Sea Legs

I earned my sea legs in more ways than one today. The reason I was spirited away to set is because we're filming on a boat over the next few days. It turns out, my boss is suspectable to sea sickness so I was asked to step in. I didn't know how I'd be on the ocean in a small tug boat but it turns out I was right as rain. Can't say the same for some of the rest of our crew sadly but there's no shame in being poorly. But being constantly moving up and down, side to side has totally tuckered me out. I'll sleep like a lot, then it'll be back to sea for me.

Fielding Your Questions

Part two of my training course involved giving something back. We headed over to a group of student filmmakers to give a little Ted Talk about our careers and how we got there. I fielded a bunch of questions about being a Script Supervisor which most people (understandably) had a lot of questions about. The enthusiastic ones really got a lot out of us, I got a glimpse at some of the work they're up to and it's leaps and bounds where I was at their age. Children are the future, but they also make you look back and ask 'where has all my passion gone?' Perhaps I should try to rekindle it...

Things I'm never super passionate about is when plans change dramatically. I was due to join the shooting crew in Cornwall on Thursday but a sudden shift meant that I got a phonecall at 14:30 asking if I could packy bags and get down there. So I had to abandon my plans to see the bonfire at Victoria Park and miss out on Rachel's mulled wine and Bake Off night which is a little sad. Hopefully all will be well at work tomorrow, but I'm a little on the back foot.

Affirmations (?)

While the main unit has a travel day up to our next location, I stayed back in Bristol with a couple of the other trainees to do a handful of training courses. Suffice to say, it was a very nice way to ease back into the working week, especially when a complimentary tea table was included. I'll be joining the crew properly on Thursday, and I still have some prep work to do to get my head back into the game, but for now I'll keep it in a low gear before the madness continues properly. 

My courses today were most affirmation lead, asking us to consider our backgrounds, why were got into the industry and what our friends and family think of our jobs. Some decent self-evaluation and psychology basically. As I've gotten older I have to kinda admit that a lot of my passion feels dried up. One exercise asked us to consider why we might find our role spiritually nourishing and, if I was being honest with myself, I couldn't think of an answer. 

That question was also designed to identify any red flags in your career direction...

Sunday Bubble

On my final day off Rebecca and I did a little date afternoon over at Chance Encounters to play some board games that we don't have lying on our shelves. As much as I love hanging out with her at home, it's even better being ourselves while out and about. I'm still mentally preparing myself for being away from home for basically a month. I'm planning what to pack, factoring in how cold it'll be and how much entertainment I should bring to share with others. But at about 16:30 today I sat in the Sunday bubble, that cosy but fragile space that breaches the chasm between weekend and work. I'm still in that bubble now, but the light is starting to piece through its surface. What does November have in store for me?

The Lizzie McGuire Movie

The dawn of my final 48 hours on hiatus made me refocus my time off to-do list, which mostly compromised of games and TV shows I wanted to finish up. We're now very almost done with Rivals (just the last episode to go) plus I clocked in a few additional hours on Alan Wake 2 which I'm admittedly forcing myself through to the end. Despite my obviously busy agenda, Rebecca's movie pick wasn't on my list, but the Lizzie McGuire movie was her choice and in our house, you honour people's nostalgia watches. I never was and never will be the target demographic for Lizzie McGuire but I was low-key charmed by how uncynical and uncomplicated the story was. Plus it was all set in Rome so we got to see all the landmarks that were covered in scaffolding during our visit.

Back 2 Work

The 'Back 2 Work's scaries started to manifest in the pit of my stomach. I generally feel a little on the back foot about the next few weeks because a bunch of information landed a little later than many would have liked. I may have to do a bit of homework to get back up to speed. But before I commit fully to real work I wanted to do a bit more on my next YouTube video. So I set up the old sofa cushion recording booth and got all the voicework in the can. I don't know when I'll be able to dive into a big edit session but it's good to be prepped.

Happy Halloween 2024

It's been about 7 years since I last got my hair cut by a barber so the experience of a stranger approaching my face with electric clippers was more than enough to get my heart racing this Halloween... Turns out chatting with our mortgage advisor was even scarier. 

All jokes aside, this Halloween was spent with good company. A friend of ours was hosting an exhibition of his artwork in a gallery uptown so Rebecca and I surprised him by dropping by. So lovely to see an old Coffee #1 colleague doing what he's passionate about. We had to hurry back to catch Louis and Rachel for a spooky movie: the 70's Invasion of the Body Snatchers which matched our horror comfort level perfectly. I got a lot of love for the original which arguably biased my view towards this one which was good in parts and slow in others.

Only other thing to mention this Halloween was my pumpkin. I've always wanted to do a Boo ghost from the Mario games but whenever I looked at stencils they required that extra peeling step that I wasn't accustomed to. Well, last year I taught myself that technique so I was armed and ready to do a Boo pumpkin. Turns out people figured out a pattern now that's carving only so my prep was all for naught. BUT the pumpkin itself I'm super proud of! 

 

Happy Halloween all!

End of Hiatus Looms

Got the house ready for our guests this evening, namely Chris Pearless and company who popped round for a couple of board games. I carved my pumpkin for the occasion (pictures and write up tomorrow on that one) and crammed all the old carpet off-cuts into the car, then it was time for pizzas and pints. I think everyone ended up having a grand old time, hard to go too wrong with Modern Art and Decrypto but I'm glad the night went off without a hitch. 

The end of my two week hiatus is starting to loom over me. I've been trying my best to spend my time well, especially since I'll be away from home for a long leg of time. Gotta dedicate a bit of time to Rebecca and myself, otherwise my work brain will start to take over.

I Saw Saw

Like with most of my 'free parking' days off, I like to spend a bit of time at my writing desk. This time I was putting the finishing touches on my next YouTube video which is all about cooking. I wrote it mostly back in March and every time I come back to it I get excited to work on it all over again - which is a very good sign. I'll do one more fresh pair of eyes look over it tomorrow then I might record the voice over. In an ideal world, I'd love to get it in a position where I can have the editing building blocks present so I can tinker with it whenever I have a bit of time free.

I also got around to watching the very first Saw movie which was honestly a good little watch. For 20 years it was built up in my mind as a gratuitous video nasty, an oral history from my less-squismish classmates would regail only the gruesome details of the film and their increasingly deranged sequels. In reality, the graphics bits are just 'woah-bro' moments that appeared nastier in my imagination than they were in the actual film. I was even charmed by it's low-budget, early 2000's look. Funny how quickly horror films go from quintessential to quaint.

Carpet Chaps

Opened the front door to a pair of carpet chaps who were here to turf out our brand new loving room flooring. I sat quietly minding my own business in the dining room where we piled up all of our furniture while they beavered away. To save a bit of money we opted to do all the haulage ourselves at the end. This meant that a veritable blockade of old carpet and underlay was piled up all around me - whenever I got up to make myself a cup of coffee (and cuppas for the tradesmen too of course) I had to clamber over detritus like an obstacle course. The work was ace though, Rebecca felt the difference underfoot immediately and I'm still getting to grips with how cushiony it feels. Best and worst part of the work is that new carpet smell. It's a treat until it isn't.

Euro Jingles

I left a couple of euro coins in my bedside table after the holiday thinking they were nice and safe there. Our cat decided they made sweet, sweet music when she pushed them onto the floor. Adorable at an hour that isn't 5am. So, despite us all gaining an hour after the clocks went back, I somehow feel like I lost a couple hours of sleep - a feeling I've wrestled with the entirety of my Sunday. That's not to say it ruined my day, we did the North Street Shuffle as Rebecca had a craving for arancini, guess she still wished she was in Rome.

We shimmy'd a bunch of our furniture out the living room in prep for the new carpet that's being put down. Ever since we started living together, Rebecca and I have lived in places that have had tired looking carpeting. It is going to be such a treat to have some gorgeous new flooring that's entirely our own.

Holiday Detox

It's only after doing a city break holiday that you realize how much you really did. Rebecca and I averaged about 20,000 steps each day and then are our bodyweight in carbs (in either pasta or pizza form). So today was spent detoxing from our holiday. We're talking sofa surfing and eating soup and porridge, gradually I felt like I was reacclimating myself to 'normal' life. 

But I couldn't be a couch potato for too long as I had a Halloween party to go to! It was a somewhat late invitation so I managed to cobble together a cowboy outfit, only for someone to upstage me once I got to the party! Nevermind though, I was busy being booked out doing tarot readings for party patreons (word that I do short and sweet card readings gets around quick). I certainly lost the fancy dress competition when a couple came in a stunning Kermit + Miss Piggy combo, all I could do was nurse a beer and stand on the periphery of conversations. I'm one of life's greatest listeners.

Ciao Roma

For the last time, we headed out to the cafe that provided us with complimentary breakfasts and took a stroll along the piazzas that had become all-too familiar to us. Before leaving our accomodation for good I wanted to pick up a practical souvenir - namely a Bieletti moka pot. I've had one for about 10 years now but I didn't know how to fully care for it so it's looking a little under the weather. With my shiny new one I'll think of my holiday every time I brew with it. It's been a fun time away but we were about ready to head home, we thought there wouldn't be a cap on how many pizzas, pastas, espressos, tiramisus and Aperol Spritz's we could manage, but we just about hit our limit. 

Our cat bounded up to us when we put the key in the lock. It's great to go away, if only to give perspective on how much we value home.

Queuing Around Roma

The last few days have been zippy, 'pronto' if you will. But today the brakes were slammed on because we spent a good chunk of daylight doing a typically English thing: Queuing. We queued for the Vatican City, we queued for The Mouth of Truth, we even queued for tiramisu! I must say though, each time was worth every minute stood in stasis because the sights and flavours we enjoyed were one in a million.

Roma Secondi

 Day two of our Roman Holiday saw us doing some of the more bucket list/touristy things. We took the metro up to the Trevi Fountain, sadly we couldn't bask in it's full majesty because it was closed for renovations. What we could appreciate in full was the Colosseum and the Forum, the cornerstones of the Roman Empire. The whole was around the seating area Rebecca and I wondered what tools we'd carry into battle if we were gladiators. Unsurprisingly the trident/net combo was unpopular. Our tour was cut ever so slightly short by a sudden deluge - a borderline tropical storm hit Rome so everyone piled into the nearest (and most by virtue of their proximity to the monuments, most expensive) restaurants. We sat down, dried off, took one look at the price of coffee and immediately bailed. We found a much more modestly priced place and waited out the rain there. 

Day two means a second tiramisu as well, this time I did some research and found the best, semi-mass produced one from a micro chain. It knocked Rebecca's socks off. Mine too by a lesser extent, but then again our judgement was somewhat impaired after visiting a trendy cocktail bar. Salute!

A Real Roman Holiday

December 31st, 2020. Rebecca and I are 'celebrating' a very lonely lockdown new year's eve. To give us an evening activity before midnight I suggested an old movie: Roman Holiday. Moreso than I had anticipated, Rebecca loved it and announced that she'd love to take me to Rome one day. Well that day finally came as we boarded a plane and flew in our to the most powerful city in the world at one point in human history. The early start today meant that we were effectively a little jet lagged so we used the day to mooch around, scoping out what we wanted to see during our stay. One thing was a given though - we'd be eating well. Tonight we found a very affordable pasta place that served flagons of wine. I daresay we drank more than we intended but for the cost we did outrageously well. We're bound for the historical sights of the city tomorrow, resting up now in our Air B&B before we set out to conquer Rome together!

The Lightest Bag

Squeezed in a quick old Japanese horror film in just before I had to deal with the reality of going to Rome tomorrow! Since Easy Jet have renewed their carry on sizes to be even smaller I've had to buy a wee bag, I'm cursing the additional cost but it has given me a new perspective on packing light. I have clothes, toiletries, a very small board game and my Kindle... It's honestly the lightest bag I've ever packed, which probably means I've forgotten something. 

Alarm goes off unbelievably early to catch our inexpensive flight. Going to be groggy until my first coffee but honestly I kinda love an early flight. Chilling in the lounge before the sun comes up, waiting for the dawn to shine on one country as you hop over to another.

Perfect Vermin

With Rebecca still out of the country I continued to full embrace the spooky season and almost exclusively engaged in horror media. Got through two cult horror films, Jacob's Ladder and Videodrome, the former being a legitimately engaging watch and the latter being a special effects fever dream. They've both been on my watchlist for donkey's years so it was great to finally 'man up' and dive into them. Perfect Vermin was the game I got around to playing, a free, micro indie title about smashing up an office space with a hammer. It ultimately turns into a loose metaphor for chemotherapy and how terminal illness erodes us from the inside - great stuff for a Sunday morning anyhow.

Rivals Viewing Party

My oldest mantra is how Saturday mornings are best spent playing games, and today Louis roped me into a great little morning session of Deadlock - just the two of us, kicking back and trying our very best not to lose every game we played (spoilers, we lost everything). I was having such a a good time it made me late for my real social engagement: our Rivals viewing party. I went over to the Production Manager's house to catch the first three episodes with some of his friends and a little buffet lunch. The show is legit good so far, I'm excited to rewatch it all again without the cheering and behind-the-scenes talk we did as we watched. I'm saving that viewing session for Rebecca so I can finally show off the fruits of my lanours.

Happy Rivals Day

Counted my lucky stars when my cat didn't wake me up while sleeping in after another graveyard shift. I also felt blessed to go into a short work day that was only a couple of hours long. Then we all wrapped B2, gave each other high fives and wished everyone a happy hiatus. Best yet, a lot of our crew worked on Rivals - which hit steaming services TODAY. 'Happy Rivals Day' was the greeting for all of us in our very exclusive club.

I'm walking home now and I'm slightly torn on how to best manage my sleep cycle. Should I stay up for a bit or hit the hat straight away? Maybe a video game or two... Rebecca is away right now anyhow so I can enjoy myself.

A Cold, Mystical Night

Our last deep night shoot day put us outdoors on a clear, chilly night. My feet turned into fridged cinder blocks by the end of our shift, not even the complimentary burger van could keep me warmed up. What did lift the spirits of some was some impromptu mysticism. A colleague heard I could do tarot readings so brought in a deck of cards for me to work with - I only got around to doing one member of crew but folks enjoyed the theater of it all. I'll likely get a few extra requests in the coming days but nothing will top doing it at midnight on the night of a full moon.

Warm Milk

Slap bang in the middle of our night shoot week now and thankfully, my body clock is just about in keeping with my working hours now. I did get weary at about 1am today, sitting in a warm, dark room... It was like sitting in a bath of warm milk. I got a second wind though which I'm still riding high on. No doubt the moment I feel pyjamas on my skin I'll remember it's actually 6am right now and I have a lot of sleep to catch up on.

Early, Early Morning Mess

I thought having some practice at night shoots earlier on this job meant I would be alright working til 4:30am. Turns out, everyone just turns into a big tired mess around then. Time to slap on a sleep mask so I'm ready to do it all again tomorrow.

Silent Hill Follows Me

 Though I spent most of the weekend playing Silent Hill, I thought I had escaped the fog once I shut the game down. Turns out, the fog followed me to work today... And it really screwed up a lot of our plans. My 2nd unit day was at the mercy of the mist all day, it was especially frustrating for us because we were hopping around lots of different scenes for shots of cars but very little of the material matched. It became clear at midday that the fog wasn't lifting so we tried to make the most of it. We shot the day, whether or not the horror-movie fog will stick around is in the hands of the Edit.

Moist Chill

Flicked on our dehumidifier for the first time this year to take the 'moist chill' out of the air. Without sounding like a boring adult, that thing has been a real godsend for our damp little house. It feels all the more humid when it's just me sitting on the sofa by myself. Thankfully, Rebecca returned home from London with enough time for us to spend some weekend time together. My old regret was not making a cottage pie tonight since the weather certainly invites warm meals - maybe next weekend... 

Going into our final week of block 2 as of tomorrow. Just five more days til we can all have a well-deserved but of time off. After that will be the comparative madness of our final block, but I'd rather not dwell on that for too long. Instead I'll enjoy the moment.

Cemetery Man

The cat went a little hungry this morning on account of me sleeping in after a late, late night yesterday. My head wasn't feeling too grateful either so I took it slow all day. I popped out for a bit to get some more carpet samples and supplies then sat and watched movies all day. Did a double bill of graveyard themed flicks: Cemetery Man, a 90's dark Euro comedy with zombies and The Body Snatcher, a classic Gothic film with Boris Karloff. Both very cool for different reasons and are slowly saying my appetite for all things spooky this season.

Tail Light

 Only as I write this, I realise I've been awake for 22 hours. But the good and bad of mankind reared it's head to me in that shortened cycle of the Earth around the Sun.

First up the bad. Some bozo smashed into our car, taking out a bulb and the glass housing for the car's brake light. In the midst of doing my job I was constantly bothered by the damage but ended up getting a chance to go out and resolve the issue at a nearby Halfords. I guess we'll foot the bill for the repairs...

On the flip side, tonight was also our crew drinks back in Bristol. A big tab was put behind the bar but only 11 people turned up so we just rinsed the money, over and over again. An old work friend from Production was there and invited us to an after party in town to a venue her boyfriend was DJ'ing at. Turns out, tonight was a big deal for the boyfriend because his mum was up all night to support him - well into 2am. 

So, while my tail light was punched out, my undying optimism shines through - humanity is indeed worth fighting for.

New Boss, New Me

Met my new-new boss today for the first day on the job and we already get on extremely well. I on boarded a new style of working pretty quickly and legitimately offered them plenty of help in the day-to-day which in itself felt rewarding. The only thing looming over us was the sudden cold turn the weather took, a stark reminder that Winter is indeed coming, and it will surely hinder us going into our final block. I'll be digging out my wooly hat and gloves sooner than I had expected...

Main Unit Script Supervisor

 Some early homework was on the cards for me first thing. There was a void on set for a Script Supervisor so I stepped up big time, put on my big boy pants and did the gig on the main unit all by myself. Glad I did a bunch of prep because that put my head firmly into the game to cover a big juicy dialogue scene with three cast. I'm blessed with a very experienced cast and crew so any notes I had to rush in and give we just nip tucks. The day naturally got a little scrambly towards the end but I did my best to keep up and, all told, I think I did A-Ok. My brain feels like it's brimming but I guess that the pain you endure for the big bucks(?)

As a pleasant aside, on my walk in I passed an lovely maple tree really showing it's Autumn colours. A short while later I got a photo reminder telling me that this time last year I was in Canada with Rebecca deep in the wilderness to appreciate nature's fullness. Gosh I wish I was there right now.

All Day Deluge

I packed my wet legs but inexplicably forgot to put my wellington boots in the car on the day that really pushed us all to our limits. The location is infamous within the South West filming scene for having very distinctive red mud - it's a little like clay I suppose but the rain made it into a soup. So we got rained in from above and the puddles soaked our feet, all the while we were gritting our teeth wondering however we'd get the day. Low and behold though, it was totally fine, and after a bit of time back at home watching Bake Off with Louis and Rachel I'd forgotten all about the all day deluge.

Short Film Organizer

Braced myself for another big early morning (tomorrow will be even harder though). I welcome my temporary new boss and got to spend some good time with them, learning their process and how they work. I also got to hear the crew reaction to the company wide short film competition that I'm apparently helping to run. We put a call out for crew to make 5 minute films and so far the reaction has been extreme apathy... Maybe this is my time to swoop in and win by default? 

Really not looking forward to the wake up tomorrow, to make matters worse, we are outside all day today in what could be a very wet day. I'll cross my fingers and my toes for dry, until then I'm keeping.y waterproof trousers close.

Crepe O'Clock

Sunday scrambled eggs are often our go-to breakfast, but Rebecca threw another word into the ring and I just ran with it: pancakes. We have maple syrup coming out of our taps at the moment so it felt right to rustle up some crepes and slather them in syrup. That set me up for a 'playdate' with a colleague of mine who was feeling like being a coach potato and playing video games with me. Enter Party House, the lil game that mostly Rebecca has been tucking into this weekend, I took it round to this friends house and we ended up playing for over an hour - all you do is click on a door in it! 

Rebecca prepped a roast tonight as gravy once again became the signifying flavor of the weenend's end. The Sunday Scaries started brewing around dinner time but I've just had to tell myself that everything will be fine - my new boss starts mostly tomorrow so I'll be on best behavior to make a great first impression.

War Room

My body wouldn't let me sleep in, it was too used to getting up early. So I converted the early rise into something practical by finishing up a game and making Rebecca a piping hot bowl of porridge. Those oats fueled a 'War Room' session where she and I sat down to get through a bunch of our boring adult things. Holiday Air B&B's, travel insurance and house mortgage stuff was discussed and sorted all while I was still in my pyjamas (a fact I only noticed once we were di e and dusted). 

Gotta get out the house for a bit though, so we strolled around the park and dived into some people's homes to admire their artwork. No, this wasn't the Totterdown Arts Trail, rather it was the Windmill Hill equivalent which gave us a great opportunity to crib on people's interior design choices. Plus there were a few community venues that I've never stepped foot in until today... Gets me excited for the main Arts Trail next month!

Continuity Juggler

It was the last day our boss was with us in set as she's moved onto greener pastures. That said, I ended up basically doing my Production thing for her for most of the day by organizing the repair of her car after she got a flat tyre. In the midst of doing my actual role I was also asked to drum up interest in a short film competition that the production company want to host - that somehow ended up being my responsibility but I'm also kinda stoked to see it come together. Mostly though I'm just happy for it to be a Friday. After 6 days of shooting, a good chuck of which being in London, I am more than ready for a little rest.

73 Days In

On the morning of our 73rd shooting day, we returned to the site of our 6th. Lot of history there, we remembered bad smells, dodgey action vehicles, a visible tent in the back of shot and overtime. Thankfully we're many months wiser now and the day went off without a hitch. If anything, the day was oddly simple for me because I was sent back to base to do some prep work for block 3 (the remaining stuff we were shooting was closed set material so I couldn't be present). I rubbed shoulders with my old Production team and stashed myself in a corner for some work so I can hit the ground running for our final few episodes. Weird thinking how many days we've done and how the light at the end of the tunnel is just poking out through the cracks.

Half N Half

But if a jolly odd day. Spent the morning shacked up in my hotel room, emerging briefly for a complimentary breakfast before hopping on the train back to Bristol, watching Bake Off in every free minute I got. From there I hocked myself and my luggage to work, where we immediately broke for lunch before cracking on with our day proper. So, half a day travel, half a day shooting, then back to my home for what feels like the first time in weeks. I felt a wave of happiness wash over me as I stepped through the front door. This is my portion of the world where I can be me.

Long Haul London

Our last day in London was also our most ambitious. A handful of actiony scenes that all play in some pretty public spaces so there was a lot of moving around and juggling. I think we're all done with London now, my thoughts return homeward as I yearn for time with Rebecca and the cat, the same creature comforts are in short demand in my sterile hotel room. I'll be on the train back to Bristol tomorrow though - I'll be catching up on Bake Off all the way home.

Crew Appreciation

Another day shooting up in London went by without any massive hitches. The talk of the town was our halfway through the job crew drinks which came complete with a viewing of a sizzle reel for the show (always good for crew morale). Afterwards I ended up hanging out with a lot of the crew from Rivals, cutting loose and shooting the breeze. A costume trainee spoke again about how pleased she was to see me stepping out of production, at the same time a location assistant chimed in and we all made an impromptu pact to have each other's backs. Well and truly I love all of our crew and catching drinks with them has been a highlight of the job. Helps that we're doing late nights tomorrow so there's plenty of time for everyone to sleep off the alcohol.

Interrailing Remeberance

Worked a Sunday which was fundamentally a bit meh but the biggest takeaway of the day was the crew drinks after. There I was, at a decidedly English 'German Beer Hall's in central London, they poured me my first Stein of the night and it reminded me greatly of the time I went interrailing in Munich and went to a real beer hall. Amidst the drinking, around the new friends and colleagues I did a deep dive on my messages to Rebecca to find a photo of me nursing a beer during our interrailing trip. That picture wasn't in WhatsApp, rather on Facebook Messenger (our original platform of communication) and I went on a real plunder of our old messages and photo exchanges. What I found was real love, real playfullness and real sincerity. Five years ago we went interrailing and another five we started dating. Our message log is the lore of our relationship and it's so very endearing to dive back into that.

No Sync Sunday

 Yesterday I waxed lyrical about how great it was to have a mid-week day off, but today I felt the repercussions. Because I'm working on a Sunday, I'm now out of sync with everyone else's weekend plans. Rebecca and Co were talking about having a cosy Sunday breakfast together while I'm doing the mental maths in how early to set my alarm to get the right amount of sleep. All things considered, I had a great little day going out to trendy coffee shops and tap rooms with the London gang with a friend who's come visiting from Berlin, but I had to leave the party a little early so I could check into my hotel and contemplate the four walls. Roll on the working Sunday I guess, and with it the start of my 6 day week.

Friday is the new Saturday

A mid-week day off hits different to a weekend day. Something about knowing the rest of the world is out working while I'm at home playing games in my pyjamas gave me a great wave of comfort. Of course I did some life admin bits too, mostly in the form of rearranging our dining room furniture with Rebecca, but for the most part I wanted to switch my brain right off. Once Rebecca was done with work we sat in the car up to London, pole position for a friend's birthday shindig tomorrow. In the meantime, I'll be getting plenty of rest ready for our 6 day week.

Doughnuts & Cookies

 The fake Friday hype train was real and further compounded by the announcement that we were halfway through the shoot. Of course, this meant we were due some treats which arrived in the form or the ever-popular Krispy Kreme doughnuts... Of which I had two. Then some incredibly boutique cookies were produced a bit later on and they honestly looked too good to pass up. I only slightly regretted my decisions but it would have been a shame not to ring in the halfway mark. Off the back of that I went for a swift two pints with the Director's Assistant to talk shop, to debrief after a long week and to steel ourselves for the upcoming six day week. Tomorrow is a day off though and I intend to use everything minute to enjoy the stillness of later September.

Crew Bonds

 I'm counting down the hours now til our weekend off, it helps immensely that we get a 'fake Friday' tomorrow as we finish up our working week tomorrow. With the filming location being so cramped I once again found myself outside, but it turned into a great chance to spend some actual time with the crew and get some bonding in. 

Speaking of bonds, Mark is back from his big work excursion so we got a chance to rekindle our Baulders Gate 3 campaign. We're still setting of traps accidentally, getting into scraps with NPC's and making bad dice rolls... But we're doing it all in style. I've been missing those evenings a lot so it was swell to get another night in.

Bake Off Banter Returns

Settled back into Bristol filming for the duration of this week which is a lovely pallette cleanser after yesterday's jaunt across the country. I carved out a little workspace for myself in an outdoor tent because our location was a bit pokey. I suppose that'll be me for the rest of the week - I heard it's raining tomorrow so I guess I'll get cosy under shelter. 

I power walked back to dive into the start of this year's Bake Off. Louis and Rachel are still up in Ludlow so it was just Rebecca and me watching but I'm already looking forward to the bake off banter as the nights draw in.

Packing the Weather

Whenever we bring out the drone team it feels like the weather takes a nasty turn. Before arriving at location today I heard they had never experienced flooding so bad at the venue, and boy they weren't kidding. We were all legitimately anxious that the rain would stop us from achieving our day, but it held off just long enough to only need 30 minutes of overtime to get it all done. Then it was just the long road home in the now-torrential rain, that journey was arguably more taxing than the day of work. But I'm back in Bristol now with Rebecca and the cat, where I can admire our new floorboards. Work hard, then appreciate what you got.

Leaving Ludlow

The rain had been threatening our good times for far too long... At least according to Mum who spent a good chunk of the morning refreshing the weather radar on RainToday.com. We ended up ignoring all the forecasts and headed out to yet another local castle. While it wasn't a big military style one for monarchs, this one was more homely and designed for entertaining which was a unique spin. Plenty of guest rooms to inspect and even some nesting birds flying around in the rafters. Dad had a pork roast waiting for us back at base which was perhaps the best dinner I've had all year - I would have eaten more but I didn't want to appear... Piggy.

Rebecca and I had to cut our visit short though as reality beckoned from the hazy visage of Monday. I had to do a big old drive up to tomorrow's filming location so I dropped Rebecca off in Birmingham while I powered on through the rainy motorway. I'm quietly chilling in my hotel room now, enjoying the final bit of peace and quiet before the madness begins again.

Ludlow

First full day in Ludlow was spent in the very heart of town, specifically in the castle that was likely the nucleus of it's history. I gotta say, it was a pretty damn good castle. Plenty of intact spaces, unique areas and best of all: several spiral staircases to climb! Dad took plenty of photos that I have no doubt will end up on the family calendar next year - we really got a lot of mileage from our admission. In the evening we popped out to see Jamie's parents who had recently moved to Ludlow - I hadn't seen them since before Covid but they were exactly as I recall them. There were generous hosts, preparing a dinner for us and sharing a couple bottles of wine around the table. Most remarkable was their home: a clocktower next to a guildhall. Quite literally their attic had hatch into the clocks internals, it was like a museum space plus a man cave up their. Louis remarked how it was his dream workspace and frankly, I concur.

L Shaped Sofa

5:10 was when my alarm went off. It was only just breaking dawn once I got to work - I've forgotten what it's like to drive to set in the dark but at the very least I'm grateful that it's not cold. It was just more of the usual stuff this fine Friday, but all day I was dreaming about going to join my parents up in their Air B&B in Ludlow. We're all up there for the late Summer family holiday. I opened a beer, sat down on the corner piece of an L shaped sofa and thought 'This is the Life'

On Set, Off Piste

We went a little off piste on set. With only a day and a bit to squeeze in all of our scenes we went a little pick up crazy. We were getting tiny snippets to cover a variety of scenes - many of which were not on the call sheet or supplementary paperwork... Thankfully as an ex member of production I had the skills to create new documents to help us. But because the day kept changing so much I was really starting to sweat a bit trying to keep up. Think I did ok though, I found a bit of free time to go above and beyond by amalgamating it all into on big document, in order too! Whoever thought script supervising would be so paperwork heavy...

Natter in the Road

Been a little spoilt on this gig recently. All the filming locations have been in town and easily accessible for me on foot. For the next handful of days however I'll be driving an hour to and from work along winding country roads. What made the time go quick on my journeys was good company. I gave the directors assistant a lift in, the perfect space to debrief about our days and shoot the breeze. Better yet was on my way home I called up Jamie for a catch up. It's been a hot minute since we chatted but it felt like only yesterday. His PHD is going about as well as it can but he's looking forward to the end of it now, following that we just talked about video games and what's been taking out fancy. Always have loads of time for Jamie, a bonafide good egg.

Hoist That Table

We're looking to get our floorboards renovated sometime in the near future, but a text from our chap meant that future was much nearer than we'd expected. He put forward tomorrow and we blindly said 'sure' before the ramifications sunk in. And so, I spent this morning dismantling furniture and dragging everything out of our dining room. Once again our dining table proved to be the bane of my DIY life as I had to solo lift it out of the room with only a fraction of clearance through the door frame whilst hoisting it above a radiator. Work today was chill in comparison to that malarkey!

I didn't get a chance to see Louis today due to my working hours, but shout out to him because it's his Birthday today. Hope we can catch up sometime later on this week because we got a good old gift that he's gonna love. Plus I can finally give him a card I bought way back in February because it was spot on.

The Thought That Gets Me Through

I steeled myself as I hiked up towards Clifton for work. Getting back into the swing of a 10 hour work day is a big ask of most people and for some reason today it almost felt insurmountable. In reality, once I got onto set the day was rather standard and went by pretty swiftly. A lot of us a slowly dreading the next few days since they will be pretty torturous. Long commutes and quick turnarounds are on the horizon but I'm just trying to enjoy the here and now. Moreso than ever before I keep looking forward to sleeping next to Rebecca and being lucky enough to wake up next to her each morning. That's the thought that carries me through the rough patches these days.

Sunday Sabbath

Another Sunday come and gone. The end of a weekend and the start of a new cycle. What's in store for me this week? Well, a fair bit more filming that's for sure. But before that all kicks off I want to reflect on today. Sunday's have become a safe haven for Rebecca and me. We observe our own Sabbath, refraining from lifting a finger unless totally necessary. It's in this holy time I feel most at peace: reading or playing games with Rebecca in the sofa with the cat only a stroking-arm's length away. Just the thought of the above image is enough to relax my heart.

Cleaning for Cobras

I was pushing the hoover around first thing this morning, tidying up after someone's messy paw prints. They simply wouldn't do in our nice clean house before Rebecca's parents arrived for a visit. They were mostly down to spend some time with us and to head out to our favourite local Indian takeaway which did not disappoint. Right not my belly is full of lamb saag and Bombay Aloo so I very badly need to sleep it off. My eyes felt heavy after the 2nd pint of Cobra so I am beyond shattered now.

Pizza Practice

Feels like yonks since I had to get up for an early start. I blinked and now the mornings are dark, cold and just a little bleak. The chill never quite left my bones today since we were posted outside and I foolishly neglected to wear a jacket, I kept waiting for the sun to come round but it never came.

I thawed out once I was in the company of Mark and Lucy... Or maybe it was their 400 degree pizza oven that brought me back to life. Mark hand stretched pizza dough and applied toppings to custom pizzas, he loaded up the paddle and gave Rebecca and me a chance to cook our own pizzas. We won't be quitting our day jobs anytime soon but we did a commendable job of not entirely cremating everyone's dinner. More importantly, we had a ton of fun doing it, plus we got to eat some delicious pizza! While the crusts were still warm we chatted the night away eventually losing track of time - it tough to imagine a better Friday night than this though.
 

Feeling it Thursday

Belted myself in for one more studio day and what a doozy it turned out to be. Not much dialogue, but lots of actiony beats which was electric to see coming together. By the end of today though I felt the tiredness hit me, the thought of one more day feels like another mountain to climb. Just doing it one step at a time will make it more manageable but an earlier than usual start is making it an uninviting prospect.

Studio Stability

Just another day in the studio for me. Sitting in a dark room with the crew all tip-toeing around during takes. We have a good laugh on those days though, without the inherant stresses of location shooting we can settle into a nice, stable rythem. Of course, after too long we'll be clambering at the walls for an escape and that's coming a lot sooner than we think. With the temperature dropping, the second half of the job is looking to get a bit trickier. Thankfully we all rely on each other on this crew so we'll make it work.

Happy 31st Birthday to Me!

Didn't feel 31 when I woke up, but I did feel very loved throughout the day. I opened up my cards with Rebecca over coffee plus her presents. A customary bag of coffee beans was first up (always appreciated) plus a unique graphic novel project called Building Stories which I cannot wait to dive into properly. Graphic novels have long made up a part of my gifting pool so early September doesn't feel right until I've read at least one.

I was at work today too, back on set in the confines of the studio. Though I didn't publicize the fact it was my birthday, word still got around. My old Production team summoned me into the office at lunch and I was greeted with bunting and a cake which was very sweet of them. Once we wrapped for the day the whole crew sung me Happy Birthday, that's never happened to me in a job before so I didn't know where to put my hands. 

So yeah, I could hardly ask for a better work birthday. My co-workers, Rebecca and all the well wishers all made an ordinary Tuesday extra special - I'm extremely blessed to keep such good company.

Bye Bye 30

With a later start to my day I had the whole morning to wrestle with the idea of turning 31 tomorrow. Like breaking in a pair of shoes it took me a whole year to get comfortable saying I'm in my 30's - now I'm firmly locked into that decade. Do I feel my age though? No, in my mind I'm still 26, a fledgling of the TV industry and recent homeowner. Lot has changed in the blink of an eye. Yet I still believe I'm young at heart, I've not grown up, just grown older. My heart still flutters at the thought of opening up Birthday cards alongside breakfast and Rebecca has kindly rearranged her work hours so we can spend some time together before I'm up and out to work.

In the meantime, see ya 30. It's been real.

Brotherly Brunch

It was only a matter of time. We took our visiting friends up to our favourite local brunch spot: The Sundial Kitchen and about halfway through our food who should stroll in... Louis and Rachel with their visiting friend. It was actually a lot less awkward than I thought it would be but it's still pretty funny for a chance encounter.

Our visiting chums from London certainly felt the charms of Bristol. They're slowly getting burnt out by the hustle and grind of the big city and expressed how peaceful and easy-going our neighborhood felt. It's easy to take that for granted when you're living it day by day but their comments gave me some more perspective - we really do live in a cool spot and I'm very grateful for all the local businesses that make it so wonderful.

Bristol Besties

I said I'd help Rebecca tidy the house a bit first thing this morning, so imagine how guilty I felt when I slept in til quite late. So I ran to the shops and hoovered like a maniac before bringing our guests into our home. These chaps hadn't seen our house before, nor had they seen too much of Bristol so we took them to see the sights. We did the scenic routes of the town center while stopping at a couple of cafes along the way, they mentioned they really wanted to catch a movie so we ducked into the Watershed to see Sing Sing, a film I reckon will crop up plenty when the Oscars nominations start rolling out. We took them to King's Street for a swift pint then ended up back at home for tea and chats. These guys are Rebecca's childhood friends so she was somewhat anxious about making a good impression during their stay - I don't want to blow my own horn but I don't think we could have done a better job than today.

Fight Sequence

A big juicy fight sequence was our sole focus today. I've never filmed one before at this level so it was an education seeing how they piece it all together with the stunt team, and cast doubles. It's choreographed just like a dance and everyone hit their marks beautifully every time. Made life a little easier for us which was welcome because frankly, wrap couldn't come soon enough. I'm looking forward to the weekend now for some well deserved R&R - we have some guests coming down to stay with us this weekend but they'll be a delight.

Cats in the Loft

Drove my carpool pals back to Bristol for another day at the dream factory. The rain was awful driving back in and because today's location was so pokey I was worried I'd have to stand out in the rain all day, as it transpired though there was a huge room in the loft where we could set up shop. Better yet, the location has resident cats who popped in every now and then for a some love. While the day was short for us the crew are a tad weary after doing a second week of overnighting and funny hours. We're still smiling, just with bleary eyes.

Scrappy 2nd Unit Vibes

Put my game day hat on once again because it was 2nd Unit time. Honestly, I really dig these days because the crew size is so small and scrappy, we're just a small film crew going out to shoot some gorgeous interstitial material. Our director for the day was super chill too and very happy to listen to my notes about coverage. The only thing that stopped us shooting was the sun dipping down. I got let off a bit earlier today too which was great so I hung out in the hotel bar and later enjoyed the company of our crew mates over a few beers. We've got a good bunch on this one, I'm chuffed I got to spend some time with them outside of work.

Spaffing the Split

Working split days sounds like a blessing but it's a curse in reality. You get a nice long lie-in at the top of the day but you're on til super late later on. I ended up spaffing it early on by waking up too soon in the day and then living to regret that by 1am today. Still, the day itself was pretty easy breezy as we spent a good chunk of it waiting for the sun to go down. The yawning started soon after but I'm on my way to a nice, crisp hotel bed as I write this.

Didn't Even Need to Pack a Bag

Slung my iPad over my shoulder and barrelled headfirst into another manic Monday. I exaggerate, the day was totally chill and we actually ended up wrapping a little early which is a nice bonus. We're getting ready to do a few more away days so I've repacked my hotel bag - which was actually quite easy because it's still mostly ready to go from last week. It should calm down a bit for us all after Wednesday is done and dusted. We're back to 1am finishes as well so I'm getting my sleep in now before I start crashing hard while supervising a shot.

Sleeping Beauty Over Here

Rebecca somehow slept for a whole eleven hours last night. All the while I was up and about cracking on with my Sunday and chipping away at my humongously long RPG which I've been working through for the last 3 weeks. Once sleeping beauty awoke from her slumber it was time for sla deep clean of our spare room - we have some rumoured guests with potential cat allergies so we went to town on the place. There was time leftover to play some games with Louis and his buds online, always fun to play with a different crowd, even if their in jokes are tricky to navigate. 

The only other big job this weekend was renewing my passport which expired a few months back. You can take your own photo now instead of going to a lil' booth in a WH Smith's. After reading and re-reading the guidelines Rebecca channeled her inner DOP and managed to get the winning shot of me looking sternly serious. I'm almost a hundred pounds lighter for the pleasure but hey, I saved a few bob taking my own photo at least. I put my crimson passport into an envelope and waved goodbye to that era of British travel for good. If only we could go back...

Don't Worry Bro, It's Saturday

When the weekend rolls around my cicadian rythem from the week rolls over. I feel myself inclined to open my eyes at around 6am - my brain then wakes me up properly rather than relaxing into the usual 'don't worry bro, it's Saturday' mode that most are blessed with. As such, I slept less hours than usual last night and spent the remainder of the day paying for that mistake. It's fortunate then that today was a 'Free Parking' space for Rebecca and me since we had zero plans... Minus a quick trip up to a framing shop which all felt very adult. I'm still running in low power mode but hopefully I'll catch some real shut-eye tonight so I can be hit Monday with all my . might.

Drone Take 2

I was back out with the drone team once again for a much bigger 2nd unit day. We hiked up a hill, threw the drone up into the air and got some absolutely stunning material that will be the building blocks for a great little montage. The team was lovely too, just a small crowd working a camera and hanging out amidst some beautiful countryside. To keep the good time rolling, once we rejoined with main unit we got the drone team to take out crew photo which was fun and then we wrapped half an hour early!

I rushed back from Wales to dive back into a big old board game night up the road. Wow it was busy! Plenty of people to chat with and hang out with, just a great vibe overall. We even had to say goodbye to one of our regulars who is now moving out to Spain so it was a bittersweet last night. We all wished him a safe trip and to hit us up if he was ever back in the UK. More than anything it was very sweet to feel part of something where we care about our members and our team. It's hard to find that outside of work right now and it's remarkable to think a bunch of strangers, united by a love of board games have now formed a tight-knit unit. So all in all, today was as good a Friday as anyone could have hoped for.

Tenure Cut Short

As a keen bean I manufactured a bit of an early start for myself. I was ready to do a bunch of prep and networking meet 'n greets ahead of doing my 2nd unit stuff today. In reality, my tenure was cut in half by the custody battle over our drone team who main unit had first dibs on. At least I got to do some cool stuff with a driving up and pass followed by a few other bits. Same again tomorrow, but hopefully it all goes to plan this time.

Collective Yearning for Bed

I'm driving the Director's Assistant into work at the moment and we had a long chat early this morning about how we already can't wait to be back in bed. That sums up how we were already feeling, the 2nd day back into a short work week. The location took us out to a familiar and remote spot which was a bit of a schlep to get to, but the day went well and we shot everything we needed to in good time. The second part of the day was heading over to our accomodation ready for tomorrow. Always nice to hang out with some crew and grab a quick drink with them. Already missing home a fair bit though and spending time with Rebecca and the Cat.

Cobbling a Plan

Worked alongside a new Script Supervisor while my regular boss is away on holiday. Was great to be with someone with a slightly different means of doing the gig and we got on pretty well to boot. The day itself was little hectic on account of a planned camera technique suddenly becoming unavailable to us so we were forced to cobble together a plan. We did well under the circumstances but it was a lot for me to juggle - hopefully I kept up and rolled with the punches.

We're getting into the rhythm of some earlier starts now on account of how far we have to travel to get to work each morning. The tiredness hit me like a ton of bricks when I got home. I just have to remember to pace myself this week and ensure I don't burn out too hard.

Robot Dreams

Thank the Lord for the film workers union who managed to wangle a good deal on working Bank Holidays. You either get paid more or you get the day off, a win in both cases but in this instance I got the day off to enjoy brunch with chums and a sleepy afternoon at home with Rebecca. It's a fairly big week coming up at work so it's great to get a little extra rest in before it all gets hectic. We watched Robot Dreams this evening - an effectively silent animated film which is just what the doctor ordered today. Just a straight up story about friendships and wrestling with lonelyness. No villains, no grandiose moments, just a lotta heart and plenty of animal related visual gags. A great family watch which should delight viewers of all ages.

Washing or Baking

It'd been a while since I saw Louis so I wanted to do something nice for him and Rachel. With it being Sunday as the Summer heat is slowly slipping away, it was high time for a Sunday roast. It has been so long since I'd done one I'd almost forgotten the steps myself though I had a firm memory on how to do the potatoes. All I needed was a secret ingredient: bicarbonate of soda. Alas, I used all of ours up the other week to clean out all that mould growing on our carpet, though Rebecca enthusiastically revealed that she bought some from a refill shop. I dug around the cupboard to find a small, unmarked jar full of white powder. Rebecca was adamant that it was either baking soda... Or laundry soda... Guess we got lucky because we're all still alive after ingesting that mysterious white stuff and I got plenty of kudos for the potatoes themselves. Nothing like the flavor of gravy to onset the Sunday blues... 'cept I got tomorrow off for a bank holiday too!

Posing for Sculptures

The cat woke us up at a surprisingly civil time first thing this morning. Gave me a good excuse to get up and play some Saturday morning video games (one of life's greatest pleasures). I had to put down the controller and pile into the car a bit later though because it was time to call into Newbury to visit my folks. The rain kept us shut indoors for a spell, but a break in the weather let us check out a sculpture exhibition going on at Shaw House. Admiring the works was pleasant but the real fun was figuring out the best poses to strike for photographs which became a game in itself. Rebecca and I mostly just enjoyed existing while soaking in Mum and Dad's good company and cooking. It was only a flying visit back home, but a lovely recharge.

Friday Crunch Time

On the face of it, today looked like a pretty easy day. Two guys talking in a room basically with a little extra action to keep it spicy - no biggie. Yet it felt like everything in the universe was conspiring against us getting it done. One of our lighting rigs broke down almost immediately, leaving the whole unit to twiddle their thumbs for over an hour. Following that an internal fan at our location decided to switch on whenever the room hit a set temperature... And when there's two dozen people working with hot lights in a confined space, the fan had a nasty habit of turning on just as we went for a take to the chagrin of the sound department. So we were on the backfoot for most of the day but we powered on regardless. Everyone knew we were running behind and that galvanized our unit: crunch time to get it done in fear of doing OT on a Friday. 

Glad we didn't go over because that meant there was more time to spend up at the board game night. We had a really solid crowd up there too, plenty of laughs to be had, especially over the exacting definition of a 'sandwich' which got everyone talking feverishly, all for the sake of a few imaginary points in a board game. Always a fun way to capture off a Friday night.

Reunited with Juice

It always amazes me how in spite of being a highly mobile unit with loads of pieces of kit, things going missing is surprisingly rare. I lost a battery pack that was pretty new only a few weeks into filming. I was kinda bummed and made my peace with the fact it was now lost to time. Well today I looked over my shoulder at a trolley and there it was, 'borrowed' by another department who honestly thought it was lost property. So I'm better than ever having been reunited with my battery pack... Then again we did 45 minutes overtime so my bonus wages could have bought a few more and then some. 

I'm so looking forward to Friday now. Can't wait to dive into a big 3 day weekend, I'm dreaming of it an smiling so much now, I'll literally be counting down the hours tomorrow.

Knackeredness

 The tiredness only hit me a little after lunch. Turns out doing 2 hours claw backs into early starts is a recipe for knackeredness. Upshot is I got to enjoy a real chunk of my evening watching TV with Rebecca. We are slap-bang in the middle of Better Call Saul at the moment and it feels great to be devouring a quality show again...

Speaking of, Rivals has finally got a release date of October 18th! I'm exceptionally jazzed to see the finished product, plus my name in shining lights.

Middle of Claw Backs

 Slap-bang in the middle of some naff clawbacks today so my sleep and free time hours are at an all time premium. Even so I managed to drag myself to work, complete the day then head out to the pub to catch up with a good friend. I'm slowly trying to plan our movements for the bank holiday weekend which had crept up on me - lots of little fun ideas that just need to fall into place now but that's giving me something to look forward to once the week is over. For now though, I need to catch up on some sleep and set my alarm for 'earlier than I'd like it to be' mode. No doubt I'll be cursing my past self as soon as the beeping invades my dreams.

Ever-tempting Brunch

 Later start for work meant I got a little Monday lie in and chill out. I totally bungled my eating hours though, a bowl of cereal first thing then I remembered work would be serving brunch which meant the options were greatly expanded and ever-tempting. I abstained in fear of getting lethargic before my day had even started which would have been extra bad because I was handed over some new responsibilities today which actually gave me an even better sense of place. I think I did a good job too so I hope we can just keep a good thing rolling.

Munich Sunday

Rebecca's dad has really started taking great pride in his own scrambled eggs. Recently he's taken up a challenge from Rebecca to be a bit more savvy in the kitchen and eggs is a great place to start... Especially because it means we get a good breakfast out of the deal! We came back home to Bristol shortly after and I've been catching up on gaming and TV for the rest of the day. I did a schnitzel for Rebecca and myself tonight, somewhat inspired by us reminiscing about our interrailing adventures a couple years back. Rebecca ate some form of escalope in every nation we visited it felt like, I just brought home a great new technique to make my own schnitzels even better. It's so simple too: brush the pork in mustard before doing the whole dredging process. That my friends, is the Munich Style Schnitzel, best enjoyed on Sundays.

Walking Tour of London

Accidentally slept in for a bit longer than I had anticipated - turns out my body needed the extra few hours before heading into the Big Smoke. For Rebecca's Mum's birthday we did a walking tour of London. There were no guides however, we just followed her around her old neighbourhood as she told us about the houses she remembered visiting for Christmases long past and the office block she worked at for 14 years. Central London is culturally tectonic with business, brands and buildings changing every year so it was endearing to hear how the geography of a certain pocket of the city stayed familiar.

A lot of the day was spent of public transport and I felt myself slowly nodding off. The rocking of buses and the soothing sound of the city lulled me back into a sleepy stupor. Guess I still need a bit more shut eye before I'm 100%.

Doughnuts & Ice Cream

The Friday feeling was infectious on set since we had treats coming out of our ears. A cast member bought everyone doughnuts and later the craft truck wheeled out some miniature tubs of ice cream for everyone. The biggest treat of all was going home on wrap though, the week has gone quick but I felt myself getting increasingly tired as the days went on. I'm in London now for Rebecca's Mum's Birthday but it's a great opportunity to recharge.

Movie Memes

 My greatest contribution to the crew today was a meme I made of a fellow crew member who can take a fun joke. In fact, his department liked the picture so much they put it around on the monitors as a a little Easter egg for people to enjoy. We earned a bit of a right to goof off because we were on pace for a nice early wrap... Then of course there was a small complication with the old car we were using - a bonafide classic reason why filming grinds to a halt. Then our final shot was a big, sweeping exterior of our location and naturally it started raining as soon as we head outdoors. Still, we got off 15 minutes early so I could hurry home and help Rebecca mix up some butter icing for her Mum's birthday cake. I even got to lick the spoon afterwards!

Stiff Location

I once again managed to just waltz home from set after work since it's closer for me to do that. Really been enjoying walking to and from work when I have the opportunity. The day itself was rather unremarkable, in fact a lot of people were kinda complaining about how bored of the location they were. New challenges await tomorrow, but Lord knows they'll find something new to gripe about. 

Halfway through the week already is a nice feeling though, I'm already planning my weekend which will once again be down in London. Rebecca's Mum celebrates her birthday on Saturday so I'll be there to help eat a slap up meal.

Locking Eyes

We were out and about in the centre of Bristol filming today and Rebecca and I always joke about bumping into each other when that happens. Well, I saw her this morning on her way to work, then again at the end of the day as she was walking home - both times unprompted and only occured because I shot a glance over my shoulder at the right times. We walked home together though which was a rare treat - one I suspect won't ever be repeated while I work in TV.

We powered through our scenes today - knowing that our scene list was mammoth lit a fire under us so we cracked through at a good pace. Tomorrow will be a bit more of the same, but that's the nature of the beast.

Beginning Block Blues

Back to a rather unremarkable day at work. But like gradually walking into the cold ocean, today was always going to be a slow re-acclimator for another block of filming. At least the hours are a lot more sociable for the next couple of weeks, for most of today I kept thinking how nice it'll be to be back home with Rebecca and the cat - I actually have evenings with them at the moment which makes such a difference. A few hours to watch TV and decompress together is such a blessing.

Farewell Olympics 2024

Funny how my two week holiday co-insided so neatly with 2024's Olympics. Looking back on past fortnight, between the time off in Bournemouth and time at home I think of the idle 15-30 minutes we'd spend each day watching the Summer Games. Diving, Clay Pigeon Shooting, Volleyball, it's all been a ton of fun to tune in and get invested in for a wee bit. It's a mite sad knowing it's all over now as it's indicative that it's back to normal now for so many of us. I'm back on set bright and early tomorrow. I've gone past the 'scaries' now and I just feel my heels dragging as I head back into the next few months of filming.

Night Glow

I'm currently reading a book about narrative and storytelling and today's chapter was all about managing coincidences and surprises. Basically, happenstance is the spice of everyone's day to day - a rouge email or a telephone call often changes everyone's day so people can relate to some odd occurrences in a story. When Rebecca and I went to Bristol's Night Glow, an event housing easily 5000 plus people I couldn't believe my eyes when I bumped into a Uni course mate I hadn't seen since graduation. Such a small world.

Irrespective of that coincidence, I've had a jolly big fill of hot air balloons today. The evening ascent followed by the night glow - it's a big deal for Bristol and it was fun to finally be a part of it. The running joke is I'm always busy or the event has been cancelled, so 8 years after moving here it felt right to at long last fill my eyes with a sky full of balloons.

Just Visiting

Though I wasn't on the clock, I ended up on a film set this morning. I was invited to do a little set visit on Malory Towers seeing as they were shooting in a nearby studio. I had the day off so I thought 'hell yeah', let's go see the old gang. So nice to not only see an ocean of friendly faces, but to have so many of them remember me! From the chaperones up to the director and DOP, everyone was pleased to see me and gave me a firm old handshake. Matt Winlow acted as my wing man as he showed me around the sets (which all looked fabulous) and around to all the rest of the crew. As we were sat together in a corner of set he said '10 years ago we were making live studio dating shows at uni together, now we're watching the monitors on a proper job together.' Life seldom turns out quite the way you expect it to, but in this instance I always wished that would be the case for our future's. Very lucky to have a good friend in Matt and to be a part of this little industry.

Damn Spores

 I finished up a replay of The Last of Us around lunchtime. I was once again blown away by the ending and grateful that I didn't live in a post-apocalypse ruled by mushroom spores... Turns out though less than a meter away from the coffee table I set my controller down on was a miniature fungal colony living rent-free in my own home.

As one of my 'holiday chores' I did a little clear out of our understairs cupboard. Underneath every single shelving unit was white patches and discolouration in the carpet - mould in other words. So I went nuclear. Everything out and wiped down, carpet hoovered and hit with a white vinegar and bicarbonate of soda mix (which I had to run out and get). I was scrubbing the floor down on my hands and knees with a metal scourer praying that I was doing some damage to it all. We left the dehumidifier running in there overnight so hopefully we'll see some improvement - I just could have done without the fear of losing the house to mould gripping me all afternoon.

Speaking of ropey feelings, I watched the recent action film Nobody in an effort to have some 'brain off' time. Instead I was rewarded with an underwhelming, plodding flick about an ex-assasin trying to live a quiet life, who secretly yearns to be an assassin again but actually yearns for the quiet life, this time for real? It was messy so I wrote up my feelings on Letterboxd:

I love Bob Odenkirk as much as the next fella, but it's hard to get behind his character who loses and gains nothing. The story is mercilessly held at gunpoint by the plot which dictates every beat and shields all the 'good' guys with impregnable plot armour for the vague hope of a sequel. The creaky dialogue would have been fun in a B-movie but the tone never lets us relax into it's style and crucially this hurts how we, the audience, can involve ourselves into this world and it's people. It's a redemption tale without a payoff and a goofy action flick without any creative flourishes.

Left in a Drawer

A writing maxim I'm fond of repeating here on this Blog is to do a bit of work, put it away in a drawer for a week or two and then come back to it with fresh eyes. Before I landed my current bit of work I got a script for a new YouTube video about 95% done. I took my first look back at it today and it's actually better than I remember it being. I'm awaiting a book to land at the local library to put the final quotes in but I'd love to get it written at least before the week is out. 

Our guests this weekend cancelled on us a few hours ago - the introvert in me drew a sigh of relief but now we have to dream up some new plans. They'll be hot air balloons aplenty in Bristol so no doubt I'll be spotting them at some point. I still want to get a few more movies ticked off before I'm back at work too.

A Perfect Impression of my Teeth

I did the Worlde while I sat in the dentist's waiting room, I got there early so I had some time to kill. I went in for a consultation visit to discuss me getting braces and today they needed photos of all shapes and sizes. First up was a waiver for me to sign basically saying I was happy to use the pictures for dentist training or promo stuff - I didn't mind so I signed my life away. Then I was passed a pair of cheek retainers that I was asked to hook into either side of my mouth to keep my lips super wider apart. I looked like a total fool, but that just the price I gotta pay. Then I was taken upstairs for a scan. Basically a technician went all around the inside of my arches with a smaller camera to get a 3D image of my teeth. I was super impressed with the technology as the end result was legitimately 1-1, replicating everything in stunning detail all right before my eyes. Nothing to do now except wait for them to scrutinize those pictures and come up with a game plan for me.

In the meantime I wanted to get my homework done and dusted. I read through all of the next blocks scripts again and wrote little synopsis beats for each scene plus a few other details. Essentially breaking down the script in a light fashion so all the events of the story stick in my brain. Though time consuming, it was genuinely super helpful, if anyone came up to me with a question about the script I feel super prepared now.

Goblin Monday

 I treated myself to a goblin mode day, a whole 24 hours where I had no pressing responsibilities - all I had to do was play games and watch movies. Of course I did some grocery shopping and cooking but that fun for me so we'll let it slide. The rest of the week I'll be continuing to take it easy albeit with a few drops and drabs of little chores to crack on with. I'm at the dentist bright and early tomorrow, depending on how that goes I'll see how I feel about anything else. Might do some writing or maybe a bit of 'homework', the world really is my oyster.

Margarita Moggie

That 5th pint last night was a mistake. I got up in slow motion, feeling like I was puppeteering my limbs from another planet. I flicked the kettle on, then immediately felt queezy so I did the Men's 20 Meter Sprint up to the toilet. Luckily the feeling passed, but I still just wanted to wallow on the sofa, feeling sorry for myself. From the couch I have a great view of the garden, in particular the wall where the cat hops up and down after her exploits. From the corner of my eye I saw her returning home carrying a 'present' in her mouth. Rebecca burst into action, locking the cat flap with milliseconds to spare. On closer inspection, this was also a false alarm. Rather than a mouse, the cat brought home a slice of margarita pizza - perhaps we could train her to home her skills.

I felt much better after a coffee though so I was spry and ready to go hang out with some friends visiting Bristol. During our walk around the harbour side we kept bigging up a great place we wanted to take them to lunch. The hype was building, only for the restaurant to be closed. Hearts were broken but quick thinking saved our stomachs and poke bowls stepped in. I felt just right enough for a shandy at a nearby pub plus some board games, basically had the ideal hangout day in Bristol.

While Rebecca is back to work tomorrow I still have the whole of next week off to enjoy a 'staycation'. I'm lining up the movies because I want to make the most of my time off.

Catch Ya Later, Bournemouth

It was hard waking up this morning. Again, it marked the end of our holiday which is a ropey thing to bear. I realized I hadn't strolled around the house much so I took the time today to walk around the bedrooms and consider their history. The one that really stood out was the old Cafe Studios 'Office'. Endearing called the 'Blue Room' for years on account of its navy carpet, this room was once both the hub of Mark and me's operation, and where I played video games for hours at a time. We compromised 'The 14' in there (one film for every day to celebrate 2014). Feels odd typing that now ten years later... 

Anyway, enough nostalgia, we rushed home to see our cat and so I could catch a 30th birthday party for a colleague. It was odd aippi Guinness 50 meters away from a Far Right protest rally but I did my best to live my life as if nothing was unusual. Truth be told I stayed out longer than I had anticipated, but I always figure that someone's birthday needs ringing in with everything their guests have got. It latterly turned into a wedding disco type affair so I gave it my all to the delight of some of the partons. Gotta humiliate yourself slith for the greater good I figure.

One Last Dip

Our second guests down to the Bournemouth house were Rebecca's folks. These guys joined us for our final full day of our holiday which we spent revisiting the town center for one last wistful look over our shoulder at the golden sands and foamy seaside. Rebecca and I dipped our feet in one last time, she didn't want the moment to end as it was a mark of an ending, but all good things...

We prepped one last meal for everyone, trying to use up what we could from our counter top of leftovers. We still had plenty of strawberries and cream leftover for pudding too which was great. In a bid to create some whipped cream I grabbed 2 forks in place of a whisk and applied some elbow grease. 

I'm projecting an image of maturity by being rational about the holiday drawing to an end, mostly to make Rebecca feel better. Deep down I'm also hurting. Luckily I have another week off before I'm back to the grind but this has been such a lovely getaway it'll be sad to leave.

Cream Tea Champ

Our guest in Bournemouth today was none other than my Mum! We headed out to do one of our new favourite things in the New Forest area: picking your own fruit! We filled two punnets of strawberries (which we enjoyed much later on with meringue and cream), tuckered out from fruit spotting I suggested a cream tea as a pick me up which everyone thought was a cracking idea. A quick Google pointed us a few minutes up the road to a garden center with remarkably good scones and a few new plants for Mum to plant at the house - never in all my life has a swift bit on online research resulted in such a big win. We waved goodbye to Mum a little after dinner (though we'll be seeing her again very soon), but a part of us realized that our time away on holiday was drawing to a close. Just one more full day tomorrow to enjoy, better make the very best of it.

Bournemouth - Still Kicking

Even with the sun beating down on us, that wouldn't deter us from walking into Bournemouth town center. I heard on the grapevine that the high street was hemorrhaging and my eyes can confirm that. Since the big department stores have pack up there's a feeling that many shop front are just husks that may never be filled. On the flipside, all the good bits are still alive and kicking. The Lower Gardens was well kept and thriving - a chap did a blindfolded hurdle over knives and fire at one point as a bit of midday entertainment, we just happened to be at the right place at the right time. The cafe where Rebecca and I shared our first date together is still going strong too. Basically all the things I care about are alive and kicking so it's still a nice place to visit, even if I didn't end up buying anything beyond a bus ticket back home.

Getting Toasty on the Beach

At least once a year I like to make the effort to go into the ocean, today's trip to the beach ticked that box. We slathered enough sunscreen on ourselves to just about make it through the hottest day of the year so far. I'm praying I don't wake up tomorrow with burns because when I was reading on the sand I lost track of time and felt my skin getting toasty... Time will tell I suppose. 

I'm also enjoying playing video games in the Bournemouth house living room, where some of my most formative gaming experiences took place. I'm digging crashing out on the sofa playing some early 2000's games while Rebecca reads Stephen King and reciting her favourite passages to me. Holidays are two partners for me: the activity time and the recharge time. Two halves of the same coin, both ultimately becoming synonymous in how I remember a holiday.

Taking Stock of the Livestock

I hadn't visited Studland since my GCSE geography trip (in which we compared and contrasted the area to Swanage). It was a grotty day back then but the sun had his hat on for us today as Rebecca and I did a round route to Old Harry Rocks and along the coastal path. The rocks were great, but the real highlight of the jaunt was going through a field brimming with cows. They were so chill with humans that it actually felt a bit surreal to be so up close to them. 

Part two of the day's fun was a self-imposed cooking challenge. Everything we eat for dinner must come from the Korean supermarket, so I made a Frankenstein Pho/broth bowl with pickled radish, kimchi and tofu. Just what the doctor ordered after a massive walk.

Back Down to B Town

 'Leisurely' doesn't quite do justice to describe how late we left it to eat breakfast this morning before hitting the road to Bournemouth. Rebecca and I basically got a free sauna treatment having to sit in her non air-conditioned car in a traffic jam, but we kept smiling until that infamous 'Welcome to Bournemouth' sign waved us in. Since we landed a bit later today we kept it simple with a jaunt up Winton high street to revisit our old stomping grounds. G&T's, Lidl, Coffee #1 and Seoul Plaza were all present and correct - the more things change the more they stay the same. 

It's nice to be back in the house as well. For part of the car ride I was regaling the verbal history of Frederica to Rebecca. The video games me, Louis and Dan would play together, how we rode toboggan-style down the stairs in our sleeping bags and finding new games to play with whatever tat we bought with our pocket money from G&T's. Lot of good memories made under this roof, hopefully this holiday will provide even more.

Kiss The Chef

Despite the late bedtime last night, I dragged myself out of bed to finish packing for my holiday. We did a quick pit stop to Louis' house to drop off a bottle of champagne - a tipple he can enjoy to celebrate the launch of his game next week. Then we hit the road to London, a friend of ours was hosting a Birthday BBQ which I prepared lashings of lemonade for, both the lemon and grapefruit variety. We joked that I'd probably end up in front of the grill doing the cooking... 5 minutes later I might as well been wearing a 'Kiss the Chef' apron because I was cooking for 19. Was a lot of fun though, was great to do something while our hosts could kick back a bit and enjoy their own party. I was smitten by how well the lemonade went down, people couldn't get enough of it.

2 Week Hiatus

Some of us were nearly nodding off by wrap, but we got it all in the can. As soon as they called it there was a mad dash off location as we all high tailed it home. 2 weeks holiday starts now and I am so very ready for the respite.

Pizza and Crumble

 Back on set just as all the end of block nice stuff started pouring in. A pizza truck AND a crumble truck - just a shame I was too full from lunch to partake but the vendor is one of my old favourites so it was great to see a friendly face. I was quietly taken aback by everyone smiling when they saw me to say 'hey, you're back!' It's a little hard to gauge how much of an impact I'm making on set but glad to know I'm liked.

Final day before a brief holiday tomorrow. All of us are raring for time off, just one final hurdle and we're over the line.

Brand New CPU

 The second and final day of my training course was equally good and enjoyable. I got to even better grips with how to break down a script (an always fascinating task) and what to look out for. Coincidentally I did a bit of that on our job just this Monday for my own sake, now I'm thinking of returning to that once a new batch of scripts come in to lend a forensic level of detail to my next pass of it.

I was jazzed to get back to Bristol though, my latest PC upgrade landed in the mail which I was keen to play around with. A new CPU has really propelled my system into a new stratosphere - everything that used to run a little choppy now runs like greased lightning. That's been my little treat to myself - I think I'm worth it.

Back into the Classroom

It hasn't been since I helped shoot Together back in 2017 that I've returned to Uxbridge. The geography of the high street came back to me all the same as I rode the bus into town. This time I was hear for a training course, specifically a Script Supervising one so I could establish a bedrock foundation ofy understanding - all of my training has been on-set so classroom time is useful (I also get a nice qualification I can put on my CV). There was only students in the group so it's been a really intimate learning environment, but everyone else is equally excited about the role so it's a great environment. We learnt all the basics again (always good to see how other people do it too) and did some practical exercises too. I was oddly exhausted once it was all over, maybe it's the heat but I was ready for bed after getting in this evening.

Practical Practice

I took it upon myself to do some prep work for our next block of filming. That's the one main gap in my Script Supervising knowledge so it was practical practice to have a go at breaking all the scripts down. Alongside reading them with a fine toothed comb I made notes on who plays in each scene and made a call on story days and time of days for each given scene. Though lengthy it was a good process that really helped cement the story and things to look out for in my mind. This evening I waved Bristol farewell for a bit to spend the night with Rebecca's parents. I have a two day training course in the city which I'm very much looking forward to. Earlyish start for me tomorrow, but nothing I'm not used to from a day on set.

Spot on Sunday

We weren't hungover by any stretch this morning, but Rebecca and I were certainly cursed by the after effects of a night on the town. Nothing that a big breakfast and a stroll up North Street couldn't solve though. We had a little hit list of stuff to buy which we just about managed to complete, a few friends have birthdays coming up so my rucksack was brimming with goodies. Afterwards we just melted on the sofa, the heat picked up and we ran out of chores so we had plenty of time to take it easy. We played a board game this evening which I actually won for a change, though Rebecca was very bitter about losing - she can't win all the time though! All in all a pretty perfect little weekend for us, busy doing adult, sociable and recharging stuff - ready for the new week now.

Longlegs

What started off as a pretty low-key day turned into a fairly fully stocked Saturday. First up was the grown up stuff. We revisited our carpet guys place to grab a few more sample. We've triangulated much more on what we'd like and with the help of the manager we left with some great swatches. 

In the early evening we went out with a friend to see Longlegs. In famously terrible with horror films, especially ones at the cinema... Doubly so when we are in the 2nd row from the front of the screen. The film did wonders cultivating a constant feeling of dread and imminent horror - I was on the edge of my seat throughout. A late film revelation kinda killed all the suspense for me, but then again it's tough to name a horror piece that remains effective as the information is drip fed to you.

Shortly after we were whisked down to Harbour-feat for a quick drink. Then another, then another, then another. Weow-key ditched the people we were with as Rebecca and I were keen to get some shut eye. Right now I'm a fan of that choice

1 Face, 3 Films

Several of the crew were finishing up on their 6th day today. You can tell because a lot of them get a bit loopy and excitable about the prospect of a weekend. The whole of the floor carried that energy with it, just good vibes all around. I was stationed to assist the covering Script Supervisor and together we muddled through the day just fine. Everyone also got a big kick out of my Friday Quiz - I'm pretty pleased with it so I'll share it here too.

1 Face, 3 Films

Below is a list of three films, you just have to figure out the common actor. Who could they be? 🎭📽️ 

Happy Friday and best of luck!

1.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Back to the Future Part 2

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

2.

Julie and Julia

Kramer vs Kramer

Mamma Mia

3.

Stardust

The Deer Hunter

Joker 

4.

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure 

Much Ado About Nothing 

The Matrix: Reloaded

5.

Fight Club

Harry Potter: The Order of the Phoenix 

Les Miserables

6.

Drive

Never Let Me Go

Saltburn

7.

Pulp Fiction 

Moonrise Kingdom

The Fifth Element 

8.

Face Off

Adaptation 

Kick Ass

9.

Love Actually 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Saving Mr Banks 

10.

Grand Budapest Hotel

Atonement 

Little Women