Sunshine Sunday

Wow - been a long time since I blogged! We shot nights for the last couple of weeks! It just goes by in a blur! But such a fun time!

Shooting is wrapped! Back in LA - still haven't unpacked everything...

Now what? Very confusing time. Taiwan directing deal is here and on the table! Yay! Another kick ass film also hovering on the sidelines...been in a couple of meetings with the director and team...

Some other cool projects have popped up too. Must be getting busy out there! So for the moment, just regrouping in LA and then will land...somewhere...

Will post as soon as I know!

BTW - just saw Inglorious Basterds last night - WOW! Haven't enjoyed a film so much since...I guess Pulp Fiction! Quentin rocks. He is for sure my #1 favorite director! The Kill Bills rocked too...his films are perfection and so twisted!

keg

Sleepy Saturday

Yaaawwwnnnn. Worked all night - went to bed at 7:30am this morning...so just got up at about 4:00p!

I really don't mind working nights. Plus last night we shot a bad ass explosion at a power plant. It was HUGE! And the actors were running in front of it!

They looked pretty darn nervous as we had the safety meeting and the crew was told they had to stand way, way, way far back from the pyro because it wasn't safe to be any closer - which of course left the 3 actos asking, "But what about us...????"

Anyway - it all went well and looked fucking cool! So what more can you ask for if you are working all night?

Not going to set until about 11:00p tonight - even though crew call is at 7p. No vfx until later - in fact, just some monitor comps. So, if shouldn't be a whole night for me. Good day to be part of the vfx dept...

:-)

Meandering Monday

Oops! Been way too long again!

Let's see - last week we shot more sequences with explosions, squibs and muzzle flashes. Cool! Working split shifts now - from about 2p to "hope we get out of here before sunrise!"

I actually prefer it - hate 6am calls. When I have to get up so early - I wake up every half hour to check the damn time! Never get a good night of sleep. But when I don't have to be in until afternoon - cool - I just sleep in as late was I want!

2 more weeks left to shoot. All going so fast!

Not sure what I will be doing next - negotiating for one project and supposed to meet the director shortly for another....whichever lands first is the one I will go with I figure!

Tonight we shoot at the casino - no vfx. But I will be there for a pyro meeting during dinner break. Guess I will just have to hang out at the black jack tables - you know, just in case any vfx comes up, I want to be close by...

:-)

Thirsty Thursday!

Damn! I drink a whole lot of liquid out here! Hot Hot Hot!!!

Fun week! On set monday and tuesday for just one vfx shot each day! DOH! But that allowed me to get caught up on inputting camera reports and other show related stuff.

Wednesday - a day to go down in history. We shot a very brave actor dancing naked with veggies in his butt! Yep - we did! Funniest damn thing I've ever seen... 'Nuff said. And no, I'm not working on a porno! But definitely a hysterical R rated comedy!

Thursday - tons of shots! Took camera reports for about 38 camera setups today...lots of squibs and bullet hits and muzzle flashes coming our way.

Everyone continues to be in good spirits and fun to work with. What more can you ask for? Well, maybe a bigger paycheck!!!

:-)

Sleep in Saturday!

It's saturday already! Thursday and friday zipped by in a haze!

On thursday I scouted the locations that we were going to Lidar. The vfx house we awarded the work to has their own Lidar! Cool! So they grabbed a couple of building locations and then out to some amazing cliffs to scan for a 3D build.

I left them in scanning land and went back to the hotel to enter camera report data....boring!

Friday was awesome! We blew up a van - I mean a HUGE explosion! Love that shit! It's always so cool. KABOOM!!! said the van...

The hardest part of this show so far is trying not to burst out laughing during the takes. This show has some funny shit in it and the entire crew gets doubled over trying to laugh in silence. I asked one of the actors how he keeps from busting up during the takes and he said he actually has to dig his nails into his hand to distract him from laughing!

Comedies are cool.

Water guzzling wednesday

Forgot to write about tuesday! That was shoot day #2. I only had one day for night shot so didn't go to set until 4p. Spent the rest of the day inputting camera reports from monday and making velcro markers for the bluescreen shoot on wednesday.

Wednesday - busy day! Lots of cool SFX shoot ups and vfx shots. This is really an amazing crew - not one pain in the ass or overblown ego to be seen. The comraderie feels like we've been working together for weeks - rather than just 3 days! The SNL guys are really nice and, of course, incredibly funny! Makes the shoot a real hoot!

The velcro markers worked like a charm on the fuzzy blue. Too bad the bluescreen we dropped on the set was all in shadow! :-(

But we will be fine...we always are...

:-)

But damn hot out there...but crafty is great and brings us popsicles! Yay! They taste like the best damn popsicles you've ever tasted when you are burning up from the heat! I drank SO much water...no matter how much - I still wanted more...

Monochromatic Monday

First day of shooting! Call time was 6a and it was 45 minute to set. So - left hotel at 5:15am - was up at 4:15am! DOH!

We shot in some gypsum mines - totally white! Absolutely blinding in the sunlight - you couldn't last a minute without sunglasses if you expected to still have your eyesight at the end of the day! And when the wind would kick up - we would all get covered head to (and breath in) white gypsum powder...yeck!

But cool shoot. Considering it was the first day - it went surprisingly smoothly. No hiccups or hithces. Wrapped up at 7p.

Tomorrow - I don't have to be on set until 4p as there is only 1 vfx shot up....cool! Can get some other work done!