Filming pickups…

In the hurricane procedure of making a film, even a short one such as Schoolyard Justice, I am always amazed at how much planning goes into them. Casting, scripting, planning locations and other things of this nature, make the filmmaking process one of the most daunting prospects for any budding filmmaker. You plan everything to the n-th degree, trying to account for all possibilities and potential slipups…. sometimes, you don’t get things right the first time.

 For those who know, SYJ has been filmed over the course of 2007 utilising the talents of amatuer actors, filmmakers and… to be honest….. people off the street. And the directing talents of myself notwithstanding, I think we have achieved an incredible amount. But there are problems. Music is still being written, and small issues with previously shot material have cropped up.

I did realise that a single day of shooting most of the heavy, dramatic moments of the film was probably not enough. But I hoped it would be. I planned for every contingency and outcome. Well, I thought I did.

Unfortunately, not everything turned out exactly the way I had envisioned it. Getting the footage of the boys back into the editing room, and starting to put the film together, I reaslized that there were some shots that didn’t come together the way I wanted, and some that were not done right at all.

All the planning in the world won’t help if your back is against the wall and you just have to “get it in the can and get home”.

 So it’s off for pickups this weekend. The boys are returning to the location for SYJ and reshooting some key (and some not so key) shots that I want to have another go at. Just to make sure the film is exactly what I want. After all, this will be around forever, once released. the old filmmaking adage is: “pain is temporary, film is forever”. Never has this been more true.

The cast, particularly Stephen and Jamie, have been exemplary in their dedication to the cause. 

Who wrote this?

Rodney Twelftree

“Some people say I like films. Those people are wrong. I *love* films.” – Me. I said this.

Rodney has been writing about films for well over two decades, appreciates a good wine, the love of his wife and kids, and the affection of his dog and cats. He has a fondness of cheesy 90’s action and classic Hollywood, hates that physical media is disappearing, and wishes somebody would make a high-budget series of The Neverending Story.

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