At the start of any shoot I always have a little bit of trepidation about how it will go. Will we get what we need? Have a picked the right kit? Have I thought of everything for the region or terrain we’re shooting in? But rarely have I started a shoot without knowing if what we’re setting out to do is even possible.
The show was commissioned by a major international documentary network and was one of their first 3D shows. Like me they considered most of the 3D programming made over the last few years to be little more than 3D wallpaper. They wanted to do something riskier, grittier and new. As far as I'm aware only huge budget feature productions had previously tried productions like this in 3D. We were going to attempt it on a ‘normal’ broadcast doco budget - a great risk for the producers and broadcaster.
The limited nature of recent 3D factual programming can be attributed to the complicated technical process and the fact that it’s so new no one really knows what’s possible or how to do it. The technology is big, slow and expensive. Broadcasters and producers have rightly been playing it safe as they get to grips with the format.
3D technology and knowledge is now progressing so fast that things change every month. The best route to take at the start of job might no longer be the best route at the end of job. New technology is being released almost monthly and the learning curve for crew, producers and broadcasters is so steep that the knowledge gained from just one job can be a radical step forward.
And so after proclaiming at the end of my last 3D job, “Don’t even think about observational film making in 3D” I found myself at the start of this project being briefed, “We’re going to try as much hand-held as possible and make an observational doc.”
I came to the project after stereographer Karl Schodt had already made the decision to use the Genus Hurricane 3D rig. Probably the single most important, door-opening decision of the whole shoot. We were also going to use Canon AF-305 cameras.
Karl and I met in Singapore to prep the kit and shoot tests. I was amazed when the Hurricane rig came out of the box. Compared to the last rig I used it was tiny and most importantly a third of the weight. Our first challenge was to get all the peripherals (Inition Stereobrain, Black Magic Genlock, Nano Flash 3D recorders and battery power) mounted onto the rig. Normally these items can be separate from the rig but as I was going to run around with this thing on my shoulder we needed to make it self-contained. We ended up with boxes and cables lashed into every nook and cranny of the rig. The Stereo Brain was tucked in next to my ear and runs really hot - especially in the 32 degree heat and 90% humidity of rainy season Thailand. The occasional ear burn kept me alert throughout the long, grueling days.We shot tests both for technical stuff and aesthetics and it also give me chance to practice with the rig on my shoulder. I managed about 5 minutes before I was drenched in sweat and couldn’t hold it any longer. I think the whole thing was around 20kg but it was entirely front heavy. There was no way to get any weight on the back to counter balance it, in any case there’s a fine line between counter balance and simply too much weight.
My first solution was to run straps from the back of the rig down my back to a waist belt to take some of weight down my back. This worked a little bit but I found them the most helpful for actually keeping the rig on my shoulder rather than taking load. I could lean and tilt forwards safe in the knowledge that rig wouldn't fall forwards.
We then moved to Bangkok to start recces and have a field test day. Here I added a handle from my Zacuto shoulder mount kit to the front of the rig. I bought a harness designed for photographers to carry lenses around their waists and adapted it so it hung around my chest. I got the strongest looking lens bag I could find and attached it to the harness. I could then put the Zacuto arm-handle into the lens bag and distribute some of the weight down to my chest. I also bought a back brace and wore my Hippychick support my back and spread more weight to my waist. I also used my Zacuto shoulder pad which I preferred to the one supplied with the Hurricane kit. I did however use the rather nice wooden Genus handles. If we'd had a little more time, money and I lived somewhere where high-end kit was more readily available I might have been able to put something together using a steady-cam vest and other bits. But again the whole idea behind this shoot was to achieve a lot on a limited (in 3D terms) budget and I was pretty happy with my homemade harness.
All this meant that I was very much the bionic man when built into the rig. It wasn’t easy to get in and out of so once I was locked in I would stay in it for as long as I could hold it for. These stints got longer as the shoot went on. The camera assistant Singha could also take some of the weight of the rig between takes whilst it stayed on my shoulder. Karl would get the runner to pass me bottle of water after bottle of water to rehydrate. It was extremely physical work especially in the Thai heat.
Very rarely on a job have a relied on the support of the camera team so much. I couldn’t do anything without the help of Singha, Karl, and often the second unit and 2D cameraman Lau. Just getting the rig on my shoulder was a three man job.We also had an amazing gaffer and two sparks on the days when we had big setups.
After a few days getting to grips with the kit and work flow we really got it down. I would set the focus and exposure on the top camera and call my settings to Singha who would set the bottom camera. Simultaneously Karl would measure, set and check the 3D. We got it down so we could roll very quickly if needed. Amazing really compared to previous 3D shoots I'd been on.
Once the cameras were set they couldn’t be touched during a take. There was no budget for duel follow focus units so it meant we couldn't pull focus or touch the iris during takes. We had to shoot with wide depth of field in mind for this - not easy when we were almost always nearly wide open.
When doing hand-held in 2D I’m used to predicting people’s movements and preempting action but in 3D this is doubly important. It’s not just about keeping it neat and tidy and in focus - in 3D it’s about keeping the shot technically usable. One slight misjudgment and the whole shot could become unusable.For example, if the lens inter-axial had been set for a 1.5 meter subject, that meant I couldn’t go nearer to anything than 1.5 meters. In a developing set-up, where perhaps I would be following someone between rooms, in order to keep the shot usable I would constantly have to maintain frames which had similar properties to the existing 3D settings. If someone was about to step into the foreground of the shot I would have to preempt it and take a step back to keep the shot useable. If there were foreground or edgy objects I would have to be constantly aware of them and chose my position and frame accordingly.
I also had to be extra careful with the rig when it was on my shoulder. The upward facing camera hung very low beneath the rig and was easily knocked. If this happened it would all have to be realigned. Realignment is common on all 3D shoots and is one of the added elements that slows production down compared to 2D. On the big fight nights the stadium was rammed and we were working to their schedule not ours - 10 mins realigning the cameras could mean missing the knockout shot so we had to be ultra careful and keep realignments to a minimum.The Canon AF-305’s held alignment very well - much better than the EX3’s on my previous 3D job. The main down-side of them is that they’re not great in low light. This coupled with the light-loss of the rig’s mirror and the fact that I’d chosen to shoot everything at 1/50th shutter to hold the fast action slightly better caused us to need to light almost everything but the brightest exterior. I had the Gaffer’s work cut out when we needed the entire crowd of a stadium lighting just so it wasn’t a black hole on camera. We initially tried to use four 5K HMIs but we couldn’t get the light even enough and the direct light was blinding people trying to watch the fight. Instead we opted for twelve 4 bank Kinoflos rigged into the low ceiling. They weren’t enough to get a full exposure but did enough to pull the crowd up and give the background some detail.
Karl is a great ‘can-do’ stereographer. We both agreed that if 3D is going to be a success this time around it has to fit into the current conventions of television production. It's no good forcing rules and regulations upon production to the point where the final production is dull - but in 3D. The only way 3D will survive is if captivating and exciting television can be made in 3D. That’s what we tried to do on this job - never say no.
There was no question we would need lights up there - and Litepanels weren’t going to cut it. Eventually we took a 1.2 HMI Par, 2X Kino Flo, a few battery powered Litepannels and, back breakingly, a 7kW generator. A village of porters had been booked to help us carry all this up the hill. But at 5am the next morning it was raining hard. Our vans drove through rivers and landslides slipping across the road. The porters, having more sense than us, only sent the village teenagers and stayed in the dry themselves. This meant two killer trips up and down the mud path for us and about four each for the kids. Three hours later we were soaking wet and covered in mud - each having fallen more than once. We were shattered and we hadn’t started shooting yet. It was totally worth it though as the location and characters up there were great and we shot some beautiful natural scenes the likes of which I’ve rarely seen in 3D before.
This production was a headfirst dive into unknown territory and we came out the other side having achieved more than we ever thought possible. We managed to shoot some really lovely unplanned moments and followed fighters from pensive back stage warm-ups all the way to the bloody glory and disappointment of a fight night.I haven’t seen a cut of it yet but I hear it’s going well without too many technical issues. I can’t wait to see it, but what's more it's the content I'm interested to see. The fact that we managed to get so much great actuality regardless of the number of dimensions is a real credit to the production team. That we managed it in 3D is the icing on the cake - and that's how 3D production should be seen. The medium is not the message.
Crew - Camera department - Karl, Singha, Lau, Gaffer Mann and his team of sparks and Mikey on sound. P/D Donovan, PM Michelle, AD and second unit director Kenny and fixer Tuktaa.
Singha on I on a lunch break - just out of shot is Karl in the same position.