Timelapse of The Kelpies’ fiery unveiling

EDINBURGH-based filmmaker Walid Salhab has released his latest creation - a clip capturing the spectacular unveiling of The Kelpies sculpture.
A still from Walid Salhab's dramatic timelapse video of The Kelpies launch. Picture: Walid Salhab/Raw Films/Bill AnnauA still from Walid Salhab's dramatic timelapse video of The Kelpies launch. Picture: Walid Salhab/Raw Films/Bill Annau
A still from Walid Salhab's dramatic timelapse video of The Kelpies launch. Picture: Walid Salhab/Raw Films/Bill Annau

Mr Salhab, a media practice lecturer at Queen Margaret University, produced this dramatic film using a combination of timelapse and stop-motion techniques.

Walid’s unique style of stop-motion/time-lapse film was produced by piecing together thousands of photos to create the illusion of movement. The pyrotechnics performance ran for three hours over two evenings. Walid’s team shot more than 15,000 photos over the six-hour period with most of these photos making it into the final edit.

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Mr Salhab said: “We were unsure if the combination of stop-motion photography and slow-motion video would work on this project. We also had the challenge of condensing the three hour event into a three minute film without losing any of the drama. The Kelpies make a magnificent centrepiece for a unique pyrotechnic show like this. It was a marvellous spectacle and I hope our footage helps to share the stunning performance with an international audience.”

A still from Walid Salhab's dramatic timelapse video of The Kelpies launch. Picture: Walid Salhab/Raw Films/Bill AnnauA still from Walid Salhab's dramatic timelapse video of The Kelpies launch. Picture: Walid Salhab/Raw Films/Bill Annau
A still from Walid Salhab's dramatic timelapse video of The Kelpies launch. Picture: Walid Salhab/Raw Films/Bill Annau

Walid worked with a crew of five which included the team from Smart Film Production (Marcin Walczak and Ondrej Lodes) and Raw Film Productions (Michael Grant and Agata Jagodzinska). Smart Film and Raw Film Productions are fledgling video production companies run by QMU film graduates.

More information on The Helix and The Kelpies can be found here -www.thehelix.co.uk/thekelpies

The amazing pyrotechnics were staged by Groupe F, the specialist company famous for lighting up the Eiffel Tower during the Millennium firework display.

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