Guides D’Aventures ~ Hawaii
INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY SERIES FEATURING ADVENTURE GUIDES IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD
For our next adventure, we took a much needed winter break and travelled to the beautiful North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii to film surfing. We landed in Honolulu and drove up to the North Shore only to find out from the locals that the “storm of the century” was about to hit the island. We were told to expect 85km winds and massive 60 foots waves. Trying to make the most out of the situation, we filmed a few interviews with our guide Pascale at her incredible beach house, instead of surfing. During the interviews, the wind was so strong that my boom acted like a wind sail, and my arms were burning just trying to keep the mic in the air.
All of the beaches were closed due to the storm, but it made for some great TV, and we were able to capture some incredible footage of the waves crashing in. After the storm passed, we spent the next few days filming surfing on the North Shore. Each shoot of Guides D’Aventures presents new challenges for recording sound. For this episode, I decided to use waterproof wireless mics on the surfers, and long range antenna’s from my receivers on the beach. Everything sounded great, if you don’t count the time one of my mic packs got destroyed from the salt water…
Our guide decided to take a break from surfing half way through the trip and took the group on an all day hike east of Honolulu. We spent 6 hours hiking up and down the Wiliwilinui Ridge, while filming the group and recording sound bites. The panoramic views from the top were surrounded by incredible aqua blue water, dormant volcanoes and an amazing view of Honolulu. We ended the day filming the group having champagne at Spitting Cave as whales swam by in the distance and the sun setting beyond the horizon. Not a bad day at the office!
The remainder of our shoot in Hawaii was filled with more surfing, paddle boarding, interviews and sightseeing…rounding up a very enjoyable shoot in paradise. Guides D’Aventures is produced by Balestra Productions and this episode was directed by Isabelle Major.
Guides D’Aventures ~ Japan
INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY SERIES FEATURING ADVENTURE GUIDES IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD
Our trip around the world continues with an incredible week of backcountry skiing in Hokkaido, Japan. We met up with our guide Ken, who took us up and down the Asahi-dake and Tokachi-dake mountains, which is world famous for deep powder backcountry skiing. Filming on these mountains proved to be incredibly difficult, as we were required to hike up 2500 meters of elevation each day. The snow was approximately 3 meters deep, so if you fell down your body would literally disappear in the powder!
Before flying to Japan, our film crew did some training back home in an attempt to get in shape so we could keep up with the professional skiers in Japan. I decided to bring a light weight sound kit with me while we were skiing, because we were also required to carry avalanche safety equipment at all times. Trekking up and skiing down the mountain multiple times a day was very difficult, and filming the adventure at the same time was hands down the hardest shoot I’ve ever done, but I loved every minute of it.
We managed to record several interviews during the adventure and captured some amazing footage, all while pushing our bodies to the limit. Japan was beautiful and it was an experience of a lifetime, something I won’t soon forget! Guides D’Aventures is produced by Balestra Productions and this episode was directed by Mark Chatel.
Guides D’Aventures ~ New Zealand
INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY SERIES FEATURING ADVENTURE GUIDES IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD
Episode 2 of Guides D’Aventures brings us to the other side of the world, all the way down to beautiful New Zealand. For this episode we spent a week on the incredible Rangitikei river white water rafting with Canadian guide Derek Klapka at River Valley Lodge. Over the course of five days we rafted down the class 4 & 5 rapids multiple times while filming the adventure on the river. We secured our waterproof Pelican cases to the boat and had an amazing time pulling off to the side of the river while filming all the action.
We also had the extreme privilege of filming some of the local Maori culture in New Zealand and we were invited to watch a traditional Haka dance. The amazing scenery, the delicious food and the incredible people of New Zealand made it a very memorable trip. Recording sound on the water and the long journey from home had its challenges, but it was arguably the greatest job I’ve had in my career to date! Guides D’Aventures is produced by Balestra Productions and this episode was directed by Mark Chatel.
CFL on TSN
CFL EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL ON TSN
The Ottawa Redblacks faced off against the Hamilton Tiger Cats in the CFL eastern final on TSN. I was part of 3 teams who’s job it was to follow a feature player on the field during the game. I had #37 Frankie Williams mic’d up during the game and listened in as he (and my mic) got crushed by the Ottawa Redblacks. We followed the players around on the sidelines, around the bench and back in the locker rooms to cover all the drama.
It was a great experience and lots of fun being on the front lines of the action during the game. The Redblacks won the game and we had the opportunity to film the team celebration in the locker room. The Redblacks will travel to Edmonton next week where they face off against the Calgary Stampeders in the 106th Grey Cup.
Guides D’Aventures ~ Morocco
INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY SERIES FEATURING ADVENTURE GUIDES IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD
Episode 1 of Guides D’Aventures (Season 4) kicks off with a bang as we travelled to Morocco, Africa and hiked 7 hours a day through the incredible Atlas Mountains. We first spent a few days filming around Marrakech interviewing our guide Olivier along with his group of 12 avid Canadian hikers. We then drove 3 hours twisting and turning through the beautiful mountains until we reached our first stop and the start of our epic hike.
Our production crew joined them as they hiked 15-20 kilometres a day up and down the mountains, passing through local villages and stunning landscapes. Guides D’Aventures is now in it’s 4th season, the previous 3 seasons travelling all across Canada. Season 4 has us going international to 10 different countries around the world, featuring 10 different guides and showcasing their story and their passion for adventure. Guides D’Aventures is produced by Balestra Productions and this episode was directed by Mark Chatel.
