Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyis film, The Rescue tells the story of the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue in which twelve boys' from the Wild Boars Football Club and their coach were trapped in a flooded cave complex in Thailand. Documenting the huge risks taken by a team of specialist divers during the rescue, the production combines documentary footage with painstaking dramatic reconstructions shot by top underwater cinematographer Ian Seabrook.
Seabrook's earliest dives were on Australia's Great Barrier Reef, a visual spectacle that prompted him to combine the twin passions of diving and photography and to focus on one job - as underwater cinematographer. Initially starting out on documentary and commercial productions, by the late 90s Seabrook was working in narrative as well, and today has an extensive list of underwater credits including Batman v Superman, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell no Tales, Deadpool 2,and Jungle Cruise.
The Rescue began preproduction in 2019, with Seabrook's experience in both narrative and documentary production immediately crucial. The filmmakers came to me to recreate the rescue operation, and I was given autonomy with regards to camera, lens, and format selection. Seabrook chose the ARRI Alexa MINI LF, recording its sensor in open-gate, with ZEISS Supreme Prime and Supreme Prime Radiance lenses.
One reason behind the decision was, Seabrook, says, we thought the film might get an IMAX release due to the subject matter and fact that the directors prior film, Free Solo, benefitted from an IMAX release. The Rescue is an amalgamation of news footage, interview footage that was photographed in a few countries, and aerial photography from Thailand. I felt that with the underwater portion of it being photographed in open gate, the images would have their own unique look and allow the audience to become immersed in the environment.
Creating images worthy of the biggest of big screens meant finding the right methodology to illuminate an environment that is oppressively dark. It was a confined cave environment, Seabrook says, and the only illumination was the divers' headlights. I had several meetings beforehand with the actual cave divers who performed the rescue operation, who told me how things were handled, and what they used for illumination during the dives.
With the Supreme Prime Radiance, each light source brought a unique quality of light and subsequent life to the frame. One of the reasons I settled on the Radiance was due to the unique blue flare patterns that the lenses were designed to create, Seabrook confirms. I shot tests underwater with the lenses wide open at T1.5 and also at a more desirable T4-5.6. With some of the divers' lights, we found that when we shot it wide open, the lights basically bloomed and there was little to no detail prevalent. I then selected an aperture I wanted to shoot at and tested that with a few different ISO combinations until I arrived at what I found to be the sweet spot for this project. Thats one of the main reasons why that lens and sensor combo was spectacular.
Leveraging the depth-of-field control offered by large format camerawork was just as crucial. The reason I shot at a certain aperture was to hide the fact that there was less cave structure set than we had access to, Seabrook says. We were able to camouflage the fact that we did not have miles of cave to shoot in. At the same time, the Supreme Primes' close-focus capability was crucial for a shoot where the camera and subject distance would be in loose proximity to one another.
The close focus distance on the Supremes was an amazing asset, Seabrook enthuses. I didnt have to use auxiliary diopters because the close focus of those lenses was at most fourteen inches. Normally what anyone will require with a dome port is between sixteen and eighteen inches, so the fact that the lens focuses even closer was an enormous benefit. When we were doing re-creation work for the surface portion of the shoot with the vials of sedatives that were injected into the children, I could get close enough to read the names, ketamine, and atropine, on the labels.
To the delight of everyone involved, The Rescue was to get its hoped-for huge-screen finish, and Seabrook saw his images projected at a vast scale. I saw it on an IMAX screen TIFF, Seabrook recalls, and the underwater imagery had great detail and, at that size, was immersive. The real-world story behind those images, meanwhile, created lasting memories. Working with the actual divers who did the rescue was an honor such amazing individuals who were selfless and brave. They were able to go into an environment that very few people would even be able to survive in, let alone succeed in doing the impossible. I felt that needed to be represented in the best way possible. And for me, the best way was to shoot it with that sensor and those lenses.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/10/2026
COW Jobs: Visual Storyteller - Emeryville, CA
Brie Clayton October 9, 2026
0 Comments
Visual Storyteller
October 7, 2026 COW Jobs: Cinematographer...
09/10/2026
Master 3-Point Lighting in After Effects With an Orbiting Light Rig
Graham Quince October 9, 2026
0 Comments
Ever wondered why your 3D renders in Afte...
09/10/2026
nxtedition will exhibit for the first time at Asias Broadcasting & Infotainment Show (A.B.I.S) in Mumbai, bringing its integrated production platform and latest...
09/10/2026
Today's AI Isn't the Answer
Andy Marken October 8, 2026
0 Comments
Let's say you're telling the truth, and this is all a dream. - Do...
09/10/2026
Ikegami to Introduce New UHK-X700VN Camera at NAB New York, Offering Advanced Cr...
09/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/10/2026
Witness world firsts, new arrivals and the work that goes on behind the scenes a...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
08/10/2026
Modern venues have come a long way since the tinny, echoing audio of the mid 20t...
08/10/2026
ESPN's first Super Bowl production will stream in English and Spanish on Disney+, while the ESPN App carries the full slate of game, ManningCast, studio, an...
08/10/2026
From high-school videoboards to War Eagle Productions, the Opelika native is learning how to lead shows and capture big moments
The future of live sports produ...
08/10/2026
The Television Academy and Prime Video have announced a six-year agreement making Prime Video the exclusive global home of the Emmy Awards beginning with the 20...
08/10/2026
Techex will exhibit at NAB Show New York 2026 (Booth 623, Javits Center, October...
08/10/2026
X Games has announced the appointment of Steve Rogers as Chief Operating Officer. Rogers previously served as COO of World Supercross and spent nearly a decade ...
08/10/2026
Fonn Group has appointed Trevor Spielmann as Sales Director for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Spielmann joins from EVS, where he held sales and business de...
08/10/2026
The flagship program will originate from major PG events with a four-camera production, live distribution across PGTV, social platforms
Perfect Game is bringin...
08/10/2026
Innovation rarely happens in a vacuum. More often, it happens at the point of collision: when worlds that have run on separate tracks begin to converge. That is...
08/10/2026
For decades, the production and broadcast services business has run on a familia...
08/10/2026
Uplynk, Zixi, BroadView Software, and Grass Valley have published The IP Converg...
08/10/2026
The NFL has announced the return of the Big Data Bowl, the league's analytics competition, now in its ninth year and again powered by AWS. Registration is o...
08/10/2026
Eutelsat has renewed its partnership with T l diffusion d'Alg rie (TDA), Algeria's national broadcasting network operator, for continued distribution of...
08/10/2026
Disney will livestream Super Bowl LXI on February 14, 2027, alongside the game's broadcast on ESPN and ABC. All Disney subscribers in the United States wi...
08/10/2026
RHStv and Red House Streaming have announced an expansion of their partnership w...
08/10/2026
Gray Media has announced a distribution agreement with TEGNA and DAZN to simulca...
08/10/2026
SVG readers can save 10% on registration and receive a complimentary Solutions H...
08/10/2026
PROTON Camera Innovations GmbH has been named a recipient of a 2026 Technology a...
08/10/2026
Industry leaders discuss real-world cloud workflows for live game production, pl...
08/10/2026
The next-gen audio technology joins Dolby Vision as part of Apple TV's immersive F1 experience...
08/10/2026
David France, Jesse Short Bull, Mato Wayuhi, N. Bird Runningwater, Jodi Archambau, Jhane Myers, Paul McGuire, Amber Morning Star Byars, Holly Macarro, Nick Tils...
08/10/2026
Dynamic panning plug-ins get an upgrade
Sound Particles have just announced major updates for two of their popular dynamic panning plug-ins. Energy Panner 2...
08/10/2026
New expandable instrument boasts full DMNO engine
UDO Audio have just announced the upcoming release of a new, expandable synth that packs the power of the ...
08/10/2026
Two new subwoofers added to monitoring line-up
ADAM Audio's monitoring range has just been expanded with two new DSP-equipped subwoofers, the Sub8 PRO a...
08/10/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
08/10/2026
Calrec gives broadcasters freedom of choice at NAB Show New York We're looking forward to meeting up with you all at NAB New York on 21st-22nd October.
Cal...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, will showcase its next generation of media orchestration services at NAB S...
08/10/2026
Clear-Com played a critical role in the production communications infrastructure for Rock in Rio 2026, one of the world's largest and most recognized music...
08/10/2026
Sohonet Launches ClearView Rush: A Leap Forward in Studio Review, Built for Crea...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyis film, The Rescue tells the story of the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue in which twelve boys' from the Wild Boars Football Club and their coach were trapped in a flooded cave complex in Thailand. Documenting the huge risks taken by a team of specialist divers during the rescue, the production combines documentary footage with painstaking dramatic reconstructions shot by top underwater cinematographer Ian Seabrook. 
