DRIVER - SHOOT DAYS 3, 4, 5, AND 6

All I can say is: This movie is taking shape! The 3rd. day of shooting came with storms and rain. That would have been fantastic for the story if the other days had been the same (the story happens in less than one day; so, all the outdoor shots have to match). Of course, the unavoidable Murphy's Law took good care of it and the other days were as bright and cloudless as anyone could expect. Probably we'll have to re-shoot at least 50% of the footage of that day. Anyway, it was GOOD, but a little hard on our 7-year old actress Gwendoline Jory, who in spite of having to be wrapped in a blanket inside "Angelina" for hours, did an awesome job. A big thanks goes to both my colleague and friend Mike Wetzel, who drove the camera truck, and Courtland police officer Steven Terry, who not only blocked one lane of a road as we were shooting from the other lane, but also drove some cast and crew to the police station for a bathroom break. Mike also took the pictures below:

From left to right, Ryan and I plotting the next take, and Kevin (at the wheel of "Angelina").

Gwendoline and Kevin inside Angelina, and Ryan and I shooting from Mike's truck.

 

I don't have any pictures of day 4. That was the most difficult shoot so far. It was in downtown Decatur and, besides directing the whole thing, I also had to coordinate traffic with police officer Chris Moffett (thank you officer). So, there was no time for pictures, but my friend Joseph Frank took a lot of behind-the-scenes video footage, so we'll be able to see all the crazy things we did some day. He also drove Angelina that day as a double for Kevin. My colleague Stephen Johnson drove the camera truck, which doubled as a safety car.

I asked Ryan to stand-in to check the light and the framing of the very first scene. Eventually, we added a light in the room at the back to both give more depth to the scene and get rid of some of the green cast.

With 6 young actors on set, day 5 was probably the most fun ever. The big THANK YOU of that day goes to Ryan's parents, who allowed us to shoot at their home.

For sure Gwendoline had much more fun that day.

 

Actors Gavin Henry, Nathan Couch and Michael Felts.

 

Kevin and "his" five sons. I asked them to act badass for this picture and they complied...

 

And, finally, the whole gang (except Gwendoline, Joseph and myself).

 
On day six (last Sunday), the crew was down to its bare bones: camera, sound, one actor and director. Somewhat it was a bit of a relief compared to the previous days, but the heat was so bad that I think we ended up much more tired than in the previous shoots.

Seth and Ryan.

Tom Kennelly and the hearse. We definitely need to find a name for that hearse, which by the way is provided by Reynolds Funeral Home. Another big thank you to owner Mr. Dexter Elliott.

 

The moment I saw Tom coming into the room where we had the casting sessions, I knew he was THE MAN for the job.