June 11, 2015—Award-winning underwater filmmaker Pawel Achtel received another accolade at the recent National Awards of the Australian Cinematographers’ Society in Hobart, winning the inaugural Bob Miller ACS Technical & Achievement Award in recognition of his ground-breaking 2D and 3D underwater camera systems.
This new award for innovation was created to honour the life and ingenuity of Australian Bob Miller, who invented and, along with his father Eric, patented the fluid head now used in tripods around the globe and set up the successful company Miller Camera Support Equipment in 1954. “The ACS is honoured to have helped create this award with Miller, as we believe that it will carry enormous credibility within the greater community of esteemed cinematographers worldwide,” said Ron Johanson, OAM ACS, National President of the Australian Cinematographers’ Society. The award comes with a framed certificate, $1000 cash, and $2000 in Miller products.
“It’s a huge honour,” said Achtel, in Sydney after the Awards Night. “I’m really proud of the underwater camera systems I’ve created in recent years, but to have this sort of recognition is something special.” Achtel, who won further recognition on the night for his film Coral Sea, will now have his name engraved onto a special Miller LP54 Classic tripod, permanently on display at the ACS National Headquarters in Sydney.
In recent years, Achtel’s Tasmania-based company has created a series of innovative underwater camera systems, culminating last year in the release of the “Deep X 3D 6K” camera, an astonishing piece of kit that uniquely produces images sharp from one corner to the other, every frame, in 6K resolution—a huge leap forward for Giant Screen underwater productions.
Source: Achtel Pty Ltd