africa blog: THE DOCO SHOOT

A NICE SIDEBAR

when my old DP friend mike balog emailed to say his doco crew was shooting in nairobi i was thrilled. mainly to see mike again. but when he asked if i could coordinate it, i knew it was too big for me. so i referred him to blue sky films (Constant Gardener) and they pitched up with a great locations and logistics crew. my editorial assistant lorella had never been on set before so i included for the 4 day assignment. it was run and gun all day long. she learned a lot and i was on board as a PA running around setting up tripods and swapping lenses. i had a blast. even did some sound work. perhaps the most overqualified PA around, but i love being on set and if you pay attention, you can always learn something. this shoot was no exception. jim and deano were our director and shooter, and they were a joy to schlep for. we worked hard, had early call times, shot lots of footage, and i think they were happy. Lo and i had fun and were a genuine part of the crew. and it was fun getting to know the blue sky crew. real pros and a good resource for future bigger shoots.

IMMIGRATION UPDATE

perhaps the biggest struggle being here is how much time things take to get done AND how to do it! we passed on our "fixer" Polly and opted to go with Work Arrange, a business here in town that gets things done. are they still a "fixer" if they have a website and their own office where you can track them down? even D.C. has companies that "expedite" things! anyway, we felt more at peace going with them to sort things out and so far so good. i actually have my PIN number now (so i can register my car) and they are helping me get my work permit for Slingshot prods. i even opened a bank account finally after yet more red tape. the Opening Accounts Dept rejected me as i had no work permit and i had to remind them it was a personal account without which i could not get my work permit. another catch 22, but finally got it sorted and i guess they realized this mzungu was potentially a good client (after i suggested they talk to the bank prez before they rejected me entirely). at any rate, i got my account numbers the next day and progress is being made.

BUSHMOBILE UPDATE

the other frustrating thing has been my Prado bush makeover. it's going on 6 or 7 weeks now and i have dropped serious coin on local taxis. i expect it next week as most of the work is done and some mechanical and suspension issues are getting tended to. still, it is what it is, and delays on african time are part of the adjustment in living here day to day. third world countries are different, and things are not on schedule. but COTW (Citizen of the World) is learning to go with the flow and try not to get too discouraged. rome wasn't built in a day, and nairobi is no different. it's pole pole (slowly slowly) and eventually it will all get sorted. just don't put first world expectations on things, it only leads to frustration. trust me.

MORE TRAVEL COMING

the possible south sudan shoot finally came through and i fly to Juba march 7 for a 4 day shoot. (Juba...Star Wars sounding or what?) going to Borongole to shoot some beauty B roll type stuff. should be another wild adventure and COTW is ready to leave Dodge for a while. funny how my email pings more often here than it did in LA. there is a demand for a shooter with a Canon 5D and work seems to be finding me. you can't be mad about that!

LODGING

totally loving the guest house i'm in while ben and helen are away in the UK. it's very quiet and peaceful and surrounded by african trees and sounds. resort-ish. i'm here til march 6th, then will stay in a friend's flat in Westlands on the other side of town for 12 days, then back to chris & lindy's (where i started) for a week until "the stable" is mine. another way of life here. be flexible, relax. these things take time, folks.

OVERALL

have had some "robe days" as my soap opera actor buddy would call them, when you don't feel like getting out of your robe all day, but good news making progress here and there balances everything out. the time line can be a struggle and get you down, but you have to "keep buggering on" as Churchill used to say. so true. march 1 i'll be starting my 6 month here in africa, and DTLA seems like a lifetime ago. have to say i'm still glad to be here, i have a sense things are falling into place, and all my obstacles are slowly being sorted. travel is always a good respite, so south sudan is coming at a great time. i'm making work related contacts and taking meetings. slingshot just may fly after all.

THE PICS

here are some pics from the doco shoot. a BTS (behind the scenes) peak at last week. the highlight may have been the commuter train ride from Kikuyu township to downtown NBO, through Kibera slum and some amazing countryside. i was busy monitoring audio levels most of the shoot, but squeezed off a few pics. enjoy. like the many sides of an "ellie", hopefully this will give you yet another glimpse of my world here in Afrika. for all you shutterbugs, the colors and the textures here are amazing. i hope my iPhone does them justice! and thanks for following my blog. it's always great to get your feedback. and let's COTW feel connected to the rest of the world!

p.s. i'm even becoming a rugby fan. the england v. wales match last night was really fun at the Rusty Nail. an HD projector with a huge screen and lots of mad brits cheering on their squad!

lala salama rafiki yangus! sleep well my friends!

cheers, ddm

Lorella in the production van. our earliest call was a 5am leave from downtown which meant a
4am pickup for yours truly.

DP/Producer Mike Balog, earning his COTW stripes as he hit London, Nairobi, Jakarta and
Mumbai on this shoot alone!

nothing says Hollywood like an Aloha shirt!

Mike and Lo getting logistics down.

Bernard from Blue Sky with Jim our director.

African camera car.

jury rigged car mount to get the "dapple light off the windshield" shot.

our period picture car was this old Pugeot. classic.

we shot at this veggie stand. colors galore!

more of the marketplace. i ran around grabbing ambient sound.

in the van. on the go.

a different marketplace for some man on the street interviews. Lo was a big help.

i looked up and felt like russell crowe in Gladiator as he "came to" riding in the slave wagon.

Lo coaxing more street peeps for on camera questions.

me and Lo happy to be on set!

great colors in kibera and Kodak in happier times.

not sure why, but our driver parked at this trash heap in kibera while we waited. the van was quickly
full of flies.

do you like pink? on a bus? in kibera it works.

a drive by shot in the rain.

our hero car had lots of personality!

the 404. still a classic.

deano on the glide track for the drive by.

downtown Nairobi, near sunset.

more drive by footage downtown in the CBD...Central Business District.

a beautiful "cucalorus" rig for the deano's cam for an interview. branches on a lighting stand.

cool curtain fabric at the norfolk hotel by our base camp.

bwana guard in our vehicle. his AK-47 is out of frame. we had two guards. just in case...

mike putting out fires. great background.

we shot at this cafe and ordered in the worst chicken salad sandwiches from some mzungu hotel.
could this meat have been that much worse????

jim at our hero location for another interview. great color and textures.

vivid yellows in this hotel lobby, flowers at the Panafric hotel.

our biggest prop was this grave. but those are real tiles, not paper mache like we might use back
home. took lots of man power to set this in place.

Jim set the pace, getting in the dirt and pitching in with the grave toting. (me? i shot production
stills!)

mike processing it all. ahead of schedule and under budget!

more grave positioning for ideal lighting.

Lo does some grave site set dressing with leaves to make it look like it's been there awhile.

deano on his Blackbird steady cam rig.

Jim on the Glidetrack shooting through the tress.

mike and lo. old friends by now.

COTW schlepping the sticks on an african crew. bliss.

deano and jim setting up another shot.

a classroom at this orphanage we shot at. 2000 kids housed and fed daily.

your basic kenyan sky. gorgeous.

this little one had style beyond her years.

Another happy kid at MCF. Mully Children's Family. http://www.mullychildrensfamily.org/

cooking for 2000 kids 3x a day is a full time job.

the kids did a presentation for us with song and dance. incredible voices. not on the tourist path!

mike is presented with a book on dr. mully. father to the fatherless. this place was special!

mike on the kikuyu train. early morning. an old train from the 40s. no power, no lights, no windows,
just a locomotive pulling us along. a very memorable ride!