Fables - Diary/notes

Pre-Production - diary and notes

I have teamed up with Hannah for this project. We have agreed she will be the director and I will be the Producer as Producing is what I am aspiring to become.

Already, we have decided to stick to adapting fables because we both believe there is something interesting and unique about it. However, as Hannah is directing the style would change. We have also decided to select 3 fables together an adapt as it will be the director who will vision the stories. Hannah will also be writing the script because as a director also, she will know what goes into the story and can vision how the story will look. She can also amend the script where appropriate.

As a producer in pre-production, I will be overlooking the stories and advise with creative suggestions to make sure the films are accomplishable. I will be pulling all my contacts together to form a crew.

12th October

I have contacted Jutta to see if she is available for working on my project even though the project has changed from the original proposed project. Jutta is busy on another production at the moment but she will be available after November. I will contact her closer to end of October to arrange a meeting with her about make-up design.

So far, (13th Oct) I have written up a schedule for both of us to follow with reasonable deadlines, the timetable will be changing depending on when we hit our targets and if any problems arise.

The director is still exploring characters and developing stories have taken a few weeks, which means we are not hitting the schedule deadlines therefore I will have to re-arrange the schedule.

Problems arising is the timescale. The later the director and writer firms the story, the less time I as a producer will have in pre-production in finding casting and begin costume fittings and make-up testing also location scouting. As I do not have any information I can not begin to look at locations nor cast calling because I have no information about who I am casting.

20th- 25th October

I have sent another message to Jutta arranging a meeting. We have decided to meet her round her house in London on 2nd November at 7.30pm.

All week I have been trying find storyboard artists from my own contacts, but I have heard no response. I have decided to go elsewhere to look at other freelancers who could provide the service such as people per hour. I have had a large response, but have found people responding are asking if I was looking for...

Meanwhile, stories are still in development.

27th October

Had a meeting with the costume designer Daniella. Went through a few suggestions of style, colours, materials etc... Discussed about different types of materials for the Nymph costume and suggested using netting and creating leaves rather than using real leaves even though it is cost effective.

Problems arising about the design concerning the time of the year and if there will be leaves by the time we shoot. This leaves to the change in the design, where the costume is more wood and moss based rather than leaf based. Also, in order to confirm the colours and type of tree the Nymph will be blending into, the costume designer will need to know the location we will be shooting at which has not been confirmed yet.

Other costumes such as a postman, Stephanie's ordinary clothes can all be found in the home wardrobe which shouldn't cost a penny. The warlocks jewellery can be borrowed off friends, or possibly bought in Camden market for a cheap price.

28th October

With all the information that I now have, I was able to write up for casting on Starnow and CastingCallPro so we can begin to cast our main actors for the films. Information includes project info, character synopsis, pay.

2nd November - Monday

Arranged to meeting with Jutta at her house in London. Hannah and I went through mood boards, visual and explained what we were looking to do for the make-up. Jutta suggested to use contacts for each character and wigs can change their look for each episode. We were advised to source these at our own cost as it would be cheaper. Jutta is also a wig master and have made beards for people such as Chris Hemsworth and Anthony Hopkins in Thor, she said she could help us make a beard as long as she is given enough time so she could also add to her collection. This beard will be used for the book keeper for the Protecting Nature film. According to Jutta £250 for the budget in make-up was not enough, this is why she has advised us to source some make-up materials for ourselves. Contact lenses will make a huge difference if we want the actors to look different.

Jutta will not be available until December to begin design. So, make-up tests will be run in January.

4th November

Preparations for the auditions include writing up audition forms and bringing equipment. Hannah will bring the ideas to explain to the actors and then come up with scenarios which will help with direction and see everyones creativity.

Audition forms will contain name, contact details, emergency contact, if they have a car and can drive, a calendar to fill out with their dates of availability so we have all the information when deciding who best suited in availability. This will also help when setting shoot dates for locations. Also a statement at the end of the form stating that we would pay £90 for their full service in all 3 films and we will not be paying for travel. They must sign it if they understood so they can not dispute with us in the future and prevent us from having to pay out more money.

5th and 6th November - Thursday and Friday

After messaging back and forth with potential actors, we have our audition days. So far we have about 6 people for auditions each day. We have had people asking for Skype auditions but we would prefer people to come in so we know if they come in on time, and we can see if they really want the job.

On the first day we ended up having 2 people who turned up. The second day we had more people turn up. Unfortunately Hannah unexpectedly fell ill and could not attend the auditions, so I had to use my initiative, bring my own camera and go into the studios to borrow the tripod. I didn't have a copy of the details of the ideas for each film and details of the characters. I had to ask hannah to send me the details but unfortunately she was unable to access the internet. Fortunately, we 

 I also had to let the people casting know she apologises for not being able to show, therefore asking if it was ok to film the whole audition on her behalf as she is the director and will be making the final decisions. 

I managed to talk the director our of having to film the Devourers home as it was going to be another location which would be difficult to find considering when filmKent emailed back advising that people will charge for the locations.

Meeting with Vikki
The Director and I had our first meeting with our animator Vikki Kerslake. I had found Vikki through UCA by writing to Phil Gomm who is the head of animations department, also who taught me in past years. He managed to get in touch with Vikki who had just graduated so was in need of some work.

Location Recce at Shorne Country Park

Re-scripting characters and locations

16th November - Monday

Locations are still an issue. I am having difficulty finding a location for Stephanie's home and Elliotts home this is because they are both indoor locations and most likely private locations in which people would want money for. In terms of looking for Elliotts location, we have found a place called Circle R Ranch. I had emailed FilmKent who directed me to LocationWorks. I emailed LocationWorks detailing what we wanted to film and asking for details for prices and if there were discounted prices for students.
Their prices are follows:

Library fee, charged for the successful use of a location found in our library:

• Filming: £300
• Events: £400
• Stills advertising: £250
• Stills editorial: £200

+ the facility fee. This varies according to the type of location, expected usage, etc. We will negotiate the best fee on your behalf. Please give us a ring at the budgeting stage: we will be able to give you advice on expected costs and suggest ways of saving money.

+ insurance. Public Liability Insurance is required at all locations. If you don't have it already, or additional cover is required, we can put you in touch with someone who can organise it for you.

+ extras. If there are any extra charges we'll let you know in advance: possibilities might be couriers, international telephone calls or other research costs.

...and remember: what the library can't find for you, our scouts and location managers can.

Scouting: £400 per day plus expenses.

So I will now attempt to approach the ranch as an individual to see if they would help students. 

Their website is: http://www.remuda.org.uk/index.html

Their email address is: emuda@btinternet.com

Phone contact : 020 8697 3618

Mobile Telephone: 07931 171994

The Circle R Ranch is located 0.7 miles away from Hildenborough Train Station near Tonbridge, Kent.
To arrange a visit, please contact John on either of the two phone numbers above.