UNLOCKED: Inside Shane Hurlbut ASC’s Production Office Toolkit
In Part 2 of Shane Hurlbut, ASC’s Best Cinematography Tools, Shane explains the 10 tools he employs in the production office.
You’re going to learn:
Shane’s essential tools that he utilizes in the production office to ensure that he’s ready for anything thrown his way. |
Watch as Shane presents his favorite tools inside his film production office toolkit!
1. G-TECH 4TB ARMORATD (EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE):
Shane loves the G-Tech 4 terabyte hard drive because it holds everything he needs for the entire movie. In fact, he gets one for each and every film. It holds all of his assets like location pictures, scouting shots, and Insta360 videos that are captured in 4K.
2. EXTERNAL POWER BANK:
Whether Shane is in the PO or on the go, he needs a portable battery that can support his needs. He appreciates this specific model for its fast-charging capabilities as well as sporting a wide range of ports embedded within it. That way, he doesn’t need to worry about accessory cables – it’s preloaded and ready to go!
3. APPLE TV:
During the pre-production and production process, you’ll constantly need to reference specific films. Apple TV allows Shane to pull up apps like Hulu, Netflix, HBO Max, and Disney+. Then, he can pull up any particular film or series for some inspiration!
4. CABLE CLUSTERS & MEMORY STICKS:
The cable clusters hold all the cables Shane needs for hard drives and other devices. While in the production office, you’ll need to have the ability to hook up to Ethernet.
Sure, Wi-Fi may be available but sometimes Ethernet is required for a high-speed connection. The options that come with the cable bundle make it absolutely essential in order to be prepared for anything.
- USBs
- Ethernet Cables
- Adapters
Memory sticks are crucial when sharing information, whether it’s with the production designer, wardrober, director, or 1st AD. Be sure to always have some on hand so you can exchange pictures, sketches, diagrams, or images.
Cables in the cluster include:
- Apple Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet
- Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter
- Apple USB-C AV Multiport Adapter
- SanDisk 128GB Flash Drive
5. GALAXY MOUSE & KEYBOARD PAD:
Next is Shane’s Galaxy mousepad. It’s a gaming mouse pad that is absolutely indispensable for working with his lighting schematics, blocking schematics, drawing, and Photoshop work. He loves it because it allows him lots of range to move his mouse around and increases both his creativity and efficiency.
6. APPLE MAGIC MOUSE 2 & WIRELESS KEYBOARD:
The Magic Mouse 2 comes with the keyboard. You can use the mouse to scroll and zoom along with lots of other significant functions that increase your speed and efficiency. This is ideal for when Shane is working on his blocking and lighting schematics.
In addition, there’s the Apple Magic wireless keyboard. It’s lightweight and easily fits into Shane’s bag – as opposed to the elongated kind that’s more difficult for travel.
7. TREE NEW BEE LAPTOP COOLING PAD:
The last thing you want is for your laptop to overheat when you need it most. The Tree New Bee Laptop Fans utilizes four fans. Simply set your laptop on it and plug it in and the fans burst to life to keep your computer cool and operational.
8. DELL 32” MONITOR:
Shane prefers his 32-inch Dell monitor with its thin width and excellent performance capabilities. So far, he’s used it on nine movies! When traveling, he removes the base and fits it into the packaging box that it came in. Then, he wraps it with a lot of JLR tape to ensure that it’s protected.
9. POWER STRIP TOWER:
In the office, there are seemingly never enough power ports. That’s why Shane always brings this tower with him. He is able to toggle all the different Edison plugs on or off and it includes numerous USB ports, which is essential for charging devices from his Insta360 charger to his phone.
10. SHAMMY TOWEL & FSI SCREEN CLEANER:
A Shammy and Flanders monitor cleaner works wonders for cleaning your screen, and even your glasses if you wear them. As a cinematographer, the last thing you want is to look through dirty glass or screens.
PRODUCTION OFFICE BONUS #1: ZIP TIES:
They are necessary when traveling and boxing things up. Shane stores zip ties in his bag so he always has them. When you go to the airport, the last thing you want is people getting into your gear.
Shane waits until his bags go through security and the TSA places an envelope inside to confirm they performed an inspection. Then with duct tape, Shane secures four or five more zip ties so security can re-zip tie the ones that they clipped off.
PRODUCTION OFFICE BONUS #2: STORAGE TIP:
So, you may be curious about how Shane actually gets his gear from Point A to Point B. For the location scout, we discussed the bags that Shane takes on the plane. However, for his production office gear, Shane packs it all in his wheeled industrial tote. He takes it through LAX and zip-ties it in four places to keep it secure and protected.
More Cinematography Tools
- Tech & Location Scouting Kit for Cinematographers
- On Set Cinematography Tools
- A Cinematographer’s Travel Tools