American Cinematographer - February 1995 - 29

Filming the tram
sequence, 300
feet above a

churning
waterfall. In
bottom photo,

cinematographer
David Geddes,
CSC focuses
upon actor
Michael

O'Keefe, who
was

attached to

the tram with

hidden

body

harness.

GBKADZereeaalodnvwvuinnks,

byPhots
ing
era

The next step was devis¬
a system for hanging the cam¬
from the second set of rails.

system allowed such a free-moving
camera that 90
percent of the bus
interior could be

Brinson

tem;

suggested the bungee sys¬
not only would this give the

camera

the freedom to

move

Kodak's 5298 stock. The

use

eraman,

moun¬

tain road.

cam¬

who says he grew up with

Kodak and

"We built

a

always uses it, had
nothing but praise for the new film

supporting

frame around the camera," ex¬

stock.
"98 is

plains Geddes, "and then found
the balance point on the frame. We
put an eyebolt in there and hung
the bungee cord from it. We ma¬

lution. The

camera

with his hands,
bus

as

it snaked its way

mountain

down the

road, constantly passing

in and out of

for the first assistant

to

stand, so a wireless remote fo¬
cusing system was fitted onto the

balance that would look natural
and how to make it appear that the

lens. First assistant Tim Spencer
would stand in either the front or

light was always streaming in from
the outside. The grips built a roof
rack on the top of the bus, with
tubes extending out from each side,
upon which lights could be hung.
Keeping the lights out of the shot
proved tricky because the bungee

the back of the bus and focus while
over

the backs of

every¬

body and trying to judge the dis¬
tance from the actors to the

camera.

Lighting the interior of the

finer-grain

higher resolution gives
and underexpo¬

latitude; that is, you can over¬
expose it or underexpose it and still
have detail. In fact, I overexposed
it more than I would most film
stocks because I knew I would still
have details in the overexposure.
When we got into the dark areas -
sure

sunlight, brought an¬
ticipated problems: how to set a

was no room

much

you greater over-

kept hanging it until we got it."
Operator John Clothier
maneuvering it at will, but the
bungee carried the weight of the
Panaflex. Because of the very lim¬
ited space in the bus aisle, there

a

stock, which gives you more reso¬

neuvered the frame until we found
the neutral balance point. We just

looking

given

lighting situation, Geddes opted to

shocks

cradled the

at any

Given the location and the

in all

directions, but it would also absorb

along the twisting

seen

time.

February 1995

driving through heavier wooded
areas

of the road

-

we'd still have

enough exposure."
To give himself even more
freedom, Geddes overexposed the
film one stop, then told the lab to
pull it in the processing. "I can go
from huge sunlit areas into abso¬
lutely no sunlight whatsoever and
still be able to maintain

good image

quality."
Not

American

even

the 98 could

Cinematographer

help

27

a
American Cinematographer - February 1995

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