Keeping Busy

I embarked on perhaps the biggest, busiest, and most exhausting shoot I've taken part in two weekends ago.  I was one of the camera men for a reality show pilot that was shot in the Bronx and New York City.  Lots of unnecessary waiting, as the case might be for most shoots, but the crew was awesome.  Some of them I've worked with before on cheer leading shoots.  Others I was working with for the first time, but they were very professional and helped out a lot (especially the guy who acted as the technical adviser).  I did the bulk of my shooting out in the field so to speak, and I feel I captured some pretty good stuff (at least when the camera wasn't shaky or the weather wasn't too bad).  I was the only guy shooting to tape (the other cameras used SD cards), and earlier today I finished logging all of the footage I shot (writing down what happened and when it happened over the course of eight tapes).  I set my camera to continually run on regular time so myself and others could document when things took place.

I can't say much at all about the subject matter of the show, but the people we shot (the stars of the show) were very nice to us and accommodating... if not pretty overbearing.  That's just personal opinion, as is me saying that this show wouldn't be something I'd watch.  Of course, if the pilot gets picked up and I continue working on it, I wouldn't have to.  Supposedly some people higher up are supportive of it, and some networks have expressed interest in the concept.  We shot three days' worth of footage, perhaps enough for three episodes.  There's going to be another crew meeting (we had three prior to filming) to go over the direction this first episode can take.  

This pilot was done on spec, so there's no money in it yet.  Provided it gets picked up, it should be pretty lucrative to myself and others involved.  In the meantime, there's also the chance of me shooting more high school football games this fall, plus I owe it to myself to attend some local sports and shoot for my own benefit (making some kind of reel to show to potential customers).  

Speaking of my own benefit, it's been well over a year, and I've posted the majority of Release The 7" to my YouTube page.  The original DVD, however, is still available.