Europe
Professional Video
Content creation & presentation
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Horse welfare
Leading international horse charity World Horse Welfare has been using the new JVC HM-100 camcorder to document one of the biggest abuses of horses in Europe. The charity
campaigns against the long distance transportation of horses to slaughter in Europe and, in a recent fact finding trip, Film and New Media Officer Basil Hayes used the GY-HM100 to
document this needless suffering.
“The small form factor of the GY-HM100 was perfect for this filming assignment, as it enabled me to travel with minimal shooting kit; the camera, spare batteries, SDHC cards, radio microphone kit and a small tripod, but still capture fine HD images at 35mbps,” Basil reveals.
The June field trip followed the trade route from Romania, where horses are sourced, through to their arrival in Italy, where the horses are processed through abattoirs into the human food chain. Around 100,000 horses each year are made to endure agonising journeys lasting many days and covering thousands of miles across Europe to slaughter, often travelling in cramped conditions without adequate food, water or rest periods. With such a sensitive subject, filming was often taking place in potentially volatile situations.
“Without a doubt, filming with the GY-HM100 allowed me to take more discreet footage. There were situations where the drivers of the transportation lorries were not keen to be
filmed, and yet we still needed to gather evidence of how the current legislation isn't going far enough to protect the horses,” Basil continues. “The compact nature of the
camcorder allowed it to be placed in confined spaces, showing the cramped conditions these horses are subjected to, not being able to move for days at a time, in extreme heat.
“The layout of the camcorder is perfect for filming around
nervous animals, with all controls to hand and easily accessible. The GY-HM100 also has an excellent automatic mode
for “run and gun” situations such as the loading of horses into lorries that can be fraught with incident and the need to relocate quickly and effectively.”
The footage from the trip was all filmed in 720p 25fps .MP4, which was then dropped straight into Adobe Premiere Pro CS4 for editing without the need to transcode into a different
format. The final edited package will be presented to the European Commission to highlight the need for better legislation and enforcement. The film will also be uploaded to YouTube
(in HD) to help raise support for the campaign and will be used at the World Horse Welfare Annual Conference to highlight the work we are doing and the overwhelming need to end
long-distance transport to slaughter.
It is hoped that the footage captured with the GY-HM100 will help to bring an end to this inhumane and unnecessary trade. To sign World Horse Welfare’s petition, please
click here.
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