the gradual decline of a crew and Peter Jackson

C

c.g._eads

Veteran
In a lot of my research on this site (and in the real world), one thing I keep hearing about shooting an independent film is burning out your crew. People say that on a three or four-week shoot, your crew is going to start losing steam around the end of the second week.

How can this be? Didn't Peter Jackson shoot with his crew for OVER A YEAR? How did they stay fresh? Maybe someone with more experience can enlighten me.
 
Sometimes it just is right. There isn't a better way to say it. A film or television set is an organic and living thing. Sometimes everything lines up - the talent is cool and the crew professional on every level. Technical challenges and long days bring the crew up to the task and everyone leaves exhausted, yet emotionally satisfied. The money is, assuming that you're paying something, almost incidental.

Being a living entity, a set is also susceptible to virus-like infection and debilitating disease. I've been on miserable shows, where although the days were hours short on average against the minimum call, we had to deal with talent or crew members who were egotistically and emotionally destructive. I've seen more than one production that was disorganized and where the crew quickly fell apart in the resulting mire.

You should watch Hearts of Darkness - A Filmmakers Apocalypse or Shaking the Cage. They detail how conditions on even the biggest and best shows - in this case two of the greatest films ever created - can and do literally spiral out-of-control to the point the misery and dysfunction brings the craftspeople to the very brink of mental collapse and worse.

In the end, it might be the producer or director or someone below the line or God who makes a show go off in a good way or at least without incident. I've been on ones where it only takes one ass to screw it all up.

If you're asking about producing or directing - do these things. Be aware that even if you do, things can and will challenge you.

Before anyone hires in crew, lifts a hammer, paints a wall, sews wardrobe or rolls an inch of principal footage - invest the proper time in writing, breakdowns, line production, planning, logistics and clearances.

The rule of thirds applies to more than framing. If you don't know how many days of principal you have, you certainly won't know that you should have invested as many days (or more) against that in pre-production.

Control the conditions to the very best extent possible. Be smart, resourceful and humane in the way you structure your days. Eliminate or minimize danger anywhere it can manifest - I cannot stress this enough.

Do the no-brainer things people below are bound to suggest - feed your crew real meals at the fifth or sixth hour. Give them call sheets before the end-of-day. Keep real craft services (fruits, nuts, vegetables, energy bars, juice, soda, coffee, water in individual bottles and leftovers from primary meals) available when the set is working. Maintain something in the way of craft services or facilitate meals and break food for off-shift / swing gang crews. Treat your second unit and so on down the chain in the way you treat your first.

Pizza only counts for one meal per six days of show, so don't try it with a professional crew. Call it lame or snobbish, but they will complain about it. Unfortunately, most professional craftspeople won't complain to you, they'll discuss it quietly and in a disgruntled fashion amongst themselves. You won't know what's going on until you find yourself somewhere between happy and what happens in paragraph two.

e
 
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Funny you should mention Peter Jackson since he's currently involved in this "dispute" with New Line... .

I guess paying people loads as well as shouting, kicking and screaming helps ;-)

Seriously, the best way to keep people from loosing it is to give them a rest, even if it's a very short one. I find that if people are too close to something for a long period of time they start to loose focus. Although a "break" takes away precious time and costs money, it's a sound investment IMHO.

Just my 2p.
 
wow, e. good advice. thanks for taking the time to write all that.

I just hate that sometimes, no matter how much planning you put into something, you can be victim to bad circumstance (and bad people).

As far as paying people, I was involved in a reality show once and that was only two weeks long and by the end of the second week they were barely taping anything. They had just had enough. Then again, I guess they had to tape us 24/7. But still, they had three shifting crews, so even that's not an excuse.

I think it has something to do with knowing when you're going to finish, and preparing for THAT time period. So maybe the trick is to tell your crew you're finishing a week later than you really are. Then with a week to go you can say, "that's it! we're finished!" And they'll be both pissed and thrilled.
 
overlandfilms said:
Being a living entity, a set is also susceptible to virus-like infection and debilitating disease.
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This is a really good analogy. I've observed the effect, too, from common-cold-like teamsters to walking-Ebola-virus producers.

overlandfilms said:
Unfortunately, most professional craftspeople won't complain to you, they'll discuss it quietly and in a disgruntled fashion amongst themselves.
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Also true. Professionals often won't mention anything to your face, but can invest great creativity in vengefully plotting against you behind your back.
 
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You sound paranoid Max. You been abusing crew lately?

I think you will find that Professionals will usually take quite a bit of abuse before going to the AD or Production Manager (which is the correct avenue) to rectify the abuse. If there is a real reason that you have to work the crew 14 to 16 hours and then feed them pizza, well the second time you do it, yeah people will start complaining.
 
Overland, e

I agree with everything you said, but one. It’s the most important point. I would like to say it’s my opinion, but it’s a fact.

MONEY "The money is, assuming that you're paying something, almost incidental."

I have 2 kids, one mortgage, retirement account, health insurance, life insurance, liability insurance, homeowners insurance, property tax, auto insurance, I need cloths, food, I have a propane bill, electric bill, heating oil bill, gasoline bills, car payments. Cable bill phone bill, internet bill, cell phone bill, 2 college saving accounts, hobbies, entertainment, occasional intoxicating substance, gifts for family and friends…
I have not exaggerated at all.

Working in the film and video industry is not a hobby, it’s my livelihood.

You may have money from some other source, but you do need money. If you don’t like what the production company does you can if you want say FU and walk away. If I do something as such, I will not only lose that company as a client, but when word gets around about my attitude, I can and most likely will, in some way lose more clients.

If a production company teats it’s crew poorly then word gets around about them and people will stop working for them. Then they will need to get inexperienced people who will work cheep. The problem with inexperience is time. It takes longer to get things done and things may need to be done over. Time is money. An experienced crew can do a job in 10 hours and get everything scheduled on the shot list finished. Take the same schedule with an inexperienced crew, and it could take 15 or 20 hours to complete, or 10 hours with the shot list shortened(-money). An experienced crew is more likely to make mistakes that cause accidents in which people can get hurt or equipment damaged (-money). A functioning active set is very dangerous.

I have 16 years in film and video. 10 years of which my sole income is from the industry. I depend on my clients, and they depend on me.

At the end of a day, I do like to walk away with a feeling of accomplishment. It’s a great felling, that I have felt often, but it’s not why I’m there.
 
Agreed.

Like I said, the money fulfills those very real "life necessities" while the creative opportunities at the heart of the crafts is what makes it all worthwhile.

e
 
c.g._eads said:
Then with a week to go you can say, "that's it! we're finished!" And they'll be both pissed and thrilled.
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Well, that's not exactly a solution either. An action like that would indicate that you view your hired crew as children who need to be taught a lesson rather than professionals who are helping you realize your vision. A kind of "Ha, Ha this is what you get if you can't be happy on my set."

If you are running an operaiton, and the people under your leadership are forming some kind of mutany, 9 times out of 10 you have only yourself to blame.

I've been producing/directing PAYING projects for over 10 years, and I'm known for fair treatment of crews, and getting great work out of them. Here are a few of my personal, yet as unwritten bylaws:

1.) Pay people their asking day rate unless you truly, truly, truly need a deal. If they can do the job, and have a good rep. pay them what they are asking for-- if you try to eek out dollars for yourself (or for the studio you work for that will replace you in a New York minute) by shortchanging crew members, Karma wiil get you.

2.) Have a shot list for the day arranged DOWN TO THE MINUTE. If you can't do this, get out of the business, you are a poser. Give this schedule to the crew ahead of time. Throughout the day inform them of your 'behind' or 'ahead' status after every shot--- keep ALL of them posted at every chance throughout the day.

3.) If you want to get all artsy fartsy and get some crazy off the schedule shots (you should have thought of them already) announce to everyone that you are going to take 5 minutes to try and get some artsy fartsy shots that were unplanned for, and tell them that you realize that this may take you over schedule-- and that it will be your fault, not theirs.

4.) If YOU blow the schedule by getting some artsy fartsy shots that were unplanned for, try and make up the time by compromising in other areas. Show them that you respect their TIME by making up for your use of it.

5.) If you take your crew into overtime--- pay them for it. These are fine people who have volunteered their production day to you, not their personal lives. So if you infringe on their personal time you should pay them extra for it.

6.) Avoid pizza and fast food at all costs. If you are a producer, director, or agency person who spends most days behind a desk eating good healthy lunches, you may not be worried about eating a quick grease blob 'out in the field.' Guess what? While you are eating healthy quality lunches every day at your desk, your crew is out working with some other producer or director who may or may not be providing them with a decent lunch. More often than not they are working with a hack who is trying to make them scarf down a big mac in between shots. That's not cool. Feed them how you would eat back at your office, because 'out in the field' IS THEIR OFFICE-- every single day. (Think of this-- how would you and your editor eat in your comfy non-linear suite? Now, order that same lunch for your crew.)

7.) Don't belittle people, even 'LITTLE' people. You probably wouldn't chew out your DP on location, so why would you chew out the craft services person, or the dolly grip? In fact, if you chew out one person on the crew in front of others as a means to flex your supposed authority muscle, it will only make everyone else realize that you are kind of a wacko for not having the fortitude to address problems with people in a professional manner-- mano-y-mano.

8.) Don't freak out. If the location contact shows up and says you can't bring the donkey into the kitchen at the Ritz afterall, just chill out, think of a solution. No need to start shaking and hyperventilating, no one needs to sse that. Besides it was probably a bad idea anyway. Something better will happen-- trust me.

9.) ALWAYS KEEP THIS IN MIND--- Unless you are a bigtime Holllywood director/producer with many, many projects under your belt with a good reputation-- no one is THRILLED to work with YOU, and no one considers your independent film a HUGE OPPORTUNITY-- despite what your Mom tells you.

10.) Don't ask your crew to do dangerous things unannounced. This should be discussed ahead of time.

11.) Plan for break-down and wrap time. Don't work up until the very last second and say "OK guys, we gotta break down this 20-head set in 10 minutes, cause I ain't payin' overtime!" If you haven't planned for this, you are a poser and should leave the business. Get a paperwork job by yourself.

12.) Treat others as you would be treated.

I think that's it. And, if you are NOT PAYING PEOPLE to work on your project, turn up the volume by about 25% on all of the items listed above.
 
nice list there vicra. when you have had mutinies (or people getting a little out of control) what did you do? How did you squash it? Specific examples?
 
Wrath of the Gods is a documentary about shooting the feature film Beowolf and Grendel, where everything goes wrong, including filming a scene on a Viking ship which was sinking. ( without telling the actors it's sinking!)

http://www.cbc.ca/thelens/program_141106.html

There are video clips on the External Links. The full doc aired several times during the past 2 months .
 
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vicrattlehead said:
8.) Don't freak out. If the location contact shows up and says you can't bring the donkey into the kitchen at the Ritz afterall, just chill out, think of a solution.
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Pull the Midget out of your kit. If you don't have one I'm sure someone on set has one:beer:
 
vicrattlehead, Ahhhh, the voice of reason and experience.

By the way, after 20 years in the film and video business the only time I have ever seen anything remotely resembling a "mutiny" was when everything suddenly changed in the middle of production.

1. Oh, you thought you were going to be paid?
2. Yes, you did sign up for a 16 hour day for a flat rate, I did not lie to you. Really.
3. Now that we have everything painted and the set is lit, bring the cows into the studio. No we didn't tell you but so what.
4. Thank you all for working for free. Tomorrow we promise to feed you this time and not go past 14 hours. And it will be good pizza.
5. By the way, tomorrow's call is 4pm, it's night for night. We should be finished around 6am. You don't have anything booked the next day do you?
 
What this all adds up to, really, is a sign of how grateful union personnel should be, for the power that organized bargaining can bring them. Without the General and Local Agreements, it would be endless 14-hour-days-til-four-a.m.-pizza-scarfing-cow-wrangling-midget-replacement-for-a-dollar-an-hour, no matter where you're working.
 
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