Pillar 01
Technical Innovation, STEAM and Applied R&D
A test room in the Ken Adam Building at Pinewood, and a working package to test against. A product goes through a shooting day in the hands of working heads of department and people meeting it for the first time. MR Helix Ltd contributes the technical expertise, the access and the infrastructure.
This is the pillar the other four are built on. It is the work that pays for the rest.
What we develop and test
Kit that has to survive a shoot day.
Developed and tested with manufacturers, vendors and research institutions.
Capture
Cameras, optics and workflow
Bodies, lenses, monitoring, media and the chain around them, on digital and on 35mm.
Support
Stabilisation, rigging and load
Gimbals, remote heads, support systems and exoskeletons.
Aerial
Drones and aerial systems
Airframes, payloads and the workflow around an aerial day.
Virtual
Virtual production and AI tools
Volumes, tracking, in-camera VFX, and AI tools under test.
Why us
The test
Two kinds of hands on the same kit.
Working heads of department and people meeting the product for the first time, on the same day. One says whether it survives a production. The other says what is confusing.
STEAM
A camera system is optics, mechanics, firmware, colour science and taste.
The engineering routes into this industry are rarely shown to people arriving from an arts education. STEAM is where this pillar shows them.
Who this pillar faces
Manufacturers, rental houses and the supply chain.
Manufacturers with a product in development, rental houses deciding what to carry, and research institutions that need a working unit. Scope, confidentiality and who handles the kit are set out with the test day.
Next pillar
The method it runs inside.
Almost every test day is also a production simulation. That is what makes it credible.