In a new weekly feature on the Demand Studios blog, members of the video team will be profiling the work of our talented Demand Studios filmmakers.  This week's edition comes all the way from Nashville, as Dimitri LaBarge discusses producing for DS and some of the challenges he faced on a recent indoor swimming shoot.  Click the still image below to check out his video on Competitive Swimming Techniques and then read his interview for a behind-the-scenes look at the production.


How long have you been a DS filmmaker? I have been shooting videos for DS since November 2007.

What is your favorite part of the production process, and why? My answer to that completely varies on different days. There are days when I love the shoot the most, when I'm working with an expert who doesn't need as much basic coaching for on-camera presence, and is instead a true collaborator, making the video come to life. I once worked with a local TV weatherman who had extreme confidence on camera, and opened the topic up to camera moves, walk-and-talks, and other techniques that aren't usually available in my expert's toolbox.

On the other hand, there are some evenings when I come home and I have an enormous amount of footage, and I lose myself in a sort of puzzle, which is finding the narrative within tons of sometimes very disconnected footage. When I manage to produce a unified, consistent video, that can be the single most satisfying moment of this work.

What challenges did you face shooting at an indoor pool and how did you work around them? The biggest consideration when shooting in an indoor pool is the ridiculous amount of noise echoing around the structure. We considered using my Sennheiser boom mics so we would have flexibility, but they simply picked up too much ambient noise for clear audio. Using my highly directional Sennheiser lav mics mitigated that issue for the most part.

Another issue was determining what we could demonstrate in the water. Showing moves out of the water lacked authenticity; but it would be hard to show clear demonstrations when the expert was submerged. I decided to shoot both ways, so I could have above-water demonstrations showing specific detail as needed, then shot b-roll so viewers could see what those exercises looked like in the pool.

A final issue was the matter of light. I always have at least a Lowel Rifa-Lite handy for indoor lighting situations, and also a Tota-Omni kit for more complex setups. The indoor pool, however, had several big negatives. It was an area with large dark areas that needed some decent fill lighting to be usable; however, the pool area was soaked enough - and conducive to splashes - that I worried about introducing electricity to the situation. The approach I took was to use the best-lit part of the area, which had decent overhead lighting, and then used my standard LitePanels Mini LED light mounted on-camera, just to provide some low-level fill of my expert's face. 

What methods did you use to secure this expert?  This was as basic as it gets. I had originally needed a triathlon expert on another set of videos, and I had no contacts in this subject. I googled for triathlon and fitness experts in the city, and my expert's name came up near the top of the list. I sent him an e-mail through his website, and he responded almost immediately. (This is a good example of trying to find an expert who is good at more than one thing. By finding a great triathlon expert, I also now had an expert for future running, biking, and swimming topics.)

What equipment did you use for this shoot? I used my trusty Canon XL-H1 camera, Sennheiser G2 series wireless lav system, Libec LS-55 tripod, and a LitePanels Mini LED light, mounted in Canon's hot shoe.

What attracts you to filmmaking? I love storytelling. Whether it's writing screenplays or capturing someone's expertise on video, I love communicating a central idea and developing the narrative spine of a fictional or non-fictional project.

Dimiti LaBarge is a Nashville, TN based filmmaker who specializes in instructional, wedding and commercial work.  In addition to being a full-time filmmaker, he also moonlights as a freelance film poster designer.

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