Nine days to go...

idiotproof

It's 8:03 on a Saturday morning and I'm shocking tired and cranky. We were on Portrane beach at 3am setting up a jib on a bit of cliff that was kinda its own bit of cliff except for a bit attached to the rest of the cliff, man I wish I listened in Geography. The sun came up and it was gorgeous, one of those moments where you're like maybe some of this stuff is actually worth it, maybe what we're doing will do something.

Then the sun comes up fully illuminating the scene proper, a small dog turns up followed by a confused owner. "Seriously, what the funk are we doing?" we ask ourselves, not for the first time. We're making a pilot tv show and it's due monday week, twelve o'clock.

We're back in the house for a fry, due in Dun Laoghaire for the Taxis scenes at 1000. It's a mad last dash today and tomorrow for the final shots, hopefully cut by 3pm tomorrow so the director can go to work (videostore), the DP can start to find somewhere to get it graded with little more in payment than a wink and a smile and we have a bit of farting space on the final ADR and music.

We don't really know why we're posting this, but if it's cool we'd like to drop our thoughts here each day until we submit as a bit of a release and a place for peolple to share some of their own stories and feelings on what they're trying to do.

mycroft

Not bad, it'd help if you post

A) what exactly you're shooting, drama, documentary etc, and is it a pilot on spec or a wing and a pray hoping someone will invest.

what you're shooting on.

Theres a couple of post houses, that if you're polite and understanding, and try, and through a bit of smooth talking try and get them to do the grading on the promise, that you'll bring the work there if you get commisioned (do not screw them, it's a small industry with a long memory). Trying to get that sorted is a producers job, not just the DP, getting something for nothing, or next to, is your responsibilty (I'm assuming you're the producer).

idiotproof

hey mycroft,

Really enjoyed your tips on getting into the industry thread.

We're shooting a comedy sketch show based around a narrative structure on minidv, shooting with PD170's and there's some spycamera stuff.

We're entering into the first round of RTE's commissioning, we don't need to be doing a pilot but as we're mainly all just out of or still in college we're hoping this will help, its as much about proving to ourselves that we can do it to the right level than it is the comissioners.

I'm actully the DP not the producer but am taking on getting the grade done as I've the most experience with dealing with houses around the place, not too worried about getting it done, most people are pretty cool when you have a chat with them and explain what your trying to do.

Gots to go.
What had you up so early on a Saturday morn?

mycroft

idiotproof wrote:

hey mycroft,

Really enjoyed your tips on getting into the industry thread.

We're shooting a comedy sketch show based around a narrative structure on minidv, shooting with PD170's and there's some spycamera stuff.

We're entering into the first round of RTE's commissioning, we don't need to be doing a pilot but as we're mainly all just out of or still in college we're hoping this will help, its as much about proving to ourselves that we can do it to the right level than it is the comissioners.

If I can recommend, theres a number of independent producers, before you drop it into the IPU, head over to one and get them to cast an eye over it, and your proposal, you'd be surprised how receptive they can be, whats more theres the potential that one of them will executive produce. A proposal from a bunch of unknowns will look alot more promising if theres a recognised name working in an executive producer capacity. Essentially an executive producer credit on such a job is kind of a Donnie Brasco "this is a friend of mine" kinda title, giving the IPU an assurance that the production has someone they trust, overseeing the production.

I'm actully the DP not the producer but am taking on getting the grade done as I've the most experience with dealing with houses around the place, not too worried about getting it done, most people are pretty cool when you have a chat with them and explain what your trying to do.

Gots to go.
What had you up so early on a Saturday morn?

Work, news cutting. Nothing like dragging yourself out of bed to start editing at 6am

idiotproof

Thats a good point mycroft. We've been talking to and getting advice from a fair few people but we haven't approached anyone formally in that kind of way which might have been a good idea. We almost finished the picture edit earlier before actually earning money got in the way, should be done in the morning to go for a final sound mix and the colour grade. You'd think we'd be excited but everyone's so knackered it was hard to even go grab a few second pickup on the Dart.

Broke the spycam taking it off the taxi sign so it was a bit dodgy. Had a real nice shot where the doors of the luas or dart would close on the wire holding the lens out side looking down the tram/train but the colour kept going dodgy, yet another reason to have a soldering iron in with the kit.

Fortunately I'm not going to have to fill out the form for the proposal. It's two pages, first is just contact details and such but the second and only other page allowed is blank except for the line "describe your proposal".

Apparently there's a good chance we won't hear anything back, good or bad, for a good few months which is annoying thats there's going to be this anticlimax as we head back to the usual and sit and hope.

Anyone remember the day after they put in a portfolio somewhere going "So, what do I do now...".
Not fun