Thursday 10 May 2012
Drama - Day 2 Shoot
Day 2 of the shoot again went really well even though we had to change location and only had 5 hours to get all the shots we needed, this was because the gallery was only available 10am - 3pm. Not wanting to lose any time we began setting up and shooting as soon as we could.
The gallery's representative also allowed us to film in part of the gallery where their was no copyright worry so therefore we could shoot however and wherever we wanted not worrying about getting the paintings in shot. As visual arts director this got me excited as there was some amazing paintings in the gallery that we could get in frame and make the scenes looks wonderful.
I got actors into costume as soon as possible while the rest of the crew set up the scene with camera positioning, framing and lighting. The actors knew their lines very well and needed very little rehearsal to get the performance me and Lucy (director) desired, which was great as it meant we could start shooting a lot sooner.
In the end we did not use lighting equipment as there was a large skylight in the ceiling giving off a nice source of natural light. Also the room had overall a warm glow on camera which I thought worked well with the situation of the scenes, reflecting the closeness between Jack and George. We only needed to use kino lighting for close up shots and they were just slightly darker than the other shots.
My role during shooting was again helping Ben (cinematographer) moving equipment for different camera positioning and framing. Also because Katie was not on set as she was editing together the scenes we shot on day 1 (which we all thought was an amazing idea as it allowed us to get the film together and finished a lot sooner), I was in charge of the clapperboard. I also discussed a few camera ideas with Ben (cinematographer) that I thought would look really good which he took in and shot a few.
We only encountered little problems during the shoot such as members of the public walking into the room during shooting (as the gallery was still open for the public), which meant having huge echoey creeks of doors opening and closing during dialogue. This just meant we had to shoot the scene again which was no problem. Another problem was the general echo the room created as it was a big hall and couldn't be helped. However, Stephen (sound) was confident that he could work on minimising the reverb when editing.
The gallery's representative also allowed us to film in part of the gallery where their was no copyright worry so therefore we could shoot however and wherever we wanted not worrying about getting the paintings in shot. As visual arts director this got me excited as there was some amazing paintings in the gallery that we could get in frame and make the scenes looks wonderful.
I got actors into costume as soon as possible while the rest of the crew set up the scene with camera positioning, framing and lighting. The actors knew their lines very well and needed very little rehearsal to get the performance me and Lucy (director) desired, which was great as it meant we could start shooting a lot sooner.
In the end we did not use lighting equipment as there was a large skylight in the ceiling giving off a nice source of natural light. Also the room had overall a warm glow on camera which I thought worked well with the situation of the scenes, reflecting the closeness between Jack and George. We only needed to use kino lighting for close up shots and they were just slightly darker than the other shots.
My role during shooting was again helping Ben (cinematographer) moving equipment for different camera positioning and framing. Also because Katie was not on set as she was editing together the scenes we shot on day 1 (which we all thought was an amazing idea as it allowed us to get the film together and finished a lot sooner), I was in charge of the clapperboard. I also discussed a few camera ideas with Ben (cinematographer) that I thought would look really good which he took in and shot a few.
We only encountered little problems during the shoot such as members of the public walking into the room during shooting (as the gallery was still open for the public), which meant having huge echoey creeks of doors opening and closing during dialogue. This just meant we had to shoot the scene again which was no problem. Another problem was the general echo the room created as it was a big hall and couldn't be helped. However, Stephen (sound) was confident that he could work on minimising the reverb when editing.
Drama - Change of 2nd Location
Once again unfortunately we have to change the place of the second shooting location. This is due to how terrible the weather is being for us with nasty wind and rain. Definitely not a good idea to shoot outside then, considering we will break equipment and make our actors extremely ill with pneumonia. God obviously didn't hear our pleas and decided to open his flood gates anyway.
Luckily then Alice (producer) managed to grant us permission to shoot in The Graves Gallery in no time. Our original location was Weston Park which would of been great as it was an exterior location which made a change from the interior scenes inside the bar. It would of given us more freedom, space and a chance to be creative with the shots but also would of allowed us to capture aesthetically beautiful shots of lakes, flowers and all that kind of stuff.
Also, I would of liked to of shot outside if it was possible (annoying weather!) because as scriptwriter I set the scenes where Jack and George was talking and imagining different scenarios because i wanted it to be a metaphor of Jack's psyche. Here he is outdoors with his boyfriend and free, the outdoors resembling his mind of him thinking he is free, opposite of being indoors with his father feeling trapped.
However, being visual arts director also I am extremely looking forward to shooting in The Graves Gallery as it contains brilliant large historic paintings on the walls. Which I think works brilliantly with the Wes Anderson, retro 70's vibe we want, so its not the end of the world to be honest.
Our only worry is that The Graves Gallery is very echoey but Stephen (Sound) is confident that he can work on minimising the reverb when editing.
Luckily then Alice (producer) managed to grant us permission to shoot in The Graves Gallery in no time. Our original location was Weston Park which would of been great as it was an exterior location which made a change from the interior scenes inside the bar. It would of given us more freedom, space and a chance to be creative with the shots but also would of allowed us to capture aesthetically beautiful shots of lakes, flowers and all that kind of stuff.
Also, I would of liked to of shot outside if it was possible (annoying weather!) because as scriptwriter I set the scenes where Jack and George was talking and imagining different scenarios because i wanted it to be a metaphor of Jack's psyche. Here he is outdoors with his boyfriend and free, the outdoors resembling his mind of him thinking he is free, opposite of being indoors with his father feeling trapped.
However, being visual arts director also I am extremely looking forward to shooting in The Graves Gallery as it contains brilliant large historic paintings on the walls. Which I think works brilliantly with the Wes Anderson, retro 70's vibe we want, so its not the end of the world to be honest.
Our only worry is that The Graves Gallery is very echoey but Stephen (Sound) is confident that he can work on minimising the reverb when editing.
Drama - Day 1 Shoot
Day 1 (23/4/2012) of the shoot was to shoot scenes 2, 8 and 15 at the location of Maggie May's Bar.
Today's shoot went extremely well; this is because of how well we planned before the shoot and worked extremely well as a team, listening to each other's thoughts and problems and helping one another with equipment and setting up shots etc.
As visual director I instantly got actors in costume and went through the script with them for them to have a fresh memory on their lines and speak to them about the emotion me and Lucy (director) was trying to get across. After Lucy helped Ben (Cinematographer) and Stephen (Sound) set up lighting, camera and sound she came over and we both discussed to the actors their performances involving about body movement and gestures for each fantasy scene we was wanted them to bring across. All this saved a lot of time giving us a better opportunity to get more shots of the scenes.
During shooting Alice (producer) and Stephen (sound) helped one another with mic positioning to get the best sounds possible. Alice (producer) also filled out sound and camera logs along with Katie (editor) whose was in charge of the clapper board. Ben (cinematographer) was mainly on camera, focusing on lighting, camera positioning and framing along with Lucy (director). During the shoot I helped by moving lighting and camera equipment for Ben (cinematographer) as he was trying to get a number of different shots. I also helped with lighting setting them up to have the correct brightness for each shot. Also, Lucy (director) and Ben (cinematographer) would sometimes ask me (visual director/screenwriter) for a second opinion on shot ideas and framing which I thought to be very nice as it made me feel involved with the look and style of the film during the shoot.
We kept very well sticking the time plan of our shooting schedule, only having to rush towards the end as Mike who was the actor playing Jack had to unexpectedly leave 20 minutes early than we thought. However we managed to shoot everything we wanted to in the end.
Overall, the first day of shooting went very well and I am EXTREMELY HAPPY with the group I am working with. They are a lovely bunch of people and I am highly pleased that I am having the opportunity of working with them. We all get along perfectly and we all show an equal amount of passion and dedication in all the work we do.
Drama - Change of Location
Unfortunately we have had to change for scenes set in the father's front room. This is because we were finding it extremely difficult to find a suitable living that went with the aesthetics of the film we was trying to thrive for.
Using student living areas was completely out of the question as they are dull and uninteresting to the eye lacking anything that can be eye catching and went with the theme of our theme.
Alice (producer) had an option to shoot the scenes at her godparents' house in Chesterfield, this would have been great as it is not far to get there and travel costs would be very low, also from Alice's description of the house it had the right look we was hoping for. Even though Alice's godparents accepted and were more than happy to shoot at their house, unfortunately this couldn’t happen as Alice's godparents wasn’t available within our schedule so we ran the risk of leaving it too late.
Therefore Katie (editor) recommended that we change the setting of the house to Jack and his father having the 'coming out' scenes in a bar she works at called 'Maggie May's'. After Katie asked for permission to shoot in the bar her manager much obliged giving us early mornings before the bar opened to shoot the scenes we needed to.
Now as visual arts director I am GUTTED about this as I will not be able to use any of the amazing props I have obtained for the film. This is because it will be impossible to make the bar look like a front room and the props just wouldn't suit the location, looking 'out of place' and tacky.
However, on a higher note Maggie May's is a 60's, 70's and 80's themed bar with a number of posters of popular and famous musical artists that were around during those era's. Therefore working with the era and visual aesthetics we are going to achieve. The décor in the bar has the right combination of colours and patterns as well for our era the film is based in that will look brilliant on screen. Also, even though I didn’t get to use the props I got for the film, at least I have still got the costumes to be creative with and I can use the props in another film in the future.
Drama - Shooting Schedule
Alice (Producer) has set up and sent to all the crew our shooting schedule, so here it is. Exciting times!
Click to enlarge.
Click to enlarge.
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