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The making of Cane Toads: The Conquest became a giant, 22 week road trip
across Australia, following the path of the toad across four different states, from
the damp rainforests of Northern Queensland to the arid outback of Western
Australia.
It was the first 3D digital production
ever shot in Australia, which meant
the crew had to invent as they filmed,
forging unique equipment and
solutions that would work in the
country’s extreme environments
along the way, while capturing
everything from macro close-ups
to grand vistas in glorious 3D.
The complexity of each camera setup was multiplied by the need to consider and
apply every facet of 3D technology: inter-axial distances, convergence ratios and
differences between the left and right eye cameras.
Our solution comprised two pairs of high-resolution digital cameras set in two 3D
mirror rigs: one for interviews and wide vistas, and the other for close toad and
macro setups. Each set of cameras was tethered to a custom built recording deck.
Two computers allowed complete software control of the individual cameras, shutter
speeds, frame rates, live 'looks', and playback preview. The computers provided live
feed to a custom designed real-time 3D preview monitor.
Images were recorded
down to separate hard disk drives for each eye, in the cameras' native RAW format.
Hard drives were sent back to the production office from location where they were
backed up to a RAID system connected to an edit-station and custom render
station for editing and preview.