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When I started this ride at Columbia, I knew it was going to be less of a carousel and more of a roller coaster. I love roller coasters. They’ve got ups and downs, and when you think you’ve got the next turn planned out, a twist comes out of nowhere that rattles your brain. It sort of reminds me of…wait for it…film school. But you knew that’s where I was going.

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If you’ve been following me on this blog, then you know I’ve been prepping for a two day shoot of my Production 1 final film. I had scheduled my initial pre-production tasks (script writing, finding locations, securing actors) and picked a few initial team members to help in the expectation of shooting the second weekend of November. Of course fate and scheduling conflicts intervened. I lost one of two initial team members (twist 1) and had to reschedule for an earlier weekend (twist 2).

Even though I lost a week before shooting, what we call pre-production, I got more time to work after shooting, what we call post-production. Post includes editing film, adding sound, music and everything else that makes all those shots look like a movie.

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Shooting day arrives and I (writer, director, and producer) was up before dawn. And ready to pick up the camera crew. Ideally you want an extra five or six people. Due to competition from other productions, we had one…but a very good one (twist 3).

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We set up and got to work. My cast included my 6 year old nephew and my sister / his mother dressed in a robot suit. Between you and me, I don’t know what is more challenging; directing a 6 year old or my sister. That’s not true…my sister is way harder. Anyway we made it through the first day. We fell behind, but I made a few changes that would get us caught up on day two. With that thought, I slept well…until the text.

My nephew had a 102 degree temperature. This isn’t the “Little Rascals” so I had no expectations of him being able to shoot. Goodbye little boy (twist 4). Of course his mother was going to take care of him. That’s what mother’s do. Goodbye robot (twist 5). So I went from having a production with a skeleton crew to a production with no cast and a skeleton crew and it was only 6:00 AM. What a way to start the day.

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Then I heard the grisly voice of Gunny Highway from Heartbreak Ridge. “You adapt. You overcome. You improvise. Let’s move.” So that’s what I did. I rewrote that script and cast one of the crew in the movie. With a little blood, sweat, and tears, the three of us finished the movie. I really think we got some great shots and hilarious moments. All in all, it was a wonderful disaster. After that, all I can say is that I need a drink. It’s OK. I’m over 21. Any suggestions?

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