South Africans learn from Hollywood Steadicam inventor

L to R: Georgia Court, Naguib Fredericks, Siyabonga Jim and Ben Richardson

click to enlarge

DNA Films' Andrew Macdonald, who produced Dredd, said, "We had a great time shooting in South Africa, so we were looking for something to give back."

The film, shot in Cape Town and Johannesburg at the end of 2010, had already trained a significant number of South Africans through the skills transfer inherent in being Cape Town Film Studios' first-ever production and South Africa's largest 3D production. It also trained learners from The Film Industry Learner Mentorship Programme (F.I.L.M.) and The Cape Film Commission.

Kalahari Pictures' Michael Murphey suggested the Steadicam training to Macdonald after being approached by Jim, an upcoming cinematographer who shot the 2012 DSTV short film winner iBhayibhile (The Bible). Jim had started corresponding with Brown after struggling to find Steadicam training opportunities in South Africa or affordable courses overseas.

Scholarship offers

Brown offered scholarships to Jim and two other South Africans for a weeklong intensive course he was running for upcoming DOP Ben Richardson, who had just won Best Cinematography at Sundance for Beasts of the Southern Wild, which also won the Grand Jury Prize. Chris Fawcett, an Irish Steadicam operator living in Amsterdam, volunteered as an additional instructor for the week.

Brown was the Steadicam operator on nearly 100 films, including Rocky, The Shining and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. He calls being a Steadicam operator "one of the best jobs in the business" and now runs workshops across five continents, with an impressive list of past pupils that includes Oscar winners such as Anthony Dod Mantle, who shot Dredd.

Expat South Africans such as Chris Haarhoff (Fight Club, Bridesmaids) and Andrew Rowlands (Gangs of New York, The Fighter) are reportedly among the best Steadicam operators in America, but there's a shortage locally.

"The handful we have are all white and male," says Murphey, "so it's great that we could send three talented and deserving South Africans. It should change their role in the South African film industry and change the South African film industry."

Hands-on training

Before the trip, the three were given copies of The Steadicam Operator's Handbook, written by Jerry Holway, but the actual training at Brown's farm outside Philadelphia was hands-on rather than just theoretical. "It was almost 24/7," he says. "They expended an awful lot of energy here."

Brown was impressed with his first intake. "This was the best workshop of all. I ended up liking them a lot. They are all deadly serious about their craft, quite adventurous and physically skilful, with strong ideas about movies. Learning to play this instrument is a lifelong task - I'm still learning - but these guys got very close even in one week. They're off to a great start."

Dredd, Kalahari Pictures and Brown have worked together to make a Steadicam rig available to the three students now that they are back in South Africa.

Dredd will be released worldwide on 21 September 2012.