Anthill Films has churned out its share of winning work over the years. The production company's blend of innovation and authenticity can be seen in beloved bike films like Seasons, Follow Me, NotBad, unReal, and Long Live Chainsaw, but they've never won an Emmy before… until now.
The Squamish-based production company's latest movie, Anytime, was made in partnership with Red Bull Media House and just netted the Sports Emmy for Outstanding Camera Work.
"It means so much to us to be recognized for something outside of our genre, and outside of what we would normally know," says Darren McCullough, who served as director of photography on the project. "You don't usually see sports action films recognized this way or out in the general public [by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS)]."
Anytime was shot across three continents in remarkable environments like rich forests, grand mountains and urban playgrounds. A press release notes the film highlights the longest and steepest big mountain freeriding ever caught on camera: a helicopter-mounted camera gimbal manufactured by Shotover to be more exact.
Other techniques and pieces of equipment used include slow-motion aerial cinematography, custom-built e-moto rigs, cable cams and first-person view (FPV) drones. Freefly Systems, a company based in Woodinville, Wash., provided much of the crew's gear.
"The scale of what the athletes were doing was unprecedented," McCullough says. "Chile was one of the only places that had elevation and rideable terrain like that. One of the main places you would go would be Utah for freeride mountain biking … [there] it's usually 400 vertical feet, whereas in Chile these guys were riding 5,000 vertical feet at elevations of 14,000 to 15,000 feet. The only way we could tackle [filming those scenes] was by air.
"We were trying to use new gear to enhance what the rider is doing. It's something we've thought about forever, and even since Day 1 … we had an approach where we were going to try not to be too intrusive with the camera. We don't want to have to make them do something 20 times over if we don't have to, so if we can have multiple people and multiple angles happening at the same time, we can capture things how they actually are."
'There's never a bad word said'
Several outstanding athletes are featured in Anytime: like Brage Vestavik, Thomas Genon, Hannah Bergemann and Robin Goomes, the first women's Red Bull Rampage champ in history. Each of them had faith Anthill would capture their latest exploits in spectacular fashion.
"That's what it really all comes down to: trust with them and us," McCullough remarks. "We've been in the industry long enough and have a reputation of trust with these athletes, so it is that kind of symbiotic relationship—or the team vibe, as we like to say. It's amazing to have such hungry athletes that want to push their sport and themselves to new levels. For us to be there and be a part of it … that's the coolest thing. There's never a bad word said."
Anthill has been in the business for nearly 20 years. They don't like to say "lights, camera, action" as a scene is about to roll—instead, their traditional code word is "anytime." That's where the movie's name comes from.
Red Bull Media House didn't just sponsor the venture. For the first time they collaborated fully with Anthill, involved in each step of the production and post-production journey. McCullough is grateful for their support, and hopes Anytime will inspire a new generation of mountain bikers.
"Hopefully [the film's] biggest impact is when someone watches it and decides to go for a ride," he says. "It's our goal from Day 1, always trying to get people out on bikes to feel the joy that we all feel when we go for a ride. Maybe the movie and its riding is done to a level that a lot of people aren't going to be able to achieve, but as long as you're just going out for a ride, that's what we're hoping for."
Watch Anytime exclusively on Red Bull TV for free at redbull.com/int-en/films/anytime.
