Meet Richard ‘Woody’ Spark
Woody is a Cinematographer with stellar knowledge of the underwater world.
Woody has worked on various productions, including National Geographic and Disney+ projects. He is passionate about our big blue planet and works with organisations working to protect our natural world. Woody is experienced in shooting with RED, Sony, Arri and Canon cinema systems – both topside and underwater – using Gates and Nauticam housings.
Woody has been diving for over a decade and is experienced in using SCUBA and closed-circuit rebreather technology in temperate and tropical environments. Woody has worked as a dive instructor and safety diver and aims to make every shoot as safe as possible for all crew.
Before becoming a camera operator, Woody studied electrical engineering, and this expertise has proved to be invaluable in remote locations. Woody has specialised knowledge of various camera components, cables and serial communication protocols and is passionate about using technology that pushes the boundaries of natural history film-making.
Woody has operated and maintained specialist filmmaking equipment such as underwater motion control time-lapse, unoccupied underwater remote camera traps and various drone configurations to capture those ‘wow’ moments.
Woody has Essential knowledge of Adobe Premiere Pro, Media Encoder and Davinci Resolve, including setting up projects, creating proxies, cutting sequences and basic colour grading. He is well-versed in data wrangling using software such as Shotput Pro, Hedge and Silver Stack.
KEY SKILLS
PRE-PRODUCTION
Woody has helped set up multiple complex international multi-crew shoots in remote locations, often focusing on the underwater world and navigating the additional complexities that accompany filming in this environment.
EQUIPMENT MAINTENANCE
Woody has experience organising equipment lists, carnets and insurance documents. He has undertaken comprehensive pre-production cleaning, testing, and updating of all equipment before securing gear for transport on multiple international shoots. Woody ensures cameras are programmed to technical outlines, including colour space, frame-rate, compression ratios, and timecode.
CAMERA WORK
Woody is proficient with the menu and operations of RED, Sony, Canon and Arri camera systems both topside and underwater using Gates and Nauticam housings. He is adept at setting up, testing and operating various underwater housings and specialist underwater optics, equipment and camera systems.
DIT
Woody possesses essential knowledge of Adobe Premiere Pro, Media Encoder and Davinci Resolve, including setting up projects, creating proxies, cutting sequences, colour grading and output rendering. He is well-versed in data wrangling using software such as Shotput Pro, Hedge and Silver Stack.
DIVE EXPERIENCE
Woody is basically a fish, and can confidently operate underwater cameras on scuba, closed circuit rebreathers, and breath-hold diving. Woody is a PADI dive instructor and JJ-CCR diver.
PROBLEM SOLVING
With a background in electrical engineering, Woody has strong knowledge of electrical systems applicable to the production environment, including generators, battery capacity, and cable requirements/ connections, alongside various external communication protocols to control cameras.
Training and qualifications
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Current First Aid and Oxygen Provider
PADI - Open Water Scuba Instructor #302453
JJ-CCR rebreather diver - Dive RAID no #89197 (87 production hours)
AIDA - Level 3 Freediver
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CASA Remote Pilots License
Gates- STO basics Certification
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3 A-Levels including Media, Communications and Business.
Certificate 3 in Electrotechnology
