Moving on to D6

Every so often something strange, odd, weird, noteworthy and/or humorous happens. Sometimes it is caught on film and used in the extras at the end of the movie (a good producer will allow for the extra footage to be added in this way). To me, the bits that happen 'off-the-cuff' or behind the scene are as good as gold (sometimes they are even better than the film itself).

Last night we had at least one of those moments in the heat of filming.

For the 14th time we were shooting a tricky shot which required one of the leads to enter a room (as the camera's POV), see something and drop the camera, run from the scene only to be knocked out, and several other actors were to appear, walk through, scurry away and menacingly skulk about. As the antagonist fled the room and went to a spot around a corner (out of sight), the director quietly called the cue "One" for a bit actor in the bathroom to leave his hiding place and cross right to left, disappearing around the same corner.

The antag. thought he heard the word "cut" and not the normal cue "one," and as the bit character reached the pivital corner, our lead actor came non-chalantly back around the corner from the left, knocking into the quickly departing bit player - which shocked the poop out of the bit player who then uttered "excuse me" as they passed in the hallway.

The facial expressions were priceless, and the DP is on the floor holding the shot, waiting for the Director to call out "Cut."

Poor Director was as in the dark as EVERYone else regarding what was going on - everyone except for the DP, the bit actor, the Boom Op (me) and the still hapless schmoo of a lead.

As the DP continued to silently communicate the cut sign to the Dir (as in the cut your throat hand signal; flat hand, palm down, fingers extended toward the throat and swiping quickly right to left over and over), our clueless lead was walking back to reset to go again, hands in his pockets, humming softly.

Suddenly, something dawned on him. Could it be the facial expressions of the DP and the Boom Op....my hand slapped over my mouth in an attempt to stiffle laughter? Could it be the WTF body language of the Director once he rounded the corner? Who knows. It was simply one of the funnier things we had encountered after several long days of murder and mayhem. At least the three of us had a great laugh, and once the Dir realized it was pretty funny, he laughed too...

until we had to start it all again.