How do you feel about storyboards? My drawing skills are the matchstick-man stage, so I use overhead diagrams instead. Since I have skeletal crews, all that I need is to remember the shot and communicate it with the D.P. (if I’m not shooting it myself!) Overhead diagrams handily facilitate this, knowing where to place the camera, and keeping track of the line. I would use storyboards if a talented artist would make one for me, but I don’t see the point of spending my precious time to make bad sketches. They don’t clarify the shots any more than an overhead diagram. The thing I hate most about them is that they encourage me to think in two-dimensional, static terms. I hear the big-shots use animation software these days. Again, fine if I’m not the one doing the animation. What do you think?

An article I read today (Facing Their Scars, and Finding Beauty) reminded me of a subject I have been meaning to tackle. We all know that physically attractive people find mates more easily. What would happen to people’s mating strategies if, in the event of a catastrophe such as a nuclear war, an entire population became physically disfigured? Assuming they still had the ability to procreate, would they be able to overcome the physical repulsion? The underlying question, of course, is how important are physical attributes versus social attributes. Kubrick touched upon the subject in Dr. Strangelove, with two characters discussing the rebuilding of the population in the aftermath of nuclear war:

General “Buck” Turgidson: Doctor, you mentioned the ratio of ten women to each man. Now, wouldn’t that necessitate the abandonment of the so-called monogamous sexual relationship, I mean, as far as men were concerned?
Dr. Strangelove: Regrettably, yes. But it is, you know, a sacrifice required for the future of the human race. I hasten to add that since each man will be required to do prodigious… service along these lines, the women will have to be selected for their sexual characteristics which will have to be of a highly stimulating nature.

Production was set for June 10 with the 11th reserved “just in case”. It turned out there was a bit of rain on the 10th so we ended up shooting on the 11th.

The film was shot at Blue Hills state park in Milton, MA. When we got there my D.P. (thank you, Dan!) and I spent half an hour looking for a location. It had to be well-lit (i.e., open-canopied) yet secluded, so we trekked up the nearest hill thinking there would be fewer trees. Sure enough, an appropriate spot was found at the top, so we returned to pick up the rest of the team.
The shoot was interesting, all right. It went pretty smoothly until the end, when my D.P. got struck down by pollen or something. I hesitated for a bit over whether to him (was it that bad?) or continue shooting, knowing that time was short. In the end I did get plenty of coverage. The sound was not too good though; lots of wind and noise (it’s a park, after all). I have not had a chance to watch the actual tapes, but I fear we might have to do dialog replacement. If anyone wants to retrace our steps, start here.

Finally, I can think about OTWOTW…