Time to to catch you up on what has transpired since my last rather melancholy post. Allot has happened since those dark ages.
I was introduced to a most wonderful FX Artist extraordinare, Freena Hamilton and her partner and assistant Mat who together are like the Bat Man and Robin of effects artists. Freena had a peek at my script and her eye's glazed over such lines as "It's fangs are long and razor sharp", "He tears away her mouth but she takes flesh with her" and "The skin on one side of her face has been ground away to bone" She gave me a call and in it was on donkey Kong.
Every now and again at a production meeting Freena shows me some of her work in progress and I cant help but get warm feelings inside. The calibre of the work is far superior to anything I could have done myself. I am most thankful for her presence on the production.
Production meetings started showing a healthy attendance around a week ago and since then crew and cast members have been walking in and out my front door almost daily. Loren Kenrick my head of Production Design has been going above and beyond the call of duty sometimes acting like a co-producer, introducing me to potential crew and attending casting sessions. A big thank you will be owed to her when all is shot and wrapped.
My actors have been selected with Daniel Tenni to play the role of Michael and Adam Dear to play Paul. Freena was also kind enough to introduce me to the woman that now holds the gory mantle of Clair, the great menace of the story. A beautiful actress who loves wearing practical effects about as much as Freena loves applying them. With all three of these actors I am confident that the story will find life on screen.
On another note. My Gaffer sent word via a medium that he would not be able to meet the availability of the shoot that has now stretched out to a whopping nine days of shooting to accommodate the massive amount's of shots, one hundred and twenty nine to be precise (not including cut-away's). And so, around five days from the start of production I was ringing around old friends and brief acquaintances trying to find someone to take up the mantle. But there was an even bigger worry on the horizon.
Not only had I not yet secured any sound equipment, but I hadn't even found a competent operator. to put things in perspective, the pool of film makers in Perth is vast, they populate the water like tiny minnows if not sometimes blind to each other and the opportunities that float past them. Soundy's tho are like a rare albino of albino minnows. They are few and very far between, to know one is to have opportunity in reach for without sound you cannot have a picture, to know one who has his own equipment and will work for you for little to nothing is a blessing but very few of these little albino albinos ever get to reach that stage of maturity and few who do posses a giving and compassionate state of mind. Many of them are bittered by experience or blinded by there own rarity and uniqueness. It is imperative that a Director if not knowing a friendly old albino, knows how to beg. Because in this game of cards, the albinos hold all the aces.
After much searching, and I do believe I rung and emailed to the furthest reaches of my tiny web I found myself on the screen west film directory going through names of sound recordists. It seemed every one had a list of experience that towered far above my tiny back yard film and that invoked the sounds of falling dollar coins in my ears. I was loosing hope and then suddenly I saw a name I recognised and old fellow TAFE student from my studies years prior. I gave Simon a ring and told him of my plight, he listened and agreed to have a look at some of the dates and then later that afternoon sent me an email with a green light on it. Have soundy... can make picture. I rang another old TAFE'y who had some sound equipment agreed to hire it from him at a greatly reduced price and walla! Problem solved.
My gaffer situation is without solution but to mainly a fault of my own, that being that I don't think that I necessarily need one any more. between myself and my DOP Garth Austin I believe the job is very much catered for and in safe hands. And so I now claim the title of Gaffer on the production also. Whether or not I choose to credit myself as such is still undecided.
Speaking of catering. My unit I now firmly believe will be the greatest ever known to a film production, because its being managed by the greatest cook ever to hold a knife and spatula, my Nanna Margaret Weaver. I visited her yesterday for a unit meeting and the recipes she so casually waved about in front of my face made me so hungry I almost took a bite out of her pine wood table. I'm very much looking forward to seeing the look on the crews faces when dinner is presented this Wednesday. All animal friendly of coarse but I will be happy to point any complainers towards the local shopping centre. No money out of my pocket.
And so the shoot begins this Wednesday (the 10th) and then breaks abruptly afterwards before continuing again before repeat... all in all, the final day of production will take place on the 28th of this month (March) so where in for a long ride. But to be honest, I wouldn't have it any other way.
Peace
Nicholas Phillips
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