Story bored? More like story ENTHRALLED.

This is dorky, but I’m going to organize this pre-shooting post through an activity my speech team does before tournaments (because, like an oratory competition, this is a vaguely scary and exciting thing that matters a lot to me), called “Rose, Buds, and Thorns.” It goes like this:

ROSE: What looks beautiful/what you can see that you’re looking forward to

BUDS: Parts of the upcoming experience that are still mysterious, i.e., what you feel apprehensive/uncertain about

THORNS: The scary parts. What you know will probably suck. What’s poking you.

So, for turning this storyboard into editable footage, here’s what the rose bush looks like.

ROSE: all of the simpler shots (setting inserts at the cafe, most of the part that’s set in/around my car, etc). I think they’ll be straightforward enough that I can be happy with my work without shooting and reshooting a million times, which will give me enough confidence to direct the less simple stuff (like the interaction between Audrey and Veda at the end of the opening). Plus most of the mise-en-scene! I’m very much looking forward to putting together our costumes and making the props (like writing on the cups). 

BUDS: Pretty much everything related to the factors I can’t control. Like, I’ll shoot at the cafe at a time that shouldn’t be too busy, but what if there’s a random rush? What if the schedule changes and I end up with unaccommodating coworkers? But buds also means what has the POTENTIAL to be really, deeply cool, and I’m weirdly comforted by the thought that I have no idea what those things might be. Technical bud: I need to find one of those cephalapod-looking phone tripods.

THORNS: Honestly, I’m the most worried about the editing. It’s not that I’m inept with the software or don’t have a defined-enough vision or whatever, it’s just the sheer amount of time that it’ll take me to get everything just right— because I have this concept that there’s nothing between haphazard and perfect (you’d think that me knowing that would help me prevent it, but… I mean, you’re the one who can see my posts throughout the editing process. From where I’m sitting in March, it looks scary up ahead).