Kestrachern

In late summer 2008 I was working on a film crew for the picture Exit 727.  It was kinda like an outsiders meets west side story, but without singing and the happy ending.

I learned a lot about how a film is put together and the varying responsibilities of all the parties involved.  It made a nice counterpoint to the series I had worked earlier in the summer, ClosingTime.  

The trailer is so-so lots of shouting and angry 20-something males.  Not a great depth to the characters (at least from what I recall during the shooting)  While it lacks the the inspiration of the scene by scene remake of Raiders of the Lost Ark, ya gotta start somewhere.  According to the website it is expected to be in theaters during 2009.

There were lots of adventures during shooting.  Several times the local police stopped past to check in with us, make sure we had all of the papers in order.  Two hurricanes skirted the area causing a slowdown in shooting.  The original video editor was fired 2 weeks into the project for being a total moron, lucky for him he had been advanced 1/2 his salary and declined to return it.

I met a few really good people.. but they have since moved out of the St. PEtersburg area, some to upstate New York and others to San Antonio, Texas.   I did get a nice introduction to some of the more popular places (think bars) in the area as we used them for several scenes in the film. Lastly, and to the best of my knowledge I have a cameo in Exit 727, all the crew took turns making “drug buys” during a time lapse sequence. mmm powdered sugar.

Would I do it again, yes.  I gained insight into another line of work.  Kinda makes me wanna turn my novel from the upcoming NaNoWriMo into a screenplay.  All I need is a great idea and a camera.