2018 | Production Diary 4 - The Final Day | Film: Cycle

Thus we come to the end of the production on Cycle.

Note: I didn't take many pics on this final day, my phone was flat and Lachlan's extensive shots would probably capture most of the lighting shenanigans better!

The Shot List for the final day.

This was one of the longest days of the production because it was to be our last, we had the gallery space booked, the equipment and the crew and it all had to be done within nine hours. We had a few shots we had to pick up from yesterday, practical effects involving a bed sheet and some uncooperative fake blood. Başak and I had spent a little time the day prior setting up a way we thought the bed sheet might be installed so we could pull off the effect of it being the wall. Today we also had a tour of students who had been ousted from their normal class spaces to present their photography work in the gallery. We had to be quiet, they had to be quiet and no one was happy. We worked around it and the lovely technicians diverted the students to the spaces just outside the gallery in the foyer.

Our original setup for the sheet.

A crazy revelation near the end of the shoot was that most of the crew hadn't seen the script, only the storyboards which meant they were confused (along with our producer!) of what was going on and obviously that caused a lot of strife and probably left them wondering most of the time what the fuck they were doing. From the storyboards alone it's not very clear what's happening in this scene, because at one point we're meant to see Alex's double looking back at herself, the wall has to become a linen sheet for Alex to pass through, and it's all very confusing!

The wall becomes a linen sheet, revealing a second room that's the same as the first.

Eventually Danny found a way to rig the sheet up to some C Stands with clamps from which we could position the sheet at the small entrance to the room acting like a doorway. This was where we had to trick some of the shots because the sheet wasn't sitting against the other side of the wall, it didn't reach or look good that way. Alex, gaffers and anyone nearby had to hold the sheet as flat as possible just outside the frame and Alex had to have her body positioned and her hand floating in order to give the illusion of it being the wall.

A lot of the time it's about compromise, we didn't have time to faff about (even though we did faff about), we had cameras that ate batteries, memory that was bloated and little time to shoot on location. Cut shots, combine them with others, do multiple shots in one take etc. As the day went on it forced us to go with as few takes as possible, with exceptions. Nikki and Ramin frustratingly went through the shot list and storyboards seeing where they could film multiple shots in a batch - did it have the curtain (linen sheet), the blood, or the wall?

After we finished in the White Room we packed up all the equipment we weren't going to use and took a few bits and bobs on a trip to the final location of the shoot - the creepy tree. Nikki postulated that the tree must've been the work of art students past, or the den of the resident hobos or students who go there to do drugs. It's this tepee-shaped structure of various branches that have been stacked around a smaller, central tree and at night with the lighting provided by Danny, looked suitably ominous, a location straight out of The Blair Witch Project.

The tree in the storyboards.

Başak, Alex and I followed a trail down into the wooded area near the campus whilst the others packed the equipment, out there we could only see the faint lights of other people taking the trail with only the light of their phones to guide the way. Danny had already gone down to the location and set up a light with special filters, a cool blue that looked terrifying and otherworldly and made the tree look like some twisted nightmare.

Sadly, I had to dash three shots into the final scene as I had to leave to get home. My time on the shoot has been something of an experience, you never really know how much of the film is shaped until you're there helping set the shots and seeing the takes, talking with Basak about what's best and where we can make compromises. My presence on the set was akin to an observer, I sat back most of the time and observed the craft, occasionally stepping in to make suggestions, or make a fool of myself! As I had mentioned in my first diary post, it's a frustrating experience too, because there's obviously a lot had I been directing, that would be different. For this project I had to align my vision with Basak's and grit my teeth when we didn't take advantage of a good setup. I managed to get a few shots in that were my suggestions which I was happy about, it wasn't to go against Basak, only to help her see her film come to fruition.

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A special thanks to the crew who were all wonderful and professional, there wasn't a time when they were unsure or weren't working at the top of their game, everyone brought their knowledge of the equipment which helped bring our vision to life. Thank you to our actress, Alex, who cooperated and never once showed how fed up she must've been, we spent hours making her stand around forcing her to touch walls and fall over, snort fake blood and it all turned out brilliantly. A huge thank you to Nikki who handled everything with restraint and style and made sure we were all on track, our shadow director! Thank you to Başak without whom I wouldn't have had the chance to add my creative skills to this production, even though directing doesn't seem like her thing, she always was very respectful and understanding and was determined to have her vision come to life. Finally I have to thank Ramin, when I was asked to come on and help do the storyboards, we didn't fully know or understand Başak's vision, but we stuck through it and I have to give him props for pulling this entire production off!

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I don't know what's next for me film wise, the whole process has really helped me get back into the mindset of making films. Not long ago I chose to pursue my art career and gave up my filmmaking aspirations because of the sacrifice both options afforded. Filmmaking is a gamble, on all the strength of your ideas, the writing, the budget and the time you have - it's not a lucrative business until you get off the ground and become recognized. For me, I chose to study art because it was the one area I'm confident in and know a little bit about, I'd stick to the art side and that will hopefully lead back into film one day where the two worlds inevitably meet. You need storyboard artists, illustrators and concept artists, set designers, costume designers, an art department, and not just for film, that goes for television, animation and video games too.

Next year I'm doing my Honours Year with a few ideas already blossoming on what to produce, something in a similar vein to Cabbage Pot, something Stop Motion perhaps, we'll see...

2018 | Production Diary 3 - Deakin University Phoenix Gallery | Film: Cycle

My third day on set involved working on the challenging 'White Room Scene' - a location that bookends the forest scenes that were shot yesterday (Tuesday 28th). Earlier on in the planning stages several weeks ago, Başak told me about the setup for the White Room, one involving the moveable art studio walls that were in the part of the exhibitions in Deakin University's Phoenix Gallery on the Burwood campus.

The script and storyboards required certain shots that the moveable walls were extremely useful and versatile for the setups and film trickery we want to pull off and if we needed more space we could move them out.

Our little set inside the Phoenix Gallery at Deakin. Two moveable walls arranged to simulate a room.

The way the moveable walls are placed meant that we had two of them to form the other two walls against the gallery's real walls. Sounds easy enough, the technicians moved the walls into place and adjusted them to account for gaps etc. then we found that there is a distinguishable strip running along the gallery wall that clashed with the moveable walls and without lighting looked terrible. So, we deliberated with our director on whether to shoot against the moveable walls or the real ones and ultimately decided to go with the real ones - for one very big and simple reason: the moveable walls didn't reach the ground and our first shot required us to see the actress on the ground!

The biggest challenge in the beginning of the shoot was the lighting - something that seems rudimentary and easy enough, but the reality of the situation meant carefully placing lights here and there, and enough to reflect light back onto other surfaces that might better illuminate the actress and the other walls. The lighting also helped make the ugly strip running along the wall mostly invisible to the camera, and because we were filming indoors we could control the consistency of the light for continuity.

Trying to get the split shadow effects with the lighting.

Nikki, Ramin and Dylan look over the shot list, the most holy document on the set.

The RED camera.

Ramin gets in the way of the camera. Again!

31/08/2018 Update:
The following day we would need to do the pick-ups from the other day that we couldn't finish, and get around to doing the practical effects shots that are important for the end of the film. Everything went as well as we could've hoped, the shots were all done well and the acting captured the tone we were going for in the script and storyboards, but because of the logistics of shooting, trying to get the most out of our actress and all the lighting setups, we were pushing it close for the deadline the next day!

2018 | Production Diary 2 - Doongalla | Film: Cycle

Day Two: Doongalla Picnic Grounds

The second day of filming commenced with a bit of a bumpy start, dirt tracks lead winding up to Mount Dandenong's scenic Doongalla picnic grounds - a strange tourist spot that was ours for the whole day. It's a beautiful location for what we all wanted our mysterious forest to be, with tall trees that covered us from the outside world (except a park ranger who would occasionally drive by to see what a group of nine students were doing).

As I arrived I found the gates closed and Ramin, our producer sitting in his car - we were under the impression that today of all days it wouldn't be open. A few phone calls later and googling and we we discovered it would open at 9, still 45 minutes away, and all of our filming crew had turned up and our morning light was rapidly fading.

Closed -  'The way is shut. It was made by those who are Dead, and the Dead keep it, until the time comes. The way is shut.'

   

Back when I used to make shoddy hand-held films in highschool I remember filming was something that you could get hands-on with, you could take the camera here, put it there, move it (by a special rig consisting of people being pushed on rolly-chairs to simulate a track), and there wasn't much deliberation or limitation other than what you could think up. Once you get started filming with the 'big boys' - a crew of gaffers, AC's, AD's, producers and directors, all situated in an unevenly grounded forest, the ease of shooting goes out the window and a whole world of pain and joy emerges.

Ramin tries to make sense of the logistics and what we could film today, taking similar shots and deciding to shoot them in one group.

Before shooting began we needed to get all the equipment out and over closer to the where we would be filming as we weren't going to lug all the heavy-duty cases and bags down into the wet forest floor.

We began by taking a trip into the forest to find a good spot, with enough room for everyone and a clearing where we could place actors etc. It's a very unforgiving terrain because the rain the night before had made the leaves slippery and the fallen trees which we had used for tables soggy, muddy and dangerous. Once we were all happy and we had moved the camera, one of Deakin's three 4k RED cameras, it was onto blocking and getting the shots out of the way.

Because the film was experimental we could get away with shooting things that weren't in the normal choke-hold of continuity, but before too soon we realized that we needed some semblance of continuity in order for some of the shots to have a narrative (a wreckage our poor editor will have to navigate). We were filming a cluster of shots out of order to allow for the rest of the shots to take place tomorrow and as we were doing this we needed to create a small location that our actress could move in without throwing off continuity.

Left to Right: Dir. Başak, AC Dylan, DOP Nikki, Main Girl Alex, Gaffer Danny

Our actress was Alex, someone who had experience and was the perfect fit for what Başak had wanted. She was cooperative and understanding, even permitting that most of her time was spent in the forest, with a thin cotton dress under her jacket between takes. When Ramin and I suggested that Başak should choose an actress to play the main role (something she wanted to play the part of ) we thought that the burden of directing is a challenge that requires you to be behind the camera, not both. I think we've all found it a good experience to have an actress we can direct and negotiate with and so that Başak could have more control where we might've had a nightmare. It's not an easy thing to do, to relinquish the desire to be in your own film, and the act of producing a film isn't what she is used to. One of the things I've learned during this time is how the production crew is essential, working collaboratively and falling on someone else is better than going solo and getting stuck with nothing or no one to back you up.

Dylan, Nikki, our brilliant photographer Lachlan who captured all of our promo shots and better photos than these, and Dir. Başak - overseeing a shot.

We used the tree behind Alex as an anchor point for continuity for where she would be located in relation to where the other actors will be.

Our Sound Recordist for today was Sam, who stuck through all of the shoot capturing the sound of the wildlife, twigs snapping, producers complaining etc.

One of many times we were deliberating a setup.

Lighting played a bigger role than I had expected, and the density of the trees and foliage had meant that the light was shielded from entering, making it darker in the overcast parts of the day and the bright rays when the sun could penetrate the forest were all the more brighter by contrast. Danny, our gaffer had brought some of his knowledge and equipment with him which meant we could counteract the lighting changes by either lighting up areas, or diffusing the bright sunlight. When we wanted the sun it wouldn't come, and when we had set up for no sun, it would show up and blind us all. But the moments the sun fell through the clearings and through the rain drops were a spectacular sight!

Our equipment base camp just outside the trees were we shot. Deakin has some flashy and very expensive equipment! 

My role on the set was offering both our director, and the DOP advice in how to shoot or capture the setups and also to assist Ramin in noting the shots we were taking. Luckily we had Nikki and Danny on hand, our DOP and Gaffer who offered a better understanding of the various filmic techniques and vocabulary to help Başak to get the most out of everything. It was a chance for me to see the way the limitations from page to screen sometimes throw a spanner in what can be achieved, and how important storyboards are, even if they ultimately are dropped in favor of what can be done practically. The limitations of the set, lighting, sound, weather etc. are considerations that you can't make until you're on location and get a feel for the place. Externally, you think everything looks good, then you step into the forest and see it, warts and all and realize your work has only just begun.

It was a slog of an experience shooting because we just weren't prepared within the time we had to film on the location - setting up each shot, moving things, making last second adjustments were all exhaustive and exhausting. One problem we encountered was simply time spent between the director, Başak, and our main actress, Alex, which was a necessary evil - after all, you can't shoot something without first having solid direction and acting to follow - and getting our actresses marks and communicating her movements right was a challenge for what Başak was going for, and ultimately something we overcame.

In the end we pulled off most of the shots we wanted to complete that day, yet with more emphasis that tomorrow the crew et al. (without me) will need to move much more efficiently if they hope to film, and film with multiple actors this time!

Up next I'm on set for the final scene which seems like the easiest because we'll be indoors in a set we can have control over. The reality is that the complexity of pulling off some film magic and trickery is where the difficult parts come in and that more control doesn't necessarily mean more fluidity and ease...

Near the end of today's shoot.

2018 | Production Diary 1 | Film: Cycle

Film Production Diary: Storyboarding to Prodcution

I haven't updated this blog since Cabbage Pot and the film review of Blade Runner 2049, so I felt a bit ashamed I hadn't continued to update this as planned, but things are starting back up and I felt I wanted to share what was coming.

The start of last month I was brought onto a film project by a good friend of mine, Ramin Iranfar, a filmmaker to look out for in the future; it's a small, no-budget, student project that's experimental in nature and Ramin is producing it. Our director is Başak Demirbaş, completing her Master's Degree at Deakin University who gave us this opportunity to produce what is essentially, an experimental film. Her idea was bold and was open for interpretation in the broadest sense - that there are more readings than one that could be taken. A young woman discovers a dream-like space that she is trapped within, she finds others who inhabit this ether who have their own invisible 'rooms'.

The project was a chance for all of us as students to sink our teeth into something creative and hopefully, prosperous as we're all involved in the arts and all hope to go onto bigger things. The craft of filmmaking is an immense one, even with the wide array of things we needed (and still need) to consider when producing this film, it quickly becomes apparent at how our project pales in comparison to the sheer complexity and nightmare of what a big-budgeted studio film would have to accomplish within the space of a few years or more. We began to understand quite quickly what we were all getting into and it has certainly given my respect to the multitude of filmmakers that have come before and are operating at this very moment.

My role was as a humble storyboard artist, a strange limbo-like position of taking the director's vision and putting that into frames, visualizing what it might eventually look like on film. I say limbo-like because it's very much a halfway point between one's own creative vision and the director's. The look and feel of the shots had already been in their mind, I was merely a transcriber of those images.

Ramin and I sat down with our director and we planned out each shot and what it should look like - I then took those little sketches which looked like some strange forgotten language and made full-paged storyboards, the likes of which are standard in film and animation.

Excerpt from my notebook scribbles - old woman dancing

Excerpt from my notebook scribbles - old woman makes faces

After these were completed we all went in for another meeting, this time with Nikki, our Director of Photography - another of Ramin's recruits. In this meeting it was crucial that we worked out all the shots we would need to film and see what exactly could be shot - a consideration in where the boundaries between our imaginations ended and the physical limitations of the camera were drawn; a drawing can only show so much. In the meeting we enacted what we were all imagining in the hopes we could explain to Nikki how the shots should be done, composition, speed, motion etc. We worked out we could combine, cut, where we could insert shots that weren't needed or hadn't been made, and this process lead to the structure of the ending changing from what Başak and I had in mind.

Shooting began last week without me, my commitments to my uni assignments won out and the shoot wasn't demanding enough where I felt I could be of any real help. From what I've seen, it went well and Ramin managed to wrangle a photographer who took a number of photos that will fit perfectly into the promotional materials that will inevitably be made.

This week I'm on set, as Art Director and Continuity, two roles that hardly apply to where we're shooting, the already beautiful Mt. Dandenong. The scenes we're shooting are in a dream-like forest (Page 3 of the storyboards) and there's quite a bit of room for experimenting beyond our boards, an area which hopefully I can help my director and the actor.

Next up will be a diary from after tomorrow's shoot if I have time to write it up!