1. Green means go!
May 7th, 2021. Cold Start production blog post written by Richard Townsley
As of today, Cold Start successfully completed its crowdfunding run. It means the world to our production team see the pit crew of over 100 supporters and followers helping reach and surpass our goal of 7,500 dollars. Hello and welcome, this is COLD START: The Road to Production. We look forward to sharing our progress with you.
Our shooting dates are locked for June 12th and 13th. We will be shooting on location in San Clemente where we will be filming about 80% of the film, we will be filming in the same garage that my grandfather kept his prize-winning Ford Mustang. Not a minute will be wasted. Supplies for our props and sets were purchased, the additional crew has been hired, and the casting process has begun. Our Production Designer will be sourcing period-accurate props and set design. This has proven to be difficult for some specific parts, for example, a 70’s mechanics creeper, four-barrel carburetors, trophies, mint condition racing harnesses, and helmets. Cold Start has teamed up with several autobody shops located in Northern California that will graciously be providing several of the harder to locate props.
Attention to detail is key to developing a believable world. We plan to build a 1:32 scale miniature gameshow set that will be used to create a TV show playing in the background of a scene. This involves building a functional prize wheel and wiring up lighting. The miniature needs to be able to have enough room to place our camera at the exact perspective that we will be using to film the actor over a green screen. Easier said than done. Within 7 days, the blueprints have to be ready for the miniature construction.
In order to help disperse the weight of this production, our Director of Photography has begun sourcing his ideal right-hand man, the Gaffer. The gaffer- chief lighting technician- is responsible for turning both my and the Director of Photography’s ideal vision into a physical lighting plan that will match the desired look. We aren’t planning to cut corners. Blockbuster quality isn’t good enough. Alongside our miniature blueprints, a provisional gear list of additional stands, lights, expendable equipment, and rentals is due by next week in order to ensure we have enough time to obtain the necessary gear to excel when it comes time to shoot.
And most importantly we are working with our Covid Safety Officers to finalize our COVID-19 safety plan and ensure that all cast and crew are Safe Set certified.
