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Thursday August 13, 2013
A case for clap
On my way home the previous day working on
The Crazy Ones,
I got a call from my service that through
Sandi Alessi
I was booked on the feature film comedy
Welcome To Me,
playing an audience member for an informercial
The recorded information line was to be called after 7pm.
After I few tries after 7pm in which it said to call after 7pm, after 7:30pm the information was finally available,
providing the 91406 crew parking location, slightly mid-north of the San Fernando Valley.
Transit was awkwardly but do-able.
Checking again before turning in
The calltime was shifted from 7am to 8am, and transit became more awkward.
Based on results, I could be very early or a few minutes later, the latter of which to me being unacceptable.
I arrived at crew parking
at 7:05am.
Not surprisingly, I seemed to be first.
A crew techie had driven in as I'd walked up, and before I could ask the security guard, he'd asked about the shuttle van.
As it would be a few minutes, the techie just started walking.
As it was a nice, cool morning, and I was substantially early, I followed, to around the corner where there was a small filming studio.
After breakfast I was led inside to a large room for Holding.
Crew members were busily working throughout the building, indicating they'd been there for some time.
As I waited for 8am, in came friends
Gary
and
Rhoda.
I had to wonder if a new trend was developing: as with The Crazy Ones the day before, the instant the calltime hour struck, one of the PAs read out the scene we were doing; mostly we would be reacting and
clapping
(both enthusiastic and what I call "golf clap" type).
we were then brought to set for the rehearsal.
I was amused the product being hawked was a nutritional supplement of sorts,
considering my
home business.
Wes Bentley
was the show host/facilitator/vendor, as
Kristen Wiig
and
Linda Cardellini
are in the audience.
(Remember that I do not believe in providing storyline spoilers myself [such generally currently and/or eventually being
readily available Elsewhere
notwithstanding], in my report/s I only convey indications of where I can be seen.)
At first I was placed next to Linda Cardellini, but later when we returned to set for the shoot people were shifted about
(this provides for the framing a better combination of people-shapes as well as the clothing colours).
Gary and I had each brought Hawaiian shirts, as the recording had requested
(as the scene is set in Miama).
We were the first two men seen by wardrobe, and they approved us, but to each other stressed we'd be the Only Ones with Hawaiian shirts.
The recording had asked for bright colours, but as always I brought both my shirts, and as usually is the case, they went with my "more subdued" dark blue with white shirt.
As it was, while we were shifted about, I ended up being so far left
(screen right from the point of view of any cameras filming the audience),
it is possible I could be off screen.
One of the large TV monitors showed one framing of the far side of the three-section audience, and Rhoda was off-screen as well, by one person
(that is, the person sitting next to Rhoda was in frame, while Rhoda was not).
Gary was placed more in the center.
The feature is directed by hands-on director
Shira Piven,
who seemed quite pleasant whilst being extremely practical and efficient.
After shooting much coverage of the principals, just before lunch the cameras swung about and filmed our reactions and our various aspects of applause to specific points.
This was not difficult as the short scene was done straight through each time, so we knew the scene and how to react to what when.
With a break or two we filmed until 2pm when we broke for a half hour lunch, just before the end of which it was announced that the audience was being wrapped; we were signed out at 3:30pm, to give us time to get back to our cars; that and it being well before the eight-hour mark anyway.
As it was on his way, and by the time we got to that area, giving him a chance to avoid some substantial traffic on the 101 at that point,
Gary was able to drop me off at my rental box
(which, irritatingly, was empty).
I bused home from there.
As of this entry, there is no official release date, though it's strongly implied it'd be
sometime in
2014.
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