POV falling off a building

D

DoubleIt

Well-known member
I am starting to work throuhg my script and plan out the complex shots. (Script is in the script sub forum or online a http://www.doubleitproductions.com/Lucid.htm) Three scenes have the main character falling from a roof. The first time im just going to cheat it and not show him actually falling. The second time im not sure, but hte last time i want it to be his POV as he falls. So that means i have throw the DVX off the side of the building. Eek. This was done well in some movie that i cant remember, but i remember in the commentary they said they did it a bunch of times to get it to look right. Well, how do i go about doing this and not breaking my camera. It needs to be something easily home made and for not a lot of money. My orignal idea was to put the camera on a crane and just jib down the side of the buidling and speed the footage up, but that wont look right.

So how should I go about doing this?
 
Re: POV falling off a building

Hi Double,
How high is the building? You could perhaps tie a rope to the camera, rigged in such a way that by hanging it, it points straight down. Then lower it fromm the room at a slow steady pace till it comes to the ground. Then speed up the shot in post. It might look interesting. I wouldn't toss it off the roof with the rope. The sudden stop might shake some internal components loose. Hope this help. ;)
 
Re: POV falling off a building

Yah a rope might work and maybe use a pully but i think id have to speed it up a lot in post. can anyone think of hte movie where this was done well? I want to say it was a Kurosawa film but i dont think thats true, heh.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

Watch the making of: 28 days later. They use rigid poles w/ mounted camera and slide them down...it's tricky & can cost you a camera. The problem with ropes, cables etc...is that they twist and swing. The special FX AE folks might have some better ideas in the FX section.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

If I follow correctly, you want a shot of someone falling off a roof, with the shot looking back up during the fall.

Well, these shot's aren't hard....if professionally shot.

The stuntman has a small (DVX) type camera, carefully padded to protect the people, not so much the camera.

The stuntman is wearing all nessicary padding, as well as full face protection.

As he jumps off, he twist's round to get the shot looking back up.

Now, he lands on an air bag....I said "professional".

Under no circumstances should anyone other than a trained pro "EVER" try this type of a shot.

The rope method might work, but the ballistic's will be wrong, and I'm pretty sure it would look rigged.

But it's worth a try, as long as you're willing to chance destroying your camera, accidents do happen.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

Pookie, good advice.

i'm writng this from the emergency room where i'm waiting to have the flag pole pulled out of my .... maybe i should have read your "for pros only" better.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

ahha yeah we dont have one of those big pads to land on. I actually thought the shot would be looking down towards the ground as he fell but now i think i want to see it both ways (Way to make it even harder on me!)
 
Re: POV falling off a building

Why not just shoot a high resolution still frame and then add zooming, shaking etc effects to get the motion perfect?
 
Re: POV falling off a building

[quote author=Shaw link=board=news;num=1108847827;start=0#8 date=02/19/05 at 20:25:18]Why not just shoot a high resolution still frame and then add zooming, shaking etc effects to get the motion perfect?  [/quote]

The DOF should change as you fall. A still won't do that.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

High falls are done free fall or with a decelerator cable system.  Sounds like you could use the later.  Decelerator systems allow virtual freefall for a vast portion of the drop, then apply a graduated brake before impact.

It is unlikely you'll get a true, rated system without an operator.  Because you're not falling talent - just a camera - you might be able to get a deal.

;)
 
Re: POV falling off a building

I hate to suggest this because: a) what the hell do I know and b) if you were to do this, you should make sure you using someone with experience who knows what they're doing, but that said....

I've done a fair amount of rappelling in my day. We would routinely do what Oeverlandfilms is talking about but with a person in a harness hooked to a line and controlling the descent (for training/safety you would also have someone on the ground belaying).  If it were me, and I had the ability to rig it (depends on location) I'd probably set up a double line to come down Aussie style on (meaning that the 'biner   and figure 8 were located at my back instead of in front of me, so that I descended face down) filming while someone belayed me from below.

Now, you should NOT do this.  But, if you lived near a mountaineering center, or even a store that caters to that crowed like an Eastern Mountain Sports, you might want to go in and talk to the climbers.  Many of them are enthusiastic young people who are very safety conscious and well trained and would probably jump at the chance to help out (pun intended).

Matt

[Edit: if you do go this route, and the more I think about it the more it makes sense to me (again depending on the particulars of the location) realize ahead of time that you will be somewhat limited in your ability to "direct" this action.  These guys wont do anything that they feel is unsafe (granted that's relative, I myself would never jump out of a plane but others assure me it's safe).  So don't try to "encourage" them to much to get a shot that they tell you they can't, or that they can't rig.  If you're at the point where your still planing locations, I would involve them as soon as possible and have them check out/approve your location for this stunt, otherwise they could get there and find out it wont work.  Also, one guy or two guys can't do this.  Most things on roofs make horrible anchor points (I've actually gone off a building anchored to another individual sitting on the roof, back to a wall rather than tie off to an existing structure because it was weak) so you'll need a small crew of them.  They'll take their time and drink coffee and think a lot and test stuff for a while, it's just the nature of it.  Let them.  It's their ass going over the side.  

And again I cannot stress enough how much YOU should NOT do this.  This isn't something you pick up quickly.  Yes the going down part is easy, but the rigging part that allows you to do is safely is not.  But, a group of well trained climbers could do this for you with relative ease if they could approve the location.

[SECOND EDIT: If you rig the camera properly with weights, you don't even need an operator on the line, but still, for the sake of your camera, I'd still get a climber to rig this with the right equipment. For example you would want climbing rope for this and not static line (sending the camera down alone via a rig) because climbing line is elastic and will absorb shock if there is a sudden stop (this is what keeps a climber from breaking his/her spinal column if they fall and are caught by the rig/line).
 
Re: POV falling off a building

[quote author=MattC link=board=news;num=1108847827;start=0#11 date=02/20/05 at 08:33:11]And again I cannot stress enough how much YOU should NOT do this.  This isn't something you pick up quickly.  [/quote]

Unless you join the US Army, in which case you rappel after about 30 minutes of instruction.

Then again, that's also the place where you low-crawl while they shoot .50 cal bullets over you.

At night.

Dan
 
Re: POV falling off a building

This may be the stupidest suggestion since Eve said "lets have apple pie tonight", but here it goes:

Try attaching the camera to a heavy-duty fishing pole with heavy-duty fishing line. Now, instead of dropping the camera, have the camera already at the bottom and reel it up as fast and smooth as possible, then speed it up in post.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

Not stupid at all. As long as nothing else is in frame to show you've run it backwards...

You'd still nee da belay or two at the bottom to keep the camera from spinning, though.

Dan
 
Re: POV falling off a building

Moonwind, not stupid, that's essentially where my ramblings led, except if it were me I'd rather have a block (pully) and a strong shock absorbent line - just in case.

Dan, first time I went Aussie down the side of a building I got cocky and went to fast, tripped over myself and slammed face first into the side... I preferred doing it off of a helo skid, at least then there wasn't anything to bang into.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

[quote author=MattC link=board=news;num=1108847827;start=15#15 date=02/20/05 at 14:14:56]Dan, first time I went Aussie down the side of a building I got cocky and went to fast, tripped over myself and slammed face first into the side...  I preferred doing it off of a helo skid, at least then there wasn't anything to bang into.[/quote]

Air Assault!   :P

My first ride in a helicopter was after I shot 40/40 on the range.  Special treat.

Yeah, right.

Strapped into a canvas seat, still wearing the rucksack...so I'm pushed out the side door at about a 45 degree angle as we fly over the treetops.

Oh. And the pilot thought it would be fun to overfly the wreckage of a UH-1 in the woods.

"No, thanks.  I think I'll walk back next time."

Dan
 
Re: POV falling off a building

The crazy film-make Stanley Kubrick throw his camera off the building for, i believe, 'a clock work orange'

BTW, i like MoonWind's idea. I would use that
 
Re: POV falling off a building

i would do it by having the talent lay horizontally on his stomach on a stool or something with a fan blowing at him from his feet and have the camera close to his face as hes looking up(not up from his position but up if he were vertically falling) and then dolly away from him. Then take the footage in post and mask it to a 3D building side. Since you dont need the shot to be too wide its not too complicated to create this. the falling away shot can be done in 3D also and no one gets hurt. You can do any many takes as you want and dont need heavy insurance.
 
Re: POV falling off a building

You guys are no fun. I was at a Go Vertical center on Saturday and those guys were really into it, but I don't know where your located.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top