Filming Where the Air is Thin (But the Logistics are Solid).
It’s easy to be a producer in a 5-star hotel lobby. It’s harder when you are at 4,500 meters in the Himalayas, the air is only 11% oxygen, and you have a ton of 4K camera gear to move before sunset.
Discovery Channel tasked us with the India episode of First Man Out. This wasn't a standard doc; it was the first survival show shot entirely in 4K.
The Challenge:
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Altitude: Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) is a production killer. We implemented strict acclimatization protocols and carried Gamow bags (hyperbaric chambers). Our dedicated team of Ex-SAS servicemen kept a close eye on Health & Safety.
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Power: Two units. No grid. We hauled two 65kg generators plus fuel to unit base on foot. These ran 24 hours a day in relay to charge camera batts and run DIT and Edit stations deep in the mountains. We then had porters working in teams to ferry batts and cards up and down from unit base to the two film units at higher altitude and kept the shoot running seamlessly.
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Terrain: We used mules, a small army of porters, and sheer willpower to get the unit into locations that vehicles couldn't touch.
If I can manage a shoot here, I can manage your shoot anywhere.
View full cast and crew for Ed Stafford: First Man Out on IMDb