Yesterday it was Lost City Raiders and Free Willy 4, today it’s Invictus and tomorrow Dark Tide. The days of weekend warriors (a general person who has desk job but owns a boat, platform, boogie board or bubble maker not intended for film use and support, but brought in for the day) are over.

Before, producers had the undesirable job of making a plan when filming on water. Their insurers wanted coverage, their crew needed support, and their artists required protection, all from a line item that did not exist. Today life is different in the South African film industry, with a variety of options for producers to call on. These film professionals dedicate their lives to offering film-friendly solutions to any water or marine environment.

South Africa has some of the most beautiful coastlines and waterways in the world. These waterways give filmmakers the opportunity to cheat locations around the world, be it the Canadian lakes of Lourensford or Elgin, the arid Mediterranean  of Yzerfontein, or the warmer Caribbean waters of Langebaan.

The demographics of the country allow The Wild Coast to becomepretty much any under-developed sub-tropical region, while the seaside shores of Knysna, Port Alfred and Scottburgh could be any small American or European town. Coupled with these locations, we now have professionals who make filming on water a new experience.

In the past we needed grips or gaffers to make a plan and build camera or lighting platforms out of pipe and clamp for the reverse shot on dams and lakes. We used jonesy decks thrown in the mud, making walkways to get cranes shots or tracking shots on water. Now we have professionals who specialise in this type of work, who are geared up for any creative permutation.

Every water job is different. Producers now have the confidence that these challenges can be met.

While on set with Two Oceans Productions shooting Laconia, The Frog Squad Marine crew had the amazing opportunity of having to move and manipulate a 65m steel submarine prop. Not only did the submarine need to look real, we had to have seven lifeboats towed behind her, with 215 extras onboard the flotilla, excluding the shooting crew. The challenges were many, from weather planning to open sea access, aerial synchronisation, crew and cast safety, watering and feeding, not to mention the hundreds of bathroom ferries. We used an offshore tugboat to tow the submarine; two passenger carriers for all the extras; 12 inflatable 8m support boats; a 45ft camera boat with crane arm; two jetskis; and a safety crew of 31 water-borne professionals. In three weeks on the open ocean, there were zero incidents or injury.

On other jobs, it’s been a case of logistics; needing power on set; or toilets for the crew, where there is no road access. (It takes a special crew to satisfy Media Films Services’ criteria when floating one of their 100 KVA Generators). Other duties include building a platform to carry a 40ft scissor lift, allowing the DOP to light from the water, no easy feat in the Natal Midlands while filming Primeval with Ed Pei as your DOP.

Transport is a big part of the job, helping the unit crew to facilitate the shoot or doing water safety for the stunt teams that we are so proud of.

Camera support is the most important service that is on offer. While shooting Last House on the Left with Film Afrika, the director wanted to track from land onto the water for the one chase scene. Together with the grip Greg Cameron, we offered up a platform capable of supporting a Techno 50, as well as all the sound and technical crew. Today we have a 10m x 6m fold-out barge, developed for the film industry by the film industry, that is capable of carrying said techno crane on any dam or water way in South Africa.

Our film industry also boasts some of the best divers in the business, the likes of which Greg Gray took to Egypt for his award-winning BMW Efficient dynamics spot, or which Luke Cresswell, director of Wild Ocean and GW3D, took all over Africa to overlook the 3D Imax camera safety. These divers are all commercially qualified divers, but instead of working offshore, they specialise in underwater film support. The gear is state-of-the-art and includes underwater communications, both wireless and hardwire; Lubell high volume underwater speakers for cast synchronisation; and rebreathers, underwater scooters and any other rig you might think up.

When filming on water, the backbone of your shoot should be a good marine crew. We hope to offer water-based facilities that mirror those of Pinewood Studios in the UK or the horizon tank in Malta, but for now we have unparalleled coastlines and exquisite backdrops and the support of professionals to film them.
Jason Martin
Frog Squad