Production Diary #10 - THAT'S A WRAP!

"People Like Us" has wrapped filming!

I almost can't believe it ... I've lived with this story for so long, it hasn't quite sunk in that I actually finished shooting it. It feels really good. The day went very well. We started off with our six main characters having a party. It was an early start, but we powered through. It's funny to me that it took until the last day of filming for all six of these actors to meet each other, but with Alma not being at the read-through and Anne coming in halfway through production, that's how it goes. Fun was had.

After that, Rachel, Kira, Alma, and Anne were wrapped. We still had a few scenes to shoot with James and Clay. I don't know if it was because we all started early, or because we knew it was the last day, but everyone got VERY giggly. Lots of gag reel stuff. And then it happened. We finished filming.

I'm so grateful to everyone who worked on this movie. Everyone brought their A game, and it showed. I'm so drained that, when I say I'm going to take a break before starting to edit, I think I actually mean it this time. I'm definitely looking forward to putting the movie together, but I need some time to recharge before I get to it.

I can't express how good it feels to be done filming ... I triumphed! Movie Gods be damned! Or maybe they were FINALLY on my side ... Either way, it's pretty cool. Once I start editing, I'll be back with post-production reports.

Signing off for now,

~Vincent~

Production Diary #9

Only one day left!

This weekend's filming went incredibly well. Lots of exterior scenes, which are always a challenge. I always have mixed feelings about shooting in the "real world". Hitchcock hated exterior location shooting. He was too much of a control freak and there were way too many uncontrollable elements to it. I know how he feels.

Anyway, Saturday we shot with Rachel, James, and Thom. It was Thom's second and final day on the film. He did a wonderful job and he added a lot to a small role. The scenes with Rachel and James went well, despite dog-walkers and families. I was surprised that, out of the three scenes we shot that day, only one will probably need re-recording. I assumed we'd need to loop all three, but we got lucky.

Same goes for Sunday. We were working with Alma and Anne and only had two scenes to shoot- one exterior and one interior. Sunday was Easter, so I thought for sure we wouldn't be able to use the sound, but we found a great location that was far enough removed from the picnicking families (of which there were many) that we were able to shoot the scene without any problems.

This coming Saturday (the 29th) is our next and last day of filming. We've got a party scene with all our main family characters (Rachel, James, Alma, Kira, Clay, and Anne) and then a few scenes with just James and Clay. I can't believe I'm this close to finishing this film. It's been a long time coming. I'll be back on Sunday to let you know how it went. Stay tuned!

~Vincent~

Production Diary #8

We're getting very close to the end of filming on "People Like Us"... Only three shooting days left!

The last two days have been very productive. This past Sunday, we shot with Rachel and Thom. It was Thom's first out of two days as Bruce. It's a small role, but it's not an easy one. I'm always impressed by the actors who play the smaller roles because they have less time to make their characters interesting. Once you see the movie, you'll understand more about what I'm saying regarding Thom's character. He's got to do a lot in a small amount of scenes and he's got to generate sympathy from the audience almost immediately. Thom's a talented guy and I was really happy to work with him again. He's always a blast to have on set.

Tuesday, we shot with Rachel and Kira. It's been about a month since we shot with these two girls and I totally missed them. They're such a pleasure to work with. It was an easy day and we were done ahead of schedule. Kira's only got one day left and it's going to be sad to say good-bye to her on this movie.

I want to take a moment and mention the people who work behind the camera with me. The first is my cameraman, Mike Robinson. Mike and I have known each other for almost three years now. We first met in late 2005 when he shot "Dorian" for me. He really is brilliant and has become an indispensable collaborator. Since then, he's also shot "Angels on Fire" and now "People Like Us". If I have my way, he'll shoot all my movies.



The second is our wonderful makeup artist, Jess Lee Johnson. I love this girl. Last fall, she worked on "Angels on Fire" as the makeup effects artist. She wasn't the only makeup artist on that movie and she wasn't on set everyday, but we got along instantly and I wanted to work with her more, so we brought her on solo to do this movie. Best thing to happen to the flick. We have so much fun and she's incredibly easy to work with. Are we noticing a theme to my praise? I love people that make my life easier. There's so much to film-making that has to be stressed over that I really enjoy it when I can surround myself with relaxed people who know how to have fun while delivering a good product at the same time. With Jess, that's always what you get - great work while smiling.



This weekend will see two of our last three days. On Saturday, we're shooting with Rachel, James, and Thom. Sunday, we're back with Alma and Anne. I'll be back on Monday with another report. Stay tuned!

~Vincent~

Production Diary #7

This weekend's filming was great. No other way to say it. Both on Saturday and Sunday, we worked with Alma and Anne Troup. Saturday was Anne's first day as Lily and she's a perfect fit for this movie. The two girls worked extremely well together, which always makes things go SO much easier. There's nothing I love more than a low-maintenance actor. If I'm working with an actor who doesn't raise my stress level, then we can just concentrate on the work. That's what you get with both Alma and Anne. To be fair, that's what you get with any of the actors on this shoot.

Saturday, we filmed a lot of scenes in Fullerton. The romance between Diana and Lily is a huge part of this movie and it was very rewarding to watch it come together. The two girls took to each other very quickly and we were able to finish about an hour ahead of schedule, which is another sure-fire way to making me happy.


PRODUCTION STILL: A new romance begins with Lily (Anne Troup) giving Diana (Alma Saraci) her phone number.

Sunday, we filming a couple short scenes up in Angeles National Forest. We used the exact same location as we did last October on "The Crow: Angels on Fire". I absolutely fell in love with that location and I wrote a couple new scenes so I could go up there again. As on Saturday, the girls were totally prepared and we spent more time driving to the location that we took actually filming the scenes.

Next filming days are Sunday the 16th and Tuesday the 18th. Sunday, we're with Rachel and it's our first day with Thom Houghton playing Bruce. Thom played Stretch in "Angels on Fire" and it'll be fun to watch him play a much more warm, bring-home-to-Mom character. Next Tuesday, we're back with Rachel and Kira. I'll be back Wednesday the 19th for another report. Stay tuned!

~Vincent~

Production Diary #6

Yesterday was an awesome filming day. Probably one of the easiest shoots and one of the most pleasant. It was Alma Saraci's first day as Diana. We started filming a couple scenes between her and James, which went very well. James and Alma make a good best friend team. It's a relationship I've very specific with, as it's the only relationship in the film that's based somewhat on a real-life friendship. I've got very strong ideas about how I want the Matt/Diana friendship to feel like and these two nailed it.


PRODUCTION STILL: James and Alma run lines before shooting.

After that, Clay came in to shoot a couple short scenes with Alma and James. He's one of the most professional and prepared actors I've ever worked with, so those went very quickly.

The bulk of our shoot yesterday was with Alma and Jodi, who plays Renee, Diana's girlfriend and the beginning of the film. Jodi and I met on "Angels on Fire" and I love working with her. I was glad to be able to get her on this movie, but I'm sad that she was able to film all her scenes in one day. Hopefully, in the next movie we do together, I'll get her for a little while longer.


Next weekend, we film again with Alma and start with Anne, who plays Lily. I'm excited to get these two together. Sunday, we're shooting a handful of scenes in Angeles National Forest. We're using the same location as we did on "Angels on Fire". I just loved it so much when we were there last October that I wanted to find a way to shoot there again. Should be a good couple days of filming. Stay tuned!

~Vincent~