Production Diary - Whiskey Nights

Production Diaries




Pre-Production review

Logistics – In order to make things moved as efficiently as possible, we created shot lists, call sheets and storyboards to enable us to proceed as quickly as possible during the shoots without sacrificing quality or the vision. The storyboards at first were rushed, and were not up to standard in terms of providing a clear vision for Adam, our cinematographer. Shot lists were solid and easy to understand, Adam assisted me with them, making sure that the right terminology was being used. Although we had finalised call sheets that had been posted online, one of one of our actors failed to show up – luckily however it was a minor supporting role which was easily cut out.

Finance – Finance didn’t really come into play here as the group had access to the items we needed, as for sets we were filming within college which meant that we were able to shoot without inducting a cost to the group or the actors for travel. I believe the only purchase I made for the film was apple juice, which was used to imitate whiskey in the film. We were very lucky in terms of budgeting, Tom was able to supply a replica handgun that was authentic and believable, helping us dodge the charge of buying a believable replica. Me and Adam supplied lights, files and other items whilst Tom supplied a lot of the alcohol he had around the house and a whiskey flask – again helping us to dodge any costs for alcohol which could become quite expensive.

Creative processes – In terms of planning the shoot, we could and should have planned a lot better than we did. I decided to leave it at shot lists and storyboards, choosing to “wing it” per say when it came to the shoots. The reason I chose this approach was because in my head I had a clear vision which I believed was conveyed through the shot lists and storyboards. Should I have created a plan for the day? Definitely. Did the shoot falter as a result? The first shoot no, but the second? Yes, it definitely would have helped shorten the length of the shoot had I created a plan with a timescale from beginning to end. I guessed at a lot of the timing and luckily for us it worked out, but it definitely shouldn’t be done like this again – I may not get luckily next time and could possibly jeopardise any future film shoots. In terms of design I made clear the setting of the film, 50’s New York, but other than that I was pretty relaxed with the design – mainly due to the turnover from my final script to filming, I didn’t really have time to go out and source authentic costumes, although I do believe the final result was pretty convincing, as the actors were able to deliver great looking costumes of their accord, again this was brilliant luck but isn’t a feasible approach for future projects. Make-up was fairly easy to organise, I asked Ethan Woodward if he would be able to help with make-up for the film and he was more than happy to help, he was able to use items supplied by college, meaning we didn’t have to pay for the make-up tools, which is always a bonus. It should be noted that Ethan was very willing to help and stick around for shoots, and was a huge aid in the film’s production.  

Personnel management – Management ran smoothly, we had an issue of Alex not turning up for a shoot but it was easily rectified. We had cast come in on time for make-up and started shooting close to the estimated time for the first shoot, the second shoot however was a mess in terms of structure – we misplaced important documents such as our shot lists and storyboards, which slowed the shoot dramatically and caused a lot of inconsistences within the final product.  We weren’t willing to postpone our shoot for the lack of one actor so I believe it was right that we continued with the film regardless. I had posted the specific call sheet on Facebook 2 weeks in advance, so the lack of appearance was none of crew’s fault, it’s just one of those things that you have to adapt around.

Resource management – Resource management was a fairly easy operation, for starters we were filming within college, which meant we could collect and return equipment on site, removing the danger of missing equipment, a problem that would jeopardise not only our film but the other films as well. A note I’d like to make is that we should have took photos of props and sets to make sure that continuity remained throughout the shoot, instead we looked back at footage on the SD card on site, which works but isn’t nearly as efficient and time saving.

Time management – As mentioned before, time management was an issue that could have been avoided had a planned correctly and efficiently. Though due to luck and good coordination we managed to stay on track for the most part when it comes to keeping to schedule. We did leave some space for potential reshoots and editing after our second shoot, we didn’t need to reshoot but it’s good that we pre-planned the editing process because the edit became painstakingly long and complex compared to other films.

Professional practice – The first shoot was very professional and organised and I was extremely pleased with the result, the second however disappointed me, the lack of important documents hindered shooting and slowed it dramatically causing some scenes to be rushed and some to be shot incorrectly. These are all lessons I can take away and apply to my next project, I have learned that if you don’t plan, then you’re planning to fail – I’ve said it before but I got lucky this time in terms of timing and crew, but any of the factors in which I failed to plan for could cost an entire shoot in the real world. I need to make sure I’m more organised next time and prevent crucially important documents from being misplaced again.

Monitoring progress – We kept track of our shoot by checking every rush, marking up script pages etc. Due to the nature of our film we needed to make sure that everything was consistent, this include lighting, framing and of course continuity among items etc. We didn’t rely on a schedule as we should of, this was our major problem as mentioned before, we slipped into a lazy attitude – we could have sped up our shoots dramatically.

Risk management – The shoot took place in college which allowed us to remain safe for the duration of the filming process, we didn’t shoot out of college which reduced all possible outside risk – the only real risk assessment to take into account was the replica hand gun we had on set, it didn’t have the orange cap that helps identify the weapon as a fake. We needed a cap less gun for the film as we needed a realistic weapon for the film, therefore we took the necessary precautions to ensure there were no misunderstandings when it came to the replica – we concealed the weapon at all times until the shoot, kept it within one room and created signs letting members of the college know that should they somehow spot the gun within the room, it’s fake and needed for filming. The replica posed no danger whatsoever and it’s gas-firing mechanism was disabled.

Crisis management – The only real issue we had was Alex Barker’s inability to show up to the second shoot day, but this was easily rectified as he wasn’t a vital character, I therefore wrote him out of the script and carried on the shoot without him. He was made aware of this previous to the shoot.

Next time I would definitely prioritise documentation safety and usage, it’s an extremely important aspect of filmmaking that can make or break a project. I also need to make sure that I do not become involved in idle conversation with the actors and crew and remain focused – I need to remind myself I am a director in what needs to be a professional environment, distractions will not help me secure a career within the film industry so I need to start training myself as of now how to approach situations as a director, and not a “mate”. I would also prioritise making sure I schedule shoots and take control of the days available to me, I need to make sure that myself, the crew and the actors are fully aware of the days plan and that there is no room for distractions.

12/03/2018 – After going through quite a few iterations, I finally landed on the script I wanted to film. Although it’s not the final version, it’s enough to get the ball rolling which casting and pre-production. I still have the previous versions saved, ready to include with my folder, the film has moved from a ‘The Nice Guys’ style neo-noir comedy to a darker, more classic attempt at the noir genre, taking cues from many classics in an attempt to bring something new to the table for this short film unit. I’ve spent time researching and watching noir films/short films in an attempt to understand how they bring this stuff to life. Noir films may look very stylish, but back in their day the use of lighting and such was just considered a cheap way to make films – today they’re regarded as stylish classics, with a few films aiming to replicate (some successfully, some not so much) the charm and authenticity that comes with classic noir

27/03/2018 – Today was the first day of filming, and with the film being noir, the set required a lot of preparation before any shooting could take place. A noir setting requires light to be tool in your belt, which meant me and the team had to block out any light entering the room, so that we could use artificial light to our advantage. To achieve this we took a black drape and pinned it over the window overlooking the learning resource centre, this completely drowned any light from the room, we then turned on the lights we borrowed from the kit available to us and began creating our own shadows. We positioned the table in a way that allowed our main characters shadows to cast upon the wall. Another important choice we made was to have one side of the room lit up, versus the other side completely drowned in darkness, this plays into the classic noir aesthetic – damsel in distress shines in the light, mysterious figure resides in the dark. We decided to make the shoot day as long as possible and aimed to shoot all scenes requiring the room/actors in one day, the reason for this is because not only does it make lives easier in terms of scheduling (we wanted to avoid any clashes with the other films being made at the time) but it’s also not easy to replicate the exact same lighting and shadows, I’m sure it would have turned our close to the same a second time but this film requires consistency with its lighting, the nature of this makes it very easy to spot follow up shoots/reshoots.

The team brought in relevant props, Tom brought in a replica gun (we made sure the necessary signs were put up) and alcohol whilst Adam brought in files and documents, as well as a few items to make the area look like an office space.  Again it’s vital that the lighting matches the aesthetic of the noir genre, otherwise the entire film becomes compromised. Shooting began relatively on time and went on for 8 hours, the lighting worked brilliantly for the most part though it was hard to make out some shots on the camera due to the darkness or over-exposure.  The shoots went to plan and we were able to get every shot on the shot list. It seems we were lucky with the lighting, as I was sure that it would not pan out as well as it did.

10/04/2018 – Today was the second shoot day and was where my lack of scheduling and planning started to catch up with me. I became too confident with how the first shoot went that I became complacent, I completely underestimated how much work it would take to achieve what it is I wanted, and how much planning said work would require. My shot-list and storyboard were missing which cost major time lost, we had to rely on running through the script and doing the shoot scene by scene, I believe that had I taken better precautions to look after the documentation, the shoot could have ran a lot smoother. Luckily for me Ellie Garland came on hand to replace the absent Tom Raby who was on holiday at the time (he’d booked to leave previous to finding out about the shooting days). We managed to film from 10 till around 8pm, we rushed the final scene due to ill preparation but I’m happy with the final product. We filmed in the LRC, which limited our ability to create noise but we managed well enough. We struggled immensely with lighting which of course is the main element of any noir, this slowed us down but there was nothing we could do, at this point everything was trial and error. I’ve learned that it would be beneficial to us next time to practise framing and shots beforehand if we decide to any more experimental work instead of on site.

Post Production

Post production was a long and strenuous process, none of the shots were going to plan and my main editor, Adam Cowperthwaite, became bogged down in work that he needed to catch up on meaning I had to take on editing (with no previous experience). I believe that it went well and the final product will be a result of my work, it's still not finished yet as I still need to implement Jennifer's voice over and the end credits, as well as some audio adjustments, but things seem like they'll work out well. I've managed to cut the film under 10 minutes, coming in line with Kelly's request to keep the film below that target in order to meet with film festival guidelines (although I strongly disbelief this work is film festival worthy, too many inconsistences and editing band aids prevent it from being polished.) Unfortunate, but it's a valuable lesson for next time. I will continue to edit until I am happy with the film and believe that it's good enough to be presented alongside the other works of the year at the college's Oscar presentation in early July.