Field of Vision: My Visit to a Movie Set

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit a movie set. Since my older two children spend most of their free time making movies I was very interested in learning more about it.

We were able to watch filming, interview the actors, visit the prop trailer, wardrobe, and the snack trailer. Even though I didn’t know what to expect, I was still amazed by the entire process.

Set

The day we were there, they were shooting at a closed school. The main reason Atlanta was chosen for this movie was because of the school. You can’t shoot a movie in a school that is in use, so film makers need to find schools that are no longer in use to film, or build a set. It was nice to see so many local businesses contributing to the production. From the hotel to drivers to actors this movie is bringing business to Atlanta.

Wardrobe

This was my favorite part (aside from meeting the cast). We met the woman in charge of wardrobe and she was great. I was excited to hear that even wardrobes have a budget and many of the clothes purchased for the movie were on clearance!

One interesting fact about wardrobe is that when the actor is wearing an outfit for a scene, they take a photo of the actor in the clothes and then hang it on the outfit with a few notes. This way if they are shooting days later they actor’s clothes have continuity, even down to what pockets are buttoned!

Props

The prop trailer was interesting too. There are bins and bins (all labeled) with different props. The trailer travels to different movies and supplies props for each one. There was everything from crime scene tape to crayons in the trailer.

Food

There was so much food and it was all so good. There were options for everyone including gluten free and vegetarian. I honestly don’t know how actors are thin given all the food options available!

Camera

We had our own camera man for the day since we weren’t allowed to take any photos. Since my kids are so interested in making movies I asked him a few questions about filming. His top two tips for amateur movie makers:

• Think about the whole shot when filming. Background is important so take that into consideration.
• Lighting is important, good lighting can make all the difference in an amateur movie.

Crew

I was amazed at how many people it takes to make a movie and how good they all are at their jobs. It was interesting to watch everyone working together to film one scene. From the person who holds the mic (my arms hurt watching him) to the lady who was always checking the make-up, everyone worked together and knew when to keep quiet and stay out of the way.

Actors

We were able to interview Tony Oller, Joe Adler, Faith Ford, Dane Davenport, and Alyssa Shafer. I was surprised at how friendly and down to earth all these actors were. Alyssa is an adorable 12 (and a half) year old who charmed us all. She talked about growing up in “the business” and her love of microbiology. (Seriously, she is 12!) She is homeschooled along with her three brothers and left us all speechless. One theme that was evident in all of their lives was a great relationship with their parents. Listening to them reminded how important it is to make our relationships with our children a priority, not an afterthought.

Miscellaneous Movie Info

They do the same thing over and over and over. We watched them tape the same scene numerous times. After a while I knew all the lines! To the untrained eye I thought they did a great job the first time, but the director was always tweaking the scene to make it better.

There is a lot of hurry up and wait. Being an extra in a film is no fun. The extras spent most of the day sitting around and waiting for the next shot. I think you need a lot of patience to be an extra.

The bathroom trailer is called the “honey trailer.” Personally I thought it needed to be called the “honey pot” but I don’t think they are going to take my suggestion.

Final thoughts

I can’t wait to see this movie. I don’t watch a lot of television or movies (my kids would say I was anti-movie) but I usually don’t watch them because many of the kid shows are boring and the adult shows are not appropriate for my kids. Procter & Gamble has teamed up with Walmart to produce a series of family friendly movies and this one is the 6th movie they have produced. What is nice about these movies is that they are enjoyable for kids and adults, have a good message, and the commercials are family friendly too.

I was able to talk with Faith Ford about her thoughts on family friendly television. Here is my interview.

It is nice to know that there are some companies who are dedicated to making family friendly films. I can only hope that other companies do the same.

Thanks to the folks at Procter & Gamble who made this trip possible for me. I had a wonderful time and can’t wait to see the finished product!