BUSCH GARDENS - COMMERCIAL
Dean Cundey, Director
Mark Robinson, Producer / AD

Filming in an amusement park is always challenging and Busch Gardens, Tampa, Florida was no exception. At first it was difficult to determine what would be the biggest obstacle -- filming in a park filled with paying guests, mounting cameras on a roller coaster, safely securing a three story high blue screen or the technical concerns over filming that would require elaborate CGI work. It became apparent, however, that the greatest hurdle would be accommodating our overly inquisitive starring actor.

The spot for Busch Gardens, directed by Dean Cundey, contained scenes of a giraffe that walks out of the ocean, and interacts with a family on the beach. In order to create the images, the giraffe had to be trained to perform in front of a giant blue screen while in his pen at Busch Gardens. The giraffe’s performance was later edited with scenes of the family that were shot on Clearwater Beach. Giraffes, we learned from the trainers at Busch Gardens, are very curious. So, without the proper preparation the giraffe would be so preoccupied with the presence of the film crew and equipment, would simply not perform. A mock camera truck, plywood camera, fabricated crane arm and simulated blue screen all had to be constructed and placed in the pen in an effort to acclimate the Giraffe weeks in advance of shooting. The plan worked. On the shoot day our starring Giraffe actor hit every mark, and camera wrapped ahead of schedule.