WI LDLI FE | SERENGET I
FOOTAGE FLOOD
Serengeti produced 3500 hours of captured footage. The narrative was built freely from the available material, sometimes substituting one animal for another in the interests of a coherent storyline and occasionally compositing shots (though nothing was ever computer generated). The sheer logistical problem, though, was severe: “Just viewing it would take half a year if you spent all night and all day,” Downer says. “There was a great backup team, which was starting to reduce that down to story elements. [Editors] Stuart Napier and Imogen Pollard had to develop this much more drama-like style, which included subjective viewpoints, and also managed that amazing amount of material.”
COVERAGE The production used up to three crews to ensure continuous coverage over the long shooting period. They were initially camping, but quickly moved to a fixed site for better electrical and internet services. “Sometimes, we had two crews working together and sometimes three crews, so we were able to get multiple perspectives on the same event,” explains Downer. The benefits of multiple cameras for a natural history production are clear, helping to gather complete coverage of an unmissable event in a single take with the world’s least cooperative cast. “There were some people providing an overall wide, then some providing detail, providing ground-level shots and some who could move around among the animals – and we had drones as well,” he adds. Each crew comprised a cameraman and assistant, though, as Downer says, “the assistant was also shooting and there were directors, too. If I was out there, I’d have a camera, so everyone would have different camera system to get different shots. The minimum crewing with a driver is three;
seen something – to get a camera on it and be travelling towards it and still be filming. We missed about 10% of what we saw rather than the other way around. That was really important in terms of capturing the behaviour, because those amazing moments are a flash, and then they’re gone.” It’s no secret that good natural history work can require patience, and Serengeti was shot across almost two years. Downer and his crew made the best use of every available second over those two years. “We filmed every single day we were out there,” he remembers, “otherwise, that’s the day everything happens and you miss it. There’s no point having time off, because everyone wants to be out there. We’re in this business because we love what we do.” An average day, he says, began before first light: “So that’s about quarter to six, generally. We got back after it’s dark, so we were getting back seven or eight. It’s a full African day, plus the darkness either side to get home. The best time for any action is towards sunset or just before dawn – when things start to kick off.”
The best time for any action is towards sunset or just before dawn – when things start to kick off
48 DEF I N I T ION | SEPTEMBER 20 1 9
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