The shoot yesterday was a relaxed one, and one which yielded, to me, the best visuals I’ve ever recorded. The new Panasonic camera is a marvel, and it has sullied my opinion of all things shot with the Sony VX-2000. I had to show Roman “Time Heals All Wounds” and I hated the way the movie looked after shooting with the new camera. It owns me now. I am thoroughly addicted to capturing perfect images with it.
The shoot introduced Justin Grace to everyone, and his charming personality was a welcome alternative to the dour mood set by the screenplay. He and crewman Matt Tucker got hopped-up on Duncan Donuts “munchkins” and Justin was all about levity in between his takes. He was a real joy to work with, and we finished about a good 1½ hour before we were scheduled to wrap his scenes.
Similarly, Gail Simeone walked into the movie and took cast and crews hearts by storm. I knew I had cast her well, but when she pulled off her big scene with Niki, Pat and I were beside ourselves. The woman managed to bring Pat’s lines to life with extraordinary skill, and Gail is now firmly planted in my mind as the lead for my remake of “The Quiet Day,” a project that is potentially the last short picture I will ever shoot.
And Niki what a trooper. Sheri stood outside with Niki and flicked an odd mixture of fake blood and chocolate syrup at Niki’s face and torso. By the time we were done, her face, white shirt and hair were all spattered and caked with dried guck. It was quite a sight, and most normal people would complain. But not Niki. She smiled and laughed and made sure that she looked the right way. Then she gave us a knockout set of takes which involved a long reveal shot that circles her as she sits on her bed.
“Aftermath” was clearly born under a good sign. Pat Hines’s family were wonderful enough to evacuate the house when we arrived and gave us full-reign to do what we needed to do to get their son’s movie made. From the time we arrived, it was straightforward, organized moviemaking and problems that arose (like not having three-prong outlets or adapters from three to two prongs) were quickly solved. Upon waking up for today’s shoot, I could not wait to run out and start shooting!
On tap for today are a number of exterior scenes. I’m pretty optimistic all will go well, based on yesterday’s shoot but not overly so. I need to keep my head here. It is moviemaking after all, and we’re shooting in a couple unsecured locations, including a graveyard.