Lancaster...

...was soo much fun! I had such a great time, just all the time I was there!
At first, I was worried that I'd kinda just waste time and not really get the lighting good and just be a headache, but that was totally not what happened. I got everything good, and I think the lighting looks really good, some of the best work I've ever put on film (or video, in this case). I really tried to put everything I know about lighting into play this weekend and I think it really shows. I managed to create some pretty good depth and key the actors well. I made the 400 W DigiMole my little workhorse, I used it for almost every set-up. I threw a 1/2 CTB over it after the sun went down to create a great little night look. And I never held up production or made us run late doing it!

Naturally, with us being teenage kids and college students, the night turned into a party and we all drank our weight in light beer. I honestly love ending a day on set with a beer. There's this weird thing, almost everyone I've met who works on movies drinks and smokes, a lot (expect Antoine). I think it's just part of the stress management of working in that kind of environment. But I mean we all know it's worth it, we just need a little encouragement to deal when it's not.

At first we were all really scared that we'd have a problem with Alex, the actor who plays Zane. We found that he was somewhat unhappy with working with us, he thought it was a waste of his time and etc. We started getting really grumpy with him, Antoine was really mad and frustrated about it. In the end he came to set, we did our thing like always, and he was really happy with us. We never kept him waiting, didn't reschedule him, and made sure we got what we needed out of him when he came, so that his drive wasn't for nothing. We did our research on Alex, it turns out he's the ONLY Turkish actor in Hollywood, and because of people getting misconceptions about Turks, he finds that the rare roles he gets in a film as a Turkish character, he usually has to wear a Turban or some other stereotypical thing. I can understand how he can be frustrated. Also, I've been on shoots where nothings been organized and where actors will come and will have to wait around for the whole day, just to hear that they're not shooting their part that day. I can see how he would be scared of wasting his time with strangers who haven't even all got drivers licenses or college degrees. I don't want to toot our own horn here, but I think once he saw how organized we were and how much we cared about making a great film, he was thoroughly impressed with us and what we could do with less budget than other films.

What else happened this weekend? I think Rob and Resa did their own Behind the Scenes thing. They'd run to me and be like "Hey watch this!" and they'd show me the clip they just shot. It was great to see them getting excited about life behind the camera. On the other end of the coin is Antoine auditioning for the movie I'm shooting for my film class at school. It's kind of fun to see Antoine try acting out and trying to put depth into a character. I'm not saying for sure whether I will or won't cast him, but I think he had a great sense of the character and I think he has connections to draw from to form a fuller character.

-Spencer Smith (Gaffer)