Ever drink so much that you can't exactly remember what happened the day before? Maybe little pieces pop-up in your head but the context is a bit blurry--or maybe the context is there and it's the details that are lacking. Well anyway--that's what it's been like with filming for the past two days.
Blurry--not drunk.
So yes, I love my Canon 5D. And yes, it does have its limitations. But no, I don't care.
The past two days have been about playing catchup with our new actress. We filmed for a full week with the previous lead when she had to drop out. We then waited almost a whole week to find a replacement. So we're reshooting that first week, while making up what was missed, and trying to fit in what's supposed to be shot right now.
So it's like doing the 48 hour film project everyday. Yesterday involved grabbing a lot of "bedroom" scenes. Things moved pretty quickly as I already knew my angles and lighting setups from our first go-around. But I had to make some adjustments for the new camera. (I should really review the footage.) I'm trying my best to keep us from going over a 1000 ISO (which I've heard is a sweet spot.) So I'm having to light differently than when we used the EX3 and 150.
Speaking of lighting--I've been doing way too much work. I'm so used to doing everything myself that I forget I have 2-3 people designated to my needs. So today when I started feeling a bit tired, I just laid on the floor and spat out orders until the scene was ready.
I did say "thank you" when we were done.
Our new PA/Grip/2nd AC--Amber--has been great. She's done some theater work so is falling right into place on set. Sure, she doesn't know our cool codewords like C47 and Pam Grier, but she's learning. We've become so accepting of her that we decided to give her a nickname: Boo-Berry--as in "blueberry" on the account of her short, blue hair.
She's close friends with the lead actress, Chelsea--and has apparently been corrupted by our dirty-minded, mean-spirited, I'm-just-kidding attitude. She's also introduced us to this great Copy-Paste game that will hopefully replace the "That's what she said" jokes that run rampant on set.
I showed my parents footage of us hitting the dummy spliced in with the actor's performance. My mother screamed with surprise. I had only spent about five minutes trying to make it work. I know that it can be improved, but on a 15" screen, everyone has been quite impressed.
Tomorrow we're supposed to reshoot the shower scene. If the first time gawking at a naked girl in 1080p wasn't awkward enough--I got to do it again, except for this time with a feminist that hates the concept of a patriarchy and female-objectification. Maybe if I whisper "I'm sorry" the whole time I shoot it won't get uncomfortable.
...I'm sorry.
...I'm sorry.
...I'm sorry.
...I'm sorry.
Yeah--it's not working out even in practice.
We need to avoid our actress's tattoos. I'm not exactly sure why--I think Jack wants to portray her as uber-innocent. So that may mean closer, tighter shots (which are my preference). I think it makes things more intimate and with the shallow depth of field this camera brings us--intimacy is magnified!!
I meant emotionally...
...I'm sorry.
-Mr. Zach
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Monday, August 15, 2011
Corners Shoot Day 13-14: The 5D is Awesome!!!
So if you've been keeping up then you know how dissatisfied I've been with the EX3 (Not with Melvin, the owner of the sony cam because he's awesome.) No, I've just been unhappy that it's heavy and "noisy."
So know now that I absolutely love the Canon 5D!
We shot a night scene where I had to boost the ISO to get my lights to show up (though Melvin claims I've just not figured out the camera. I can't deny that but I disagree that there's more I can do besides ISO boosting.) While I was looking over the footage I noticed that it was pretty noisy/grainy but the blacks were quite solid. Of course the depth of field was wonderful.
But it wasn't till we reshot park scenes yesterday that I became extremely excited!!! I was able to drop down to a 160 ISO (as I had read that multiples of 160 should be used to get the best image.) The depth of field was amazing, the color, the near lack of noise/grain--all completely amazing. There are some draw backs especially with moving--but still, I regret not having invested in this camera sooner.
The video mode of the camera also allows one to take pictures spontaneously which entertains me to no end. It's fun to be setting up my focus just to have our lead actress suddenly make a silly face -- snap -- GOT IT!!!
Today was pretty amazing. I was horribly exhausted from having to do some late night work but we were able to do about three days worth of filming in one. Our actress is very outgoing and able to keep up the pace despite us already being used to each other (and having already shot these scenes.)
Melvin showed up and since we're not using the EX3 or Glide Cam, the poor guy just sat about with nothing to do. I kept trying to find little problems for him to solve so that he wouldn't feel so unneeded or feel that he was wasting his time. He kept bugging me about using the 5D. I wasn't so keen for a few reasons:
1.) I'm still figuring the camera out myself, so how can I instruct a cameraman on a piece of equipment I myself am oblivious to.
2.) I'm very protective of my very expensive investment.
3.) I was having way too much fun rack focusing on the fly knowing that it was having an immediate and important effect on the result.
I think I'll let Melvin use the camera tomorrow. I feel pretty confident about how to control the thing.
Part of what's fun with the 5D is there's so much more going on than with a standard video camera. It's not just iris, deep focus, and zoom--but there's ISO and lenses and...well other things. It's like driving a manual car compared to an automatic--so much more fun!!! So much more control!!!!
I'm really looking forward to how this film turns out. Whether it makes sense or not I expect that it'll at least look pretty ;P
Also, we got a vegan girl to randomly volunteer to do our slate. She does a great job! :P
--Mr. Zach
So know now that I absolutely love the Canon 5D!
We shot a night scene where I had to boost the ISO to get my lights to show up (though Melvin claims I've just not figured out the camera. I can't deny that but I disagree that there's more I can do besides ISO boosting.) While I was looking over the footage I noticed that it was pretty noisy/grainy but the blacks were quite solid. Of course the depth of field was wonderful.
But it wasn't till we reshot park scenes yesterday that I became extremely excited!!! I was able to drop down to a 160 ISO (as I had read that multiples of 160 should be used to get the best image.) The depth of field was amazing, the color, the near lack of noise/grain--all completely amazing. There are some draw backs especially with moving--but still, I regret not having invested in this camera sooner.
The video mode of the camera also allows one to take pictures spontaneously which entertains me to no end. It's fun to be setting up my focus just to have our lead actress suddenly make a silly face -- snap -- GOT IT!!!
Today was pretty amazing. I was horribly exhausted from having to do some late night work but we were able to do about three days worth of filming in one. Our actress is very outgoing and able to keep up the pace despite us already being used to each other (and having already shot these scenes.)
Melvin showed up and since we're not using the EX3 or Glide Cam, the poor guy just sat about with nothing to do. I kept trying to find little problems for him to solve so that he wouldn't feel so unneeded or feel that he was wasting his time. He kept bugging me about using the 5D. I wasn't so keen for a few reasons:
1.) I'm still figuring the camera out myself, so how can I instruct a cameraman on a piece of equipment I myself am oblivious to.
2.) I'm very protective of my very expensive investment.
3.) I was having way too much fun rack focusing on the fly knowing that it was having an immediate and important effect on the result.
I think I'll let Melvin use the camera tomorrow. I feel pretty confident about how to control the thing.
Part of what's fun with the 5D is there's so much more going on than with a standard video camera. It's not just iris, deep focus, and zoom--but there's ISO and lenses and...well other things. It's like driving a manual car compared to an automatic--so much more fun!!! So much more control!!!!
I'm really looking forward to how this film turns out. Whether it makes sense or not I expect that it'll at least look pretty ;P
Also, we got a vegan girl to randomly volunteer to do our slate. She does a great job! :P
--Mr. Zach
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Corners Shoot Day 10-12: New Actress + New Camera = New Movie
I apologize to the three people that regularly read the blog that I haven't updated you on what's going on. Rest assured that the time not spent on the blog has been used to reground, recover, and as of tomorrow--reshoot.
Firstly--as a follow up to the actress's condition, she will not be filming the rest of this project as concern for her health has the producers quite nervous. The past few days have been spent reaching out to other actresses. We did find one--which happens to be Bailey's sister.
Who's Bailey you may ask?
Bailey is Jack's new girlie-friend which means she's now an employee of Down Poor (being paid the company average.) She has taken on a few different roles including AD and Director-Wrangler. Her sister is a Sociology Major in NY but has a passion for acting. Thanks to a generous donation from the Bailey's Parent's Fund, Chelsea will be arriving this evening at the Charlotte Airport. (I should probably go with them to pick her up then sneak onto a plane to see my sister Wales.)
Also, I proposed to Sam and Jack that we invest in a new camera--notably the Canon 5D. I've been very wary about going the 5D route as it does have several limitations (especially audio) and I'm always expecting a better option to reveal itself. But while doing a little research, I saw that several short films, feature films, and popular TV shows have relied solely on the 5D.
The other thing holding me back is that I would have to invest the $3500 into the camera myself while my fee for the month would definitely not cover that. Here's to hoping this movie sells big or my new Canon brings in booming business!
So I got my camera in and played around with it quite a bit. Since it's targeted toward photographers and not cinematographers there has been a learning curve. Maybe someone out there knows better than I, but the video shutter speed is in increments of 10. As a standard for film, I understood that your shutter speed should be twice that of your frame-rate. We're shooting at 24p so our shutter speed should be 1/48th. Though this was easy to set with the 150 and EX3, I'm stuck between 40 and 50 on the 5D. I may need to look into this a bit more.
It also took me some time to figure how to manually adjust the ISO setting. I'm still not sure I'm using it appropriately. The Zoom Lens that came with the camera can only open to a 4.0 stop. Which concerned me since we were shooting many interiors at 1.6. (Sometimes I wish I read my cinematography text a bit more...hopefully on the next production we'll hire a real cinematographer.)
Well despite all my confusions we decided to shoot a scene last night. A certain character is dragged out of a certain car by a certain creature/person/ghost/thing. It was our first time using the 5D and it was also our first night shoot. So if I wasn't already concerned about the 4.0 f-stop, I was dealing with minimal lighting.
So I had to boost the ISO pretty high which made me nervous. The general rule being that high ISO means lots of noise (or grain as some call it). But when looking on the very small screen--it didn't look too bad. Blacks where black and light was really dull. I hope it comes out ok. (I'm going to check the footage today and hope for the best.)
I did have fun setting up some patterns and lighting for night. Since one isn't battling sunlight, you essentially have full control over light and dark. Only we didn't have a ton of lights and nothing over a 1k. I'm mostly happy with what we could accomplish.
We shot until about 12:30 and I was very sleepy--barely able to comprehend what was going on but I think we put together an interesting death scene. I had to move the death car afterward because I'm one of three people in Asheville that can drive a stick, apparently. Though they claimed to have washed the car out of fake blood--the red stain on my pants from the steering wheel says otherwise.
At least we have a very shallow depth a field and that makes any filmmaker happy!
-Mr. Zach
Firstly--as a follow up to the actress's condition, she will not be filming the rest of this project as concern for her health has the producers quite nervous. The past few days have been spent reaching out to other actresses. We did find one--which happens to be Bailey's sister.
Who's Bailey you may ask?
Bailey is Jack's new girlie-friend which means she's now an employee of Down Poor (being paid the company average.) She has taken on a few different roles including AD and Director-Wrangler. Her sister is a Sociology Major in NY but has a passion for acting. Thanks to a generous donation from the Bailey's Parent's Fund, Chelsea will be arriving this evening at the Charlotte Airport. (I should probably go with them to pick her up then sneak onto a plane to see my sister Wales.)
Also, I proposed to Sam and Jack that we invest in a new camera--notably the Canon 5D. I've been very wary about going the 5D route as it does have several limitations (especially audio) and I'm always expecting a better option to reveal itself. But while doing a little research, I saw that several short films, feature films, and popular TV shows have relied solely on the 5D.
The other thing holding me back is that I would have to invest the $3500 into the camera myself while my fee for the month would definitely not cover that. Here's to hoping this movie sells big or my new Canon brings in booming business!
So I got my camera in and played around with it quite a bit. Since it's targeted toward photographers and not cinematographers there has been a learning curve. Maybe someone out there knows better than I, but the video shutter speed is in increments of 10. As a standard for film, I understood that your shutter speed should be twice that of your frame-rate. We're shooting at 24p so our shutter speed should be 1/48th. Though this was easy to set with the 150 and EX3, I'm stuck between 40 and 50 on the 5D. I may need to look into this a bit more.
It also took me some time to figure how to manually adjust the ISO setting. I'm still not sure I'm using it appropriately. The Zoom Lens that came with the camera can only open to a 4.0 stop. Which concerned me since we were shooting many interiors at 1.6. (Sometimes I wish I read my cinematography text a bit more...hopefully on the next production we'll hire a real cinematographer.)
Well despite all my confusions we decided to shoot a scene last night. A certain character is dragged out of a certain car by a certain creature/person/ghost/thing. It was our first time using the 5D and it was also our first night shoot. So if I wasn't already concerned about the 4.0 f-stop, I was dealing with minimal lighting.
So I had to boost the ISO pretty high which made me nervous. The general rule being that high ISO means lots of noise (or grain as some call it). But when looking on the very small screen--it didn't look too bad. Blacks where black and light was really dull. I hope it comes out ok. (I'm going to check the footage today and hope for the best.)
I did have fun setting up some patterns and lighting for night. Since one isn't battling sunlight, you essentially have full control over light and dark. Only we didn't have a ton of lights and nothing over a 1k. I'm mostly happy with what we could accomplish.
We shot until about 12:30 and I was very sleepy--barely able to comprehend what was going on but I think we put together an interesting death scene. I had to move the death car afterward because I'm one of three people in Asheville that can drive a stick, apparently. Though they claimed to have washed the car out of fake blood--the red stain on my pants from the steering wheel says otherwise.
At least we have a very shallow depth a field and that makes any filmmaker happy!
-Mr. Zach
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Day 9: We Hit John Rutland with a Van!!
It's 6:45. That may seem like the end of the day is rearing up but there are so many things "up in the air" that I feel a little premature writing this blog as a "summary" of August 9th, 2011.
Our lead actress (bless her heart...literally) has been having health problems and despite the severity of those problems she refuses to let it get her down. But sometimes life is a little heavier than we can carry. She's currently attached to a machine and not allowed to move until this machine...uh, does whatever it does. Since she's unavailable due to circumstances outside anyone's control--we had to cut a short day of only shooting a dummy being struck by a van.
While we spent much of our time on last minute alterations to the likeness of the dummy the local news showed up to capture the whole thing. More importantly, my parents drove up from Shelby to watch the spectacle. To perform the stunt, we had our actor pause in his last "stance" while we adjusted the dummy to mimic his posture and then stripped the actor of his clothes and dressed them on the poor hunk of wood and plastic. (I'm sure big budget films could afford at least two pairs of costumes for both actor and dummy but we're on a budget!!)
We had two cameras rolling and both got a pretty good shot of the "whack!" Obviously, we'll have to do some editing magic to make it all work but it was pretty fun I must say.
Afterward, the news interviewed EP Sam and Jack while I went to Red Lobster with my folks.
After lunch, I met back up with Jack to learn that Mia's condition is quite drastic but her spirit and desire to continue the film are high. Unfortunately, we've already fallen behind on our schedule due to her condition and thoughts of recasting the lead role and reshooting the past week have been brought up.
Only time will tell...
--Mr. Zach
Our lead actress (bless her heart...literally) has been having health problems and despite the severity of those problems she refuses to let it get her down. But sometimes life is a little heavier than we can carry. She's currently attached to a machine and not allowed to move until this machine...uh, does whatever it does. Since she's unavailable due to circumstances outside anyone's control--we had to cut a short day of only shooting a dummy being struck by a van.
While we spent much of our time on last minute alterations to the likeness of the dummy the local news showed up to capture the whole thing. More importantly, my parents drove up from Shelby to watch the spectacle. To perform the stunt, we had our actor pause in his last "stance" while we adjusted the dummy to mimic his posture and then stripped the actor of his clothes and dressed them on the poor hunk of wood and plastic. (I'm sure big budget films could afford at least two pairs of costumes for both actor and dummy but we're on a budget!!)
We had two cameras rolling and both got a pretty good shot of the "whack!" Obviously, we'll have to do some editing magic to make it all work but it was pretty fun I must say.
Afterward, the news interviewed EP Sam and Jack while I went to Red Lobster with my folks.
After lunch, I met back up with Jack to learn that Mia's condition is quite drastic but her spirit and desire to continue the film are high. Unfortunately, we've already fallen behind on our schedule due to her condition and thoughts of recasting the lead role and reshooting the past week have been brought up.
Only time will tell...
--Mr. Zach
Day 8: Nicknames and Heart Problems
So our lead actress has a small hole in her heart. Melvin called it a heart murmur--I call it weakness! (Just kidding!) She's very brave and strong to carry on the production with such a serious condition impeding the way. The previous night she had an "incident" and went to the ER. The doctors said for her not to do anything strenuous for 24 hours. So we all felt quite sorry for her as she was unable to talk or move about quickly--often having to take long rests between takes and set ups.
But on the upside--she did have to shoot a scene with a creepy neighbor and the annoyance and irritation she already felt from the condition was channeled into her performance with great success!
On the downside--a very important and dramatic scene had to be delayed till tomorrow because she wouldn't be able to work herself up into the appropriate emotional state of being without stopping her heart (potentially).
On the lighter side--Today was the day of nick-naming!!! Brian (the PA) was very accepting of his new nickname, "Philippines." This is based on the fact he is part Filipino. Oddly--he doesn't have a driver's license despite being 30+ years old. There have been a few ethnic jokes thrown about at his expense: He doesn't have a license cause they only have donkeys where he's from! (I don't know if the Philippines have donkeys.)* But he's a very nice guy and hard worker. Whenever he's on set things always go faster and smoother with his assistance and I'm very glad he's joined us.
Christi--our set designer now has the name "Proppy." Mostly Jack uses it and shouts it out as often as possible. She doesn't like it. Jack had been trying to figure out a nickname that was somehow prop related and I suggested "Proppy Smurf." Proppy is easier to say.
Marshall (whom I may have mentioned before) has the nickname "Hollywood." This is in reference to the term "To Hollywood" or hold something with your hands--like a flag or net to block sunlight.** We made him hold a lot of stuff before the C-Stands came in.
Speaking of the C-Stands, they each have their own names! When I asked Jack and Sam to order us some C-Stands, I sent a link to stands that didn't have adjustable legs (for stairs and inclines). So we got in the first stand and realized--wow, this is big, heavy, and doesn't work on stairs. We ordered another, by Matthews, and made sure it had adjustable legs; it came in two days later.
To our surprise, the second tripod was black. This isn't actually a problem--it just didn't match the picture. Black is my favorite color so a little part of me jumped inside at the sight of it. I immediately called it Gary Coleman (which is the industry term for short, black C-Stands.) But I immediately recanted as it is a full sized C-Stand--so therefore, not truly a Coleman.
Today--we were trying to decide on a more appropriate name. Who is black and tends to spread their legs? We ultimately landed on Pam Grier as the famous blaxploitation star whose sexuality comes out quite fiercely on screen. (She's also great in Jackie Brown!!) We then turned to the large, heavy, pain-in-the-ass C-stand in the corner and named it--The Juggernaut!
It's actually been quite helpful to name the C-Stands as they're both very useful in their own ways and we can easily identify them by their given-names. Hollywood--grab Pam Grier cause Philippines is resting the glide cam on the Juggernaut while Proppy dresses the set!
Anyway--tomorrow we have to hit a guy with van in the middle of Downtown Asheville. Nothing major.
UPDATE: Mia had to go to the hospital again. Poor girl. Looks like our early call has been cancelled. At least I get to sleep in. Hopefully she'll be feeling better when we kill her dad with a moving vehicle.
-Mr. Zach
*They do.
**I couldn't find references of this term online but I know it's been used in this context on several sets I've been a part of.
But on the upside--she did have to shoot a scene with a creepy neighbor and the annoyance and irritation she already felt from the condition was channeled into her performance with great success!
On the downside--a very important and dramatic scene had to be delayed till tomorrow because she wouldn't be able to work herself up into the appropriate emotional state of being without stopping her heart (potentially).
On the lighter side--Today was the day of nick-naming!!! Brian (the PA) was very accepting of his new nickname, "Philippines." This is based on the fact he is part Filipino. Oddly--he doesn't have a driver's license despite being 30+ years old. There have been a few ethnic jokes thrown about at his expense: He doesn't have a license cause they only have donkeys where he's from! (I don't know if the Philippines have donkeys.)* But he's a very nice guy and hard worker. Whenever he's on set things always go faster and smoother with his assistance and I'm very glad he's joined us.
Christi--our set designer now has the name "Proppy." Mostly Jack uses it and shouts it out as often as possible. She doesn't like it. Jack had been trying to figure out a nickname that was somehow prop related and I suggested "Proppy Smurf." Proppy is easier to say.
Marshall (whom I may have mentioned before) has the nickname "Hollywood." This is in reference to the term "To Hollywood" or hold something with your hands--like a flag or net to block sunlight.** We made him hold a lot of stuff before the C-Stands came in.
Speaking of the C-Stands, they each have their own names! When I asked Jack and Sam to order us some C-Stands, I sent a link to stands that didn't have adjustable legs (for stairs and inclines). So we got in the first stand and realized--wow, this is big, heavy, and doesn't work on stairs. We ordered another, by Matthews, and made sure it had adjustable legs; it came in two days later.
To our surprise, the second tripod was black. This isn't actually a problem--it just didn't match the picture. Black is my favorite color so a little part of me jumped inside at the sight of it. I immediately called it Gary Coleman (which is the industry term for short, black C-Stands.) But I immediately recanted as it is a full sized C-Stand--so therefore, not truly a Coleman.
Today--we were trying to decide on a more appropriate name. Who is black and tends to spread their legs? We ultimately landed on Pam Grier as the famous blaxploitation star whose sexuality comes out quite fiercely on screen. (She's also great in Jackie Brown!!) We then turned to the large, heavy, pain-in-the-ass C-stand in the corner and named it--The Juggernaut!
It's actually been quite helpful to name the C-Stands as they're both very useful in their own ways and we can easily identify them by their given-names. Hollywood--grab Pam Grier cause Philippines is resting the glide cam on the Juggernaut while Proppy dresses the set!
Anyway--tomorrow we have to hit a guy with van in the middle of Downtown Asheville. Nothing major.
UPDATE: Mia had to go to the hospital again. Poor girl. Looks like our early call has been cancelled. At least I get to sleep in. Hopefully she'll be feeling better when we kill her dad with a moving vehicle.
-Mr. Zach
*They do.
**I couldn't find references of this term online but I know it's been used in this context on several sets I've been a part of.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Day 7: GPS vs Jack Eagen and a Pound of Sweat
Today was shower day. You may wonder why I don't take showers everyday. I'm essentially allowing my self to sleep in an extra hour on days I don't shower then showering the next day when I've caught up on some Sleep Debt.
But by the end of the today--I felt the shower had been in vain.
We met at Wendy's--of course Jack was a little late so the crew was sitting around chatting and I decided to dump the previous day's footage. Just when I had five second left, Jack shows up and says--"Come on guys!!" I rush to put the computer and hard drives away but by the time I'm packed and ready to pull out--Jack and company are long gone with a few cars in between us. I eventually call Jack and find out the name of our destination--GPS 1, Jack 0.
We're shooting in the same park as before but now our usual cameraman/glide-cam operator is not present. This leaves me to do the dirty work. I've expressed before that I'm not a fan of the glide cam and was extra irritated when Jack insisted on my getting "steady" shots while walking across uneven, sloping ground. I did my best, I assure you.
What compounded my irritation was the fact that the morning started with a beautiful overcast that's perfect for dreary films such as ours--but we had to delay while awaiting some props and the clouds decided to abandon us in the mean time. Though our actors performed in the comfort of shade, the back grounds were often blown out by intense sunlight. Sadly, we didn't have Benjamin Button's multi-block long silk to help out.
After sweating a pound or two at the park--we decided to get some lunch--only Jack took us to a closed restaurant; stupid Sunday hours! We then attempted to follow Jack to a new restaurant--but there was confusion.
First--Jack decides to pull out in front of a few cars so our "caravan of crew" get a little spread out and separated. Then Jack pulls into a gas station without warning--which makes us more separated. Later, he pulls out in front of more cars and leaves me behind. He calls and says, "When you hit the main road, turn left then immediately turn right into the shopping center."
I hit a main road, I turn left. I look to my right but no shopping center or sign of the caravan. I decide to pull over and call only to discover the entire caravan is following me--how this happened, I still do not know. So I pull out behind Jack. He runs a yellow light and leaves us to wait out the red-cycle. I try to catch up but he's too far ahead. Suddenly I pass a shopping center following what I thought was Jack's car in the distance. I then get a call from Jack saying he saw me pass. Apparently this was the main road with the right turn into a shopping center. I and the caravan turn back and we fight briefly with Jack over his ability to lead people in cars. (GPS 1, Jack -1)
After lunch we go to another park for a scene Jack invented today. Sadly, I have to walk about 100 yards while wearing the glide cam and completely exposed to the sun. It's hot. Jack decides he wants a shot from the creek looking at our actors on shore. I'm hesitant at first but thankful to have the cool water rush over my feet. We do a reverse tracking shot and I lose my flip-flops while walking backward. Perhaps I should have worn more appropriate shoes. We finish a few nice shots near a waterfall and water wheel.
I'm very overheated, completely worn out from tugging around this camera all day, and my clothes are nearly drenched with sweat. I'm so happy it's 4 pm and quitting time; until Jack says we're heading to a new location.
I'm in a bit of a daze at this point but pretty relaxed, soaking in my car's air-conditioning while listening to Rammstein. After driving around some crazy mountainous roads following Jack--he pulls over and rolls down his window to inform us that he has no idea where we are. We decide to make our way back to Asheville for one more shot. (GPS1, Jack -2)
Once in Asheville--we find that it's not a simple one shot grab because Jack has convinced a restaurant owner to let us shoot inside, though they're closed, while also developing some dialog on the trip over. Sadly, our batteries were not properly charged and we're running really low. Though we have one on the charger in the restaurant, it's still not charging fast enough to meet demand.
We go outside and expand our one-shot into many more to get a very important kiss (you gotta play up the kisses!!!). We're down to the last shot but the battery is too low and the camera won't allow me to record. We switch out batteries and it has a minute more--but that's enough apparently, I hit record and let it roll while we get three takes out of the whole deal.
The battery dies and we call it a day; a very successful and horribly hot day.
Later, Jack, Bailey and I have dinner then separate with the intention to meet at Executive Sam's house. I decide to stop at Kmart in hopes to find Ravenous (Jack and I have really wanted to watch that lately.) I ask Jack what street Sam lives on and he gives me directions from Merrimon Ave--but I'm not on Merrimon...so that's no good. Luckily, he does remember the road on which Sam lives. I'm able to put it in my phone and gps my way to Sam's where we chill out and bask in the glory of a full 7 days of shooting gone by. (GPS 2, Jack -2)
Tomorrow, we're back in the basement apartment with our recently acquired sunburns!
--Mr. Zach
But by the end of the today--I felt the shower had been in vain.
We met at Wendy's--of course Jack was a little late so the crew was sitting around chatting and I decided to dump the previous day's footage. Just when I had five second left, Jack shows up and says--"Come on guys!!" I rush to put the computer and hard drives away but by the time I'm packed and ready to pull out--Jack and company are long gone with a few cars in between us. I eventually call Jack and find out the name of our destination--GPS 1, Jack 0.
We're shooting in the same park as before but now our usual cameraman/glide-cam operator is not present. This leaves me to do the dirty work. I've expressed before that I'm not a fan of the glide cam and was extra irritated when Jack insisted on my getting "steady" shots while walking across uneven, sloping ground. I did my best, I assure you.
What compounded my irritation was the fact that the morning started with a beautiful overcast that's perfect for dreary films such as ours--but we had to delay while awaiting some props and the clouds decided to abandon us in the mean time. Though our actors performed in the comfort of shade, the back grounds were often blown out by intense sunlight. Sadly, we didn't have Benjamin Button's multi-block long silk to help out.
After sweating a pound or two at the park--we decided to get some lunch--only Jack took us to a closed restaurant; stupid Sunday hours! We then attempted to follow Jack to a new restaurant--but there was confusion.
First--Jack decides to pull out in front of a few cars so our "caravan of crew" get a little spread out and separated. Then Jack pulls into a gas station without warning--which makes us more separated. Later, he pulls out in front of more cars and leaves me behind. He calls and says, "When you hit the main road, turn left then immediately turn right into the shopping center."
I hit a main road, I turn left. I look to my right but no shopping center or sign of the caravan. I decide to pull over and call only to discover the entire caravan is following me--how this happened, I still do not know. So I pull out behind Jack. He runs a yellow light and leaves us to wait out the red-cycle. I try to catch up but he's too far ahead. Suddenly I pass a shopping center following what I thought was Jack's car in the distance. I then get a call from Jack saying he saw me pass. Apparently this was the main road with the right turn into a shopping center. I and the caravan turn back and we fight briefly with Jack over his ability to lead people in cars. (GPS 1, Jack -1)
After lunch we go to another park for a scene Jack invented today. Sadly, I have to walk about 100 yards while wearing the glide cam and completely exposed to the sun. It's hot. Jack decides he wants a shot from the creek looking at our actors on shore. I'm hesitant at first but thankful to have the cool water rush over my feet. We do a reverse tracking shot and I lose my flip-flops while walking backward. Perhaps I should have worn more appropriate shoes. We finish a few nice shots near a waterfall and water wheel.
I'm very overheated, completely worn out from tugging around this camera all day, and my clothes are nearly drenched with sweat. I'm so happy it's 4 pm and quitting time; until Jack says we're heading to a new location.
I'm in a bit of a daze at this point but pretty relaxed, soaking in my car's air-conditioning while listening to Rammstein. After driving around some crazy mountainous roads following Jack--he pulls over and rolls down his window to inform us that he has no idea where we are. We decide to make our way back to Asheville for one more shot. (GPS1, Jack -2)
Once in Asheville--we find that it's not a simple one shot grab because Jack has convinced a restaurant owner to let us shoot inside, though they're closed, while also developing some dialog on the trip over. Sadly, our batteries were not properly charged and we're running really low. Though we have one on the charger in the restaurant, it's still not charging fast enough to meet demand.
We go outside and expand our one-shot into many more to get a very important kiss (you gotta play up the kisses!!!). We're down to the last shot but the battery is too low and the camera won't allow me to record. We switch out batteries and it has a minute more--but that's enough apparently, I hit record and let it roll while we get three takes out of the whole deal.
The battery dies and we call it a day; a very successful and horribly hot day.
Later, Jack, Bailey and I have dinner then separate with the intention to meet at Executive Sam's house. I decide to stop at Kmart in hopes to find Ravenous (Jack and I have really wanted to watch that lately.) I ask Jack what street Sam lives on and he gives me directions from Merrimon Ave--but I'm not on Merrimon...so that's no good. Luckily, he does remember the road on which Sam lives. I'm able to put it in my phone and gps my way to Sam's where we chill out and bask in the glory of a full 7 days of shooting gone by. (GPS 2, Jack -2)
Tomorrow, we're back in the basement apartment with our recently acquired sunburns!
--Mr. Zach
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Day 5-6: C-Stands and Shower Scenes!
I fell asleep last night. I know that seems like a common practice to many people--but I fell asleep at like 10 pm. Even then I'm sure many people find that quite normal--but I'm used to staying up till 3 or 4 am so this was quite odd when I sat down to relax after a day of filming and fell asleep.
I then woke up at 2 am completely confused about where I was, what time it was, and why I was there. After some time I realized I was in Jack's (the director) living room. All was well--got some sleep for another fine day of shooting.
The morning started off with great news--our other C-Stand had arrived. Sam the EP and I went over to pick it up only to discover his apartment's office had it in their position and they weren't opening till 10 am. We decided to get coffee and doughnuts instead.
Later--we did indeed get the C-Stand and were excited to find it had adjustable legs so that it may be safely used on stairs and uneven ground unlike the juggernaut C-Stand we had ordered before.
I was a little concerned about lighting today. I have our camera set to a -3 grain which is supposed to give it a cleaner-black/filmic look. But so much sunlight bleeds into our set (without actually lighting it) that it's a real struggle to get the light levels to match. We even had to do a shot where we dynamically adjust the iris as we film the scene that worked pretty seamlessly but I fear everything will be too dark. (Good luck to the color correctors!!)
But more interesting to some--I did shoot my first nude-shower scene today. Our lead actress didn't act shy at all but I was sure to avert my eyes between takes ;) We kept it calm and professional during the shooting but once the scene was over--naked jokes were rampant. I guess this should be considered a warm-up to the "intimate" scene we've got coming up pretty soon.
Tomorrow we have street scenes in downtown Asheville featuring some romance with our lead and an ex-gangster!
--Mr. Zach
I then woke up at 2 am completely confused about where I was, what time it was, and why I was there. After some time I realized I was in Jack's (the director) living room. All was well--got some sleep for another fine day of shooting.
The morning started off with great news--our other C-Stand had arrived. Sam the EP and I went over to pick it up only to discover his apartment's office had it in their position and they weren't opening till 10 am. We decided to get coffee and doughnuts instead.
Later--we did indeed get the C-Stand and were excited to find it had adjustable legs so that it may be safely used on stairs and uneven ground unlike the juggernaut C-Stand we had ordered before.
I was a little concerned about lighting today. I have our camera set to a -3 grain which is supposed to give it a cleaner-black/filmic look. But so much sunlight bleeds into our set (without actually lighting it) that it's a real struggle to get the light levels to match. We even had to do a shot where we dynamically adjust the iris as we film the scene that worked pretty seamlessly but I fear everything will be too dark. (Good luck to the color correctors!!)
But more interesting to some--I did shoot my first nude-shower scene today. Our lead actress didn't act shy at all but I was sure to avert my eyes between takes ;) We kept it calm and professional during the shooting but once the scene was over--naked jokes were rampant. I guess this should be considered a warm-up to the "intimate" scene we've got coming up pretty soon.
Tomorrow we have street scenes in downtown Asheville featuring some romance with our lead and an ex-gangster!
--Mr. Zach
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Day 4: Glide Cams FTW!!
Today is not exactly what I would call "eventful." We got up a little late and moseyed on over to the set where Christi made up our little Garden (which never made it into any shots.) I had a diet Mountain Dew--OH, the flags and nets came in!
They were sitting on the porch waiting for me. I was so excited--though disappointed we only had one single net...I found that odd. at least if there were two singles and one double, I could double up the single to make a double--right?
Anyway--I tried to work their use in today's scenes but it just wasn't happening. I decided to go with natural sunlight for the kitchen scene but since we needed to raise the levels in the room I threw the silk on top of the fridge and used it as a bounce board (which reminds me, I need to go to walmart.)
Later, the sun was causing all sorts of problems for outdoor shots so I tried to strategically use the silk and c-Stand in conjunction but it didn't quite work out...stupid sunlight! If only we had Benjamin Button's giant silk everything would have worked out perfectly!!!
I spoke to Melvin (camera op) about the lens adapter he bought for the EX3 and how unhappy I was with the lenses we had access to. He's been more-or-less convinced of my view so we may return it to get a few hundred dollars toward something more useful (pending Jack's feelings on the subject.)
Speaking of Melvin--we were shooting outside for about three hours with his glidecam rig strapped on. I kept trying to find excuses for him to take a break cause I could tell it was weighing down on him. We also had to do these semi-complicated camera moves and so we were giving Melvin a hundred and one different notes on what needed to happen on the next go. He was a good sport and got the job done!!
So I just got back from Walmart and have constructed two reflectors from foam board, duct tape, and aluminum foil (I'm cheap.) This will be handy when we shoot in the park tomorrow.
Let's hope tomorrow goes well--we have to lure a bird into a shot somehow.
Time for Bed,
--Mr. Zach
They were sitting on the porch waiting for me. I was so excited--though disappointed we only had one single net...I found that odd. at least if there were two singles and one double, I could double up the single to make a double--right?
Anyway--I tried to work their use in today's scenes but it just wasn't happening. I decided to go with natural sunlight for the kitchen scene but since we needed to raise the levels in the room I threw the silk on top of the fridge and used it as a bounce board (which reminds me, I need to go to walmart.)
Later, the sun was causing all sorts of problems for outdoor shots so I tried to strategically use the silk and c-Stand in conjunction but it didn't quite work out...stupid sunlight! If only we had Benjamin Button's giant silk everything would have worked out perfectly!!!
I spoke to Melvin (camera op) about the lens adapter he bought for the EX3 and how unhappy I was with the lenses we had access to. He's been more-or-less convinced of my view so we may return it to get a few hundred dollars toward something more useful (pending Jack's feelings on the subject.)
Speaking of Melvin--we were shooting outside for about three hours with his glidecam rig strapped on. I kept trying to find excuses for him to take a break cause I could tell it was weighing down on him. We also had to do these semi-complicated camera moves and so we were giving Melvin a hundred and one different notes on what needed to happen on the next go. He was a good sport and got the job done!!
So I just got back from Walmart and have constructed two reflectors from foam board, duct tape, and aluminum foil (I'm cheap.) This will be handy when we shoot in the park tomorrow.
Let's hope tomorrow goes well--we have to lure a bird into a shot somehow.
Time for Bed,
--Mr. Zach
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Day 3: Broken Bulbs = Shattered Dreams
It's a black day.
Yesterday, with out warning, a 650 bulb just died (sniffle). We looked the bulb over and it seemed in good health but it would not turn on. Just goes to show you--we can burnout without warning and without a sign. Then today--we had the 1k shining through a window. We had the 1k in this exact place for roughly four hours yesterday and another four today--then suddenly...it just fell over. So sad--I was looking out the window as it happened and saw the whole thing. Kind of like when you look over your shoulder and see a small child slip off the edge of a large cliff. (I've never actually witnessed the child scenario but I imagine one's reaction and emotional after-shock would be about the same.)*
So I had to light the rest of the day with only two 650s and despite their dedicated and heartfelt efforts--they just couldn't perform to desired capacities.
To add to my stress--Melvin (a real stand-up guy) wasn't on set today due to prior engagements. So I was left to familiarize my self with the EX3 and Glide Cam he had left in my care. These tools are not exceedingly complicated but with my limited interactions with both--I wasn't exactly the most qualified to be shooting a feature film with either of them.
The EX3's buttons are in funny places compared to my 150. And figuring out when the auto-shutter was off and on was a real pain. There's something about the LCD screen on the EX3 as well--I can't help but think they're providing you a false example of the picture. Somehow it's cleaner and better than the actual result. Also--the damn thing is heavy. I couldn't hand-held it with as much success as I do with the 150. You may wonder why I was hand-helding at all with the glidecam on call. The truth is--it's REALLY heavy :P
I spoke with Melvin over the phone and he guided me through the Glide Cam's assembly but I'm so unpracticed I found myself fighting it a little. I'm sure with some time and experience I would find it very useful but with the light and handy 150--I really don't see the need for such a heavy, cumbersome device.
If the EX3 wasn't annoying me enough--we only had an 8 gig memory card and the compression seemed to take up more space than the AVC format with the 150. My basic camera tests have shown (to my eyes) that both cameras look the same--so dealing with an expensive and clunky SxS card compared to the cheap and simple SDHC really isn't worth paying an extra $7,000 for.
And despite all my personal struggles and grumblings within the camera department--the very kind man that's surrendered his personal house as a filming location is starting to get a little annoyed with the racket and messes were causing (Sorry bro!) Hopefully we can wrap the location before fully pissing him off!
But we finished filming on time--Exec Producer bought us some Mountain Dews (!!!)--and the replacement bulbs came in. Not to mention--we should be getting our bag-o-flags tomorrow(!!!x4)
All's well that ends well
--Mr. Zach
*I have witnessed the conclusion of The Good Son.
Yesterday, with out warning, a 650 bulb just died (sniffle). We looked the bulb over and it seemed in good health but it would not turn on. Just goes to show you--we can burnout without warning and without a sign. Then today--we had the 1k shining through a window. We had the 1k in this exact place for roughly four hours yesterday and another four today--then suddenly...it just fell over. So sad--I was looking out the window as it happened and saw the whole thing. Kind of like when you look over your shoulder and see a small child slip off the edge of a large cliff. (I've never actually witnessed the child scenario but I imagine one's reaction and emotional after-shock would be about the same.)*
So I had to light the rest of the day with only two 650s and despite their dedicated and heartfelt efforts--they just couldn't perform to desired capacities.
To add to my stress--Melvin (a real stand-up guy) wasn't on set today due to prior engagements. So I was left to familiarize my self with the EX3 and Glide Cam he had left in my care. These tools are not exceedingly complicated but with my limited interactions with both--I wasn't exactly the most qualified to be shooting a feature film with either of them.
The EX3's buttons are in funny places compared to my 150. And figuring out when the auto-shutter was off and on was a real pain. There's something about the LCD screen on the EX3 as well--I can't help but think they're providing you a false example of the picture. Somehow it's cleaner and better than the actual result. Also--the damn thing is heavy. I couldn't hand-held it with as much success as I do with the 150. You may wonder why I was hand-helding at all with the glidecam on call. The truth is--it's REALLY heavy :P
I spoke with Melvin over the phone and he guided me through the Glide Cam's assembly but I'm so unpracticed I found myself fighting it a little. I'm sure with some time and experience I would find it very useful but with the light and handy 150--I really don't see the need for such a heavy, cumbersome device.
If the EX3 wasn't annoying me enough--we only had an 8 gig memory card and the compression seemed to take up more space than the AVC format with the 150. My basic camera tests have shown (to my eyes) that both cameras look the same--so dealing with an expensive and clunky SxS card compared to the cheap and simple SDHC really isn't worth paying an extra $7,000 for.
And despite all my personal struggles and grumblings within the camera department--the very kind man that's surrendered his personal house as a filming location is starting to get a little annoyed with the racket and messes were causing (Sorry bro!) Hopefully we can wrap the location before fully pissing him off!
But we finished filming on time--Exec Producer bought us some Mountain Dews (!!!)--and the replacement bulbs came in. Not to mention--we should be getting our bag-o-flags tomorrow(!!!x4)
All's well that ends well
--Mr. Zach
*I have witnessed the conclusion of The Good Son.
Day 2: Filming with Cookies and Watermelon
It's Day Two on Corners and it already feels like day 12--if there's 31 days in August (minus one for our day-off) then by the end of this month we shall have been filming for 360 days.
Last night involved an unhappy text message from our Make-Up Artist. I don't know the full story but while we were sitting on set talking about our favorite color of ice cream today, he was getting his car repaired to make the two hour journey to Asheville with one of our actors in-tow. Basically after a pretty relaxed morning shoot we had a four hour break while this guy resolved his car trouble and drove to set.
This is actually considered a "good ending" because the text from the night before implied he wouldn't make it at all. With having so little money and much of our resources and labor being voluntary--we can't afford to miss such a crucial filming day.
This also meant that filming went pass the expected 6 pm wrap time on into about 9-9:30 at night. Then there was quite a bit of clean up and next-day problems to resolve. Also, our trusty executive producer let his blood-sugar get too low and almost went into a diabetic coma (or something like that.) He's ok now.
I had a Ham and Cheese sandwich for lunch.
Lots of fun shooting today! I probably shouldn't speak too much on the plot and what's being filmed--but there was an 8-year old, rusty knives, and watermelon involved! I had a lot of fun lighting the basement interior. We made a cucoloris out of cardboard. Sadly I had left my knife at home and so my trusty Walmart Hatchet was used to cut holes. It turned out really dramatic, eerie, and green!!
I'm pretty worn out from today--So is Jack the Director. While eating a late-night dinner he realized that he was wearing his shoes on the wrong feet and had been doing so for the past hour!
Good news--Camera crew gets an extra hour of sleep tonight, so I'm going to take advantage of that!!
-Mr. Zach
Last night involved an unhappy text message from our Make-Up Artist. I don't know the full story but while we were sitting on set talking about our favorite color of ice cream today, he was getting his car repaired to make the two hour journey to Asheville with one of our actors in-tow. Basically after a pretty relaxed morning shoot we had a four hour break while this guy resolved his car trouble and drove to set.
This is actually considered a "good ending" because the text from the night before implied he wouldn't make it at all. With having so little money and much of our resources and labor being voluntary--we can't afford to miss such a crucial filming day.
This also meant that filming went pass the expected 6 pm wrap time on into about 9-9:30 at night. Then there was quite a bit of clean up and next-day problems to resolve. Also, our trusty executive producer let his blood-sugar get too low and almost went into a diabetic coma (or something like that.) He's ok now.
I had a Ham and Cheese sandwich for lunch.
Lots of fun shooting today! I probably shouldn't speak too much on the plot and what's being filmed--but there was an 8-year old, rusty knives, and watermelon involved! I had a lot of fun lighting the basement interior. We made a cucoloris out of cardboard. Sadly I had left my knife at home and so my trusty Walmart Hatchet was used to cut holes. It turned out really dramatic, eerie, and green!!
I'm pretty worn out from today--So is Jack the Director. While eating a late-night dinner he realized that he was wearing his shoes on the wrong feet and had been doing so for the past hour!
Good news--Camera crew gets an extra hour of sleep tonight, so I'm going to take advantage of that!!
-Mr. Zach
Monday, August 1, 2011
Day 1: First Day and My Feet Hurt
So I had a good 4-5 hours of sleep before my alarm blared at 5:00 am...and then I slept a little extra till 5:30. Had a moderately enjoyable ride through the mountains listening to the Social Network sound track (Or Ghosts V-VI as I call it.)*
We get to set and Jack says it's going to be a "relaxed" day--just get to know everyone. All I know is where I want to stick my 650 (did that sound dirty?) Our camera guy and co-loaner of equipment including lights, c-stands, steady cam, and EX3 didn't show up due to a confusion with the schedule. Was ok--I just shot everything handy-held on the 150; gave me a chance to try out the macro focus.
I haven't yet seen today's footage but I was pretty happy with lighting and camera work as far as one can experience it on a 3" screen. We have a PA named Marshall that happens to have a pretty good understanding of lighting equipment. I think he's a first year at a film school in Wilmington, so obviously he knows everything ;) -- But he was fun to work with and we had some nice talks between set-ups.
Some other fun news--our Executive Producer (i.e. guy with all the $$$) had some trouble with his Charter Internet Bill (their fault, not his) as a result all of his accounts have been somehow crippled. So despite having a pretty decent budget for the film, we couldn't afford a bag of cereal from the bottom shelf. (The matter has recently be resolved.)
Some fun news--we had one C-Stand today. We're pretty sure two were ordered, but right now we only have one. Sadly, the flags, nets, and silks that have been ordered didn't come in yet so all the single C-Stand got to do was hold a piece of cardboard (Which Sam, the Exec. Producer, was able to hold just as well!)
Did I mention that I got pushed around a grocery store in a wheel chair?
Till tomorrow
--Mr. Zach
*I've never called it that.
We get to set and Jack says it's going to be a "relaxed" day--just get to know everyone. All I know is where I want to stick my 650 (did that sound dirty?) Our camera guy and co-loaner of equipment including lights, c-stands, steady cam, and EX3 didn't show up due to a confusion with the schedule. Was ok--I just shot everything handy-held on the 150; gave me a chance to try out the macro focus.
I haven't yet seen today's footage but I was pretty happy with lighting and camera work as far as one can experience it on a 3" screen. We have a PA named Marshall that happens to have a pretty good understanding of lighting equipment. I think he's a first year at a film school in Wilmington, so obviously he knows everything ;) -- But he was fun to work with and we had some nice talks between set-ups.
Some other fun news--our Executive Producer (i.e. guy with all the $$$) had some trouble with his Charter Internet Bill (their fault, not his) as a result all of his accounts have been somehow crippled. So despite having a pretty decent budget for the film, we couldn't afford a bag of cereal from the bottom shelf. (The matter has recently be resolved.)
Some fun news--we had one C-Stand today. We're pretty sure two were ordered, but right now we only have one. Sadly, the flags, nets, and silks that have been ordered didn't come in yet so all the single C-Stand got to do was hold a piece of cardboard (Which Sam, the Exec. Producer, was able to hold just as well!)
Did I mention that I got pushed around a grocery store in a wheel chair?
Till tomorrow
--Mr. Zach
*I've never called it that.
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