49 Bagettes

Arrived at work early to do the finishing set-up touches for our big production meeting. Laid out all the pastries, coffee and biscuits and set the guys up on a Zoom call which, in my mind, would last ni less than 4 hours. I then headed out to buy lunches for the meeting, plus food for costume and makeup (not going to lie, they took the Micky a bit with their orders.) After wasting an hour and forty minutes to food shopping I returned with a mountain of bagettes all ready to appear at the meeting. Once I got back though, the meeting room was empty, and had been for nearly two hours apparently. I was so put out, literally my entire week revolved around getting this meeting in place and everyone just decided it was a waste of time. Luckily all my food got eaten, but it still felt like a slap in the face.

Passing Comments

My new jumper came out in full force today and amassed plenty of positive comments. Even the 1st AD gave me unprompted compliment that made me smile. Those good vibes carried me through the gargantuan lunch order and supermarket snack run I was requested to buy. A higher up member of the team took notice of all the food I was buying and said exactly what I was thinking: 'I think some fully grown adults can live without this many snacks'. I couldn't agree more, but sadly, I just do as I'm told.

Nice Weather for Me

Rain got everyone down today, 'cept for me. Rebecca and I have an in-joke that I'm a duck because I love bread and the rain. When it begun chucking it down I gained a second wind in the afternoon and looked forward to driving to the supermarket. At least that was more enjoyable than the limp office vibes today. I was feeling a little morose about it towards the end of the day, then I bumped into some chaps from Art Department and I ended up having a really lovely chat with them. Shortly after I caught up with the gang I shared the Production Truck with and had a laugh too. I think it's just my department that are a little lifeless, can't all be winners I know, but I just want to be able to put my finger on why I'm not clicking with one or two of them as I should be.

Foodie Demands

 Another familiar face joined the Sanditon family today. A Floor Runner I worked with on The Last Bus got a haircut and joined us in prep. Seeing his face was the warmth I needed to push through the day. We had a mini production meeting which needed a lot of extra prep work this morning, somehow it all landed on my shoulders to do this leg work. Everytime I started working in it though, I was dragged away but the most mundane requests. We need more milk because someone just knicked out full bottle, I can't eat my pitta bread because there's no plates left, I don't want salmon I want a cheese toastie. Again, notice how all the requests are food related. Would the entire group of people just strave without me? Heaven forbid I leave someone hungry because they needed a plate to eat a pitta off of. We're meant to be a group of resourceful and adaptable people, not proud housecats.

Nomadland

Getting to bed at 4am the night before means I got a great big lie in this morning. Rebecca had been up, eaten breakfast and watched an episode of something all while I slumbered deeply. Once I was up though, the day quickly got into full swing. We did the second and third coats of paint in our kitchen - the results are tremendously pleasing and makes the room look so much lighter! To reward ourselves (and because we didn't want to use the kitchen) we got Korean fried chicken for takeout and watched Nomadland. If there was ever an easier film for the academy to issue and Oscar to I'd like to see it. Effortlessly good direction and gorgeously photographed landscapes made it a joy to watch. During long stretches of the film I noticed I became totally enraptured in its world and people. A solid film that easily gets my recommendation.

Paint in my Hair

Missing today: paint the kitchen. Rebecca and I have been silently dreading this one as our cooking space is full of nooks and crannies that are aalmost impossible to push a paintbrush into. Perseverance was key and eventually we got the first few coats done with only minimal paint spatter on my coffee equipment. Part 2 is tomorrow's job, afterwards we can bask in the glory of a beautifully painted kitchen.

Since the pandemic I've been sorely missing board game nights with groups of friends. We did a few over Zoom back in the day, all great fun, but it could never compare with a face-to-face gaming session. Mark and I headed out to another infamously lengthy board game night at our good friend's house. I had so much fun I only checked my watch properly when I left, it's was 3am... No regrets whatsoever. We had a tremendous 4 player game of Root (a game that's notoriously difficult to teach to a group) but everyone grafted to it so well and it ended up as the highlight of the night. So nice to spend time with old chums that I'd only seen over webcams over the last year or so too.

Double Doughnuts

Somehow dodged having to do two lunch runs and I've never been more chuffed. Our other Runner happened to be up by Pinkman's Bakery around lunchtime so we all put orders in for sourdoughnuts. Seconds after he paid, the other Runner came into the office brandishing Krispy Kreme doughnuts... I've never seen an office groan so loudly at the arrival of expensive doughnuts. Felt so guilty.

Our big fancy Production Meeting was meant to be in full swing for Monday. We laid out the tables, bought the snacks and printed name placards. Then in classic fashion the folks upstairs wanted to schedule it for a different day. Mood in the office was predictably a bit stale thanks to that unpopular decision. But the Friday spirit couldn't be quashed quite so easily, I was so ready to head home and now I'm looking forward to enjoying this weekend to it's fullest.

Affordable Tech for Hire

 Instead of paying almost 5 grand to host a production meeting in an upmarket hotel with an audio/visual company helping out with tech, we're going to have our meeting at base, using my streaming webcam and mic. Budget cuts are rearing their ugly head and the Line Producer only wants to pay for biscuits for this meeting so I graciously offered my kit up to help the cause. They've gotten a lot of mileage out of me, historical games advisor, supporting artist, now tech supplier. They'll be asking me to redisign the logo next.

My day was made exponentially easier now that my colleague is no longer self isolating. The next few days should fly by with their help... Until the other unit stole them from me. Of all the Production Runners in this show, why is it that I'm the only one who's never had a sick day?

Feeding Time at the Zoo

Picked up 45 breakfast baps and made 4 large cafetieres of coffee for the folks heading out on our Tech Recces. The moment they sped away in their minibuses my next job was their lunch. The classic Pret lunch was promised to them so thaty exactly what I went and got. I think I've been officially bumped up to 'Cafe Regular' status at the nearby Pret. So much so that because their card machine was down they let me walk away with 30 bagettes for free today because they knew I'd be back tomorrow to cover the costs. You can't buy that kind of trust!

I delivered lunch and folks were delighted with the spread. I saw our new director picking around at the selection looking for her favorite thing... I kept it hidden in a bag so no one else would swipe it. Let's just say I earned a LOT of brownie points when I showed it to her. Being Mr Food has its perks when people are grateful for your efforts... Then again, this is exactly why pets are conditioned to love their owners.

Mr Food

I was told I had to help set up for a meeting this morning, but no one mentioned just how big and important it was. First hour I spent scrambling around making coffee and putting out pastries, scrimping together anything that even remotely resembled a ceral bar to add to my tea table. Brunch sorted, lunch to go. Collected everyone's lunch orders as per and drove to the cafe. There's a message on my phone, it's from the Coordinator on the other unit, low-key begging me to do a favour for them which MUST be done in the next hour. Guess I'm leaving my team, and my director hungry for an extra hour...

Nipped off to sort that job out, eat my dinner wn lunch then I'm off to the shops to buy more food. It's our tech recces tomorrow, this means that Production teams historically (and uncharacteristic) try to look loving and nurturing for the next 72 hours. Decoding this further means they get a lowly Production Runner to buy a full trolley of shopping so big wigs can snack on something during their minibus rides. No word of a lie, I was sent back to the supermarket after hours to buy Mars Bars for people's snack packs tomorrow in case they start flagging. I'm getting up early to pick up 45 breakfast baps for them to munch on. Slowly I begin to realize my entire job revolves around making sure a Producer can't turn their head without accidentally chomping on a Jaffa cake.

Hare in the Gate

Been a hare in the gate for the past week at work and today I saw my first slither of action. Basically everything I'm working on over the next two weeks hinges on one decision. Now it looks like everything is starting to come together a bit, I sent a few 'lets do it' emails to get the ball rolling. I'm arranging breakfasts for people again, at least I don't need to worry about sorting lunches.

 10 minutes later I was asked to sort lunches too... Just 9 more days til we're back to filming, that's what I keep telling myself..

Grilling Under a Rainbow

Anticipating a BBQ meal with family at Louis and Rachel's house, I was a little shocked to see a grill in Dad's hand as I opened my front door. The BBQ was apparently to take place in our garden, thankfully we had everything basically ready to go. As we all laid out all the food we'd each prepared for today I noticed everyone brought their A-game. Dad whipped up a miso aubergine and brought along special sausages, Rachel and Louis produced gorgeous salads made with tomatoes from their garden. I made up some burgers for us all after popping into a local butchers. Everything was perfect... Except the weather. Just as we were about to put the first sausage on the grill, spittles of rain spoilt our outdoor fun, we just moved the party inside which actually worked really well. 

Some great food was shared with greater company. A lovely family day out (and in). Plenty of leftovers too so the good eating can continue long into the week.

Alone Morning

With Rebecca out in London for the day I found myself in the rare scenario where I had most of the day all to myself - it ended up being rather productive! I did a tidy up of the house and myself, hoovering from top to bottom before brewing a great cup of coffee and settling into some well deserved video games. I got a call from Louis asking if I could rustle up some of my trademarked burgers for the family visit tomorrow. Louis' new BBQ grill and my burgers sounds like a match made in heaven - I'm already dreaming of the flavous.

Happy Birthday Louis 2021!

 Tore away from another painfully slow day at work I hurried back to join Louis for his Birthday evening celebration. We tucked into Korean fried chicken, played a Japanese inspired board game and drank fresh Chinese tea... Only now am I noticing the Asian influences across the entire night. It was a lovely little night though, very chill and a lot of laughs. Rachel's homemade raspberry and rose brioche with cream cheese frosting and pistachios was the literal icing on the cake. Felt flguilty asking for seconds, but thankfully she put some for me and Rebecca in a take away box to enjoy all over again.

Indecision Nation

It only took me 6 hours into my day at work to realize I've accomplished absolutely nothing. In partial fairness, the jobs I'd recently been given very much rely on people above me making actionable decisions... But those decisions are now sorely overdue. Now I've just got a handful of drafted emails ready to go out but I'm just waiting on the go ahead. It's frustrating for my entire department because they love to plan everything in advance but it feels like plans are only made at the precipice of deadlines. Then we do a second rate job because we have no notice period and it all reflects badly in us - it's a lose-lose situation that I've also only just realized this sole issue has been the heart of every major issue people have been having since filming began... Today I learnt that even my optimism has limits.

Logging Mad

Prepped a few cafetieres and rigged up a tea table for a meeting for the next block of filming. Our new director was beside herself with the snacks I laid out and thanked me personally for the hospitality - already started very much on the right foot. Then I was put on logging duties, Production's favorite kind of busywork. Water coolers, Ipads and suppliers (all things that should have been done months ago) landed in my court as Jobs to tackle as and when. I spent this whole job dodging this mundane responsibility but it's finally caught up with me.

This evening Rebecca and I headed out to a friend's brand new house (they got the keys 2 days ago). It was still in that fun phase where there wasn't any furniture in place so the house's future was unwritten. We ate our dinner on camping chairs by candle light as they pointed out where their TV and bookshelves will go. It's a little bit of a fixer upper, but I'm very excited to see the end result.

Tepid Tuesday

Arrived at work a little early to help set up a budget meeting. Then I heard it got cancelled so instead if brewing coffee I derigged all the chairs and tables. We're all patiently awaiting the scripts for our next block, then I can really spring into action and begin helping out again. For now though, it's back to Pret for group lunches, topped off with 20 minutes of cleaning the Production Office fridge. While I was happy enough to do it, it did dawn on me that I hadn't even been in that office for 2 months... Did they all just patiently wait for my return to throw out that really old yogurt? How do they even function without me?

Meaty Monday

Experienced a real sense of cognitive dissonance as I stepped back into the office. Going from a film set, where every second counts, back to the production office where time stands still was a gear shift to say the least. I was back to buying people Pret lunches and looking busy, my heart yearned for something reactionary and rewarding, instead I got asked to clean out the fridge. 

The saving grace came from the usual place: Mark Stopher. Another friend cancelled on his dinner plans so he had a mountain of slow cooked beef tacos he needed help eating - Rebecca and I were happy to oblige. Meaty Monday ended well, with tacos in my tum and board games stirring my soul - those things and the good company reminded me that I did indeed have a pulse.

Beeses

Returned from Newbury via Beeses, AKA: Bristol's best kept secret. A small nature reserve that runs along the river Avon, eventually leading to a cute riverside pub. Though we didn't get anything on this visit it's been marked for future reference. After we got home Rebecca and I just felt exhausted from the weekend, me especially, but then again it's probably just me catching up with sleep. I'm back in the office tomorrow, not really sure what I'll be getting up to. My hours should be a little more normal though so I'll make the most of this rest period.

Beer Festival 2021

Second weekend in September, gotta be Newbury Beer Festival! Dad, Rebecca and I all trapsed down to grab a few beers, they were also serving gin this year which made for a nice change of pace. After carefully studying the selection of ales I quickly singled out what unanimously became the best beer of the show, and also the weirdest. As is tradition with myself, I gave the oddest drink a fair shot - this year I got a chocolate stout, brewed with 20kg of Coco Pops and it was predictably terrible.

The final wave of Birthday presents came tumbling in too, a board game expansion which I was very excited for and a little hand coffee grinder. I used it a little bit today but I'm very excited to get it home to really put it through it's paces. Plus it'll look delightful on my coffee shelf.

Happy Birthday Me! 2021

 My plan to get up early to play video games were dashed somewhat by a late one last night. I still had a very easy breezy morning unwrapping Rebecca's presents and drinking good coffee - I even managed to squeeze in some gaming before heading out to enjoy brunch with a handful of my work colleagues. We ate posh eggs Benedicts and drank grapefruit mimosas and chatted about all of our favorite moments from filming so far. About halfway through a small brownie with a Birthday candle inside appeared and everyone started singing Happy Birthday and dished me out even more gifts. I was very touched and left a little speechless, I'm very lucky to be part of such a thoughtful team.

28 doesn't feel much different to 27, but I did enjoy a day if pampering. It was exactly what I needed after working so intensely hard this last year, I looked back once again and took stock in how far I'd come. So many well wishes kept coming at me from throughout the day, every single one put a smile on my face.

Crepe Check

I didn't fully believe the crepe van existed until I saw it parking up with my own eyes. For 48 hours I was incredibly anxious whether it would turn up an deliver on it's promise (the lead actress wanted it so it added extra pressure). But there it was, at the golden hour of mid afternoon. As people stood in line for Nutella pancakes I stood like Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams, and admired my handiwork. The crew loved it too and I was over the moon. I gave the pancake people a little tour of set afterwards as my way of saying 'thank you' and they were bowled over by the collective manpower it takes to get things filmed. 

We wrapped on Block 1, or the first half of my filming time on this project. I even produced a multitude of beers for the shooting crew to mark the occasion. The. We all hit the pub, and later a nightclub. I technically wrang in my Birthday in the company of crewmates while dancing to Whitney Houston... That's another thing ticked off the bucket list.

Rancid Milk and Free Ice Cream

Got into work early so I could assess the damage caused by the other unit after inheriting their truck - I spent most of the day hunting down the source of a 'rancid milk' smell with zero success. Bit of a messy start to the day but we got through it all, thanks in large part to an impromptu arrival of an ice-cream truck, courtesy of the cast. A bar has been set with these sweet treat vans now, hopefully my crepe van goes down well... although I just head it'll likely be raining for most of the day.

Painting the Front

Busted the shorts out once again to get me through the sweltering day. I chased down a few more pancake places, eventually settling in a cheap but wholesome looking one who looked just right for us - lead actress was happy with the result too so that's all that matters. 

Back on the ranch, Rebecca let the painter finish up doing the front of of the house. I almost didn't recognize it when I headed home tonight! I'm dead chuffed with how it turned out - ignore the scaffolding in this picture and hopefully you'll agree its a smart colour.

Pancake Punter

Couldn't believe 9 months later that I'd find myself back in Brean. I'd been there any n the dead of Winter at the height of Covid, now I'm there on a bustling, stonkingly hot day. Not that I got to enjoy the lovely seaside because I was properly busy today, running around doing other people's jobs again. Just as I thought I cleared my to do list, then I got a request for the ages. Kris Marshall is ordering in an ice cream van for the crew this week, not to be outdone, Rose Williams also wanted to treat us all to a crepe truck... and I was asked to souce it. The search didn't start well, the favorite was away on holiday and it turns out finding a quirky caterer to feed 300 on 3 day's notice is a bit of an ask. Hours later though, I found two ideal contenders who locked in their availability. I presented them up the food chain and I got lavished with gratitude. Just need to seal the deal with them all tomorrow, then I can forget about all the stress and look forward to crepes this week.

Mirai

A sore head was the only symptom of my night out on the town, nothing a paracetamol and a bit of moaning couldn't cure. Had to be fighting fit for the BBQ lunch Louis and Rachel were whipping up. I've never eaten so much home made hummus in my life... Then came the grilled aubergine and blue cheese burgers in freshly baked ciabatta rolls. Those guys are always upping their culinary game, don't know if I can ever match their hospitality.

Bulbus with grub, we retired to the living room for a film. Mirai was a movie I'd heard generally good things about and it seemed to fit the vibe. A young boy's life is changed upon the arrival of his baby sister. The dynamic of the household shifts and the boy is left to accept new truths about his family, as dispersed through a time and space bending oak tree. Tonally, it plays it very close to films like Eternal Sunshine, Mr Nobody and The Tree of Life. The pitfalls in making a film about the collective human experience is sometimes you miss the mark when moments fail to resonate - you can also fill your film with too much esoteric imagery. While Mirai is still guilty of a few of these, when it works, it really works. Special shout out to the attention to detail in how the children behave and move - the lead child is occasionally bratty and to the film's credit it doesn't shy away from this. It's an honest and occasionally whimsical coming of age story with just the right amount of fantasy peppered in. At times it can feel a mite directionless, but thankfully it sticks the landing.

Make Way. I can Run the Machine

So there I was, working in a Saturday. One of my team forgot they were working today, while another at least had the decency to give me a heads up about their absence. As a result, I did the job of 2.5 people. I ran around a lot more than expected in and booked in a taxi for a member of cast, all went well though and the day went very smoothly. As we were working a Saturday, the folks upstairs splashed out on a coffee machine for us. After getting one round in I asked if I could have a go on their machine, they happily obliged..  perks of being a barista once upon a time.

 

 

 

On wrap a handful of us were invited to drinks with the cast. I was one of the lucky few who ended up enjoying pints with people I'd never expect to be drinking with. 

Ray of Sunshine

We had an on set birthday for one of our cast members, they turned 18 today so it was a milestone to celebrate. The decorations we put up in her trailer went down very well, and she was over the moon when she saw her cake. She came onto our truck to offer some of us a slice. the 2nd AD pointed at me and said 'This is the man you need to be thanking, he arranged the cake', she turned and beamed at me. 'I can't believe you even got my favourite type of cake!' (I just got lucky) but her thanks was deeply sincere and it brought a massive smile to my face. 

The Sun poked out from behind the clouds so it was actually warm enough for me to break out my iced coffee. I offered it out on the communal WhatsApp group and our Floor Runner asked for a batch just to offer around. A few minutes later I get a message from the Producer which was literally just a photo of my coffee in his hand.

In stark contrast to the stressy vibes of the week, today was a true delight to work. Everyone was happy, professional and grateful for eachother. I'm glad my efforts quietly made everyone's day a little brighter.

Script Man

I simply did not stop for the first few hours of my day. While setting up a tea table for some men attending a marching rehearsal I overheard on my radio that a scene was being amended. As I'm mister script printer, this was all news to me. I had to chase down approval from the producers quickly before handing the new scene to the cast and crew. Then the scene got amended AGAIN moments after I thought I was done.

Though it was a stressful day, I found a fun job to get stuck into: Birthday planner. A cast member is turning 18 tomorrow, big birthday for them basically so it was left to me to ensure their day was special. I sourced a gorgeous cake and decorated their trailer with bunting and balloons. Hope she's a fan.

Headless Chickens

Busy day on set once again, somewhat exacerbated by the fact out director was constantly trying to be a bit clever with the scenes. Though the end product will undoubtedly be very good, it meant that the AD team were once again running around like headless chickens. I frequently get strongarmed into assisting them which of course I don't mind, but it does make me chuckle at the amount of dud requests they all get. We make it work though... I mean, that's all we can do!