Something magical is afoot...

I've said it before, but still riding the waves of emotion that come when a project has just wrapped, I think it bears repeating that there is something uniquely wonderful and enchanting about being on set.

Tonight we wrapped filming on the web series Throwing Stones. This is a project I jumped at the chance to work on, knowing I would have to pray for an opportunity to arise for me behind the camera (seeing as the characters, with one exception, are high school students...and the wrinkles on my face say that is just not going to happen). I was elated when the producers/writers/directors/kings-o'-awesomeness offered me the chance to head up the Art Department, which primarily consisted of transforming existing schools into our beloved Blair High School (eat your heart out, Shermer!) and managing the various (awesome) props needed for this horror treat.

Not only was I blessed to work with a ridiculously talented cast and crew (all of whom happened to be some of the most fun, easy-going, hilarious people I've had the pleasure of meeting in this business), but I also had the opportunity to partake in the filmmaking process in a very real way. My opinions in terms of performances, shot angles, content, etc. were not only sought out, but appreciated and valued. Every second that I spend on set will inevitably make me a more effective member of this wonderful community, but getting to participate in the production process has also made me a better actress. Not to mention, my love for this crazy business has never felt deeper nor stronger.

It seems that every time I contemplate moving away from this business, something wonderful happens that pulls me back in and reminds me why I've been involved in this world for over two decades now. It's truly a gift that I feel I receive over and over again.

Or, more specifically, every time I step on set.

Set Diary [Taking Advantage - Day 1]

Taking Advantage is a short film in which I play the murderous mistress of a boss with vengeful plans of his own. (It's a thriller, in case you couldn't have guessed.) The film should be completed March 2010. This is my third starring role with Blue Light Pictures, which means that most of the cast and crew are friends at this point.

6:30pm - After working a nine hour day (and having been up since 6am), I arrived on set at a beautiful residence in Frisco, TX. It was a homecoming of sorts, being back on set with the faces I've grown to adore over the past year or so of working with these folks on several other films. I downed my half-caf soy pumpkin latte (which I would later wish was infinitely more caffeinated and laced with NoDoz), and we got started on my hair and makeup. The majority of the cast and crew had a 5pm call time, so I was a bit surprised to find them still setting up the first shot when I arrived. However, it is a well known fact that the first scene on the first day of a shoot is usually the most arduous. No big deal.

8:00pm - The first few scenes are done (all of which I've simply observed), I'm still in my scrubs (from the damn day job), crew breaks for our home-cooked dinner, and a very risque photo shoot takes place (for the sake of the film, you dirty bird) that provides fodder for the next few hours. (Side note: while I got a kick out of this as much as any, it did make me even more nervous about the "sex scene" I would be shooting on Sunday. I am a bit uncomfortable with PDAs as it is, and homegirl definitely upped the bar with her boundless sexuality and rockin' bod. And damn those irresistible Flaming Hot Cheetos on set; I've got to be on camera in my bra in T-minus twelve hours!)

10:30pm - It starts to get a little hazy at this point. We all realize we're in for a long nite and foolishly unprepared: there's no Starbucks in sight, we don't do coke, none of us brought sleeping bags or PJs, and most of us were pretty worn out upon arrival (from day jobs, prior shoots, life, etc).

1:00am - I'm not sure I have filmed a scene at this point, but total delirium was alive and well at this point, so here were the highlights from the rest of this overnight shoot:
- The decor in the house started to turn on us. Picasso-like decorative plates, Jesus pictures, countless angels, and random trinkets showed up in the unlikeliest of places (tucked under a lamp shade....WTF?).
- I nearly knocked myself unconscious from falling so convincingly (sarcasm? yes.) after being hit in the head with the butt of a handgun. Time to add stunts to my resume.
- Renee and I literally jumped for joy when a fresh supply of the "good" chips were discovered somewhere around 1:30am. Funnyiuns make the world go 'round, people.
- A failed attempt at making a pot of coffee in a house free of cream and sugar goes awry as I nearly sustain third degree burns to my hands while trying to drink hot, black coffee from a Solo cup. (Nothing but bad decisions are to be made after midnight. I'm sticking by that.)
- We almost froze to death thanks to the perpetually open door (right next to where we were stationed) that welcomed nice lighting for the shot, and therefore had to be open for every subsequent scene for continuity purposes. There might have also been zombies or cows of some sort outside, the sounds of which convinced our key grip Michael that we were are likely about to die. (It was the wee hours of the morning people. This was not outside the realm of possibility.)

4:00am - I selfishly leave set long before anyone else as my scenes are wrapped for the evening...er, morning. I half-ass my goodbyes as I drag my exhausted, fully made-up self home to sleep. At this point, I am thanking the good Lord for making the potential shoot on Saturday fall through, as I would have basically had to drive the hour home, shower, drive to Oklahoma, and arrive on set for an eight hour day on zero sleep...and 24 hours of hot mess.

Set Diary [Henry's Daughters]

Below is a recap from day four on the set of an industrial (non-broadcast) shoot. The film is about a business-ethics dilemma within a family of engineers; I played the younger daughter, Julie.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

6:00 – Alarm goes off and I curse myself for staying up until midnight watching Sex & the City and Will & Grace reruns. Makeup will be provided on-set, so all I have to do is wash my face and try to give my hair a little attention. I then load up the two wardrobe bags full of clothes that I spent most of the previous night laying out. (Since this was a SAG ultra-low budget film, we had to provide the clothes, accessories, shoes, etc., which meant putting together a dozen options to present to Tiffany, our vivacious Assistant Producer, for approval. The styling had to be done on set, so I had to pack up almost everything that could possibly pull the outfits together–shoes, belts, earrings, scarves–to be prepared for what the scene called for, what my counterparts on screen would be wearing, and what my character would likely chose.) With just enough time to make my espresso and leave Mom a note, I was out the door, on my way to Fort Worth.

9:00 – Call time. I arrive at the plant in Fort Worth where we would be shooting all day. (I will not mention the name of the facility nor company because they have many government defense contracts and therefore should be kept secure in terms of layout and operations.) This place was incredible and I still cannot believe that we were able to secure this location! First of all, we had to turn over our cell phone upon arrival because of the camera features on them. I don’t think I have to explain how difficult this was. We had to wear closed-toe shoes, so this was probably the first time in two years I’ve shown up to set in anything other than flip-flops. Then we had to wear name badges with a security card to get through the initial turnstyle. We are escorted (by the Chief Engineer!) through the plant to the hanger in which we would be shooting all day; along the way I saw a myriad of contraptions that sent my imagination into overload. Transformers have nothing on this place! We walk into the shoot location, and I am immediately blown away by the giant Bradley IFV with which we are sharing the space. (Google it if you don’t know what this thing is. It’s incredible and I couldn’t stop staring at it.) Quick wardrobe change, makeup and hair (by Shannon Knox, who–in the grand tradition of MUAs–is awesome and wonderful!), and then it’s time to start shooting.

10:00 – Shot our first scene in an adjacent warehouse on the property, never unaware of the fact that the entire plant is held within a giant fence topped with wire. We began with B-roll shots of me working on our autonomous car software, which basically means I got to play with the interface that the company uses to test the driving capabilities of the Bradley. It….was….awesome!! I got to wear headphones and basically play the most expensive Play Station ever invented. All the while, Joe Cantu, our fantastic DP, is asking me to keep the vehicle on the runway as I bulldoze nearby buildings. I’m still not sure letting me operate that equipment was a great idea on their part, but it was probably the highlight of my day.

11:30 – Break for lunch. I don’t know how many of y’all have shared a lunch room with about 50 lab-coat-wearing engineers, but it’s a treat. You instantly feel about 80 IQ points stupider. The food was great, and then we were escorted back to the hanger by our insanely over-qualified babysitter. After another escort to the restroom for a third wardrobe change (and yes, I had my very own labcoat for the shoot), we resumed shooting the rest of the technical scenes…

13:00 – …And so begins the infamous “arse shots.” In this film, I play a young, spunky engineer who happens to have a tattoo on her lower back, which is ogled (a word I apparently never pronounced correctly before this shoot) by her fellow engineers as she bends down to work underneath their prototype vehicle. We also got to incorporate some pyrotechnics into this sequence, which served as the impetus for me grabbing a wrench and diving under the car, thus exposing the true star (no pun intended) of the film. In shooting terms, this meant I spent the better part of the afternoon on all fours, bent over and listening to an array of comments and jokes that made me feel oh-so-proud of my backside. I can now say that this tattoo of mine (yes, I have a real tramp stamp, a fact at which most of the cast and crew balked given my apparently innocent facade) was finally put to good use. Great times.

14:30-ish – Moving on to the scene in which my smarmy boss, played by the king of deadpan, John Athas, comes on to me. It was all I could do not to crack up since my natural reaction when I’m uncomfortable is to laugh (which creates obvious confusion in such circumstances), but once I pulled it together and got into character, John really had the tougher gig. Next we shot some improv B-roll scenes with my fellow engineers (the incomparable Dell Johnson and David Lugo), proving that I break when faced with witty, hilarious actors worse than Jimmy Fallon. But what was I supposed to do when David suggested (camera rolling, mind you) adding hydraulics and a better sound system to the prototype to make it more user-friendly? Seriously?!

16:00- That’s a wrap (for me, at least)! I was so bummed to leave and can’t express enough what a joy the cast and crew were. I always hear horror stories about SAG directors and producers, but this experience couldn’t have been better. Executive Producer Ken Mandel and Director Paul Martin’s New York sense of humor kept me on my toes and reminded me why I love those damn Yankees.

Set Diary [Last Words]

I’ve decided to post a little re-cap of the goings-on from set yesterday while shooting “Last Words.” It’s fun to recall all the little moments (good and not-so-much) and to give y’all an idea of what it’s like to work on an indie film set, if you haven’t ever had the pleasure of doing so yourself. (Please forgive my grammar; my verb tense bounces all over the place.)

Saturday, May 16, 2009

10:00 – Wake up and begin the arduous process of preparing to be on camera. (This process actually begins the night before and includes sleeping in my retainer, using whitening strips, piling on the face cream, coating my hair in a night repair mist, giving myself a mani and doing some push ups for last minute toning, not to mention packing wardrobe for the shoot and making sure I have directions to all locations ready to go.) First order of business is usually making a tall, stout coffee. Haha. Rarely is a call time later than 9am, so I lucked out today with a noon call time. On this particular shoot, we have amazing MUA (make-up artist) Chelsea Lee, so all I have to do is throw on some comfy clothes and make sure my hair is 90% ready. The rest will be taken care of on set.

10:45 – Head out to North Richland Hills and prepare my lines during the commute. This is when I like to listen to some good music to get me in the mood for the scenes I’m shooting that day. (Plus, I’ve always got my iPod on set to keep me in the mood, especially if I’ve got a tough scene ahead of me.)

12:00 - Arrive on time to the beautiful home in which we are shooting; this is the first of two locations for the crew today. I have just enough time to grab a cup of coffee from craft services before Chelsea starts on my make-up. While I am getting my pretty on, wardrobe takes a look at the options I’ve brought and chooses what I will wear in all 3 scenes today, including accessories and shoes.

13:15 – I am called to set for lighting and sounds tests. This generally takes a while as the DP and Director have to consider lighting and background from all angles on a shot, which is especially tricky during a pan shot or movement of any sort. Now, luckily for me, I am cold-natured (yet more evidence that I may be a vampire, but that’s another blog entirely…) because in this scene I am watching TV and working on my laptop while on the couch under a blanket. During filming, the A/C at the location has to be shut off to avoid background noise. It was about 86 degrees outside when we were shooting yesterday, so between the heat outside, the hot lights on set and all those moving bodies, it gets funky quickly. Hence, naturally being a couple of degrees cooler than everyone else is a huge advantage. We shoot the action multiple times from about five different angles, each time having to adjust furniture and lighting around us. Meanwhile, I have to do my best to keep my hair, movement, placement, etc. consistent. Scene goes well and director seems to be pleased!



15:30 (-ish…this is where the day turns into a blur, so timing at this point is an approximation) – I run upstairs (literally) to change into my second outfit, change up my hair a bit while running back downstairs, grab a swig from my coffee, and double check with Chelsea to make sure I haven’t made a mess of my face. I am also able to join some of the others in watching behind-the-scenes footage from another local film that some of the crew also worked on (”Carried Away”) before I’m called to set. Then I jump back underneath my blankie, now in a large red love seat where I am presumably reading (imagine that!), let them adjust lighting, and shoot this scene a few times, again from multiple angles…all the while Michael’s vampire mic clip is earning its name by cleaving to the skin on my chest. (But really, who doesn’t love a good vampire mark?)

16:30 - Again, run back upstairs, hop into another outfit, search for my wayward coffee, and beckon Chelsie to come upstairs and change makeup for my last scene of the day. I am exhausted, hungry and sweaty at this point (blankie caught up with me), so Chelsea, being a doll, distracts me with a fan and pulls up the SNL “Barry Gibb Talk Show” clip on her phone. I am in stitches as she freshens me up, and Michael Gonzalez straps my mic harness in place and partakes in the hysterics. We are caught goofing off by 2nd AD Paul Meyers, who is kind enough to see our need for a moment of silliness, and promises the Unit Production Manager (the incomparable, wonderful Carolyn Hodges) that we are nearly ready. A minute later, we are headed downstairs to block the action and dialogue for the next scene. I am working with the beautiful, talented Anna Terry in this scene, and it is refreshing to have an actual person to react to in this scene (as blank TV screens and prop phones do not make for the most thrilling scene partners). We get through our takes, though I am consistently a little disappointed with how flat and simple my performance is striking me. It didn’t help that one of the dogs that belonged to the owner of the house actually started barking and howling right in the middle of one of my ECU (extreme close-up) takes. Haha! Anna takes note of my frustration and does her best to get me back on track so we can pull it out for some great takes. After that it was smooth sailing, and next thing I know, it’s a wrap! (Well, for the time being at least…I still have to shoot my confrontation scene in the jail, which is one of the locations we lost on Friday at call time.)

18:00 – I’m always so overwhelmed after a day of shooting; partly because I am tired andsore (you wouldn’t believe the positions you have to hold to make sure you don’t have the dreaded double chin or buffalo arm on camera…or maybe that’s just me), but mostly because I am just so overcome with joy from spending a whole day doing what I love more than anything, surrounded by amazing, talented people who share that passion. It really is the coolest thing I’ve ever experienced! I gather my clothes and try to put back everything that I have commandeered during the shoot. I say my goodbyes as I head toward the door, trying to stay out of the way as the crew frantically breaks down to head to the next location as they are running behind schedule, which is almost inevitable on a film set. So many variables, it’s crazy. Chelsea and I start plotting for a wrap party (”Hide the Rum!”), and I leave set, looking forward to the next time I am blessed enough to see all these faces again.