“Underbelly: Squizzy” is the latest in the long-running and hugely successful Underbelly series, produced by Screentime for the Nine Network, with camera rental and support provided by the Melbourne Lemac Rentals team.
Set between 1915 and 1927, the series tells the story of Joseph Theodore Leslie Taylor, known to all as “Squizzy,” the vertically-challenged crime tsar whose ego and ambition knew no boundaries.
DOP John Brawley selected the Red Epic camera package for the shoot, based on the camera’s versatility as a compact, lightweight, high resolution / variable resolution and high frame rate-capable camera. Many scenes make use of slow motion effects captured in-camera at up to 300 frames per second. The camera’s small size also allowed the crew to place a stripped down camera in small environments where space would not permit the use of other camera systems.
Lemac’s Epic production package also included the new Red Pro In/Out modules, allowing for the all-important 2nd LCD output (running Red OLED viewfinder and LCD monitor simultaneously) plus solid and convenient audio, power and video input and output.
Also provided in the package was the Swiss-made Action Products module, offering additional power and HD-SDI distribution. This item in particular was a huge bonus for the crew’s Steadicam set-up: providing additional functionality in a small package that also worked well as counterweight on the rig.
The Squizzy camera crew were very happy with how their Epics handled and the support provided by the Lemac team during that production – so much so, that John Brawley chose to roll the camera crew and rental package over with just days to turn-around onto Series 4 of Offspring, currently in production in Melbourne.
Other productions recently shot on Lemac gear include: "A Place to Call Home" and "Reef Doctors"