The Good Soldier - Notes 14 - 87.5 minutes & counting

I currently have 87.5 minutes of black and white super 8 film in the can for The Good Soldier and there are just a handful of scenes remaining. The 35 rolls of film was sent to Yale Film & Video in Burbank, CA yesterday for processing and transfer to digital.

For those of you unfamiliar with film, that means I have seen none of the footage shot - it's not like digital, you can't see what you've shot immediately after shooting it. It will not be until August 21st when I actually go to the lab in Burbank to see what I've created. Until then, it's still in my mind.

When I visit the lab I will not only get to see the processed film but I will get to be there for the transfer to digital and be involved in that process. This was just an added bonus - it just so happened that our vacation to Cali coincided with the lab work - so lucky me. I love the fact that I get to have this added hands-on experience.

I've already begun going through all the recorded sound files; those recorded on set and in studio. And I've started working on titles and organizing the project. It's a lot to do. There are all of these individual pieces that must be reassembled to meet the script and tell a story on screen. It already feels like writing again - but this time I know the story and how it ends I just have to show it. In editing it is equally difficult to take all of this footage - almost 1.5 hours worth - and distill it down to a 20 minute film. That's a lot of choices to make and a lot of leftover material.

Post-production will officially begin when I return from California. Hopefully, I will not have any re-shoots. A re-shoot is just what it sounds like: when you have to re-shoot a scene because either the footage didn't turned out or you are missing a key component for some reason.

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So out next (and final) shooting date is Monday, August 17th. We have two locations to visit and two very important scenes to shoot.

The Good Soldier - Notes 13 - Saturday Wrap!

Original logo/art by Seth Capshaw

Today was a hard day. It was hot. It was windy. How can it be so windy yet still be so hot? It's like working in a convection oven. But that's Oklahoma in August.

The scenes we shot today took place on a rooftop and in the upper head-house/tower of the silos. Setup took some time because we had to get all the equipment up ladders and in odd locations. It was a combination of trying to get the right lighting but at the same time hiding the lights and cords - and still make it all look natural. But that's film.

All this was done with a mere three person crew - including the lead actor! It was a skeleton crew to say the least but it seemed to work given the obstacles and precarious positions we were dealing with. But the shots today may be some of the best in the film - given the locations and the unbelievable angles. There is an overhead shot in particular that's going to look like a $50K crane-shot. I love cheating shots like these - people wonder, "How the hell did they get THAT shot?"

Brian, the lead, is a trooper. It's a good thing he is as adventurous as he is - and that he's not afraid of heights. "You think you can get up there and stand on the edge?" I'd ask him. "Sure," he'd say. I was more nervous about it than he. It's not a good thing if you accidentally kill off your lead actor. "Oh, by the way, that board up there, make sure you don't stand on it, it's rotted and you could fall through."

Most people would have packed it in by now. Not Brian, I think the danger just excites him more.

It was the middle of the day and we found ourselves lugging and hauling production equipment over 100 feet up - by ladder. All this for what? 2 minutes of film, maybe. But those shots - I can't wait to see them.

Saturday's shoot went great, despite the heat and profuse sweating. All that's left are two short (but essential) scenes that we'll shoot, hopefully on the August 17th.

The film shot thus far is going in the mail on Monday morning to be processed. The plan is to pick up the remaining shots and get it to Yale Film/Video in Burbank quickly - either by mail or by hand....

Another stroke of luck: we're going to San Diego on the 19th. During the trip I'm making a special trip up the coast to Burbank to be present the lab for the film transfer! I'm psyched about this - it means that I will have input during the transfer and get to make adjustments to the brightness and contrast. Not to mention I will have my very first look at the film then and there!

The Good Soldier - Notes 12 - Production Photos

We've got quite a few pictures from the production shoot last weekend. I am uploading them to my Picassa album. See them here.

As for what remains, we have a couple of scenes that we are shooting tomorrow morning. These are scenes that we had left over from the main shooting days. The plan was to shoot them on Thursday but it was raining so we had to push the date back a bit.

After this I have one more day of shooting - August 17th - and it's just a couple of scenes with "Miss June."

In the meantime, all the film up through Saturday's shoot will be shipped off to Yale Film & Video in Burbank for processing and transfer. I'm hoping (if I can find an affordable plane ticket) to go out to Burbank so I can be there during the telecine process. That will allow me to give input on elements of the transfer and possibly make adjustments to the light when needed.

The Good Soldier - Notes 11 - In Production

So we are 2 days into production on The Good Soldier and everything is going well. Not that I am entirely sure what it is really supposed to feel like because I would not consider myself an expert on film production shoots, but by the accounts of the cast and crew people seem to be pleased with our progress. Apparently I've done a good job in getting my shit together and being somewhat organized in terms of pre-production. Sustaining that organization through production has been the primary role of our script supervisor, Lisa, also my wife. I knew she would do great at that.

Driving to the film shoot early Saturday morning I remember thinking: by the end of the day I'm going to know what it feels like to shoot a movie.

That morning we started off pretty slow. At the outset we had forgotten a couple of important items that we had to make special trips for and there was some time spent in just gearing up and establishing the scene. It was a good idea to just work with the main character on the first day, and we made good progress. Still, we were somewhat behind schedule - based on my overly ambitious shooting schedule. It was really my fault for beefing it up so much. But in retrospect there were no major screw-ups and we made it from shot to shot quite nicely. By days end I was completely and utterly spent. I clearly had not anticipated the physical and mental stamina required in maintaining the constant attention to the camera, the lens, the shot, the scene, the acting, the continuity, the pace, the script, and all the technical aspects of lighting, sound, and props. It was a groundswell of information to process.

It wasn't until arriving home late Saturday night that I was really able to reconsider what I'd done. I realized there were shots I missed and shots I wanted to change - but overall I felt satisfied with the process thus far.

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I want to share some things, outside of this basic documenting of what happened for those thinking about filming their own movie and for those that just want to know what it feels like. The concept of making a movie is glamorized and romanticized. So many times the daily work that goes into making a movie is filtered out almost as if the movie goes from idea, to story, to film, to theater. As simple as that. But what happens on a set is that each person has a specific role and everyone is reliant on each other to get the job done. So in that sense it feels like work. You're setting up heavy and oftentimes cumbersome equipment, positioning lights, moving props around, making sure each thing is consistent from shot to shot and scene to scene. Then you're working with the actors to make sure they know what their moves, lines and emotions are. All this might happen in the course of fifteen minutes then you move a bunch of stuff around and do it again, and again, and then again. And all the while there is a constant attention to two major things: exposure and focus. Is the light level correct for black and white film? Is the action in focus?

It didn't feel glamorous. It didn't feel romantic. At least, not on the surface. But then again....I have to be honest. I have loved every single second of it. It's everything I'd hoped and thought it would be. Now I know this is why people want to make films.

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Sunday, today, felt easier than yesterday. We got started faster. We bounced from scene to scene and even picked up a couple of extra shots that will tie things together better. We had some big scenes today - shot a lot of film. I'm blazing through these 50 ft rolls. I've shot 21 rolls so far.

At one point I had a sinking feeling that we just were not going to finish based on the schedule I created. It was just too much for two days. So I began to get a little overwhelmed with the amount we have remaining to shoot. And though we were planning to shoot on Monday evening in Norman I hadn't thought of another time to shoot the scenes we'd missed. But then there was some discussion and someone asked, "Well, what are you doing tomorrow?" Before I knew it people were volunteering to shoot during the day on Monday in order to catch up. So it looks like we are continuing the shoot as a make-up day tomorrow.

Tomorrow will be a FULL day of shooting but I am anxious to get going.

There are tons of pictures from the shoot and some video to share but it will have to wait until there is time to mess with all of that.

The Good Soldier - Notes 10 - Shooting Begins

Just a quick note: principal photography for The Good Soldier begins tomorrow and will continue through Sunday and again on Monday evening.

At this point all I can do is hope that everything is line and ready to go. It will be an early start tomorrow but I am anxious to get going.

Out of fear that I might run out, I ordered 15 more rolls of film today which should be here by Monday. I'm going to have to keep a close eye on how much film I'm burning through. Would be real easy to let time get away from me and keep rolling when I don't have to.

The Good Soldier - Notes 9 - An Update

I am very pleased with how things are going thus far. Each step feels like another accomplishment - one that I wasn't sure I'd ever be able to make. Today I met with a music composer about a score for the film. She is very excited and anxious to get started. I will share more about who this person is as things move along - I just want to make sure I have her okay before sharing too much about her. Needless to say I am psyched to have someone that is an accomplished composer and musician working with me on the film. I feel like we are very much on the same page as far as the music goes so I am excited to see what the results are. If all goes as I think it will, the score will give it those brilliant touches that I am looking for.

The costumes have been purchased for the main characters. I underestimated the cost for the costumes. They were about ten times the amount I budgeted for. One of the things they tell you if you are going to make your own film - pick the present day as your time-period. One of the reasons for this is the wardrobe. It is expensive to find vintage or impression WWII era uniforms. I ended up purchasing mine through a company called Top Pots in Sydney, Australia. They refurbish old military helmets. They not only had the costumes I need but they had what I wanted in stock, at a reasonable price, and were able to get them to me in a timely manner - so there you have it - sometimes it just comes down to that.

We have a production meeting coming up this weekend. We'll get all the cast and crew together (or all that can reasonably make it) and discuss the details of the upcoming shoot. The actual shoot is scheduled to begin on Saturday, August 1 and will continue on August 2 and a couple of days in the following week.

It's all coming together, slowly but surely.

The Good Soldier - Notes 8 - Film Test RESULTS

I received the processed film back from Yale Film & Video today. I can't tell you how nervous I have been about this test footage episode. The results of my first film test (using Ektachrome 64T color film) was a mess. Completely overexposed. Completely worthless. So going into this test shoot I feared that I might do one of a number of things to muck it up, namely, screw up the light and overexpose, screw up the light and underexpose, or get everything out of focus. Any one of those things would mean not only a waste of time and money but a need to go back to the drawing board and re-think this whole idea of shooting black and white Super 8 altogether. Given the circumstances, I felt, just prior to watching this film, that I might a) cry if the footage sucked b) cry if the film footage was miraculously gorgeous or c) remain at a happy medium if it was somewhere in between. Obviously, option "C" was the biggest gray area going into this.

It was with some reluctance that I ran the film through my projector and adjusted the picture to the screen height and distance. I paused more than once and might even have said a little prayer (though, truth be told, I don't really pray, just in circumstances such as these) before twisting the dial to run. The lamp flickered on, the film raced through the projector shutter and then: light. Picture. Clear. Clean, Focused. Utterly beautiful, black and white with a hint of sepia tone. There before me on my old, somewhat yellowed, Da-Lite pop-up movie screen was an image as beautiful as anything I have ever shot on camera before. Everything about the picture was what, and perhaps more than, I had imagined. It was scenario "A." And for a moment I thought I felt the tears coming. But no - this was just the beginning of the film - the whole thing couldn't possibly be this perfect.

The second "take" came and it was blurry. The light was perfect but the picture was blurry. And soon enough I realized what had happened - the camera focused, at the beginning, on the slate and not the action/talent, so when the slate was moved I was left with a close focus rather than a further away focus where the action was. This will be an easy fix and one that I will be more aware of during the actual filming. I was feeling closer to option "C" but still with the high of option "A."

Then I was taken by surprise again, the next scene, take 3, appeared almost more beautiful than the first scene. I picked this shot from the outside of the building looking in through an old window, the glass missing. The light is just such that it accents the actors face through the window and the shadows are still there for contrast. I can't wait to use this same shot in the film. I was nearing option "A" again.

There were a few more experimental shots that I did, all with good results. Only one of the later scenes had a focus issue - none had a light over/under exposure issue, which is what I was truly afraid of. With Tri-X film there is not much "latitude" in on the film in terms of light so if you are off by an F-stop (or God-forbid, two) then you are screwed.

The pictures I am including here are of still shots taken directly off my movie screen - they probably don't really do the actual pictures justice as I'm not the best still/digital photographer. But they should give a sense of the scene and the lighting.

All in all I consider this test-shoot a huge success. There's an enormous sense of relief in knowing that I can do this. I can set up a shot, understand and adjust for the light, depth of field and focus, and come away with footage that it is worthwhile.

I'll take this footage and get it transferred to digital and mess around with syncing it up to the digital audio we recorded. Given the results, I feel that it is time to move along to the actual shoot. I have pretty much everything I need now, including the re-assurance that this whole thing IS possible.

Next step is going to be a read-through rehearsal and then shooting begins. Thanks again to everyone who was there for the shoot. And a special thanks to Erik, for his willingness to be on camera for this.