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| Introduction: Opening the Doors Cast and Crew Prelude Journal 2: ACT 1: Blacklisted! March 6 (Day 2) March 9 (Day 3) March 10-11 (Days 4-5) March 12-13 (Days 6-7) Journal 3: ACT 2: Welcome to Ferndale! March 20 (Day 9) March 21 (Day 10) March 22 (Day 11) March 23 (Day 12) Journal 4: March 26 (Day 13) March 27 (Day 14) March 28 (Day 15) March 29 (Day 16) March 30 (Day 17) Journal 5: April 2 (Day 18) April 3 (Day 19) April 4 (Day 20) April 5 (Day 21) April 6 (Day 22) Journal 6: April 8 (Day 23) April 9 (Day 24) April 10 (Day 25) April 11 (Day 26) April 12 (Day 27) Journal 7: April 16 (Day 28) April 17 (Day 29) April 18 (Day 30) April 19 (Day 31) April 20 (Day 32) April 23 (Day 33) April 24 (Day 34) April 25 (Day 35) April 26 (Day 36) Journal 8: April 30 (Day 37) May 1 (Day 38) May 2 (Day 39) May 3 (Day 40) May 4 (Day 41) May 7 (Day 42) May 8 (Day 43) Journal 9: May 10-11 (Days 44-45) May 14 (Day 46) May 15 (Day 47) May 16 (Day 48) May17 (Day 49) May 18 (Day 50) Journal 10: May 21 (Day 51) May 22 (Day 52) May 23 (Day 53) May 24 (Day 54) May 25 (Day 55) Journal 11: May 29 (Day 56) May 30 (Day 57) May 31 (Day 58) June 1 (Day 59) |
Journal 9 May 14 (Day 46) As we begin our next two weeks of stage work at The Lot, production designer Melton notes that his impromptu set on Stage 2 is the third stage of the party sequence he has created for the production. Melton also reminds us that there is yet another piece of construction he needs to build for these sequences -- the lighthouse platform, which will be constructed on Stage 2 here at The Lot against a backdrop of either a translight of Nelson’s 360 degree shot of the bluff towering over the Pacific in Ft. Bragg, or a bluescreen (a special screen which can be removed in the computer and superimposed with actual film footage). Frank’s decision to shoot much of the party on a stage turns out to be a very sage choice, thus putting the crew back on a normal workday (7:30 a.m. call this morning). After covering much of Sc. 61-65 using wide-angle lenses on location, he can now concentrate on all the dialogue he needs to cover while situated on the stage. A black curtain envelops the entire sound stage, hanging from 30 feet up, allowing Frank to turn his cameras in any direction while capturing the blackness of a night sky in his background. Not unlike what we saw with the naked eye (through the camera lens) last week at the Disney Ranch.  This set-up resembles something known in the business as “poor man’s process.” That practice is employed usually when you place an actor or actors in a car at night. Instead of actually riding on a picture car and filming night for night, directors can work on a stage during normal business hours and create the illusion that the scene was filmed outside at night in a moving car (created through the trickery of moving lights and the grips gently rocking the auto on a “gimbal”). For the party scenes, shooting close-ups of the actors against this huge black backdrop fashions a similar illusion. In the story, Luke’s homecoming party reveals much about the townsfolk of Lawson as Carrey’s character continues his reintroduction to a life that still seems alien to him. However, his father, Harry (played by actor Landau) is overjoyed at his return, and refuses to listen to what Doc Stanton (David Ogden Stiers) suggests could be a possible future scenario -- when Luke’s memory does return, what will he recall of those years he has been listed as missing during and after WWII. Which life will he choose if that happens? While the two town elders discuss the ramifications of such a situation, we turn to the dynamic developing between the WWII veteran the scarred Bob Leffert (film newcomer Karl Bury) and the diner owner, Mabel (Catherine Dent), who lost her husband in the war. Both have strong emotional feelings for each other, and the actors tell me that their “back story” (a fictitious history created for each of their characters to assist in fleshing out their performances) illustrates a tight-knit relationship among Mabel, her now deceased husband and Bob when they were younger. However, what happens between these two at the dance leads to one of the film’s dramatic highlights in the scene immediately following the party -- Sc. 66, which we filmed back in Ferndale many weeks ago. Finally, Frank must cover close-ups of the first dance between Luke and Adele as cameraman Emmerichs dons the Steadicam once again (you will notice in all of Frank’s films that he employs a fluid camera where possible, be it Steadicam, dolly moves or crane shots).  Surrounded by several dozen extras, Frank parts the crowd to reveal the couple, enjoying this romantic reunion as Emmerichs dances around them while Adele tries to help Luke recall his past in Lawson. Let’s take a peek at the scene: ADELE Well. That was nerve-wracking. LUKE I’d kill that Spencer kid, except he’s really good. ADELE Yeah. Looks like your investment paid off. LUKE Investment? ADELE Back in high school, you saved up and bought a clarinet. You wanted to be Benny Goodman in the worst way. LUKE And? ADELE You were Benny Goodman. In the worst way. LUKE Ouch! ADELE So you gave the clarinet to Spencer. LUKE That was nice of me. ADELE Not really. Spencer used to drive you crazy when he was little. He'd follow you around all the time like a lost puppy... LUKE ...so I bribed him with the clarinet. He started practicing all the time and left me alone. ADELE Did you remember that, or... LUKE Just filling in the blanks. Spencer Wyatt, the son of hardware store owner Avery, is played by another film newcomer, Matt Wiens, who hails from Fresno, California, but now lives in New York, where he is pursuing his performing career (he also dabbles in stand-up comedy). He is managed by one of the industry’s best, Vic Ramos (among his clients is Matt Dillon, whom he discovered as a 14-year-old back in 1978). Based on Ramos’ track record, Wiens, a likable, soft-spoken intellectual, should go far in his career. Wiens leads Lawson’s town orchestra in the Luke homecoming party scenes, dazzling the crowd with his clarinet playing. Propmaster Farley has found a vintage instrument for the actor, one he cannot actually play -- not because he doesn’t have the talent, but because they have taped over the windpipe. Over several dozen takes, Wiens sort of “lip syncs” the musical playback, with finger movements emulating the illusion that he is playing. But, the real fun is about to begin when the Majestic’s candy lady, Irene (Susan Willis) is brought up to the stage to request that her favorite piano student from years back, Luke Trimble, entertain the town tonight with one of her favorites -- a classical piece by Franz Lizst. Wait until you see what happens next! Before we close shop for the day, an unexpected visitor comes onto the sound stage -- actor Bill Paxton (“Titanic,” “Twister”), who is busy editing his directorial debut, a movie called “Frailty” starring Matthew McConnaughay, at these very same studios. He gives actor Brent Briscoe (with whom he worked on “A Simple Plan”) as well as hairstylist Katherine Rees (who worked on his new film) big hugs before going over to say hello to Jim and meeting Frank. He hangs for a few minutes just as we ready to wrap work for the day. |
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