Feature film · Camera operator and BTS photography

Behind the camera on Saint Nick of Bethlehem

We worked as a camera operator and shot the behind-the-scenes photos on Saint Nick of Bethlehem, the feature film from directors Spencer Folmar and Daniel Roebuck.

By Tony Ellis Martinez · TM Productions

A camera operator at a cinema camera on a church set
On the church set.

About the film

Saint Nick of Bethlehem is the story of a man who loses his son, takes on the role of Santa Claus and finds a new purpose in it, and it's based on the life of Allen Smith of Central Pennsylvania. Spencer Folmar and Daniel Roebuck directed it, Roebuck plays Nick, and Cathy Moriarty and Stelio Savante star alongside him.

Ben Daniele, Spencer Folmar, Isaac March, Daniel Roebuck and Doug Tschirhart produced it, Andre Welsh is the cinematographer, and the production companies are Hard Faith, Magic Bean Entertainment and Scatter Brothers Productions.

What we did on the film

TM Productions came on as a camera operator and shot the behind-the-scenes photos, so we were right in the middle of the camera team on the days we worked, around the dolly, the monitors and the cast.

In the church

Part of the shoot was in a church, with the camera on a dolly riding a track through the pews and the sanctuary full of extras. A set like that is tight, so every move gets worked out with the whole camera team before anybody rolls.

A camera operator beside a cinema camera on a dolly in the pews of a church
The camera on the dolly in the pews.
Two crew members working a cinema camera on a dolly track laid over the pews
Working out a dolly move over the pews.
Two crew members checking the monitor on top of a cinema camera
Checking the shot on the camera monitor.
A crew member leaning over a cinema camera in the pews with a full sanctuary behind it
A full sanctuary behind the camera.
A crew member watching a shot of the cast on a field monitor
Watching the shot on the monitor.
A monitor on a cinema camera in the foreground with the cast standing in a line down the church hall
The cast on the monitor and in the room.
A camera operator with his eye to a cinema camera, its monitor showing the shot
The operator on the eyepiece.
A crew member beside a cinema camera with a monitor showing the shot in a church
Between takes in the church.

On the street

We also worked out on a downtown street dressed for Christmas, with the camera on a tripod on the sidewalk and the crew working around the storefronts.

Crew members looking up at a shot beside a cinema camera on a tripod on a downtown sidewalk
Setting up on the sidewalk.
A cinema camera with a matte box on a tripod on a downtown sidewalk, with a crew member beside it
The camera on the street.
A camera operator working a cinema camera on a tripod on a downtown street
Operating on the sidewalk.
A crew member beside two cinema cameras on tripods outside a storefront
Two cameras outside a storefront.
Two camera assistants building a cinema camera in a hallway
Building the camera between setups.
A large group of cast and crew posing together in a church hall
A group photo in the church hall.

Thanks to Spencer, Daniel and the whole production for having us on the film.

Film details via IMDb. Photos by TM Productions.