The RED, Editing, Casting

This past weekend I worked on a shoot with Brian and Matt, we shot on the RED. I say WE because I worked in the camera department. I was responsible for downloading the footage, clapped the slate or the claqueta (in spanish, I'm trying to learn all the right terms because I want to make a movie in Argentina!) and pitched in where ever it was needed, but mostly, I stayed by the camera. Mike was the first AC, he's a friend of Jarred's (the sound mixer from Love Song). Mike visited the Love Song set one day, I had a good feeling about him. Working with him on someone else's set was great. He was very familiar with the RED, he works at a rental house and he's seen the workflow a ton of times. He was really nice and explained a lot of the functions of the camera to me. He told me that my job was basically the 2nd AC. I was so happy because coming from him that meant a lot. It's always good to work on a set with Brian and Matt. As usual, Brian was always imparting knowledge, that's why I call him the Master. I met some other nice people that I'm sure Brian will adopt and make part of the family.

The footage was recorded onto a hard drive instead of card. This made shooting a lot smoother because you didn't have to worry about swaping cards as often. There were two drives, one for high speed (which will give you slow motion) and another drive for the normal speed footage. What a concept! One camera, two drives = no frame rate issues!!!!

I really like the camera and the workflow. It was so easy to download and easy to view the footage. I took my assignment very seriously, in my opinion, I had one of the most important jobs on the set. Based on my prior experience w/the HVX, the person who was in charge of downloading my footage (Frederick) had one of the most important jobs - if there was a screw up and something got erased then all the hard work we all put in would be out the window. I digress; I want to shoot my next project on the RED and use the super speed lenses. We used the normal speed lenses on Love Song because Indie Rental only has 5 sets of the super speed (they were all rented), the normal speed lenses worked well but the super speed would have been better particularly during the night scenes.

I'm about halfway done labeling and organizing my footage. Matt surprised me today with a rough cut of the end of the film. He set the footage to Mazzy Star's Fade Into You - ofcourse, now I have that song in my head and I want it, Matt decided to change the song because he didn't want me to get attached to it and he wanted me to see that the possibilities are endless. The scene is just beautiful.



Onahoua and David have so much chemistry, they look great together and they are so talented. As I watched the footage I was turned to mush, my eyes got watery and my heartbeat was super fast. Matt always tells me that shooting is fun, then you look at it and that's great, but when you watch your work edited and set to music, that feeling is just priceless, he's absolutely right. I had so many emotions running through me, it's been one of the most gratifying experiences of the process.



I'm so proud of this project, I can't believe we've come so far. I met with Christine and Laura today and we discussed our upcoming battles with post and trying to get the feature done in time to submit to festivals for next year. I have one day to shoot the opening of the film and get establishing shots, Christine has 2-3 days and she's shooting in late August. Stay tuned for the new cast of Christine's film; Ma and Grandma are going to be super fierce - wait 'till you hear who'll be playing them... Let's hope Christine doesn't keep us in suspense much longer before she makes the announcement.



xoxo,

Lucy

ps
yes, Matt the Cinematographer is the Editor, I am the Assistant Editor - That's how it's done in IndieWood!

Our Cast - Part II - Love Song (Dirty Virgin's Gig)

Onahoua & The Fabulous Miss Wendy

Onahoua, The Fabulous Miss Wendy & Gerry - Where's Justin??

Onahoua & The Fabulous Miss Wendy

Onahoua


We are waiting on additional pics because apparently someone has all the pics of David Villar (Dustin). You can scroll down and see him with ME. Yes, I know, I'm the envy of all the girls but if you ask nicely, he'll hug you & pose for a picture with you too:-)

I have a hot pic of Justin taking his shirt off but I should ask him if it's ok to post yet another picture of him w/out a shirt - what do you say Justin?

xoxo,
Lucy

Greetings Folks & Welcome to 2008

I’m very excited at the possibilities this year holds for me. Love Song will finally see the light of day. I’m so excited about that, I’ve lived with these characters for so long and it will be such a relief to FINALLY bring them to life. My actors are AMAZING and I deeply love and appreciate their contribution. Onahoua Rodriguez, David Villar, Justin Klosky, Daniella Alonso and Mari Marks are wonderful people and I am so blessed that they are still with me despite the length of time it’s taken.

During the last round of production I made a lot changes to the script. Changes that were not in the best interest of the story. After the first round of production, I went through a period of hibernation. I’ve seen Christine and Laura three times since November. Most of that time was spent getting my energy back and enjoying the Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays.

In early December I re-read the script and IT SUCKED. I went back to the version that I intended on shooting and changed one of the scenes that took place in Dustin’s office. That scene now takes place at Shane and Dustin’s house. The day we had the office, I was not able to shoot my scenes and we were not going to be able to go back to that location. I guess things happen for a reason because the story is where I need it to be and having that scene take place in the house makes more sense.

Our production guru Brian Sorbo gave me a great piece of advice. He told me that “You never get to go back to your projects...time pushes on relentlessly. What you do now you live with for the rest of your life, so it is imperative that you speak with your true voice. You must live your life and create your projects from your heart. Nothing else will survive. The things that you do from your heart will feed you throughout your life.” He’s right. I will carry this with me forever because it’s so true.

I got swept up in the momentum of certain situations and I lost sight and sound of my voice. With so many people telling you so many different ways to do something you sometimes forget to ask yourself how to get it done. You should listen to the advice of others but you must trust your instincts and follow your heart and mind. The best way to sum it up is to heed Polonius' advice to his son Laertes in Hamlet; “This above all: to thine own self be true”.

I am also super excited because I heard the song that The Fabulous Miss Wendy wants me to shoot a video for. In exchange for using her song in my film, I told her I’d shoot a video for one of the songs on her upcoming album. The song is called “Jailbait”. I’ll let you know when it’s on iTunes. I sent her two treatments and I’ll see which one she likes. Jenna Edwards is going to produce that for me. Jenna and I want to shoot 3-4 videos for bands we know and use that to generate work directing and producing music videos.

I did not make any resolutions this year, except to keep on working towards my goals.

I hope 2008 proves to be a successful year for all. Onward & Upwards

xoxo,

Lucy

Gratitude & Reflection

For me, December has always been a time for reflection and a time to write down all I am thankful for. I am grateful every day for all I have, but at Christmas I have always taken stock of my good fortune and I make an extra special effort to let the universe know how appreciative I truly am. I was raised Catholic so no pc bs from me, I LOVE CHRISTMAS and I also love St. Pattie’s day but that’s more from being a NYer and loving the color green than anything religious, oh and Halloween, those are my favorite holidays but Christmas is by far, my favorite. One of the things I’m most grateful for is the fact that we FINALLY started shooting. I am grateful for all the people who contributed to getting us here. The support of our friends and family was invaluable and our cast and crew are an amazing and talented group of people. I will forever be grateful for everybody’s support and encouragement.

So this being a blog about our film, I wanted to share with you what this film means to me, the story rather than the making of. Someone asked me what the three stories mean to me and if I can relate to the characters, especially the ones I didn’t write. The answer is yes, I can relate to Jenny as much as I can relate to Shane and as much as I can relate to Jim (Laura’s and my version of him). My friend was not surprised that I related to characters I wrote but found it odd that I would be as passionate about characters I didn’t write. I explained to her that the appeal of the film is that the characters are universal and can speak to everybody because these characters want what we want.

There are three stories that make up Love 10 to 1. The film delves into the lives of three individuals who all want the same thing, LOVE. It’s about the people they come in contact with, and the coincidences that bind them. Even though they live in this big city, they cross paths with each other, frequent the same places and on occasion, interact with the same people.



Jenny is constantly surrounded by friends, family and strangers, yet, there’s something missing. For me, this first story represents the vast world we live in and our quest for happiness.



While Shane’s life as an up and coming rock star has her interacting with a bigger world than Jenny’s, she limits her personal life to people that she trusts; her band, her manager and her roommate. It represents the smaller world we create for ourselves. This story is about realizing that sometimes, what’s missing is usually right in your own back yard.



By the time we get to the last story about Jim, Shane’s guitar player, the world is even smaller, much more personal and raw. When Jim, the groupie magnet randomly meets Jenny, the 29 year old virgin they both come to realize that while their lives and experiences are substantially different, neither can pass up what could be a rare chance for a heartfelt connection. It’s about carpe diem, seizing that moment and staying there for as long as you can.



For me, the film is about opening yourself to the possibilities that the universe sends your way. It’s about being aware of opportunities and realizing that most of the times, what you want most has always been there. It’s about accepting those rare encounters when they are presented to you and seizing that moment. People who come from a different place, physically and emotional can get along and even fall in love. A relationship with a foundation built on tolerance, compassion, and understanding can lead to a lifetime of happiness no matter what your bliss is.

So with this sappy sentiment, I hope you all have a Great Holiday, a Merry Christmas, a Happy Hanukkah, a Joyous Kwanzaa and a Fantabulous Festivus.

xoxo,
Lucy

In Response to Laura's Last Blog

Like a warrior that fights
And wins the battle
I know the taste of victory
Though I went through some nights
Consumed by the shadows
I was crippled emotionally
Somehow I made it through the heartache
Yes I did, I escaped
I found my way out of the darkness,
Kept my faith (I know you did)
Kept my faith

The above is from the George Michael/Aretha Franklin song I knew You Were Waiting For Me. I was not too fond of this song when it came out, I was too young to realize the depth of the song. While Laura quotes Chekhov, I’m more than happy to quote George Michael lyrics.

In my opinion, the song is about a relationship that was very consuming and put the person through a very hard time. The person kept their faith and remained positive because the person knew that their true love was waiting for them.

I know it’s sappy but you can substitute the relationship for your goal. In my case the film. The production took a toll on a lot of us but at the end of it, we will have a wonderful film and many people to thank.

No, I don't regret a single moment
No I don't, looking back
When I think of all those disappointments
I just laugh (I know you do), I just laugh

This is basically how I’ve felt. I don’t regret the experience at all. I’ve met so many wonderful people and learned so much from the process that I would not take any of it back.

I only shot two scenes out of my film and am finishing in mid-late March. I’m looking forward to that.

I can’t wait to see Dustin and Shane’s lives unfold. David Villar and Onahoua Rodriguez are so wonderful together and their chemistry is electrifying, sweet and heartfelt. It makes me gush every time I think about it. Throw in Daniella Alonso as Cali, the babe who comes between Shane and Dustin, sprinkle some Justin Klosky as Jim, Mari Marks as Sonny Vivian (Dirty Virgin’s band manager) and The Fabulous Miss Wendy’s music and you’ll get a chick flick with an edge. And no, I have no problems if people call it a chick flick.

So to recap the song and how this experience has left me:

When the river was deep I didn't falter
When the mountain was high I still believed
When the valley was low it didn't stop me, no no
I knew you were waiting
I knew you were waiting for me

Now, the fun begins.

Lucy

Love Song Cast - Onahoua Rodriguez (Shane), David Villar (Dustin), Mari Marks (Sonny Vivian), Justin Klosky (Jim) and Daniella Alonso (Cali)