Painkillers: Production Journal

Another Lonely Night I Gotta Race The Clock

2005-05-24T21:02:00.000+01:00

The movie's finally complete, in a 'rough cut' form. Basically, I don't have time to complete the paperwork related to the project, and add the extra layer of spit and polish to the movie that I'd like. So rather than hand it in incomplete, I'm rendering it now and I'll go back and 'really finish' it over the next couple of days.

In this version, some sound effects and voices are either temporary or missing entirely (offhand, I know Mike's voice isn't in the hallway scene; this is because I have run out of audio channels in the current project, and need to mix the sounds down to make room... something I don't have time for just now). The music is also temporary, I need more time to go through my Justin R. Durban library and pick music with similar themes. The editing is mostly final up to the office scene, where I really began running out of time. Everything after that (about 8 minutes in) is bare-bones editing with no fancy sound tricks etc.; again, I just wanted to get the movie finished.

Right now I'm finishing up the folder work whilst it renders; I've currently got sections for the original 'Discovery' story, the various scripts, movie and director research, storyboards, permissions I got during filming, this blog, the trailer, the poster, the upcoming website, and evaluations. The barest at the moment is movie and director research; I havn't had as much time as I would like to get everything together and write down my thoughts. That's why I'm praying I'll have a chance to go back and add to that at a later date. I have research of trailers, posters and websites though, so hopefully that'll count for something.

I guess this'll be the last thing I write, so if somehow you've been checking this out whilst I write it, thanks for sticking with it and check out the movie on June 1st at the official site, www.twelvepointproductions.com/painkillers .

Dave out.

Today's Tasks and Trailer Update

2005-05-21T16:33:00.000+01:00

Today I'm continuing to edit the movie; at this point, I have got up to the second murder scene. Some footage problems are hampering that at the moment, but I think I'll find a way around it. It's around 4 minutes long so far.

I'm also starting to put together my folder for my presentation on Wednesday; categorising everything and making sure it's easy to locate each thing needed to pass the criteria.

The trailer has been downloaded approximately 100 times already, which considering I only know 4 people personally who've seen it, is pretty good to hear. It means it's not just the usual group of friends who are watching it. It's also attracted some more traffic to my other movies, which is always a plus. Comments so far have been positive with many people looking forward to the final movie; one person saying "It looks amazingly professional! Sounds like it'd be a movie worth watching." So I guess the trailer can be considered a success.

Trailer Online

2005-05-18T20:30:00.000+01:00

I just finished the trailer for the movie, and before I head out to see Revenge Of The Sith, I'm putting it online on my Twelve Point Productions website. You can view the trailer in three formats here.

I'm really happy with it, I think it does a good job of a) telling the audience the basics of the plot (Ryan's wife was killed, and he thinks the same guy is killing other women), and b) making the film look exciting and appealing.

Filming Completed

2005-05-18T01:39:00.000+01:00

I just got back from another all-night shoot at Bounremouth University, which marks the end of filming for "Painkillers". Now I can complete the trailer (I needed shots of Ryan running, which we did tonight) and then I can begin finally editing the complete film.

"... Where's My Footage?"

2005-05-14T14:26:00.000+01:00

That's what I was asking myself last night as I watched back the footage from filming on Thursday. Certain shots, key shots... weren't there. In short, a camera malfunction caused the tape to play on instead of recording. I don't know how much stuff I don't have, I havn't watched the tape all the way through yet. But the first murder will probably have to be reshot all over again. That requires another day of getting people to Verwood and another day I can't edit this thing together. This is not what I need, this close to deadline.

At the moment, I'm putting together a trailer from what I do have, in case I end up having to hand that in as my Final Major Project instead. Although if I spend two years of my life on a course and only produce a trailer for my final piece, I may just cry.

Frustration

2005-05-09T21:25:00.000+01:00

Today we've been filming the last of my scenes for Greg's project, "Hope Springs", including a 'torture' sequence which I have a feeling will look really good. This morning I went to PC World and learnt that the only way to get rid of the virus which has basically slowed my PC to a crawl, will be to do a complete system restore. Which is never fun, because it means I have to copy all the data and a few programs onto a seperate hard drive, then reformat the PC and put them back exactly where they were before so they'll work. It's taking a while because I have a few big files, mostly movies and 'source' files from stuff like the Narrative Image Making project which are just too big. So, I figure I can keep all my movies, but some of the footage might have to be recaptured.

Once this is all done, say, tomorrow night, I'll be able to upload the 50 minutes of footage I shot last week and begin editing it. It also should mean I can edit a bit quicker, so I think I can catch up. On Thursday I'm hoping to get almost everything left to do, done. A whole day of shooting and swapping locations, which will hopefully run smoothly. It'll be experience in a proper shooting schedule, as most of the time I do a scene a day, not 10 hours of filming like real directors.

Catching Up

2005-05-07T23:51:00.000+01:00

Wednesday night we shot the 'confrontation' scene with Rob and David, which went really well... except that it took over two and a half hours. I didn't get home until 1am, hence the lack of update at the time. Thursday we shot the 'car scene', the 'waking up' shot, and the 'Amy Murder' scene. Then we went out and did some filming for Rob's project, which took three hours before we called it a night. I didn't get home until 1:30am.

Friday I stayed home from college and worked on the poster for "Painkillers", a task which made me realise how badly I need a new PC or an upgrade. The poster is on sale in the Twelve Point Productions Store. Today I've been working on getting my PC in a fit state to continue working; it's currently got a virus which may mean a complete system restore, so I'm holding off on editing until I know what's going to happen with that. I also put together what the official site front page will look like, which you can see here.

Tomorrow we're filming more of Rob's movie in the morning, then in the evening I'm shooting the scenes of Tom in the jeep from the end of the film. I also hope to decide what to do about the PC.

I'm sure the film will be finished by the 20th, but the current release date online is June 1st. This will give me time to create a suitable website once the film has been handed in.

Title Sequence Completed

2005-05-04T15:15:00.000+01:00

I forgot to mention, yesterday I spent a little time during the afternoon throwing together the opening credits for the movie. It's very simple white text on a black background, with a shake effect added in Adobe AfterEffects (a technique which I learnt in college). It's off-centre and kinda weird, I think it sets the tone of the film well. It's just one more task ticked off the list. I've also picked the first music track for the film, "Lost Memories" by Justin R. Durban, which plays over the title credits. The title of the track fits well with the story.

Tonight we're filming the 'confrontation' scene at Tom's house, so I'm getting the props ready; the bottle of pills, the gun, the watch (both characters have the same watch... one of the clues during the film to show what's really going on). Later I'll be making a shopping list of other props I'll be needing for each scene.

I Need An Assistant

2005-05-03T23:39:00.000+01:00

Tonight, I've spent close to an hour on the phone to Rob Vassie and David Trumble to reorganise the shooting schedule. It was going to be Thursday night, then Rob wanted to film part of his movie that night too. So we were going to do mine then his, but one of his cast couldn't stay up late enough to film his scenes. So now, the final final plan is to film the final scene of Painkillers (the living room confrontation with Ryan and Daniel) tomorrow night at around 9:30, once all the cast have been rounded up and outfitted. Then, Thursday afternoon, we're filming the scene in the car with Ryan and Daniel, and Thursday night we're filming Rob's movie (I'm in that too).

I suffered a mild heart attack tonight from all the reorganising, but on the plus side, the movie's getting filmed, I have confirmed Emma Munn to play Amy at some point (hopefully Thursday), and I'm getting my sister to recruit any of her friends who look like Emma, to play the corpses.

And I've got a really neat idea for a DVD bonus feature; a recut of the film, without Daniel - so the scenes where Ryan thinks he's talking to Daniel, it'll show him alone thinking to himself. It's a version that will realistically show what any spectator would have seen. It'll require a little additional shooting for each of Daniel's three scenes though, but it won't be too much more to handle. However, re-editing the film will have to wait until after the 20th, I doubt I can complete both versions by then. I'll be lucky if I get just the one.

Casting Semi-Final

2005-04-30T22:35:00.000+01:00

Forgot to update this yesterday, when I got David Trumble on board to play Daniel. The plan at the moment is to film two of his three scenes next Thursday in Verwood, although Rob Vassie called me earlier and wanted to do filming for his project on the same day, so some negotiations are needed.

I also called up an old friend to see if she could play the 'Secretary' at the police station, and we were supposed to meet after college yesterday, but I couldn't stay around. I have to follow that up and see if she can spare the time.

Tomorrow I'm gonna see some people at a party, and hopefully I can recruit two girls to play corpses. There'll be alcohol, which might make things easier.

Current attitude towards the movie: cautiously optimistic.

More Progress!

2005-04-26T12:09:00.000+01:00

So far the University and the Arts Institute are both proving to be much more help than the Police Station. I've been to the Finance window at AIB and requested to use their office for filming, which they say won't be a problem. I also got a brainwave on the way back, to cast my friend Leanna (takes a Fine Art course) as the secretary. I need a new contact number for her though, then I can start organising times and dates. I wish I hadn't forgotten my planner today, it had a rough schedule for Tom and Rob; by noting down when people have plans, I can find days when the right cast members are free and organise to shoot those days.

Right now I'm trying to hammer out a few more storyboards. This might actually come out okay.

Progress! Sweet, Sweet Progress!

2005-04-26T11:09:00.000+01:00

So far today I have asked the Bournemouth Uni cafeteria for permission to film a scene when they lock up, although I havn't settled on a date yet as I have yet to contact David Trumble about his availability. I also came up with a few possible girls to play the dead bodies, who bear a resemblence to Emma Munn (Amy). I'll be asking for their help on Sunday.

Later today I hope to call David and sort out some dates to film with him and Rob. If that fails, I can ask him on Thursday when I'm filming a scene for Rob's FMP with them both.

Just Another Loop In The Hangman's Noose

2005-04-25T16:08:00.000+01:00

Over the last few days I've been slowly buried by a plague of problems with "Painkillers". I have yet to hear from the police station regarding filming with them, which leads me to believe that I won't be able to. This causes further problems, such as: the distinct lack of police vehicles at the murder scenes; the lack of a siren on top of the car that pulls up outside Ryan's house at the end (the siren is what alerts them to police approaching); and I believe I'll be needing a new location for the Police Station, one who's doors are open at 9PM.

Add to that the fact that I currently have no plans for after I graduate, and I'm on the brink of a serious breakdown because of this project. Trying to organise everything myself, with a cast who's availability fluctuates wildly from their own Final Major Projects, with a 4-week deadline is looking next to impossible. What's worse is that burning urge I've always got to get something, anything, finished. I could go out and film the scenes I need this week, it'd take all of maybe 3 days. But before that can happen, I have to finish storyboards for these scenes; I have to watch maybe a dozen movies for 'inspiration', and adjust my movie accordingly so I can say I've learnt something from these people.

Bottom line: my passion for filmmaking is dying, and it's because of all this planning and preparation. Believe it or not, but I think I am a smart guy; my brain is capable to visualising a movie in my head, and keeping those images memorised until the time comes to capture them to film. Every moment I copy from my mind down onto paper, then copy from paper to film, is a waste. I like to dream up a movie, go out, shoot it and go home to edit. No long scripts telling the reader (usually me anyway) what length trousers the character is wearing; no sketches to convey to the cameraman (again, me) how the shot should look to accurately convey the emotional intensity of the scene.

If this is what it takes to become a successful filmmaker, go ahead and keep it. I'm going to finish "Painkillers" as best as I can in the time available. But I doubt I can take another production as 'planned' as this. The fun of making films has been sucked almost dry.

$#!%

2005-04-21T14:45:00.000+01:00

I just dropped a letter off at the station, which was closed (as in front door locked, nobody home). But the sign on the door, "This station may be closed due to severe staff shortages", doesn't fill me with great hope. But we'll see. If I don't get police vehicles for the film, my vision of a few scenes is going to disappear instantly. It just won't look the same.

I'm off to go watch "Glengarry Glen Ross", finally.

Can't Talk

2005-04-21T14:18:00.000+01:00

Heading down now to the Verwood Police Station to try and organise some days filming with police officers.

Park Scene Online

2005-04-14T23:23:00.000+01:00

The rough cut of the Park sequence we shot yesterday is online, just so that the writer and a few curious friends can see how it looks. It definitely needs ADR (Additional Dialogue Replacement), but I don't know when that'll happen yet... maybe Tom's lines over the weekend, Rob's might have to wait until I have more stuff of his shot. If you're reading this and interested in watching the sequence, it's here: http://www.davemoseley.com/video/pk_parkscene.wmv

First Scene Shot!

2005-04-13T23:34:00.000+01:00

Today wasn't looking too good weather-wise, but by 1pm I decided to go for it anyway and shoot the Park sequence with Rob Vassie (Ryan) and Tom Saville (Mike). Rob lives 30 minutes away so we didn't start filming until 2:30pm, but we were done by about 3:15pm I believe. It looks good, I've already edited it - but I think I need to re-record the voices, as there's a lot of car noises and children screaming in the background. Might start that tomorrow if Tom's free, but I'll wait until Rob's in Verwood to do his lines.

Since the two of them were together, I decided to make a note of their schedules on a calendar, so I could find certain dates when all the appropriate cast will be available to shoot scenes. It won't be complete until I talk to David Trumble, who's hopefully going to play Daniel. Earlier I was contemplating playing Daniel myself, as it'd be a lot easier to organise, but in the end I'd much rather be behind the camera and make sure that's perfect.

First Day Back

2005-04-12T17:03:00.000+01:00

Today was the first day back at college after Easter break, so I got to share what I've worked on with Neil. He's cleared the script (although it needs more description visually - gonna get that fixed for Friday) and the storyboards I've done so far, so I can begin filming some scenes. If I can get the cast together, I might be filming the Park scene tomorrow.

I also got some good names to research for that portion of the project, including Michael Mann and David Mamet. I've rented the "Glengarry Glen Ross" DVD from the college library and I'll be giving that a watch sometime this week, as it's supposed to have some good dialogue/conversation sequences - although (and I can't stress this enough apparently) the script at the moment is as good as I want it to be, and I don't want to change a thing. This is my movie, not David Mamet's.

I've also started the ball rolling in regards to filming permission; I have an e-mail address of the man who's in charge of the reception area at Bournemouth University, which is where I want to film the Cafè scene.

This Week...

2005-04-10T20:37:00.000+01:00

Not much progress has been made on "Painkillers". However, that's not to say I've not been busy. I've been starring in Greg Lock's FMP, "Hope Springs", about a behaviour correctional facility that falls under the students' control. I'm the lead character, and I had to step into the role at the last minute after the original actor fainted the night before filming. So I've been filming all my scenes for that, and I've got a couple more to go still. But it's looking good.

I've given "Memento" a quick viewing again; I'm gonna go through again next week, making notes on the movie for my research folder; what I like, what I don't like, general musings. I've spotted some lines that I had originally written into the "Painkillers" script, without consciously realising they were from "Memento". Luckily they havn't made the cut or else I'd be embaressed at how similar the two stories are. Also, the film's website gave me an idea for the "Painkillers" site layout...

Storyboards are complete up to the second murder. I'll do a few more tomorrow. Tom's back now so hopefully this week I can film the Park scene, since it's easy and I'm itching to film something, anything.

Pre-Production Underway

2005-04-03T20:14:00.000+01:00

At this point, I've decided it's worth keeping a journal of my progress on making my college Final Major Project (FMP), currently titled "Painkillers". This is the story which I have now decided for definite I will make; previous ideas have included "IX", "Light And The Darkness" and an untitled adaptation of "100 Bullets". These have been discarded for various reasons, but I can say with certainty that "Painkillers" is final and will be finished on time.

At this point, the script has gone through a couple variations and is now locked in as a final version. Storyboarding of the early scenes is complete, with everything after the second murder still to be done over the next week before I return to college. My plan for the first day back at college is to meet with the cast and decide which days they can each shoot; this will be difficult, as they are all involved in their own FMPs at the same time.

During this next week, I aim to:

Finish storyboards for the entire movie
Write to the police department requesting help filming scenes involving them
View "Memento" and "Fight Club", both films which I hear have influenced the script a lot and hence, films which I feel I should view to see how they are done.

More later in the week.