It’s hard to believe an entire feature film is being made in what seems to be such a short period of time. The schedule has been a steady Thursday – Sunday every weekend along with Labor Day. 17 days, 136 scenes, 92 pages. Not bad.

We wrapped Sunday night with James quivering in the basement at an encroaching Mr. Kravitch (see www.phasmamovie.com for a still of this scene). Kind of strange to celebrate after a crying scene but we’ll take it.

The memorable moment of the weekend for me was during a very serious scene in which our lead actor Sasha had to express a whirlwind of emotions. It was about the third take when, right on cue, the neighbors blasted the Red Hot Chili Peppers song ‘Under the Bridge.’ The opening guitar riff aligned perfectly with the actions Sasha was going through. I looked at DP Adam and he was biting his hand while camera operating trying not to laugh. Cut was called and he sang along.

With much dumb luck on the part of this Production Manager we dodged rain when we needed to (Producer Jen once asked what the contingency plan was in the event of rain and I changed the subject). When it did rain we happened to be shooting indoors. The movie making gods shined brightly upon us.

Nobody seems exhausted. That’s a first for me. Usually there’s a short period of recovery after a shoot. Director Matt was in high spirits and seemed surprised to be feeling so good. A lot of it has to do with his and DP Adam’s mantra of keeping the shoot to a 12 hours daily maximum. It’s huge when you can keep a crew fresh.

The wrap party was wrapped last night too. We all had a blast getting together to reflect on the month past. Lots of laughs and talking about future plans. Some of us will move straight into another project and some of us will start again from scratch. Such is the life of a moviemaker. Good times all around and I can’t wait to meet up with everyone again for the premiere.

We will be sure to post details of the premiere (January maybe?) here and on the website www.phasmamovie.com. Thank you for reading. It’s been a pleasure.

Ben Van Santen – Production Manager

Just one weekend left of the Phasma Ex Machina shoot. We were feeling pretty good a week or so back thinking we had done a whole lot until we realized one of the characters, James, had yet to be in a scene (James is in about half the scenes). That was a downer. But now a weekend of James is in the HD can and things are on the up.

Since last I wrote we’ve shot two weekends worth of material. The first was at the character of Tom’s house where we shot a fight scene. Safety is of the utmost concern when filming fight scenes unless, of course, your actors are game. Luckily we had two of them. It went remarkably well. It was a lot of wrestling, a breaking of a stool, and a few swings of a bat and suddenly it was finished. It was a real credit to the actors Sasha and Matthew for putting their all into it and making it as convincing as it possibly could be.

Last weekend was week 1 of shooting the scenes for the characters of James and Cody’s house. It was also the first scenes for James (played by Max). Max, going 14 or so, is already a seasoned veteran in the acting ranks. He announced his tradition of handing out cigars on his first day of shooting. Everything was well and good until I told him that Matthew (who plays Tom) also handed out cigars. The two debated over who stole whose shtick. It’s yet to be resolved. I don’t think the crew minds too much though since we each got two cigars.

It’s been interesting to see Director Matt collaborate with the actors. He’s been making it a point to talk over the scenes as they’re going through them. Some of it has been talked about beforehand and some of it comes up on set. The scenes hold the same meaning but together they’ve been able to mold the action and dialogue into making it more convincing. I’ve heard of directors who stick strictly to the screenplay and I really don’t get it. If it’s the actor’s job to learn and portray the character then why wouldn’t they have input on what they think their character would be like? I really can’t imagine it any other way.

Stay tuned for further updates and be sure to continue to track our day-by-day progress at www.phasmamovie.com.

Ben Van Santen – Production Manager

Our first weekend of shooting brought us to a new location every day. Our schedule worked out so we were able to do all the single day locations in a row before settling in to our longer stays. We hope this will work to our advantage.

Director Matt has had a chance to look at the footage and he’s very pleased so far. Matt mentioned he and the DP Adam were wondering out loud to each other if they were shooting a romantic comedy instead. Sure we’ve got the one day locations out of the way but now we’re on to the heavier stuff.

Funny the timing of this recent news story about the partical accelerator experiment being conducted on the border of France and Switzerland (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/09/08/lhc.collider/index.html?iref=newssearch). It got me to thinking about this movie we’re working and how it’s not so far out there. If a machine which could theoretically create black holes which swallow the earth is possible then why not a machine that brings back the dead? The intrigue of scientific possibility is always a good built-in teaser to have in a movie.

We’re currently shooting at what is the home for the character of Tom this weekend. Lights will flash on and off, he’ll get in a fight in his basement and his wife will come back from the dead. Stay tuned for further updates (and be sure to track our day-by-day progress at www.phasmamovie.com).

Ben Van Santen – Production Manager

Labor Day – A day to rest. A day to reflect on hard work past. A day to sleep as long as you want and drink a beer as soon as the clock strikes noon.

But not for the cast and crew of Phasma Ex Machina.

Labor Day was our first day of shooting. We were on location at Ax-Man surplus store for scenes of our hero Cody buying supplies for his top secret machina (all the while catching glimpses of his femme fatale Becca). Also in the mix were Tom, a victim of Cody’s mad scientist ways, and Cutter, the Analog Supply Store clerk who’s there for Cody’s every need.

It was hot. Not dripping sweat all the time hot but a definite dab an hour was in order. We kept cool by propping the door open between takes and guzzling Nutrisoda. Also distracting us from the heat was the assortment of goods offered by Ax-Man. Doll parts, gas masks, iron lungs – you can find it all at Ax-Man!

The shoot went incredibly well. A good mix of static and tracking shots. The camera team moved fast and the director and the actors efficiently worked through the scenes. One scene, after about 5 takes, the director Matt proclaimed “Okay, good…it was a B+…” which was followed by him coming to terms with that being okay. The actors stood awaiting their orders. “Can we go for an A-,” Ted, the actor playing Cutter joked. You gotta love the honesty on this set.

We made it through 3 long scenes today – almost 9 pages. And we got some great coverage. All-in-all an incredible beginning.

Be sure to stay tuned to www.phasmamovie.com for real-time on-the-set updates from the director himself!

Ben Van Santen – Production Manager

In the words of director Matt Osterman: “After 18 months of writing, 6 months of fundraising, and one month of pre-production, actual real-live filmmaking begins this Monday.” I think he’s excited to get this show on the road.

For those of you unfamiliar with the project, the synopsis: “An ambitious mystery, with strong elements of science fiction and the supernatural, Phasma Ex Machina follows the lives of two brothers and an electrical engineer trying to decipher a series of strange events. Everything changes when they discover that the distance between the living and the dead isn’t all that far.”

And the website: www.phasmamovie.com

Shooting begins tomorrow, Labor Day, on location. We jump from location to location to begin with before we settle into the main two locations towards the middle of the month. Shooting will take place Thursdays – Sundays for the duration of September (Mondays – Wednesdays will be spent at the days jobs, strategically taking calls and answering e-mails).

I (I’m the Production Manager) finished the tentative final shooting schedule yesterday. It came down to picking which department I wanted to irk the least (or most). It’s a tricky process and I should’ve planted some seeds with wardrobe, production design and the camera team to open the floor to bribes. In the end I decided set ups usually take longer than a wardrobe change or prop rearrangement. We’ll see if I get any dirty looks on set.

We’ll have one last technical rehearsal tonight before waking up bright and early to tackle day one. Everyone seems calm and at ease. I’m looking forward to it.

Ben Van Santen – Production Manager