DESIDERATUM - A Film By Ben Sliker

Oh damn. Is it time to kick it into high gear already? **sigh** better go buy me some jello...

Locations look good dude. Makes me wonder what you're up to this time around. In a suburban setting no less...
 
Alright, we are a little bit more than 2 weeks away from shooting this beast. Storyboarding is 95% done (sans one scene), rehearsal is set for 1 week prior to the shoot, things are getting exciting.

Now it's time to get down to the nitty gritty... I have a few things I need to build before we shoot!
 
Team Tide....GORICKYRUDD!

Talking a lot with Ben on this project, it's shaping up nicely. I mostly talk on the phone because I type so slowly I for get what I'm talking about halfway through typing it.
 
conrad_johnson said:
Team Tide....GORICKYRUDD!
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THAT JUST HAPPENED. (but seriously ... i cut NASCAR highlights for a living)

conrad_johnson said:
Talking a lot with Ben on this project, it's shaping up nicely. I mostly talk on the phone because I type so slowly I for get what I'm talking about halfway through typing it.
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Joe also forgets what he's saying halfway through it. Today he started talking about C-stands and ended up somewhere where he was drunk in Mexico, curled up in a ball hoping he didn't have Swine Flu ... WEIRD.

Which is why the program celtx is possibly the greatest thing ever created, especially for collaborating long distance like this. DL it now, it's for all OSs and it's FREE. I used to just write script in it, but there's SOOO much more you can do, all in one project file. (schedule, storyboard, notes, contact info, etc.)

My name is Ben Sliker, and I endorse Celtx.
 
Ben Sliker said:
Joe also forgets what he's saying halfway through it. Today he started talking about C-stands and ended up somewhere where he was drunk in Mexico, curled up in a ball hoping he didn't have Swine Flu ... WEIRD.

Which is why the program celtx is possibly the greatest thing ever created, especially for collaborating long distance like this. DL it now, it's for all OSs and it's FREE. I used to just write script in it, but there's SOOO much more you can do, all in one project file. (schedule, storyboard, notes, contact info, etc.)

My name is Ben Sliker, and I endorse Celtx.
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No, you misunderstood. I WAS in Mexico drunk and curled up in a ball, but no swine flu (thank god!) when I was talking to you. Sometimes the phone connection is not so good.
 
conrad_johnson said:
No, you misunderstood. I WAS in Mexico drunk and curled up in a ball, but no swine flu (thank god!) when I was talking to you. Sometimes the phone connection is not so good.
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I myself, completely Understand. Those Cell Phone Towers in Mexico Never Put out a Good signal...and if you are in one of the jail cells...you May As Well just give it up...Not That I would Know....A Friend Told Me....
 
Here's a bit of a convo Joe and I had this morning that interjected our filmspeak.

Ben: I get to go shoot some interviews with NASCAR drivers tomorrow ... BE JEALOUS.
Ben: actually ... i'm just excited about the OT pay.
Joe: Oh man ... are you going to talk with Ricky Rudd and Dale Earnhardt?
Ben: Dale Earnhardt is dead.
Joe: Oh shitty. I didn't know.
Ben: HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW THIS?
Joe: 3! Lives forever!!!
 
ok, more filmmaking stuff. We have exactly one shot that requires a type of flooring that doesn't exist at one of the locations. So, instead of trying to find a new location with this kind of floor, I went ahead and built a false floor. I know, it seems like a lot of work for just one shot, but so would lugging the entire cast/crew to a new location for it. Plus, I like to get out into the garage every once and a while and build stuff.

STEP 1:
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Supplies: find as cheap as possible, a lot of this i had lying around but I had to go and get a 4x8 piece of plywood.

STEP 2:
buildframe.png


Now, this in no way means that woman skills couldn't accomplish the same thing. By use man skills, I mean don't measure and just eyeball it. It's more frustrating, and may or may not save you time. But you'll feel better in the end, just like when we don't ask for directions and miraculously find our destination.

STEP 3:
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Liquid nails is top 5 greatest substances every created. Just go get a tube. I guarantee in the next 6 months you'll have a use for it.

STEP 4:
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And there you have it, a false floor, for my one shot.
 
jasonthewho said:
Nice...

Out of curiosity, why did you put the 2X4s under the plywood?
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ah yes. good question. Well, we're going to work some movie magic and shoot this shot in my garage (it's worked well in the past, notice my garage is painted black? That's from IN PIECES). And you can sort of see in the pictures that the garage is finished (has molding/drywall), but has cement blocks for a foundation. The 2x4s are so that the floor is raised and you don't see the cement blocks in the shot.
 
phew ... just got home from two long days of shooting NASCAR content for speedtv.com. Most of my time at my work is spent editing in a dark room, but occasionally they let me out to have some fun. Here's me shooting Marcos Ambrose, driver of the #47 Little Debbie Car.

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They were shooting episodes of PASS TIME, a game show on SPEED, so we piggybacked when they got a bunch of drivers to be on the show.

In DESIDERATUM related news, I FINALLY figured out how to get to the last shot of the movie. It's been killing me. ***ben goes to draw storyboards as quickly as possible.***
 
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Rehearsal Today!!!

Worked 60 hours last week, so I've been crazy busy putting this whole thing together on my "down" time, but lately, I've been hunting for props, photoshopping like a madman, discussing wardrobe and locking down the schedule for next week.

Updates to come: Photos from rehearsal tonight and new poster here soon.
 
You didn't tell me there's going to be a new poster. PTHHHHTTTTTT.

Ha! 60 hours last week, try that every week and you're in my world.

/trying to get bad with Ben
 
REHEARSAL!

Last night's rehearsal went REALLY great. We went out to Freedom Park and hung out in the amphitheater, the only downfall of the night was that it started POURING when we were halfway back to our cars...

It was only two hours, but this rehearsal will probably save us 5 on set, plus we won't have any crappy takes where it's like we were "rehearsing" on set. I highly recommend one, you also get the opportunity to block out scenes and hear the lines that you have written one more time and work out any awkward kinks that may pop up.

And with that, PICTURES ...

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