Article Overview

Graduation Film with the System Cine 30

SACHTLER SUPPORTS STUDENTS: The complete "Simulant" team of the School of Art and Design Kassel

Together with their team, Martin Neumeyer and Jonas Ungar made the film "Simulant" ("Faker" in English) for their graduation in the subject of film and television at the School of Art and Design Kassel. The production is an intelligently and humorously staged love story that is set in a psychiatric hospital. A large budget was not available to the two graduates. However, technical sponsoring made the use of professional equipment possible. Sachtler, a Vitec Group brand, also supported the final film project with the System Cine 30.

The film tells the story of two lovers, Dennis and Leonie. Leonie is in a psychiatric ward. To be with her, Dennis decides to have himself committed to the mental hospital by pretending to have a mental health problem. From then on, he has to keep cheating his way through the units to avoid giving himself away as a fake.

Professional equipment for the students

With a team of 20 people, the film students made the approximately 45-minute film in a total of 15 days of shooting. For filming, the team used the RED One camera with Zeiss Compact Primes and the System Cine 30 from Sachtler. Lukas Thiele, production manager of the film, arranged the technical sponsoring: "Without this fantastic cooperation, we would definitely not have been able to produce 'Simulant' to such a technically high-quality degree. We would have needed a much higher budget." The technical storage department of the Hesse Broadcasting Corporation also participated by loaning lighting equipment. Then, after Sachtler agreed to sponsor the project, everything was perfect. "The tripod is ideal for the RED One, and it is always a pleasure to be able to work with professional equipment as a student," raves Martin Neumeyer.

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A lot of work for the set decorators

The first filming location was a small two-room apartment in Kassel. The high number of team members and the film equipment limited the amount of space – a challenge for the whole team. When the set was changed to the multi-storied building in which the psychiatry scenes were shot there was more than enough space available to the team. However, this meant a lot of work for the set decorators. The rooms were completely empty and therefore had to be diversely decorated – therapy room, cafeteria, hospital room, etc.

In 2011, the film will go on a festival tour.

About Sachtler, Camera Dynamics GmbH

Sachtler, founded in 1958 by cameraman Wendelin Sachtler, is the worldwide market leader for professional camera support systems for cinematography and television production, its name a symbol of top quality and reliability for decades. With an extensive range of camera support systems as well as a finely modulated product line of reportage lighting, Sachtler is the highly qualified partner for cameramen, film and TV studios. Since 2000 Sachtler has been offering the artemis modular camera stabilizer system. With its numerous workshops and training sessions, the Wendelin Sachtler Academy has become a top address worldwide for invaluable know-how and the exchange of information, creating the ideal international platform for creative talents.

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