I guess Ill follow my bro Michael Tilly Parks example and go ahead and tell you: Film 2 class this semester was amazing. Ive definitely grown in the past 6 months and can trace it. This semester was HEAVILY time consuming considering the nature of film. Working in film production involves months, and sometimes years, of INTENSE concentration, obsession, sacrifice, and some isolation. BUT even on top of the few months we have been doing this, most of us are attending school full time, some of us have jobs, and all of us have personal lives & relationships that have to stay kindled. So I must thank my family for allowing me the freedom and sacrificing time for to allow me to do this. Their support has been invaluable since the inception of this dream. I have to thank Duncan A. Wheeler & Michael Parks... Man, people simply do not understand the amount meetings and planning and preparation that goes into this so that everyone is on the same page when production comes rolling around. In the amount of time we had to all 3 of us were able to come together and literally make the vision happen. Duncan you had to deal with me (and still do) calling and messaging you at like 1am sometimes because of an idea or me just give a speech out of nowhere as I stressed the importance of professionalism, growth, and maintaining a friendly culture on set. Even when we disagreed, we learned to agree to disagree... Not to mention, you end up being right most of the time anyway. Even as a Producer I can certainly see growth in your knowledge of how it all works and you helped make this film happen by leaps and bounds... You know why. Cant say it on here, but you know. I tell your dad all the time, thanks for his contribution, but do me a favor and tell him again!! lol. Mike, BRUH, as busy as you are you still took out time so we can meet and just chat. Youre by far the most ambitious Director of Photography Ive encountered at Webster. And your knowledge of the technical side of things FAR supersedes mine. And, tell me if Im wrong, but I felt we had this great synergetic relationship to the point to where I wasnt even looking at half of the shots you were getting lol. I completely trusted you in operating in your gift. I know for sure, that well be working again. And although we still have a lil work to do -shove, shove- I feel this is the beginning of something great. Austin Zwibelman, thanks for taking time out of your summer to wrap your head around my crazy ideas. Even having several google hangout meetings over the summer.Your suggestions impacted the story greatly. Stephen, yours did as well, even though they came much later in the game. Crazy how we met at Stl Bread Co. Maxine & Jackie , thank yall for coming up with some great concept art designs and dealing with me give talks about meeting deadlines and the like. Kevin Lanigan let me just say it: you are the best 1st Assistant Director hands down. Your ability to keep everyone on task (including me) and keeping the flow of things moving on set still amazes me. I sincerely thank you for being apart of the team. Avery Waddell, like all of us know you dont even want to enter film, yet with your knowledge and experience of capturing sound, you decided to help. Ben Davis Christensen & Ian Gibbs, man yall helped sooo much in making this happen. Setting up and moving that bulky & heavy camera. You guys made production run so smooth because of that. Dan Fenton, I learned so much from you this semester alone. You know, from the talks and conversations Ive had with you. Youre such a humble dude. Thanks for helping make my dream happen. You had this movie lit as if it were something from Hollywood. Dennis Shultz, thanks for using all your energy in helping us get smooth smooth shots all 3 days. I know its quite a workout. Shawn Mullarkey, thank you so much for your expertise and your poise on set. You had your mini team moving quickly and efficiently. I learned so much from just watching you do what you do. How to set up a dolly, etc. Stuff I didnt even know how to do before this project. Jake Paj, Seth Scarborough, Jordan Thomas, and Theo Lodato: You helped get things set up and were able to move them in a timely and professional manner, considering how fast we needed to move. There was never a time where anyone was off guard. You have sacrificed your time and energy to just help move and set things up. I am forever grateful. Even when it came down to Last but certainly not least, I gotta give it to my home boy Maalik Shakoor and although you were an actor, this status isnt really for them, you were very helpful in the pre-production stage as well. From the first meeting we had, you didnt even audition, yet something in me told me to just cast you. From that, your perspective has been pretty crucial in eliminating all of the plot holes in the script. Again, this has been a semester to remember. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Dec 2014 16:10:47 +0000