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FILMS
AND PROJECTS
HEAVY DUTY - TEST SCENE
…WHERE WERE YOU ON …NEW YEAR'S EVE 1999?
(Current list)
HEAVY DUTY - EASY MONEY - LITTLE WHITE LIARS
Feature Film Project: HEAVY DUTY
(Download script)
Copyright Lisa Scullard
(Registered)
Jade is a single parent not declaring her earnings as an agency bouncer
contracted out to a nightclub popular for its guest DJ slots. On one of
these particular nights, her drink is spiked and she suffers a psychotic
attack. Her co-workers from the agency choose to conceal the situation by
thoughtfully knocking her out and locking her in the boot of her car for
the rest of the night…
Shareholder/Equity Investment Opportunities - contact lisa@screenkiss.co.uk
If Easy Money had been done in a time-limit, then the demo scene for Heavy Duty which we shot in January 2001 was done on the run. Cinematographer Dave LeMay was snowed under with work and there was one day a week when the Tattoo Emporium, courtesy of Sven, was closed for business giving us room to film. Dave had another job that afternoon back up in London so our set-up and actual shooting time was two and a half hours. I had asked a friend to act as runner and clapperboard operator, Anita Jeetun, who proved incredibly hard working when a necessary cable for the microphone was found to be absent from the boom kit, requiring a visit in the rain to the guitar and drums shop at the far end of town, and a sound recordist for the day, local film director Sebastian Graca da Silva was keen to help out and had provided a further contact with actor Otto who would read the part of one character in the scene. The actress interested in the leading role would have played her character in the scene but had recently suffered a broken ankle, so I asked another friend to read the part. Unfortunately on the day she couldn’t make it so the job fell to me, something I had sworn not to do since seeing myself on screen for the first time in ‘Attack of the Millennium Bug’
The tattoo shop had parallel mirrors on opposite walls which had to be lit and filmed around, and the historical George Street in the Old Town of Hastings did not allow much natural light into the shop particularly as it was overcast and wet. I had sent Dave a sketch/storyboard prior to filming to give him some idea of this and suggested two possible angles. Dave’s lighting set-up gave a great impression of natural light indoors which you couldn’t fault on the tape afterwards.
Our other limit was the stock. Dave had some 16mm film stock on the end of a roll to be developed which would count as a camera/lighting test at the laboratory and telecine - our limit was about five minutes giving us only a few chances at a good run-through, but we made it. The plan was to edit from telecine straight onto DV/videotape, meaning the developed stock itself would not be edited for projection.
This time Chris Taylor did the editing and dubbing, with background music provided by my cousin Ben Stephens under his working name M4P, which was copied from his CD onto minidisk the same as the dialogue had been recorded on. Chris, who is a digital animator and graphic artist, suggested animating a title sequence to go with the scene, and after exchanging some ideas came up with something very apt.
As with Easy Money, the demo scene was shot as an intended part of the business plan but it was also interesting to see and hear how a sample of the dialogue looked and sounded from the feature film script, in comparison to making a short where the ‘story’ is a single complete piece, and to consider other creative ideas while shooting it. In this case I was the director of the piece as well as producer, and along with Dave could see how a director faced with potential inspiration conflicting with limitations of time and money could find it frustrating when you know what else could have been done in more time or with more materials, and how often creative ideas sometimes wait until after the preparation and storyboarding and set-up has been arranged to then emerge.
Short Film: EASY MONEY
Written and Produced by Lisa Scullard for Screen Kiss/Sharp Focus Enterprises Ltd.
Directed and Co-Produced by Anthony Bennett
How did you spend your Millennium? Did you ever wonder about the true purpose
of the Millennium Dome? Did you see or hear anything suspicious? Brian and
Neville could probably tell you…then again, getting a straight answer from
either of them isn't that easy…
DO YOU KNOW WHAT'S OUT THERE?
- LITTLE WHITE LIARS -
Autumn 2002
COMING SOON… TO GET YOU