Production Log 6

It has been a few days since my last blog-post, so I must say sorry for that! However, I do have a good reason. Last week we were at Spring Hill College shooting and, it just so happened, the directors needed another Production Assistant to assist them with keeping the set locked down when we were rolling and telling people where to go, etc… So that took up all of my time last week! But it was a really great experience for me. That is one of the things I have benefited the most – and probably will benefit the most from – because now, not only have I been around a movie set for close to 4 weeks now, but I have been an Extras PA, a Set PA, and a Social Media PA. I have learned so much from this experience. I may begin to be redundant because of how many times I have said this, but it is true. And for a guy that wants to go into the industry, this is experience I will benefit from for the rest of my life.

Now, just to highlight some of the things we did last week. We spent all of our time in the Spring Hill Cathedral. Let me just go ahead and say that the scenery and the cathedral itself were absolutely gorgeous. The interior of the Cathedral, with its white washed walls and yellow hued tiles and windows, was truly spectacular. The scenery just pops off the screen when you look at the footage.

Our actors also completely nailed down every line. I wasn’t present for the last night, but from what Jeff has told me, we witnessed a miracle. We have been shooting an average of around 10-12 pages a day this past week. That is in and of itself a huge feat for a feature film. But we've been able to do that because our actors have done in one take, what it might’ve feasibly taken 3 or 4 takes to get right! But no, they are doing it in one. It’s really mind boggling. But not to forget our crew, who have worked so hard and worked crazy hours to help us get done what we needed done. They’ve all been amazing.

That’s all for now, ill update you again very soon!

-KB

Production Log 5

Hey guys!

Mobile has finally come back to character and rained on us, but thankfully it was just for one day, and I am almost thankful for that. The chance we had yesterday to hang out as an entire cast and crew  – while stuck under the pavilion – was truly a memory I will keep with me forever. I don’t know how often things like that happen, but I would imagine it’s not often. Everyone was gathered around in a circle, watching our friend Clayton dance to High School Musical songs and Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”. The entire cast and crew then danced to the “Electric Slide” while our Director of Photography used his iphone to capture everything, trying to get all the angles, (which was extremely hilarious to see)! It was hilarious and memorable. We all just laughed and joked and just enjoyed the fact that we were alive, and on a movie set! What a blessing. I’ll remember that day for the rest of my life.

So, as I have mentioned a few other times, and will probably mention again in the future, I am working with the Extras for Yellow Day. It’s been an absolute blast working with these guys. They are some truly amazing people. Some of you, when I said that, may have thought “Well of course, he’s just calling them amazing as a courtesy.” However, the person that thinks this would be making a huge oversight. As I’ve gotten to know these Extras, I’ve truly come to love and appreciate these guys. Our Extras are not just random bodies in the background of our film; what these Extras have done is allow Yellow Day to be the film that it is going to be. Some of them have gone so far above and beyond in trying to help out and be a part of this movie that I have been completely blown away. COMPLETELY.

Jeff told me that many times people were skeptical about ANYONE wanting to wake up at 5, take off of work, miss class leading up to exam week (for some), and sacrifice 12 hours out of their day to come volunteer to be Extras for us.

Jeff’s answer?

“The Church will. People will. Cause they’ll believe in our vision.”

…and they have. When I see our Extra’s now, I don’t think of them as numbers, these are real people making real sacrifices for a movie that they are excited about and believe in. I hope when you see pictures of them on our facebook and twitter pages that this is the kind of attitude you have toward them as well. When I say our Extras are amazing, I really mean it.

Also, we are almost at 500 likes on facebook!!!! If you haven’t, go like our page! We need your support!

-KB

Production Log 4

Hey guys!

We just got off our weekend break and are hard at work again filming Yellow Day. This week happens to be one of the longest and craziest of them all for my team. I’m officially a part of the Casting Production Assistants, and this week is the week that we need hundreds of extras for different days and for different scenes etc. It can be really easy to overlook the Extras P.A’s a lot of the time. The only reasons that you would know they are there usually is if something goes wrong! So, for the past few days we’ve been re-calling and confirming all of our Extras again, making sure no one has backed out, and that they all have the info they need to get to set and know what to bring. When you are dealing with 200 Extras in one day, it can be a logistical headache. Thankfully, everything has gone extremely well for us regarding all of this so far, and so we would simply ask that you pray we continue to get the people we need for the days we need, and that no one backs out!

This morning I was here on-set at 5:30! Needless to say it was a really early morning and I never got much sleep (I'm still going to school during this shoot). In times like that, we can often be tempted by our natural natures and by our lack of sleep to be grumpy and to complain. I felt myself veering toward that mindset this morning, but then something beautiful happened. I was sitting in my car, and I looked up to the sun starting to hint over the horizon. There was a slight mist hovering over the earth, and the sun sent glistening rays of light shining through the haze. Horses stood behind white fences, eating and enjoying their time. I remembered then just how blessed I am to be a part of something like this. God reminded me through his creation just how blessed I am to be alive at all. It was a beautiful moment for me. We all need those sometimes.  

Other than that, our shoot is going really well. Everything seems to be running like clockwork, and everyone – truly – seems to be enjoying their time here in Mobile and the time on-set making the movie. It helps that Camp Grace is a gorgeous place to shoot!

That’s all for now, much more to come!

-KB