A Field Trip to the real filming session (6/2/2017)

I have the opportunity to go and find out for myself what it is like during a filming day. My brother has to act in a Television series, and this is the day they're planning to film on some of the scenes to his episodes.

My parents are not vacant to take him there and my grandmother requires company, therefore, the director said it was okay for me to be there with my brother instead.

The series is going to be released on the 5th of December, and photography of the actors in their costumes is strongly prohibited at the moment. However, I did took some photographs of the setting-up of the team around me and some equipment they used in filming.

("DO NOT take photographs of the actors in their Character costumes and post them on Social Media websites.")

We started the day off waking up at 4:00 am in the morning. Samut Prakan is a province southeast of Bangkok and close to the sea. It is quite far, and we need to pick my brother's modelling manager up along the way. It was still dark the moment we got there. Some of the crews had arrived. One of the staffs said that some of them arrived since 3:00 am to set up the place and make sure that all equipment are ready for action.

(Looking out from inside the car when we arrived - pitch black)

I was given a planning assessment sheet the crews had made in advance. It tells all the details of the scenes they were going to be filming today and the time they were going to do it. The Director's right hand man said that they'll try to make the processes as accurate as possible to prevent delays and the team's exhaustion, but there are no guarantee that they'll manage to film all the scenes they planned to take today.

(They even put in the temperature and the weather forecast)

(When it starts to get brighter)

(My brother before dressing up in costume)

                                          

(The camping area and the dressing room for the actors)

The director didn't allow me to follow them into the filming area, however, he did allow me to look at the shots through a monitor where some of the assistants had started to work on sample color grading. The actual filming setting, different from how I did my Media coursework, was consisted of big, big, light stands. There are many black screens too - to block out some of the light paths and to create a first hand cinematic light effect and in some cases, acts as a green screen.

The director was also very strict about the mise-en-scenes. My brother acts as a prince, therefore, he has to have his hair cut to look like the hairstyle in that period. At first, it wasn't much of a different, however, when the director saw it, he was furious. He said that the correct hairstyle to that period is not like that. By having a longer hairstyle, my brother's character indicates that he's already a grown man, and not a small child anymore. Until the age of 14, all children has to have their hair shaven except a small knot on his head. 

(A table with paper works - in case there's a change of plan/ scripts/ payment)

("Stay behind the camera")

(Trucks that carry light stands and equipment)

(Light - standby in case of a change)

(The director calls everyone (including the actors and actresses and the sponsor people) to look at how they act/look on camera on the monitor screen.)

Being with the production team, I got a free pass into the studio. The studio is actually a museum that keeps all the artificial version of the important architectures in Thailand called 'Meung Boran'. Here, archaeologists recreated once destroyed cities of the Siamese kingdoms and put them together in different zones and sections. The palaces, the scenes, temples, villages, all of these are rebuilt in this place. Therefore, it is a perfect location for a shoot out scene, since the Kingdom of Ayutthaya has been burnt to the ground hundreds of years ago. 

I took my grandmother on a bicycle and wheeled through the studio. It was not as hot in the morning, therefore, we traveled around the country in 80 minutes.

(somewhere in the studio, far away from the filming area)

Originally, there was another scene where my brother and his companion need to jump into the lake and emerged to the surface again as a grown version of himself (played by another professional actor). However, the lake is not very sanitary, and there was an alligator-sized monitor lizard (About a metre 50!) swimming in there. The local keepers said that there are a whole lot more under water, some even bigger than the one we saw. Therefore, the director made a change of mind and decided to film that scene somewhere else on another day.

(Very long tail!)

In conclusion, the day was nevertheless exhausting but worth it. I experienced the feeling of waking up at bizarre times in the morning and going back home late at night. The staffs were all very nice and friendly as they tell me all I want to know upon asking. The one thing that kind of scare me is the director. He was very strict with the crews, but very nice with children at the same time. One time we were sitting further away from the filming area and some of the staffs were laughing on a joke. He shouted 'QUIET!' so loud, all the way from the other side of the field, that we all just stunned.