Major Project Production Unit - Shoot Day: Bradbourne House Exterior And Fire Scene

Previously I had scheduled to shoot the exterior scenes on a second day at Stonewall Park however the owner of the property had changed her mind when we got there and explained that she would now only be letting us shoot for one day. This raised a new problem as I needed somewhere to film the garden scenes. I did some research into locations that I could use and emailed some people about the potential of us filming on their land. Several did not reply but I did manage to get a response off of The Bearsted Woodland Trust. They requested a phone call and I spoke on the phone to the chairman about what I was planning to do and what I needed to film. He gave us permission to film there as long as we were respectful of other people and were not in anyone's way. Once the phone call had ended, I suddenly realised there was an avenue I hadn't tried. I felt that although the park would work, it wouldn't look as authentic as an estate or property grounds. I decided to email Bradbourne House where we had filmed previously and asked them if it would be ok to pop down and film a few scenes in their grounds for a few hours. I got a phone call from someone who was part of there team who explained that since we were very professional last time we were there that they were willing to let us use their grounds for free for the afternoon. I quickly updated everyone as I feel this will match a few previous exterior shots we got and I felt it would be a lot more authentic for the film's setting. Everyone was on board and I made sure everyone knew what they were doing and at what time I needed them as well as letting The Bearsted Woodland Trust know that I appreciated their offer but I, unfortunately, was no longer in need of the location.

On the day of the shoot, I picked up Claudia and we made our way to the barn so that we could do hair and makeup. I also had a chance to sit down with her so I could go over the blocking and explain what I wanted from her. This really helped as we both felt comfortable knowing exactly what we were doing. Once this was done we then made our way to Bradbourne house and began setting up the equipment. We first off headed over to the fruit garden. I had originally imagined this scene to be with bright flourishing flowers around her but because of the time were filming it was not the season for this. Having been on a location recce beforehand I knew there were dramatic looking archways in this area so I decided that visually this would really stand out with Sophie walking through them contrasting with the fresh rose that she would be holding. We set up here and started shooting the first shot. I wanted this to be a long shot from several angles with the glide like motion that the gimble has been giving us on previous shoots. I first shot from the front all the way along the arches and redid this from the back and sides in many shot types such as mid shots, long shots and close-ups so that there would be lots of coverage to cut within the edit. I worked with Claudia on her performance in the way she was walking through the archways with pace and elegance as well as her expression being more brighter. I wanted to convey the dream-like nature of the seen but also a sense that she has been longing for this life. I also wanted her to look like she has discovered paradise and she is living it. I feel like I really achieved this despite the lack of flowers and the grey skies.

The next shot was the rose drop. In this shot I wanted it to really symbolise that the beauty has fallen and signified that something delicate and wonderful that she is holding onto is all an illusion and will disappear from her. It also represents her thought changes as she becomes very aware that the beauty she is trying to create for herself is not actually hers as she lets go. I felt the best way to do this shot would be from a low angle pointing upwards. Doing this would make her look big and powerful of where she feels she stands but then we see the rose fall from her hands heading towards the ground. I then got a shot low to the ground so that we can see the rose hitting the floor. I feel both these shots look really great and have worked how I want them to.

After this, we then moved onto the spinning scenes. For these shots I wanted her standing in a large open space to signify the vast land that she owns and how she revels in it. I felt since the audience has seen Bradbourne House as the exterior before, It would be great to get a shot of the house in the background to reinforce her whereabouts and that this is the same house that the story is set in. I decided to shoot in a large space on the side of the house by the lake as this ticked all the boxes for what I was trying to achieve. The first shot we did was of Claudia in the distance spinning and myself and Andreya starting from afar and slowly gliding towards her. I wanted to get this shot as it marries with the other shots I have been getting but also draws the viewer in slowly towards her. It also shows the fast space around her but also keeping a fluid motion. Once I got this shot I got several other mid-shots and close-ups as I want this to be a little more dramatic on the cutting for the edit. All the shots are also in slow motion to give the sense of beauty a fluidity but also making the scene dramatic which is what I want.

The final shots that I got were then on the bridge crossing over the lake in the grounds. I felt this bridge would be great to film on as it shows her crossing the waters that are constantly running underneath. Although calm, they are still present and very much there. This symbolizes her current situation. I also felt it was a really nice shot with the house again in the background and shows her exploring the grounds that she feels like she has. Once this shot was done I called a wrap on the day and decided to pack the equipment up. Claudia was very cold and was not feeling too well today so she held out really well and I ensured in between takes that a warm dressing gown was there so she did not keep getting too cold.

Later on that evening I decided we should shoot the fire scene in my garden. I had originally planned for Claudia to be in these scenes but as she was not feeling well I felt we could manage doing them without her. I had to make sure I emphasised the bags burning from the scene before then it would have the purpose that I intended it to have. Being fire, this meant I had to make sure we were being very safe in something potentially dangerous. We both wore fire proof gloves, stood well back when filming and also had a hose near by incase the fire got too much. We lit the fire in a fire pit with sand in the bottom and made sure it was all self contained with no overhanging trees. Once the fire was going, Drey would start recording and I would drop a bag on with the gloves and then stand back. For all the close up shots, Andreya used the zoom on the camera to prevent getting too close. I wanted a variety of shots here so I made sure we did the same thing four times with four different bags and as mentioned asked Andreya to use the zoom to get close ups. I was worried about the footage looking grainy as we were shooting in the dark but we used the roto light and the LED light to make sure we could get the footage looking as good as possible. Overall the shots came out really well and I am pleased with how these came out. 

Im very happy with how today went. I feel the shots came out really well and everyone worked hard to achieve the shots that I wanted to get. Although I would have loved the weather to be sunny and flowers to be flourishing, I still made good desicions to make things work like shoting under interesting archways, shooting with the house in the background and making the fire scenes focus all about the bags burning.