Blind Faith

Work continues on delivering nearly 800 VFX shots for our summer release. We have 6 weeks remaining in our schedule and about 650 shots yet to deliver. This is the point in almost every project that requires us to rely on blind faith. Blind faith that a) delivery of the shots will not affect any other departments and b) that they look good enough to put into the film. It’s a race to the finish line!

I’ve been on this picture since December, yet most of the players have been involved at least 14 months. It’s interesting to see the levels of trust and comfort tested as difficult issues are presented almost daily. Our director is generally mild mannered and handles the amount of work with respectable knowledge and a keen memory. His patience is being tested and we are all holding our breath that the planets align and everything magically comes together in the final hour. He had to raise his concern to a higher level last week, which was completely warranted, yet knowing his generally stable demeanor, I felt for him, knowing what a drain it is to yell at people you generally like and are dependent upon.

The scope of work has been distributed amongst several vendors. Our main vendor is finalizing look development and animation on many scenes. Once approved, the shots will begin rendering and soon we’ll be living in the screening room, with the director approving each shot, one by one. They have about 450 shots to go. The smaller vendors are in varying states of delivering VFX shots. Less concern about these, which is why it’s not a bad idea to spread the work around.

In addition to finishing the VFX shots for the movie, we get side tracked with requests from marketing to accelerate shots for trailers and previews. At a certain point, the shots just can’t be rushed any further. I refer to the analogy that “you can’t speed up the delivery of a baby”, although I’m sure many a mother would like to! So, in these final weeks of the project, in addition to operating on blind faith, we are tracking multiple versions of the shots, making sure that nothing has fallen through the cracks.

The film previewed last night, and we’re hoping it’s the last one before we deliver, yet I suspect we’ll have one more round of challenges! Ahhh, the glamour of filmmaking!

Should I Stay or Should I Go

Working in the film industry provides many opportunities to travel, and throughout my career, I’ve experienced wonderful cities that I might not have otherwise. On one level, I love it; first class accommodations, tech scouts with key crew, experiencing productions with a slightly foreign twist, as well as tasting the local fare. Yet as the years go by, the emphasis has shifted from desiring work in foreign locations, to balancing the lifestyle I’ve established at home, because going on location essentially requires us to put our existing life “on hold”. When I was younger, I didn’t think twice about it.

Initially motivated by a personal health issue, my life in LALA-Land has evolved into weekly trips to the organic farmer’s market, vegetable juicing three times a week, and exercising five days a week. Maintaining this lifestyle is impossible while working on location, yet I know this routine has effectively minimized my trips to the doctors over the years.

In addition to maintaining my personal schedule, I have a husband who really needs me in his life. We’ve made the long distance thing work in the past, yet over the years I’m less and less comfortable leaving for long periods of time. We make the daily calls, yet after about four weeks, the daily chit-chat is harder to sustain and we really need to see each other. Sometimes we can accommodate a visit at the 4-week point, sometimes we can’t.

So after years of traveling for work, I have to ask myself at what price can I afford to be away for so long? And do I have a choice? It’s rare to find feature films shooting exclusively in the States, let alone in LA. My last project was perfect, four weeks shooting in Morocco, and the rest in LA! More recently, I told my contact at a studio that I was open to producing the VFX for post-production only, and within weeks, I was offered a post position on a large show located very close to home!

The lesson I’m learning here is that it helps to define my priorities and not be afraid to express them. There is a project looming on my horizon that may require travel to Ireland. The studio exec knows of my travel weariness, yet really wants me on board. In the spirit of trying to make things work, we’re talking about what would be ideal and we’ll see if we can make it work. I’m very appreciative of my long-term work relationships as it’s easier to broach this subject honestly.

So when presented a project that will take me away, I have much to consider. In these economic times, the answer may be determined by what’s in my checking account, yet with my priorities defined, I will attempt to make it a workable situation. Ideally, my working trips abroad will be of a shorter duration, and once completed, my husband and I will travel to exciting places together, in between projects!