The past year has forced us all to change the way we work. In the film industry, lockdowns brought productions to a standstill around the world. The shifting sands forced production companies and filmmakers globally to get creative and find innovative ways to work safely within restrictions.
"The rug was pulled out from under everyone's feet," says Richard da Costa, director of production company Floating Harbour Films in Bristol, England. "In the first few months everyone was kind of shell-shocked."
With international and live events coverage on hold, Richard found himself specialising in virtual events – including working with Wildscreen Festival to produce a week-long virtual wildlife film festival featuring huge names such as director James Cameron, broadcaster Sir David Attenborough and environmental activist Greta Thunberg.
Another filmmaker who faced production challenges was Alan Griswold, director of photography and owner of LA-based production company Monkey Deux, which produces the popular Our Star Wars Stories series for Lucasfilm and Disney.
"One of the biggest things about film production is the sheer number of people involved," says Alan. "The idea that people couldn't be together was a massive shakeup for that industry." For Alan, a remote workaround using Canon EOS R cameras and Canon's EOS Utility software was the key to keeping his series going.
Here, the two filmmakers explain how they kept the cameras rolling, how the filmmaking industry has pivoted and why some forms of remote working might be here to stay.
Has Covid-19 changed video production forever? Hear the conversation in this episode of Canon's Shutter Stories podcast:
ARTICLE
How lockdown forced a revolution in remote production
Our Star Wars Stories: a new hope
Our Star Wars Stories is an original digital series which sees host Jordan Hembrough uncover heartfelt tales of fans who have found inspiration in the galaxy far, far away. It's streamed on the Star Wars website and to 3.5 million YouTube subscribers.
"Our Star Wars Stories is one of my favourite projects," says Alan. It was originally a roadshow, with a small crew of four touring the United States in a van, filming interviews in fans' homes. Alan shot the first season on two Canon EOS C200s and a Canon EOS R, selling Lucasfilm on the Cinema RAW Light codec, and added a third EOS C200 for the second series.
"It was a very down-and-dirty production," says Alan. "We had one day to shoot an episode, including B-roll. It was one of those exciting things where everybody had multiple jobs to do. And then it just came to a grinding halt."
To complete the series in the new normal meant repositioning into a virtual workflow, which called for a rethink on both kit and creative. "We wanted to embrace the fact that this was something entirely new, not mimic what we had before," says Alan.
Do you own Canon kit?
After six weeks testing different methods, he developed filming kits to send out to interviewees – with Canon EOS R bodies at the centre, thanks to their ability to be controlled remotely using Canon EOS Utility, which he'd previously used for tethered stills shooting.
"As we were developing these kits, it became about what would be the most reliable and the highest quality," he explains. "Where the Canon EOS R and EOS Utility ended up winning was that we had the most control over the highest quality camera."
On video calls with interviewees, Alan would build a rig himself, alongside them, so they could see how to put everything together. The EOS R plugged into a laptop, where it could be remote-operated using EOS Utility software and by accessing the interviewees' computers using TeamViewer. Atomos Ninja V recorders were also sent out in the packs, to get the 10-bit colour space from the recording for better quality.
During the interviews themselves, Alan was operating multiple cameras to capture two angles of the interviewees, as well as the host. He describes the process as "completely nerve-racking", but the series was a standout success in its new form.
Taking a film festival online
Richard's filmmaking career began with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II (now succeeded by the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV) in 2008 and has most recently seen his diving documentary Last Breath, filmed with a Canon EOS C300 Mark II, released on Netflix. He typically works around the globe.
"When lockdown first hit, we were stuck here in the studio, trying to figure out how we were going to do anything at all," he says. "What came out of that was a kind of virtual, remote hybrid for the live production we do."
When Wildscreen Festival wanted to go ahead remotely in 2020, the team decided to have a mix of live and pre-recorded content, shooting on a range of Canon L-series glass. "We're based on a big, old Dutch barge in Bristol Harbour," says Richard. "We kept it here with a live presenter for the week – a critical factor in making it feel immediate and being a conduit between the audience and the content."
Going virtual meant the wildlife film and TV festival was able to pull in bigger names than ever before, including director James Cameron, who dialled in from the set of his next Avatar film in New Zealand. The festival could also welcome more attendees. "Wildscreen has always attracted good contributors, but we surpassed previous iterations," says Richard. "The barrier of entry is lowered. In previous years, you might have 800 filmmakers – the 2020 festival had 2,500 people."
Five photo stories that epitomise 2020
Production managing multiple global feeds and pre-recordings, alongside people live in a studio, was not without its challenges. "With this hybrid presentation, there's a lot of moving parts," says Richard. "You've got a combination of hardware and software, acquisition locally through cameras hardwired into a vision mixer, and then that's going into a software-based vision mixer for the programme."
A memorable challenge arose when Sir David Attenborough said he didn't like seeing the return feed during his pre-recorded conversation with Greta Thunberg, as the slight delay was distracting him.
"With anyone else we'd have done a longer setup and been through that, but we had to say we'd turn it off," laughs Richard. "As a result, Greta can no longer see herself on the return feed, so she starts to get lower and lower in the frame."
The workflow here to stay
So, as it becomes possible to travel again, will everyone return to old ways of working? Or do these creative solutions have applications beyond the pandemic?
"We'll probably continue to do remote work even in Los Angeles," says Alan, who has seen kits similar to his used in Hollywood in the film and television industries. "A lot of people are getting used to the comfort of shooting in their own home, but without having a huge crew there. Even with big studio clients, budget is always an issue, and the ability to send something out is a great tool."
Richard sees this as an opportunity to improve his offerings through new technology. "Let's rethink and go forward in a better way," he says. "I'd really like to push the high-end, doing high-quality remote contributor interviews and documentary content you can be proud of. To achieve things you could achieve face-to-face, remotely, would be a lovely challenge."
Richard recently successfully shot a film about timber construction with 11 remote international interviews. "Going forwards, the question won't be, 'Shall we do it remotely?' It might be, in certain circumstances: 'Why would you do this in person?'"
"What I've learned is that when confronted with catastrophic changes, one of two things will happen – there's a mass extinction or an evolution," says Alan. "The elegance of the solutions was really inspiring in a year of less-than-inspiring events."
Related articles
-
ARTICLE
Filmmaking after lockdown: voices from the field
Filmmakers, DoPs and producers share how the pandemic has impacted their work – and how they see the future of the industry.
-
ARTICLE
Filming Nigella on Canon Cine Primes
On celebrity chef Nigella Lawson's TV shows, the images are as rich as the food. DoP Robin Fox shares his shooting secrets.
-
KIT
Netflix approved: Canon Cinema EOS cameras
From the EOS R5 C to the EOS C500 Mark II, find out how the Cinema EOS range meets the image capture standards for Netflix Originals.
-
ARTICLE
Footage from the frontline: Italy's coronavirus crisis
How photojournalist Fabio Bucciarelli and filmmaker Francesca Tosarelli brought the Covid-19 crisis in Northern Italy to the world's attention.