Justin McMillan isn’t an equipment buff just for the hell of it. He’s a freelance commercial director who understands the value in having a unique point of view. Yes, it’s not a bad thing for a director, as well as a brand, to have a USP. When he’s shooting an ad for Nissan, Toyota, Tourism & Events Queensland, New Zealand Tourism…McMillan tends to have standout even in the rushes.

The director behind Heliguy was the first to bring out the Slingshot system from Canada. It’s a wearable rig that carries a stabilised camera head designed so the operator can manoeuver the camera into unique positions. But, you see, McMiIllan is a big picture guy. And the best vantage point for the big picture is above the action. So McMillan developed a multi-camera system that uses drones to create his high-end aesthetics for commercials.

The system is built around a drone that captures hard to access aerial and land cinematography, a specialist pilot and pre-planned flight paths. The pilot is set up to have direct access to any D.O.P. so that he can provide specific framing to capture the shots that hold viewers’ attention and show the product at its best.

“I personally love operating this system as it allows me to work with the D.O.P and focus puller to become more immersed in the storytelling because I feel closer to the framing when focusing in on the action,” explained McMillan.

“This technology isn’t the be-all-and-end-all of camera packages for commercial filmmaking, however the Heliguy brand isn’t about that. Heliguy is all about offering up an affordable solution to get multiple camera perspectives through stabilised mounts on both land and in the air.”

This is what McMillan’s way of looking at things differently achieved for Tourism & Events Queensland:

McMillian and D.O.P. Tim Tregoning, editor Simon Njoo and the Heliguy team created the film for Publicis Mojo Brisbane and Taxi Films in a ten day shoot. Everyone has seen Queensland’s tourist sites. No one has seen them this way. And that gives good ol’ Queensland a whole new appeal.

“I’ve recently had a run of outdoor tourism shoots where I’ve been able to put all the new toys to the test. The 90-second director’s version of the Tourism and Events TVC best showcases how our technology works in harmony with small production crews in scenes where we needed to shoot on land, in the air and underwater – and all in the same lighting conditions. I like the idea of being a freelance gun for hire and if the situation works I’m happy to come on board to collaborate with creatives and production crews looking to explore a new and exciting approach to film making.”