19, 2013 — The latest tool to emerge for the Film & Television Industry is an ambitious one, a complete technical database that lists every element, process, piece of hardware, format, facility, etc. that is used on a project.

Making its debut late 2012, ShotOnWhat? is the fastest growing technical database for the industry and the professionals within it. Created by long time industry engineer James LaViola, ShotOnWhat? was developed to fill a much needed gap for the technical side of the industry.

“We are taking the guesswork out of what goes into creating a project workflow or its look.” comments LaViola. “I saw the need to create a tool that essentially provides the framework to do this”. James also stated that this site was created because a fair amount of history is being lost, or relegated to arcane or inaccessible resources. “Our goal is to preserve the historical and referential value of specific production information. This site is available for everyone to contribute and use. “

ShotOnWhat? is not only a source to turn to for re-creating specific looks, but is a site that is designed to collect and preserve the extensive history of film and television technical tools. ShotOnWhat? is the only site that provides a place to list the technical details and tools used on a production. From Audio to VFX and everything in between, ShotOnWhat? lists it all.

Contributors such as Steven Poster, ASC, President of the International Camera Guild, have taken time out of their busy schedules to help improve and contribute to ShotOnWhat?. Poster wrote, “I think you have forgotten a very essential stylistic tool to most cinematographers. That is filtration. I know that I am not alone and that filtration becomes a very important part of our styles for the purpose of storytelling.” Steven Poster’s comments created this very category. “Camera filter information is difficult to find and we need contributions and feedback, they are valuable and important for our growth and enhancements. We make changes and additions based on user suggestions everyday”, comments LaViola.

ShotOnWhat? lists every aspect of a production, no matter how big or small and presents all of the information so it is searchable. You can easily locate all the titles that used specific elements, hardware, codecs, formats, tools, facilities and individuals who were involved in the creation.

ShotOnWhat? is the essence of collaboration, something this industry was built on. Everyone can update information for each title, allowing people to contribute their portion of knowledge without knowing the rest of the workflow. “Projects are like an assembly line, the last guy on the line usually has no clue what the first guy did, with ShotOnWhat? you can see the whole process”, comments LaViola.

Founded in 2012, ShotOnWhat? is based in Burbank and its primary focus is to provide technical information via the internet at www.shotonwhat.com.

About James LaViola
An expert in the operations of post-production technologies, his skills cover all aspects of production and post-production workflow processes. His career began by helping a variety of early technology adopters work with video computer integration. Recently, James has been building and managing complex networks and creating workflow and technology solutions. James is also a digital intermediate colorist and does stereoscopic finishing for commercials and feature films.