This is the last week of shooting, final straight line until the wrap.

So I have done some research since the last post and I now know why the director and DoP have decided not to use a monitor on set.

3 simple reasons:

1: it distracts from the actual action. Everybody looks at the screen instead of paying attention to the scene.
2: monitors are heavy and slow down the setting up of a scene.
3: it's less freedom for the cameraman: heavy gear and cables....

Once again some say it may take longer between the takes for the director to review the scenes, but Tom thinks that once one is used to this technique, there is no need for reviewing.

Over the weeks the departments have changed, camera is now down from 4 to 3, the DoP and 2 assistants as was requested by the DoP before the shoot,

And the lighting dept is now at 3 with extra hands when needed. Lighting setups are always minimal but the very nature of frugal filmmaking and the fact that we are shooting an average of 6 pages a day means we have to work fast and the lighting dept are the ones that feel the pinch.

So, as we are heading towards the final line here is a small overview of all the departments in this film, and what differentiates them from any other film.

LOCATIONS :

All the locations were found through friends and connections. Obviously this means having to do all the research yourself and takes a lot more time than hiring a location agency. (Mike and Rose started looking for locations about 3 months ago.) But in the end they were all beautiful locations and hardly very affordable.

The hospital scenes for example were shot in a university during the Christmas break. And all the houses we filmed in were private houses of friends of Mike and Rose's. One of them belongs to Liz. (more on her later)

FOOD: Back to Liz. Not only does she love France, French food and speaks French perfectly (I had to love her straight away...!) she provided us during the entire shoot with delicious lunches, cakes, morning and afternoon teas. Having to serve up to 80 people on crowded days. Note to self : remember to try to have a chef amongst your friends.

ACTORS

Yet another DIY. Mike handled the camera as Rose did the auditions. Actors perfectly cast. All very eager to work. What more can I say?

GRIP DEPARTMENT: Now there is a department that seems to notice the difference. Our grip is bored. Not only has he had to show up with his little Station Wagon car instead of his usual 20 Tons truck. But he also seems really frustrated that he doesn't get to do any fancy crane movements.

Although he does admit it is a breath of fresh air to work with nice people for a change and not "wankers with an attitude" from the industry.

LIGHTING: Well, instead of the usual truck full of gaffer gear usually expected on film shoots, this is all we have:

(and a lot of it hasn't even been used very much...)

WEEK II

Week two was very different to week one. The location was the same during the whole week, so people were able to take their marks. (Although there was a little bit more of waiting around...)

I understand frugal filmmaking is about letting a window open for luck and being able to see the advantages in a situation instead of fighting against it. And I have witnessed that.

We make the most of natural light instead of setting up complicated lighting rigs and we make the most of original locations, instead of trying to change them completely: A beautiful ceiling, the blinds already on a window, using fairy lights to light up a night scene... all this can make a dull location look very unique.









Sometimes it also means using the people around you as extras: a kid driving by on a bike in a funeral scene, or the residents of a boarding house (quite a few laughs with that one...)

Of course this means depending on the weather, the moods etc. and can be very unstable, but we are a small crew and we can react quickly, so when everything is ok, we can shoot straight away.

And then there are the hours… 10 hours’ days in general, and sometimes wrapping early. Everybody is unanimous in saying the days are short. And everybody appreciates that.

But Tom would want them to be even shorter ideally. How? This is open to debate: some think that too much time is lost between takes: they should follow one another straight away in order to keep the actors warm and in the mood and to loose less time. While others say the loss of time is due to the fact that there is no monitor on set, therefore the director is forced to review the takes between shooting, slowing down the pace. Or does it? That is the question we all ponder.

One last thing I have noticed is that working with people whose motivation you trust, whose intelligence you believe in is a very positive experience.

Here the director and director of photography really trust one another's judgment and you can tell. The discussion is always open between them.

Tom has an immense respect for Rose's sensibility and is willing to reconsider the framing of a scene if she believes the general feel is not right. And Rose equally considers Tom’s opinion and alters her plan if she agrees with him. I’m told this is not the way it always works out there in the film industry.

As for the general ambiance and enthusiasm on set, some say there is less eagerness that on larger budget shoots, more joking around. This may be caused by the fact lots of the crew are volunteers. But I still think people have a professional conscientiousness and are committed to the process, not only for the sake of their beginners CV’s but for the film itself.

The South Seas Film School students are here every single day, and are very happy to be given the chance of working on a set. Here we are given the chance to do important activities that usually require experience and I know I am grateful. And learning a lot.

This is all for now.
V.

WEEK I
week 1 seems to have gone well.

Everybody is very happy to be on this project, (they have to be, nobody is in it for the money!) and this reflects on a very nice, global and enthusiastic atmosphere.

The crew are a mixture of experienced film crew with students from south seas film school and they are all very motivated.
Two of the girls are shooting a behind the scenes documentary and even though their camera broke they were still on set, helping out, working for free. There camra is now mended and they have begun the doco again.

I have never worked on a film before so I had to ask around to see what the main difference between a film made using the Frugal Filmmaker protocols and an ordinary one. The first comment people made were the hours.

The crew, especially the old hands, really appreciate the shorter hours and if we finsih early early we wrap early. And the easy work flow. More about that later.

This week we shot a lot of exteriors to get them done before the Christmas decorations go up. Exteriors are easier for the actors, fewer lines and the scenes are quicker to shoot and the crew feels optimistic and motivated. We even finished earlier than schedule two nights in a row.

A second difference is the lack of hierarchy. And this can be a good or a bad thing, as I understand.

I have noticed that people are surprised that the director and director of photography do not have interns running off doing their errands, making them coffee etc. Although this doesn't really have to do with the way we are filming (but more with them being good people, in my opinion), it does show the global atmosphere on set. Everybody feels respected.

One last thing that appears to be very different is the small amount of lights, camera accessories etc.

Tom told me the other day that equipment on set (lights, camera accessories) is deliberately reduced to the strict minimum as part of the Frugal Filmmaker protocol. The usual five trucks of gear (the Circus) has become one small truck and this obviously will affect the final product (in a good way, according to tom. I’ll keep you posted on that).

So in Hollywood, to shoot a scene with a female actress it’s like shooting a L'Oreal commercial. Lots of preparation and artificial effects just to make her look beautiful. Here the only goal is to have the actors act well. Because this is the key (good story, good acting) to a good film says Tom.

So in each scene the natural light on location is used to its maximum. Only one light is set up most of the times and this makes a more raw image but also implies less waiting around for the actors, it keeps them fresh, more reactive. And better acting? Stay tuned.

I have been invited to witness a very interesting experience. The making of a feature film in a different way, a more frugal way. Let me tell you more about it.

Just like minimalism was born from a reaction (to the excesses of subjectivity in abstract expressionism and pop art), frugal filmmaking was first born from a strong reaction against the diktat of the film industry.

The finance for Rosemary Riddell's 7 million NZ dollar first movie fell through. Cinematographer and Director Tom Burstyn has been making feature films, miniseries and MOW’s for over 30 years. He was tired of the excess, the waste – human and material. He had been formulating a plan to make a film in a very different way, to almost re-envisage the whole production process.

Then Rosemary met Tom and we in now in our first week of shooting Insatiable Moon (working title) an ultra low-budget feature film shot on the streets on Ponsonby, Auckland.

Insatiable Moon is being made using Tom’s Frugal Filmmaker system and philosophy.

What if all the accoutrements of the film set is not always necessary.

What if stripping it back is not just about lack of money but is about allowing the filmmaker the freedom to concentrate on the story rather than the technology.

What if by having to strip down the movie making to its most fundamental components, the days of shooting were shorter, the acting better, the crew more alert, the director more motivated?

Does less time spent on equipment help everyone to focus on the actual story?

This is what is about to be put to practise on the set of the Insatiable Moon.

It’s an experiment. Stay tuned.

Violaine