Iceland and Costa Rica filming for Coors Light
National Geographic has collaborated with beer brand Coors Light on an online ‘micro series’ following scientists exploring Iceland and Costa Rica.
By Nick Goundry 28 Aug 2018
National Geographic has collaborated with beer brand Coors Light on an online ‘micro series’ following scientists exploring locations in Iceland and Costa Rica.
US-based Evolve Studios produced the six shorts – branded as ‘My Next’ – that follow oceanographer Erika Bergman to the jungles of Costa Rica and geothermal specialist Andres Ruzo to Iceland.
The country destinations were chosen by Bergman and Ruzo with input from National Geographic. Evolve then advised on specific filming locations that would best reflect each country.
Jen Lewis produced the Iceland shoot for Evolve, which had to be prepped in two weeks.
“We knew we had to hit the volcano and the boiling river, and we also had our visual list that would show Iceland in the best light,” says Lewis in comments to KFTV.
“So with our scout we had to factor in the exact location of the volcano and the boiling river and the visual locations the director wanted to hit, and then lock in all of the adventures and where each of those would take place. It was a pretty crazy, fast, two-week prep.”
Weather was the biggest challenge faced by the Iceland team and impacted the schedule of nearly the entire shoot.
Lewis worked with service company On the Rocks Productions and tour company Destiny Iceland. She advises producers to use the support on offer.
“Our local team was great,” says Lewis. “When things flipped on a dime they were right there with us making it all work.
“As a producer I’m constantly thinking about the next shot and the next location, and the next day.
"I tried to be diligent about taking a few minutes at each location to enjoy the beauty and the moment of where we were and what we were doing.
“Location shoots are crazy – especially internationally – but sometimes we get to go to some pretty stellar places and it's good for the soul to just take a moment on top of a glacier and look out and be awestruck by it all.”
Melissa Daniels produced the Costa Rica leg of the shoot and faced a huge challenge scouting locations in a little over a week.
“One of the challenges we faced with filming in Costa Rica is that a lot of the roads are underdeveloped compared to that of the US,” Daniels tells KFTV.
“The topography is sort of all over the place. What would normally take 30 minutes on a paved road can take up to two or three hours depending where in the country you are. Not to mention a lot of the breath-taking locations require you to hike in or trek there on foot. This made scouting in the window of time we had nearly impossible.”
Accessibility issues ended up restricting Daniels’ planned locations list and her team needed to maximise a smaller number of options without having too big an impact on the final films.
Daniels emphasises the importance of researching location options ahead of time and, like Lewis, is full of praise for her own local team comprising Ezequiel Avaro, Victor Barriga and Julie Eccheverri.
The country destinations were chosen by Bergman and Ruzo with input from National Geographic. Evolve then advised on specific filming locations that would best reflect each country.
Jen Lewis produced the Iceland shoot for Evolve, which had to be prepped in two weeks.
“We knew we had to hit the volcano and the boiling river, and we also had our visual list that would show Iceland in the best light,” says Lewis in comments to KFTV.
“So with our scout we had to factor in the exact location of the volcano and the boiling river and the visual locations the director wanted to hit, and then lock in all of the adventures and where each of those would take place. It was a pretty crazy, fast, two-week prep.”
Weather was the biggest challenge faced by the Iceland team and impacted the schedule of nearly the entire shoot.
Lewis worked with service company On the Rocks Productions and tour company Destiny Iceland. She advises producers to use the support on offer.
“Our local team was great,” says Lewis. “When things flipped on a dime they were right there with us making it all work.
“As a producer I’m constantly thinking about the next shot and the next location, and the next day.
"I tried to be diligent about taking a few minutes at each location to enjoy the beauty and the moment of where we were and what we were doing.
“Location shoots are crazy – especially internationally – but sometimes we get to go to some pretty stellar places and it's good for the soul to just take a moment on top of a glacier and look out and be awestruck by it all.”
Melissa Daniels produced the Costa Rica leg of the shoot and faced a huge challenge scouting locations in a little over a week.
“One of the challenges we faced with filming in Costa Rica is that a lot of the roads are underdeveloped compared to that of the US,” Daniels tells KFTV.
“The topography is sort of all over the place. What would normally take 30 minutes on a paved road can take up to two or three hours depending where in the country you are. Not to mention a lot of the breath-taking locations require you to hike in or trek there on foot. This made scouting in the window of time we had nearly impossible.”
Accessibility issues ended up restricting Daniels’ planned locations list and her team needed to maximise a smaller number of options without having too big an impact on the final films.
Daniels emphasises the importance of researching location options ahead of time and, like Lewis, is full of praise for her own local team comprising Ezequiel Avaro, Victor Barriga and Julie Eccheverri.
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