happiness is...

- Sunrise Photos of the opera house

- Ordering new skates (technically happiness would be USING the new skates, but...)

- Movies

- Replacing some U2 albums that were stolen many years ago


All in all it's been a good day

On the work front - I'm recording 2nd Unit for the next two weeks.
Still unsure of my finish-date, as it all depends on whether I’ll be re-joining the main-unit (when it down-sizes into 2nd Unit… it’s all a little confusing to explain); or moving onto another project.
Either way it’s unlikely that I’ll be back in Brisbane before June.

more photos

the actual sunrise...




I'm pretty sure this is one of the water taxis that the production use to ferry crew across the harbour; poor buggers must've been returning from last night's work...




reflections are cool




phone-booth...




Circular Quay...




and the harbour bridge...



See ya

Ian

another month...

...another 4 paycheques? ...another lunar cycle? ...another...ummm, nevermind

so what's happened in the last month or two?

I suppose the biggest news is that I'm going skiing again. the flights are booked, accommodation and hiring of cars is sorted, and lift-tickets reserved.

look out mt hutt (I know; i should really look into a bit of variety). for 5 days during the 9th - 16th August 2008 - you're mine... again.

(it seems a little strange that I started this blog in late 2006 with mention of my upcoming ski-trip, and now I'm embarking on another - to the same location no less)

what else has happened

apple.com (via i-tunes) has launched the set-to-screen series. for the feature film AUSTRALIA

for proof that I actually worked on the darn thing, and wasn't on a nine-month sabbatical - check out the pod-cast on stills photography at the 1:20 mark - I'm the boomie in the camo-shorts on the left of frame. that was the last day (almost sunset too) out at diggers rest near kununurra WA, with main unit... fun times

not exactly the most auspicious beginnings on the internet, I know; but still, 'tis interesting to finally see something about the film; it's going to be special...

things are still going well on the current project; we've moved into night shoots on an island in sydney harbour, and it's no where near as bad as first thought.

there's sound to be recorded as the original issues (reverb/planes/traffic/boat noise/birds/rain) have reduced themselves to be at least workable.

It has of course been raining non-stop (well partially non-stop :)) for almost 2 weeks now, and it's getting a LITTLE tedious having to drag ourselves up to work yet another rainy evening... at least we've been indoors

Unfortunately the boom op injured himself and has been replaced temporarily; also the original sound recordist (whom, I worked with on the last film) has returned home for some long-overdue family time, and also been replaced (with our 2nd unit recordist).

I'm waiting for fate to step in and render me either lame or stricken with something that will remove me from filming (everything happens in threes...); but so far I've been lucky enough to only get a bout of pre-winter cold and flu, nothing too serious.

nothing else to report really; I've been working. I've also been working at night - and therefore improving my coffee-making-skills exponentially.

until next time

see ya

skiin'ian (woo hoo, i can finally use the nick-name again)

Sweet as...

…nothing… It’s not a full sentence; and yet it can sum up so much. equivalent to; cool, no worries, and OK; “Sweet as” has a multitude of uses.

In NZ it covers everything.

The main unit is now in the process of shipping its-self back to Sydney for a few months. 2nd Unit remains on the south island shooting the jaw-dropping effects sequences that will surely astound audiences in May 2009.

I would have posted more often; if I were actually taking photos… It’s weird; but I feel more inclined to post on the blog, if I’ve taken a bunch of photos.
The job was not conducive to taking photos; hence the lack of posts…

Also, I stop taking photos once I’ve hit what I feel is my artistic limit (this is something that I can’t explain; and even more of a concern than the no-photo = no-post)

I hit it VERY early in the trip, and the following photo is my own personal pinnacle…



It’s a view from the hike I took up Queenstown gondola. And if I may say so – one of the best I’ve ever taken…

Ok, time to sign off.

Ian

P.S. I’ve had a few very nice emails requesting information and photos, and thought I should point out that I’m not able to take any photos of the set. I’d be fired for sharing ANY information about the film (including photos); it’s just not worth the repercussions.


P.P.S The t-shirt was one of my few indulgences during the brief trip to NZ. I'd seen it in a Queenstown store, promised myself to purchase on a day off; and never got around to it. By the time I'd searched and failed to find it in Dunedin, my heart sank. it was an absolute fluke that Christchurch international airport has a global cultures store... and that they had one of the shirts in stock.

art is cool...

...and so is Dunedin.

their public art gallery has a nice exhibit at the moment. Elizabeth Thomson's (no relation) "my hi-fi, my sci-fi".

Also on display is Monet's "le debacle" which is pretty impressive.

check it out, if you're in town.

If you do happen to be in town; there's a good chance that you're either:
1 - a student who's about to start classes (Dunedin is a MAJOR university town with over 20,000 students expected in a weeks time);
2 - Here for the MASTERS games (there's almost 8000 people expected)
3 - Possibly off a cruise ship, on your way to Antarctica?

Dunedin is a surprising little town, good food, a nice vibe, and a familiar climate for those who enjoy the cold.


we're back in town for a little while, shooting in the forests about an hour out of town (the pine trees feel surprisingly canadian, which always makes me happy), and closer to the city in an old cement works.

speaking of work, it's all going quite well.

don't know why I seem surprised; as we've got a fantastic crew, and amazing scenery - what more could you ask for.

the differences between this film and the last are as numerous as they are massive.

Not that either one was the correct way to do things, but it's almost a holiday to return to the regularly structured form of shooting feature films; and our pace has been a nice contrast as well.

One thing that has made me really happy is how good the local crew are; I was always expecting good things (i mean, c'mon; lord of the rings...), but damn... they've got the logistics of shooting in remote areas well and truly sorted. Everyone is really friendly, and it's got a chilled vibe that doesn't usually happen on bigger productions. it's almost enough to make me want to move here...

I'm having a small issue getting used to our lead actor's accent though... after 9 months of hearing him speak with a hearty Aussie tone, it's a little disconcerting to hear some northern american coming out. Then again, his previous character didn't have claws either...

Photo time...


from the top of the queenstown gondola (which I hiked up, then caught down...)

The photo at the headd of this post is from a small side-trip to the otago-coast

catch you soon

Ian

been busy bro...

NZ is good, more photos of the landscape are coming; when I get a chance to sift through and pick the good ones...

see ya;

Ian

crossing the ditch...

this time tomorrow I'll be sitting in Queenstown, hopefully with some kind of beverage in my hand; contemplating the next month of location shooting...

photos may be posted; we'll see.

Ian

I'm going home...

I guess it had to happen sometime, even if it seemed like it would never end.

We’ve wrapped. (Technically we wrap after today... I’m currently sitting in stage 7, as we set-up on one of our last few shots)

I’m now charged with cleaning and packing all the sound gear into a shipping container so it can travel during the holiday period, and arrive in NZ in time for the next film...

...Of which I can’t disclose any information – mostly because I haven’t officially been contracted yet.

Other things that have happened in the past month, or so;

• I flew home to attend a birthday party – and bought a cheap suit

• Drank lots of coffee as I discovered the virtues of the UNIT truck’s espresso machine

• Saw a few more movies (INTO THE WILD = Good, BEOWULF 3D IMAX = no so much, SICKO = made me glad to be an Australian, SHOOT EM UP = fun, but nowhere near as good as HOT FUZZ {which I picked up on DVD})

• My car was broken into – stealthily, as they didn’t break any windows or destroy the door-lock. They did manage to completely TRASH the ignition in a failed attempt at stealing the car; and took my new-ish GPS system (which was well hidden, but uninsured)

• Subsequently I can’t drive home – instead I’m flying; then renting a car for a small break up the sunshine coast with my mum/sis/brother.

• I didn’t end up re-joining the gym, and due to the extra eating I was doing (and the added stress of recording on splinter unit), I un-did all the good work of the past few months, and feel a little out of shape.

• Attended a cool wrap-party. Not much more to say – ‘twas a fun night.

• I bit the bullet and FINALLY purchased a GOOD set of in-ear reference headphones (even with the online discount it was still about 10 times as much as most people would spend) and the sound is INCREDIBLE...

Okey dokey. That’s it from this neck of the woods.

If all goes according to plan; I’ll be taking a bunch of photos in NZ during late Jan 08 (hopefully they'll match the beauty of the one at the head of this post - which I took in 2004), so expect more from me then.

Until next time

Happy over-commercialised-christian-gift-giving-day,

And a merry new year

Ian