To coincide with the launch of the new series of Top Gear, BBC Worldwide has launched two experiences that put fans in the driving seat by way of an immersive 360 experience created by Mill+.
Top Gear’s popular ‘Star in a Reasonably Priced Car’ segment has been replaced with the newly titled spot ‘Star in a Rallycross Car’, launching their first ever 360 project. The film centres around what celebrity guests will witness as part of the new track layout over the coming weeks; all experienced in 360 degrees alongside Top Gear host Chris Harris.
Mill+ Executive Producer Oliver Allgrove explains; “BBC Worldwide approached Mill+ to explore shooting several premium pieces of 360 film with one of the new presenters, in this case, the awesome and talented Chris Harris. The idea was to create something that has a proper fidelity as a piece of content. Over the course of the next series, the challenge facing celebrities sees the track re-modelled into a more rounded challenge including some off road driving and jumps”.
Shoot Supervisor and Creative Director Adam Grint comments; “I was like an excited schoolboy when I got asked to work on this project. The aim was to give the viewer a unique perspective on the new course and bring you as close as possible to the action as Chris Harris guides you through the challenges of the course. We devised a bespoke 360 camera rig for the task and placed it in the passenger seat so you feel as if you are right there riding alongside him. The trickiest part was using minimal rigging so as not to clutter the shot, whilst trying to keep the cameras as steady as possible - not all that easy bearing in mind the rally-cross course involves a water hazard and a rather large jump!
We used a bespoke rig with four 185 degree fisheye lenses mounted onto GoPros. This gave us the overlap we needed to place the stitch lines between the cameras at discreet points along the structure of the car. We also carried out some cleanup, removing rigging on the seat and the roof and some work to stabilise and re-track the different cameras so the image feels cohesive. Then it was a case of levelling out the grade and giving it a slightly Top Gear look by bringing out some sky detail.”
CreditsCredits
Client
Client: Top Gear BBC Worldwide Commercial Director: Duncan Gray Editor in Chief: Charlie Turner Head of Marketing: Kirsty Mullan
Production
Production Company: Mill+ Head of Content: Josh Davies Producer: Josh Davies Production Coordinator : Ben Burdock
Editorial
Editing Company: Mill+ Editor's Assistant: Hugo Vaughan-Hughes
VFX & Design
VFX & Design: The Mill Executive Producer: Oliver Allgrove Producer: Jarrad Vladich, Alexandra Paton Shoot Supervisor: Adam Grint Creative Director: Adam Grint 2D Lead Artist: Pavel Vicik
Colour
Colour: The Mill Colourist: Jim Bracher Colour Assistant: Brendan Buckingham