Film Trilogy Aladdin 3477 Created with Blackmagic Design

Film Trilogy Aladdin 3477 Created with Blackmagic Design

Brie Clayton March 5, 2025

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New independent sci fi trilogy shot with Blackmagic Design cameras.

Blackmagic Design today announced that the independent feature film trilogy Aladdin 3477 was captured with Blackmagic Design digital film cameras. Taking more than 14 years to make, the three part saga was filmed in tandem with its first installment, Aladdin 3577: The Jinn of Wisdom, now streaming.

Aladdin 3477 is based on the classic Arabian Nights tale but is set 1,500 years in the future throughout India and Asia. The trilogy was written and directed by Matt Busch, an illustrator who has worked with notable franchises and musicians ranging from Star Wars and Indiana Jones to M tley Cr e and Poison.

According to Busch, I set out to create my own epic saga, a trilogy of live action films. I knew it wasn't going to happen through a corporate Hollywood studio. Blackmagic Design cameras helped me achieve that dream and make the films look like giant studio movies without the giant studio budget.

Busch relied heavily on practical effects and miniatures during production for the sci fi films that feature mechanical robot puppets and even a flying Taj Mahal. From the beginning, I wanted to make these films with tried and true old school practical effects. The Blackmagic Design cameras were great because I was able to use forced perspective but also push the depth of field or go wide depending on what would sell the miniatures better for the given shot, he explained.

Busch noted that the cameras' durability kept the production going, shooting everywhere from India to Hong Kong to Michigan. We never had to worry about the cameras, and we definitely pushed them to the limit while filming in all sorts of environments. On location, we filmed in barren sand dunes, urban abandoned buildings that were crumbling, and in water on lakes and in ponds, he added. For our interiors, we rented an industrial facility for six years where we were able to construct giant sets. However, those shoots were difficult as well since we had to turn off heating and cooling for sound. There were times in the winter when those sets were below freezing temperatures, and in the summer our soundstage became an oven with temperatures often nearing 100 degrees.

Busch decided to film all three films concurrently to help save costs for his large scale project. While this is an independent project, we didn't want it to feel that way. We spent a lot of time finding and designing unique sets, props and costumes. We couldn't afford to strike and rebuild for each film, so we decided to shoot all three films at once and then tackle them one at a time in post, he said. I started with easier scenes and smaller sets in the beginning. We were really happy with how things were looking, so we took it as a challenge to keep outdoing ourselves, making each set better than the one before. Eventually we got into filming action scenes, and we kept raising the bar each time we choreographed the next one.

Busch's camera kit also evolved over time, starting with the Blackmagic Production Camera 4K digital film camera and later incorporating the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 4.6K and Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera digital film cameras.

With such a long production schedule, we needed cameras that would stand the test of time. I first selected the Production Camera 4K for its cinematic look. I needed a camera where the picture quality itself was next level, bringing a sense of class to the production, Busch explained. Two years into the production, we added a second camera since we needed additional capabilities with film speeds for shooting miniatures and wanted an extra body for filming alternate angle stunts and action scenes. We started using the URSA Mini Pro as our A cam, keeping the Production Camera 4K as the B camera, and using the Pocket Cinema Camera as needed.

It was great to always have the Pocket on hand, as there were many times when traveling or checking out locations that we were able to get some quick shots on the go, which ended up in the films as establishing shots or background plates. We would shoot while traveling the world and weave the footage into the story, whether we were using the Pocket to capture helicopter footage flying through majestic mountains in Switzerland or riding a rickshaw through dense alleyways of Delhi, India.

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