Inexpensive Dolly Ideas

[Thecowgoooesmooo]

Finishing up my first short about 2 weeks ago, I used a inexpensive dolly shot running along convenient store ailes during a robbery. Now I did the old wheelchair dolly basicly as an experiment. If it looks good, i'll throw it in, if it dosen't, it's ok, it was just extra that I wasen't bankin on using. Now my next short will be coming soon in the upcoming months and I'm going to need another dolly shot. It will most likely be shot on a tile floor. Anybody have any ideas for some inexpensive dolly shots?.. Or give me any dolly shots you have done in the past yourself. Im open to everything that is inexpensive.

thanks
chris

[Xixax]

I considered this just this week.

How about a monopod on a skateboard? It might not be exactly a dolly, but it would be smooth.

[Thecowgoooesmooo]

Remember the surfaces... Tile... A skateboard will not be smooth on tile. Wheelchair is even better then a skateboard. any other ideas?


chris

[Xixax]

Remember the surfaces... Tile...

Aah, I was thinking industrial tile (like in a grocery store)... flat and smooth.

For an uneven surface like that I'd think you'd almost definitely have to run a track of some sort.

[Thecowgoooesmooo]

i wonder how good it would roll under dry wall, or some surface like that


chris

[Xixax]

Or maybe one of those plastic carpet protector runners? Smooth out the bumps a little...

[Victor]

lay some cardboard out on the floor, itll make it much smoother.

[Ghostboy]

You can rent a simple doorway dolly for about thirty bucks or so from a film/broadcast equipment rental place. They work great.

[Newtron]

Put some rollerskates on. Otherwise, a broomstick works wonders.

[Raikus]

If all else fails... vaso-cam it. Raimi knew how to operate on a budget.

[xerxes]

raimi is a bad bad man, and a bastard.

[RegularKarate]

If all else fails... vaso-cam it. Raimi knew how to operate on a budget.

yeah he did... the vaso-cam was awesome as were the other various "cams" he used.

Though the vaso-cam really only works well for trucking left and right.

[Ernie]

I built my "dolly" out of this really big, gaudy, 80's style stroller that my mom had, I think it was mine. It's great. The wheels are so quiet, it's almost like it was meant to be made into a dolly. The shots are really pretty damn smooth.

So anyway, I would just lay some good old fashioned cardboard down man. Or something else really flat and hard.

[Redlum]

http://www.glidecam.com/

Has anyone tried one of these? I'm looking at getting the 2000 Pro and I can find it for about $250/£160 ish. They look like a pretty good budget solution for some tricksy shots.

[ReelHotGames]

I have a glidecam and if you're willing to put the time into learning it, it is a very decent low budget solution instead of a steadicam jr.

Don't expect to get the glidecam and be able to shoto out of the box, it takes a fine touch to learn, and each time you mount and re-mount the camera you have to have a level surface for fine tuning the weights. It works on a free floating gimble, and it's ver smooth, but takes a little time to learn. And it takes some strength to use for extended peroids of time, but it is REALLY SMOOTH, the camera floats when used right.

Stick with the wheel chair, this is the best low budget solution for dollies, they hold up, they run quiet, and to make it really smooth add a GLIDECAM, this will give you an ULTRA SMOOTH picture, but it is an investment.

Otherwise try laying cardboard down OR go to home depot and find some PLASTIC piping, if you're not going to put a lot of weight on the chair or rig, use 2 plastic pipes side by side, setting the wheel on to, it settles down in between and you now have a track, this option isn't great for having to turn but you can do it.

Michael Alessandro
www.fof-films.com