VIDEO: ICS collaborates with Travis on music video

12 July 2013

ICS Cool Energy has carried out some pretty interesting assignments in its 25-year history, but few so captivating as one it recently completed working in the music industry with two-time 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 music video for the single 'Moving', taken from their seventh album ‘Where You Stand’.

The video shows a series of images forming as if by magic from close-ups of the breath that emits from the singers’ mouths as they perform the piece. To enable the creative concept to become a reality, they needed an environment cold enough to generate visible breath.

ICS Cool Energy’s local Rental Application Engineer, Lee Chard, recommended a suitable location from a shortlist of potential studios, and a logistics plan to implement the cooling on site. Chard explains: “We required a well-insulated space with a good power supply and access. The space needed to be big enough to comfortably complete the shoot but not too big, as a greater level of cooling duty would be required, increasing set-up time and costs.

To cool the studio, ICS Cool Energy recommended and installed two off 35kW externally sited air cooled rental chillers with a -12°C set point creating a temperature of -6°C air off feeding two off internally sited low temperature 50kW fan coils, which were mounted on a high level frame to maximise floor space and provide a good level of air circulation.

The studio was cooled to -1°C 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 was left to settle ensuring the best conditions to create the desired effect.

Chard continues, “Our engineers installed the system to work for the crew on set; 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.

“There are many elements that generate heat – computers and lighting can be a large heat source and people and movement only further 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. By ensuring that only the essential crew were on set throughout the filming, further heat build up was minimised. We are very pleased with how the project turned out, and the film crew seemed delighted with the results that they were getting, too.”

Noreen Khan, RSA films producer commented: “In my experience, ICS Cool Energy not only offered an excellent service but Lee Chard and his team provided full back up support to a very unusual and challenging project. Lee in particular was completely dedicated and did above and beyond to troubleshoot and assess many potential locations. Both the installation and the end results were outstanding. Thank you to everyone involved.”