Previous Entries

week 4 (june 26)

week 3 (june 19)

week 2 (june 12)

Week 1 (june 5)

filed by becca

This week I had an opportunity to work with the script supervisor. This work is much more difficult than it looks. There is so much that needs to be written down during the filming of each shot that it seems impossible to keep up with it. The script supervisor must focus on the big picture of who is on camera, keep track of the angle of the shot and monitor all movements. Also, the script supervisor must record who said what and what props were used. It is impossible to concentrate on one thing because you will miss everything else that is going on. This is one job that is incredibly challenging and requires a lot of organization and practice.

filed by dan

7.6.06

Today I began working for Doug in Digital Imaging Technology. Unlike the other departments, this was mostly observation, aside from the occasional coffee for Dante Spinotti. I did learn a lot, though, and Doug is a goldmine of knowledge. The first day it took me some time to think of questions to ask, but I did learn about what his job entails. Basically his monitor runs through a program that modifies the digital image into the look that the director of photography desires. It is more or less a “preview” of what they will do to the actual image in post-production.

7.7.06

Today I learned about green screens. I now have some knowledge about how they work. They are used to key out the color so you can lay in the video track in editing. I wanted to know what is needed to use a green screen and make it convincing, so that it looks like there is no green screen at all.

7.8.06

Final day of filming: It went by so quickly, and I can’t believe we are headed home. The end of the day was special. Jim and Peter rounded us up on set, and they announced our departure and the crew gave us a special thanks for all the help. We got to take pictures with Tony and with Robert and Betsy, and said goodbye to everyone. The most impressive end to the night is that everyone we said goodbye to told us to call them up for work when we come back to L.A. I know that I will when the time comes.

filed by laura

Our last week was short because of the July 4 th holiday. We started back on Wednesday, July 5th and were only able to stay through Friday. Most of us spent the weekend in LA. Though we all appreciated a much-deserved break from the intense heat of the desert, we all missed the focused work on the set. In many ways, the cast and crew were like family and the set (though actually a rather flimsy building) was a bit like “home.”

The students fit well into the routine of the filmmaking process and they did not relish the thought of the entire experience ending. We had scheduled five weeks in LA and the last three days everyone seriously considered the possibility of negotiating a longer stay on the set. We had witnessed the magic being performed by some of the industry’s best and brightest, and we all felt a bit like Dorothy returning from Oz.

On a more positive note, we have been given the task of editing the wrap party video, and several of the students are actively engaged in the process of selecting shots and constructing several interesting and fun minutes from the hours of “behind the scenes” footage we have to work with. The students have been asked to write a final reflection on their experience. There will be one final installment to the journals forthcoming.