ScreenLight and Grip Equips...


Shuttle LLC wrapped it's feature "Shuttle" with a night of special effects (for details click on the bottom picture at left). Producer Mark Donadio turned to ScreenLight & Grip to not only provide the gear to light Marginal Street in Chelsea for this complicated chroma key effects shot, but also to provide the gear for the entire seven week shoot.

"One of our biggest challenges on this show" explains Rigging Gaffer Guy Holt (who is also the owner of ScreenLight & Grip)"was to light the talent on the constantly moving shuttle bus." The task was complicated by the fact that most of the film takes place on the shuttle at night and the bus was too big to put on a process trailer. Gaffer Mike Dynice figured he could get away with lighting the talent with little more than Kino Flo Flourescent fixtures because the shuttle sequences were being shot with the extremely light sensitive Viper Film Stream High Definition Camera (click on the 1st picture at left for details). He replaced the interior lights of the bus with 8 - 4’ T12 Kino 3200K Tubes, powered on individual channels, split out from 4 - 4 bank AC Ballasts located in the back of the bus. The extra 8 channels were used to power 2' single tubes used as close-up modeling lights for talent inside the bus and 4’- 4 Bank Fixtures rigged outside the windows. To rig lights outside, Key Grip Mike Henry built an exo-skeletal frame of pipe around the bus (click on the 4th picture at left for details).

The question was how to supply that much AC power when the shuttle was constantly moving? Towing a generator was out of the question because the scenes on the shuttle involved too much dialogue to overdub. Instead, Rigging Gaffer Guy Holt built an 1800W “Batt-Verter” rig to provide silent AC power to the lights. To maximize the running time on the batteries, he tied the Marine Cells into the engine’s alternator, as well as an AC charger (for when shore power was available), so that the batteries would receive a charge as they were being discharged. “Even when the shooters drove all night, never giving us a chance to plug in the AC charger, the rig worked so well on the engine alternator alone that the batteries never ran down” boasts Guy Holt (click on the 3rd picture at left for details).

To light locations that included the Worcester Airport and numerous city streets, ScreenLight and Grip provided a feature style 12-Ton Pkg. (click on the 1st picture at left for details). “This film was something of a maiden voyage for our new electrics truck”, explains Guy Holt. "Though, it was christened, so to speak, at Constitution Wharf on a the PBS show Electronic Field Trip, our electrics truck was really designed for HD Features like "Shuttle" - it is the first HD compatible Electrics Truck that I know of,” explains Guy Holt (click on the 2nd picture at left for details).

As the producers of "Shuttle" found, ScreenLight and Grip can make a substantial contribution to film and television productions shooting in New England. In addition to equipment rentals, they can provide crews and services, as well as expedite the processing of the valuable tax credits now being offered by many New England States (click on 1st picture at left for details). They use their expertise and extensive knowledge of the region to maximize the benefits that New England has to offer. For more detailed information on what they have to offer, or the Massachusetts Motion Picture Production Tax Credits, log onto their website or call them at (781) 326-5088.

     (Click on images for more Information and Production Stills.)

Production Company: Shuttle Productions, LLC

Director/Writer: Edward Anderson

Produced By: Mark Williams, Todd Lemley, Mark Donadio

Line Producer: Ben Dewey

Director of Photography: Michael Fimognari

Key Grip: Mike Henry

Gaffer: Mike Dynice

Rigging Gaffer: GUY HOLT, ScreenLight and Grip

Mixer: Dave Schwartz

Stunt Coordinator: Roy Farfel

Wardrobe Designer: Virginia Johnson

Key SFX Make-Up Artists: Rob Fitz

Key Make Up: Sherryn Smith

Key Hair: Frankie Barbosa

Prod Designer: Dr. Roger Danchik

Lighting and Grip Equipment Rental and Production Services
provided by

ScreenLight and Grip

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Whats New at ScreenLight & Grip

ScreenLight & Grip has developed a special production package we call the "HD Plug & Play Package" (HD P&P Pkg.) For our HD P&P Pkg. we have picked  lights that offer both the highest output (lumens/watt) and the most feature style production capability and combined them with proprietary distribution  technology we have developed that enhances the production capability of the new Honda Inverter Generators. 

Our 60A Full Power Transformer/Distro provides 7500 Watts of power in a single 120v circuit
from the new Honda EU6500i Generator

Until now,  to power HMI lights over 1.2kw or Quartz lights over 2kw required a large diesel movie generator. Movie generators are not only expensive  to rent, but they come with hidden costs that usually break the budget of independently funded HD projects.   Our HD P&P Pkg. takes advantage of technological advances  to power HMI lights up to 6kw or Quartz lights up to 5kw off of wall outlets or the new generation  of portable Honda Inverter Generators and meets OSHA requirements for their use on film sets (use this link for a detailed explanation of OSHA requirements and why almost all portable generators do not meet them.)

Our modified Honda EU6500is with our Transformer/Distro can power
the PFC 2.5 & 1.8 HMI Pars, PFC 400w Lighthouse HMI,
2 ParaBeam 400, 2 ParaBeam 200s, and 2 Tegra 400s of our HD P&P Pkg.

By eliminating the need for a tow generator in order to have feature style production capability, our HD P&P Pkg. saves you the expense of not only  the generator, but also the added expense of a rental house grip truck and truck driver required to tow it.   Use this link for more details about our  HD Plug & Play Package. 


Call (781) 326-5088, or contact us at rentals@screenlightandgrip.com for more information.  Or, use this link for an informative newsletter article that explains the electrical engineering principles that make it possible for our system to oeperate bigger lights, or more smaller lights, on portable generators than has ever been possible before. This article is cited in the 4th Edition of Harry Box's "Set Lighting Technician's Handbook" and featured on the companion website "Box Book Extras." Of the article Harry Box exclaims:


"Great work!... this is the kind of thing I think very few technician's ever get to see,
and as a result many people have absolutely no idea why things stop working."

"Following the prescriptions contained in this article enables the operation of bigger lights, or more smaller lights,
on portable generators than has ever been possible before."



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Each component of our

"HD Plug & Play Package"

is available for

Rental or Sale

Our HD P&P Pkg. capitalizes upon the following technological advances in lighting and production technology by
Mole Richardson, K5600, Power to Light, Kino Flo, and Honda.
    - More efficient and compact HMI, Quartz, and now Fluorescent Par Lights.
    - Brighter and more efficient "short arc" HMI bulb designs.
    - 120/240V Electronic HMI ballasts with Power Factor Correction.
    - Cool burning, energy efficient Fluorescent Lighting Fixtures.
    - Innovative new rigging hardware.

These technological advances in lighting design now enable the use of bigger lights, or more smaller lights, off of standard wall outlets or off a new generation of quieter and more powerfull Honda Inverter Generators. Click here for more detailed information on our HD P&P Pkg.