Wash 'n Fold

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ASSIGNMENT

In my second year of GFS, my classmates and I were assigned our first project using dialogue (the summer before we all made six minute non-dialogue shorts).  We were told to write a two-page dialogue script that took place in one location between two characters.

SCRIPT VOTING

Although 32 scripts would be written in total, only five would be produced. My classmates and I voted on the top five films we believed were suitable for production, and my script; at the time titled, The Elevator; was one of them.

DIRECTORS' PITCHES

Everyone was required to pitch for director on one of the five films, so naturally, I pitched for my own film to the class and was voted as director.

CREW PITCHES

The following week my classmates pitched to the other four directors and me for crew positions on our individual films.  That day, I left with a crew comprised of six amazingly talented filmmakers.

AUDITIONS

After locking down crew, my producer and I went to LA Casting to post audition notices for the film. A few weeks later, I made made my choices and had locked down two actors perfect for the parts of John and Lucy.

PRODUCTION

The set of Wash 'n Fold was... interesting to say the least. To sum it up, my initial location cancelled less than 24 hours before call time, resulting in a rewrite of the script for the scene to take place in a laundromat rather than an elevator. 

Because of the abrupt change of plans, I didn't have enough time to secure a location for the shoot, so I decided to do the next best thing- shoot it guerrilla style.

I knew walking in to a small laundromat with camera equipment, a small crew, and actors was risky, and, sure enough, after an hour of shooting, the owner of the laundromat politely asked us to pack up and leave his property.

Of course we did exactly that, and went to the coffee shop next door to warm up, as we were shooting during the rain storm that ended the Los Angeles drought.

POST PRODUCTION

Post production was smooth as the coeditor and I were able to stay in good communication with one another, allowing us to understand each other's creative vision well and work together as a cohesive team.

If you were to pass by that damp, broken-down laundromat, which a Yelp user lovingly described as a "dumpster fire," on November 20, 2016 at around 8:00pm, you would have seen seven soaking wet teenagers hauling camera equipment and props into the back of a white minivan.

If you were to ask any of us how we were doing, I'm almost positive that we'd all give a fake smile and reply with a disingenuous "I'm well, thanks. You?" However, today, if you were to ask any of us how the set of Wash 'n Fold was, we'd all (most-likely) say, "A mess," without missing a beat.  

But after debriefing the shoot with my crew members, we all agreed that this shoot was perfect because, although chaotic and messy, it was exactly what it should have been.  This was only the second set most of us had been on, so of course it should have been chaotic, as the chaos served as a learning experience.

We all learned something different on the set of Wash 'n Fold: personally, I am most thankful for the preparation it gave me in leading a crew of people in a high-stress environment.  I actively use the skills I gained from Wash 'n Fold whenever I AD or lead a group of people in general to this day.