For some shoots, he worked with the artemis DV Pro MD from Sachtler, (a Vitec Group brand). The artemis camera stabilizer system ensures perfectly balanced camera movements.
Ladkani and his team received a half-hour film permit for the most sacred place in the Vatican – the Necropolis underneath St. Peter’s Basilica. They accompanied a cardinal who led them through the Necropolis. The footage taken during this tour is one of the highlights of the documentary Vatican – The Hidden World. Ladkani used the artemis DV Pro MD camera stabilizer system from Sachtler, outfitted with a Sony EX3 for filming in the intricate centuries-old corridors.
Over fifty days of shooting were spread out over the course of a year. The team travelled to Rome more than 12 times to shoot. For Ladkani, the smallest state in the world is one of the most complex shooting locations ever.
“A third of the Vatican consists of magnificent time-honored buildings that are in turn connected by kilometer-long subterranean passageways and corridors for the most part,” explained Ladkani. Some of the protagonists move through this labyrinth daily. To cinematically accompany them, Ladkani worked with the artemis DV Pro MD. “With it, we were able to follow cardinals and altar boys for several hundred meters through St. Peter’s Basilica to the Vatican Grottoes, to be guided by the prefect through the bunker of the Vatican Secret Archives, and to accompany the conservators through the endless collections of the Vatican museums.”
He learned to use the camera stabilizer system at the Wendelin Sachtler Academy. “During numerous workshops with the artemis systems developer, Curt Schaller, I became acquainted with the artemis. Without it, a lot of the footage wouldn’t have been possible, not least because of the spatial conditions.” For this reason, Ladkani describes the use of the artemis as an “essential stylistic device” of his documentary.
The film was produced by teamWorx and Bavarian Broadcasting in cooperation with the BBC, National Geographic and France2.