Grip Factory Munich News

Over the last few months GFM has been busy delivering the first series of GF-Primo Dollies to clients in Germany and abroad. It has to be said, especially in times as tough as these, that it’s extremely rewarding and motivating to experience the positive feedback and reactions of practically everyone who has seen or had the chance to work with the new GF-Primo Dolly.
One such experience came from the Munich based Key Grip, Emil Kaczur. In May and June 2009, he had the opportunity to work with the GF-Primo Dolly on a ZDF TV production "Flemming 2009" with DOP Jochen Stäblein. The GF-Primo was supplied by Klaus Daubenberger (gripdepot - Cologne).

“I'm used to with working with conventional dollies, and getting used to the GF-Primo Dolly required no learning or readdressing of my working style. In fact it was quite the opposite and in comparison, from the very beginning the GF-Primo Dolly proved to be more effective, innovative and extremely user friendly.

The GF-Primo Dolly relieves the Grips workload immensely. The wireless hand control unit can be used everywhere, especially from the steering rod where it can be operated perfectly without the usual interfering cable.
The steering rod has flexible height and angle adjustment ranging from high to low, therefore allowing the Grip to find the best possible position for steering and pushing. It means moving the dolly doesn't require bending over and twisting but allows an upright and overseeing steering of the dolly in every aspect -also on tight sets.

The display on the hand control unit is well arranged and clearly laid out showing a complete range of information such as battery voltage, column speed, ramp, lift range and height in a choice of mm, imperial and percentage. Even the display's contrast can be adjusted to suit different lighting situations.

The dolly platforms are actually fun to work with. The selection of threaded holes (12mm & 3/8”) and non-threaded holes (28 & 25mm) make them multi-functional and very useful, encouraging one to use and try out different variations. And because the platforms can be combined and locked to each other, attaching lights, cameras, low shot plates, monitors, seats etc is really easy. The platforms are lightweight and can be mounted quietly (!!!) and the integrated carry grips make them easy to carry.

The new “Big Wheels” allow an easy and problem free transport of the dolly over all types of ground surfaces and what's fantastic is they keep the track wheels clean. And with the “Big Wheels” it's also possible to drive onto the track and leave them on when working on track. The studio wheels work perfectly on all types of floors such as (wooden and stone floors, tiles, pvc, needle felt and carpets).

Another highlight is the central gearbox for selecting the different steering modes of front, crab and rear as it's easy to operate and can be switched over with one hand.

The low position of the Euro-adapter on the column is another great advantage as it, in a lot of cases, eliminates the need for using a low rig.

Changing the batteries is fast easy and completely no problem. In comparison to conventional batteries (!) the GFM batteries are lighter so mounting them is no trouble whatsoever. They last much longer than what I'm generally used to. The display shows me the precise battery voltage when I'm working and also indicates when they need to be exchanged.

DOP Jochen Stäblein didn't need much convincing about the advantages of the GF-Primo Dolly as he was thrilled with the functionality, design and handling - as was the Camera Assistant, Lars Richter and 2nd Camera Operator, Niv Abootalebi. Which expressed itself in daily discussions as to who would be allowed work with the GFM Dolly today...

My conclusion: the GF-Primo is a trend setting piece of equipment that, within the near future will establish itself as the professional standard. Keep it up GFM!

Best wishes Emil Kaczur”