I want to get nerdy and nitty-gritty for this section, as my hope would be to invite you into this filmmaking process as part of a team. So let’s all get on the same page for our plan of attack.
This isn’t going to be a typical commercial shoot, but that’s what we should be excited about. I want to list through a couple things that we can all talk about collectively to make sure we are all on board.
- I want to take an extended scout and prep process on these projects. When it comes to our Teacher Takeover, this is less important, as we're limited to the single location of the school and the group of teachers within it. But on our Town Takeover, this is key. I'll give you some context: we had a very small budget on a similar shoot with the same approach. What I needed on that, which is also imperative to this creative, was time. All of the locations in that previous shoot were given to us for free, or next to nothing, because we were invited into those real locations through the time I spent there. Real houses, the union hall, gathering spaces, workshops — they all came from spending a week before shooting getting to know the guys, preparing them for the filmmaking process, and being invited into their lives. Town Takeover will be no different. The best locations aren't the ones we make or dress, but the ones that really exist. For us to be invited into that restaurant, that house, that library, that business, or that karaoke spot, we need to spend the time establishing those relationships first. It also gives my cinematographer and me ample time to find frames, study the light, and prepare compositions that we know we're going to come back and shoot on the day. I want to keep our crew small, allowing us to move quickly and nimbly to access places and people that we wouldn't be able to with a larger footprint, while extending our shooting window to make sure we create something that feels much larger in scope than a two-day commercial.
- I want to let our casting guide what we decide to capture. I think the scripts are fantastic as they are, and I want to preserve exactly the message, magic, and structure that you've built into them (more on that in the script section). But I don't want to limit us by trying to find specific people who might not exist — forcing a square peg into a round hole, so to speak. I want us to cast a wide net and let the stories of the people themselves help drive the creative and what we ultimately set out to capture.
- As far as the structure of the shoot, let me know how this feels: one or two key story beats or scenes surrounding available locations. These can involve multiple shots, but it's important for our cast to be doing something they would normally do. We can build an exhaustive list of those scenarios throughout the casting and prep process so we can decide what we want to shoot. Then, one or two formal portraits where we get our outfit supers and see them in their environment. I absolutely LOVE how these are handled in the brief. If we have these locked down going into the shoot, we'll be in a great position to capture a healthy amount of talent, give ourselves the time to craft meaningful and aesthetic visuals, and leave enough breathing room in the schedule to pivot or explore whatever comes up when working with real people in real locations.
Excited to talk more about this approach when we chat again!
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