Once I get back here, off the phone, blackberry down, plastic earpiece (for the WALKIE) no longer tucked behind and inserted into my ear (although it feels like it's still there, hours after it's been extracted with tiny pieces of wax stuck to the sides) -- my ears are still filled with sounds. T's voice calling out: "QUIETLY PLEASE!!" as Rattler and the nucleus (stars, DP, Zulu, and camera) block the action or right before we're about to roll. Then "ROLLING!!" as the film begins to roll and the actors wait, on their marks for Shawn's "ACTION!" Then, after Shawn yells "CUT!" the reverberation of the announcement, over the walkie and out loud. "CUTTING!" "CUTTING" and the ringing of the door to the stage (the alarm that informs everyone they no longer need to tip-toe around the perimeter of the stage).
Ears and Eyes are funny things. A lot of what I learn everyday now is collected over the walkie, overheard pieces of information that then become pieces to puzzles of all these peoples' personalities and lives. It's also overheard. Standing near Bullet, as he talks to BS, I catch snippets of true hollywood stories: "DeNiro said..." "Jay Roach is the nicest guy ever..." etc. I also gather information by watching people. I see the way a PA talks to another PA (perhaps a romance is brewing?) - the way a star's makeup and hair team scrutinize the monitor, assessing their work, prepping for their window to refasten, re-powder, re-affix, re-touch. I watch Zulu, whose eyes must be constantly focused on what's next to be shot, what time we're at and what time we have, and on Shawn -- as Shawn juggles and endeavors to defy gravity -- enjoying the work, the busy-ness, the thoughts, the decisions. He truly enjoys it.
I'm also buried in my blackberry -- she is my constant muse. Her blue skin cover stands out against the black of Bullet's -- so I never get them confused on the Rattler table. I bury myself in the coming and going of my emails and am completely frustrated whenever I have to text on the production cell -- as Shawn agrees -- it's just no good when the letters share the same key! Every time I hit "SEND" on an email I watch the blue circular swirl which indicates "working" to the left of the new message. Then the vibrate of the phone having sent the email. Then new emails come in. Missing Passport #'s, Mom writing to say HELLO and she misses me and where is the best address to send something, Production Office looking for my home phone number (I find the email that has it; I don't yet know it by heart), and it goes on and on. I am either sending anew, or receiving an email -- about every 3-5 minutes. That rate begins around 8AM and goes til about 7pm -- sometimes slightly later.
Aside from how busy I am -- I have now started to enjoy the down pockets (moments after I've just refreshed a beverage or food or request for Shawn and I can step aside, free to observe the monitor or the set or chat with whomever happens to be closest. Everytime I see the set -- now inside the National Gallery, with its stunning vaulted ceiling, faux marble floor, gilded archways and faux Marble columns -- the modern sculptures to the Impressionist paintings to the contemporary photographers and painters...it's quite inspiring, really. I have to pinch myself sometimes, and other times I want to laugh.
Like today, as I was rushing to the costume trailer, carrying a white shirt of Shawn's they were going to steam (he had more press today) and also carrying a cappuccino for the man who was steaming the shirt (a tip I gleaned from Marco -- when we can, we try to pay people in cappuccinos for things they do for Shawn and in return, they come through and don't resent us!) -- along with a vitamin water in a to-go cup with 3 ice cubes for Shawn. I saw the Unit Publicist catch sight of me, and knew she was coming for me. Sure enough, as I increased my pace, my synthetic booties shuffling towards the trailer and my hands completely full -- "P" raises her arm, waving a paper back and forth, and starts to speed walk toward me. I felt like it was a moment out of a movie, and the camera should have been on my face, seeing the incoming bogie and wanting nothing else but to just get done the 3 things I was on a mission about, but I couldn't ignore her. "Oh, Hi P!" as I call out the costumer's name who is helping with Shawn's shirt. "Andre?!" I say. P thinks I've said "Entree" and she starts to come up the steps after me. "No, no, no," I explain, leaving the cappuccino on the counter and the shirt on the rack and heading back outside, bound for the stage. "I really have to get this drink to Rattler." "Oh, yes, of course, but can I just give you this?" She hands me a list of the names of the journalists who will be conducting the round robin interviews with Shawn and Ben over lunch. I know it seems like this should matter, but in reality, Shawn will just have enough time to have wolfed down 2 bites of his lunch, send 2 emails, and run inside. He won't need to know any of these people's names, he'll just need to entertain them for 30 minutes and sell the movie to them.
And sell is what he does so well. Listening to him answer their questions -- he speaks like a statesman (in clear, clean, quoteable sentences) but also is confident enough to stay in the moment and does not come off mechanical. The reporters and journalists eat him up. In fact, later after we finish the press round robin and are shooting again, they gather slightly off-stage to watch the scene as it's being shot on a monitor. It's BS, Napoleon and Amelia -- and right in the middle of the scene, a loud woman's laugh can be heard. Everyone looks at each other with expressions of shock and confusion. Who would dare be so blatantly ignorant? Then Shawn realizes it's the press. He loudly calls out, asking for silence, and let's the actors know it's the press, they are laughing. It's clear the actors didn't know the press was watching their close-ups as they film the scene. BS looks directly into the camera, aka directly at the press that he has just finished speaking with for over 30 minutes, and smiles, like welcoming back a visitor who forgot something. "Oh, I didn't know the press was watching. I better make this one count."
And the rest is History -- or soon to be History -- when the movie comes out. I hope I remember the days filming that brought the final product.
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