September 8, 2010
Chemical Wedding and the American Society of Cinematographers release Toland ASC Digital Assistant for iPhone.
The software development company Chemical Wedding, in partnership with the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC), has announced the Toland ASC Digital Assistant for the iPhone or iPod Touch. 
ASC President Michael Goi explains, "While researching the right tech company to partner with on this project, Chemical Wedding's intelligent design of [their previous apps] Helios and Artemis resonated with our members as having the kind of quality and craft people have come to associate with the ASC. With this venture and more to follow, the ASC is expanding its outreach and influence to future cinematographers and working professionals by creating tools that reflect how we work today." The ASC is a non-profit association dedicated to advancing the art of
filmmaking. Since its charter in 1919, the organization has been
committed to educating aspiring filmmakers and others about the art and
craft of cinematography. Chemical Wedding is a developer of a number of technology platforms in
multiple industry sectors with broad, sector-wide application. Current
software releases include: Helios, Artemis, and Toland. Helios is an
iPhone/iPod Touch application that graphically predicts the path of the
sun from dusk to dawn, on any given day, in any given place. Artemis is a
digital directors viewfinder for the iPhone and iPad.
The Toland ASC Digital Assistant was named after renowned ASC member Gregg Toland, whose innovative use of lighting and techniques made him one of the true masters of the art form and a legend among cinematographers. Goi says, "It is entirely appropriate to name this application in honor of Gregg Toland, one of cinema's most groundbreaking artists." Toland is best known for his revolutionary cinematography in Citizen Kane, which has inspired filmmakers all over the world.
The Toland ASC Digital Assistant is an application that takes portions of the well-revered American Cinematographer Manual and provides instant solutions to the technical concerns of cinematography. The ASC Manual has been the key resource for cinematographers around the world for decades and serves as a technical guide, designed to work through the detailed process of cinematography.
Award-winning cinematographer Fred Elmes, ASC, whose work boasts over 50 features, including Eraserhead, Blue Velvet and The Ice Storm, played an important role in testing the application and providing valuable feedback to developers, "Toland puts the American Cinematographer Manual into your pocket. When a shot gets complicated, and you need to make a quick change, it's wonderful to pull out Toland to be certain you're doing the right thing. Other programs do similar things, but Toland does it best because it's all under one roof."
Nic Sadler, cinematographer and lead product designer for Chemical Wedding explains, "Rather than having to enter specific data to answer questions, Toland is designed to track your choices as you make them. As you change the camera speed, you will instantly get feedback on how this affects running time and exposure. When you change lenses, you will see the Depth of Field and Field of View update in real time. Toland then allows you to log all this information to build comprehensive camera reports. Simply put, all of the information is in one place making the technical part of the job much easier."
Toland's integrated features include: a comprehensive database of cameras and lenses; exposure calculator covering camera speed, shutter angle and filter factor; running time and footage calculator; flicker free warning indicator; depth of field calculator with focus marks; angle of view indicator and full camera data logging which can be exported and emailed.
The Toland ASC Digital Assistant is now available worldwide through iTunes. 
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