Fir @ White Light

Hi everybody,
Yep it is Sunday again, it’s a bit slow here, 1st Unit is a bit more exiting than 2nd Unit but film making is waiting and I hate waiting with a passion.
Anyway I survive the last week was DC3 week, lot of stuff happened, from explosions to take offs and stunts with lots of guns etc.
Everyday wake-up before sunrise and short evenings.
I did not have the energy to write something in this damn blog.
Yesterday it was Saturday and Mike Bagg was DJ at the Jungle Monkey Trance night, not really my cup of tea but it was nice, lots of people were drunk when I entered at 10:30.
Christoph Strothjohan (ass editor) had a car so I depended on that we left at 12:00.
Sunday I went with Catrien to second beach to see some surfing contest, to find out it was a kids thing.
We drunk a bottle of champagne at the Wetham Hill lodge with a beautiful view over PSJ.
Producer Anton Rolino joined us with some red wine for lunch.
We had a nice walk to the lighthouse and went home to the kitchen.
Time goes fast.
Specially in the Transkei where time stands still.
Talking to Catrien did me realize that there is a thing called home which I try to ignore because of that.
Another month at least, and evil tongues talk about first week of June.
I hope it is the wine and the beer but I can not wait, I do not do countdown tricks etc. but the word home triggered more than I thought.
Tomorrow the beginning of another week, till later.

Sorry guys,
My camera failed has to go to mr. repair,hard work no photo’s.
Just one from Jan from the Lab.I try to get inspired to write something tomorrow.

So we worked Friday and Saturday on the DC3 shoot.
Incredible sky perfect weather.
It was my first day on first unit as an VFX assistant, well it was tough for me.
All the old geezers know all the slang and have enough on a single gesture.
I have to ask 5 times what the hell do you mean? But I’m getting there, 25-5.6 is a 25mm lens with an F-stop of 5.6.
Difficult to hear if they talk fast, because I’m so green in this busyness I got lots of help from Jeremy my boss, but others think I’m slowing them down, while they are doing nothing but checking there email.
Well enough complaining, it is a hell of a job but I enjoy myself a lot.
Saturday was the half way trough party which was fun, they run out of beer fast so I had to switch to whisky no problem for me off-course.
Sunday the day off I have seen Dario Argento’s new film again “3 mothers” the first time I have seen it I could not believe it was so bad, so I needed to see it a second time and yes it is very bad indeed.
A shame for such talented director. Not even close to Inferno and Suspiria. At night I made a pumpkin soup and we eat some crayfish and veggies, and went to bed early. On my way to my little crib Jethro (death row) the dog was attacking Pablo very heavy, it looked as if he would kill Pablo so Thea was in total panic and trough bucket of water over them. Hope they all survive it.

Today more plane action with rebels etc. and special effects will be fun.

Some nice action this morning.
A DC3 landed on the very small airstrip in PSJ, 2nd Unit was ready for this.
Suddenly we where hearing a noise, the plain was 40 minutes early.
It did a, fly over. It came to us the second time and landed, we saw that he shifted suddenly it looked as if it nearly did not make it.
When we drove up to them we could see what happened.
An exploded tyre.
Not a pretty sight.


Ohh ohh (banden plakken)

Did some shopping for post production.
A 8 core 2.8 4Tb HD sweet monster system with 2×23″ screens, in the mean while I use it to practice Shake and FCP.
Weather is still bad here so I hugg the 2 screens and see a nice movie.
🙂
ps sorry for the bad pic

It is Sunday now, yesterday we had a great evening.
Thea cooked Oxtail for us and asked me to invite some people because she had enough food.
I invited Esna van Zyl from accounts and she asked if she could invite the 2 Kates, Kate Higgs & Kate Tee. Esna was in the kitchen before but the Kates not. I think they had a good time. Later that evening Marco came to the party and Thea made her special fillet of beef on the hot coals for him. We all tried it and it was amazing as usual.It started to rain big time and it did not stop, it is still raining.
So now I’m sitting at the outspan on my free day it is cold and wet and miserable.
Next week is Raapie’s last week we have to do all the stuff for second unit in a studio, smoke, fire, rain, etc. the elements.
Lots of stuff to do and lots of fun.

Sorry to see this morning, VooDoo died last night that he may rest in peace.
when I was here he want to drive the car.

Always farting at Richards feet.

Then you wake up in the middle of the night “I was not snoring it was voodoo”

The next two days there will be a night shoot.
For us (2nd unit) we have to be at a 1st unit shoot, there is a stunt involved, so they need all the hands they can get. Multiple cameras etc.
It is going to be a long night and it it pretty cold here at night. 10 degrees Celsius and 25 on the day, so boots on fleece on and hard work keep you warm.

Saturday is a short day, finally a long weekend ahead.
.

Every morning before sunrise (6:20 at the moment) My boss Jeremy Hattingh is hunting for the perfect sunrise which he is shooting with his Canon D20.

He makes a time-laps with raw images so he can put it together for the movie.
Not every morning is a good one so he is there every day just incase.

Second Unit

The last 3 days I am running and driving around as a double.
Our team second unit has to make the shots where first unit do does have time for.
For example: main character drives trough the forrest, main character approach in distance cloud of red dust, etc. Well as it always happens with Richard Raaphorst as director I end up in a costume.

The car is something special it is a Toyota land-cruiser a 3 ton truck without steering power. I drive that car on small dirt roads as wide as the cruiser an then our DOP (director of photography) Peter Belcher says okay turn around and go back to position one. Muscle pain, etc.

The waiting part is my main problem, I freaking hate waiting.
But Richard C. said that I have to get used to that if I want to do something in filmmaking, maybe not my cup of tea after all, we will see.

Jeremy Hattingh (my boss) found a very small cat the other day, I think it was a few days old, eyes where closed by dirt and we try to clean it, gave it anti-biotics and water and milk.
the poor bastard died in a couple of days.

Tomorrow a day off and have to get energized for the next week, I’m going to see some movies I think and drink some wine.