Tasty Pictures’ Brendan Isaac on his journey to become one of APAC’s leading tabletop DOP’s

Campaign Brief recently caught up with Brendan Isaac, one of the co-founders of Tasty Pictures, Australia’s leading specialist food and tabletop production company. Here Isaac talks about his journey into becoming one of APAC’s leading tabletop DOP’s and gives insights into the industry today.

TASTY Pictures co-founder Brendan Isaac grew up surrounded by film, with some of his earliest memories spent at his father’s Brisbane camera rental shop, Cinequip. Watching 16mm and 35mm film cameras being prepped sparked Issac’s lifelong passion for filmmaking.

While studying Business Management, he started working in live TV, handling cables and technocrane’s on shows like I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here (UK) and The Voice. At the same time, he gained hands-on experience at Light & Motion, where he learned to operate equipment for commercials and larger productions.

His journey then led him to the camera department, where he worked his way up from Second AC to First AC on commercials and feature films. Pulling focus taught him precision, discipline, and the value of being an integral part of the creative process. Along the way, he earned a drone license and added aerial cinematography to his skillset, making him versatile across projects.

“Driven by a fascination with achieving perfection in filmmaking, I discovered motion control and tabletop production,” said Isaac.

“Inspired by European innovators in the field, TASTY was co-founded by my father Steve Isaac and Andrew Wareham. After overseas training, I introduced Australia’s first Bolt motion control robot, pushing the boundaries of what could be done with precise, repeatable camera movements.”

Isaac has been fortunate to have incredible mentors, starting with his dad, Steve Isaac ACS, who taught him the importance of embracing new technology and finding efficiencies in production.

“I also learned a lot from the late and highly respected Mark Toia, whose small, skilled teams created amazing work, and Ronald Koetzer, a tabletop legend who showed me the art of combining light, motion, and precision to achieve incredible results.

“No two days are the same. Some days, I’m maintaining our robots and refining software; other days, I’m brainstorming new shots with our director, Ben Flaxman. Having an in-house setup with cameras, lighting, and sets allows us to experiment and perfect ideas before we get on set. Recently, I’ve been working on integrating lighting sequences with motion control, a process we’ve been documenting on our YouTube channel, The FilmLoft.”

Isaac said one of the most challenging projects he has worked on was a spaceship interior shot for Foe, where motion control allowed them to seamlessly piece together a quarter-built set into a complete visual.

“Another memorable project involved flying a camera through suspended meatballs for a food commercial. It required intricate rigging and repeat passes to create the illusion of larger-than-life food.”

See the film below. Isaac was the Motion Control Operator on the job.

“Looking ahead, I see Unreal Engine and AI-generated backgrounds becoming essential for tabletop production,” he explained. “The rise of 9:16 vertical formats for media is also something we need to embrace – it’s the future of how people consume content.”

AI has become an everyday tool for Isaac.

“I use it for problem-solving, generating subtitles, cleaning audio, and even experimenting with AI-generated scenes for integration into live-action shots. While AI still has limitations, it’s a powerful tool that will continue to evolve and open up new creative opportunities.

“From growing up around film cameras to building a cutting-edge tabletop production company, my journey has been about constant learning and innovation. I believe the future belongs to those who adapt, stay curious, and keep pushing boundaries.”

Take a behind the scenes look below.