Picture Vehicles & Precision Driving

Overview

Students engaged in Media Assignments or Creative Activities must limit their use of Picture Cars to stationary setups that utilize safer Special Effects, Visual Effects, or Virtual Production techniques unless they are approved by the Risk Management Panel to utilize a moving car process.

There are requests that will be considered too risky for a student production to undertake; thus, students should align their expectations with what is collectively deemed reasonable for their experience level, budget, and the program’s learning outcomes.

The use of any type of motor vehicle for production is not covered by school’s production insurance without obtaining an additional rider and adding the vehicles and drives to policy schedule.

Operating a Picture Car or Insert Camera Car on public roadways without obtaining the proper insurance, filming permits, and, if required, police road closures or escorts is prohibited.

Operating a vehicle while filming on public roadways without a permit is a potential violation of the Florida State Uniform Traffic Control code. This is especially true if the driver is distracted while engaged in a performance, if their view is obstructed by equipment, if equipment is rigged to interior or exterior of the vehicle, or if passengars are not properly belted into seats.

Moving Car Process

Picture Cars

Picture Cars are any motor vehicle, operated by production, that is used in front of camera as part of a scene. They can either be parked as set pieces or be driven by actors and/or stunt drivers during a performance.

Using a personally owned or rented vehicle as a picture car is permissible, but students must be mindful of the inherit risks and liabilities involved. Normal operation of a personal vehicle is covered by a individual auto insurance policy for general use, however, rigging equipment to the inside or outside of their personal vehicle could be considered abnormal operation and outside the scope of their personal auto policy’s coverage.

Students who intend on using Picture Cars in their production must submit an Uninsured Activity Application for review and approval by the Risk Management Panel. Even if it just to get feedback for a non-moving, stationary vehicle to make sure they are filming within safe parameters.

The use of a Picture Car is inherently high-risk and requires that a safety meeting be held on each day of production to go over how the work will be completed safely and to solicit safety concerns from the crew.

Insert Camera Cars

Insert Camera Cars AKA Insert Cars or Camera Cars are any motor vehicle used by production as a moving platform to rig camera or lighting equipment to in order to film Picture Cars, actors, or background plates. Professional platforms, such as the Shotmaker Camera Car, often have exterior seats and safety harness equipped so that crew can safely operate equipment facing backwards while in motion.

It is extremely important to be harnessed when working on an Insert Car as bumps at high speed can easily eject crew members from the vehicle while in motion or throw them in the event of a collision.

Students are NOT permitted to use Insert Car for Precision Driving unless they have been approved to do so by the Risk Management Panel. The use of Insert Cars for Precision Driving must be supervised by staff and can only performed by qualified operators.

Students are permitted to shoot background plates, using their own personal vehicles as a Insert Cars if the driver of the vehicle is not directly involved in the photography and can solely focus on the road. The camera operator must be sitting in a factory seat within the vehicle and buckled in with a factory seat belt. The camera cannot be obstructing the view of the driver and must be handheld by the camera operator who is a passenger.

The use of an Insert Car is inherently high-risk and requires that a safety meeting be held on each day of production to go over how the work will be completed safely and to solicit safety concerns from the crew.

Process Trailers

Process Trailers are traditionally low-profile vehicle transport trailers that Picture Cars are loaded onto and secured. They are typically towed by Insert Cars to simulate driving on actual roadways. The purpose of this is to relocate the responsibility of driving from the actor to the precision driver of the Insert Cars. This also provides additional mounting points to rig camera and lighting equipment around the Picture Car. This enables the Picture Car’s engine to be turned off to to record cleaner sync sound.

The use of Process Trailers is inherently high-risk and requires that a safety meeting be held on each day of production to go over how the work will be completed safely and to solicit safety concerns from the crew.

This activity is NOT covered under our general liability and auto insurance policies. Students are not permitted to use Process Trailers unless they have been approved to do so by the Risk Management Panel.

Precision Driving

Precision Driving is a term that covers a wide variety of driving maneuvers or stunts that are performed for motion picture photography. They include extremely dangerous jumps, sharp turns, and excessive speeds but also provides for any form of proximity driving in relation to camera. Precision Driving must achieve and maintain close distances when being filmed from cameras mounted on Insert Cars moving in parallel or when Picture Cars are driven past stationary cameras stagged in various locations. When Picture Cars drift too far away, they can become too small in the shot (compositionally). If they get too close, they can cause a tragic accident. This is why Precision Driving is done on roadways that have been closed by police or on private tracks and is performed by qualified professionals.

Having actors perform while operating a Picture Car on an active roadway is also considered high-risk, especially if there are cameras and lighting equipment rigged to the inside or outside of the Picture Car. So is using a Insert Car to tow a Picture Car on a Process Trailer.

Precision Driving – of all types – is considered a high-risk activity. The UCF-NSCM Film and Mass Media Program’s insurance policies do not cover Precision Driving. Students who desire to have Precision Driving scenes in their production must submit an Uninsured Activity Application for review and approval by the Risk Management Panel. They will most likely have to purchase additional insurance coverage and hire a professional stunt coordinator.

Rigging to Motor Vehicles

When student productions attach camera and lighting equipment to their Picture Car or Insert Car, they begin to introduce unsafe variables that may not be considered operating under normal conditions by an auto insurance carrier. Rigging equipment heightens risk by obscuring or obstructing the driver’s view, adding potential missiles in or outside the cabin (in the event of a collision), adding protruding objects than can spear occupants or pedestrians, and/or increasing the overall width, length, or height of the vehicle beyond safe or legal limits.

Because of this, students who rig equipment to their own or rented vehicles run the risk of operating outside of what is covered by their own comprehensive, collision, and liability insurance policies. Precision Driving activities, Picture Cars, Inert Cars, and all other production vehicles and are also not covered under the program’s base general liability or UCF’s auto insurance policies.

Students are not permitted to rig equipment to the inside or outside of Picture Cars, Insert Cars, or any motor vehicle unless they submit an Uninsured Activity Application and receive approval from the Risk Management Panel. They will most likely have to purchase an additional insurance rider and have their rigging supervised by qualified staff.

Alternative, Non-Moving Methods

SFX Poor Man’s Process

The Poor Man’s Process is a widely used, filmmaking technique to simulate driving. This is accomplished by using various, in-camera lighting techniques on a stationary vehicle such as overhead street lights, on-coming head lights, and other moving light gags.

While typically done within the black void of a sound stage, this can also be accomplished in private parking lots or driveways that have relatively dark environments around them. Camera movement and sound design also signficiantly helps to sell this filmmaking technique.

Why typically used for night time, scenes taking place during daylight can also be accomplished using skyblue backdrops or just keeping background elements out-of-focus and minimally framed.

The primary benefit to this process is the ability to control the enviroment for sync sound recording, makes for easier reset and continues takes, and is overall a much safer approach for productions with limited budgets and experience.

Demonstration Video

Visaul Effects Using Chroma Key Compositing

Using green or blue screens to replace backgrounds is also a common visual effects technique. This is often setup in the black void and control of a sound stage, but can also be staged in private parkings lots or driveways.

The technique requires filmming plates of the background of each scene in advance and then matching the lighting to correspond with each plate. Visual effects applications such as Adobe After Effects is used to composite the background plates into each shot and to remove and add any artifacts to help sell that the car is moving.

Demostration Video