Our latest pic 'Bystander' began filming Friday July 13th, 2007. After a 3-day audition process (thanks to Bob Bear at the Spiegal Performance center in Cambridge for the rooms), we found our talented cast to represent the witching hour denizens of this 40+ minute featurette. (That's right...just long enough to be a broadcast ad-ready episode of Rod Serling's 'Night Gallery'. Coincidence? For now, let's not linger...)
The audition process was by far a much more difficult undertaking than previously experienced. We went through a myriad of hugely talented actors from all over New England, and choosing just 5 or 6 was tricky. Luckily, we remembered to film the individual auditions for archival purposes and we look forward to working with some of the actors not chosen hopefully in the near future.
Friday the 13th (!!!) was just like any first day of shooting, only this time we had a super-crew of enthusiastic pros easing us into the transition from pre-production to the blissful production stage.
Rebekah - our invaluable AD and hugely sucessful Production Coordinator
Landon - our Script Supervisor with his ever watchful eyes on continuity and notation
Peter - our impossibly talented Recording Engineer and Production Designer
Chuck - our Director of Photography (we are blessed to have him)
Technical issues popped up here and there (as they do), but the speed and efficiency in which they were tackled was particularly impressive to me and makes all the difference in the world. Confidence abound...
Stephen (our co-lead) was solo on Friday, doing some non-dialogue scenes (the opener and others). Things looked and felt great...the colors of dusk through the windows, the lighting from the Tota's just right. The film's tone seems to have been set right there. Chuck does amazing work.
Sunday the 15th brought our other lead Brian into the fray. It was pretty exciting to see Stephen and Brian interact on screen...two very talented actors doing their thing. It always impresses me when, during those magic moments in rehersals (sometimes weeks prior), when the actors seem to have really captured the page and rendered the characters in reality, they are able to bring it back for the camera as though the rehersal was only an hour ago.
More, of course, later...
Mike
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