American Cinematographer - February 1995 - 57

veteran rafter and

kayaker, had
previously supervised whitewater
and safety support on A River Runs
Through It.
Wasson's group helped
the crew make pontoon rafts, 4' X
8' platforms with wire mesh decks.
These rafts, which essentially func¬
tioned like camera cars powered by
outboard motors, could be lashed

together and used to haul the
and

gear
Outfitted with spe¬
designed struts on which to

cameras.

cially

the resulting cam¬
barge, with its key lights, cam¬
eras, C-stands and day-glo life jack¬
mount cameras,

era

ets, floated downriver.
But each float had its

own

set of

can't

escape."
Mike Hoover, one

river unit's

cameramen

of the
and

a

world-renowned mountain climb¬

responsible for getting

er, was

crucial whitewater

scene

a

in which

the characters tackle difficult rap¬
by dangling from a cable over
the river
a
technique that be¬
came known as "the Hoover
ids

-

Dangle." "In climbing movies,
the risk is evident," says Hoover.
"Everyone knows you could fall.
It's our job to reveal not only the
river's beauty, but its potential
danger and its power. The best
way to do that is be as close to the
water as possible."
Not everyone wanted to

problems. At times, the
strength of the water exceeded the
power of the outboard motors.

be that close to the water. B-camera

"We needed smooth water to shoot

fered

float scenes, and

dialogue was im¬
possible," says Elswit, who admits
that most of the film was looped.
"We'd bang apart. We needed slow
water, and

even

flat water moved

quickly. The river unit people were
trying to control the direction so
we

wouldn't wash ashore. Some¬

times it had the

feeling of

a

wild

nightmare."
Underwater

cabling con¬
by rigger Michael Weiss
and his team kept the talent and
crew safe
despite the proximity of
rapids and falls. "We'd shoot the
actors approaching the dangerous
areas, but they couldn't get too
close," says Elswit. When a raft
went through the rapids, two rafts
were set
up for the scene. A grip
raft rigged with a waterproofed
structed

video assist wired to the camera
recorded the action, allowing
Hanson and Elswit to see Streep
going through the rapids. "We did
as much as we could to keep the
stars from any real danger. When
we shot a
close-up in the raft
through whitewater, there were
people in kayaks behind or ahead
in case anyone fell out, which did
happen."
Even with raft control and

operator Kim Marks nearly suf¬
an accident while shooting
platform built over the river to
get shots over rough, unraftable
water. The platform Marks stood
on
collapsed over a major "hole," a
deadly part of the river. Fortu¬
nately, Marks was harnessed, and
merely wound up dangling before
being helped back to shore. "It was
like going to Outward Bound
camp," Elswit observes.
Despite the realistic foot¬
age, the cast did not do their own
stunts, and experts always took
over in the
danger zones. "It be¬
on a

came

first unit-second unit

a

thing," Elswit explains. "Stunt
people always went over the lips of
drops." At the most dangerous
points, when not even a stunt per¬
son could
navigate a fall, helicop¬
ters pulled stuntpeople out of rafts
in

harnesses, and the wires

were

digitally removed.
There

were some

minor

accidents, visible in dailies, that
Elswit says "ended up enhancing
the film." During one scene in
which Streep's character navigates
Bacon and

rapids,

an

Reilly through heavy
oar was sucked into the

whitewater. When it surfaced, it
slammed Reilly's stunt double in

the throat. That incident

inspired

safety kayaks, rafts could only go a

Hanson to work

certain distance before getting too
close to big rapids or falls. The river

Bacon's character falls from the

can

push the raft under falls and

hold it down, making it impossible
for the person in the boat to get to
the surface. "It's called the 'Maytag

The
boat

was

a scene

scene

also

a

around it.

in which Kevin

real accident that

occurred before the

scene was

writ¬

ten. When Bacon's stunt double

effect,"' says Elswit. "The force of
the water holds you

film.

so you

stamps out
rock and roll.
When you're ready to roll, the

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Tripod delivers rock-solid sup¬
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It weighs in at 11 lbs. But it's
no lightweight. It holds cam¬
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with a Bogen 3066 Cine Video
Fluid Head. And greater weights
when fitted with other heads.
There's more. A 100mm di¬
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took the

fall, Hanson decided to
incorporate the moment into the

under

The Bogen
Professional
Cine/Video
3191 Tripod

Says Elswit, "It looked really

bogen

sell anything
wouldn't buy ourselves.

We don't

we

February 1995
American Cinematographer - February 1995

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