Natural Victims: Day Six – Getting Into the Groove

9Oct/090

Natural Victims: Day Six – Getting Into the Groove

I feel very good about today. First of all, it was super-productive. We got all the scenes we wanted and a bit more. Second of all, today I really felt like the scenes were working on another, deeper level.

I started to be more aggressive in guiding the actors and I think there was a level of trust that has been building up -- or maybe it's just exhaustion -- but the actors seemed to be more open to my guidance. There's no denying it, we're starting to function as a well-oiled team. It's great that it only took a few days and a shame that a few days is all we have left.

The Coming Trial by Knife

Tomorrow is going to be a challenging one. We'll be working with sharp objects and fake blood. Jon Chang, a key crew collaborator, or crewlaborator, has been working on the mechanics of how we're going to shoot the serial killer attack.

After today's shoot, Jon, Lillian and I ate some fresh Trader Joe's vanilla instant pudding and talked and storyboarded the whole thing out. This is one sequence that won't be improvised. My first concern is that it all be safe for the actors, especially since we'll be filming this in a fairly remote area. My second concern is that it look and play in a way that is both funny and believable within the world.

Jon is great with this. He has an encyclopedic memory of how similar movie scenes have been successfully shot. Lillian played the logic police, and helped us clarify what exactly will be shown in each shot. It's a great plan... but I'll remain vigilant because there's a lot that can happen from paper to camera to editing room.

Other Concerns

As the shoot draws closer to ending, other concerns are starting scratch on the screen door of my consciousness. It's not just the question of whether I'll be able to sync sound and edit all this footage in time. (I took off work this week, but will have to edit in off-hours next week.) I'm also concerned about promoting the movie. I'd love to get a big "opening weekend" audience, which is one of the reasons I set it up to premiere on a Friday.

I have a few plans for guerrilla marketing. I'm also planning a more traditional press release blast. Suggestions of methods for the former and addresses for the latter are welcome. Also an answer to the Two Week Filmmaker's Dilemma: When will I have time for this?

NEXT: Day Seven
PREVIOUSLY: Day Five