DEFINITION March 2020

DRAMA | THE AERONAUTS

UP, UP AND AWAY How 8K shooting made all the difference in this retelling of Victorian aerial pioneers

WORDS JULI AN M ITCHELL / PICTURES AMAZON V I DEO A t BSC Expo 2020, cinematographer George Steel, colourist Simone Grattarola and post-production supervisor Miranda Jones were part of a discussion about the production of The Aeronauts, which was based on

meteorologist’s James Glaisher’s 1862 ascent with balloonist Henry Coxwell to a record altitude of 37,000 feet. With actors Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones on board and Amazon Studios backing the release, the challenge that faced director, Tom Harper, and George Steel was authenticity. VFX would of course play a vital role in the world creation, but to bring a huge and detailed vista to the aerial shots – which made up 20% of the finished aerials – the Red Monstro 8K camera was used. Incidentally, the 8K also helped the Imax deliverable that was decided on in the middle of production. IN-CAMERA SHOOTING As mentioned, Harper was determined not to create a fantasy world, but to make the story as true to life as possible. “This was because the script grounded the story in the context of its period setting (late 19th- century London), but we also needed to sell the VFX, make it believable,” Steel explains.

From that tonal conceit stemmed a decision to shoot as much practically in-camera as they could. Steel tested combinations of cameras and lenses to gauge look design, as well as camera movement while flying in a hot air balloon high across the Oxfordshire countryside. “The odd thing about being in a wicker basket 3000 feet in the air is that there is so little movement,” Steel reveals. “The feeling was incredibly smooth and when

The flashbacks used Black Frost filters, but as they rise, we start pulling out diffusion and lessening it

28 DEF I N I T ION | MARCH 2020

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