Camera Rolling And Action!

Day 1:

Among other things, this is what I spent yesterday listening to repeatedly. It might be my new favorite sentence. I was called to set at 9 am for hair and makeup. When I walked into the studio I was greeted by the Assistant Director who couldn't wait to escort me to my dressing room just to show me the present my Director insisted I have.

A star on my door! Now, as adorable as this was, I'm actually the only actor in this film. I have an actor in a green suit playing my robot counterpart, but he's going to be edited out in post production.  I was introduced to the entire crew before getting into wardrobe--and there's so many of them. I definitely can't remember all the names, but I'm trying my best. By the end of the day I knew most of the camera crew intimately from spending hours on close-up shots less than a foot from my face.

We spent most of the day in my 'bedroom' on set. The scenes we shot included my wall being broken through, my bed breaking, and me being carried around in a very tall man's arms all day. I learned a lot about reactionary acting (my director likes to refer to it as King Kong Acting). In film, they shoot a master (a wide angle shot of the whole scene), and then they'll shoot other angles and close-ups for the editing in post production. Since this film is an action film, there were a lot of close-ups where my director would say, "And the robot just burst through your wall--Action!" This was definitely a challenge, but after watching the footage I'm very happy with the outcome. It was nice to be able to watch the footage before another take, so I could see what looked good and what didn't.

The other challenge of the day was acting with a man in a green suit.  He has no facial expression, no lines, and really...no face. Surprisingly, most moments I found it easier than if he had been uncovered, because I could create whatever I needed in my mind to work off of.

As per usual we spent a lot of time rehearsing the shots to make sure everything would look the way the director was planning. This crew, specifically, likes to roll film while rehearsing in case they can catch a great shot. It was very interesting for certain takes, such as the first time the bed actually broke. We had been practicing it a couple times and they couldn't get it to break. When it breaks I'm supposed to be surprised and then laugh. Needless to say, the first time it actually worked I wasn't expecting it and they received a very surprised and natural laugh as the result. Unfortunately I also fell backwards, so it will have to be reserved for the outtakes.

The actor playing the robot is a very experienced athlete and we shot a scene today where I've fallen on the ground and I have to get up and run out of frame really fast. Now, I thought I was doing a pretty good job of it, but then he showed me some great tips to make it even better. The end result made me look like an action star--and really quick!

Film is such a hugely collaborative art form. Everyone on set is working towards one moment at a time, trying to make it the best it can possibly be. Camera operators, directors, producers, PA's and even grips can have a say in what might help make a shot better. Of course, this is an independent and the process could be entirely different on a feature length film. As an actor, I generally try to stay out of the logistics unless it includes my acting, but it's terribly exciting to watch so many people come together in a genuine effort to make art.

Day 2:

This is my chair.

This is a fabulous crew, and they are all so supportive and encouraging. It has been a very different experience for me than theatre has previously been. I'm being catered to left and right, and it's really strange to me. Do I need to sit down? Here's my robe to keep me warm. Should I get your water bottle? Would you like a break from your harness? Are you comfortable right now? How can I make this easier for you? She needs some lotion! Someone go buy this for her!  Really, I've never been so taken care of in my life, and it's been a surprising, humbling, and interesting experience. I'm working hard to assure everyone that I'll ask if I need something, but they make it their job to make sure I'm able to do exactly what they need by giving me everything I need. Without taking time away from their other jobs--making the film.

My makeup designer is constantly touching me up, and someone is always there with anything I might need, thinking four steps ahead of me. My director is great about immediate feedback to move the scenes along, and is quick to make sure I'm enjoying my work as well. There's a wonderful symbiotic relationship on set that I really appreciate. Everyone is giving and taking in tandem. And we're staying on schedule--who could ask for more than that?

Today I was harnessed up to a flying rig system for the rooftop scenes. The crew built an indoor set of rooftops to shoot these, and we'll be doing location shots tomorrow to fill in the blanks. My costume for this film is tight cropped pants and a cutoff white tank top that shows my stomach. Today we discovered that my harness was going to cover my stomach making all of yesterday's footage obsolete. The producers did some quick thinking and went to the store. They came back with a nude girdle and larger white tank tops to cut off. I ended up putting on one pair of my pants (I have multiples of all my costumes, one set for every day), then my harness, then the girdle over top, then we cut holes in the girdle for my rigging, then another pair of pants over that, then the cut off tank. So basically, the girdle was acting as my stomach to hide the harness. They got a size too large for my harness and we had to tie it down, then gaff tape it with white tape to match my shirt.

It was intricate and difficult to get in and out of, so I spent the day trying not to drink too much water so I wouldn't have to take it off a lot. It ended up acting as great body armor when we tried a couple scenes of my falling into a wall sans mats.

This is part of the rooftop set before my rigging.

We shot scenes of me running and jumping off a rooftop. I don't quite make it to the next rooftop and I try to catch myself. I got to do some slow motion shots mid air. We tried a really cool shot with the camera rigged to follow me and fall off the edge of the roof with me. My stunt team was absolutely amazing and I had a great time working with them. My stunt coordinator said he'd like to keep in touch for future projects, and I'd really like that to work out. They've all worked on some features and other independents in the area. He told me last week he set himself on fire for a film--who wouldn't want to learn to do that?

The other scene we shot today was me trying to pull myself onto the rooftop after not making it. All in all, I'm only slightly bruised up, and that's more the fault of my harness being a size too big. The metal bits fit directly over my hip bones and the pressure caused some bruising. I had such a fun time today getting to fling myself everywhere and generally being athletic. I've been dying to do this kind of work on film and it's even better than I imagined. I can't wait for tomorrow.

I'll be stealing production photos after the shoot is complete (Wednesday), and I'll put them up as soon as I'm legally allowed. They take so many pictures of me I feel like I understand what it's like to be followed by  paparazzi--in a good way, sometimes.

The director plans to have the film edited and completed in 6-9 months. Then it will be submitted to as many sci-fi festivals as possible for about a 12 month circuit. After this, they're hoping to have enough fan support to give it a YouTube premiere! To make sure all this happens there will be a Kickstarter campaign coming up in a couple months, so look out for my soon to be repetitive pleas to check out the campaign. We'll be doing a series of interviews and behind the scenes shorts for publicity as well, if everything goes according to plan.

Rehearsals start Tuesday for Shrew, and I might have my next film already lined up--fingers crossed!