Ashes of Man: Winter Sets

After an intense combat sequence that took a solid 8.5 hours of filming in single-digit temperatures, we have finished filming the winter unit of our movie, Ashes of Man.  It has been quite a ride.  I wish I could tell you guys everything, but there are so many stories.

The first set we filmed was a learning experience for me, let me tell you!  Yes, I’ve made some YouTube films before, but I’ve never really had to work with anyone outside of a few helpers.  This first set was the first time I had to learn to man up and tell people what to do, actually direct them.  I did a bad job; that was to be expected.  Yet, I think I’ve gotten a lot better at this whole thing.

But it all worked out, and we had a good time, and that’s all that matters.  And I've learned a lot, for example:  

- If you want it to look like cats are eating a dead body, soak the guy’s shirt in tuna, and air the room out once you’re done. 

- It extremely unnerving to be in a public park with a shopping cart that probably shouldn’t be there.

- You need to step on the running board when you get out of a truck. 

- Don’t carry canned food in your bag when you’re breaking a chair over your back. 

- Step on the gas before the actors running at you hit the tail gate. 

- It’s never fun to deliberately hurt yourself the same way multiple times to make the shot look good. 

- No one looks at you weird when you film on a college campus.

- Don’t eat soap.

- Fake blood tastes like bad kool-aid.

Here's a fun little game:
Find the creeper.

- The cinnamon challenge is not the best life choice to make.

- Even if an actor partied all night long and/or never bothered to go to sleep, he will still show up for the set.

- Assure passerbys that the people on the ground are indeed, “okay.”

- Its impossible to look good walking across smooth ice.

- No matter how many times to ask, you can’t convince a person to lick the pavement.

And, most importantly:

- Never, never, ever, film a movie outside in the winter.