Sparks have flown - and toasters too!

So, we're about half way through our shoot and it's gone so incredibly fast I can't quite believe it. The last few days in particular have just flown by, perhaps because we have moved through so many different locations and brought in lots of new faces. We started the week in Deadhead Comics, then spent some time on the Grassmarket, before moving to the lovely Monboddo (thank you to all the people at Point Hotel, Edinburgh who were so helpful), Johnstone Terrace, Lady Lawson St and an amazingly huge flat down at Haymarket. Thanks to Ryan and David Hepburn everyone managed to get from A to B via X, Y and Z without too much trouble, but as you'll see from the picture, we really had to tie our actors down to get the best from them!
One of my many worries on the shoot was health and safety and yesterday I had a whole heap of things to get stressed about, including actors riding a stunt bike you can't sit down on, actor pretending to climb out of a 2nd floor window, actor thumping a plate glass window, director riding a stunt bike you can't sit down on, crew loading and unloading heavy equipment in a confined space, the usual issues with cables for people to trip over etc etc. What I wasn't expecting was that our designer Marianne would do an impromptu audition for the part of Electric Man himself by almost electrocuting herself with a dodgy lamp. White sparks leapt across the room and Marianne leapt several feet in the air. Thankfully all was well: Marianne was unharmed and remarkably composed; the lamp was consigned to the bin and the scene looked even better than we hoped, thanks to some excellent set dressing.
Today we were completely on top of our game - not only were the actors doing a fantastic job, but the crew were on a roll too and the shots just kept coming. We started on a buzz with scenes set in a bathroom, involving many bubbles, a corpse and a toy. I can say no more, except that our extra, Doug, really got the most out of his role and the crew could barely hold in the laughter. Then things got serious and Derek Dick (playing Jimmy) did a great number in evil laughter and full on violence with white goods. Production safety was also on a high as we surrounded Rich Steel (DOP) with padding and stationed Elliot to catch the flying toaster. Dave Barras okayed the shot and we all breathed a sigh of relief. Then it was on to the next move and, despite the Papal visit to Edinburgh, we headed up the road to the Hibs Supporters Club, where we couldn't have been made more welcome (special thanks to Colin and Walter for this, and for their help as impromptu extras). We were joined at the HSC by Grant Thomson, Steve Holligan and Julian Leiper who did a marvellous job of creating just the right kind of ambience for Jimmy's drinking haunt - you'd never recognise the place!

Filming (and Posting) at Last!

We're on DAY 2 of our shoot already - time goes so fast! The first day of filming at Deadhead went extremely smoothly and the scene of the day had to be Wolf (Mark McKirdy) drinking his amazingly unrefreshing concoction - a delightful combination of Red Bull and Smash. There was fizzing and expanding and solidifying and all sorts. When Wolf finally managed to persuade the mixture to slip down the glass into his throat, Dave the director almost ruined the shot by laughing so hard - it was that funny! Dave recovered quickly enough to make Mark do a second take - it took Mark a little longer, and a large bucket to recover at all.

We ended DAY 1 a whole scene ahead of schedule (ok, so it was a brief exterior shot of the shop, but still) and feeling optimistic, especially when the Dave saw the rushes, which looked amazing thanks to the excellent work of Rich and his camera team, Grant and Elliot. So it was a bit of a disappointment to wake up this morning to a heavy downpour that didn't look like stopping any time soon. DAY 2 includes a key exterior scene - it's the first time that Lauren (Jennifer Ewing) and Jazz (Toby Manley) meet AND it's the first time we get to see a little bit of how wonderful Edinburgh looks. Between writers/ director/ producer/ DOP there are some differences of opinion on how much each scene matters, but this was one we all really wanted to make count. We did some interior scenes in the morning, anxiously checking the number of passing umbrellas between takes to gauge our chances of shooting outside at all. The heavens were firmly against us, as were the prophecies of the BBC weather forecasters. "I'll settle for light drizzle and a covered archway!", said Dave at one point.

Lunchtime came and things were still looking gloomy. But, after a hearty feast at the Castle Arms we emerged blinking into bright sunlight! No rain at all, and the streets almost dry. Hurrah! said everyone apart from the DOP, who scowled through his viewfinder and told us all we'd have to wait for cloud cover. Still, this gave Kayleigh a chance to perfect Lauren's hair so that when she drops her hooded cape she's every bit a stunning superhero - and Jazz would be a fool not to fall for her.

Despite the attentions of several passing tourists, Toby and Jen played the scene like they were the only two people in the world that mattered - the onscreen romance is looking good! Toby does bemused like you wouldn't believe it and Jen strides in and out of shots like she rules the universe. Sparks will fly!