Kiora

This is a link to a short film from New Zealand that a friend passed on to me thinking it was Australian. If you have got a spare ten minutes check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRlidY7XVlo

Post

Post production is gruelling. When you are editing you see all of the shots you should have got, you watch all of the bad performances that you did not notice on the day and you find little mistakes everywhere. The painful part is that you don’t see all of this just once. You watch it over and over again until you want to scream, then you take a break and then start watching it over and over again. Our writing teacher, Michael Showalter, says you can rewrite your movie in the cutting room and you often have to. You cut shots together in a way that you would have never dreamt of during production.

During our post production period we reviewed each others films in class a number of times. It was very helpful. The first time I showed “First Kiss” one of my classmates said she did not understand the motivations of the Ashley character. She thought Ashley wanted to buy a kiss from Jessica because she had a crush on her. I have done all I can to clarify this in my film. However, a film about teenager girls discovering their homosexuality may be more interesting than the movie I initially set out to make.

Our teachers also gave us advice and guidance. Often they told us things that we were already painfully aware of, like missing shots and faulty performances. But it was good to have those messages reinforced. I learnt so much from the mistakes I made on this project. I realise now that I did not give the actors enough direction so their intentions are at times unclear, I did not get the shots I needed to establish the personality of the central character, I did not get passing of time shots so the transitions in the film are clunky and I did not get enough coverage, especially close-ups. Also, the shot of Ashley looking at the other kids laughing at Jessica looks like it’s from another movie. There is nothing to tie the shot to the rest of the film.

I hope to correct these mistakes in my next film!

Crew 5

After “First Kiss”, I worked on four of my classmates films. My group was awesome and I think we produced some of the best MOS films of our year! It sucked to be the first person out of the crew to shoot. Would I choose to go first again? Definitely not! But the upshot was that I was able to focus completely on everyone else’s films and I wasn’t constantly thinking about the pre-production of “First Kiss”. The shoots were intense and as the length of the days became shorter our call times became earlier and earlier. Four and five am starts became the norm and I got used to putting on as many clothes as possible in order to face the cold weather.



The toughest jobs were Assistant Cameraperson and Director of Photography. There are a myriad of ways in which you can destroy a Director’s movie when you are filling these roles. Easy mistakes like reading the light incorrectly, scratching the film or screwing up the focus can cost you valuable shots and potentially the whole film. All the time, money and effort that has been put into preproduction is wasted if you haven’t successfully captured what is in front of you. Jarreau put it best when he said ‘When I’m loading the film, I feel like I have a nuclear bomb in the changing bag.’ We were all equally inexperienced and we all made mistakes but luckily we were all still able to put together some great films. Yay!

Oh shoot!

I have survived my first international film shoot but not without some minor stress related trauma. At the beginning of the week, weather forecasters were predicting rain for the first day of my shoot. By the end of the week they were describing something akin to an apocalyptic monsoon. As the predictions grew worse and worse, I became more and more unhinged. I woke up in the middle of the night haunted by dreams of teenage performers crying and their parents screaming at me for being unprepared. I was so panicked I tried to hire a mobile home to house the cast and crew. Thankfully the storm never came. It did rain intermittently but the frame I rented enabled us to continue shooting and kept everyone dry!



While I was making drastic plans to accommodate the weather, I didn’t consider that anything else could go wrong. But alas, the phrases ‘problem free’ and ‘film shoot’ rarely belong in the same sentence. On the second day we were running behind schedule but everything was going well. The father of one of my actors was in a hurry to leave and kept asking when we would finish. It put a lot of pressure on the crew and I found his presence very unnerving. His daughter was playing the role of Sarah. She was two shots away from finishing and I was preparing the poster for her final scene when the trouble began. As I was writing ‘French Kiss and more $10’ he said ‘What does this mean?’ I said ‘Don’t you remember? It’s in the script that I sent you.’ Then he said ‘I haven’t read the script but I don’t like this movie and I don’t want my daughter to be in it.’ I couldn’t cry I was too angry. Around 30 girls auditioned for the role. My casting ad was very clear - ‘Sarah: female, 13-15, all ethnicities, she’s precocious and insecure and often uses her burgeoning sexuality to attract attention.’ We managed to compromise and we filmed Stephanie’s last two shots but I was forced to leave the sign as ‘Kiss $1’ which killed one of the film’s biggest jokes and took away some of the significance of Sarah’s character.




Apart from that incident I really can’t complain. My crew was very supportive and I was touched by all the hard work they put into the film. The teen actors were very patient and seemed to get along well together. We enjoyed overhearing their conversations as they talked about parties they had been to and music they liked. You know you’re old when ‘teenager speak’ sounds completely foreign to you. The neighbourhood we filmed in, East Williamsburg, was so friendly and about ten people stopped to donate money to my fictional charity ‘Africa Eats’. My AC, Greg, was even asked for a kiss from a passerby when he sat in the booth!



A couple of days before the shoot the actor who I had cast as the ‘Old Man’ pulled out of the project but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise because I found Steve Arons. He’s a wonderful actor who was perfect for the role and super friendly!

'First Kiss' Script

I thought you ought to see this . . .


Scene 1 EXT. BROOKLYN STREET -- AFTERNOON

In a pair of short shorts that are one size too small for
her, JESSICA, 11, walks up the street on her way home from
the shops. It's the summer holidays and she's bored. When she reaches
her apartment building she looks in her mailbox. Most of the
letters are bills addressed to her Mother, but there's one
that looks more interesting. It's an appeal from Africa Eats.
She opens the letter and reads it. A big title
reads, 'Please get involved. The money you raise could make a
huge difference.'


Scene 2 EXT. ON THE CORNER -- MORNING

The next morning JESSICA sets up a kissing booth on the
corner of her street. Her stall reads 'Kiss for $1' and 'Help
me raise money for starving children'.

A group of TEENAGE BOYS is hanging out nearby. They come over
and look at the stall and laugh. SARAH, 14, also comes over.
She snarls at Jessica. Jessica sinks deeper into her chair
and pretends to read her Teen Magazine.

From across the street, ASHLEY, who is another outcast, is
watching the scene from her apartment window. Jessica doesn't
notice.


Scene 3 EXT. ON THE CORNER -- MORNING

An hour has passed. The group of BOYS comes up to the booth.
BOY ONE puts a dollar down. JESSICA nervously stands up. She
leans over the makeshift counter, closes her eyes, and
puckers up to give him a kiss. When she isn't looking, the
boy stands on a crate and turns around. He bends over and
places his bottom in her face. He farts. One of his friends
takes a Polaroid picture. Jessica opens her eyes. She looks
shocked and then dejected. The boys laugh loudly as they walk
away. She slumps into her chair and covers her red face with
her magazine.


Scene 4 EXT. ON THE CORNER -- MORNING

Her next customer is a fat, middle aged MAN. He puts $20 on
her stand and looks at the young girl eagerly. He has to bend
down to reach her. JESSICA looks uncomfortable and unsure,
but before she has a chance to pull away he's given her a
sloppy kiss. He stands up, grinning. SARAH has come over to
the booth. She puts her hands on her hips and gives the man a
severe, questioning look. He stumbles away as if pushed by
the force of the young girl's grimace.


Scene 5 EXT. ON THE CORNER -- MIDDAY

An OLD LADY slowly walks up the street using a walking frame.
She stops at JESSICA's stand and gives her a dollar for a
kiss on the cheek.


Scene 6 EXT. ON THE CORNER -- LUNCHTIME

JESSICA leaves her apartment building carrying a sandwich and
a drink of lemonade. Someone has written 'Slut' on her booth.
As Jessica struggles to stick extra pink tissue paper over
the graffiti, a single tear falls from underneath her heartshaped
sunglasses. ASHLEY, 11, walks over. She helps Jessica
with the sticky tape. Jessica looks up at her sceptically.
Ashley smiles nervously and then Jessica begins to smile
back.


Scene 7 EXT. OUTSIDE JESSICA'S HOUSE -- NEXT MORNING

With an accomplished look on her face, JESSICA leaves her
apartment. She waves at SARAH who is now sitting in the
window of the kissing booth talking to THE BOYS. The older
girl has changed the writing on the booth so it reads 'French
Kiss and more $10'. She's talking to the boys flirtatiously
but takes a break to wave back half heartedly.

Jessica walks to the post office box to send the money she
has raised to Africa Eats. ASHLEY is waiting for her there
and when Jessica arrives she holds out a bag of sweets. They
walk off together with towels wrapped around their necks,
giggling as they head to the pool.

I'm shooting my film this weekend and the weather forecast says rain all day Saturday! I'm going to have to waterproof my props, my costumes and my teen actors!!!

Kids

After holding three casting sessions and auditioning roughly 40 teenagers, I have made my final selections and am preparing for a rehearsal tomorrow. One major problem, however, is that teenagers terrify me! They're so unpredictable and whenever I'm around them, I suddenly feel like the plump, awkward 13-year-old girl I once was. I hope they don't throw oranges at me.

The film I'm working on is a comedy about the extraordinary lengths one 11-year-old goes to in order to secure her first kiss. The character is supposed to be chubby but no overweight girls auditioned. Who knew finding a fat kid in America would be so difficult. I thought childhood obesity was supposed to be a big problem here. Apparently not in New York. Instead, I've chosen a young actress who could easily pass as a dork with the right costuming.

I've asked my performers to bring along five different outfits each so I can begin thinking about production design. Patterns look really terrific in black and white. I'm thinking about dressing the lead actress in a striped t-shirt and heart shaped glasses. The story takes place in summertime but New York is unseasonably cold at the moment and people have already begun wearing their winter coats. At this stage, I don't know how we're going to overcome this problem.

I'm very homesick at the moment but the long hours of work make it easier to be away from everyone. My new friends here are great and we spend so much time together that we've grown extremely close already.

I feel like I'm living in 1965

Today my acting teacher told the class that all women directors are controlling and they don't allow their actors to contribute anything to the filmmaking process. He went on to qualify this statement by saying 'that's my experience and I've worked with five female directors'. Apparently five women are representative of millions. It's so disheartening to hear comments like this from your peers but to hear them in class is too much! My Directing teacher is worse. He calls me 'darling' and constantly talks about female crew members being too weak to carry our equipment. Last week one of my classmates moaned about being in a group with four girls. He argued that he had only meant it as a joke but what's funny about diminishing women's proffessional capabilities?

Here it seems acceptable to make sweeping judgements about women in a proffessional sphere but you never hear broad statements about men. When was the last time anyone said 'Men are really bitchy in the work place' or 'Men never put in the hours that women do'. You wouldn't say it because it wouldn't be true. Attitudes to work and creativity are NOT determined by gender!

No wonder only three women directors have been nominated for an Oscar! This industry is one of the last bastions of male chauvinism.

I shot on 16mm film for the first time today!!! Yipee!!!

Binoche

The wonderfully charming Juliette Binoche paid us a visit today. She talked about her films, including 'Blue', 'The Unbearable Lightness of Being', 'The English Patient', and 'Chocolat'. I asked her whether she'd ever worked with a director that she found impossible, and what qualities in a Director inhibited her creative process. She laughed a little about working with Jacques Rouffio. Initially she felt he would be a nightmare director but they came to have a very good working relationship because he was open to collaboration. She said the only time it was difficult to work with Directors was when they insisted on controlling their project and not allowing any input from their performers.

But seriously what was I thinking? I should have asked her what it was like to make out with Johnny Depp.

Week One

People seem to argue a lot here in New York. An old woman and a young man were standing at opposite ends of the bus today screaming at each other, and last night in the cinema, one audience member wouldn’t stop loudly scolding the man in front of him for playing with his mobile phone. There’s a lot of bottled up anger and anxiety, which I think can be easily explained by the close quarters everyone keeps. In some ways you never have a reprieve from the busy, crowded streets. The noise follows you up several flights of stairs and finds you, even in your sleep. With the bassy drone of hip hop music booming out of cars, the sirens, and the constant tooting horns, it’s no wonder everyone’s on edge. I’ve been advised, however, never to lose my cool. ‘People in this city carry guns’, one local warned me.

My first official week at NYU has been exhilarating. It started with a two day writing intensive. We went over our ideas for our project this semester. By December, we have to have written and directed a four minute, black and white, silent film. My teacher, comedian Michael Showalter, said he thought my ideas were good and asked me why I didn’t like them. It was very hard to put into words. I feel as if I haven’t discovered my own creative voice yet and I didn’t like my proposals as I felt I was writing to please an audience rather than finding something I truly wanted to say. I’m going to have another crack at it this weekend.

To prepare us to direct performers, the school gives us acting classes. In our first lesson we improvised a scene after being given a simple scenario. I was paired up with my very talented classmate Ingrid Jungerman. I think everyone was surprised because it was a serious scene and I cried in the middle of it. I’ve never been able to cry on cue but I used all of the stress and pressure from the last week to channel some sadness. It’s funny though, once you’ve brought those emotions to the surface they become very hard to control. It was a very important lesson.

We had our first cinematography class and I got to play around with a 16mm camera for the second time! I think I’m in love. It’s so exciting! I can’t believe in six weeks we will be shooting on 16mm film. I’m petrified but I’m also really looking forward to it.

Everyone in my class is really supportive and it’s hard to believe I’ve only known them for a fortnight. They already feel like good friends.

School Starts

Today was my first day at NYU film school and we met Director Spike Lee!!! He's the Artistic Director of the School but before I came, I imagined that he wouldn't be around very often. Another of our teachers, Lee Grant, won an Oscar for her performance in 'Shampoo' and Todd Solondz is going to join the faculty next year. I'm really blown away!

Also, I might have scored a job as a Teachers Assistant which is really, really good news because I'm totally broke and still looking for an apartment.

The other 35 students seem really, really nice and I think I will make good friends here. Cross your fingers for me!

Sydney, I wish I knew how to quit you!

The last two weeks have been a hectic, but extremely pleasant frenzy of farewells. I found that even saying goodbye to my hairdresser and selling my car to the wreckers was emotional. (RIP little blue Mazda, I won’t forget you!) I caught up with so many people, said so many goodbyes, and organized -- with the help of many kind friends!!! -- a rockin’ trivia night.

Throughout the fortnight I stayed relatively calm and focused. My friend, Maddy, commented that even though I kept saying ‘Stop it, you’ll make me cry’, I was actually in complete denial about my imminent migration. The gravity of leaving didn’t hit me until I hugged my Dad at the airport. I became awash with tears and they didn’t dry up until I reached New York. How could I leave so many wonderful people? How could I leave such a wonderful life? How could I move to another city all by myself?

My beautiful French boyfriend, Alexis, came to the airport to see me off. The scene was reminiscent of a classic Hollywood movie except that rather than standing in front of a steaming train with whistles being blown around us, we both cried as we leant against the window of a duty-free store listening to people being paged over the loudspeaker. Who knows when we will see each other again? I’ve promised to make him my date at the Cannes film festival if ever I make it that far!

Saying goodbye to all my friends and family will be great motivation for me. I’m in New York to learn, to become an artist! I’m not going to waste time away from the people I love being frivolous and melancholy! It’s time to get to work!

I’m also scared about leaving my mentor, Lizzy. Her support and encouragement over the last couple of weeks has been incredible. I really have done things I never would have dreamed of before I met her. I can’t say thank you enough Lizzy! Here’s an example of her incredible PR work: http://www.timeoutsydney.com.au/film/swapping-film-credits-for-course-credit.aspx

F-1

I got my Visa! Woo! I'm locked, loaded and ready to go!

Film Trivia Night

I'm having a Trivia night in Sydney to raise money to get to New York. Come along!

Brooke2nyu

What a crazy week! I launched my brooke2nyu video last Tuesday and it’s now been viewed more than 360 times! Initially I was really embarrassed to send it out to people but the feedback has been so positive. I’ve been really encouraged by how many people have contacted me after seeing it to tell me that they liked it or just to express interest in what I’m trying to do. It’s so nerve racking when you don’t know how something is going to be received and I was really worried that no one would get the humour. But people’s reactions have been awesome! My friends really encouraged me and they couldn’t have been more helpful with the distribution. A few of them posted it to their Facebook sites as status updates. How sweet! What am I going to do without you guys??? Xxx

Here's a link to the video, just in case you missed my last post: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1Wgxi2bqBA

New Video

I’m launching my video today. Eek! Hope you like it. Remember we only had a couple of weeks to put this together! It’s about what would have happened if some of the big directors who came out of NYU hadn’t been able to afford to get there. My dear friend Nic Mckenzie did the animation and the voices of the directors. I really wouldn’t have been able to do it without him! I hope it’s funny and interesting enough to grab some attention. Who knows? The power of the Internet is so vast. The other day I was sent that video of the couple dancing down the isle with all their bridesmaids and groomsmen (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0).Now they’re on the US Today Show and in newspapers around the world! Keep your fingers crossed for me. That would be great! B

Panic!

I’m starting to feel really nervous about the big move. I haven’t found anywhere to live yet and I’m supposed to watch 50 films before the course begins. I’ve been so busy with all my fundraising that I’ve only managed to watch about ten. Isn’t it amazing to HAVE to watch terrific films, though? It’s easily one of the best perks of being a filmmaker.

One of our first assignments is to shoot a 16mm black and white, silent film. It has to be set outside and it can’t have any dialogue. What a challenge! When Todd Solondz did the course he made an amazing piece, which set the tone for the rest of his career. In it, he depicted a geeky young man in his late teens committing suicide and becoming an angel. The soundtrack was the boy singing softly to himself in a distorted mumble. Oh Todd Solondz, how do you do it? Every time I watch one of your films I feel as if someone close to me has died and I’ve just laughed and laughed.

Video Blog

Only a couple of weeks ago I thought there was no way I’d ever make it to New York University. I was brainstorming get rich schemes, buying lottery tickets and asking my mother to get her church friends together to ask God for some special consideration. I was feeling really despondent about the idea and felt it was an intangible dream. Then everything changed. My best friend met a big time Executive Producer at a restaurant and told her all about my situation. That’s how Lizzy Nash became my mentor and my hero! It’s so good to have someone from the industry who believes in my cause. She came up with the idea of blogging and social networking. She’s got so much energy and enthusiasm and she’s really convinced me that I can do this!

Lizzy suggested I make a video blog to explain what a big opportunity I’ve got here and how people can get involved. I’ve had two weeks to make it and I would never have finished it in that time had it not been for the amazing help of my very good friend Nic Mckenzie. He did the animation and voiced the characters. We were up until the early hours of the morning twice in the last week! My colleagues at work must think I’ve become a crazed party animal. Nic’s band Deep Sea Arcade has just released an awesome new single called ‘Don’t be Sorry’ and they’re in the middle of promoting it so it was truly saintly that he gave up his time to help me. At 4am on Monday morning he looked at me pleadingly and said ‘Can we stop now? I have to go to work tomorrow.’ I felt terrible, but I will find some way of repaying him. Freshly baked cookies will be a good start.

Baked goods will also be greeting Nicky G next time I see him for letting me use his computer.

The video should be up in the next couple of days. I’m nervous about it and I really hope you like it!

B

New York, New York

The silence of the internet is so intimidating. I feel like I’m beginning a stand up comedy routine in an empty room. Currently, I’m sitting in front of my extremely messy desk trying to come up with an idea for a video blog. I’ve been working on this since Wednesday! My progress is ridiculous, but I want it to be perfect. I have to get the word out –I need help if I’m going to make it to NYU!

For inspiration, or to distract myself, I’ve been discovering what some of the famous NYU graduates were doing before they went to college. From what I’ve read so far, Martin Scorsese was nothing like the tough guys he went on to write about. In fact, author Peter Biskind portrays him as a nerdy, Mummy’s boy. Oliver Stone went to Yale University but then dropped out to travel. He ended up fighting in the Vietnam War and won two bravery awards. Obviously, this experience influenced his films ‘Platoon’, ‘Born on the Fourth of July’ and ‘Heaven and Earth’. In Minnesota, Joel Cohen was making backyard film productions with his younger brother. Ang Lee, to the disappointment of his teacher father, failed his University entrance exam in Taiwan before moving to the US to study.

I guess, in contrast, my early years haven’t been too unremarkable. My work as a reporter has been very educational. Journalists frequently bare witness to the darker side of life. You become adept at hunting for the most bizarre details and extracting the most extreme emotions from the people you’re interviewing. Perhaps my first film will be entitled ‘Newroom’. : P