Search Results for:
Julian Zarzoso-Lowe (The Batman, Project Hail Mary) on the Prodigy Air Deflector
The Prodigy Air Deflector has quickly become a favourite for professional filmmakers: blasting compressed air at over 300mph; it keeps your camera’s front element clear of interference from dust, moisture or other particulates.
Julian Zarzoso-Lowe is a 2nd Assistant Cameraman and Camera Technician with extensive experience across Film and TV production. His production credits include Matt Reeves’ The Batman (2022), Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn (2023), and Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s upcoming Project Hail Mary – due to release in 2026. One of the first people to field-test the Prodigy in the prototype stage, Zarzoso-Lowe now defaults to it on any production.
“If we’ve ever needed a rain deflector or an air deflector – anything that’s going to get in front of the lens – I’ve always pushed to have a Prodigy. I’ve asked for a Prodigy every single time. There’s a number of scenarios that I can think of where I know that if we hadn’t had a Prodigy for that situation, we wouldn’t have been able to get the shots that we wanted.”
– Julian Zarzoso-Lowe
As mentioned by fellow The Batman AC Russel Torode, the torrential Gotham City rain would have been a nightmare to shoot in were it not for the Prodigy. Zarzoso-Lowe echoes this:
“The chase sequence in The Batman, we had loads of shots going straight into driving rain – low-angle, lots of spray. A classic spinning rain deflector wouldn’t have been able to handle that, or any of the grit or stones that would have been kicked up. Anything that would have been able to handle it would have been much larger, and we wouldn’t have been able to get that close to the ground.”
– Julian Zarzoso-Lowe
One of the major benefits of the Prodigy over contemporary spinners and manual cleaning methods is the speed: on shoots where time is precious and patience is thin, Zarzoso-Lowe remembers how past productions had been slowed down.
“I wish I’d had access to a Prodigy on every single job I’ve ever done. There was an occasion a couple of years ago, filming this big battle sequence on a beach in Cornwall. It was raining, there was spray from the sea, it was windy – and we were running out of time.
The 1st AD was calling for turnover, but I had to be the one to say ‘hang on, there’s water all over the lens’ – even with the spinner that we had. So I had to pause everything, turn off the spinner, wipe it all down and turn it on again. And even then, it didn’t work. It was carnage with all those moving parts.”
– Julian Zarzoso-Lowe
Fast-forward to today, and the Prodigy has become a mainstay in his arsenal for shoots in any extreme condition. On the Rupert Wyatt film Desert Warrior, the Prodigy proved itself an unobtrusive addition to any shooting scenario.
“We did some additional photography for [Desert Warrior] out in the Saudi Arabia desert. We took a Prodigy for a scene in a shower, where we knew we’d need to keep water off the lens. But with a later scene in a sandstorm, we found that the lens was getting covered in dust and sand. And so we thought ‘well, let’s put the Prodigy on there as well.’
What’s also really good about the Prodigy is that it’s kind of combined with a matte box, meaning that you can stick it on the front of your camera and not worry about it too much – then when you need it, you flick it on. The way that it is integrated means that you’re not always taking it off and on.
I know that if we do have to put a Prodigy on, […] it can be done quickly. You need something that you can rely on, and the Prodigy is definitely one of those things.”
– Julian Zarzoso-Lowe
The Prodigy Air Deflector is available to purchase now from our website or from affiliated retailers.
Try Before You Buy
Alternatively, pick up the Prodigy as and when you need it, via a number of rental houses worldwide. If you need clean shots for your next production, try out the Prodigy Air Deflector at one of these rental houses:
Share:
