Watching People Make Movies

Talk about the best seat in the house: as they are filming the movie Little Murder in my neighborhood and as yesterday's shoot was around and in my next door neighbor's house, my wife and I got to sit on our front porch and take it all in. The crew had taken over our lawn anyway, but as we lived there and so long as we stayed quiet when quiet was called for, we saw everything up close and in person.

The quiet was amazing, eerie, and nearly comical all at once. Someone would shout, 'quiet', then 'rolling', then, 'action'. Then then entire crew would go almost totally silent; you could nearly, somewhat ironically, hear the crickets. The shooting would go on for six or eight minutes before several voices would shout 'cut', and the reaction was like air letting out of a tire. One huge collective breath of relief, everyone thankful that their burp or sigh didn't cause a problem.

We saw them shoot one scene about ten times, generally from different angles, focusing on one actor rather than another, or employing close-ups, for whatever effect they sought. I imagine they do it that way and mix it all up as they edit. Any film buffs out there who know the answer?

Filming lasted until after 3AM. Especially as I watched the action (action? There was an awful lot of hurry up and wait) until about midnight then listened to it in fits and spurts until they called it a night, I had trouble sleeping. I'm pleased and shocked that I'm awake in time to post this before I go to work. Still, it was fascinating to watch, and I'm looking forward to the next two days filming.

I can catch up on my rest Thursday anyway.