Weighing Wigs

Found myself embroiled into the world of sending equipment overseas - and to do that you need to do a riggerous inventory of everything. My colleague and I spent the last four hours of our day logging, weighing and price guessing wigs, curling irons and scissors. Never a dull moment in the world of film and TV... 

Here Comes the Curtain

Working split shifts again which means emails before my work day has officially started then coming how in the wee hours of the night. To break it up a bit though we did a scavenger hunt of sorts on the truck as a kind of prank war. That kept me smiling, but I couldn't shake the feeling that this was the last two weeks of shooting and things were slowly coming to a close. The curtain call is on everyone's minds now, and it's making me a little blue.

Cairn

Treated myself to a little indie game that came out last week (my first game of 2026). It's a mountain climbing one called Cairn, the big thing is you have to individually place your four limbs into ledges as you climb, you're basically an octopus mountain goat. It's incredibly engaging so far, every sheet wall is a little puzzle to solve and every accent begins with me holding my breath as I double guess if I truly selected the right spot to for the climb. 

Rebecca came home just in time to watch a whole lot of The Bear's latest season. The Sunday scariest manifested a little bit as the sun started setting. Luckily I have much later start tomorrow so I can get a Monday lie in... But that also means I have a later finish.  

Wes Exhibit

Dan and I drove up to London to meet up with Rebecca, Mark and Lucy for a little day of activities. Spearheading it all was a trip to the Design Museum, which was hosting an exhibit on Wes Anderson's films and I was blown away by how expansive it was. Script pages, photographs, original props and costumes, it was such a treasure trove. I was surprised by how emotional bits made me feel, knowing that only a piece of glass was separating me from some elements of my favourite films. After that we grabbed a cheeky Nandos and did a bit of pub hopping, ending up in a hotel bar drinking some left of field cocktails. The day was full of food stuff but best was just hanging out altogether again, enjoying eachothers company and shooting the breeze.

Board Game Dan

 A quiet office day was all I needed to get more or less back on track. I didn't actually have a moment to stop still but at least the pressure and threat of new working coming in. I finished work in good time and was able to head up the road for biard games - this time with a special guest: Dan! I knew it would be his scene and the games we played tonight really were pitch perfect for him. Hope he had a good time, now that he's here in Bristol it's been fun finding excuses to hang out a bit more again.

Martini Shot

Lordy, I felt like the behind the scenes Mastermind today as I wrangled this 2nd Unit into shape. My biggest one ever at 250 people was big one to look after, especially with multiple catering points and people to keep happy. I clocked over 20,000 steps marching around set, making friends and solving problems. I found myself shilling out lunch boxes to a tsunami of supporting artists at one point, running up and down a queue throwing boxes into their hands in a desperate attempt to bust the queue. Had a little over an hour to catch up on emails, then I had to return to set in a ceremonial capacity.

A famous piece of film jargon is the 'Martini Shot'. This refers to the final set up of the day, a nod to the fact the crew can all hit the bar after this last beat. We decided to take this phrase literally today. We surprised a cast member one their final day with us by presenting to them a Martini cocktail, in a chilled glass, garnished with an olive. I know this because 24 hours ago I had never made a Martini, but I had to learn fast because I was the chosen one to make the famous drink. 

4 Parts Vodka

1 Part Vermouth 

 Stir through with ice and pour.

For a chap who has never made one before, the kudos I received on set was hilarious when I presented them. The cast loved the gesture and the crew all pointed to me when they asked where this came from. Just another funny story that wouldn't happen in any other industry. 

That Feel

 Another day out on the road with the 2nd Unit. The guys were all out doing car bits which is notoriously slow and monotonous so I kept my head down and cracked on with my duties. I spent the whole day watching the time to see if I could get away early to make the screening of my short film at a small Bristol cinema. First I heard we were going to wrap early, then late, but then bang on time - giving me just enough wiggle room to get to the church on time. In the midst of all this Rebecca agreed to go in my stead to possibly introduce the film - what did I ever do to deserve someone as giving as Rebecca?

Luckily I made it in time so she needn't embarrass herself. It's been a hell of a long time since I had something of mine put in front of an audience. Not since the days of Cineclub I dare say, but I never forgot that feeling. Sitting with a group of strangers and hoping they laugh and react to your work as much as you'd hope. When No Show came on, people responded loudly with awws and yays in all the right places. 

It's the one thing I won't lose, that feeling.