BTS: Hunter Douglas Summer Solstice
Hunter Douglas reached out to us in Spring of 2021 with the goal to capture how their window coverings transform and block light in one of the most dramatic locations in the world: Sheldon Chalet.
The concept was to document the endless daylight at the chalet, with the goal of releasing the film on the summer solstice. We needed to shoot as close to the solstice as possible, providing enough time for post-production. We had 3 days on location and the weather needed to cooperate.
Day 1: The team loaded into the helicopter and took off for the chalet. Weather was scattered on arrival, and we were able to start mapping the sunlight in the space as the window coverings were being installed.
Day 2: Weathered in. The entire amphitheater was completely socked in with fog. No flights in or out. With no direct light and no visible mountains, we couldn’t film and the weather did not cooperate. We continued to plan out our execution for the following day, readjusting our approach with one less day of shooting.
Day 3: The last day of shooting. Efficient strategy was critical; prioritizing shooting any direct light on the property. We woke early, in hopes of a clear day. Despite being greeted by a layer of clouds, we set up the first time-lapse and continued to wait patiently. Sometime in mid-morning, the light finally broke through and it was go time. We rolled on four cameras for the full day. Two for time-lapses, which were in constant rotation around the nunatak; one for video and one for stills. We ended the day with 24 time-lapses, hundreds of gigabytes of raw video and approximately 15,000 total images.
One technique that was crucial for the final film, was utilizing a high powered LED light and controlled handheld maneuvers to mimic the sun’s arc. This allowed us to shoot once the clouds rolled back in and direct light faded. Can you spot the artificial shots in the final film?
On arrival back in Talkeetna, we immediately starting processing the footage. We edited all the content within the week and the final film was released as scheduled. Even though our weather window was really small, we got creative and were able to pull this project off.
Working with such a renowned brand, Hunter Douglas, in our backyard was an honor. Huge thanks to Sheldon Chalet for hosting this production. Click here to check out our full Hunter Douglas Summer Solstice portfolio.
