Archive for the ‘“Ally”’ Category

The Curse of the Sunny Day

Posted: 25th November 2011 by Anthony van Winkle
Categories: "Ally", Behind-the-Scenes Photos, On Location, Photography
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On the shoot day for the ‘Ally’ vignette, and why direct sunlight is the worst type of weather for Night Zero’s HDR style.

The shoot day for ‘Ally’ was a unique production for us, and an all-around great experience and achievement for the team. We were back at the abandoned Fisher Flour Mill, our fourth day (of five) this year shooting at that location. Just the previous day we were there with one of our biggest Episode Six productions: thirteen characters, three scratchers, eleven extras, and ten crew members, for an all-day gun battle and scratcher fight. For ‘Ally’, it would be one of our smallest shoots: two characters, two scratchers, and five crew. The major difference, though, was that the Episode Six shoot was on Sunday, meaning the mill property was closed and our gaffer was on set. Ally was shot on a Monday, meaning that the entire property was abuzz with trailer trucks, backhoes, and moving trains, and for lighting we were at the mercy of the weather and a handheld diffusion/reflector disc.

We started with our usual 10:00am crew call, first checking in with the freight supply company whose trucks and trains we’d be evading all day (and grabbing some reflective safety vests from their dock manager). Then it was to base camp, which was conveniently in the same location as it had been the previous day (which itself had been the central location of a different Episode Six shoot a month earlier). Snacks were munched and coffees poured while the cast made their way into costume and makeup, with Kyle finishing first to go shoot his opening walking sequence while Sara’s more elaborate costume, props, and makeup were put together. After a few minutes of test shooting to determine the best camera settings for the morning light, we got to work just after 11:00 and moved swiftly onward. With the opening walk finished, we returned to base camp to fetch Sara and begin the two-character scenes out in the sunlight.

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Ally and Jacob

Posted: 4th November 2011 by Anthony van Winkle
Categories: "Ally", Concepts & Development
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On the development ideas and iterations of the vignette “Ally”, and how it fits in (or doesn’t) with the “City Planning” serial story.

As I’ve discussed more than once over the course of this blog, Night Zero vignettes can originate for one of a couple different reasons, and ‘Ally’ falls right-square into the category of Actor Vehicle. For a very long time Night Zero and Kyle Kizzier have been exchanging flirtatious glances, waiting for the right time to get together… both in terms of scheduling and the perfect role. And while I haven’t known Sara as long, from the first time I saw her perform on stage I knew she’d be perfect in the Night Zero world. The serial episodes were well on their way to completion, with no major roles left to be cast, so I knew they would be vignette characters… but what vignettes would each of them get? Early this summer I first had the thought to pair them opposite each other, and spent a solid 4-5 months toying around with what type of scenario could take advantage of these two actors’ experience, talent, and great looks.

It was clear that they’d have to be strangers, because suspicion and conflict are great storytelling elements. Having characters meet each other makes exposition much easier, and story arcs happen more naturally when the characters have different objectives. Our heroes gallery is heavily favored on the female side, so for diversity I wanted to position Kyle’s character as the “main” character and introduce Sara’s character as the foil to him. The vignette would have to consist of an introduction, some character dialogue, and of course a fight with an infected or two… but who were these characters, and what would be their story?

** minor spoilers ahead **

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Ally, On the Road to the Finale

Posted: 21st October 2011 by Anthony van Winkle
Categories: "Ally", Concepts & Development, Digital Production, Episode 6, Photography
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On the continued production of Episode Six throughout the year, simultaneous to the production and online runs of the origin vignettes.

This week we begin a new vignette, ‘Ally’, which is our sixth vignette of the 2011 year and our twelfth vignette overall. Some of you may be asking why we’re spending so much time on vignettes this year, having already produced in nine months as many as we have in the previous three years combined… while the grand finale Episode Six remains nowhere to be seen. For today’s blog post, I’ll be talking about what our production is doing, why the vignettes are so important, and when you’ll be seeing the elusive final episode.

When the production of Episode Six concludes, when the final photo is taken and the last shoot wrapped, that will be the end of Night Zero as a photographic novel. There is no episode seven, and there will be no more vignettes. This has been our plan from the beginning, and one of the reasons we chose to do a six-episode-arc rather than only standalone stories. With that choice came an inevitable conclusion, which itself is directly responsible for the production schedule we’ve taken. Knowing that Episode Six would be our last, I laid down a production mantra for the year: “Go big and go outside”.
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