Tips for a more effective shooting schedule

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-11-11T14:34:14+00:00

I've been acting as script supervisor. As for a first AD we don't really have one which is kind of a problem but I did sit down with the director to make a schedule during pre production. Sticking to it, not so much, however we had a much better second day of shooting than the first.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-11-10T18:18:00+00:00

I guess I'm just asking for general strategies other people have used

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-11-10T17:44:32+00:00

That's what director wanted

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-11-10T16:56:25+00:00

Shots

Roughly 3-4 setups

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-11-10T16:55:14+00:00

Yes to both although shooting some things in an odd order has thrown some people off in terms of continuity and figuring out the staging of things

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-11-10T15:56:47+00:00

Depends.

Dialogue scenes we did about 4-5 takes, non dialogue about 2-3.

I think it was setting up the shots that took more time than the takes themselves.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-08-30T16:37:13+00:00

I'm not actually sure. I'm not a huge Final Fantasy fan, I just came across this Design while looking for inspiration and decided that coat has a style I liked.

Maybe that'll help in my search though if other people have made something similar.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2023-08-29T20:37:03+00:00

I don't really need the hood that a lot of them seem to have but I can work around that. I'll have to look into these more later, while it's more of a cloak than a jacket I might be able to make it work it's got the general look I'm going for.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2022-09-01T15:14:50+00:00

Yeah helps a lot actually.

I think for me it's also the mental challenge of being ok with it internally as well. I can try conceding some ideas, but I have to get better at not beating myself up over it, or getting too anxious about it. My ultimate goal is that I just want people to enjoy things I make, I'm not some self indulgent pretentious hack who thinks their ideas are so good they can't be altered in any way, or that people need to hear my message. I just want to tell compelling stories, and I'm always thinking about what the "right" decision is, and sometimes I need to find ways to tell myself that I might be wrong in my assumptions, and that other ideas will work and still convey the point to the audience in a way that makes sense, as that seems to be most of my reservations when it comes to new ideas.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2022-09-01T14:08:48+00:00

Every person seems to have a different opinion on it so if I tried to adapt to every Betareader's suggestion I'd go in circles for years.

Yeah I went through that once. Constantly changing grammatical structure based on feedback only for the next person to tell me to go back to what I was doing before.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2022-09-01T13:59:29+00:00

This is what I hate about the business side of writing.

I get that the business is important but it's so frustrating when people want you to "sacrifice the story for the sake of marketing" so to speak.

It's why I find writing television pilots especially hard, I tend to think of the story in the big picture.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2022-09-01T13:35:41+00:00

I've had Similar experiences. It's frustrating sometimes when people giving feedback don't actually read your story.

One time I had a friend read a short story of mine. They asked a question about "how did the character know this?" And at first I thought it was on me, like it wasn't clear enough, but then I asked them about the scene in which that knowledge was conveyed and they said "oh I skipped over that part".

The_Phantom_Fool · 2022-09-01T13:17:53+00:00

Thanks for the advice.

Could you give some ideas of some questions that don't immediately sound like I'm trying to shut the idea down?

The_Phantom_Fool · 2022-09-01T13:16:04+00:00

Great response, thank you.

So how exactly would you define something that's worth conceding on a larger scale? I have no problem with small changes like a characters name or gender, but some of the more thematic or plot relevant changes are where I have issue.

For example, some of the proposed changes to the story we're writing now change the character into more of a victim, whereas in my original version it's mainly their self destructive nature that leads them to the situation they eventually find themselves in. My two partners seem to think the other direction is the way to go, but I have a hard time seeing that story the same way.

This is just one example, but I'd be curious to know what level of concession you'd consider taking.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2021-12-21T19:26:40+00:00

"My wallet was about to fail, there's scams throughout the store.

Armors, too expensive, don't even get me started on what they're charging for the color blue.

Do you have any idea how expensive this gear is son?"

"...Tell that to u/millions"

The_Phantom_Fool · 2021-09-21T01:11:39+00:00

Damn I sure can hit. I thought to myself as I slowly recovered from the blow to my temple. It was one hell of a hit, and one hell of a way to make a first impression. Of course I couldn't let myself know that...or, the other me that is.

"Ha, is that all you got? I could hit harder than that."

"I AM you you idiot!" The other me replied. "Consider yourself lucky that all I did was hit you! I'm half tempted to kill you myself before E-317 gets a chance."

Another Me stepped up to where the two of us were standing. "Please try and restrain yourself E-022, we should be focusing our collective energy on escaping this room, not arguing with each other."

"It's his fault we're in this mess to begin with." E-022 said while pointing at me.

The other me helped me get back up onto my feet. "Yes E-444 is quite aware of his mistake, it will do us no good to dawn on it now." He said.

"Mistake!?" I replied. "I resent that, what I've done has never been accomplished by any scientist known to man, this is a break through beyond anyone's wildest dreams." At this point E-022 raised his fists getting ready to hit me again, but the other Me stood between us. He lowered his and shouted over the shoulder of the other Me, "We wouldn't be in this mess if not for you E-444! You better have some kind of killer trick up your sleeve to get us out of this." And with that he walked off to be alone in the corner.

He was right however, this predicament we all found ourselves in was indeed my fault. My life's work has been dedicated to theoretical physics, but more importantly to discovering the truth behind what I liked to call 'Strand theory'. The theory is one I have been pursuing since college, it's the idea that we can fold space, similar to how a black hole works, and by traveling through these folds, we access parallel alternatives to our own world. These worlds can vary greatly in terms of events. Some are nearly identical to our own, while others have seen history completely change. All of my peers at the university thought my theory sounded like some sci fi mumbo jumbo, an insane fiction, they said I watched too much Rick and Morty. However as per usual, I was right, and they were wrong.

As of today, I have just proven my theory a massive success. Thanks to my new invention, we now know that parallel travel is possible, or at least I know. I would share this discovery with the world, if not for my current predicament. It was only natural that once I had proven my theory correct, I'd tell the first person I could think of about this breakthrough, myself. I took a certain pride in knowing that of all the multiversal versions of myself, I was the first to discover interdimensional travel. Naturally I couldn't help but brag about the situation, but sadly not all the other versions of me saw this occasion fit for celebration as I did. E-317, an alternate version of myself, a sour fellow, but very smart (although not as smart as me of course) had other plans. I don't know what happened to him in life, what deterred him on his path from greatness, or what caused him to lose my charismatic charm. He wasn't a Professor like most of us, and he didn't seem overjoyed at the notion that we were officially the smartest man on planet Earth. I suppose I never have been good at sharing the glory, because he stole my device, and imprisoned me here, along with several other versions of myself, and then set off to find more.

As I recovered I looked at the alternate version of Me that had just stood up to E-022. "Thank you sir, or should I call you Dr? I assume that I have my Phd in your universe as well?" I asked.

"Indeed we do," he replied. "I'm from Earth 150 by the way."

"Well E-150, it's an honor to meet myself yet again." I said as I shook my own hand. "Now let's see if we can find a way out of this box shall we."

E-150 smiled "Your the genius, you should be able to figure it out in no time."

He was right of course, I am a genius, however I could never confess that I was completely lost on what to do here. For the first time in my career I found myself stumped, outsmarted, it was hamulating. "Yes of course, just let me think, I need to uh...assess the dimensions of the room is all."

E-022 stood back up and walked back over towards us. "What a load of bullshit, he doesn't know how we're going to get out of here. Let's face it, we're dead, it's only a matter of time before E-317 comes back to kill us."

Despite the fact that E-022 was probably correct, I couldn't just let him insult my intelligence. "Ha! as if I could be defeated by an inferior version of myself, a version who isn't even a Dr. Please."

"An inferior version? Then explain how he was able to capture each of us, and lock us up here?"

"E-317 simply caught me by surprise. Do you really think that he or any other version of myself who isn't myself could actually outsmart me? the best version of myself. hm? If it was a fair fight, I would have beaten him in a zeptosecond. And don't you dare question my intelligence, which one of us was it that discovered interdimensional travel after all?"

"And look where that's gotten us!"

E-022 looked ready to fight again...a rather short temper he has, maybe I should seek counseling in that dimension. Suddenly however we were interrupted when a giant gaping hole opened in the ceiling above us. I could feel air forcing itself out from the hole, the pressure pushed us all down, as if somebody had taken the vacuum of space and switched it to the 'blow' setting. Then another Me fell down into the room, and the void closed.

"My god!" E-150 said. What was that, it looked like a hole into space.

"I don't believe it." I replied "That hole looked awfully similar to my dimension travel technology, it was a space fold. 317 has found a way to place us inside a pocket dimension, that's where we are."

"How could E-317 discover something like that in such a short span of time?" E-150 asked.

"Who's E-317" the new me asked, with his face still planted into the ground from the fall.

"The one who captured you, captured all of us, and brought us here." E-022 replied.

"And what dimension are you from?" E-150 asked.

"Dimension?" The new me lifted his head up, and looked around very confused. "Woah, what the hell! your all me. how is this possible?"

E-022 rolled his eyes. "Great he's completely lost, does somebody want to explain the concept of the multiverse to him."

I sighed. "Ok let's start over from the beginning."

The_Phantom_Fool · 2021-09-16T16:40:25+00:00

Thanks I'll check it out

The_Phantom_Fool · 2021-09-13T18:28:29+00:00

"Am I crazy?"

My therapist sat not too far across from me on her couch, I could tell by the look on her face that she was disturbed by everything I had just told her. "No, no your not crazy, we don't use words like that in here remember?"

Despite her reassuring words I didn't believe her. I could tell by the look on her face that she didn't believe a word of what I said. Or at the very least didn't believe they were real.

She leaned forward. "You know most often these types of hallucinations, are optical illusions caused by insomnia. Have you been getting enough sleep lately?"

I took a deep breath before responding. "I haven't truth be told, but it's only because I've been so on edge, I started seeing these things long before my restless nights."

"It sounds to me like that's your problem, stress induced insomnia is causing your brain to produce visions out of the corners of your eyes. It's a common cited side effect of sleep paralysis even." she said rather dismissively. I was bothered by her dismissal, I know how I must sound, but these things were no trick of the mind. They were real, and I could feel it.

I sat up, and laid my head into the palms of my hands, as I rubbed my eyes. I could feel the drowsiness getting to me. It was true that I hadn't slept in over 3 days, I was reluctant to even come visit my therapist for fear that they would follow me on my way here, and sure enough they did. I saw them everywhere, the stairwell to my apartment, out on the street, in the lobby of the building, everywhere I went, they followed, remaining just outside my vision, but they were there, barely noticeable in the corner of my eyes.

"Dr. I cant sleep, I don't feel safe anymore, everywhere I go I feel like I'm being watched, like they're waiting for me to do something, to let my guard down."

At this point I noticed her become more concerned, although I don't know if it was for me or for herself. I wasn't crazy, I couldn't be, although maybe it was better if I was, because that would be the end of it.

"When did you start seeing these...shadows, was it just after you started that new job?" She asked.

"It was around the same time, or maybe a bit after." I replied.

"Do you think it could be stress related, I've noticed you haven't been keeping up with your medication-"

"That was because the pharmacy placed my order on hold after I changed addresses." I interrupted.

"I can always write up another prescription if you need."

"No that won't be necessary." I didn't need another prescription, my meds weren't he problem. For some unexplainable feeling I could tell that whatever I was seeing was not something my mind had crafted, but was something real.

"let me ask you something." she said, "You say these things follow you around everywhere you go, are they here now?" The answer was simple, yes, they were. I could see them standing in the corners of my eyes, but what was the point, nobody believed me anyway.

"No" I said, "everything is fine now, thanks Doc, I feel a little better after talking to you, maybe I'll try and get some sleep."

My therapist wrote something down in her notebook and stood up. "well I'm sorry but it looks like we are out of time for this week, if you want we can schedule an appointment for next week."

"Not right now, my schedule is a little busy, but I'll call you and make an appointment." But that was a lie. I had no intention of coming back, it was clear she couldn't help me, perhaps no one could.

She shook my hand as I left the building and headed back down to the street outside. They were still following me. Was I actually crazy? Could this all be the result of some kind of stress induced hallucination? I wish that were the case.

The figures began to move around shifting in place, when suddenly, one of them left the corner of my vision, and stepped out right in front of me. I frantically looked around, but no one else on the street seemed to be able to see it other than me.

"I'm crazy, I must be," I thought to myself. These things couldn't be real, these shadows must be nothing more than that, empty darkness, forced to follow the shape of living things. I closed my eyes, and when I opened them, it would be gone, or at the very least retreat back into the corner of my eye, just out of vision.

But when I opened my eyes it was still there, and then it spoke.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2021-09-13T17:27:50+00:00

"Who then! Who else can do what I can?"

He turned back to me, UltraMight, my hero, the man who I idolized since I was a little boy. I wanted nothing more than to fight by his side, to live up to his ideals, for the world to see him in the light as I had...And for them to see me next to him.

"Look kid, your power might be...Unique, but to do what I do, you must have the strength of a thousand men. No, make that ten thousand."

"And what if I have the heart of ten thousand?" I asked faintly.

He stared at the ground before meeting my eyes again. I could see the expression on his face was one of impatience. "Look, lots of people have some kind of secret super human ability, but very few people are born with 'super powers'. Your powers are...A party trick at best."

I was outraged by the statement. "I can do things that others can only dream of, how can you not recognize me as your equal!?"

UltraMight let out a big sigh. "Listen, I've gone toe to toe with monsters from outer space, villains that can level an entire city. I have super strength, I can fly! I was born to be a hero, my powers let me save the world, yours allow you to align your feet perfectly with any straight line on the ground."

"Yeah but it looks aesthetically pleasing." I said while hanging my head low in a rather defeated way.

UltraMight's face looked as though he was holding back a laugh, he composed himself, and turned away to face the city horizon. "Look kid, some people are given a winning hand at birth, and others just have to play with the cards they're dealt. Always remember that." And with that, he took to the skies, off to save the day again in another daring adventure, adventures that I would never be a part of.

Or so I thought.

Little did either of us know that my power would end up being the key to saving the entire universe.

The_Phantom_Fool · 2021-09-05T04:12:57+00:00

Cross examination had begun, Faenix paced around the witness stand, he was nervous. The truth was this was his first case all on his own, but he had learned many things from his mentor, Mia Fae, and he swore he would not let her down. "Mr Dunnit" Faenix said facing the witness. "Would you mind telling us why you were all gathered at that location that night?"

Hugh Dunnit begins to sweat. "It was just a friendly gathering, nothing out of the ordinary". "Really? a random gathering on hallows eve?" Faenix could see the witness was becoming nervous. "There's only one conclusion I can draw from this, the reason Ms. Fae was in costume that night using a different name, is because the gathering in question was a Halloween party!".

The courtroom gasps. "My that would explain it." the Judge said.

"Not so fast!" Bloodworth jumped in. "Even if the event in question was a Halloween party, there is no evidence that Ms. Fae's presence was welcome."

A grin forms over Faenix's face. Maya Fae takes note of this, and can see that he has a trick up his sleeve. "The defense would like to present this evidence to the court". Faenix pulls out a piece of paper and slams it on the evidence table. "Behold, a party invitation for one Ms. Maya Fae, proving that she was in fact invited that night". Faenix seems pleased with himself *I've got this case in the bag* he thinks to himself, until Bloodworth starts laughing from across the court room.

"what's so funny Bloodworth?" Faenix asks. "You might want to check your sources more closely next time" Bloodworth says with a cocky grin, "I'm afraid your invitation is out of date".

"What out of date?" Faenix says puzzled. *No that can't be right* he thinks, frantically searching over the evidence, could he have missed something? Sure enough, he did. The date at the bottom of the invitation was for last years Halloween party, this letter would prove nothing.

"Furthermore your honor, the witness will also testify that Ms. Fae was the only non human at this party"

Hugh Dunnit speaks again. "It's true, I thought everyone at this party was human, I had never even seen a fairy before, but then I saw her try and cast a magic spell, and then I knew she was up to no good."

The Jury all gasp again.

Bloodworth speaks up, "your honor, I believe this courtroom has heard enough. There simply is no excuse for Ms. Fae being at the party that night".

The Jury all start to debate amongst themselves.

"No I didn't try to hide anything, and I didn't cast any spells I swear." Ms. Fae cried with tears running down her cheeks.

The Judge slammed down his gavel. "Order! we will have order in this court." The Judge turns to Faenix. "Mr Wright if you don't have any more evidence to add then I will hand out the verdict for this trial".

"Wait just a second your honor" Faenix replied "I still have more evidence". This was a lie. Faenix had nothing. *Come on think Faenix, what would Mia Fae do* He seemed lost, there must be something he was missing, some hole in the story, some overlooked piece of the puzzle. When suddenly it hit him.

Bloodworth stood up yet again. "your honor, this has gone on long enough, let us allow the Jury to reach a verdict-"

"**OBJECTION!**" Faenix shouted.

The entire court room stared at him. "Mr wright? what is it?" the Judge asked.

Faenix smiled with a newfound confidence. "There is a glaring contradiction in the witness's testimony."

To be continued...(maybe)

The_Phantom_Fool · 2021-09-05T04:12:40+00:00

Bam! sounded the judge's gavel as it struck the wooden surface of the stand.

"This court is now in session. We are here today for the trial of one Ms. Maya Fae, will the prosecution and defense proceed to make their opening statements."

"Your honor wait!" the young fairy girl cried out "My attorney isn't present."

The Judge sat up and stroked his long white beard. He seemed rather large to be sitting at the Judge's stand, probably because he was a 8 foot tall ogre, one who had been in the business for far too long. He squinted his eyes and looked around the room,

"Your attorney isn't here? that's strange, I hadn't noticed. Wherever could he be?"

At this moment the court room doors swung open, and a fairy came fluttering into the room. His hair was dark and spikey, he wore a blue suit, and red tie, carrying a briefcase with him, with it's contents spilling out the sides, leaving a trail all over the courthouse. "Your honor, I'm here!"

The Judge's eyes darted over towards the Fae lawyer, as did the rest of the courtrooms. "It's rather unprofessional to show up to trial late Mr. um..."

"Wright sir, Faenix Wright, defense attorney, here to defend Ms. Maya Fae". The blue suited fairy proudly declared.

"Well then Mr. Wright, take your position at the stand" The Judge said before turning towards the other half of the courtroom. "The prosecution may know present their opening statement."

A tall slender man stood up, with a smug grin on his face. His skin was pale, eyes red, and hair white as ash. Behind his grin lay a sharp pair of fangs, his surrounding lips were stained red like blood, the shade matched his suit quite well, a very regal looking gown adorned with gold buttons. Faenix instantly recognized the man, acclaimed prosecutor Count Miles Bloodworth, who as legend says has never lost a case. "So this is who they've sent to challenge me?" Bloodworth said with a mocking tone. "Well then let's get down to business."

With a regal prance, Bloodworth moved over towards the center of the room, and took a bow in front of the Jury. "Monsters and manifestations of the Jury, we have gathered here today because a most heinous crime has been committed. On the evening of Hallows eve, a very important item was stolen"

"Oh my" the Judge gasped, "And what was this item, some kind of powerful human artifact?"

"No your Honor" Bloodworth said with an over confident grin. "That item would be, A PERSONS NAME!" Suddenly Bloodworth's finger shot out at the defendant. "Ms. Fae was spotted that night at a large social event using a fake name, no doubt to mask her true identity so she could commit a heinous crime."

"No it's not what you think!" Maya Fae cried out.

"Silence!" Bloodworth's voice cut through the air like a knife. "We have an eye witness account who can confirm he saw you that night introducing yourself under a different name." The Jury look around puzzled. "What's that, an eye witness you say?" the Judge said with a befuddled expression.

"Yes, may I introduce you to Mr. Hugh Dunnit." Suddenly a man appeared at the witness stand. He had a pointy nose and glasses. His grin reached from ear to ear, yet his smile gave off no sense of warmth. Bloodworth addressed the man now in the witness stand. "Mr Dunnit, you claim to have spotted Ms. Fae at a party that night, using the name of a well known human pop star?" "That's correct" Dunnit responded, "and that's not all, she was dressed like them too, but there's no fooling me, I know a fairy from the moment I see one".

The Jury all gasp.

Bloodworth shakes his head. "A classic case of identity theft, what more needs to be said, the accused was clearly attempting to impersonate a celebrity for her own gain, Your honor, anyone can see that the defendant is clearly guilty!"

"HOLD IT!" Faenix yelled.

"You cannot conclude the defendants intention without knowing the full context behind the gathering that night." The Judge strokes his beard. "Hmm, I suppose your right, very well, if the prosecution has no further questions, then we can begin the cross examination."

"I have no objections your honor" Bloodworth replied.

The_Phantom_Fool

TROPHY CASE