We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
I recently spent 10 days color grading a project alongside Mike Pecci. The project is a feature length doc that Mike had worked on as the Director of Photography, Push: Madison V. Madison.
The two of us spent 10 hours a day for 10 days in a row scrutinizing over every last frame coming up with and adjusting a color palette for this film. Don’t get me wrong — I loved being able to develop and apply a look for a film — it just seems like my brain has turned to mush after spending 100 hours staring at computer monitors. What made this project even more interesting is that the studio we were using was busy during the day, which meant that our hours would be over night.
The difference between color grading a...
I recently spent 10 days color grading a project alongside Mike Pecci. The project is a feature length doc that Mike had worked on as the Director of Photography, Push: Madison V. Madison.
The two of us spent 10 hours a day for 10 days in a row scrutinizing over every last frame coming up with and adjusting a color palette for this film. Don’t get me wrong — I loved being able to develop and apply a look for a film — it just seems like my brain has turned to mush after spending 100 hours staring at computer monitors. What made this project even more interesting is that the studio we were using was busy during the day, which meant that our hours would be over night.
The difference between color grading a...
- 4/21/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
This was my first time being a part of every step of making a project. I was part of the pre-production process, I worked on-set, and I also helped with the post-production.
I wasn’t surprised by the amount of work that goes into producing a project, but I was overwhelmed. Producing is a lot to handle, especially for this project which was being pre-produced long distance. I live and work in Boston with McFarland and Pecci, the project that we were putting together was to be shot in Miami Beach — which meant that I had to look at locations via Google Maps.
The other duties I had on this project were to secure a van rental, hire the crew, and find food for the shoot day. The van is a 15 passenger for the crew,...
This was my first time being a part of every step of making a project. I was part of the pre-production process, I worked on-set, and I also helped with the post-production.
I wasn’t surprised by the amount of work that goes into producing a project, but I was overwhelmed. Producing is a lot to handle, especially for this project which was being pre-produced long distance. I live and work in Boston with McFarland and Pecci, the project that we were putting together was to be shot in Miami Beach — which meant that I had to look at locations via Google Maps.
The other duties I had on this project were to secure a van rental, hire the crew, and find food for the shoot day. The van is a 15 passenger for the crew,...
- 4/8/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
Previously…
I fucked up and left expensive camera equipment on a bus. Now I must face the consequences.
After three hours of kicking myself and asking for help at the bus station I headed to Mike Pecci’s house to tell him what had happened. I just ruined his life by losing all of his camera equipment.
Riding the bus only a few hours after the incident felt awkward. I felt like a child coming home to face punishment after misbehaving at school, which I experienced often as a kid. My mom would yell at me and I would sit in my room and read X-Men comics and play Sega until she cooled down. Mike doesn’t have any video games.
The lump in my throat grew larger as I walked up Mike’s driveway.
Previously…
I fucked up and left expensive camera equipment on a bus. Now I must face the consequences.
After three hours of kicking myself and asking for help at the bus station I headed to Mike Pecci’s house to tell him what had happened. I just ruined his life by losing all of his camera equipment.
Riding the bus only a few hours after the incident felt awkward. I felt like a child coming home to face punishment after misbehaving at school, which I experienced often as a kid. My mom would yell at me and I would sit in my room and read X-Men comics and play Sega until she cooled down. Mike doesn’t have any video games.
The lump in my throat grew larger as I walked up Mike’s driveway.
- 3/9/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
I have worked for McFarland and Pecci for quite some time now and we had gone from an employer/employee relationship to being close friends with one another. This past week I put that friendship through an enormous amount of stress.
Mike Pecci agreed to let me borrow his camera so I could take a few photos for my blog while I did some assistant editing work for Ian McFarland. I wasn.t sure what camera or which lens to bring, so I brought his whole kit — two camera bodies, three lenses, an Led light, extra batteries, battery chargers, and two 8 gig and one four gig compact flash cards. All packed into a black Pelican case.
I am an idiot for bringing the entire kit with me that morning.
After...
I have worked for McFarland and Pecci for quite some time now and we had gone from an employer/employee relationship to being close friends with one another. This past week I put that friendship through an enormous amount of stress.
Mike Pecci agreed to let me borrow his camera so I could take a few photos for my blog while I did some assistant editing work for Ian McFarland. I wasn.t sure what camera or which lens to bring, so I brought his whole kit — two camera bodies, three lenses, an Led light, extra batteries, battery chargers, and two 8 gig and one four gig compact flash cards. All packed into a black Pelican case.
I am an idiot for bringing the entire kit with me that morning.
After...
- 3/3/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
This week I captured and logged footage for a DVD series titled ‘Choppahead: Animal Thugs and Mayhem Machines.’ Choppahead is a motorcycle shop in Massachusetts; the Choppahead crew is a lot like the American Chopper guys, except real. The crew travels around the U.S. and sometimes to other countries to deliver their custom made bikes and also interview and profile “backyard builders” and their personal projects.
I would like to say that after sitting down and going over 11 hours of footage that I had learned something about motorcycles, but I hadn’t. I did however learn to appreciate the work put in to building your own bike, but mechanic type stuff has always gone over my head.
Growing up, I was more interested in saving 8-bit princesses than I...
This week I captured and logged footage for a DVD series titled ‘Choppahead: Animal Thugs and Mayhem Machines.’ Choppahead is a motorcycle shop in Massachusetts; the Choppahead crew is a lot like the American Chopper guys, except real. The crew travels around the U.S. and sometimes to other countries to deliver their custom made bikes and also interview and profile “backyard builders” and their personal projects.
I would like to say that after sitting down and going over 11 hours of footage that I had learned something about motorcycles, but I hadn’t. I did however learn to appreciate the work put in to building your own bike, but mechanic type stuff has always gone over my head.
Growing up, I was more interested in saving 8-bit princesses than I...
- 2/23/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
Sometimes my job has its perks. For instance, the time I worked on a grindhouse short/photo shoot with a Suicide Girl. I spent an entire day in a cabin with a naked chick. And she was shooting guns. Big guns.
It felt like that scene in Jackie Brown where Sammy J. is watching that video of ladies firing assault rifles while wearing skimpy bikinis. Except this girl was completely nude and fired a rifle that was much larger than her.
This sounds great right? Well what if I told you that the cabin was in the middle of nowhere, without running water and full of ticks? The kind of ticks that will bite you.
The day started off normally enough. I arrived on set, chatted with the make-up artist...
Sometimes my job has its perks. For instance, the time I worked on a grindhouse short/photo shoot with a Suicide Girl. I spent an entire day in a cabin with a naked chick. And she was shooting guns. Big guns.
It felt like that scene in Jackie Brown where Sammy J. is watching that video of ladies firing assault rifles while wearing skimpy bikinis. Except this girl was completely nude and fired a rifle that was much larger than her.
This sounds great right? Well what if I told you that the cabin was in the middle of nowhere, without running water and full of ticks? The kind of ticks that will bite you.
The day started off normally enough. I arrived on set, chatted with the make-up artist...
- 2/16/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
This past December, instead of being stuck inside my home in Boston, I was in San Diego. I wasn.t on vacation; I was working on the new As I Lay Dying music video. I was happy to be away from the twenty-degree weather and threatening snow storms and enjoy sixty-degree weather and Mexican food.
Mike (Pecci) and I flew to San Diego a few days before Ian (McFarland), he was wrapping up a small European tour with his band and was scheduled to fly out to San Diego the day before production.
After six hours of flight travel and a five and a half layover in San Francisco, we finally arrived at San Diego International Airport. During our layover, Mike and I met a woman in our terminal. She...
This past December, instead of being stuck inside my home in Boston, I was in San Diego. I wasn.t on vacation; I was working on the new As I Lay Dying music video. I was happy to be away from the twenty-degree weather and threatening snow storms and enjoy sixty-degree weather and Mexican food.
Mike (Pecci) and I flew to San Diego a few days before Ian (McFarland), he was wrapping up a small European tour with his band and was scheduled to fly out to San Diego the day before production.
After six hours of flight travel and a five and a half layover in San Francisco, we finally arrived at San Diego International Airport. During our layover, Mike and I met a woman in our terminal. She...
- 1/12/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
We Are Movie Geeks welcomes guest blogger Tony Fernandez, a production assistant taking us inside the underworld of indie filmmaking.
I work as a production assistant for the directing duo McFarland and Pecci at Killswitch Productions. I.ve hung out with metal bands, covered naked women in blood, fired machine guns, been tasked with purchasing unflattering parts of animals, and have spent many nights curled up on a bathroom floor.
Every week I will be sharing stories, giving insight to what it.s like to work for McFarland and Pecci during the production of independent films and music videos.
A year ago I was searching through Craigslist and came across a posting looking for a photographer.s assistant; I responded and was soon contacted back and instructed to meet the photographer at his house. I arrived and saw a note written on the front door that read: .Around back, through basement.
I work as a production assistant for the directing duo McFarland and Pecci at Killswitch Productions. I.ve hung out with metal bands, covered naked women in blood, fired machine guns, been tasked with purchasing unflattering parts of animals, and have spent many nights curled up on a bathroom floor.
Every week I will be sharing stories, giving insight to what it.s like to work for McFarland and Pecci during the production of independent films and music videos.
A year ago I was searching through Craigslist and came across a posting looking for a photographer.s assistant; I responded and was soon contacted back and instructed to meet the photographer at his house. I arrived and saw a note written on the front door that read: .Around back, through basement.
- 1/5/2011
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
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