Wherein we re-re-re-realize our love for what we occasionally get to do
I'm a bit of a slow learner, not someone with a stutter as the title might indicate. I had the opportunity to be on set this weekend, and I came to a re-realization.
The worst days I have on a set, regardless of what I'm doing, are still some of the best days of my life. We were shooting a trailer for a (hopefully) upcoming feature, in an attempt make some rain, and get some money.
I was doing my typical on set role for low budget stuff, which involves me doing pretty much everything that is asked of me, and then some. This time that involved being a pseudo AD, set-dresser, human grip stand, clapper/loader, assistant editor, grip, production assistant, driver, meat flag, and likely a few other things.
We were using one of the new fancy-dancy cameras that records directly to memory cards, meaning that I was reviewing footage ten minutes after it was shot. Quite an interesting feat, though we need to do some work on our work flow.
More importantly, it's inspired me to start writing again, if for no other reason than I really want to direct. My short stalled after the festival, mainly because I didn't know what to do with it, and my level of satisfaction with it has steadily decreased the more I've worked on other projects. I feel like I've forgotten more in the last two years than I ever knew while I was working on it.
I also had the opportunity to work on a short recently that had some fairly serious money behind it. By that I mean, we had 25 plus people on the crew, as compared to most crews I work with where it's less than 10. I realize 25 people is not much in the grand scheme of things, but it was a great experience for me.
I got to 2nd AD under two 1st ADs who do this for a living, and I learned a lot. Not sure if being a 1st AD is something I can do full time, but it does help me fulfill my inner asshole, and my overwhelming urge to yell at people.
But this leads me to another quandry. I love to act. But I also enjoy doing crew work, and I seem to be having a hell of a lot more luck doing that than I do getting acting gigs. Is it a path of least resistance thing? I enjoy doing what I'm good at, but that I also only have to exert the least amount of effort to do?
Yep... I think the lazy gene has kicked in full throttle. But I do love being on set. And I'm the least lazy person in the world when I am.
The worst days I have on a set, regardless of what I'm doing, are still some of the best days of my life. We were shooting a trailer for a (hopefully) upcoming feature, in an attempt make some rain, and get some money.
I was doing my typical on set role for low budget stuff, which involves me doing pretty much everything that is asked of me, and then some. This time that involved being a pseudo AD, set-dresser, human grip stand, clapper/loader, assistant editor, grip, production assistant, driver, meat flag, and likely a few other things.
We were using one of the new fancy-dancy cameras that records directly to memory cards, meaning that I was reviewing footage ten minutes after it was shot. Quite an interesting feat, though we need to do some work on our work flow.
More importantly, it's inspired me to start writing again, if for no other reason than I really want to direct. My short stalled after the festival, mainly because I didn't know what to do with it, and my level of satisfaction with it has steadily decreased the more I've worked on other projects. I feel like I've forgotten more in the last two years than I ever knew while I was working on it.
I also had the opportunity to work on a short recently that had some fairly serious money behind it. By that I mean, we had 25 plus people on the crew, as compared to most crews I work with where it's less than 10. I realize 25 people is not much in the grand scheme of things, but it was a great experience for me.
I got to 2nd AD under two 1st ADs who do this for a living, and I learned a lot. Not sure if being a 1st AD is something I can do full time, but it does help me fulfill my inner asshole, and my overwhelming urge to yell at people.
But this leads me to another quandry. I love to act. But I also enjoy doing crew work, and I seem to be having a hell of a lot more luck doing that than I do getting acting gigs. Is it a path of least resistance thing? I enjoy doing what I'm good at, but that I also only have to exert the least amount of effort to do?
Yep... I think the lazy gene has kicked in full throttle. But I do love being on set. And I'm the least lazy person in the world when I am.
posted by Surly Canuck at 4:15 AM
1 comments
