Brad Pitt’s F1 film will hit Italian theaters only next year, but filming is still underway, and new details are emerging. According to Variety, the production used a special camera to capture the on-track scenes in the best possible way.
Oscar-winning cinematographer Claudio Miranda was responsible for this, working with Sony Electronics to develop a custom high-speed camera capable of filming lead actors Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, and other cast members and stunt drivers on Formula 1 circuits.
The system, called Rialto, had already been used by Miranda in his previous collaboration with Joseph Kosinski, the film Top Gun: Maverick. It is a small mechanism that can be mounted in tight spaces, such as aircraft cockpits, to create the feeling of actually being inside.
To place a camera inside a race car with Brad Pitt, the system had to be even more compact. Miranda told Variety that in Top Gun: Maverick, all the actors except Tom Cruise “weren’t actually flying the plane. In Formula 1, the actors drive the cars. So we needed a camera system small enough to ensure that [Pitt] could drive and see while we got the shots we wanted.”
The special cameras were built and mounted on Mercedes-Benz race cars specifically for the filming—four per car, with remote control for panning and focus. “We spent a lot of time preparing the cars,” Miranda said.
The production received permission to film during Formula 1 race weekends. Between practice sessions, the crew used the empty track for shooting. Among the upcoming locations, the set will be set up in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi.
Source: f1ingenerale
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