Sub-zero temperatures engineered for Travis 23 September 2013

ICS Cool Energy says it has worked on some demanding projects in its time, but few as interesting as working with BRIT award winner Travis.

RSA Films contracted the specialist hire team to cool a film set to sub-zero temperatures to create visual effects for the Scottish band's new 'Moving' music video, taken from its seventh album 'Where You Stand'.

The video shows a series of images forming as if by magic from close-ups of the breath from the singers' mouths.

"We required a well-insulated space with a good power supply and access," explains ICS Cool Energy's local rental application engineer Lee Chard.

"The space needed to be big enough to complete the shoot but not too big, as a greater level of cooling duty would be required, increasing set-up time and costs."

Chard says Shepperton Studios, in London, fitted the bill. "The stage was 3168ft2 with a roll top door, allowing access for the cooling equipment and an additional air lock usually used to prevent external sound entering the studio, which also featured as an additional layer of insulation to keep the cold air in," he explains.

"The power to the studio exceeded the requirements with a 400 Amp three-phase supply, and a small, low-level flap in the external wall allowed for pipework to be fed through with minimal air escape," he adds.

To cool the studio, ICS Cool Energy installed two 35kW externally-sited air cooled chillers with a -12C set point, creating a temperature of -6C air feeding two internal low-temperature 50kW fan coils, mounted on a high-level frame.

Chard says the studio was cooled to -1C, removing the thermal load from the studio foundations and cooling the air temperature. Once at the required temperature, the fans were switched off and the air left to settle.

"Our engineers installed the system to work for the crew on set [with] all wiring, pipework and connections fed into a single switch in the studio, making it quick and easy for the producer to boost cooling throughout the filming," states Chard.

And he adds: "There are many elements that generate heat – computers and lighting can be a large heat source, and people and movement only increase the temperature. To limit this, the production team installed lighting with a low heat load and usage of the main lights and computers were minimised."

Brian Tinham

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