Thanks to the extremely generous support of Garden Studios a ten minute ‘Proof of Concept’ of The Narrows has been now been shot!
The production had two goals. Showcase the capabilities of the ‘Virtual Production’ stage for drama, and to give people a taste of why The Narrows script has gained so much industry interest.
The director, Tom Edmunds and producer Daniel-Konrad Cooper managed to secure us an absolutely stellar cast of Dixie Egerickx, Sam Spruell, Anton Valensi and Alex Morgan. Who almost immediately lifted the script to a whole new level adding nuance and depth to every moment.
As a writer it’s always exciting to meet the people you’ve imagined, but it’s even more special when the talent add so much to the story, I honestly can’t wait for people to see it.
Shooting on location on a canal
First day of shooting was on location with a real boat, The Lupin. It was only a day but it was incredibly productive. We shot wide shots of key scenes and also ‘plates’ that would be used later in the studio with a recreation of the boat to simulate being on the river.
There were challenges. Almost every take was slow to do, because resetting the boat was a laborious process even with a tug boat helping out. The engine noise was also an issue for the sound department even if it had a lovely melodic rhythm to it that the rest of us enjoyed.
But even with issues there was also something magical going on. There were moment with the Lupin and it’s crew floating down the river where it was it was possible to be transported to a different time.
Working with a Virtual Production stage
The studio was also a fantastic learning experience. Denson, the cinematographer did incredible work adjusting to the technology. He and his team used all sorts of exciting techniques to sell our recreated Lupin being a real boat on a canal.
This included also sorts of clever computer work and lighting but my absolute favourite bit was a tray of mirrors filled with water to give ‘dancing dappled light’ from a canal onto the actors faces.
I was also blown away by what the volume could do. Especially with 3D generated scenery where the time of day could be adjusted with a touch of a button. I can’t imagine why we wouldn’t use this technology again when it comes to filming the feature version of The Narrows. Not least because there was no chance of falling in our virtual canal water!
Another advantage of the special stage was how easy it was to reset a scene. Within maybe five minutes we could be ready to shoot an entirely different shot.
Anyway, I can’t wait to show everyone the finished product and hopefully go into full production on the feature version of the story.
Credits
Cast: JOSEPHINE Dixie Egerickx
Cast: STOKER Sam Spruell
Cast: WEASEL Anton Valensi
Cast: BOSUN Alex Morgan
Director: Tom Edmunds
Cinematographer: Denson Baker
Writer: Samuel Pinney
Producer: Daniel-Konrad Cooper
Executive Producer: Thomas Høegh
Focus Puller: Malte Hubner
2nd Asst Camera: James Furr
ProCam Tech: Vato Beridze
Costume Supervisor: Luan Placks
Costume Standby: Tamsin Flower
Makeup Designer: Julia Bowden
Makeup Artist: Kari Rodnes
Sby Art Director: Nora Hoegh
Scenic Artist: Eliot Haigh
Sound Mixer: Nigel Albermaniche
Boom Op: Will Pye
Production Assistant: Emily Beynon
Production Assistant: Hugo Nordstrom
Chaperone: Fiona Barnett (Dixie's Mother)
VP Supervisor: Mark Pilborough-Skinner
Casting Director: Nanw Rowlands
Insurance: David Johnstone
Special thanks to Garden Studios and their sponsors Procam Take 2 and Mo-Sys