GEAR FREAKS & TECH HEADS.

Here`s some info for all you people who are interested in film stuff, mainly serious gear. After weeks of determining what kind of film equipment to take on such a long trip, which at the same time doesn`t kill the budget totally by overweight and at the same time our nerves by carrying too bulky, heavy stuff all the time, plus offering spontaneous handling and freedom in shooting we finally made our decisions. Tataaahhh! As we are all „film“ people the hardest part was to decide on the additional digital video equipment we`re gonna take with us. Digital video simply because of interview sequences and shoot and run footage which we, for some strange reason which is named money, cannot afford to shoot on traditional film. Too bad but too true. For several days I cried my heart out until even I got familiar with the thought that it is necessary to face reality and the small advantages of modern digital cinema equipment.
Then also space and weight plays a role as we`re about to minimize all the way through the production. A big challenge but a fun one and it fits the sentiments of the project too.
As we did not want to carry around big digital cameras like the RED, Arri D21, Genesis or similar, we had to decide on a format which provides small lightweight cameras for mainly handheld use which can be handled by a tiny supersmall documentary crew. At the same time providing us with a good enough quality&resolution to be able to color grade the footage in a „close to film“ look, match it with the S16mm material and screen it in full HD on large screens later. So after watching a lot of tests we decided to shoot on Panasonics ProHD P2 system which provides small lightweight cameras, full HD res, 100 Mbits and most importantly a subjective good visual result. It`s not film for sure but I`m optimistic we`ll be able to create a great look and feel even in those sequences shot digital, because in all those moments our ambition is to light, treat sets and framings like shot for the silver screen. I also shot a music video on this system some time ago and was quite pleased with the results. Another reason which seemed important to us was that if you load the cameras with P2 cards there`s not such a big risk blowing sensitive cables and external harddrives if the shooting gets a little tougher and rugged. You can just simply keep those cameras small to a minimum and then rock`n roll fast forward. I almost forgot, we`re gonna shoot quite a lot of S16mm footage, which makes me happy and keeps my general mood right. Sound is gonna be recorded by local sound crews in a proper and classic way.

So here`s what we gonna take with us. One Aaton Super16mm camera with all additional gear needed. One Panasonic Avx200, one Panasonic Avx 201 for some occasions, some exernal harddrives and a firestores for backup. Yes we thought of using a P+S adaptor or a movietube. Again the cameras just got too big and harder to handle, plus some additional cases would have been on the move with us. Idea erased. Some lightweight light and grip equipment is of course also on the road with us.

That`s how our little equipment package looks all set up.


And that`s how it looks all packed up and ready for travel.