Filming Inside of a Car

N

Neeklus

Hi there,

I'm making a short film where a large part of the dialogue will be spoken in a moving car. Two actors will be in the shot (front seats). I'm wondering how I could best get steady shots of both actors, including profile shots (the driver should be easy - the passenger not so much), and front shots.

Additionally, I'm wondering if there are any rentable car-dollies of any specification - basically like the ones seen in Hollywood where the car is towed by the camera car. Bear in mind I'm from the UK and resources are certainly not infinite. Ultimately I want the actors to concentrate on the scene, and not causing an accident.

Thanks for reading.
 
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Welcome to indietalk!

There are several possibilities. There are rentable car dollies
and there are rentable rigs that attach to the car. “from the UK”
is a big place. I’m sure there are grip and camera rental houses
in London and some of the bigger cities - the UK folks will chime
in on specifics.

After a quick on line search I found a few you can start with.
http://www.griptech.tv/
http://www.independentgrip.co.uk/
http://www.camerarevolution.com/

A nice discussion about lighting in a car.
http://www.indietalk.com/showthread.php?t=22187

This thread is older, but some excellent info and more to your
specific needs.
http://www.indietalk.com/showthread.php?t=15315
 
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We're doing some in-car stuff for our upcoming movie - we've kindly been offered the use of a vintage Rolls Royce but rather than take it out on the road, we'll be setting up a green screen and shooting it stationary - moving backgrounds and the door glass will be added in post.
 
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Another way you could do this, is to get some trees/street signs/background stuff on a dolly and wheel the trees past the car. Old school trick : )

Make sure you move the camera a little so it doesn't look too much like the car is sitting still.
 
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The ultra low-budget method: Duct-tape your
camera to your side-view mirror. I know, it's a
scary thought, but I've done it many times, with
no disasters. Obviously, you'll want to be really
careful, and duct-tape the shit out of it. I've done
this with a T2i and a Sony VX2100 -- it was actually
easier with the larger camera, as I could put the
back-end on the mirror, tape the crap out of it, then
placed the front-end on the car's "window-sill", if you
can call it that. The T2i setup was a little more harry, so
I really went to town with the duct tape. Don't forget,
though -- duct-tape leaves a residue, so you'll probably
want to put a protective barrier in between the camera
and the tape. Also, I find that a towel, in between the
camera and the car, is necessary to be able to position it
the way you want it.
 
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gooberman said:
Im not sure if i trust suction cups that much. Hook pile tape is the way to go.
Click to expand...

The suction cups on the sticky-pod are super-strong. Only way they don't work is if you don't use them right. Problem is, like I said, it's not as steady a shot as the duct-tape on side-view mirror method. I think sticky-pod is good for car-chases, and stuff, or any time when you need to put a camera somewhere other than pointing directly at the passenger and driver.
 
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NathanH said:
Good example of green screen done well, i think this will be the method i use.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9CBxAs4Osc&feature=related
Click to expand...

No disrespect, brother, but I gotta respectfully disagree. Green screen car shots look fake and cheesy. I don't think I've ever seen one that is even slightly convincing (including the one you linked). You can't beat the authenticity of an actual car-ride. I'm not saying you have to use my duct-tape method (which is what I used in this short), but I do think you need to be shooting in an actual moving car, on real streets. Your audience will know the difference, and you will pull them out of the moment, if you fake it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zMyrUMVUUw
 
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ROC said:
No prob! The other day I found an article on how to record inside a car - I think I can find it if you want me to show you.
Click to expand...

I appreciate the offer, but I won't be doing any shooting anywhere, for many months. I'll hit you up for a link, if and when I need it. Neeklus and NathanH might wanna see it, though.

Cheers!
 
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