Urban Endings: the others

I was on a lot of shoots so for simplicity I'll tackle them each individually:

Ada

I had a kind of odd-jobs runner role on this film, and I actually really enjoy that kind of thing for the breadth it allows you to exercise. It involved things as diverse as being an occasional (and admittedly poor) sound consultant, focus pulling and adjusting lights which were too far away. It was fun and useful as a get-in to the Urban Endings process.

Murray

I think Murray was one of the few people who put their DOP as anything other than camera op. Chris was DOP and camera assist, leaving me as camera op and I did enjoy it. I learned a lot about the 5D over the two days and even learned how to use a new type of track.

Ray had nothing nice to say about the Spyder track but I think we had a good go with it. I researched it beforehand so I wouldn't be going in clueless but it still took a bit of getting used to. The advantages are pretty obvious - easier to transport (though harder to carry: I can comfortably carry two lengths of Key West track but the Spyder tubes are horrendously awkward) and it's possible to get curvy track very easily. It's not as smooth and not being able to be on the dolly is pretty annoying.

There were a few interesting challenges on Murray's shoot including his proclivity for super-shallow depth of field (the one where the actress's lips are in focus but her cheeks aren't is particularly cool) and we certainly used a good variety of kit.

Meg

I'm no sound recordist to be perfectly blunt. I'm too short and have too little upper body strength. I did try my best for Meg but I'll be the first to admit that my best wasn't terribly impressive. I think the best way forward on this is to acknowledge that it's not my area of talent and leave it quietly alone.

Amelie

First of all, the catering was brilliant. I especially enjoyed the coconut cake. It's so good to be on a shoot with good food.

Anyway.

I was split over the two days, first a focus puller and then the 1st AD - both jobs I really like.

As a focus puller I think I did a good job, it's something I think I have a bit of knack for and with practice could get good at. There were a few moments were I was really chuffed with what I'd done - a particular shot which had a very shallow depth and pulled seamlessly from a jug to where the water was going to fall to hands and looked absolutely lovely. That kind of thing is deeply satisfying.

My 1st AD day was a very tough set of circumstances: two animals on set, exteriors with a forecast for rain and a very long shot list. Given that, I'm not surprised we ran on a bit, and it was definitely worth it to get the shot. The time was needed for stuff like the endless shots of the bastarding cat, who was the biggest diva on set: unco-operative and moody. By comparison the chick was a cakewalk.

I was sorry when the decision to shoot the exteriors in the gloomy morning backfired - for fear that conditions would deteriorate I decided to shoot in the less-than-ideal overcast morning and then in the afternoon it was gloriously sunny. It was the right decision at the time - it would have been disastrous to reverse the order and have to shoot outside in the rain - but it was a shame to miss out on the sun like that.

Sam

The day after my own shoot was the toughest day - two films back to back. I was a bit tired from the day before, given that I'd directed my own and then gone with Chris for a recce in the evening but we pressed on.

I was 1st AD and I'm glad I was there because it was a challenging shoot, timewise. We even ended up deciding to add a second day because there just wasn't enough time to complete the shoot (in two locations) and finish on time for Chris's to commence. It's a good thing we did because there was no way we could have done it in the time we had, there were too many complications with the location (it was a pretty long trek from where we were parked to the location, and we had to contend with members of the public, some of whom were helpful and others who were complete bastards.

I did all my 1stly duties and also acted as a bit of a third, and a bit of a runner, making the aforementioned trek to the van to get things and standing out of shot to politely ask if people would wait for a few minutes while we got our shots. For the wider shots this sometimes necessitated the use of mobiles. There was not much we could do with cars appearing in shot but it was a frustration.

These are the kinds of situations where I wish we had the scope to do things like close roads but we coped and were finished on time for...

Chris

I think this may be the shoot I'm proudest of. I was the only one I DOPed and from what I've seen of the rushes it looks really nice.

Part of that is undeniably that the location was well chosen - it's a compelling mixture of twisted, rusted metal and shabby concrete against the backdrop of the Clyde and some of its most beautiful riverside architecture. The actors were also well cast - both of them very photogenic and interesting to watch.

Still, I'll take some of the credit.

It was incredibly useful to have some time in advance to break out the Artemis and talk to Chris about what we wanted. We were able to hash out line issues and lens sizes the night before and so on the day it was just a case of storming through.

We did have to contend with the issue of the light which was lovely but quickly fading, which required a lot of attention to the use of filters - we couldn't just leave them in otherwise the shots would get progressively darker, but they were essential to get the sky in. I think I succeeded with that but I need to have a deeper look at the rushes.

It was also a very fun shoot - great people and a chippy in the back of a van. Outstanding.



And that was my Urban Endings adventure. I'll pop in the obligatory - I really love film making - here because, well, it's true. It was a mental week and a bit and I did get horrendously ill afterwards (just in time for the edit! yay!) but it was awesome.