Geoffrey Gould
Reports from the set/s...

Pathos
Gina Nelson's UCLA Student Thesis Film

Tuesday, November 11, 2003
Appointment / Audition
About a week after working on the J.S. Lerner UCLA grad student film Solo in early November (2003), one of the two who ran sound gave my provided calling card to student director Gina Nelson, who called me regarding her own UCLA Student Thesis film Pathos. Such unpaid student-film projects are not the same as doing "non-SAG" work (film schools usually have a contractual agreement with SAG); plus such footage can be used as and/or for a demo reel, etc.: payment is copy and credit, occasionally meals. Gina had set up with me an audition appointment of 5:30pm but I could be there anytime between 5pm-7pm or so, and I would be fit in (she was made aware, due to the bus strike at the time, I'd have to bike from Hollywood to the UCLA campus audition).
Forgetting it was Veteran's Day, I left far earlier than necessary, also mostly as I did not know long it would take me to get there. Mileage wise I figured maybe ninety minutes to two hours, mostly due to the unfriendly (to bikes) up and down road that is Sunset Boulevard.
It was turning into a busy day. I had a ticket for the 7:30pm Q&A showing of Beverly Hills Cops with its screenwriter Dan Petrie Jr., whose father had directed me in Inherit the Wind a few years earlier. Attending that 7:30pm event via bike from UCLA was going to be a tight squeeze.
About a third of the way to UCLA, I was paged and had to find a pay phone (this was before cell phone were as prevalent as they would become). When I finally got to a phone, it was my agent congratulating me on booking the principal role on a Halls national commercial for which I'd auditioned (which was filmed, but strangely never aired).
So even though I got to UCLA hours early (to find the holiday-closed campus nearly a graveyard), I was in a highly jazzed mood.
Gina and her assistant William Bibbiani arrived a little after 4:15 or so and, meeting them at the door, I helped by carrying in a high-chair of sorts. I signed in and they were able to see me right away in Soundstage 2 where I'd auditioned and had even rehearsed a bit for Solo.
Gina indicated it was to be a non-sync sound film, set in a carnival atmosphere on a rooftop: that the carnival was a front for a prohibition-era speak-easy.
After a few interview type questions, Gina had me some some improvizational things, such as interacting with the high-chair on which I was sitting (apparently the high-chair is a "very important" item in the storyline). She indicated others who'd auditioned had done a few things, and she mentioned dancing with the chair. Of course this threw that idea right out. So as I silently began I chose to be the one who had created and just finished the high-chair. I examined it, lifted it, made sure no flaws existed: it was the best chair I'd ever made.
She then had me do it along the lines of drunkenness; I did it slowly, deliberately, and non comical. Sad drunk.
She told me she wanted to have a callback probably on the weekend so that those who were called back would not only be to meet, but interact. I liken this in my head as to how they prepared the movie The Big Chill: the cast spend a long weekend together to Get To Know Each Other, see where the chemistry lied and each others' idiosyncracies... what worked and what didn't.
I reminded her that due to the MTA strike I was stranded into bike-use: if anyone was domiciled (or went by), my area of Hollywood, to see if perhaps carpooling could be arranged.

Friday, November 14, 2003
Callback confirmation
My temp agency had gotten me a one-day gig in downtown LA. I was able to be dropped off, but getting back was another story. I was just able to catch the 96 up to Griffith Park (one of the few bus lines actually running), and hike an hour home from there.
My pager went off as I approached me front door: Gina called to confirm I was called back and that Saturday evening would be the Interactive Workshop from 7pm to about 9pm. She'd also be taking wardrobe measurements, and handing out the script.

Saturday, November 15, 2003
Callback / Interactive Workshop
Gina called to confirm she'd pick me up herself tonight, and we'd see if anyone in the cast was heading back in this direction to get me home (otherwise she'd bring me home herself). Despite traffic we got there a few minutes prior to the official calltime. I met the other three main principal actors in the piece...
Aaron Robson (a combination lookalike of George Cloony and a young 1960s era David Hemmings had been cast as the soul-tortured Tattooed Man, reliving the two-fold tragedy he caused so many years earlier. Surprisingly, Aaron actually being British (with a disarming Manchester accent), Aaron didn't know who David Hemmings is...!
Next was Michael Ellison, an affable and friendly giant of a man from Georgia, with a bit of a resemblence to my old actor friend Nick Wyman.
Director Gina's friend Moriel Zelikowski would be playing the Mute Ballerina. The lovely girl made it clear having no aspirations towards actually acting as a career or such, but she is a dancer, and quite graceful.
As it is, Gina herself indicate not technically wanting to be a(n ongoing) director, as much as a production designer.
As Gina was setting up, the four of us had little trouble chatting up and discussing our backgrounds and such; each have a strong sense of humour and comittment to the project at hand. Gina indicated still being up in the air as to which character (the Peanut-Vendor and the Alcoholic Clown) to assign to Michael and me. I expressed interest in the role of the doomed Alcoholic Clown, but Michael and I each did a couple of sequences as the Clown, and as the Vendor.
Aaron and Moriel were given direction as to how to do the murder scene. Aaron was brutal, but having once played a sociopath in thriller play myself (as well as pratfall type stage stunt work), to my trained eye it was clear the girl was in no actual danger. Amusingly, this did not prevent our valiant director Gina from cringing in horror at the apparently violent images being performed in front of her. Similar to a gag I once did years ago in a children's play, Aaron suggested (and with which Moriel was easily able to comply), what I call the "Vader / Antilles" grip.
Being just taller enough than she, Aaron held Moriel off the ground by her throat. Moriel, however, was in complete control, hanging on my her own hands at his wrist, so her weight was all there and she was in fact in no danger of strangulation. Impressively, he was able to walk her dangling body across to the sofa where he threw her onto the soft cushions.
I couldn't resist keeping half an eye on Gina next to me, as she fretted in near terror at the ferocity going on in front of her. What was even better was in the midst of this violent action, Aaron stepped calmly out of character suddenly, asking casually of Gina, "And then what...?
Gina was pleased she'd made the correct casting choices, and promised to notify Michael and I as to her decision as to which role in which we would be cast.
Michael volunteered to drive me back to Hollywood. On the drive back to my place Michael and I discussed the two roles. He expressed as much interest in the role of the vendor as I had for the clown role. Michael indicated our diverse perceptions of the role of the clown: he had played it drunk while, he pointed out, I had played it like an alcoholic. He also liked the dramatic moments the vendor would have, mistakenly accusing the clown of a murder he didn't commit.

Wednesday, November 26, 2003
Scheduling
Arriving at UCLA to meet with my then-girlfriend, (for as the Thanksgiving holiday weekend was about to begin), I noted a van at the opening of Soundstage One. As Gina had informed us that it was here we'd be filming much of our scenes, I wondered if that was what was going on. Sure enough, there was Gina, who was surprised but pleased to see me. She was actually working on the project prior to her own; she'd have the soundstage the first week of December, as she had informed us.
A few nights earlier she'd called to notify me that I would be playing the Alcoholic Clown and that Michael would be the Vendor. She went onto to indicate she wanted the sequence of my being hurled into the cage to be a dance, literally a "violent tango," and that she had enrolled a friend to choreograph the dance. Michael and I would meet with her/them Sunday and spend a few hours at it.

Sunday, November 30, 2003
Tango and Ouch
Gina had scheduled with Michael and I the choreography rehearsal night, and we met at the nearby Ralphs where Michael parked his car and Gina drove the two of us down to Palos Verdes where her choreographer friend lives with his beautiful Siamese mix (predictably vocal) kitty Spooky.
I reminded Gina that I had a prior commitment on Sunday so she knew to arrange my sequences for Thursday and Friday. Scenes at the warehouse roof would be mostly with Aaron alone. Our scenes would generally be in the soundstage in controlled conditions.
The brief "dance" will have the background-artist crowd encircling me doing something called a "camel step," then once I've stood and the vendor is back in front of me, he grabs my wrist. I spin and fall backwards into his arms (facing away from him), keeping me from actually falling all the way by his arms in my arm pits, and I am lifted back up and hurled away from him. I spin and the guy at the other end of the crowd (probably to be the choreographer himself) pushes me back towards the vendor. I make a feeble attempt at a punch but my wrist is grabbed and I am thrown back and forth by the guy; I spin again, pushed back and he lifts me onto his shoulders, spinning me thrice and dropped at the door of the cage.
The beginning of this sequence began to become not pleasant; falling into his arms is one thing, but the weight of my body pretty much all lands on my armpits began to hurt after three or more times and we did it for a few hours: 24 hours later my tender (ized) armpits still ache and sting. Also the being spun around on his shoulders (after several spins anyway), is not condusive to my Virtual Motion Sickness.
I have no problems with cars, trains, planes, etc., and anything therein (reading, et al). This is due to there being a Fixed Focal Point. With movies, steadi-cam shots are fine, but over use of hand-held creates a nausea. I literally lost my cookies while at my theatre seat watching The Blair Witch Project. So here, once I was plunked down, my equilibreum took a holiday. While this would make it easier for me to "get into" the cage when we shoot the sequence, at least at the rehearsal I had to keep closed my eyes to keep the room from continuing to spin.
Sam the choreography should be working on the set as a character as well, due to the nature of the sequence: the memory of a remoarseful, long suffering man.

Saturday, December 06, 2003
Shoot: Roar of the Housepaint
The night before, Gina indicate a noon calltime. After a wonderful evening with the Lady I'd Been Seeing, seeing a preview screening of Mona Lisa Smile in which I was able to spot my mother (doing background; much was filmed in Glen Ridge, New Jersey), I bused up to UCLA and arrived to the soundstage by 11am. The place was done up impressively with "hastily"-sewn fabric walls, hay on the floors, etc. Gina gave me the tour, and reported that the day and night before (noon calltime, finally calling it quits for the day at 3am...), they'd filmed Moriel's murder sequence and such.
I was not really needed immediately, so closer to that time I was done up around 1:30pm or so. Instead of regular make up, actual paint was used. The day before, Gina had realized she'd not truly "designed" how she wanted the clown to look, so as she only had Aaron with whom to work, she did him white with red eyebrows and red lips, plus a red dot on the end of the nose.
So Gina painted me up the same way she'd done on Aaron. I wasn't exactly used to paint being used in leui of make-up, but this was latex paint. While it eventually came off with relative ease, it wasn't condusive to extended face wear. It cracked and chipped until I look like Bob Villa would come after me. Frequent touch ups were needed when I was to be on camera.
William was taking digital photos right and left, stating when the project was finished he'd go over each indiviually and each cast and crew member would receive a burned CD with all the photos.
As there was limited time for the dancers, their shots were done first. Aaron, Moriel and Michael arrived and we shot the scene of the ballerina dancing. I related to Gina a visual that'd occured to me on the bus ride up: a kissing-without-kissing move. For one thing, while Morial is quite pretty, I wasn't sure if she was open to being kissed by me (the ballerina and the clown are Together, possibly actual lovers). Knowing that such intamacy still needed to be reflected, I suggested a variation of what As there was limited time for the dancers, their shots were done first. Aaron, Moriel and Michael arrived and we shot the scene of the ballerina dancing. I related to Gina a visual that'd occured to me on the bus ride up: a kissing-without-kissing move. For one thing, while Morial is quite pretty, I wasn't sure if she was open to being kissed by me (the ballerina and the clown are Together, possibly actual lovers). Knowing that such intamacy still needed to be reflected, I suggested a variation of what Megan Mullally and I did for our wedding in the film Bruce McColloch directed film Stealing Harvard, in which she and I raised and together touched the palms of our hands.
I upgraded the movement: as a clown wouldn't want to smear white-face make-up onto his dancer girlfriend, we would simultaneously blow a kiss into our respective hands and, catching the kiss, close the fist on it; turn our hands to each other and open our hands and touch palms, then interlock fingers.
Gina loved the idea and the move was incorporated.
As that scene was done, Moriel had to leave on a family errand, despite two very important shots that had not yet been done in which she needed to be. Gina was a bit frantic at this last-minute errand, but managed to keep her cool, trying to remind Moriel as to not only the importance of the project, but Moriel's promise/commitment to it. Moriel, however, was not to be dissuaded from "having to" leave, but stressed she could film it Monday evening. Aaron is available, as is Michael, and so am I, so it was decided we could shoot that sequence then. Moriel then tried to get out of Monday, citing evening exams, but eventually admitted there could be a slight window of time available to her. Gina promised Moriel to have Everything Set Up, so that Moriel could arrive, the shots in which she needed to be would be done immediately, at which time she'd be released/wrapped, and then the rest of us could film the rest without any haste or worry.
I noted there was a cot in "my [the clown's] dressing room," so with much time available to me after my scene with Moriel, I drowsed. No one really realized I would not be used the rest of the day. I did also spend time chatting with a few cast and crew members. William turned out to be a fellow fan of BlackAdder and MST3K, though he's not yet read the Harry Potter books and sadly has been seeing first the tolerable but painfully story-compressed/truncated Warner Bros. film versions first before reading the Much Better Written comprehensive novels.
"Lunch" was called at 6pm. Unfortunately I did not know pizza had been ordered or when they had ordered it. As I do not eat/like pizza, I was stuck once again at a project at which I could "only" subsist on the craft services. Thankfully they did have enough munchies I could/would eat.
More dancing was filmed, as some had to be backlit and such. Eventually, Gina realized we soon Had To Stop. She very much wanted the fight scene to be done but realized if sleep wasn't acquired, the scene could "look cheap," and it was such an important aspect to the film and its story, she didn't want to short-change Michael or me, nor short-change the film itself. Michael and I assured her we would be on hand Monday night, and even Sunday. I reminded her I had my own prior commitment, but that I would be back for the shoot as soon as possible afterwards: maybe around 6 or 7pm.
Michael drove me home again as a gently misty rain began to drift down. We both agreed that Gina's passion for her project is so strong, powerful and charismatic, that either of us would by then follow her to the ends of the earth to see it through.

Sunday, December 07, 2003
Shoot: Almost there...
My friend Brad not only drove me home after the meeting I had, he decided to wait and let me change and he drove me directly to UCLA. So I got there at 5pm for what I thought was a 6-7pm calltime, to find that those already there had been there and working since about noon. Maybe of Aaron's shots had been done, as well as Michael shots seeing the ballerina killed, etc.
By this point in the project, much of the shooting now melds together. Each of the remaining time together started in the mid to late afternoon and we'd wrap well past two in the morning. I neglected to keep notes on set as I did for the Garfield shoot.
Without Moriel, we shot as much as we could "around" her absense, including but not limited to, using "stunt bodies." Lovely Robin Morton, our camera operator, did stand-in work, her lying on her back notwithstanding. A friendly girl named Lon (who came to help out), ended up finding herself in the ballerina outfit, and lying down in the actual shots (of Michael finding the dead body).
Gina had me do a sequence in which I "remove" my make-up, involving a single wipe of my face with a sock. As it was a bit tricky to remove normally, I really worked it, thinking I'd left a lot. Later, to my amazement, I saw that I'd managed to remove a good 90% plus of it!
We broke for "lunch" around 11pm. Due to my not eating any of the provided pizzas the night before, sandwiches (the type I couldn't eat) were provided tonight. As at least the materials were available, I was able to make for myself a peanut butter sandwich.
Midnight came and went without barely a notice.

Monday, December 08, 2003
Shooting continues: "Last" Day
Around 1am, we began to shoot the fight scene.
Like me, Michael wasn't too thrilled with the lack of a lion cage into which I was to be thrown. It was one of those things that time had simply disallowed getting done. The night before, Michael had showed me what was to be used in leui of a lion cage: a small square chicken-wire screen barely bigger than an 8x10 headshot. It was so small it would have to be a very tight close up without any camera movement. It would also appear as though I'd been locked into an air conditioner... So on his own (having already taken on the additional role of constructionist and gaffer), Michael Ellison constructed an impressive lion cage, placing onto a desk a front frame of wood with deliberate asymetrically set metal rods as bars, maintaining the abstract, surreal Cabinet of Dr. Caligari dream-like "look" of the film.
We shot the fight scene a few times. It wasn't actually as "smooth" as we'd gotten it on Sam's home dance-floor. It did however, look realistic I believe. During one take, Michael grabbed wrong my right hand instead of my wrist. For some reason, it also managed to involve his thumbnail digging deeply into the palm of my hand. I believe I yelped from the considerable pain, but we were both "in the moment," so once I was hurled off of him I was able to recoup.
We had shot once or twice my crawling away from the false accusation (where I would be surrounded). At one point, Michael pointed out, "Hey, you're bleedin', man."
I put my hand to my head and sure enough, there was a small dollop of blood. It wasn't much; it was as though I'd scratched a dry spot or such. I don't think my head ever bonked the cage frame.
"Don't tell him that," Gina hissed worriedly at Michael. "He'll want to go home...!"
"Pfffft," I retorted as I sat on the floor. "I'm not Moriel...!"
As intended, the cast and crew burst into hysterical laughter.
The dancers used in/for a previous scene apparently were not available for this sequence; we did not have a substantial amount of people at all with which to surround me during the fight. Sam was there, but it was set up that William would be pushing me back towards Michael.
One major drawback was my being barefoot but for one sock on one foot. The set was covered in hay. Instead of paying money for bales, they'd frugally managed to acquire a lot of hay from a local pumpkin seller. When the Hallowe'en time ended, pumpkin sellers still had a lot of hay. So it was swept up into large garbage bags and brought to the soundstage set.
Unfortunately, these "pumpkin patches" are usually in corners of large asphalt parking lots. This means, along with tons of hay, they got tons of rocks. Small pebbles, really, but with bare feet these little hidden land mines cause considerably pain. There were "rock details," as most of us found dozens of the li'l buggers. Like stubborn autumn leaves, there were always more being missed.
By 2:30am most of us were beat, so Gina decided we would shoot my close-up in the cage the following night (technically tonight, as it was well past midnight). My main concern was my mostly-removed make-up: could its look be replicated properly, or would it be clear that sequences were shot at different times...?
Along with William, Gina drove me home. We discussed how well it was going, as well as What Was To Come.
A temp assignment originally scheduled to start today, ended up thankfully being moved to starting Tuesday the 9th. I bussed to campus by 11:15am and went out to lunch with my then-girlfriend I'd Been Seeing (as well as her repairing my shoe's loosening sole), after which I headed up to my rental box. While a few DVDs I'd acquired as Yule gifts had finally arrived, there was still no paycheck from the Halls commercial.
I caught the then-new 761 line from Sherman Oaks back down to UCLA. I got there around 5pm and again, they'd been working for a while before my arrival. Had I known that, I'd have come earlier (or not left campus after lunch).
Looking surprisingly radiant while pretending to be dead, Robin was on the floor, standing-in for Moriel as they set up the focus for her arrival. Gina did up my "make-up smudged" face as best she could, using as a reference one of the digital photos William had taken previously.
Moriel arrived and we shot her being found by Michael. Then we shot my coming from my tent, dropping my bottle and falling to me knees, and Michael pointing at me accusingly.
With my make-up as it was, they began to set up for my close up, when Moriel reminded Gina that she had to leave by 8pm.
Gina tried not to freak out too much, quickly having her efficient crew set up the shot for Moriel and I leaving the tent and my walking Moriel to her tent. This also meant my entire make-up being put on as the scene is before my removing the make up. Gina quickly did up my face, while impressively struggling to remain calm and focused from this time-sensitive crisis.
Moriel and I rehearsed exiting the tent a few times, as Gina set up background stuff (Michael watching us leave the tent, Aaron ominously watching and then following me into my tent, etc.). Moriel and I walked through it several times, she and I trying to work in a "near kiss," which would look both comical and sad.
We rolled for a take, in which Moriel actually gave me a pecked lip-kiss. Gina was set to go again, when Moriel insisted she had to leave. Right then. She was already late for the exam she needed to take.
Gina stared, the incomprehensibility that the important shot had only had one take. It was usable, but there were aspects she wanted tightened. She had blocked in a cameo for her director of cinematography and I think she felt his cross was "just off" or such.
Moriel quickly changed and left, essentially wrapping herself.
She did not return.
Gina also left, for several minutes. The rest of us worried about Gina more'n anything else, and the crew quickly set up for the next shot in my tent. If Gina went off to primal-scream aloud any rage or such, we couldn't hear it.
Gina wanted a shot of my entering the tent, and Aaron (in a quiet jealous anger), following me. Initially I was to just sit, but Aaron suggested giving me a push to the ground. Gina loved the idea, and I love and have no problem with pratfalls.
We did about two or three takes, and they did a Point Of View (POV) of the Tatooed Man watching me remove my shoes and get ready to remove my make-up. They even did a close up on my feet, which I guess will make sense on context.
The smeared make-up was much more different than I expected, mostly as I am used to "clown white" type make-up. As this was latex house-paint, my face-wipe removed far more than I anticipated. My concern was any shots not done with This Wipe would cause continuity problems.
Photos were taken of my face, as in fact we did not get to my last shots; it was so late that everyone was getting way too punchy. We would do that final sequence the following day/night.

Tuesday, December 09, 2003
Shoot: Wrapping
Well, it's done.
It was another long day.
Lots of coverage shots were done. Aaron got his close-ups in the ballerina's tent, in which he got to punch out the mirror.
At the end of the night, as nerves were frayed and frazzled, we got to my close-ups in the cage, screaming in utter dispair at the camera.
Unfortunately, I had a day-job to which to go the next day, so I could not stick around with those still there. They'd ordered some wine and/or beer to celebrate the completed project.
Now we would have to wait for Gina's reports on the dailies, editing, etc.
Gina already indicated shifting the film's focus. It was no longer a "flashback" movie, so Aaron wouldn't be doing his rooftop remoarse scenes. Essentially then, the tatooed man just escapes and has no come uppance, abandoning to a horrific fate my clown character.
A couple of days later, I was at UCLA on an errand, and wondered about the set an'all. I stopped in and it was 99% gone; mostly bits of hay still around. Gina was surprised to see me, and Robin showed up as I was departing for my errand.

Thursday, February 26, 2004
Crossing Paths
In late January, early February, I auditioned for Martin Kisselov and got the title role in his bittersweet UCLA grad student film The Father.
On its first of four day's of shooting in late February, the first two of which my scenes were scheduled, when I arrived on set, to my surprise on the film's crew, handling the boom mic, was Gina Nelson's pleasant A.D. from Pathos: William Bibbiani. He was scheduled to work the four-day film shoot the same two days as I.
William and I chatted between shots set ups throughout the day. He told me he had "just" seen the dailies from Pathos and that all the footage is excellent. It should look fantastic when it's all put together. Currently, he indicated, Gina is working mostly on the film's pacing. I decided to wait until April to drop her a line.

Friday, February 27, 2004
Dropping By
As William had told her the night before that I was working on the film, into whom should I run but Gina Nelson! Thankfully I had brought with me a few photos I had taken on the Pathos set to show William, so I was able to show them to both of them. Gina indicated she is working on the editing, and (assignment-wise) it "has to be picture locked" by mid-March (16th or 19th).
So probably by early to mid April I'd be able to see its final version.

Friday, November 12, 2003
Screening and long-needed Updates
Some months previously, and surprisingly I did not write it into my datebook to look it up, there was a screening of Gina's class's films at UCLA, to which I was invited. One of the strangest aspects was, after each film shown, any talent involved had to leave the room for the discussion between the class and the film's director (up front in the hot seat). I learned this is common practice.
I waited around after Pathos screened, as (while I was already there), I wanted to see the other students' films as well.
Pathos did indeed go in a different direction than the original concept. Its style was still very much surreal and dreamlike. I'd worked on a few more student films during 2004 (at the time of this update, I'd just completed my ninth student film, in its lead role).
Aaron's voice narrates the otherwise non-dialog film, silent but for music and sound effects. Moriel laughs, though it was not properly aligned with her mouth, so it was clear it was dubbed later.
I began to wonder why she would be laughing if I never came in to do my scream from within the cage.
Then at the end of the tango-fight and I'm thrown into the cage, sure enough... "I" scream.
I was astonished. It was not my own voice screaming, obviously, but thankfully, it was wonderfully done, and it worked.
Michael Ellison and I had stayed in touch with email; he had returned to the each coast, and since then has worked on numerous independent film projects.
[I cannot recall the date but I finally actually did receive my DVD copy of Pathos.]