Response to NTSC vs. PAL

Here's a simple answer. NTSC runs at 59.98Hz, provides 525 TV lines, and runs at just under 30 FPS. PAL, on the other hand, has a slower rate of 50Hz but provides 625 TV lines resolution, and runs at 25 FPS. Your director is keen on it simply because he, probably mistakenly, believes that since film moves at 24 FPS and PAL at 25, along with the hundred extra lines your production, once transfered, will look more like it was shot on film. It won't, it'll look like PAL. As for the lens, an anamorphic will quite dramatically stretch vertically everything you shoot when viewed in it's native 4:3 aspect ratio. Stretch this back out to 16:9, and voila, you have quasi-true widescreen.

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