Big 70 - 100ft. Crane shot

Aaron Marshall

Aaron Marshall

Well-known member
Hi,

I have a shot I want to do that starts angled downward above a building. What I want to do is an Orson Wellian like shot that drops in to the front doors and then seemlessly dollies in through the door.

The shoot will be in Indiana. Where could I rent something like this in such an isolated (relative to the film industry) state? Would it be more of a logistics problem than the actual cost of renting? Where do you think the closest place I could get something like this would be? Chicago?

It seems like a semi could come down with a crane, but an industrial crane probably won't do the trick eh? Or is that what they use for these shots? I read something about a Spider-something-or-other that used an intricate system of cables. It could do some extraordinary things.

Any information will be a big help. Thanks.

-Aaron

P.S. Nataurally, I'd like to do this as inexpensively as possible, but not cheap. I want it to actually work well.
 
I remember reading that Welles, on the opening shot of "A touch of evil" used not a crane/dolly but the camera attached to a series of flying helium balloons. You must use enough ballons to ensure they can hold the camera weight. I don't know if there are some specific balloons for that kind of stuff or if you can go with the party ones...
 
Oh my god, are you serious? That is pure genius. I saw on the news the other day that a guy flew for 100 some odd miles in a chair with balloons tied to it. I bet it would work for a camera.

Thanks Mik. I'm just crazy enough to look into this.
 
if you rigged it so the camera was attached at its centre of gravity and then used 2 ropes, one to control decent and one attached to the front to
control is pitch.

Bear the weight of the ropes in mind when you go for the balloons though and make sure the ropes are well tied down. Otherwise you might get some interesting footage of the next Jet that passes your way :)
 
:grin: the FAA will think it's a UFO and scramble jets to shoot it down.

The balloon idea is very clever. I've been thinking about it more and I want the descent shot to look "stiffer", or more rigid like it has an extremely distinct path.

I'll tell you what would be perfect. If I had a giant crane where I sit in some sort of crow's nest as it descends. I'm armed with a steadicam. As it reaches the ground, the front end is open so I just walk right into the building all smooth and fluid like.

Is anyone familiar with how much a crane like this would cost and what the logistics would be getting it into the midwest?
 
Take a look at this crane demo, it is the most impressive I've ever seen! Go to their website then "strada/strada explained." on the bottom of the page. It will blow you away.

http://www.fluid-images.com/

Then take a look at their steadicam and crane shots combo.... hook and release system. Really cool stuff!

Warren
 
Yup, unless your crane base can be exactly aligned with the doorway to alow for a simple push in (of the whole crane!) - the only way to do this is with a Steadicam stepoff shot, or best of all, with the Strada Crane & Steadicam.

Steadicam step-offs are a pretty common technique - infact the first ever Steadicam shot in a feature film (Bound for Glory) started with a step-off.


Just note that this is a potentialy dangerous shot. Good expeirenced riggers, grips and Steadicam operator will be key to performing this shot safly and well.

- Mikko
 
Warren, that Strada demo was amazing. Thanks for the link.

Mikko, thanks for your validating advice.

I'll let you know how it all goes.
 
Yes Mikko, i was also thinking of a steadicam+crane shot, but speaking of Welles shots, when he did "A touch of evil" the steadicam was not here.
When i first see that shot i was amazed... i asked myself how they did it... than i found the info on the balloons.

But, if you need a continuos shot that goes from exterior to interior, yes you need a crane and a steadicam.
 
Rather than a crane, most equipment rental yards will have a variety of "manlifts" -
these are basically a bucket or platform on a sissorsjack or articulated arm. Many can be actually controlled from the bucket (up-down-left-right) and others "travelling manlifts" can actually be driven from the bucket. They usually rent very reasonably - around here they have 4 hr/day/wk/monthly rates. Some can be towed, others will have a pickup/delivery fee added on. Our yard has one on a "squirtboom" that'll clear a six story building. I'm a real height chicken and picked up a "gunners belt" at a military surplus store that I use for all kinds of shots besides the lift - hanging out of cars, windows, etc.

If you find the right yard and get them involved in your epic I've had luck occasionally scoring some extreme discounts - especially if you're flexible on timing.


If you do decide to go the balloon route, do a google on kite photography. There's a bunch of sites that show how to rig a self-leveling platform hung from a string.

Good Luck and be sure to post the shot when you're done...
 
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Thanks Pixelated, I appreciate your ideas.

I contacted a company who has a 105 ft hydrolic lift crane. He said I could test it out to see how smooth it was before the shoot. It was a negative on the Steadicam shot, though. He said that before their insurance will let a non-personnel use the crane they have to strap you in like crazy. The minimum is 4hrs, and the price has the logistics included. It's roughly $1000.

I'll just shoot the crane shot, mark it off accurately as can be, and do the push-in shot through the door separately with a Steadicam. I can do some post wizardry to match the shots up. I'll end up eating it on some of the image resolution, but I'll get it to look snazzy.

I'll be sure to post the shot when I'm finished. (if the shot concept makes it past the meeting, it may not even get funded, or, deemed necessary)
 
Just have someone walk in front of the camera as it touches down and use that as the transition from one camera to the other. It will be seamless and no one will know the camera changed at all.
 
If you are going to invest in this shot, why not go the cable skycam route...
It is what they used on Mission Impossible 3 when Cruise is running along the river ..
They had the camera running along cables...
Also, someone correct me if I'm wrong, wasn't also used on the Bourne Ultimatum.
But this time it had an actual operator flying with the camera.
This would be where "Bourne" is jumping from a rooftop and into a window of the next building.
The operator is jumping with him into the room....
Is it the same formula from the cameras at the NFL and NBA games ?
where the camera on cables flies over the field and court????

Good Luck
 
Rent "I Am Cuba" for two of the most amazing crane/cable/hand-off/how-the-hell-did-they-do-that? shots ever.

There's a brief and not entirely satisfying description of how it was done on Wikipedia;

Initially a three minute aerial shot of rural tropical landscape is disrupted by an infamous jumpcut to the top of a hotel building where a beauty contest is going on accompanied by raucous pop music. The camera, using a wide angle lens, moves among the contestants, goes out of the building, moves downwards for two stories into a club then circles around the bartenders. It then enters the pool and actually goes underwater, where the shot ends.

In another scene, the camera follows a coffin between a crowded street. Then it stops and slowly moves upwards for at least four stories until it is filming the coffin from above a building. Without stopping it then starts panning sideways and enters through a window into a cigar factory, then goes straight towards a window where the cigar workers are watching the coffin. The camera finally passes through the window and, still following the court, appears to float over the street between the buildings. These shots were accomplished by assembling a line of technicians, and passing the camera down the line, from hand to hand.
 
Warren Kawamoto said:
Take a look at this crane demo, it is the most impressive I've ever seen! Go to their website then "strada/strada explained." on the bottom of the page. It will blow you away.

http://www.fluid-images.com/

Then take a look at their steadicam and crane shots combo.... hook and release system. Really cool stuff!

Warren
Click to expand...

That is impressive. Cant wait to see Miko 100ft in the air flying by. Weeeeee.
 
Another thought is using a 50ft Super Technocrane. $$$ Per day. Depending on the shot, the crane can be placed on dolly track. Combining the arm boom movement, and dolly move, as well as the arm retracking, then extending into the doorway would be a difficult shot however. Using a scissor lift(platform lift) and "stepping off" with the steadicam would indeed be a great shot, and alot cheaper. The scissor lift would probably not be high enough for what you have first mentioned. Good luck and when you pull off this shot, please post the footage.
 
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