As the sun rose Friday, November 5, Edithouse wrapped on Karlsborg 3D – an adventure film set in the 19th century, and completely shot in 3D. It is one of the first films of its kind made in Sweden. The technology, which one might primarily associate with films such as Avatar and Toy Story 3, is still under development and requires a slightly different approach.
Jan-Olof Fritze, producer at Big 5, came to Edithouse and wanted help with making a thrilling stereoscopic adventure film.
“When we first looked at the project we were a little hesitant,” says Tobias Garsell, director of the project. “In no way because the film itself – to make a movie about stolen gold, and villains and heroes, in a castle environment, is a pure pleasure – but rather because we did a stereoscopic film 5-6 years ago and it wasn’t entirely easy … to say the least. Now we had to make an action-packed adventure film that placed high demands on imagery, pace and mobility. Especially the last bit was a bit of a concern. Fortunately, technology has matured a lot since last time. ”
For the shoot to run smoothly it was essential that the team had full control of the stereo depth right on location, without putting restrictions on mobility. A variety of systems have appeared on market just over the last year. Several solutions were tested and weighted against each other.
“We spent a lot of time in pre-production planning and making sure we had the best technical solution for this very shoot, “Tobias continued. “Working with stereoscopic images involves a whole new way of thinking when making movies. A host of exciting pitfalls. Many of the tricks you rely on in normal cases just do not work anymore. It was back to school again. Then we upped the ante by having darkness, rain, fire, and narrow tunnels. That restricted our options. We were lucky enough to have Geoff Boyle, one of the sharpest minds on stereoscopic film walking this planet, to become interested in the project. He was with us both during the preproduction as well as on set. A vast source of knowledge ”
Logistically it was a big change as well. Malin Alevåg, Project Manager for the film: “One tend to forget that stereoscopic actually means double the number of cameras on set – which in turn means double the size, the necessity for completely identical lenses, customized equipment, and not least double the weight for poor photographer to carry. It also means a larger team to manage everything else. Luckily, we were really prepared and everything went well. Acid test is over, Edit House stands ready to tackle the next 3-D movie. ”
Produced by Edithouse Film Works in february 2011. Commissioned by Big 5.