Baker Smith shoots challenging TV advert in Malta

September 13, 2010

The PCP has just completed filming of a challenging TV advert for a French mobile phone company with shooting taking place both out at sea off Malta and also at the Rinella water tank. 

The 75-strong crew consisted mainly of Maltese, French and Americans under the direction of famed commercial director Baker Smith. Mr Smith has twice been nominated by the Directors' Guild of America for Outstanding Directorial Acheivement.

In the shooting at sea involving a dramatization of a helicopter rescue, two helicopters were used for air-to-air filming in order to create a Hollywood-style look in the advert. The helicopters took off at various intervals from a specially-prepared Kalkara base to film the sequence, deemed as complicated, that involved an actress in the water one mile off the coast of Xghajra. Some underwater shooting was also done at sea.

The day after, filming took place in the shallow water tank at Rinella to get closer shots in a more practical manner, using the natural horizon of the tank as an illusion for the open sea.

Mr. Smith praised the PCP team for their hard work, adding words of praise for the concept behind the Rinella tank, saying filming in it "is a million times better than filming out at sea".

Line Producer Malcolm Scerri-Ferrante thanked the Air Wing of the Armed Forces of Malta for providing a helicopter expert to take part in the commercial and also rescue swimmers for safety. He also thanked the Civil Aviation Directorate and the maritime section of Transport Malta for their cooperation.

This is the second largest TV advert shot in Malta and attracted by the PCP, with the first being the Bacardi "Island" advert that was broadcast worldwide. Statistically, the productions were the largest of their kind in almost two decades.

The global recession led to advertising budgets worldwide being cut and this, coupled with the popularity of the internet, led to the global decline in TV advert productions.

Like many countries, Malta's film servicing industry experienced a drop in foreign TV commercials being filmed here. The filmmakers of the recent large adverts both sought special effects in the water, proving the important role the Rinella water tanks play in this industry despite other tanks being constructed around the world. The competitive rates of Maltese crews also played an important part in securing these productions, for which several other countries often bid, the Producer's Creative Partnership said.

 

Film production service providers resolve to keep Malta competitive

September 1, 2010

The leading film production service providers in Malta, including the Producer's Creative Partnership, have decided to form an association later this year to discuss ways of keeping the islands competitive and advise the government on how to make its institutions and policies more production-friendly.

The film servicing industry is going through its busiest times with several productions preparing or filming at the same time, a spokesman for the PCP said. The "peak" expected to be reached at the end of this month and throughout October would be the busiest ever in the history of the Maltese film servicing industry, the spokesman added.

Use of local crews was at its maximum and foreign productions were already having a difficult time crewing up locally, hence being forced to bring in more foreigners than usual, the spokesman noted. The increased demand for local crew and the serious lack of supply was beginning to affect the market rates of local crew salaries.

 

Discovery Channel chooses Malta for its popular episodes of "I Shouldn't be Alive"

July 28, 2010

The PCP has recently completed filming two entire episodes of the dramatic TV series "I Shouldn't Be Alive".  Produced by Darlow Smithson under the helm of series producer Josh Wilkins and directed by Russel Eatough, the episodes were filmed at various coastal and cliff locations on the island of Malta. 

The series is a high-quality docudrama series about survival stories where human endurance is tested to the extreme limits. The series is watched by millions worldwide and is considered a flagship series for The Discovery Channel and The Animal Planet.

Most of the locations were difficult to access without boats. With filming taking place mostly at night this presented a challenging feat for the tight budget series. Filming also took place extensively in the Rinella water tank where a wreck of a yacht was rigged to simulate it sinking in the middle of a storm whilst a survivor manages to save himself with a liferaft.

Over eighty per cent of the crew were Maltese, holding key positions such as Prosthetics Make Up Artist, Costume Designer, Key Grip, Soundman and 1st Assistant Cameraman etc.

Following the shoot Mr Wilkins wrote to the PCP saying: "Thank you so much for all your hard work on this project. I know that our challenging budget has always meant that things have never been easy but I'm incredibly grateful for your 'can-do' attitude and your ability to put together such a successful and hard working Maltese team. The results have been fantastic and I know that our director Russell is as incredibly pleased with what we've achieved as I am. Its been a pleasure working with you."

The series was originally to be shot in the Canary Islands until it was lured over to Malta by the PCP which received assistance from the Maltese government through its established financial incentives.