Behind The Scenes

My friends Jono and Tim who shot all of the behind the scenes footage and are now neck deep in over 40 hours or so of footage that once cut down will eventually make it onto the DVD etc. They have been doing a great job (at making me look like a dill).

"235" as in an Arri 235, one of the most compact 35mm film cameras. It's light-ish (you couldn't really hold it like that picture shows for too long...) and portable, but it's not a synch camera which means you can't shoot and record sound at the same time, unless you want the sound of the camera whirring away in the back ground.

"M.O.S" stands for 'Mit Out Sound'. Deriving from an old Hollywood story where a German director asked for a shot to filmed 'Mit Out Sound', without sound, and the camera assistant complying and writing M.O.S on the slate.

We shot quite a few sequences of the film like this. "235 MOS" meant we could strip right back and work as a (even) smaller team, usually just 3 or 4 people, and work very quickly. I love shooting this way, it really frees you up. Depending on the set-up and what the scene requires what might normally take a 3-4 hours, might take an hour. Of course you can't shoot with synch sound, which means it will have to be created later in po$t.

Apart from just saving time though, I find it creates a far more direct and intimate shooting situation. And this above everything else is what I crave.

The Trailer!

I'm really happy to have this out there. It was always going to be a tricky trailer to cut, as the film relies on the audience not knowing much about whats going on, particularly in the beginning, so we never wanted to reveal to much about what actually happens in the film, it would be very easy to give it all away.

But I think the trailer sits in the right place. it gives you a good idea of the look and the feel and suggests what happens in the film, but doesnt show you everything. It teases in the best kind of way.

Most importantly I hope it makes people curious enough to see the film.

LastRideMovie.com

The Last Ride website is now live and direct from Madman. (It's been up there for a week or two but I forgot to mention it) Check it out and let us know what you think.

The 'official' trailer is still to come. It's currently being cut on London.

Finished.

2 boxes. 6 reels. 100 minutes.

SOUND

Right now it's all about sound and music.

Paul Charlier is creating the original soundtrack in Sydney and right now he has his head in a vice trying to squeeze out aural gold! Keep it up Paul!

Final Sound is working on the sound mix in Melbourne and the foley is being created in Quorn, South Australia with John Simpson.

SO the sound elements are currently spread across three states. But I'm glad to be here in Melbourne for this week at least.

I did an ADR session with Tom in Adeliade last week but today I spent time with Tom doing some extra ADR here is Melbourne along with a bunch of lines and some huffing and puffing I tried to get some sounds as if he was drowning without actually drowning him.

Tom chillin at Final Sound like a rock star...

Picture Locked!

This entry is a week late but we LOCKED the picture last Friday.

All the tweaks and final decisions seem to be a bit of blur now, and I know Jack and I will go back in and massage a couple of the edits to add an extra beat here and there. But essentially Last Ride is cut.I'm very happy with the edit and the film we have carved out of all the footage. Jack has done an amazing job. Even though the process has been stressful at times and both Jack and I have had quite a few sleepless nights worrying about the film, I think over all it's been quite an enjoyable experience.

I began reading the Faber and Faber book Minghella On Minghella during the last few weeks of the edit. I'm not a huge fan of his films but his writing and thoughts on the process of making films is a revelation. His approach was so simple, yet it;s really inspired me. A few of the things I read really help me find some clarity and understanding of the process we were deep in the middle of.

One thing I really found helpful was his approach to cutting s

cenes that you are really attached to. I've heard people describe this as 'killing your babies'. But I don't think it's right. The film is the baby, not the individual scenes. jack is quite the butcher, he'll cut anything without hesitation if he thinks it will make the film better. I must say it might take me a little longer but I'm all for getting rid of things if the film might seem stronger without it. Minghella and his editor (the legendary) Walter Murch had a really interesting approach to it...

It's just such a great way of letting stuff go, because essentially it's still there.

And thats kind of where the film is at the moment. The crust is forming.

Now my head spins into sound and music...