The New York 48 Hour Film Project
What Happened During Your Weekend?
The New York filmmakers share stories from their wild weekend of filmmaking. (Blogging ended shortly after the filmmaking weekend.)
Two lost locations, a bevy of blue shirts, heat, rain...
When 20 strangers get together and execute an impressive dance of cooperation...
when a street fair sets up live music in front of the intended location and forces the production to move...
when the next location is a studio so small that the tenant's bed goes in the tub to make room, and it feels like 200° with the lights...
when the number of P2 cards available was less than half of what was originally planned...
when neighbors at the 2nd location complain and the production must leave with only about 75% shot...
when every actor shows up with blue shirts and the script is adjusted for the wardrobe...
when the crew crams itself into a corner at Starbucks after getting kicked out of the 2nd location to re-write the script and figure out where to shoot the last scenes...
when it rains just as the camera is set up in a last-minute improvised location, forcing actors to sit on park benches under umbrellas while everyone else holds umbrellas over the camera waiting for the clouds to break and it's just a few hours away from deadline...
when a bystander suddenly finds a release form under his nose as he is recruited to be an extra...
when crew members race back and forth with P2 cards between the shoot and the editors...
when DVDs are burned in laptops in backseats while zig-zagging through rush-hour traffic to make it to the Drop-off just 7 minutes before deadline...
when the intensely rewarding experience is capped by playback problems at the screening...
what else could it be but The 48 Hour Film Project? Oh, and did I mention only one of us had ever done 48HFP before?
Whew... when can I sign up for next year?
- Diane Ingino, Immortality Productions
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I slept for 45 minutes on a red bean bag.
Here's a breakdown of how things have been going:
- Went to the drawing and received "Road Movie" as our genre. The writers deliberated on what the fuck a road movie was and why in the world they would include it in the New York City competition.
- As we were sitting outside our studio, we witnessed a man breaking into his own apartment. He was very acrobatic: climbed on a three foot railing, leapt up to catch the fire escape ladder, climbed up, crossed a few roofs and climbed up his own fire escape to open a window and leap into his place. Or at least we assume it was his place. His partner was standing at the door looking bashful while we were laughing and clapping.
- The producer only gave us one battery for our camera. Fun fun. Have you ever tried to find an outlet in NYC while doing an exterior shoot?
- A camera crew requested to follow us during our shoot and if it were indoors, then I would have said yes but it was just too much for the streets of New York.
- The producer also made it a family affair bringing everyone and their mother (literally) on set. It was nice to see that he was proud of what he was doing but at the same time, the 14 year old kid ate most of krafty and the infant would not stop crying.
- It was hot as balls outside.
- In order to shoot the passenger in the car, we had to have the DP in the driver's seat and the crew had to push the car while I steered from outside. Traffic did not like that. Our AD was almost run over.
- There was a crazy man...with no front teeth had a huge boombox riding around on his bike.
- Impromptu concert in the middle of the street. And yes, it was amplified and no, it was not good.
- Construction around every corner.
- Did I mention that we were pushing a car around NYC???
- The editing suite we had was locked down was unlocked and we had to relocate but I think it was for the best since David and Raebekah are awesome.
- The owner of the Mercede-Benz kept getting into every single shot since she was so overprotective of her car.
- We were without a monitor since we were outdoors and I could not see what was going on only to learn during editing that there are people in many of the shots.
- Everyone was starving because food would never show up on time and when it did it was two pizzas for more than a dozen cast and crew along with the producer's friends and family.
- The DP talked through perfectly good shots.
- Landon, Down LaRue
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More than one night by One Nite Stand-"The Final Chord"
After an extended “One Nite Stand”, where do we start in describing this experience? What happens when a dozen plus Thai film technicians come together to make a short film over the course of 48 hours? Add two local actors, a Venezuelan performer, and one American film fan turned cultural consultant, and what do you get? A truly New York experience that none will soon forget.
As we gathered at the Whole Foods café on Friday evening, all were wondering how we would manage to accomplish such a feat, given the disparate parties involved and the random nature of the parameters assigned to us: 1) the cop/detective genre, 2) the character of Thomas or Thelma Ellison, a former attorney, 3) the prop of a string instrument, and 4) the spoken line, “I cancelled my plans for this.” Now, nearly 48 hours later, as we come to the end of this adventure and add the final touches to our film, we can look back and say that all are glad to have cancelled their plans for this.
Once we wrapped our collective heads around the details of the assignment, and after several rounds of feedback, we had our plot, in Thai… which was then translated to English by our very own Director/Producer and edited overnight for cultural accuracy. After a sleepless night and excited about the day ahead, with the script finally in place, we were off and running Saturday morning. Of course, you can’t produce a cop/detective film without donuts, and donuts marked the day, with some eating nothing at all, others eating nothing but, and all grateful for the homemade Thai food that got us through the rest of the day. Nervous, tired and running on adrenaline and caffeine, we pushed through and didn’t stop until the final cut… We shared opinions and thoughts, changed outfits and lines and scenes, shifting our own roles and responsibilities along the way. Creativity, collaboration and improvisation ruled the day—everyone played their part, both on and off screen, as we multi-tasked and mixed and matched, playing off each others talents, all with the shared goal of hitting the 48-hour mark to submit a product of which we could all be proud. In the end, we learned much, made new friendships and had an experience like no other.
- Wisoot Suanplai, One Nite Stand
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HOW TO MAKE A FILM IN 48 HOURS
HOW TO MAKE A FILM IN 48 HOURS
WEEKS LEADING UP TO 48HFP
Dave: Well, our girlfriends dumped us, our best friends moved to California and the four editors we know are all busy that weekend. Should we do it anyway?
Kyle: Who's going to write?
Dave: I can write.
Kyle: Shoot?
Dave: Me.
Kyle: Edit?
Dave: Can't your new girlfriend edit?
Kyle: She does it professionally.
Dave: Great.
Kyle: She'll be twirling fire at a rock concert that weekend.
Dave: Oh.
WEDNESDAY – 2 days before the contest
Kyle: Are we going to meet to talk about this stuff?
David: I’m playing StarFox.
THURSDAY – the day before the contest
Kyle: Are we going to meet?
David: Later.
Kyle: We're running out of time, aren't we?
David: The Land Master isn’t going to pilot itself, Kyle!
FRIDAY - ONE HOUR BEFORE THE CONTEST STARTS:
Kyle: Should we meet?
David: Probably. Dr. Andross wants to rule the Lylat system, but he just doesn’t have the resume or the political experience to head up such a diverse- Star Wolf, you cock!!! (throws the video controller across the room, pause) What should our movie be about?
FRIDAY - ON THE TRAIN TO THE KICKOFF EVENT
Kyle: You know what movie is really good? Oceans 12.
David: I think we should shoot the whole thing in the subway. That way we won't have to light anything and we might finish early.
Kyle: Shoot on the subway? Isn't that illegal?
Dave: No.
Kyle: Are you sure? You hesitated.
Dave: It’s not illegal as long as you don't put down a tripod.
Kyle: I'm pretty sure it's illegal.
David: Hey, I got a call from the organizers. A camera crew is going to be doing behind the scenes work. They might follow us around.
Kyle: Won’t they get in the way?
David: Probably.
FRIDAY - AT THE KICKOFF EVENT
The guy shooting behind the scenes footage is practically begging for volunteer teams.
GUY: Can you help us out? Please? We really need people.
Dave: Sure.
GUY: Awesome. (turns on camera) So, what makes your team so special that we should follow you around?
LATER
David: Like he’s doing us some big favor.
Kyle: What’d you say?
David: I said I didn’t have an answer to that question.
Kyle: Well I talked to Luis. He said it’s definitely illegal to shoot in the subway.
Dave: He's just saying that.
LATER - SIX FORTY FIVE
Kyle pulls ‘Suspense/Thriller’ genre out of the hat
David: Perfect – we can do our Oceans 11 on a subway type thing.
Kyle: If it were legal to shoot in the subway, which it isn’t.
David: Who are you going to listen to? Me or Luis?
Kyle: Well, Luis is older, and he knows more.
David: Oh.
SEVEN O’CLOCK
Character, Prop and dialogue are announced:
Character: Thomas Ellison, a former attorney
Prop: A string instrument
Dialogue: “I cancelled my plans for this.”
EIGHT O’CLOCK
Kyle and David meet up with Ryan. They spend the next six hours hashing out an outline. All agree the scenes should be improvised.
MIDNIGHT
Script is done. All go home to toss and turn.
SATURDAY
EIGHT IN THE MORNING
Cast and crew assemble. Lots of new faces. Ryan Homchick, fresh off ‘The Seagull’ with Diane Wiest and Alan Cumming, is quite an actor.
Bianca Marroquin, fresh off a starring role on Broadway (Roxie Hart in CHICAGO) is quite an actor.
Ruben Flores, good friend of Bianca’s. Astonishing comic chops.
Brian Athey, ‘The New Kid.’ Extraordinary musician. Even better than Kyle on the guitar.
Michael Lane, neighborhood chum. Couldn’t be more likeable if he tried.
TEN IN THE MORNING
David: OK, everybody. We’re going to shoot all of this on the subway. Don’t worry. If the police come, I will handle it. Thanks for trusting me, LUIS. But first we’re going to rehearse in the park.
Luis: What are you going to say to the police? What if they take our tapes?
David: Are you the director?
ELEVEN IN THE MORNING
Shooting in the park, ‘rehearsing.’
TWELVE NOON
Shooting in the park, ‘rehearsing.’
ONE IN THE AFTERNOON
Shooting in the park, ‘rehearsing.’
Kyle: Maybe we should just use this footage.
David: I don’t know, I really wanted to do this scene in the subway.
Luis: So we could reshoot the last three hours of stuff, or spend the extra time editing.
David: OK, everybody, that’s lunch.
THREE UNTIL TEN IN THE EVENING
Shooting goes really, really smoothly. Very little time is spent on the train.
NINE IN THE EVENING
Luis: Kyle, look. In David's room, there are 18 cords plugged into one socket by a clever system of surge protectors. David has also plugged two additional 1K lights into the same socket. (Pause) He expressed some surprise when the fuse blew.
David: (entering) Can you believe this?
Roommate Sarah: The way our apartment is configured, the breaker box is not in our apartment, but the basement apartment, where the box is hidden behind the neighbors’ refrigerator.
David: Cool. Can we get them to open the box?
Sarah: Well, their English is poor and they don't know how a breaker box works, much less that their fridge is concealing it. And they might be unenthusiastic about inviting strangers into their home at 11 at night.
David: Oh.
Kyle: What are you going to do? You have to start editing.
David powers his editing suite by running an extension cord from the kitchen into his room.
Luis: Good solution. Great thinking. I’m going home. I’ll be back at seven in the morning. You must lock picture by seven in the morning.
David: Piece of cake. Why don’t you give me a challenge?
Luis: It’s illegal to shoot in the subway.
David: You’re just saying that.
ELEVEN AT NIGHT
Dave and Kyle, Editing.
TWELVE AT NIGHT
Dave and Kyle, Editing.
ONE IN THE MORNING
Dave and Kyle, Editing.
TWO IN THE MORNING
Dave and Kyle, Editing.
TWO THIRTY IN THE MORNING
An actor who shall remain nameless drinks a bottle of tequila.
Michael Lane (aka Drunk Actor): Can I watch?
David: Watch the extension cord.
Michael Lane: Huh?
Michael Lane trips over the extension cord.
All three computer screens go dark. The hard drives power down. The CPUs power down.
Kyle and David stare at the screens, willing them back to life.
Michael Lane (aka Actor Who Drunk Too Much): Whoops.
THREE IN THE MORNING
Dave and Kyle, crying.
FOUR IN THE MORNING
Still crying.
FIVE IN THE MORNING
Still editing.
SIX IN THE MORNING
David calls Luis.
Luis: You’re done already?
David: Sort of.
Luis: What happened.
David: Well, the movie needs to be three minutes long.
Luis: How long is it.
David: It’s longer than three minutes
Luis: How long is it?
David: The movie is forty-five minutes long.
Luis: So cut forty-two minutes.
David: So, I don’t want to let you down, or Bianca or Brian or Ruben or Ryan, or the other guy who worked so hard yesterday-
Luis: Kyle?
David: Is that his name? Yeah. I just can’t do it anymore. I haven’t slept – I can’t see straight – I got it down from 180 minutes to 45 minutes.
Luis: You have an hour to cut forty-two minutes out of the movie.
David: I’m going to sleep forever. Good bye.
Luis: Pack up your stuff. We’re coming to get you.
NINE IN THE MORNING
Brian and Luis arrive and carry David on a gurney to the car.
TEN IN THE MORNING, LUIS’S HOUSE, NEW JERSEY
Luis: So, let's see, how do you edit? Are these the right buttons? Oh yes, I remember. Let's see, we can cut this out, and this out, and this.
David: I'm awake.
Luis: We don’t need this shot, or this shot, or this shot.
David: I don’t think all of us need to sit here and watch you edit.
Luis: And this, and this.
David: You guys can do music for the opening, can’t you? And I can work on this.
Luis: But you’re so tired.
David: I hate you.
Luis: You should rest. (pause) You’re going to thank me for this.
David: This really isn’t funny.
THE NEXT NINE HOURS…
are a blur. Cuts are made, music is composed, more edits are made, DVDs and data DVDs are burned, we send Brian off to the train with the DVD. He almost misses the train. Kyle, Luis, Bianca, David and the guy who filmed us all weekend pile into the car at 6:15. Luis drives like a madman towards Manhattan. The Holland Tunnel is closed except for one lane. The clock is ticking. We get into Manhattan. Canal street is completely clogged. Brian calls from the drop off spot, Fontana’s (a bar).
Brian: (on phone) I turned in the DVD, but she says we have to have all the paperwork here, too. In the next eight minutes.
David: We have the paperwork here. The traffic is terrible.
Kyle: What a shame.
David: Hey Kyle.
Kyle: What?
David: You are the smartest, funniest, most talented person I know. I really admire you.
Kyle: What do you want?
David: You’re also in the best shape.
Kyle: So?
David: So how long will it take you to run the last ten blocks to the bar?
Kyle: (pulling on his running shoes) In this traffic?
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how Kyle saved the day.
Now you can make ours.
WE ARE IN SCREENING GROUP D
Our screening will take place Thursday, June 26th, 9pm
Place: Landmark’s Sunshine Cinema, 143 E. Houston St., New York, NY
Notes: Tickets can be purchased at the door half an hour before the first screening. Tickets will sell out, so be sure to get yours early.
Here's the link. Tickets are $10.
http://www.landmarktheatres.com/tickets/
Hope you can make it --
David and the Match Crew
David J. Stott
Match Production Team
david@matchproductions.com
917.596.4155
- David Stott, Bucky Wilson
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NY 48HFP Producer
CONGRATULATIONS EVERYONE!! You all did such a fantastic job and I can't wait to enjoy screening all of your hard work!!
- Flora, All of 48HFP New York
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