Hollywood Stakeholders Organizing to Support Drones in Film Production
Will the FAA drive studios to cross the border whenever they need aerial shots?
Hollywood’s aerial filmmaking community is organizing under the newly named Society of Aerial Cinematographers, which kicked off with an education and training event Saturday, held by camera gear provider and training facility AbelCine in Burbank.
Prompted by the growing interest in attaching cameras to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)—also referred to as drones—the new group was initiated by aerial cinematography enthusiast Robert Rodriguez, who is also director of technical operations for Technicolor Creative Services.
Opening Saturday’s program - attended by an estimated 100 people, many of whom were pilots - Rodriguez urged participants to learn about and get involved in issues surrounding drones for production, which he believes might be “at risk.” He noted that the U.S. “is the only country” where UAVs for production are regulated. “This makes it difficult for people to market themselves as aerial cinematographers,” he said, adding that with tax incentives already driving work out of the country “we don’t need another piece to go.”
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