'Tea Anyone?'...

Childhood Wrapped...

     Well, that's a wrap for Childhood Lost. I must say one of the nicest bunch of people I have had the pleasure of working with so far. Both cast and crew have been amazing!

After 2 long weekends and some very long days we finally have a film - well almost. Now its time for post-production. 

Many laughs had and some interesting conversations took place making it all the more enjoyable. We could not have asked for a better location or cast, who really captured the feel of the story. 

I'll leave you with some stills until the highly anticipated finished film is ready...

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Childhood Lost Website

At the Ready...

 Being Prepared:

    Getting into the film industry is not easy and its hard to know where to start. Volunteering as a Runner was for me the perfect way to get on to small projects, get experience and make contacts.

As a runner you will be assisting with small jobs, doing runs for drinks, food, materials and equipment, as well as assisting on set where needed. It is a good starting point to learn the roles on set and get your foot in the door. Even though the jobs may be small a runner is important for keeping the production running smoothly. 

     It is different for everyone, but I would recommend doing as much work experience as possible. You will learn more on the job than a degree will teach you! and make lots of connections!
Networking is just as important, you may just meet someone on a short film who will later recommend you while working on a feature. Then the role of Production Assistant will be on the horizon.

     Being a Runner or Production Assistant on set means to be at the ready for anything thrown at you! It would be a good idea to carry a kit of basics on you just in case. I am often asked what my kit contains.
Of course no kit will be the same and you will personalise it over time, it will also vary depending on whether you are on set, location and the type of location, along with weather conditions.
Most Productions will have a Runner's Box/Grip Box with all the below in it, but when working on independent's or low budget films its good to be prepared.

Here is a basic starting point of what to carry when assisting on set/location.

A general Kit List for film Production Assistants and Runners when on set or location: May vary depending on production and if you are using a production bag or tool belt.

A good Backpack or Tool belt is a must!

Call Sheet & Contact Sheet - very important!

Note Pad & Pens

Swiss army knife (Mini tool kit)

Torch/Flash light

Gaffer Tape

Masking Tape

Sharpies

First aid kit - paracetamol & Plasters

Bottle of Water

Bin bags

Flask - Coffee &/or Tea bags if on location

Digital Camera!

Laptop charger/lead (or car charger - for phones, laptops and Digi cameras)

If on location & depending on time of year:

Spare clean/dry socks 

Sunglasses & Sunblock

Hat/Gloves/Scarf/waterproof

Basically all manner of things for all eventualities :D 

Hope this helped.

A Long time coming....

Pescatore's Dog:

    Well it has been a very long time coming, over a year. After the 48 hour film challenge and a re-edit, we finally have the finished extended version of 'Pescatore's Dog'.

To re-cap:

48 film Challenge - to write, film and edit a short film in just 48 hours! Total madness and crazy amounts of fun! We were given the genre of 'Western', naturally we wanted a bit of comedy and music thrown in. So for added value we went for a Mexican western with a wild chase, stand-off and of course maracas!

For the challenge we were given a character, prop and line that must be used in the film. These were:

Character: Charlie or Charli Cipiani, a Minor Celebrity.

Prop: Cream

Line: "Let me tell you a secret"

So here it is......Enjoy!

Watch 'Pescatore's Dog' Here!

Here are a few stills from the film:

Childhood Lost...

Childhood Lost:

      I have not updated on this project since I started due to the fact that there is so much going on! As well as working on another project at the same time - being the indie feature film 'Anonymous'.

About the film:

     Childhood Lost is a quirky dark comedy about a troubled young man who discovers a terrible secret buried in photos from his past. Unfortunately, neither his incompetent therapist or his preoccupied parents seem inclined to offer any consolation. 

They would rather be drinking tea!

The short will released at the end of the year (2013), ready for submission in to next years film festivals. Watch this space!

So, to introduce our amazing cast, some of which you may recognize: (Left to Right)

Matthew Cosgrove - Craig
Richard Cunningham - Therapist
Gareth Lawrence - Craig's Father
Carol Soper - Craig's Mother
George Shealy - Daniel

     We have a brilliant location, an amazing cast and most of the crew on board. Shooting was moved back to October due to availability of the location, but things are well underway and ready to go. 

It is nice to work on a shorter project after working on a few feature films this year. It means I can be involved with everything, from sourcing crew, casting, finding locations, scheduling to assisting on set. Once we found the right location everything else fell into place. Thanks to an add on gumtree, we had a few options to choose from.

Finding crew has proved the most difficult due to the low budget and commitment to other projects. Adds where placed on the normal sites like 'film & tv pro', 'mandy' and 'shooting people'...we now only have a few roles left to fill, though these are just as key to any other role in the film process.

That aside, here are a few photos of our brilliant location:

   

For more updates please visit our website - www.childhoodlostfilm.co.uk

Also join us on Facebook & Twitter

Location, Location, Location...

Anonymous:

    It has been a mad few weeks getting locations together for our feature film 'Anonymous'. From Farm's, Plaza's, Old people's homes, Hospital's and Florist's, we have had plenty of locations to confirm ready to get started with filming on Monday!

This is the first project I have worked on that has a reasonable location budget, which makes life a lot easier getting a location confirmed when you have something to offer. Having choice and back-up options is always ideal where these can be found, but getting people to get back to you can be a long process, and you find yourself playing a waiting game. I find sending a introductory email, followed up by numerous phone calls a few days later helps push things forward. 

    On the rest of the pre-production, the schedule has been finalised, call sheets for week one are complete, and the cast and crew are ready to roll! One film, two weeks....Ready to go.

Below are a few pics from when I was Location scouting around London. As well as something to jot notes on, a camera and good pair of walking shoes is a must! 

   

The end, or is it?

Dead & Awake:

      So the last week of film for 'Dead and Awake'. Few easy going days at the studio and around London, then back to Kent for one more night shoot! Which turned out to be the most challenging night of them all. 

So after filming most of the beginning of the film this week, which is the end of the shoot we now have a rather cool image of what it could look like all together! The exciting thing is it could turn out looking completely different from how I imagine once it has been through post production. 

The experience from this film has been so valuable I could not have hope for a more enriching project to work on :D 

Now to look forward to the behind the scenes video's and movie trailers that will be appearing over the next couple of months.

 Helping hand or Trouble!?

Filming in the Pub! ~ 'Nice to meet the local community...'

One of the very few photos of myself: with Leo the Sound Guy after a long night shoot ~ Still smiling!

What's Next:

    Although I hope nothing more than to work on the next Zed Resistor production, for now I will be working on a couple of interesting and very different projects. 

One as Production Manager of a short film, a dark comedy called 'Childhood Lost'. This will be a small but important project that will hopefully make it's way around film festivals galore! 

The other I am waiting to attend a meeting to hear more about, hopefully be taking the role of Production Manager. It will be another indie feature film due to film end of august! 

The more productions will mean more experience, more contacts and more FUN! :D (and of course another step closer to leaving my part time retail job!)

Spooky goings on...

Dead & Awake:

    So the 3rd week was a week of night shoots, scary stories, very cool lighting and all round fun!

A lot was going on and I got to learn a hell of a lot about lighting. As our lighting guy disappeared in the first week, thankfully our Director is experienced in many areas, and a fab tutor to learn from! 

Our amazing location was a big help in bringing the right atmosphere to the cast and film, especially after hearing all the spooky happenings that go on in the house from the owner. It made it all the more fun! Secluded in the countryside and consisting of a spooky priory, stables and acres of land, it was perfect for both the production and the cast's leisure time in between scenes. 

This week felt like the last week as many of the cast finished their filming and some of crew were leaving as no longer needed. I am lucky to have met and had the pleasure of working with such a brilliant and professional team. 

 What are they looking at? 

 We even had the pleasure of adorable puppies, kittens and foals on Location.

 The Kent location: A lovely country house next to St Augustine's Pirory, Ashford, Kent.

We were allowed to take over the conservatory as our production base!

 Some of the crazy but lovely Cast & Crew after our last night of week long night shoots!

Find out more here -> Official Dead & Awake Facebook page!