Posted by Silent Rob at us-proxy.att.com on September 17, 2003 at 12:41:12:
In Reply to: Hey Kevin :~) posted by Astrogurl on September 17, 2003 at 10:18:11:
...Having been through TWO projects with similar problems, I think I can honestly say the following:
Working on any project, people fall into two categories...those who HELP the project and those who DO NOT. Obviously, the more you stack your deck with the former, the stronger your chances are for a stress free shoot. Let's face it, putting all the pieces together to do a film is stress enough...having to manage people whose irresponsibility will either cause YOU more work or (in the worst case) detrementally affect the outcome of your efforts, IS NOT a burden you need added to your plate.
Of course, dealing with a problem when it arises is the ongoing challenge...you want to correct the problem, which will take TIME and MONEY...two things that a production are ALWAYS short on. So, you don't make scene (thus creating MORE problems), you just buckle down, fix what needs fixing to the best that TIME and MONEY will allow, and you move on...perhaps a little wiser as to WHO you are working with, and perhaps thinking ahead towards what more YOU will need to do in the future, so as to avoid a similiar occurence.
How do you ensure that you've selected a crew or partners who ARE responsible and can carry their own weight? Well, that's the question...
On the first peice I worked on, we had a Sound Guy who was an alcohlic and a Lighting Guy who was abusing some kind of drug. Needless to say, this film sounds like shit and has no consistant lighting at all...a botched effort! When it came time to do MY OWN project, I knew wqho I DIDN'T WANT working on it, and so I looked elsewhere for Sound and Lighting folks. As it turns out, the guy I ended up with for BOTH seemed to have a well concealed Weed addiction...and while, for the most part, it wasn't a MAJOR issue, there were times when Ol' Smokey was obviously not focused on his areas of responsibility. Guess who won't be invited back, should I decide to move foreward with another project?
I guess the point is, KEEP DOING THE WORK, but bring only those who HELP THE WORK along with you. Anyone else will just stand in the way of your efforts producing the best results possible.
I hope this has made at least a little sense...
(Silent) Rob
- gearing up for the next effort as we speak...but only time will tell.