My memory is a little hazy, but I remember always being in love with film. All the processes that's involved with making a movie, and the like. The only thing I don't like is probably pre-production. Well, other than script writing and casting, the only real hassle about pre-production is getting greenlit, which isn't really much of a problem for me anyway. Only real filmmakers get the chance to go through the hassle of waiting to get greenlit.
There are really only three processes, pre-production, production, and post-production. I've learned this by watching the Academy Awards, or the Oscars. I remember Hugh Jackman explaining it in segments as the show went on. Even though the show wasn't live, I still watched it. I didn't mind.
I have a very distinct memory of going to watch a movie when I was very young. I remember my mom telling me to say I was 7, so I was probably NOT 7 at the time. So to get in to the theater, I had to lie to those people collecting the tickets. Well, being not older than 7, I couldn't lie. I mean, I was too little to bluff. My poker face was a little off then. If I pulled it off back then, I think it would have been an awesome experience, or it could have probably scarred me for life. The movie was Batman. And just to be clear, no, I didn't get to see it.
For as long as I can remember, I watched TV constantly. I mean, what child wouldn't be. And with the birth of the internet, I forgot about the TV and stuck to my monitor. When I wake up in the morning, I just flip open my laptop's lid and resume whatever I was doing the night before. That's right, I don't turn off my laptop. And the television in my room is never on, so electricity evens out, I would think.
My first real exposure to film and being behind the camera or director's chair was when I was in fourth year high school. We were given a project to make a short film about Rizal, but it had to be like a news segment. So, a short news segment about Rizal. The filming took place most of our Christmas break. I remember the groupmates meeting up at Starbucks before heading out to our "set."
Post-production followed soon after. The deadline of the project was after our Christmas break, but I had finished it in time to show my fellow groupmates what all the hardwork they put in looked like. All of us enjoyed it, but it could not compare to the days that we spent filming.
All the time and effort I put on to this one project could reflect the suckiness of my other one. You see, we had two of these filming projects, both due after the Christmas vacation. With less manpower, we did all we could. I was not proud of this other project, but on the other hand, I had the short news segment to fall back on. After all, we got the highest score out of the batch. Macbeth and those witches could give it a rest.
When I got to my second year, we had another project. Not a film this time, but a short play of the Ramayana, if I remember correctly. But another group were doing a film. My group opted to stick to a short play to minimize expenditures. For a time, I had forgotten why exactly, I was with a camera. The same camera used to film the other group's short movie. And I decided to play around with it.
It chronicled what everyday life was at the "Velez Jungle." Velez is the name of our school, and it's filled with so much plant life that we call it a jungle. This was an inside joke to almost every student at Velez. It still is today, but due to increasing number of cases of Dengue, some trees were cut down. But the essence of the Velez Jungle is still there.
From hours of playing with that camera, it seemed fun to do another film project. It featured very candid, unscripted moments with me parodying Steve Irwin-esque persona. Sucks that I couldn't (and still can't) pull off the accent though. I had it shown before the group's own film presentation. My short film acted as a trailer for the group. It was a fun experience "living" behind the camera. If you wanna see the video, scroll down below!
On other things, the next year, a groupmate of mine from the Rizal project had her own little thing. Although I couldn't sit on the director's chair, I went to the editing room. And getting paid in the process. Not bad, sir. Not bad at all.
Over the couple of months, I would do a little editing here and there. For my own purposes or others. Helping others for our little events, like our acquaintance party and our general assembly (which was a bust, not on my part though.) But I'm still waiting on that big project to surface.
Maybe an actual Velez Jungle movie? Anyone?
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Indio Productions Presents: The Velez Jungle Trailer
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