Shoots

as in film shoots.  Not going out to a place that has guns and using them to go "pow pow."

So this Summer, I was able to work Ed McCulloch who is a local commercial director.  I had never met him before helping Assistant Direct on his commercial for The Madeleine Choir School in Salt Lake City, UT.  It was a really great experience, and reminded me how much I loved being on set.  Ed's Director of Photography is Paul Meyers and I worked with him on a student production through the Fall and Winter, so I was really glad when I got the call from him.

Then I went to Chicago, and when I came back I was able to help AD on a BYU Football commercial.  It was really hard work, but we pulled it off.  It was great when I got the call-sheet giving me all the info and I looked down to see that my uncle was going to be doing the Special FX.  I felt awesome.  What wasn't awesome was being behind schedule the entire night due to a 40 minute wind and rain storm that set the entire shoot back 3 hours.  I am not kidding you.  If we had started on time, we would have wrapped early, but I think the fact that we were running so late helped us move faster.

This past weekend, I got to work with Ed again.  This time for a BYU Marriot School commercial.  After the hard experience with the BYU Football commercial, I was really grateful when Oliver, Ed's producer asked me to come help them.  It was another great experience.  Yes, we were behind, but when you work with smart professionals you are really able to see miracles happen, and both days we wrapped on time.  Well, the first day we wrapped a half hour later than scheduled, but we were able to make sure that the talent worked 12 hour days and that is what is most important.

I am hoping that this is the beginning of me getting my foot in the freelance door, because I have really enjoyed it.  The BYU Football commercial should be up soon-ish, because the season has started...and I know it is finished.  I got to see a cut without the final sound and titles mix and it looked fantastic.  Ed and Paul are really great to work with.

Filmmaking is just so hard, but the work pays off.  It really does.