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Amazing shoot -- how did they do this?
  • OK guys... check out the closing (final) shot in this Australian TV show. How the hell did they do this? Go to 48:26 to see the shot.

  • 19 Replies sorted by
  • Off the top of my head, someone hand-held a gyro-copter through the house for most of the shot, letting the stabilization platform act like a Movi and then when they got out to the deck the operator ducked and the copter took flight.

  • Maybe the copter took over as early as the wide doorway to the deck, so that whoever guided it through the house could duck behind that wall. Unless they got someone that's just that good with a copter and they flew the whole route through the house.

  • I thought copter too, but I've flown one, and the operator would have to be very skilled to take control at just the right moment without a giant dip. I'm thinking a step onto a crane, but I guess the copter is more likely. There's no copter operator listed in the credits, but the shot running at the very end after the credits suggest it's a copter.

  • The circumvent the dip, could the copter operator gradually increase lift while the person handholding applies enough grip and pull until judging that they've built enough power to just lift off, or does it not work like that?

    Would it even be possible, assuming lots and lots of practice operating, to maintain a steady flight through the transition of indoors to open air, or vice versa? Or do the quad+ copters make that sort of thing trivial?

  • Such shot still can be made from two shots and good manual editing of few frames.

  • I'm sorry, but absolutely no way that this is 2 shots. With the talent walking through the transition, no visible marks, the less than solid framing and momentum continuity - that would be pretty close to impossible without some serious compositing/CGI to transition the shots, and on a reality TV show budget and timeline, it is most definitely impossible. Unless you're the luckiest mother fucker in history, it HAD to be practical. If someone was holding the copter and tracking backwards through that complicated house, someone else should have been spotting and guiding them (hand on shoulder), but there was just no time or place for 2 people to hide. Maybe one person was holding the copter for the tracking shot and two people operating the copter (one to fly, the other to frame), but still, I don't see where the tracking shot operator would have hid or when (not to mention the seamless transition from inside to outside). All of this leaves me to conclude: most amazing uncredited copter operator in Australia, possibly the Universe.

  • They may have used a "Hendocopter" named after DOP Dale ‘Hendo’ Henderson.

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    This system utilizes a 2 person professional crew to operate it, and within that crew is a real helicopter pilot who has over 25yrs flying experience. With over 30yrs experience myself in flying Remote Control planes/helicopters, I fully understand the capabilities of the equipment and how to get that awesome shot!

    http://fluidmotionfilm.com/

    http://fluidmotionfilm.com/services/

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  • When and where anyone that might have handheld this could have hid is a real trick. There is an acceleration at the moment of lift, however, around the time he says "overrode" which feels like some kind of handoff. My money is still on someone handholding a copter through the house. It's just where did they go, if that's the case.

    I wish the stream was higher quality. At 360P I can't look for any telltale signs to screen left that one or more people might have been digitally removed. Tracking in clean information wouldn't be a huge deal and might only take a few hours, even in After Effects. They could lay down flat on that deck. Plenty of good edges to track and then it's really only the roto of the railing for holdouts that need to be made but their uniform, smooth edges, coupled with the smoothness of the move makes for a pretty easy job.

    Knowing I could do it, that's what I might suggest if there was just no place for someone to duck out.

    edit: as to the "Hendocopter", do you have specific references they did the video above? They have a shot very similar, going from indoors to copter flight but there are any number of copters and services that can handle the copter flight.

    I was watching the reflections in the window for the Hendocopter video. That one leads me to believe it's all 100% copter if it's a two man crew doing all that. You see the reflection of the two operators in the glass, standing out in front of the building, a bit before the copter lifts up. It comes out the door then makes a slight move screen right with a countering pan screen left to avoid more reflections on that side of screen.

    As the copter rises to its widest point the operators aren't anywhere in sight. Either they're also really good at making those sorts of smooth climbs while running away or I'm going to bet they digitally removed themselves. It would have been even more trivial than the scenario on the deck.

  • Tracking operator lying on the deck and rotoscoping them out - brilliant! I love rotoing, maybe a little too much, sometimes I have to be careful not to intentionally create a more complicated scenario just so I have something to roto later. haha

    Now seeing the Hendocopter, it's all starting to make more sense, but what would a great shot be without a little mystery? I mean beyond this super talented guy shooting for low budget reality TV in Australia - that mystery may never be solved.

  • If it's all piloting that would make an already impressive shot mind bending. The trip through the house would mean piloting off some sort of video transmission but what about latency? I guess that's what practice is all about.

  • Their facebook page shows their RC 3 Axis Gimbal transmitter with small monitor.

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    https://www.facebook.com/FluidMotionFilm

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  • These guys are wizards.

    Minus the dorky purple mu-mu and hat.

  • I know Dale Henderson. He lives about 15mins from me. Does a lot of stedicam and jet boat work etc. Seems like he's always looking for new ways to float or fly a camera. He was the stedicam operator on 'Animal Kingdom' a couple of years ago.

  • I still think there's a chance it's a Strada crane.... watch how they achieve a smooth transition. And maybe the hook/release guy was already on the crane?

  • Managing the sound on a Hexcopter would be tricky --- its quite close at the point of pull away -- I know how noisy my EVO S800 is!

  • @andyharris I assume they used ADR.

  • @ahbleza -- My bad --- ADR would cover that perfectly!

  • Hell with me!
    Must has been some copter, but there are some big skills behind nevertheless.

    Managing the sound on a Hexcopter would be tricky -- I know how noisy my EVO S800 is!

    @andyharris yep, but speech sync would be no problem at all. I'm sure they did it that way.

  • ADR is kids game comparing to skills of multicopter guys.