Ever Eco Maiden Call - Dual-Drone Filming for Evergreen Marine
Two drones, one RIB, and a 369-metre methanol-fuelled giant - capturing the maiden UK call of Evergreen Marine's Ever Eco at the Port of Felixstowe.
Maiden Voyage of EVER ECO - A Dual-Fuel Containership
The MV Ever Eco is a landmark vessel in global shipping. At 369 metres long and 16,556 TEU capacity, she is the first methanol dual-fuel container ship in the Evergreen Marine fleet - a ship purpose-built to reduce emissions at mainline scale.
Covering this maiden call required careful coordination across multiple organisations and platforms. Our key activities included:
- Aerial filming from a moving RIB on the water, positioning the drone for dynamic approach shots of the vessel entering port
- Simultaneous land-based drone operations from quayside, providing wide establishing shots and close-up detail of the ship's distinctive windshield bow design
- Quayside filming of port operations, crew activity, and loading/unloading sequences during the vessel's time in berth
- Departure coverage capturing the Ever Eco leaving Felixstowe on the next leg of her European maiden voyage
The dual-drone approach allowed us to achieve a visual range that a single platform could not - water-level perspective combined with elevated land-based angles gave Evergreen Marine a compelling suite of footage for their official production.
Ever Eco Maiden Call - Dual-Drone Filming for Evergreen Marine
Pre-Production
Coordinated permissions and communications with Harwich Haven Authority (HHA) for airspace and maritime access within the port's operational area. Liaised with Felixstowe Port communications team to confirm vessel ETA, berth allocation, and operational schedule. Sourced a RIB and experienced local skipper through East Anglian Sea School. Planned dual-drone deployment strategy - mapping land-based positions quayside and identifying safe water-based operating zones for the RIB platform.
Conducted advance site visit to assess sightlines, access points, and any operational hazards. Prepared all CAA permissions and risk assessments required for commercial drone operations in a maritime port environment.
Production
Deployed two drone operators simultaneously on arrival day - one operating from the RIB on the water to capture the Ever Eco's approach through the harbour entrance, and one from a fixed quayside land position. The RIB platform provided dynamic tracking shots and water-level perspectives as the 369-metre vessel navigated into berth, while the land-based drone covered wider establishing angles and bow detail.
During the vessel's time alongside, filmed quayside port operations including crane activity and ship-to-shore logistics. Repositioned for departure, again operating both platforms to cover the vessel leaving Felixstowe. Continuous communication between both operators throughout to avoid airspace conflicts and ensure complementary coverage.
We also returned to capture the departure by night.
Post-Production
Delivered a comprehensive RAW footage package totalling 3 terabytes to Evergreen Marine for use in their official commemorative production.
Our footage was subsequently featured in the published Evergreen Marine video marking the Ever Eco's maiden voyage.
Following delivery to Evergreen Marine, we also produced two short edits from the footage - both are available to watch above, alongside the full ship build documentary that they produced.
Equipment Used
Filming Locations
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