Berkeley Group: Behind The Scenes

Overview

Working with Matt Livey our brief was to create a short inspirational promotional video that showcased a small part of the incredibly diverse portfolio of properties built by the Berkeley Group.

Properties covered:

  • Roehampton House
  • Student Castle, Aldgate
  • Imperial Wharf
  • Edenbrook, Fleet
  • Kingshill Meadow, Cirencester
  • Riverlight, Vauxhall
  • Woodbury Down, Finsbury Park
  • Royal Arsenal Riverside, Woolwich

With a production turn around time of just three weeks we had a lot of properties to cover and many miles on the clock to rack up! One of the most exciting shoot days was at the construction site at Riverlight in Vauxhall. The aim here was to grab fast paced footage of the building work for the second half of the video. Swinging around over London in a 'man cage' attached to a crane was certainly a highlight of the day. It's safe to say I no longer have a fear of heights.

Filming during the construction at Riverlight, Vauxhall


Aerial Videography

Using aerial drone footage was really important in this project to get across the shear scale of some of the locations. Five locations were chosen for the drone treatment. Edenbrook, Kingshill Meadow, Woodbury Down, Roehampton House and Royal Arsenal Riverside. 

Random

A little bit improvisation goes along way.

 

 


Production Technicals

We chose to shoot this entirely on DSLR's for a small footprint, using multiple 5D Mkiii's with various rigs and contraptions. The Edelkrone pocket slider was as useful as ever as well as Matts jib arm. Lighting, a combination of redheads and LED's depending on the scenario. A small Marshall monitor on hand for the tricky birds-eye view shots. We were often up against the clock on most days so since teh team was most comfortable on the mk3 we rolled with those.

Music would be a key element to the film, and after a few tests we settled on two final tracks found through The Music Bed. From there a small bit of foley was added in post to highlight some key scenes and to add a new dimension to the visuals. 

Post workflow

It's these kind of projects that I feel FCPX comes into it's own. Fast capturing and keywording clips to your hearts content means your straight down to editing. 


BEHIND THE SCENES VIDEO

A quick montage of some behind the scenes footage, shot on DSLR and iPhone. I never really had a 'BTS' in mind when shooting this, so hopefully future ones with be a little bit more informative! But for now, queue montage, in 3, 2, 1...


Final VIDEO

Virgin Limited Edition: Kensington Roof Gardens

Project 1 OVERVIEW: A Special Day at the roof gardens

The Kensington Roof Gardens come under the control of Virgin Limited Edition, which is part of the luxury portfolio of the Virgin Hotel Group. Working closely with the team at RG our brief was to create a promotional video showcasing the many uses of the Roof Gardens property in the theme of a 'Day In The Life'.

Background:

Located 100 ft above Kensington High Street, in London, The Roof Gardens hosts events for up to 500 guests; a Private Members Club open Friday and Saturday nights and Babylon restaurant seating 120 guests. All nestled amongst one and a half acres of stunning gardens with natural wildlife and real live flamingos and where guests enjoy breathtaking views of London's skyline!!. 

Not only the unique architecture and beautiful gardens but the staff, the kitchens and the sheer variety that can be hosted. 

Restaurant, club, cinema room and of course the gardens themselves.

 
 

FINAL VIDEO


Project 2 OVERVIEW: One day event

Back at the Roof Gardens once again, and this time for a special one off event. 

Reinforcing its reputation as one of the most cutting edge clubs in London, this year The Roof Gardens launched its first ever day club "ONE DAY". With top DJs Benny Blanco, James Levey and Kate Elsworth, beautiful gardens and delicious cocktails. Myself and the team were once again on hand to film the action!

Final video