“Alright – cut there.” On cue we all stopped in midflow and caught our breath. We were exhausted, it was coming up to 9pm and as our delirium mixed with lactic acid we took a moment to swig Lucosade and mop our brows. “The problem is I don’t believe Rik is really hitting Guy. I know you don’t want to hurt him but at the moment the shot is not working.” It was then, as my fatigue urged me to suggest we go with what we’d got so we could all go to our homes and sleep for a week, that I heard myself say, “If it’s just one shot you need, Rik just smack me around – let’s make the shot perfect.” It was then that I invented what was later to be termed ‘Method Slapping’ and like all good methods it is truly traumatic for the actor. Needless to say the shot was perfect and we could pack up and head home, all happy in a good days work and with the crew’s compliments ringing in our ears – in my case I’m not sure if it was the compliments causing the shrill high pitch ring…
The day had started off early – far too early. There’s nothing quite like walking through Piccadilly Circus on a Sunday morning before 8am. There is an absolute calm and stillness about the place. For some it would seem eerie, hence the filming in “28 Days Later”. For others I guess it feels like the calm after the storm that is a West End Friday Night. You are guaranteed to be the only person there apart from a couple of road sweepers mounted on their motorised cleaning buggies – the ones that leave those wet “snail trail” markings along the pavement.
On the day of the shoot I watched as these “sweeper trails” merged with the puddles that one or two feral pigeons were bathing in. Though the environment was tranquil my mind was the complete mirror image. I have a lot of experience as an actor, some as a writer and hardly any as a producer. What I had absolutely no experience of was producing, writing and acting all at the same time. It provides a very disquieting, schizophrenic atmosphere in your head. As I went in search of a cup of coffee that morning prior to the shoot, my mind jumped from reciting lines, to worrying about animal acting skills, to trying to improve a punch line to running through the proposed budget, back all the way round to reciting my lines again. Needless to say what I needed most was to get cracking. We were ready: scripts had been written and re-written. Actors had rehearsed and developed their characters and the crew had prepped and recce'd and anymore preparation would have driven us all over the edge of reason and might well have threatened to turn us permanently into the nutters we were going to portray that day!
If there is one thing you love as a producer it’s seeing your cast and crew turn up on time, relaxed and focused. And it was with much pleasure that I watched as more and more people arrived at the cosy premises of Pall Mall Barbers ready for the day ahead. I couldn’t decide if it reminded me most of a comedy scene from a silent movie when an unfathomable amount of people cram themselves into a car or telephone box. Alternatively it could have been the beginning of an action thriller like “Oceans 11” or the “A Team” when a team is put together, where everyone has their own unique skill. In our case it was: camera man, lighting, sound, make-up, actors, dog etc etc.
Now this might sound cheesy and a cliché but I have honestly never worked on a set where there has been so much camaraderie and morale. It was truly a lesson to be learnt on how productive a shoot can be when everyone is pushing in the same direction towards a common goal. At the end of the day our director Richard Elson reviewed the shot count with disbelief and announced we had 64 shots, which for a one day shoot with a single camera is a hell of a lot!
At this stage, just prior to the release of the first sketch, I don’t want to give away any of the plots, characters or jokes, but for me there were so many highlights to the day. The first had to be seeing Charlotte Gascoyne’s hairdo, superbly put together by Jodie Hyams - combined with Charlotte’s brilliant portrayal of Barbara it was wonderful to watch.
The next highlight had to be Fry – all I will say about him is; four legs, adorable and the biggest upstager in the business! Of course the list goes on and on – contributions from Rhys Alexander and Jaymie Addicott, Alan Hescott and Luke Waldock made it a day of highlights. The one though that stands out most for me was during a short break when I was not needed on set. I went with the First AD John Foxen to pick up lunch for everyone. At the time Richard was just rehearsing with Rhys and Jaymie on a certain comedy love scene they were about to shoot (I will not go into more detail than that). As we returned from the shops, laden with baguettes and carrot cake, we were walking down the road behind three little, old ladies. Now these women resembled weather-beaten battle axes. They had seen it all and passed their unflinching judgement with cruel efficiency, but as they passed Pall Mall Barbers and the filming that was taking place, their world was shaken to its very foundations.
It was at this point that Rhys and Jaymie were in full flow in their comedy love scene. I hasten to add it is in no way pornographic - if it was, these little old ladies would simply have shaken their heads and carried on walking proud. No – what the ladies saw shocked and confused them. John and I walked behind, weeping with laughter, knowing that the joke was working. It is only with regret however that on watching the rough cuts that you can’t see the three little old ladies as they were just too short to make the shot. If you look closely you’ll just see three heads bobbing along as Jaymie and Rhys express their ‘unique’ love.
I will not say anymore than please look out for the sketches and let us know what you think. We had a lot of fun making them so I hope you enjoy watching them as well. This week we will be releasing a brilliant trailer of the forthcoming carnage that is, “Paul Mal Barbara’s”
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