LOFOTEN, NORWAY, MARCH 7, 2017 - As a producer and director who also has an honors degree in genetics and a personal interest in surfing, Mike Cunliffe brings this eclectic set of skills and knowledge to any project in which he is involved. All were recently enlisted for his latest campaign, "The Plastic Project," which documents the negative effects plastic has on the environment on both a macro and micro level. To help Cunliffe capture the action for "The Plastic Project,", he turned to his Arrow 40 2-Stage Sprinter II Carbon Fibre System from Miller Camera Support Equipment, a leader in the production of innovating camera support solutions.

As someone who is already environmentally conscious, Cunliffe found himself drawn to this project not only for professional reasons, but personal as well. "I filmed a couple of segments with Tim Nunn, the stills photographer who started the project," he explains. "We found the most pristine, beautiful beach I think I've ever seen in the Lofoten Islands, which are located just inside the Arctic Circle in North Norway. On these most unbelievably beautiful beaches we would just find plastic rubbish from pretty much any country in Europe that you could think of, including the inland countries. There was also rubbish from anywhere that bordered the Atlantic, both North and South; it was extraordinary." 

To help him capture such a bleak environment, Cunliffe needed a system that could support his entire setup. Being in such remote locations, he would need to bring most of his equipment with him, including his Sony PXW-FS7, Convergent Design Odyssey7Q+ monitor/recorder, Canon EF 100-400mm lens, matte box and adaptors. "The base of my setup is about four kg and the last time I weighed the camera with everything it was about 16 1/2 kg," observes Cunliffe. "I find the counter weight of the Arrow 40 very good, particularly when you're using long rods and a long lens. You're putting an immense amount of pressure on the counter weight on your setup and need a reliable system that's going to work. The other thing about the Arrow 40 is the carbon legs are rock solid. We deal with howling offshore winds, but it's a very solid platform that we're on and the carbon doesn't flex."

The next step of "The Plastic Project" for Nunn and Cunliffe is to travel to the Northern-most beach in Russia, a popular surfing destination, to document the negative impacts of plastic there. Once filming has wrapped up, the team plans on giving clips to schools to recut and revoice and allow them to make their own environmental multimedia projects, furthering the education of students on the negative effects of plastic on the environment.

The Arrow 40 has a 35lbs payload and a four-step counterbalance with a range of 15.4-35lbs. It also features seven (plus zero) selectable positions of fluid drag, dual pan handle rosettes and caliper disc brake system. 

Although the Arrow 40 is now discontinued, it is still supported and in use worldwide. Miller expanded on the Arrow Fluid Head's success with the creation of the arrowX range of fluid heads, including the arrowX 5, which is the successor to the Arrow 40. 

"We are very pleased our Arrow 40 helped to make this project a reality," says Charles Montesin, global sales and marketing manager, Miller Camera Support Equipment. "The Arrow 40 has helped serve Mike for a number of years and he has produced some great work with it. During 2016 Miller built on user feedback from the Arrow range and was tremendously proud to launch the arrowX range of fluid heads. This new series replaced the Arrow range and highlighted several new key features, including our CB PLUS(tm) technology. Our mission to support filmmakers, like Mike, who make a global impact with their work will continue with the arrowX for years to come."

To learn more about "The Plastic Project," please visit: https://theplastic-project.com/.

Founded in 1954, Miller Camera Support Equipment designs, manufactures and delivers professional fluid heads and tripods to the film and television industry, providing support for the world's leading camera operators. Celebrating more than sixty years in the industry, Miller is a longtime, global leader in the field of contemporary camera support and holds the first patent for fluid head design for film cameras, which it obtained in 1946. Today, Miller's tripod and camera support systems are frequently used during electronic news gatherings (ENG), electronic field production (EFP), and digital video applications by the world's leading networks, production houses, corporate, educational and government institutions in more than 65 countries. For more information, call +61 2 9439 6377 or visit www.millertripods.com.