MAJOR PRODUCTION: FILMING DAY ONE

Day one of filming took place on Monday 11/02/19, the plan was to film scenes at Mote Park in Maidstone, followed by scenes at Mote Road. We had 2 cast members, Liam Wright-Airs playing Marlo and Darcy Keeble-Watson as Nova. I was quite apprehensive for the first day of filming, as it was our groups first time on a lengthy shoot and working with aspiring actors. I was also slightly worried about the schedule for the day, I knew that our schedule was tight but as long as we stuck to it, we would get everything done.



I began the day by collecting our actors, I drove them to the location (due to parking restrictions and prices) and went to meet everybody else. I wanted to make sure the cast felt really comfortable so I wanted to pick them up and chat to them on the way to the set, whilst Laura, Katie and other crew members were busy setting up and preparing for filming. I took the cast down to the location, introduced them to the crew members that they were yet to meet before leaving them with Laura to start getting ready to film. For the day of filming, I made sure I had my schedule printed; which detailed each scene and how long we should be aiming to take to film it. I also had my shooting schedule, which didn't include any times but a description of each scene, I thought during the shoot I can tick off as we film, making sure every scene is completed and we haven't missed anything. Throughout the shoot, I was helping in any way that I could, Laura was directing but as I had written the script, there was obviously questions throughout that came up from her, crew and cast that I helped to answer. Also, there were times where we had to adjust certain aspects of the script due to unforeseen circumstances, so I was there to help make those suggestions and decisions.

What went well?
-The start of the shoot got off to a slightly rough start, it took us a while to get the track and dolly working as we wanted (due to a missing part from where we had rented it from via Fat Lama). As ever, it was the first shot of the first scene on the first day of shooting, so I didn't expect that we would get filming exactly to schedule instantly. It got to around 11:30 and we were still trying to get the firsts scene perfect, I realised that it would be best if I moved Scene 23 (the only scene that day that we had to move locations for) to another day. I thought it would elevate pressure for Laura and the crew, knowing that the 2 hours we were going to be filming elsewhere for we now had saved. We had some spare time on Friday 15th (our third filming day) that wasn't scheduled, so I decided it was best to move it to that day, so that we knew we were no longer that behind on the days schedule.
-Within the group, I think we were good at deciding when something wasn't working, and fixing it straight away. For example, Laura wasn't happy with how the sound was coming out. We were using the boom through the tascam, as well as one clip mic for back up. However, due to the weather and building works that were happening where we were filming, Laura wasn't happy with the sound, and we needed to come to a quick and efficient compromise. I suggested to Laura that I go and collect another clip mic, as we was not far from uni. Laura thought this would give us a good clear and concise audio of both characters dialogue. Myself and Aimee who was helping us on the day went to get a clip mic, which really helped the audio for the rest of the shoot.
-The collaboration between the group I think went very well, Laura was there to direct but I was also around to answer any questions from a writer and producer perspective. As well as having Katie with her paper edit and storyboard to make sure we were getting every shot.

What didn't?
-I think that because this was our first shoot day as a group in nearly a year, as well as one of our first times working with professional actors, there was bound to be a few issues as we started. I think that our main issue that held us back on this first day was getting started, this wasn't anyones fault as we just needed more time to set up and get prepared, and the first shot always seems to take the longest and then sets the tone for the rest of the day. Whilst this didn't start out day off very well, we overcame this issue by switching the schedule up slightly to relieve the pressure of timing constraints.




What did I learn from Filming Day One?
For me, this shoot day was interesting for me to see how everything comes together. How the script comes to life through the camera. In the end, it was a really good day that set a good tone for the rest of the shoot, the cast got on well together and for the most part were perfect together on screen and the crew collaborated well together. As a producer, I felt that I tried my best to keep involved and make sure everything was running as it should be (both schedule and script wise), but also letting Laura take the film in the creative direction that she wanted to. Overall, the biggest lesson I learnt is to always be prepared. We had a lengthy delay in the start of the day because of technical issues, in addition to this it was our first day filming on this project so perhaps I should have allotted more preparation time and made the day a lot less hectic. After removing one of the bigger scenes from the schedule on the day, the timings and pressure, as discussed, were elevated. If I had perhaps done this before it may have saved some time.

Call sheets for day one: