Friday, September 15, 2006

Lights, Camera, Action!

She's got a small part in a movie. I don't know what the movie is all about other than everyone in it doesn't quite fit in with any of the scene they've shot so far.

Making movies is about scheduling. At least this is what I've figured after hanging around the movie people for a week. Evidently someone in charge of this outfit doesn't understand the concept that everything revolves around a schedule. I'd say Mr Patrick my drilling supervisor would make a hellava good production manager in this outfit knowing what he does about how to move things according to time, weather, equipment, supply ship, heli drop and cost. Oh well, what do I know about making movies other than to sit quietly in a plastic chair behind a group of men and women crowding behind a camera rig, some with their eyes fixed to a monitor slightly bigger than the size of a cellphone screen.

They've got coffee. But no doughnuts, especially those with crunched nuts and glazed with honey. All they've got is karipap which I don't quite like on account it is kinda soggy. The coffee isn't all that good either which got me to figure, no wonder no one is acting all that good that would win him something like an oscar or something. But then again, I forgot, this is Malaysia, we've got more award shows that Holywood, Bollywood and Hong Kong put together. You can get at least 7 nominations and 5 awards in Malaysia for a 20 second role in a movie that has everything in it except a real story.

It's her shot.

I see her walking into a room, looking kinda scared. Frankly I don't think she put up a decent scared face for the scene but then again, it's not my movie so they keep on rolling. She goes a bed, sits on it to look into a mirror. At this point I don't think the director or the scriptwriter has any idea what is going on. And so they let she stares into a ceiling for hours until someone has a bit of sense to say, 'Cut!'.

How do you like it?
Oh, you were all right.

And she goes prancing about like a pony to the catering van for nasi lemak or mee hoon or karipap.

I don't belong here. I feel so out of place. But this is a movie set, you don't just walk out on an actress like that. Who'd take her home at his hour of the day.

3.00 am.

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

Next Entry: Making Movies.

An entry about how I found myself on location at a set of a movie shoot.

Don't ask how I got there.