Specialty Camera Rigs

Here is how this works in practice. Our team sources specialty camera rigs and cars from skilled local operators based in Cape Town and Johannesburg, supplying Russian and pursuit arms, complete chase car setups, process trailers, insert cars, cable cam systems and motion control rigs tied to your camera package. We set up rig openings and tech specs, conduct thorough risk assessments, and give skilled operators and technicians who know both the gear and the safety needs of car-mounted and rigged filming. Our grip and rigging team can also design custom mounting options for shots standard gear cannot achieve.

Here is the short of it. South Africa's mature film-services market, with deep expertise built on years of high-profile action work, means shoots can crew and equip specialty rig work in-country in South African rand, and a favourable exchange rate keeps the budget efficient. Where a production travels with a specific arm or motion control system, ATA carnets cover short-term import cleanly through Cape Town International or O. R. Tambo. Our team integrates it with local operators so dynamic sequences are captured safely and efficiently.

Here is the breakdown. South Africa gives top terrain for specialty rig work and a long pedigree of high-octane filming, with action features such as 'Safe House' and the Oscar-nominated 'District 9' shot in and around Johannesburg and Cape Town. The Western Cape gives dramatic coastal roads on the Cape Peninsula, the open highways and passes of the Cape Winelands, and the wide, empty roads of the semi-desert Karoo that suit camera cars and pursuit arms, while the bushveld around the Kruger National Park and the Drakensberg mountains add rugged terrain for off-road rig work. Driving is on the left.

Here is what that looks like on the ground. Rig operation must meet South African safety rules, with road closures and permits helped by regional film commissions in Cape Town, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. South Africa is renowned for doubling for a huge range of world locations, so specialty rig sequences can be set against different backdrops within one schedule. With English as the working language of the industry and a deep, skilled crew base, mounting safe, ambitious specialty rig work is straightforward.