Musco Lighting - Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor Flying Titanic Course
Musco lights both films about historic catastophies

Musco lighting systems made this dramatic scene happen in the same 300-foot by 300-foot water tank that was used to film Titanic.

Behind the scenes

Look for these lighted scenes in Pearl Harbor:

•	A torn, bullet-ridden American flag floating in the Pacific Ocean
•	The simulated Pearl Harbor hospital
•	A huge blimp hangar showing American servicemen scrambling to man equipment for the counter attack

Historical facts:

•	Surprise air attack by the Japanese Imperial Navy December 7, 1941 on Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii
•	Triggered U.S. involvement in World War II
•	2,403 casualties: 2,335 servicemen; 68 civilians
•	188 planes destroyed
•	8 damaged or destroyed battleships
•	“A date that will live in infamy.” — President Franklin D. Roosevelt

More information can be found at the official movie site and at the Pearl Harbor Memorial commemorative site.

Whether the Memorial Day movie Pearl Harbor meets the early hype tabbing it the next Titanic remains to be seen. What is already decided is both crews’ selection of Musco systems for filming key elements of these feature films.

Pearl Harbor, set to open in theatres on May 25, does have similarities to the blockbuster movie Titanic:

Both films are based on tragic historical events;
The premise of both films is the evolution of a relationship between two people who get caught up in a catastrophic event;
Both were filmed in Rosarito Beach, Mexico for the “sinking ship” scenes — and used the same 300-foot by 300-foot tank with the Pacific Ocean as the background;
Both used Musco Lights™ extensively.

Several films have portrayed the events of December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii as part of an historical account of the United States’ involvement in World War II. This film takes a different approach.

Pearl Harbor is about two best friends who learned to fly as crop dusters, and then enlist in military services — one in the U.S. Army Air Corps and one in the British Royal Air Force. Their relationship, complicated for their love for the same woman, culminates in an ironic finale when they find themselves in the middle of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The film stars Ben Affleck, Josh Harnett, and Jon Voight as President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Los Angeles, Calif. — The simulated Pearl Harbor hospital, filmed from an added wing at Linda Vista Hospital. A Musco Light™ was parked across the street for a day interior shot of the dozen giant arched windows.

Musco Mobile systems were used 37 days on the set in a variety of ways.

“The Musco went everywhere with us,” said cinematographer John Schwartzman. From the massive shots at Rosarito Beach to the simulated Pearl Harbor hospital in Los Angeles, Calif., to the huge blimp hangar in Tustin, Calif., the Mobile technology and crew helped keep the film on time and on budget.

“Musco provided the most beautiful light for the most breathtaking shot in this picture,” said underwater specialist Pete Romano — the shot of a torn, bullet-riddled American flag floating into the ocean. Romano treaded water in the tank with his photography equipment, and with Musco’s light rack 165 feet above water pointing straight down to provide backlight, created a “shot everyone is going to remember.”

It will be interesting to see if the similarities between Titanic and Pearl Harbor extend to box office sales and awards. •

The Musco Light™ was used at several locations throughout the filming, including as a back light for the scene depicting the capsizing and sinking of the U.S.S. Oklahoma.