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Category: Life

Dec182009

The Most Famous Star I’ve Worked With

When you work in the film industry, you inevitably hear the question: “So, who have your worked with?” This question, of course, really means: “Which Stars have you worked with that I know really well, and totally admire?”

Yes, I have worked with many Stars over the years. Some have been more famous than others. Some became famous after I had worked with them. And many of those who I admire may – or may not be – the same people the questionner is quietly pondering… but I can say that I have had the pleasure of working with the most famous Star of them all: Santa Claus.

So famous, so admired, Santa had to have a dressing room on a separate floor of the building to keep him at a distance from the child (a.k.a. fan) with whom he was sharing scenes. He was – and is – a total professional. Very aimable guy. I found him to be everything we’ve all expected him to be over the years! What an honour!

So… who have you worked with? 🙂

Happy festive season to you!

Cheers,
Deb

P.S. For a little work-life balance this holiday season, I will not be posting a blog entry next week (December 25). Enjoy the festive season and see you for New Years!

Dec112009

Conquering Perfectionism… by Listening to the J-Tree

J-TreeThe film industry strives for excellence, but it’s a very small step to start striving for perfectionism instead. We want every word in the script, every frame in the camera to be perfect.

Remember, however, that perfectionism is unachieveable – at least if you want to achieve it all the time. Striving for the impossible can leave you forever disappointed in yourself and others. In extreme cases, you may never complete a task because the outcome will never be good enough for you. At the end of the day, you will be very weary.

To conquer perfectionism, I found the answer in Nature. A walk in the forest and you’ll see all kinds of organized chaos. Trees seems to grow haphazardly; some grow right on top of fallen ones, ignoring the rich soil beside. Trees grow crookedly – like this “J-tree” here in the photo. And yet, it works. It’s beautiful. It’s excellence. It’s as close to perfection as it needs to be. It’s real.

So, you don’t have to be perfect. You just have to be real. For those who understand the weight of striving for perfectionism… what a relief, eh?

Cheers,
Deb

Nov132009

3 Things I Learned About Filmmaking from… My Mother

Life can teach you about filmmaking even when you’re not making films… these gems I learned from my mother… a wonderfully optimistic spitfire of a woman who I am so very fortunate to be related to. I had brought my mom with me to a music concert to which I had been gifted complementary passes. This one evening brought together these 3 very important reminders:

1. Rest when you can
She fell asleep during the concert (and happily did not snore, so I did not wake her until the end). A freelance film life is full of hurry up and wait both on set and between jobs. It is a very stressful existence. You have to take care of yourself and get sufficient rest both during production and between jobs (ok, but I do not recommend sleeping on the set!).

2. They… uh… we are all just people
After the concert I took her backstage to express our thanks for the complementary tickets. My mom always admired the artistic lifestyle from afar, but never grew up with it. Still, you would never know it to meet her, she appears to take it all in stride, unfazed. She has a unique ability to chat with anyone and put them – and her – instantly at ease.  Stars, Directors, Production Assistants, Drivers, Stunt Performers… they are all just people too. And you never know who you are going to meet or what you are going to learn when you start a conversation with one of them.

3. Find the magic around you
As we left, we exited the stage door, and fans were crowded around the door awaiting the star’s exit (not ours, hee-hee). As we distanced ourselves from the theatre, my mother bubbled with excitement. She remembered  being such a fan waiting at the stage door many years ago, but she never dreamed she would be one to exit a stage door herself – a dream of hers had just come true! As you learn the “secrets” of this industry, it is too easy to become jaded over time. Keep the magic fresh within you. Remember who you were coming in to the industry and find the magic all over again, every day. You make the magic. So, enjoy living the dream!

Magical wishes to you!

Cheers,
Deb

Sep182009

Virtual Travel: Production Management 101

So, it appears I have travelled virtually through my books to more countries than I have gone in person! How cool!

Between “Production Management 101” and “Surviving Production“, my books are in bookstores and libraries in at least 20 countries, including: Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Morocco, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, UK, and the USA! I especially love the Amazon Japan site – seeing my book in English whereas the rest of the screen text in Japanese.

Bit of a shame I don’t have any travel memories from this virtual travel. I guess I’ve got a few plane rides to catch in order to catch up…

Cheers,
Deb

Aug142009

3 Things I Learned About Filmmaking from… My Grandmother

Life can teach you about filmmaking even when you’re not making films… here are 3 things I learned from my Grandmother… a unique fireball of a woman who knew nothing about the film industry:

1. If you can’t do it, keep trying
My grandmother didn’t have much education – nor access to education. She was a single mother when social norms looked down on such a situation, and though she was far from being a good cook, she spend most of her life making a living from cooking. She learned by doing, and never gave up. No education? No excuses. That’s a work ethic worth importing into a film career.

2. Make and eat dessert
Though she couldn’t really cook, my grandmother sure could bake. She collected a veritable ton of dessert recipes and her desserts were fabulous. Cooking was survival to her, but baking was colour of life. May we remember to taste the dessert of life as we slog through the survival of a film career.

3. Always wear clean underwear
She never lived to see blogs and Facebook, but her insistance of always wearing clean underwear is a good reminder for today’s e-world. Whatever we post on the web, or say to each other on the set is remembered for a long time, often searchable, and sometimes poorly interpretted. Make it clean. Don’t air any dirty laundry that could embarrass you later in your career.

Tasty desserts and a good shoot to you!

Cheers,
Deb

Jul172009

3 Things I Learned About Filmmaking from… Horseback Riding

Life can teach you about filmmaking even when you’re not making films… here are 3 things I learned from horseback riding:

1. Get back on when you fall
It’s not “if” you fall, but rather “when”. As with horseriding, a career in the film industry is full of ups and downs. Keep trying. Especially try to learn from your mistakes – though this is a harder concept than it sounds. Your persistence will pay off in the long run as you become a seasoned professional.

2. Relax; your stress is being communicated
Horses KNOW when you are stressed as you sit on their back, and they will echo back your frame of mind. Horseriding then becomes harder and harder you fight their reaction and your rising stress level. Once relaxed, the job is easier, more pleasant, magical. Film crews can feel your stress level too. Find a way to relax (but stay focussed) and see the production atmosphere around you echo back a more pleasant, more functional environment. 

3. The shovelling and the cleaning is all part of it
The image of riding off into the sunset on a perfect, warm summer evening may attract you to horseriding as the glamour may attract you to working in the film industry. You still have the clean and feed the horse, shovel and sweep the barn… small payment for the reward of a perfect day of horseriding. In film, there is payment for the glamour too… all those small, seemingly insignificant jobs that contribute the bigger picture – right down to cleaning garbage cans on set. Be prepared for these jobs, they are the payment.

Happy trails and a good shoot to you!

Cheers,
Deb