Carrying a Fisher 11 Dolly

J

Jester2138

Well-known member
Hi everyone, I'm shooting a short film in the woods in a few weeks and the production calls for the use of a Fisher 11 dolly. The location is a fifteen minute walk down unpaved trails from the parking lot, so naturally I'm wondering if there's a better way to move the 300lb dolly than simply carrying it. Perhaps some big squishy wheels we could attach - or...?
 
ATV with a trailer could work. Something like this:
d252fe21404638720125d92c4285b8e5.jpg

We used a similar solution to that to move lights and generators on a shoot out in the archipelago.
 
That'd be great, but I don't think we'll be able to get anything motorized into the park (rules). I'm going to have to visit it again though and look specifically at the width of the trails to see what kind of carts we might use.
 
Not to mention transporting the needed track and milk crates full of cribbing and wedges, or plywood to build a working platform. A half dozen young grips would be helpful.

Sure you need a Fisher for this shot?
 
David W. Jones said:
Not to mention transporting the needed track and milk crates full of cribbing and wedges, or plywood to build a working platform. A half dozen young grips would be helpful.

Sure you need a Fisher for this shot?
Click to expand...

Indeed my plan right now is to get as many young grips as possible. I figure if I assign 8 of my crew to moving the dolly, for example, then 4 carry the dolly, the rest cart accessories, and they could all swap if they get tired...

Do you think blankets would work in lieu of heavier plywood? I've never actually used a dolly on bare ground before so I wouldn't know. It's solid dirt and grass, not mushy or anything.
 
Get a western dolly to transport the fisher. Bigger version of a doorway dolly.. A gator is really the answer though.

Are you sure you need a fisher? You understand the amount of work involved here, right? Can the location be closer?
 
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I got some more pictures of the trails and, yeah, carrying it is probably the only option, which is what I was worried about. I was hoping we could use an appropriate cart but no bueno!

I'm going to see if we can replace it with a Steadicam!
 
Jester2138 said:
I got some more pictures of the trails and, yeah, carrying it is probably the only option, which is what I was worried about. I was hoping we could use an appropriate cart but no bueno!

I'm going to see if we can replace it with a Steadicam!
Click to expand...


Sounds great! If carrying is the only option I would honestly say it's too dangerous to carry it...Sounds like someone would get hurt.
 
What is the nature of the specific shots you have in mind? Focal lengths, speed and distance, is booming required etc.
 
CharlesPapert said:
What is the nature of the specific shots you have in mind? Focal lengths, speed and distance, is booming required etc.
Click to expand...

Several very specifically framed but slow moves with medium focal lengths, some slow booming up and down with medium focal lengths. If we were in a more accessible location the Fisher would be essential. However, as everyone has noted, the prospect of carrying a 300lb dolly plus its accessories along trails is not exactly attractive. A less-precise but much easier and safer steadicam should probably be used, instead.
 
Yes, that falls within the realm of Steadicam, but of course those types of requirements make the choice of operator particularly critical. A highly skilled op should be able to deliver shots that are all but identical to dolly moves of the type you describe.

Barring that, a portable jib and lightweight track could be wrangled into that environment much easier than the 11, but as David Jones mentioned earlier, there's still plenty of hardware required to level out track in the woods.

For general use I personally prefer a PeeWee 3+ over the 11--the arm on the latter is significantly wonkier in comparison.
 
While it may not be extremely relevant to your question, if you're at all interested in the work of a dolly grip, I'd suggest taking a peak at http://www.dollygrippery.com

Great insight on the life of a dolly grip, a lot of great instructional posts.

Let us know how things end up working out. Good luck!
 
A western dolly is usually used to move a camera dolly like the fisher in terrain that you describe. It will still take four strong people to load and unload the dolly and also to set and level track. To get all of the equipment including track, cribbing, wedges, boxes, etc. will require many trips. This will work if you provide for enough crew and time to set up the shot. Unless of course you have 3 feet of snow on the ground. On a music video I worked on in the mountains we had to physically carry a white piano about a 1000 yards to place it near train tracks for the shot. Glad I was young back then.
 
Jester2138 said:
Indeed my plan right now is to get as many young grips as possible. I figure if I assign 8 of my crew to moving the dolly, for example, then 4 carry the dolly, the rest cart accessories, and they could all swap if they get tired...
Click to expand...

On the plus side you can take advantage of the situation and shoot a small scale remake of Herzog's Fitzcarraldo as a BTS feature for the DVD!
 
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