COLUMBUS, OH - Anton/Bauer, a brand of The Vitec Group, and the world's premier provider of batteries, chargers, lighting and other mobile power systems for the professional broadcast, video and film industries, was the behind-the-scenes power for " Through the Roof," a documentary following the remarkable journey of Erica Davis, the first female paraplegic athlete to summit Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro. Captured Life Productions, LLC, which produced the film, relied on Anton/Bauer's ElipZ 10K batteries to keep the cameras rolling as Davis and her team made the trek up and down the mountain. The ElipZ batteries proved themselves more than up to the task, as they not only maintained power throughout the nine-day climb, but still had energy to spare after it was over.
"Through the Roof" depicts Davis, along with Tara Butcher, an amputee below the left knee, as they and their support team scale the 19,334-foot (5,893 meters) mountain. It took them seven days to reach the summit, with temperatures decreasing from around 90 degrees Fahrenheit at the foot to below zero at the top. Captured Life Productions co-owners Matt Peters and Chris Theibert were there every step of the way, shooting most of the footage with a Panasonic AG-HPX170 P2 HD handheld camcorder, powered by the Anton/Bauer ElipZ 10K batteries.
"We did a lot of research to determine the best type of equipment for a shoot like this, where we would be operating in harsh conditions and without access to a power source for several days," says Peters. "We read about many companies that really trusted Anton/Bauer, and so we immediately started looking at the company. It seemed like a perfect fit, and the customer and sales support were great. I had some pretty specific questions regarding how the batteries would handle the temperature fluctuations and the fact that we wouldn't be able to charge them for several days, and I always got feedback right away."
Using just three Anton/Bauer ElipZ10K batteries, Peters and Theibert captured 12 hours of primary footage for the documentary. As a precaution, they had brought six of the batteries with them on the shoot, expecting to use them all. They were surprised to have three charged batteries leftover after completing the shoot.
"We were amazed that we actually had unused batteries when we got off the mountain," recalls Peters. "It was something we didn't think was possible, because we ran out of room on the camera before we ran out of battery power. It was a really good thing for us, very comforting, and it just clinched it for us. We'll never use anything else!"
Anton/Bauer's ElipZ 10K battery uses the highest capacity lithium ion cells available, providing field runtimes of more than seven and a half hours on a 10-watt camera load-almost an entire shooting day. The lightweight battery actually improves the comfort and handling characteristics of the camera by lowering its center of gravity and providing an additional handhold. It is also the first battery to use the underside of the camera as a mounting surface, away from operator controls, offering further ergonomic comfort.
The C.H.E.K Institute, a provider of educational programs, products and services for the fitness and healthcare professional, teamed up with the Challenged Athletes Foundation, Overstock.com and other sponsors to assist Davis and Butcher in climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, the world's fourth tallest mountain. The successful climb was designed to bring awareness to the capabilities of challenged athletes everywhere in that anyone can accomplish anything and everything they put their minds to, no matter what the challenge.
Peters and Theibert are currently taking "Through the Roof" around the film festival circuit, hoping to pick up a distributor.
ABOUT ANTON/BAUER
Anton/Bauer is recognized as the world's innovator and premier provider of batteries, chargers, lighting and other key mobile power systems for the professional broadcast, video and film industries. Based in the United States in Shelton, CT with offices in Europe and Asia, Anton/Bauer was established in 1970 and has expanded its product offerings to include many signature lines such as its leading Gold Mount system, InterActive chargers and Logic Series batteries such as the HyTRON 50, 100 and 140, and DIONIC 90, 160, HC and HCX. Their products are compatible with virtually every camera brand on the market today. Other Anton/Bauer high performance products include the Ultralight, ElipZ, ElightZ, CINE VCLX and CINE VCLX/2. Their superior-quality products have become an industry standard. For more information on Anton/Bauer, visit www.antonbauer.com.
A Snapshot of The Vitec Group
Vitec is an international Group principally serving customers in the broadcast, photographic and military, aerospace and government (MAG) markets. Listed on the London Stock Exchange with 2009 revenue of £315 million, Vitec is based on strong, well known, premium brands on which its customers worldwide rely. Vitec is organised in three divisions: Imaging & Staging, Videocom and Services.
Imaging & Staging designs, manufactures and distributes equipment and accessories for photography, video and events.
Videocom designs and distributes systems and products used in broadcasting and live entertainment, film and video production and MAG.
Services provides equipment rental, workflow design and technical support for camera, video, audio, fibre optic and wireless technology used by TV production teams and film crews.
More information can be found at www.vitecgroup.com.
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