January 2, 2005

• The Production Side

  
  

  To kick off the New Year, I thought I’d get back into the focus of this journal which is to de-mystify the world of film.  So today’s entry will be more focused on the production side of the “Smilodon” aka “SaberTooth” aka “Night of the Smilodon/SaberTooth“.

  
  

  The Assistant Directors

  
  

  These were our Assistant Directors on set.  Pennie (2nd AD) and Brad (3rd AD aka the 2nd-2nd AD).  Pennie’s job was to organize all the actors traveling onto set everyday, signing in and out and relayed what was going on set to the production office.  Brad coordinated where we needed to be at all times (breakfast, lunch, makeup, wardrobe, on set).  He also directed the background extras and knew when to get us an Iced Coffee at the perfect point in the day before we dropped of heatstroke in the non-air conditioned studio amongst 90 degree weather.  Whenever you check onto a set as an actor, ask for the 2nd or 2nd-2nd AD when you first show up and they’ll know where to rush you off to.  Also, as silly as it may sound, let them know whenever you are going to your trailer, the bathroom or craft services – you’ll never know when you’ll be needed on set and they need to be able to locate you at a minute’s notice.  Incidentally, the 1st Assistant Director basically means what the title says.  He/she knows what the director wants and keeps things on set moving along in a timely manner.  Knowing what the director needs, he/she must factor in the time it takes for the lighting people, sound people, camera people and actors to do their respective thing — so they’re really busy and you probably won’t meet him/her until you’re in front of the camera and ready to shoot.

  
  

  Special Effects

  
  

  This photo is taken from the Visual Effects (VFX) Department.  Obviously we did not work with real SaberTooth Tigers or any animals.  So to set up for a special effect shot of say, someone getting chased down by a SaberTooth Tiger, the shot goes through 4 steps.  1) The camera gets locked down in one area and they shoot the actor running away from an imaginary tiger.  Imagination is a huge plus here.  It helps to know little details like how big the thing is, where is it coming from (so your eyeline is correct) and how fast, etc.  2) With the camera rolling where it originally was, the VFX Director gets on his hand and knees - takes that silver ball and walks it though the path of the Sabertooth Tiger.  This is to capture the lighting from all angles so the Computer Generated Image (CGI) Tiger will be lit correctly.  3) Then the VFX guy takes the stuffed dog through the same process – to capture how fur catches the light during the path. 4) Then the orange balls are placed on the ground to indicate the path and where the Tiger should be inserted.  

  
  

  The CGI folks now have enough information to put these 4 takes together:  The actor running away, knowing where to insert the Tiger chasing him plus they know how the fur will move and how it should be lit to stay consistent with the actor and keep the illusion both were in the same room.

  
  

  Continuity

  
  

  This shot is to illustrate how the wardrobe people keep continuity on set — which hand a watch was on,  how many buttons were buttoned up, etc.  The whole movie takes place in one day, so there weren’t any costume changes.  But this photo was taken to keep track of where the blood was on my costume.  But it’s really the job of the actor to keep track of their own continuity.  Someone is on set to do it but you try keeping track of everyone’s continuity — it’s tough.  So for me, I tried to remember which hand I held my flashlight in the scene before.  Where I took a sip of my drink within my dialogue.  It seems like little stuff but if your actions don’t always match from different angles, your scenes will be impossible to cut together.  And the editor’s only option is to cut to someone else in order to hide it.  But if your continuity is always on, YOU’RE the person the editor will always cut to.  If another actor in a wide shot is say, eating with one hand in one scene and then all of a sudden in the closeup is now eating with a different hand and it may be noticeable enough to be distracting, directors in the editing room always know they can cut to me for a reaction shot because all my actions are consistent in the closeups and the wideshots.

  
  

  Stunts

  
  

  In the film I had to learn how to chop down a door with an axe.  A stunt guy took me aside and show me how to properly axe down a door.  So that 1) I could perform and have it translate on camera when ”Action” was called.  2) So that I wouldn’t hurt myself or anyone else on set.  With guns, the armourer will show you how to hold it and tell you to ALWAYS treat it as if it were loaded – no matter what.  The gun will be taken away from you after your scene is done and given back when you start up again.  Always ask to check the chambers every time to make sure they’re empty – especially if the gun’s being pointed at you.  Checks on the gun have already been done but you’re the one that really matters in this situation.  Even if the gun’s fake – check that it’s fake every time.  No matter how annoying you think you’re being.  Ask the guy who accidently shot Brandon Lee on “The Crow” about how he feels now.  And you have no idea how easy it is for any sicko to roam onto set and do a quick switch in between setups.  In “Better Luck Tomorrow“, I always let John Cho feel that my baseball bat was made of foam before each take to reassure him before I bludgeoned him with it.  

  
  

  

  
  

  Freaking out the Locals

  
  

  Then to finish off today’s lesson, here’s a cute shot of a Fijian Kid who wandered onto set while the VFX guy was testing the consistency of a bucket of fake blood he made from mixing syrup and food coloring. 

  
  

  With me in the corner with blood face and clothes.  Then is dude mixing blood.  Poor guy must’ve thought, “What the heck is going on here?”

  • 6:09 pm
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