With Insta360 X5 set to make its Hollywood debut in upcoming movie How to Rob a Bank, it's clear that 360 cameras are finding their place across all kinds of productions, from major films to documentaries around the world.
We asked James Dann, founder of New Take Films and the filmmaker behind our recent Anthony Radetic video, to share some of the adventures, challenges and unexpected moments that come with life behind the camera, and how he thinks 360 technology is changing the way stories are captured.
Take it away, James.
"Ah! So you are the boy on the suicide mission?”
I looked around the room, I think he’s talking to me.
Sometimes you start your day in a café on the outskirts of Shropshire, sometimes you’re loading a van with equipment, and sometimes you’re in a heavily fortified compound in Lahore, Pakistan, filming a covert documentary on the persecution of minorities.
More often than not, I find myself in the third scenario.
I’ve been doing this job for 15 years now, and I can safely say the undisputed scientific recipe for filmmaking is:
- 40% networking (meeting, schmoozing, getting work, making friends)
- 50% group therapy (the sound operator always has a lot of issues)
- 8% strategic luggage packing (it DOES fit under my seat!)
- And a generous 2% pressing record on the camera (make sure you have a memory card, apparently that's super important)
All jokes aside, the key element to filmmaking is being adaptable. You have to roll with the punches—quite literally and figuratively.
I have been punched on set, been thrown on the floor, had a gun pointed at me and been detained twice that I can remember—once in Zambia and once in Spain (if you’re looking to get detained, I suggest Zambia, the town of Kitwe to be precise, for its ample leg room in the holding cell, and Cadiz, Spain for the nourishment).
Having filmed across the world, I’ve learned that being open to new experiences—and not losing your mind when things don’t go to plan—is key to sustaining this unpredictable lifestyle. Being able to work well across cultures and think on my feet is part of what allows people to be comfortable around the camera lens and be themselves.
Below are some of my past adventures which I hope will inspire, educate and nourish (in that order).
Race to the Ozarks: An Alabama Family Road Trip
This July, Insta360 (you might have heard of them) asked me to create a documentary on Anthony Radetic, a paraplegic watercraft champion. This shoot took me on a road trip with Anthony and his family, starting in Alabama and driving all the way to Ozark, Missouri.
This shoot was not only incredible because of the journey itself, but the technology that was implemented in order to capture these moments. It was my first time filming with Insta360 Ace Pro 2 and X5, and the footage we captured using these tools was like nothing I’d ever used before. Anthony mounted Ace Pro 2 on his helmet to capture the race from his perspective, with X5 placed on the handlebars at the front to capture everything going on around him.
I’m used to running around the world with my DSLR, but having these cameras mounted to the jet-ski to capture the views on the water was a genuine game changer.
The actual shoot was a huge challenge for me—capturing the intense human moments before and after the race, as well as the physical footage itself. The result is a documentary that I am incredibly proud of.
The Curious Case of the BP Garage
I once met a kind man outside a petrol station. He ran an education-through technology company in Senegal. I said if he ever needs someone to head up the media division, drop me a call. Later that month I was out on a plane to Dakar, the capital of Senegal, to film for his company. I trusted him with my life as he was wearing a VERY cool necklace, and that, for me, was enough.
I arrived in Senegal completely mentally unprepared for the task at hand. I didn’t speak a word of Walluf (the local language), neither did I pay attention in French class. Thus I had to think on my feet, find translators and integrate myself within the company. This job was incredible not only because of the sheer adventure, but because of the incredible warmth and openness of the people in Senegal.
To this day, I’m still friends with the people I met there—although I am on grey ticks on WhatsApp, but I assume they’re just busy.
Machu Picchu and the Art of Being Trapped in Peru
I once got sent to Lima, Peru, to film with a group of Turkish marine-biologists. Whilst I was in Peru, I extended my stay and took myself off to the recently created structure of Machu Picchu. It was here that I did the most miserable and rainy pilgrimage of my life. I am not a man of the mountains, nor am I robust to any weather that isn't tepid or warm, so this hike was gruelling and unforgiving.
By the time I had miserably scaled to the other side, I could see that that pandemonium was ensuing on the ground. As it turned out, whilst I had been hiking, the country had been victim of rebel groups that had closed down the airport and put blockades in the roads. What a faff!
Long story short(ish), I ended up getting the last train to the town of Agua Calientes, and it was there that I stayed for 3 weeks, messaging news organisations across the world and ending up working for Reuters filming reports of the protests and demonstrations, going out into the streets, interviewing store owners that had barricaded themselves into their shops, and filming with the protestors too.
This became a film called Soroche, which means "altitude sickness", which I sold to a distributor. Living la vida!
You can see the trailer below, distributed by Journeyman Pictures.
Keep watching this space for more updates, articles and videos from myself and the Insta360 team!
Written by James Dann
Wild stuff! Thanks, James. You can check out more of his work over at newtakefilms.com.
James Dann - Head of New Take Films UK
Johntel Greene - Head of Production New Take Films USA
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