On Location for Coyote Girl: Thursday 01.08.15

January has been an amazing month for Outcast Café! We have spent the past two and a half weeks officially entering the production phase of making our second short film, Coyote Girl, the poetic version of the 90 minute play script Riley Ann Visits the Outcast Cafe. After spending about two weeks on location in Westfield, Illinois the team has dispersed and continues to work on post-production for the film as well as upcoming projects for the company. Here is the next installment of our adventures on location from the perspective of company member Gail Shalan (Riley Ann, Coyote:

Thursday 01.08.15

8:01 a.m.- This morning, at the Home Place, the cast and crew meets with the make-up and costume consultant for the film, Karen Eisenhour. Karen is a professor in the theatre department at Eastern Illinois University (in Charleston) teaching make-up and costume design as well as building puppets herself! Karen brings along a bright and eager student named Jason, who is an actor, writer and director,  looking to produce his first feature film soon. For the next couple hours Karen and Jason teach Biggs and myself how to properly apply a makeup base and then age/ exhaust ourselves appropriately using shadowing techniques, exaggerated heavily for black and white film. In color we sort of look like a zombie-horror flick, but in color, we are spectacular! After consulting with Rick and Terry on our various progressions (or regressions), we move on to costumes.

11:48 a.m.-  We break quickly for lunch. Chatting with Karen and Jason about their work and time at the University is a blast. Rick grills Karen on her film syllabus, and Jason grills Rick on making a movie. Turns out Karen is a bit of a neighbor to us Berkshire folk as she hails from our neighbor, Connecticut.

12:40 p.m.- Biggs and I change in and out of our many costume options and with the help of all our useful eyes (Rick, Terry, Karen, Jason, and Sims), we narrow down our costumes, scene by scene.

2:15 p.m.- Having made it through all of our looks, Karen makes an organized list and closet set-up. We move on to beginning a camera rehearsal with Rick (scenes 2/3, 5, 7, and 10) for blocking of the various shots in a more particular sense than our rehearsal yesterday. It’s been a long day. Make-up mysteriously takes an aggressive toll, but we feel good about powering through the first half of the film rehearsal and then finishing the rest up another day.

6:11 p.m.-  The five of us head out to an amazing smokehouse in Charelston for dinner. This little recovering vegetarian is officially on a Chicken kick these two weeks. If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em!

The lovely Jason and Karen. Thanks for the help!
The lovely Jason and Karen. Thanks for the help!
We settle on jewelry for RILEY ANN. Kind of crazy what ends up looking good in greyscale.
We settle on jewelry for RILEY ANN. Kind of crazy what ends up looking good in greyscale.
Biggs applies the OLD MAN make-up.
Biggs applies the OLD MAN make-up.
An utterly exhausted RILEY ANN. What looks like a black eye in color actually comes across as extremely weary in black and white.
An utterly exhausted RILEY ANN. What looks like a black eye in color actually comes across as extremely weary in black and white.
RILEY ANN for scene 7. Here we see her fully made up, but having trouble hiding the bags of exhaustion.
RILEY ANN for scene 7. Here we see her fully made up, but having trouble hiding the bags of exhaustion.

On Location for Coyote Girl: Wednesday 01.07.15

January has been an amazing month for Outcast Café! We have spent the past two and a half weeks officially entering the production phase of making our second short film, Coyote Girl, the poetic version of the 90 minute play script Riley Ann Visits the Outcast Cafe. After spending about two weeks on location in Westfield, Illinois the team has dispersed and continues to work on post-production for the film as well as upcoming projects for the company. Here is the next installment of our adventures on location from the perspective of company member Gail Shalan (Riley Ann, Coyote:

Wednesday 01.07.15

10:00 a.m.-  Biggs and I meet at the Home Place for our first rehearsal on location with Rick Sands, the road warrior. He and Terry Holland got on the road at 3 a.m. that morning and drove straight to Westfield with all sorts of equipment, including the much anticipated drones.  We figure out and feel out where each scene takes place on set and begin to discuss what we might see from the camera’s POV. The process of transitioning from stage to screen is an acting challenge for all three of us (including COYOTE), but Rick is very patient and we all begin to learn how to communicate with each other. We’re glad to have Terry on board who has experience both behind and in front of the camera, and has an amazing eye! What a great team we have. I can tell I’m going to learn so much even now.

2:15 p.m.- We break for lunch, but the guys push on. Setting up their equipment and figuring out their shots. I go back to David and Terri’s with COYOTE, so that we can work more on the COYOTE scenes.

6:25 p.m.-  Biggs and I drive to Charleston, a nearby college town, to meet Sims, Rick, and Terry for dinner at the historic Roc’s Blackfront restaurant: home to the original gambling Chicago gangsters at the turn of the last century. When Biggs was just out of school and moved back into town, this is where he used to go out on the weekends. It stands still with a happening bar on the floor above.  After dinner we bundle up and head back to Westfield to escape the cold under our blankets.

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A still from our first Camera rehearsal with Rick in December.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Rick sets up an office in the Living Room of the Home Place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A glorious pink Mid-West sunset

 

 

 

 

 

On Location for Coyote Girl: Tuesday 01.06.15

January has been an amazing month for Outcast Café! We have spent the past two and a half weeks officially entering the production phase of making our second short film, Coyote Girl, the poetic version of the 90 minute play script Riley Ann Visits the Outcast Cafe. After spending about two weeks on location in Westfield, Illinois the team has dispersed and continues to work on post-production for the film as well as upcoming projects for the company. Here is the next installment of our adventures on location from the perspective of company member Gail Shalan (Riley Ann, Coyote:

Tuesday 01.06.15

11:55 a.m.- After waking at 8 and realizing I’m the last one down for coffee, I observe that we are now on “farm time”. We rise, and sometimes set, with the sun here. Sims, Biggs, and I (joined by David) head out to the neighboring Casey (pronounced “KAY-zee”), home of “Big things in a small town” for a few errands and lunch at the Whitling Whimsey Cafe.

1:05 p.m. – Officially small town living, David and Robert know everyone in the cafe we ate lunch at. Being a Berkshire bean myself, I am well versed in such familiarity. The Whitling Whimsey is home to not only “over 100 items that begin with ‘W’ “, but also the World’s Largest Wind Chime. The town also holds the World’s Largest Knitting Needles, Golf Tee and soon to be Rocking Chair as it’s claim to fame. After playing tourist, we stop by the Dollar General and some other locations in desperate search of a flash drive, amidst other last minute necessities.

1:36 p.m.- We fail our Mission Flash Drive and decide to try Walmart in Charleston later on. Biggs stops in one of the many local banks to transfer funds. I follow. Did you know that Riley Ann works in a bank? Character research!

3:31 p.m.- As Sims and Biggs head out for Walmart and Terri begins to cook us a lovely feast, I get some down time to journal about my experience so far. I also take COYOTE out of the suitcase and we work on our scenes a bit.

5:45 p.m-  We all sit down for a wonderful family meal at Terri and David’s, enjoy each other’s company and conversation, and retire fairly early. Although we were expecting Rick Sands (Director of Photography) and Terry Holland (Art Director) to arrive at the Home Place tonight, they’ve been held up on their long drive and will arrive in the morning.

Coyote Rehearses and a Picture of The World’s Largest Wind Chime

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On Location for Coyote Girl : Monday 01.05.15

January has been an amazing month for Outcast Café! We have spent the past two and a half weeks officially entering the production phase of making our second short film, Coyote Girl, the poetic version of the 90 minute play script Riley Ann Visits the Outcast Cafe. After spending about two weeks on location in Westfield, Illinois the team has dispersed and continues to work on post-production for the film as well as upcoming projects for the company. Here is a daily log of our adventures on location from the perspective of company member Gail Shalan (Riley Ann, Coyote:

 

Monday 01.05.15 

4:16 a.m. – Dropped off at Logan airport. COYOTE lays comfortably amidst many sweaters (brrrr, mid-west in January) and will be checked for the flight to Indianapolis. I carry on a copy of the Coyote Girl screenplay, a pillow, and a big pair of headphones attached to an audiobook version of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, read by Jim Dale.

8:40 a.m.– Southwest Airlines delivers me safely in Baltimore for my transfer, while COYOTE coasts somewhere amidst many suitcases. See you in Indy, COYOTE!

10:55 a.m.– We have arrived! Biggs and Sims meet me in the lobby of the Indianapolis Airport. We head to baggage claim to pick up COYOTE and all those sweaters and hop on the highway for the last leg of the trip to Westfield.

11:58 a.m.– Having driven two hours to Westfield, we gained one back with the entrance into the Central Time Zone. For me, it’s like driving through a new country. My first venture to the Mid-West is alien. Flat land and ghosts of cornfields for miles and miles. Mostly semis on the road with us. We passed a coyote that had been hit on the side of the road. A good omen? We stop to get some gas and look across the the road to see a Fireworks Emporium. Interesting placement. Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore.

12:16 p.m.- We meet our generous hosts, Terri and David Biggs, for lunch at a family owned establishment, Richard Farms right outside of Westfield in Casey, Illinois. Richard Farms is a traditional mid-western restaurant build of re-pourposed barn wood. They will cater our shoot and we are happy to be on the ground and eating well.

1:48 p.m.-  After swinging by the Home Place, our location for shooting and where half of our cast and crew is living for the shoot, Biggs brings me back to Terri and David’s house for some much needed rest and relaxation before we depart. I check on COYOTE, who is doing well, clean up and settle in. Tomorrow our adventures begin.

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IMG_2131 Gail and COYOTE get ready for their big adventure in film. All packed up and ready to go.

Off To The Farm!

Good News! We’re making a movie!

Last week OC held a pre-production meeting to firm up the dates of the shoot for our upcoming short film Coyote Girl and it’s official! Biggs, Sims, Gail and Rick will be shipping off to the farm for two weeks in January to shoot principal and B-reel on location.
Keep up to date on rehearsals (mid- December) and on location updates (January 8th-16th) here on the blog and on twitter and instagram ( @outcastcafe).
Suitcases in gear, we’re back on the road again! 10402560_10203059686113154_2792511893977371511_n