How Second Chances Can Lead To Film Success?

“Sometimes you need a second chance, because you weren’t quite ready for the first” – Unknown

Small budget = small crew and that’s exactly what I had. A director of photography (DP) (Ihana Brown), lead sound, actors, and my younger sister as a production assistant (PA) :-). It’s a few weeks before the second shoot and the constant barrage of thoughts surrounding the key question,

“What shots, objects, scenes, and lines need to be heard and seen on camera for the end viewer to understand the story?” were still swirling through my mind. To make things even clearer I was thinking of doing some type of storyboarding.

Fast forward, it’s the day before the shoot, I spend the entire day buying groceries, creating / cleaning props which did involve searching through recycling bins to find trash, bottles, cans, boxes etc.). I even prepped the locations, sent out schedules, call sheets, and scripts.

That night, due to exhaustion, I ended up sleeping through all of my alarms and somehow managed to wake up to the chimes of multiple text messages from the lead sound letting me know that he’d arrived and is waiting downstairs. (Shoot!)

 I quickly shrug my sister awake, wash-up, and put breakfast on the table. I rush downstairs to let the lead sound into the building and coincidentally the first of the four actors was also waiting with him. Not long after that the DP shows up with the second actor.

We go to film the first scene in an apartment complex parking lot across the street. After we finish, we head back to the Airbnb where I task my sister with putting trash and bottles (emptied & washed) everywhere to make the place look messy.

Next, came instructing the male actor on how to perform a mini physical stunt. I ask him to make it look as realistic as possible. Grab the shirt. Do a little tussle. Throw the empty bottle and aim to make contact. It was all or nothing at this point, but I also had to ensure everyone’s safety.

A few more hours pass by, and we get through the final scenes with the remaining two actors. Finally, it’s a wrap. Did I feel accomplished? Yes. But the feeling was short-lived because I’ve felt this feeling before. The real feeling of accomplishment will only come in post-production when all the footage has been sorted through and put together for the final product.

A month or so passes by and the editor sends me the first rough cut. My nerves started kicking in badly. I click the link, watch the footage, and I was incredibly relieved! The tightness in my chest began to unwind and I could fully do a full inhale and exhale. Other than a few minor changes I understood everything from beginning to end.

But then I realized that my opinion matters only to a certain extent. It’s all about the end consumer and their understanding. I needed to find a few people that would give me their honest opinion. I reached out to WIFV Executive Director, Melissa Houghton, who gave me her thoughts. Then, I reached out to director and producer, Alyscia Cunningham.

Alyscia takes a few days to send me her feedback and I was happy with how positive it was. She did express that she had to watch the rough-cut multiple times due to the volume, but overall, she could understand the story from beginning to end. But overall, the rough cut just needed to be rearranged. (Okay. I can deal with that).

I set up a zoom meeting with Alyscia and Ihana (editor) to narrow everything down. But, a few days before the meeting was set to take place something unexpected happens.

I end up winning a film grant. (Oh my gosh!)

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The author is not liable for any losses or damages related to actions of failure to act related to the content in this article. If you need specific legal advice, consult with an attorney who specializes in your subject matter and jurisdiction.