Da Crew! (Comic)

I love those guys. Really. Well, maybe not that much. But, I had to immortalise the folks behind the camera. The ones, who normally, do not get the glory, but who have as much 'fun' as anyone else on set. The crew!



Right, El Director is off on holiday and so the comic strip will next be up and running on Monday October 19th! Until then...;)

'Da Crew'

The Cast and Crew chat about film making...

A new vid from behind the scenes - enjoy!

Praise (or feedback)

Yes, it is good to be praised for my wonderful films.

Onto the next job...

Da Crew

They are the guys behind the camera, that put that little bit of magic into the film. And so, proudly presenting, the crew of 'Jay and Kay Save the World!'



Vlog of the crew saving the world - click to watch!

Crew Rehearsals

There is a method to my madness. Or so I like to keep convincing my cast and crew. Well, that is my rationale behind what I do for CWP.

One of those moments of madness came in the script I wrote. It called for an upside down Union Jack to be unfurled behind Jay during the short film Jay and Kay save the World.

Now, when I wrote this, I thought this would be a funny thing to put into the background. As the time came nearer for shooting, I actually spent minutes lying awake in bed trying to figure, firstly, how to procure a flag and secondly, how to actually get the thing to unfurl.

Well, thankfully I know someone who owns a few Union Jacks. But the second, well, that was a bit trickier.

Well, I managed to figure it out. And you can see the result here:



(By the by, I quite like the new ident at the end)

dean watts (the gofer)

hi there I'm dean (the gofer) .
just want to talk about myself for a second. i am, as the nickname said, the gofer for charlie.
i run around for him, help him with any problems in sort his personal punch bag.
i 've worked with charlie before and have learned a lot...like...not to mess-up...and always wear a good pair of running shoes.

Working with 'Da Crew'

Yesterday's blog from Debra reveals a little of how many people are involved, even on a short film production.

Interestingly, I have worked with Debra for longer than any other person with regards to films. We started working together when I was just beginning to make films in 2004 and since then she has worked on almost every major production I have done, including the very first Caution Wet Paint which subsequently garnered my first taste of the film festival pie.

As a director, it is great to find people you get along with in a creative sense. It is also good to have people that think on the same wavelength as yourself. Having a good crew is essential to this. A good crew can read my mind, allow at me to shout at them and cover up for my mistakes. The crew are the silent sweethearts of the set. They do not appear on the screen, they do not get the inches of press dedicated to them, yet they are essential to the production of any film, big or small.

At the moment I am in the pre-production stage of the new Caution Wet Paint short. That means, meeting up with a lot of people. While I meet up with the cast and have regular chats with my El Maestro, I also meet up with the crew.

The crew know what their job is, but they are there to see the script, go over the storyboard and essentially familiarise themselves with what to do. Most things happen on the day, but a clued up crew knows exactly what to do and gets on with the job.

Expect to see more from both sides of the camera on this blog in the next few months...

Hello I'm Debra the make-up lady

Hello, let me introduce myself; my name is Debra and I worked on Caution Wet Paint as the make-up lady. I'm going to tell you a little more about myself, firstly I have been doing make-up now within the media for seven years. I first became interested in make-up as a career when I was 14, when I used to help backstage with a theatre company called Flash Musicals. Then when I was 15 I managed to gain a work experience placement at Charles.H.Fox (a make-up shop in Covent Garden on Tavistock street). Whilst working there, I learned that they also ran professional work shops and after my work experience, I decided to attend two of them. The first one was a beauty and photographic workshop and the second one was in special effects make-up. Then when I was 17 I started to attend The College Of North East London, where I studied for a VTCT in Theatrical and Media make-up. Since graduating from the course I have been fortunate enough to work a lot of different and interesting projects ranging from fashion shows to television to films, including Caution Wet Paint, which I will talk about in my next blog, which I will be posting in two weeks from today, so be sure to check back! :)



That's me, on the right, next to Olivia (La P)

Pre Production, Step 4

Crew.

Along with a great cast, it is essential to get a great crew. For me, I keep my crew down to a minimal number, just because of the time and money - both of which generally lack on a CWP set. However, there are advantages to running a tight ship. Quick and lean are the main ones, but also building a sense of purpose. After all, I only one director, and the smaller the set, the easier the buildup...

Pre Production, Step 2

Talk.

Talk is cheap, but it is essential to getting the script away from the computer and onto a firmer footing. Talking to friends and family, talking to backers, talking to other professionals.

But when it comes to CWP, I talk to four people in particular. First to La P, she is always the first person that sees the work hot off the press. Very closely, it is El M. If he likes it, then it is OK. Finally, J and K get to have a sneak peak. They grumble and moan but I usually ignore them as that means it will be just fine.

As a director it is important at all times to be EVIL to your actors.

Now, here is an emergency Vlogsup Vid.