Deep Gold goes underwater in Phl

MANILA, Philippines - Hollywood’s underwater moviemaking technology streams with Philippines’ best locale in the upcoming actioneer Deep Gold from Bigfoot Entertainment starring international actresses Bebe Pham and Jaymee Ong. Joining them is Philippines’ Joel Torre in a very notable role.

Written and directed by Michael Gleissner, who’s also known for his work in Irreversi, Deep Gold is filmed entirely in the scenic islands of Cebu and Palawan where a champion free-diver Amy (Pham) and her sister Jess (Ong) are caught in a web of lies on the disappearance of a government plane carrying a fortune in gold. Amy seeks the truth also on the disappearance of his boyfriend along with the fortune. 

Deep Gold features eye-popping 3D action sequences, including spectacular underwater footage using the shooting tank located at Bigfoot facilities in Cebu. Gleissner together with Rick Robinson, the film’s director of photography and an Emmy Award winner leads viewers deep into the bottom of filming the movie under Philippine waters.

Working on a quality 3D film, Gleissner shares: “The Philippines provided spectacular locations and was the ideal place to set the movie in, given the story. Filming on a tropical location that does not have a Hollywood-style film industry has some challenges. For example, we totally underestimated how much time it takes to shoot on boats, as the setup of equipment and lights are a lot more complicated.”

Robinson, on the other hand, shares that this is his first time shooting underwater. “I am primarily concerned with lighting and underwater lighting, it reflects light differently than shooting on land, especially when it comes to water clarity. The complex process that is underwater filming required more than acute understanding of lighting. To achieve this for Deep Gold, Bigfoot had to train the crew, mostly Filipinos to make these spectacular underwater scenes come to fruition. The local Filipino crew underwent training to work with the underwater shooting because it requires specific knowledge that cannot be received anywhere else in the country,” shares Robinson.

Although originally shot in 2D, Gleissner’s decision to convert the film into stereoscopic 3D is due to deeper engagement experience 3D brings to the audience. “Using 3D allows the audience to feel as though they are part of the action — turning them into participants instead of spectators,” Gleissner says.  

Now that 3D films are becoming mainstream, Gleissner predicts that within a few years it will become the norm to film in 3D. “With the cost of converting a film from 2D to 3D going down and the quality of conversion going up, a lot more independent films are able to utilize this. 3D makes films more competitive within the marketplace,” Gleissner concludes.

Deep Gold opens in Phil. cinemas on Aug. 31 from Bigfoot Entertainment.