How we set out to design and successfully skydive, for the first time ever, with the IMAX giant screen camera system ... page 2

By the 1990's, however, all this was possible; parachute technology had advanced, and free fall skills had reached a high level of expertise. Square "ram air" parachutes allowed for softer openings, good directional control, and softer landings. The development of efficient aerofoil sections, and large canopies now even allowed for two people, attached in a single harness, to safely skydive from high altitudes. The new developments allowed us to think seriously about bringing the world of Skydiving to the IMAX screen.

Between the 20th. and the 27th. June 1995, following several months of thought and planning, I assembled a small but enthusiastic group of people together in DeLand, Florida, to prove that it would be possible to fly an IMAX camera in free-fall, to film with a good range of camera movement and control, and to land it safely and softly. My hosts were The Relative Workshop, a highly talented Company led by Bill Booth, who designed the popular Vector parachute rig and invented several radical new ideas including the 3-ring Circus emergency cutaway system. Helping me in this endeavour were Bobby Overbey, from the Relative Workshop; Norman Kent, one of the most experienced free fall cameramen in the world; Patrick de Gayardon, world champion skydiver; and Gus Wing, on free fall video and stills. The IMAX community had told us it would be impossible, but given our combined experience in not only the stringent safety requirements and new techniques of skydiving, but also the technical limitations for filming in the IMAX giant screen format, we believed we could prove everybody to be wrong.

The key to the success of this project was not only the high level of experience of the team, but the design of a harness system that mounts the IMAX camera on to the skydiving cameraman's chest, snugly enough to give him control of it during free-fall by flying it with his body, and mounted far enough forward to eliminate him from the frame even when using the super wide 30mm. lens. In free-fall, although the weight increases the rate of fall, the huge camera becomes effectively weightless, but on deployment of the parachute, it was critical that the design of the system allowed for the weight to be transferred to the parachute harness, removing any strain on his body. During the transition from free fall to flying under the parachute canopy, snatch forces up to five times gravity can be experienced, so the 85 pounds (40 Kg) camera could suddenly increase to 425 pounds (200 Kg); more than enough to infict fatal injuries. Our design worked well, deployments were safe, and landings were soft, in the stand-up position characteristic of square parachutes.