On Guard (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} onguard) wrote,@ 2003-05-19 17:00:00 |
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A Big (tentative) Sigh of Relief
I apologize for not writing more frequently this past week -- hopefully this week I'll be more forthcoming with information. The main reason for the lack of updates from my end has been the protracted dilemma of hiring key crew. I've been anxious to get my DP, AD and sound guy in order for the last couple of weeks and the process has been much more involved than I expected. I think one thing I didn't have a firm grasp on was how tentative things could be. In this business all sorts of last minute stuff may happen -- people who say they'll commit to your project will drop out at any given moment when something bigger or more lucrative comes up, or they may just drop out for no apparent reason at all. On the other end of things, you might find someone you think you really like and then suddenly a change of circumstances lead you to someone else.
I'm telling you, last week was the most stressed out I've been -- the uncertainty, the decision-making, the waiting on others' responses and contingency planning, it drove me up a wall. I can't say I handled it perfectly but at least I went through it and I'll be much more comfortable with the hiring process next time around. Of course the process isn't really over until the movie is finished -- anything might happen up to that point and one must ALWAYS have a plan B...
The world of uncertainty really opened up on Saturday the 10th when we interviewed DP candidates -- Karin, Will and I met with different DPs and we each had such different views on each it made my head swim. Where one of us saw someone who seemed to make the camera and lighting setups more complicated than they needed to be, another would see someone who was very aware of potential problems with the shoot and was actively presenting solutions. Where one of us saw someone who seemed to really share our vision for the project, another would see someone who was agreeing with what we were saying without challenging us or coming up with his or her own ideas. It was tough trying to accomodate the strengths of others' points of view while trying to stay to your original vision, especially when at times they seemed irreconcilable. But I came out of that with a much better appreciation of what makes a collaborative process work.
I'd like to say that I had at least one or two other strong candidates to choose from for each department, which I see as a blessing even though during the decision-making process it felt like a curse (I just hate saying no to really qualified people). At least if some god-forsaken thing were to come up with any of the crew I picked, I may have a strong person to bring in to rescue us, if they're available. I don't know how filmmakers stay sane with all this contingency and uncertainty. I guess it makes life exciting if one knows how to handle it.
And so, I would like to announce my key crew and say that I'm very pleased to have them aboard and I hope they will get as much out of working with me on this project as I expect to with them -- they are all significantly more experienced than I am; what I hope to offer them in return is a great project to work on in terms of creative challenges, organization, publicity, and potentially long-term collaborative relationships.
Leland Krane (http://us.imdb.com/Name?Krane,+Leland
Craig Greene, assistant director, has worked in the film industry for nearly a decade in various on-set production capacities, and is now studying in NYU film school. I like Craig because in his email to me he came right out and said, "I see a lot of potential snafus in your project." That's exactly what a good AD should say (so long as he helps us figure out how to solve them).
Brian Fish has recorded sound for a number of features and has recently finished a three-month shoot for an upcoming bowling documentary (www.nobowlereverturnedcommie.com). He came in with great references and everyone I talked to couldn't speak highly enough of him. Sound is going to be very key in giving this film the right atmosphere. Brian scoped out the site a while back and thinks we can get all the sound we need with two lavaliers and a boom -- I hope he's right!
So there's the team -- and I do feel great relief being able to say that. Now I can move on to getting everything set for rehearsals and final preparations next week. This week we'll rework the script some more, put our list of extras in order, get our shotlist down and schedule our shoot days accordingly, and so on... Wish us luck.
I apologize for not writing more frequently this past week -- hopefully this week I'll be more forthcoming with information. The main reason for the lack of updates from my end has been the protracted dilemma of hiring key crew. I've been anxious to get my DP, AD and sound guy in order for the last couple of weeks and the process has been much more involved than I expected. I think one thing I didn't have a firm grasp on was how tentative things could be. In this business all sorts of last minute stuff may happen -- people who say they'll commit to your project will drop out at any given moment when something bigger or more lucrative comes up, or they may just drop out for no apparent reason at all. On the other end of things, you might find someone you think you really like and then suddenly a change of circumstances lead you to someone else.
I'm telling you, last week was the most stressed out I've been -- the uncertainty, the decision-making, the waiting on others' responses and contingency planning, it drove me up a wall. I can't say I handled it perfectly but at least I went through it and I'll be much more comfortable with the hiring process next time around. Of course the process isn't really over until the movie is finished -- anything might happen up to that point and one must ALWAYS have a plan B...
The world of uncertainty really opened up on Saturday the 10th when we interviewed DP candidates -- Karin, Will and I met with different DPs and we each had such different views on each it made my head swim. Where one of us saw someone who seemed to make the camera and lighting setups more complicated than they needed to be, another would see someone who was very aware of potential problems with the shoot and was actively presenting solutions. Where one of us saw someone who seemed to really share our vision for the project, another would see someone who was agreeing with what we were saying without challenging us or coming up with his or her own ideas. It was tough trying to accomodate the strengths of others' points of view while trying to stay to your original vision, especially when at times they seemed irreconcilable. But I came out of that with a much better appreciation of what makes a collaborative process work.
I'd like to say that I had at least one or two other strong candidates to choose from for each department, which I see as a blessing even though during the decision-making process it felt like a curse (I just hate saying no to really qualified people). At least if some god-forsaken thing were to come up with any of the crew I picked, I may have a strong person to bring in to rescue us, if they're available. I don't know how filmmakers stay sane with all this contingency and uncertainty. I guess it makes life exciting if one knows how to handle it.
And so, I would like to announce my key crew and say that I'm very pleased to have them aboard and I hope they will get as much out of working with me on this project as I expect to with them -- they are all significantly more experienced than I am; what I hope to offer them in return is a great project to work on in terms of creative challenges, organization, publicity, and potentially long-term collaborative relationships.
Leland Krane (http://us.imdb.com/Name?Krane,+Leland
Craig Greene, assistant director, has worked in the film industry for nearly a decade in various on-set production capacities, and is now studying in NYU film school. I like Craig because in his email to me he came right out and said, "I see a lot of potential snafus in your project." That's exactly what a good AD should say (so long as he helps us figure out how to solve them).
Brian Fish has recorded sound for a number of features and has recently finished a three-month shoot for an upcoming bowling documentary (www.nobowlereverturnedcommie.com). He came in with great references and everyone I talked to couldn't speak highly enough of him. Sound is going to be very key in giving this film the right atmosphere. Brian scoped out the site a while back and thinks we can get all the sound we need with two lavaliers and a boom -- I hope he's right!
So there's the team -- and I do feel great relief being able to say that. Now I can move on to getting everything set for rehearsals and final preparations next week. This week we'll rework the script some more, put our list of extras in order, get our shotlist down and schedule our shoot days accordingly, and so on... Wish us luck.
