Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"De-crucify the angel!"
"What?"
"De-crucify him or I'll melt your face!"

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

The Cat And The Canary (1939) dir. Elliott Nugent

Wally Campbell: "I'm so scared, even my goose pimples have goose pimples."

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"I'm so scared, even my goose pimples have goose pimples."

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Jason X (2001) dir. James Isaac

Crutch: "Hey, you're lucky you weren't alive during the Microsoft Conflict. Hell - we were beating each other with our own severed limbs."

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"Hey, you're lucky you weren't alive during the Microsoft Conflict. Hell - we were beating each other with our own severed limbs."

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

The Hitcher (1986) dir. Robert Harmon

John Ryder: "He couldn't have walked very far."
Jim Halsey: "Why's that?"
John Ryder: "Because I cut off his legs...and his arms...and his head. And I'm going to do the same to you."

Photos From The "Roleslay" Summit

Here are some pix from the star-studded gala event on Tuesday (oh, OK, a beer at Steve's local in Southgate) where the Puppies welcomed the mighty Scott Hinds to the fold.

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"He couldn't have walked very far."
"Why's that?"
"Because I cut off his legs...and his arms...and his head. And I'm going to do the same to you."

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

The Last Detail (1973) dir. Hal Ashby

Billy 'Bad Ass' Buddusky: "I would like to drink a toast to Batman...Shhuperman...and the Human Torch. Ah-Ha-Ha!"

There's Always Someone Worse Off Than Yourself

We might lose power at any minute here, but things could be worse. At sister company Rushes, they're closed due to a "serious fire" at a neighbouring restaurant, which spread to Rushes. Anecdotal evidence suggests nobody was seriously hurt, but there is a lot of smoke damage.

Help Me...I'm Melting!

photo courtesy of One sandwich short at flickr

Another baking hot day (30 degrees C) in London, and here in sunny Soho we're being threatened with powercuts - again. We lost power three times last week here at St. Anne's Post, and all of Oxford Street was out yesterday, so who knows. When I'm not doing Sick Puppy stuff I work at St. Anne's as part of the editing department. We're kind of reliant on electricity here to run all the machines and computers. Last week something burnt out at a local substation, this week they're doing 'controlled blackouts' while they try and deall with the effects of the heat.

So there may be an interruption in our normal Sick Puppy blogging.

In the meantime, I feel like an extra in a remake of "The Day The Earth Caught Fire". Thank God for air conditioning...

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"I would like to drink a toast to Batman...Shhuperman...and the Human Torch. Ah-Ha-Ha!"

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

The Pearl Of Death (1944) dir. Roy William Neill

Sherlock Holmes: "I don't like the smell of you - an underground smell, the sick sweetness of decay. You haven't robbed and killed merely for the game like any ordinary halfway decent thug. No, you're in love with cruelty for it's own sake."

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"I don't like the smell of you - an underground smell, the sick sweetness of decay. You haven't robbed and killed merely for the game like any ordinary halfway decent thug. No, you're in love with cruelty for it's own sake."

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Series 7: The Contenders (2001) dir. Daniel Minahan

Male Promo Voice: "These cats...don't have...nine lives!"

"Roleslay": And Then There Were Four

Scott Hinds

Sick Puppy Films, perveyor[sic] of fine horror products for the thinking freak, are delighted to announce their first casting decision for the upcoming horror cavalcade "Roleslay". Snatching Time's own SCOTT HINDS has shaken hands on a deal that sees him in a dual role as male lead and fight co-ordinator - a highly important role given the heavy emphasis on action and thrills that the writers are somehow aiming to squeeze into this low budget production.

At the Gala event to announce the deal, Clive Ashenden, Sick Puppy Prime Mover said: "I couldn't be happier that Scott has decided to join us. His positive energy, sense of fun and sheer talent made "Snatching Time" a highly enjoyable experience, and I have no doubt he'll be a major factor in making "Roleslay" a success." Scott said, "I always said I'd jump at the chance to work with these guys again."

Big "Roleslay" meeting tonight

"Roleslay"

At Steve's house, with Me, Steve, Rob and special guest Scott.

Details and hopefully a special announcement tomorrow...

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"These cats...don't have...nine lives!"

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Manhunter (1986) dir. Michael Mann

Dr. Hannibal Lecktor: "Have you ever seen blood in the moonlight, Will? It appears quite black"

"Snatching Time" has Secret Sneak Preview!

On the evening of Friday 21st July, there was held a secret pre-Frightfest sneak preview of the Director's Cut of "Snatching Time". So secret in fact that I didn't even know about until the next day!

The Film Showcase party of the Summer, screening and networking event was held at the Rex bar and cinema - 21 Rupert Street, Soho, London UK. And amongst the short films and actor's showreels screened was "Snatching Time".

The mastermind behind this was Sick Puppy Producer, Composer and (in all senses) Sound Bloke - Stephen Cartwright. Steve tells me that "Snatching Time" went down a storm, or as he put it: "Afterwards there was whooping and clapping and one very audible 'I love that!' from the audience."

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"Have you ever seen blood in the moonlight, Will? It appears quite black"

[answer tomorrow]


Friday's Quote of the day was from:

Die Hard (1988) dir. John McTiernan

John McClane: "A hundred million terrorists in the world and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister."

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"A hundred million terrorists in the world and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister."

[answer Monday]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Cube (1997) dir. Vincenzo Natali

Quentin: "Do it! Show us you have some backbone and jump into the sushi machine. Be a man!"

More Making Of "Snatching Time" Pictures...

Must...have...sleep...

(Laura Metcalfe)

I'm sure it'll be fine if we frame it tight enough...

(from l-r: Hugo Myatt, Scott Hinds, Clive Ashenden)

More Blood!

(Scott Hinds)

At 4.30am, the only thing holding Steve up was the boom pole...

(from l-r: Hugo Myatt, Amerita Banger, Scott Hinds, Clive Ashenden, Stephen Cartwright)

A Saturday night out - Sick Puppy style!

(from l-r: Clive Ashenden, Laura Metcalfe, David Maddison)

As Requested - More Pictures...

Scott Hinds as Dick Bacon

Hugo Myatt as Bob Snatcher

Laura Metcalfe as Jane Lamb

Dick and Jane feel the wrath of Bob!

Don't Forget!

"Snatching Time" is screening at the Zone Horror Frightfest

Sunday 27th August - 11.15am

Odeon West End Cinema, London

Sick Puppy says: Thanks! to Skullduggery LARP

"Roleslay" (the feature length horror movie that Sick Puppy Films Ltd is now in the early stages of pre-production with) is set in the world of Live Action Roleplayers (aka LARP or LRP).

So naturally, as part of our research, Steve Cartwright contacted Skullduggery, one of the UK's leading LARP outfits. Thanks to Steve 'Sugarlump' Bradshaw and his team at Skullduggery for their continuing help and for allowing us to post LARP information from their website on our "Roleslay" website.

What is Live Action RolePlaying (LARP)?
Wikipedia defines it as follows:

"A live action role-playing game (LARP or LRP) is a form of role-playing game where the participants perform some or all of the physical actions of the characters they are playing within a pre-determined space for a pre-determined span of time. LARP may be considered a form of improvisational theatre."

You can now read the Skullduggery LARP handbook (on pdf) and view pictures of past LARP events on the "Roleslay" website.

Skullduggery runs regular LARP events at Ross Wood Scout Camp near Herne Bay in Kent. To find out more about LARP or about upcoming events, consult the Skullduggery website or call 01843 836104 during office hours only.

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"Do it! Show us you have some backbone and jump into the sushi machine. Be a man!

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Audition [Ôdishon -Japan] (1999) dir. Takashi Miike

Asami Yamazaki: "Kiri-kiri-kiri-kiri-kiri-kiri!"

"Sick Puppy's A to Z of Horror Links" - now online!

"Sick Puppy's A to Z of Horror Links"

is now online.

You can find it on the Sick Puppy Films website or via the "Roleslay" website here. Check it out for all your horror film needs - news sites, fan sites, official sites...

If you know of any great horror links we've missed off then please email me at:

primethemovie@hotmail.com

or post a comment here.

Thanks to Stephen Hyde from the Portsmouth branch of the Sick Puppy Films Appreciation Society (S.P.F.A.S.) who sent in the following links:

www.forteantimes.com/
www.moviecitynews.com/
www.thedraculasociety.org.uk/
www.whitbydraculasociety.org/
www.jonathancarroll.com/
www.neilgaiman.com/

Enjoy!

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"Kiri-kiri-kiri-kiri-kiri-kiri!"

[answer tomorrow]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Shivers (1975) dir. David Cronenberg

Nurse Forsythe: "He tells me that even old flesh is erotic flesh. That disease is the love of two alien kinds of creatures for each other. That even dying is an act of eroticism."

STOP PRESS!!! "Snatching Time" Invades Your Local Newsagents!

Rejoice! - for soon you will be able to own your very own copy of "Snatching Time" on DVD.

After it's screening at the Zone Horror Frightfest 2006 (11.15am on Sunday 27th August at the Odeon West End cinema), "Snatching Time" will be available to buy on DVD as a FREE (well, apart from the cost of the mag) cover DVD on the November issue of Bizarre Magazine*** (out October 2006).

That's right, for the cost of a magazine, you get a DVD containing horror film trailers, "Snatching Time" and other shorts and stuff from the Zone Horror Frightfest 2006.

Pre-order your copy now! Don't miss out!

Available from all good newsagents in the UK or via their website***.


***Warning: exercise caution if opening this link at work.

Sick Puppy loves Alan Moore

Alan Moore - ground breaking comics writer, magician, and all round extraordinary gentlemen...we salute you!

To help satisfy your Alan Moore habit try the following websites:

www.alanmoorefansite.com

www.angelfire.com/comics/mooreportal


And if you click here you can take a 'Which Watchman Are You?' personality test.

Apparently I'm Rorschach

"Detached and possibly violent, your resolute adherence to your own sense of morality and your tendency toward multiple personalities is just plain frightening or, at least, weird to others. Law enforcement is entirely out of the question--you can't take orders, and you can't follow anybody else's rules but your own. Quite simply, you are what you make of yourself. Occupational advice here is pointless. Have fun!"

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"He tells me that even old flesh is erotic flesh. That disease is the love of two alien kinds of creatures for each other. That even dying is an act of eroticism."

[answer tomorrow]

Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Dead Of Night (1945) dir. Alberto Cavalcanti/Charles Crichton/Basil Dearden/Robert Hamer

Sally O'Hara: "Mummy, you mustn't! You see, Mr. Craig's going to hit me - savagely!"
Mrs. O'Hara: "Oh, well, I'm sure he can hit somebody else instead. Now, come along, dear!"

New: "Roleslay" website - now online!

"Roleslay" website is now online!

There's not much in the way of content yet, but if you click on the poster it will take you to a menu page with story, gallery, links and other goodies...

More content coming soon! And stay tuned to this blog for further "Roleslay" news...

STOP PRESS!!! "Snatching Time" Screening Time Announced!

The Zone Horror Frightfest 2006 have now officially confirmed their programme.


"Snatching Time - Director's Cut" will be screened on:

Sunday August 27th 2006

at 11.15am*

at the Odeon West End cinema in London.


It will be screened before the survival horror "Broken".

*Tickets for this screening go on sale from August 1st 2006.

Or you can still buy a Weekend pass for the bargain price of £140 for 4 days of horror: 24 feature films plus shorts and "Snatching Time" too! Weekend passes can be bought from the Odeon West End cinema or online via the Odeon website.

See you there!

Sick Puppy Films website now updated!

Yes, the Sick Puppy Films website has been updated. Coming soon will be a redesigned site and also a dedicated site for our feature film "Roleslay". But for now...

Check out our new expanded links page - including the A-Z of Horror film related links.

Hours of fun for all you Sick Puppies out there. ;-)

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"Mummy, you mustn't! You see, Mr. Craig's going to hit me - savagely!"
"Oh, well, I'm sure he can hit somebody else instead. Now, come along, dear!"

[answer tomorrow]

Saturday's Quote of the day was from:

Wolf Creek (2005) dir. Greg McLean

Mick Taylor: “I'm going to do something now they used to do in Vietnam. It's called making a head on a stick.”

The Snatching Time Diaries

While shooting "Snatching Time", Clive and I both wrote production diaries. Here, for the first time, told by the people behind the camera, is the story of a short...

(Clive's bits are in Times/Rob's bit's are in Courier)


The Halloween 48 Hour Film Challenge:
Make a 3 minute horror film in 48 hours.

The Rules:
1) The film must be shot on DV, DVCAM or HDV.
2) Title and sub-genre (eg. Sc-Fi/Horror, Chiller, Zombie etc.) to be drawn randomly at the start of the challenge.
3) Maximum of six members for any team (not including actors).
4) Screening masters must be handed back in to the BFI London IMAX cinema before 12noon on Monday 31st October. The top twenty completed films will be shown at the BFI London IMAX cinema at 21.00hrs.

Friday 28th October

20.30 hrs - Final pre-production meeting, and the first time both cast and crew have all been assembled in the same place. We meet at the Shakespeare’s Head in Holborn, London. Our team name is “The Sick Puppies”; the team consists of:

Me (Clive Ashenden) - producer/director/co-writer/editor and team leader. I’ve done a 48 hour challenge before and have written and directed many short films, including “Gunplay”, “Dirt” and “Twice Weekly”. I work in the editing department at St. Anne’s Post.

Amerita Banger - make-up, hair and FX person. Amerita has worked on wide variety of projects, from fashion and corporate work, to music videos and shorts.

Stephen Cartwright – sound recordist/sound designer/sound mixer and composer. Steve is primarily a composer, and his company Not2Bmissed Music Production have scored numerous shorts and computer games.

David Maddison – director of photography. As well as his D.O.P. work, Dave is a writer/director of shorts and one half of Oak Tree Film Productions (UK) Ltd. He has done a 48 hour challenge before.

Rob Wickings – co-writer/script supervisor/continuity and telecine colourist. Rob writes and directs short films, including “A Silent Film About Sound” for the Straight8 film competition. He is a senior colourist at Soho Images.

Graham Williams – camera operator/assistant director/assistant editor. Graham is also a writer/director of shorts and the other half of Oak Tree Film Productions (UK) Ltd. He has done a 48 hour challenge before.

Everyone has put aside their normal fee to work on this, and I’m really excited to have such an enthusiastic and creative team. I tested the camera and sound equipment last night with Graham and Steve. Everything was fine and everyone is relaxed and excited about the weekend ahead.

It’s difficult to cast a film when you don’t know what it’s going to be about, but those are the rules. I’ve cast three lead actors, and I’m confident that they’ll be flexible enough to cope with whatever twisted narrative we dream up on the day:

Scott Hinds – a black-belt in numerous marshal arts, Scott started as a stunt performer before moving into acting. His most recent film credits are “Star Wars Episode III – The Revenge Of The Sith”, “Batman Begins” and the short film “Innocent Victim”.

Laura Metcalfe – Laura works as a Post Production Producer for M2. She is also an accomplished actress, having recently completed work on the short film “8%”.

Hugo Myatt – a veteran theatre actor, Hugo received rave notices for his role as in Dr. Frank Bryant in Willy Russell’s “Educating Rita”. He is best known in the UK for his role as Treguard the Dungeonmaster in the long-running cult children’s TV series “Knightmare”.

Any other actors will have to come from the crew. I have a gut feeling that I’m going to have to step up…

I go over the plan for tomorrow: I’ll meet up with Graham and Dave at the IMAX cinema at 09.00hrs. We’ll meet up with the rest of the crew at 10.45hrs on the South Bank for brainstorming and storywriting. The cast will join us at 14.30hrs. After that it gets vague…as we don’t know what the film will be about yet we’ve organised a couple of possible locations, but the keyword will be flexibility. Everything may change at the last minute. Only the post production arrangements for Sunday/Monday are set.

Call sheets are handed out and everyone signs the required clearance forms. The atmosphere is jovial, but Dave and Graham give me a knowing grin. Having done a 48 hour film challenge up in Manchester they (like me) have some idea of how intense this is going to be. I don’t drink, wanting to be fresh for tomorrow. Soon the meeting is over and everyone is going home to get some much needed sleep.

Saturday 29th October

06.30hrs – I wake up from an anxiety dream, but the exact details of the dream escape me and I am left with just a vague feeling of un-ease . I haven’t had a good night’s sleep. God, I feel rough now…what am I going to be like in 48 hours time? I contemplate dozing for 10 minutes but realise that this would probably be fatal. I decide to bite the bullet and get up.

09.00hrs – I grab a bacon roll and meet Graham outside the BFI London IMAX cinema. He tells me that the Central and Piccadilly lines are closed along much of their length and that because of this, Dave is running late.

10.00hrs – We register our team and hang around in the main foyer waiting to go in for the 48 hour presentation. I look around at the other teams, some loud, some mute, and am reminded of the tagline to the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Who will survive, and what will be left of them?

10.30hrs – Dave arrives just as everyone is filing into the auditorium. To the strains of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” a compilation of clips from classic horror movies unspools on the screen. I find myself grinning. I’m looking forward to this…

10.40hrs – The name of our team, “The Sick Puppies” is called out and I get up. Graham admonishes me not to pick anything rubbish. I laugh and step up to the podium. I stick my hand in the lucky dip buckets and pick out two envelopes.

Ideally I would like straight horror or horror/thriller, as I like the challenge of trying to scare people in only 3 minutes. Anything except Horror/Musical I’m thinking as I tear open the envelopes.

The title of our film will be…”Snatching Time”, and the theme/sub-genre is…horror/comedy. The organisers write down our title and sub-genre, and we’re off!

Well met at Waterloo. The Sick Puppies (this is the name we have given ourselves, as befits a bedraggled bunch of horror film makers) convene. Clive the director, Dave the lights, and Graham the camera meet me at the South Bank, fresh from gathering a sub-genre and title for our film. It's to be a horror comedy, entitled "Snatching Time". So, we don't get the musical. Things could be worse.

We find a base in a South Bank coffee shop, spread out some paper and pens, and start spitballing. We are quickly joined by the rest of our unholy band, Steve the sound and Amerita the makeup. Concepts are quickly thrown around. A time vampire idea is mused upon, as is the first appearance of a creature called The Snatcher, who attacks while its victims are on the loo. As Roy Walker would say, they're good, but they're not right.

Finally, an idea about a deranged game show host takes nebulous form. He snatches people off the street and forces them to compete in a game where they must win time points from each other. The loser runs out of time in every sense of the word. The winner gets however much of a head start in seconds they've managed to accrue. It's dark, but the idea has enough room for silliness that it might just work.

I come up with an idea for a fourth character that would give both a twist at the end and a punchline to a running joke. The character would be a hammer-wielding mask-wearing transvestite psychopath. The others agree that it’s a great idea and promptly nominate me to play “Anthea”, on the grounds that me in a frock will be both funny and disturbing. After a little badgering I agree, since I can’t really ask the actors to do something I’m not willing to do myself. Graham and Steve remind me that this will be immortalised on camera forever. Me and my big mouth…

Together, we thrash out enough of a treatment that we can send the boys off to start gathering set and props material, and for Amerita to begin work on a prosthetic torso for the all-important stabby stabby moment. Meanwhile, Clive and I get more coffee in, and start putting flesh on the bones.

We hit structural problems as we try and work out the mechanics of the gameshow within the film. With some relief we finally nail it and get on with typing up our scrawled notes into script form.

14.30hrs – The actors arrive. Since we don’t yet have a finished script, I tell them the story. Luckily, everyone gets the idea and is up for the challenge.

Costume is going to be a key part of making this idea work . Hugo needs a gameshow host costume. Scott will have to get a couple of T-shirts to match the one we are using for the FX. Since Laura is wearing what she has on, she gets the job of shopping for my costume. When I’ve explained what is needed she has a big grin on her face. I’m a big guy (6’1” and broad across the shoulders) and so it may prove difficult to find the required sequined dress in my size…Laura is determined that I won’t miss out though. Hugo and Laura go off in search of a costume shop.

Soon after, Scott bounds in. He's full of energy, loves the idea, and is keen to try something that shows off his acting chops, as opposed to the martial arts and stunt stuff he's more known for. We assure him that as his character will be gaffer-taped to a chair throughout, the chances of him being asked to do any stunts will be low. He's sent out on costume gathering duties, and I pull out the laptop. Time to get this thing into shape.

5 PM

The afternoon ebbs past. We lock the script. Laura and Hugo, exhausted, reappear and they have done sterling service. Hugo now has a fantastic game show host jacket in black with silver swirls, and Clive has a cracking gold spangly number to squeeze into. There's even a maid's pinny, that they trawled through most of the sex shops in Soho to find. Their dedication is (ahem) admirable. Drinks all round, Scott reappears (“Do you know how hard it is to find a plain white t-shirt in Soho?) and everyone gets a first look at the script. They laugh. In the right places. Thank Christ.

Oh, and I've foolishly added another character, a fresh victim to be strapped into the chair vacated by Scott at the end. There's nothing else for it. I volunteer to do my bit in front of the camera.

18.00hrs – I arrive back at the coffee shop after an emergency trip for art supplies to find Laura and Hugo telling tales of their adventures in Soho. I get a glimpse of my Anthea costume. Mmmm, gold sequins…nice. Time for a caffeine hit. Dave calls to say that he’s bringing his car to pick us up. Also, work has started on the gameshow set.

18.30hrs – Since Dave can’t park near us, we pick up all of our bags and heavily laden, traipse down to Waterloo station. The sun is setting…

It’s a squeeze getting five of us into Dave’s Mercedes but we manage it. Dave revs the engine and we’re away.

19.30hrs – We arrive at the Pavilion and unload the car. Carrying armfuls of equipment we walk past the Pavilion’s regulars and overhear dark mutterings about “More of that film lot.” It’s nice to be popular. Dave leads us to a function room at the back of the pub. The bar manager arrives, ready to do violence to a bunch of intruders. Then she sees Dave and everything is fine.

As the cast collapse heavily into chairs, Dave and Rob set up the laptop and start printing off the scripts. I go down into the pub’s cellar to check on the set. It’s a labyrinth of corridors in the cellar. Perfect for a horror film. Steve looks slightly manic, but perhaps that’s because he’s been using spray paint in a confined area… The set is coming together well. Graham has construction under control so I get out of his way.

19.45hrs – Break for food. A fed crew is a happy crew. This was one thing I knew going in to the challenge. Graham volunteered to sort out the food and he’s done us proud: rolls/sandwiches, crisps, fruit, biscuits, water and Red Bull. Everyone’s energy levels dramatically improve.

We grab some sarnies, and start the read-throughs. It quickly becomes clear that Hugo does evil brilliantly, Scott can do scared, and Laura can scream her head off very convincingly. Although when she's done she always collapses into giggles, which is both sweet and a little un-nerving. We iron out niggles, and have to explain to Hugo what most of the game shows we're lampooning actually are.

9 PM

Amerita arrives, with bags of makeup and a chunk of foam rubber in a t-shirt. This is our big effects shot. It doesn't look like much at the moment, but then it's only going to be used in brief flash cutaways. it's either that or stabbing Scott for real, something both Graham and more disturbingly Scott himself seem rather keen on. I start giving a hand with the set design, while Clive and Graham start blocking scenes. The arduous process of make-up begins at around 10.

Hugo is learning his lines and Laura’s hanging up the costumes. Rob relieves Graham on the set-building detail.

I sit down with Graham and we work out the shot list. In order to minimise the amount of lighting changes, I’ve worked out a shooting strategy that uses the gameshow concept to our advantage. Since most of the story takes place in a homemade TV studio, we will shoot as though we were making a proper TV gameshow. Thus, all the gameshow stuff will use the same lighting set-up. The chase and action portions of the story will be shot handheld with different lighting…

23.00hrs – Scott, Laura and Hugo have all had their make-up done. Scott looks nicely bloody. Since we are still at least thirty minutes away from shooting, Rob goes into the make-up chair to be scarred up. As “Anthea” wears a scary looking lady mask, I don’t need any make-up. I try on my blonde wig. It fits…just.

I flinch every time Amerita puts make-up on me. "You're not used to this, are you?" she says. Erm... no. I get a broken nose, throttle marks to the throat, and a torn ear. One for the family album.

23.55hrs – Final lighting checks: all is well. Hugo changes into his costume. Laura and Scott are wrapped in bandages and then gaffer-taped to their chairs.

It’s coming up for midnight and we haven’t shot anything yet. We’re about two hours behind schedule, and any time we lose here is coming out of the time we have available for the sound mix. Outside, I’m all smiles; inside a small knot tightens in my stomach.


Will they ever get anything on video? Will they get the film finished in time? Will they all still be friends afterwards? - Stay tuned for the exciting second part of "The Snatching Time Diaries"...

The Snatching Time Diaries PART THE SECOND

The Story So Far…

Clive and the rest of the Sick Puppies have received the title and sub-genre for their challenge film. They must make a 3-minute Horror/Comedy called “Snatching Time”. On Saturday, they wrote the script, found costumes, built a set in a pub cellar and now they’re ready to shoot. But time is ticking away…can they complete the film in time?

(Clive's bits are in Times/Rob's bit's are in Courier)


Sunday 30th October

00.30hrs – “ACTION!” Finally we get underway with a long introductory master shot. Hugo stumbles a couple of times and berates himself for not being word perfect with his lines. I take him to one side and manage to get him to relax a little. I decide to split the master into two chunks to give Hugo a chance to feel his way into this. When Hugo gets it, he’s perfect. At the end of his speech, the whole crew applauds.

01.20hrs – Once we’ve got the first three shots, things speed up and we get a momentum going. We’re getting some great stuff and once the actors are in full character, they need little direction. I’m intense and focused - we have to keep things moving!

02.00hrs (now 01:00hrs again) – A stroke of luck! Due to the vagaries of the British calendar, the clocks go back an hour and we gain an extra hour of time. Maybe they should have called it the 49-hour challenge!

03.30hrs – Scott takes a mouthful of fake blood (mint flavour apparently) and we’re all set. I tell Rob to mark it and he brings the clapperboard in.

"Stabbing Dick, take 2."

That's it, everyone collapses in giggles, and I realise I've chosen exactly the wrong point to crack a funny, i.e. when an actor is waiting for his cue with a mouthful of stage blood. I'm sure Scott gets revenge by spitting some of the foul stuff at me when he finally does the take. Soon after, Hugo does the creepy monotone countdown whie Laura tries to escape, and now I can't help but giggle. In fact, the only way to prevent Steve on the furry mike from not having me snorting in the background is for me to not look at Hugo and bite my hand. Even then everyone can see my shoulders shake with the effort of keeping the giggles in.

04.30hrs – Scott is cut free from his chair. The relief is evident in his face. It’s time to shoot our big FX set piece. Amerita sets up the fake torso padded out with sponge and fake blood-filled balloons on his chair. Scott sticks his arm through the gaffer tape sling and the illusion is complete. It’s not going to fool anyone in a wide shot…but in close-up it will.

Hugo stabs the torso and…the knife breaks! This is not a trick knife, yet the blade snaps off at the handle and drops harmlessly to the ground. Everyone laughs and then panics – we don’t have another black handled knife. I surprise myself by being totally calm. I tell Dave to get the green handled knife from upstairs and tape the handle black. That done, we’re ready to go again…

Hugo stabs the torso repeatedly, but the knife isn’t penetrating. We cut some holes in the outer padding and try again. Better, but not good enough. I get Graham to zoom in to the “wound” and call for more blood (this is fake blood type#2 – the bright arterial kind – it looks great wet, but unfortunately dries orange). This time we get it – you can see part of the blood balloons inside, but they look like intestines. Okay…next!

6AM

Laura gets her chance for escape, as Hugo cuts her free. She comes off her chair and staggers off-camera in a wholly convincing way. "That wasn't acting", she says afterwards. "I couldn't feel my legs."

I discuss the next few set-ups with Graham and leave him to finish off the running down the corridors stuff. It’s time for me to drag-up…

With Laura and Scott both free now, it's my turn to get strapped into place, and for Clive to drag up as the lovely Anthea. Amerita reapplies my bruises, now smudged to nothing after a night's filming, and we both reminisce about this lovely thing called sleep that's supposed to take place at this time of day. Out in the corridors, Laura runs around, screaming hysterically while being chased by Graham and Steve with the camera. I'd scream too with those two on my heels ;-)

I change in the gents’ toilet. The dress won’t zip up at the back, but that won’t be in shot. I look in the mirror…it’s not a good look for me. But it’s a good look for Anthea…

06.30hrs – This is confirmed when I make my entrance in costume. “Oh my God!” “That is so wrong-“; “Hah, hah, brilliant.”

Without my glasses I’m nearly blind and I can’t see where I’m swinging my hammer. I don’t want to break the camera – but Graham’s not listening. It‘s hot under the mask and wig and I get angry with him. He gets the point, but everyone else is laughing. I realise that in my current garb my flash of temper looks like a hissy fit.

Clive appears in full glory, and everyone sods off and leaves me tied to a chair to watch him shoot his scene. I contemplate the idea of a power nap, but being gaffer-taped to a haigh stool is not condusive to a restful atmosphere. Especially not with Laura in hysterics next door. I'm in hysterics myself when Clive finally appears. He's a big man, and gold sequins do not suit him.

I finish my acting work without smashing the camera and am led downstairs to visit Rob who’s been left gaffer-taped to a chair. I’m not sure why he’s been taped up so early. Did he annoy someone? (Actually, Clive, I never did get a proper answer to that one…)

7AM
Final scene. I act scared, Hugo gets evil, Laura screams for England. Believe it or not, this is the only way to spend a weekend. We release the actors, do cast and crew shots with me still taped to a stool (I put my gag back in and bug my eyes for the second take. Bet that's the one that gets used). Then a quick few pick-ups, the Sick Puppy logo (the ugliest stuffed toy you've ever seen in full-on MGM lion mode) and spank me bandy, we're done.

07.30hrs – It’s a wrap! I’m tired and try not to think about the day of editing ahead. Taxis are booked, and that’s it for Amerita, Hugo, Scott and Laura. They’ve been fantastic and I’ll see them all at the screening on Monday night – I hope.

Cabs disperse us to train stations. For Clive though, the hardest bit is yet to come, as he has to edit with Graham and do the sound with Steve. My next part in the endeavor comes on Monday morning, when I colour grade the finished article. Now, all I have to do is get home without falling asleep on the train and winding up in Bristol.

I arrive, and am faced with a horrified reception from Clare (Rob's better half) - "What happened to you?" In my exhaustion, I'd forgotten to clean off my make up. I looked like I'd lost a wrestling match with a No. 25 bus. No wonder I was getting funny looks on the train...

Dave is staying at the Pavilion and he and Graham will clear up after us (when they’ve got some shut-eye). Steve will get the DV rushes tapes from me at St. Anne’s Post after 12.00hrs so he can start laying down a rough music & FX track. Rob gets the rest of the day off. If all goes according to plan we will be grading the finished film at Soho Images at 07.00hrs tomorrow.

08.00hrs – Taxi arrives and it’s off to St. Anne’s Post for the editing.

09.00hrs – I arrive at St. Anne’s Post and I’m too tired to think. I make an executive decision to get two hours sleep before I start. I can’t really spare the time, but I will work faster if I’m fresher. I set my alarm for 11.00hrs and lay down on one of St. Anne’s luxurious sofas and…sleep.

10.30hrs – I wake up before the alarm and check the time. It’s 10.30. I decide to make myself some breakfast and a very strong coffee.

11.00hrs – Refreshed, I start digitising the rushes into the Avid Symphony. They look great and I start to think of “Snatching Time” as a potential competition winning film. We’ve shot about fifty minutes of material…

12.00hrs – I start editing. It’s going to be a long day…

13.00hrs – Steve pops in and picks up the rushes. We have a chat about the style of music I want for this (synthy ‘80s gameshow music, heavy on the cheese) and what FX we’ll need. I estimate that the absolute earliest I will finish the edit will be 22.30, but it’s more likely to be midnight. Steve tells me not to worry; he has everything we’ll need at his home studio.

17.00hrs – Graham arrives to bring a fresh pair of eyes to the editing room. He gets some food in and while I eat, he watches the rough cut. It’s nearly six minutes long. Most of his notes on what we can lose chime with mine. In order to successfully complete the challenge and get screened, we need the full duration to be 3 minutes in total. It’s time to get brutal…

22.00hrs – 3 minutes and 35 seconds and that’s without credits. I curse my fatigue-addled brain and force myself to focus again.

Monday 31st October – Halloween


00.00hrs – I phone Steve and tell him it’s going to be a while yet. He tells me to take the time I need, he’ll doze until I phone again.

02.00hrs – 2 minutes and 59 seconds including space for (very short) end credit cards. I’ve done it…with invaluable help from Graham. I’m pleased with the final cut – it moves really fast, almost advert fast. Time to put the title and credits on…

02.30hrs – It’s finished and ready to play out. I set up the playout and…it doesn’t work. There’s no engineering cover at this time of night to help me out. I’m too tired to figure out the problem. I play out to Digi Beta instead of DV. I was going to do this for the grade anyway so I have a tape ready.

I call Steve. We need a plan B…can he take DVD-R? He can – I make the DVD copy.

03.00hrs – We’re out the door. I flag down a taxi on Oxford Street. We’re off to Steve’s home studio for the mix.

04.00hrs – Four hours behind schedule, we arrive at Steve’s house. His home studio is impressive. He takes the video and audio in off the DVD. Oh no – what is that? Somewhere in the dubbing/audio transfer process we’ve picked up some strange pulsing audio noise.

Can we get rid of it? Steve’s answer – “Some of it.” – is not what I want to hear. We don’t have time to go back to St. Anne’s and get another copy. We are stuck with this sound fault. This is my lowest moment. All thought of having a winning film goes out of my mind. Nobody ever gave a prize to a film with bad sound. I’ve been killing myself for this?

I haven’t come this far to be defeated by a technical problem. I ask Steve if he can suggest anything. He suggests that we bury the fault with an almost continuous bed of music. It’s a longshot but it might just work.

06.55hrs – I look at my watch and remember that Rob is going into Soho Images for the grade. No time for that now. I call Rob and apologise for getting him out of bed early for nothing. He’s cool about it. Back to the audio…

My phone buzzes as I bound up the stairs at Picadilly Circus tube. It's Clive.
"Don't rush. We've had problems with the sound. I don't think we'll make it for the grade if we want to get it submitted in time."
And that's it. The deadline is mid-day, and I have work waiting for me. I've come in early to make sure there's time to get the grade done, and now there's no way. I'm disappointed, but we agree we will do the grade at some point.

08.00hrs – Time is running out. Whatever we play out of Steve’s computer will be the screening master. Graham sets up the camera for a playout. The firewire cable doesn’t work. In my frazzled state of mind I’m starting to feel that there’s a technological conspiracy to stop us screening this film. No shops will be open yet, but Graham has got a working cable at home. He calls a taxi. It is the start of rush hour.

09.35hrs – Graham arrives back, just as we’re putting that last few FX cues in. I feel bad for Steve. There’s no time for a proper mix and his music deserves better than this.

We connect up the DV camera to the computer and…it doesn’t recognise it. I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry. Luckily we have another DV camera. We connect it and collectively hold our breath. The computer…says yes. We play out. We check the recording quickly. Sound and pictures are present and correct.

09.55hrs – I hand Graham a wad of notes for the taxi waiting outside. He gets in. It’s up to him to try and deliver the screening tape to the BFI London IMAX cinema before noon. The traffic situation is not good. I offer up a silent prayer…

10.30hrs – I arrive back at St. Anne’s where I now have to do a full working day. Luckily the job I’m doing isn’t client attended. My brain is slow and I just want to sleep, but I mechanically get through the day…

Graham pops in mid-morning, after dropping the film off. We're in. The hard work's paid off, and now all we can do is hope we make the short list and actually get our film up on the very big screen at the IMAX in Waterloo. There'll be a director's cut, which I'll grade and get screened here at Images, whatever else happens. For now, all we can do is wait.

12.30hrs – There’s been no word from Graham. Steve phones me, have I heard? The battery on Graham’s phone died, so he called Steve on a landline to let him know the news. We did it. We got the film in before the deadline expired. Whether they show it or not, we successfully completed the challenge.

19.30hrs – I meet Laura, Rob and Graham for a pre-screening dinner. They’re all excited about the screening and tell me how much they’ve enjoyed the weekend. Nervous tension and caffeine are the only things keeping me awake now…

20.41hrs – We get to BFI London IMAX cinema late. I see Steve. He’s got some bad news, Hugo was here with his partner Jackie, but they had to leave. Hugo is our lead actor - this is not a good omen. Drinks all round and time for another group photo, this time in the creepy white masks that are our costume for this Halloween night.

The screening is delayed; it’ll be 22.00hrs before things get going.

22.00hrs – The screening of the top twenty films starts. The cinema is packed. There didn’t seem to be this many teams when we started. The projection is very murky. As ours has a brighter more garish look we should be okay.

The films are a mixed bunch: some very amateurish, some almost professional. All have a real energy to them and there are some hilarious moments. Despite my nerves and fatigue I find myself enjoying the event.

22.25hrs – “Snatching Time” is screened as part of the top twenty. But…there is a problem. All the other films have been shown almost full screen, ours is projected on only a quarter of the screen. It is also half the volume of the other films. Whoever transferred “Snatching Time” to the screening compilation master has screwed up. The poor projection mutes the audience response, as it is difficult to see and hear what is going on. “Anthea’s” appearance gets a big laugh though…

It’s an anti-climactic end to the challenge, but one in keeping with the catalogue of technical problems we’ve experienced all day. After “Snatching Time” finishes I feel all the air go out of me…I’m extremely tired now.

23.05hrs – The organisers decide to screen the rest of the entrants. The auditorium thins out as people leave to get trains. Most of the Sick Puppies have to leave. It’s just Graham and me left. Some of the following films are very long and very murky. I start drifting in and out of sleep…

Tuesday 1st November

00.15hrs – Finally, the screening ends and the winner is announced. It’s the very first film that was shown, a straight horror film called “Haunted Boneyard”. I shuffle out of the cinema like a George A. Romero zombie.

00.25hrs – I get to Waterloo and find that the last train has left. I get a taxi home. The taxi driver tells me that there was a bomb scare in my local high street yesterday. The news seems surreal, like a horror movie infecting real life.

02.35 – Home and finally…sleep.


Postscript:

So was it all worth it? Having caught up on my sleep and looked at the film again, the answer is a definite YES. Everyone involved enjoyed the challenge and was proud to be a part of it. The screening was a joke, but I did learn one thing from seeing “Snatching Time” projected. The 3-minute cut is too harsh. It works from a story point of view, but comedy needs a bit more room to breathe.

So I’m now re-cutting the film to form “Snatching Time – Director’s Cut.” It also means I can add a couple of deleted scenes and get some visual FX done. Most importantly, Steve can do a proper sound mix. So despite all the trials, difficulties and lack of sleep we will in the end have a really fun short film. It should be ready for a cast & crew screening in 2006 - after that? I’ll be entering it into various film festivals.

Would I do it again? Mmmm, ask me next year…

Epilogue: "Snatching Time - Director's Cut" is complete and will be screening at the Zone Horror Frightfest 2006 in London this August.

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

“I'm going to do something now they used to do in Vietnam.
It's called making a head on a stick.”

[answer Monday]


Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Excalibur (1981) dir. John Boorman

Merlin: "Look into the eyes of the Dragon and despair!"

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"Look into the eyes of the Dragon and despair!"

[answer tomorrow]

Yesterday's Quote of the day was from:

Bride of Frankenstein (1935) dir. James Whale

The Monster: "I love dead...hate living"
Dr. Pretorius: "You are wise in your generation"

Sick Puppy's Quote Of The Day

"I love dead...hate living"

"You are wise in your generation"

[answer tomorrow...]

Stills from "Snatching Time"

From left to right – Laura Metcalfe, Hugo Myatt and Scott Hinds

Laura Metcalfe is 'Jane Lamb'

Scott Hinds is 'Dick Bacon'

Who or what is 'Anthea'?

Watch "Snatching Time" at the Zone Horror Frightfest 2006

and find out...

Hugo Myatt is 'Bob Snatcher'

"Snatching Time" to screen at Frightfest 2006

Yes - it's coming...

"Snatching Time" - our Horror/Comedy short that was recently showcased at the Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner is coming to London.

The Zone Horror Frightfest 2006 is the Uk's biggest and best Horror and Fantasy Film festival. It's held every end of August Bank Holiday Weekend in London. Organised by genre stalwarts Ian Rattray, Paul McEvoy and Alan Jones - this will be it's 7th year and if you're a UK based horror fan and you've never been before - why not? You get a mixture of UK premieres, classic horror, personal appearances by genre legends and the very best horror shorts from around the world (not that I'm biased by the fact our short is showing you understand...).

This year, the festival runs from Friday 25th August to Monday 28th August. Films showing include bonkers Korean monster-mash "The Host", visceral US horror "The Lost" and just confirmed: Guillermo Del Toro's latest, the beautiful fantasy "Pan's Labyrinth".

And showing on Sunday as part of the International Short Film Showcase will be "Snatching Time". I'll be there to introduce the film and there are likely to be a few cast members and Sick puppies in attendence. I'm sure by now you're probably drooling into your muzzle and barking "How can I buy tickets for this wondrous event?"

Well, you can now buy weekend passes from the Odeon website or in person at the Odeon West End cinema in Leicester Square, London. It's £140 for a weekend pass which covers 4 days and will get you into all 23 feature film plus all of the shorts. Also, at the festival, weekend passholders can pick up free goody bags courtesy of the Cinema Store. Hurry as these passes usually sell out well in advance of the event. I've already bought mine - what are you waiting for?

Individual tickets go on sale August 1st at £11 each.

Coming soon - you can get your paws on a DVD of "Snatching Time" - watch this space!

Also, the latest "Roleslay" news and coverage of the Zone Horror Frightfest 2006...