Film & Production Work

blog — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 12:28:54 +0000

Book a Taxi Online or phone +44 (0)7779 336 612

We can provide licensed London Black Taxis and drivers for use in all types of production & film work, TV work, advertising, music videos, and promotional videos, including the safe transport of equipment.

Portfolio of Our Recent Work

We recently have provided film & production services to:

Blackcab Sessions, for filming music sessions at the Big Chill Festival. (booked for August 2009)

Parallel 28 Equipe for filming with the Bee Gees (July 2009)

Love Productions, for the filming of an interview with Ian Duncan Smith, MP. (July 2009)

William Orbit, for the safe transfer of production equipment to the BBC for a live session broadcast. (July 2009)

BBC, for the filming of Frank Skinner and Lee Mac in “Around the World in 80 Days“. (June 2009)

ITV, for the safe transfer of production equipment to a Surrey location . (June 2009)

Channel 4, for the filming of a documentary on plastic surgery. (June 2009)

Blackcab Sessions, for their filming of a session with musician William Orbit. (May 2009)

Our Service

Whatever your production requirements, we can provide service on an hourly, daily or weekly rate.

We supply taxis and drivers for both UK and International TV, film, music, theatre, and production companies.

We request 2-4 hours notice on all bookings, but in most circumstances we can supply a taxi within a shorter time scale.

Let us know your needs and we will do our very best to accomodate you.

Rates

Start from £30.00 per hour and from £300.00 for the whole day.

Weekly rates are negotiable.

There is a deposit of £5.00 on all online bookings.

All major credit cards accepted, including VISA debit and American Express

+44 (0)7779 336 612

www.londonblacktaxis.net

London Black Cab Sessions

blog — Mon, 18 May 2009 07:35:08 +0000

Book a Taxi Online or phone +44 (0)7779 336 612

Have you heard of The Black Cab Sessions?

We have been chosen to be a Black Cab Sessions cab!

The Black Cab Sessions are a series of one-song performances by musicians and poets recorded in the back of a Black Cab and filmed for an Internet audience. The sessions are recorded while the black cab that serves as the studio travels through city streets, usually in London, England but sometimes in other places such as New York City.

On their website www.blackcabsessions.com, they tell us that

The sessions are all about great music and the venue strips this to its essence. We aren’t picky about genre and will happily open the cab door to anyone who blows us away.

Their motto is

One Song. One Take. One Cab.

The Black Cab Sessions video clips begin with a screen showing the name of the artist and date that the session was recorded. Next follows a shot of the cab driver introducing the artist or band. The artists then give their performance.

Most of the performances feature rock bands, ranging from popular acts such as Death Cab for Cutie, The Kooks and My Morning Jacket to lesser known acts such as the Cave Singers. Other performances stray from the rock music scene: folk music, poetry, and even beat-boxing (a form of vocal percussion which produces drum beats, rhythm, and musical sounds).

These intimate performances embody the lo-fi ethos of the indie rock scene and have have gained a cult following of viewers both on their own website and on YouTube.

During the performances, the artists can often be seen reacting to the unusual venue. For example, during the New Pornographers session, the two musicians can be seen bouncing up and down in their seats as the cab hits speed bumps. The performances are also shaped by the space afforded by the back of a London black cab.

The Black Cab Sessions were conceived by Jono Stevens and produced as a partnership between Hidden Fruit (Gen Stevens and Chris Pattinson) and Just So Films (Jonny Madderson and Will Evans). Filming of The Black Cab Sessions began in May, 2007 and is ongoing.

One of the producers reports that about 10 percent of the cab drivers approached by the producers turns them down, thinking that the idea is weird, but that those who do participate enjoy it.