Skulls & Zombies!

Oy vey, I haven't posted a blog in so long. So ... I basically made a video about this but I don't mind writing blog posts every now and then so, here it is.

I am not deadddd! I've missed making videos so much but I truly have not had much time because of the short zombie film I've taken up this the end of January. I wrote the screenplay and directed it! And of course, I chose the majority of the costumes and makeup styles. However, I had HUGE help from my makeup artist friends (mostly from Fright Fest) and even my amazing hair stylist friend! I don't even know hoooow the heck I pulled so many people together on no budget. It just goes to show that if you really believe in something, people can follow your lead and get the contagiousness of your passion and really believe in it too. Not to mention, I am extremely blessed to have so many helpful and supportive friends! I've always said I have such a small group of friends but recently I'm seeing that I have connected with way more people than I've realized. Through my past jobs, through schools I've gone to ... through friends of friends and friends of friends of friends. Somehow, I was able to pull together a pretty professional crew including a slate, cameraMEN, an assistant director and even a pretty pro sound guy! I was able to pull together a sufficient amount of zombie extras (which is not easy, i tell you! so ... much .... facebook contacting ...) every night from the start, it was type type type type type, answering texts, phonecalls ... oh boy, so this must be what being a producer is like! D:

While I don't really enjoy the scheduling aspect much, I know it's good that I'm experiencing it so I have a taste of what it's like. For example, I was makeup artist on another student film set so I know what it seems like, waiting around for people then suddenly getting a rush of them, a stressed out director then being left to wait for another 3 hours.

So now I may kind of know what a producer or personal assistant goes through later on if I ever get a bit more professional.

It's taken a bit of a toll on school because ... unfortunately when I feel passionate about something it completely steals my mind and energy from everything else I need to be doing ... but, I'm working on catching up with all that academic goodness right now.

So yesterday, I was in that weird funk of unproductiveness after exerting oneself immensely. So, generally ... the after shock of being super productive but also sleep deprived. I've been in that funk since February 27 (the last day we had filming) up to now. So, to try and jumpstart my productivity I decided to do something spontaneous and artistic.  So I chose to recreate Lady Gaga's skull mask and make some videos with it on ...

my main reference picture:

the result ... geez this kind of looks like a cigarette or alcohol ad o___O

i thought it'd only be appropriate to take a group picture with my two and only skull props :)

And now, the snippet video:

So, now I'd like to share with you a good amount of behind the scenes shots taken on set. All these photos are taken by Jess Escobar (the cute little asian guy who helped out on my Pretty Little Liars and Bellatrix photoshoots!) I love photography myself, but one thing to know about film is you simply cannot do everything yourself ... so I asked him and another one of my high school friends to be the portrait and behind the scenes photographers on set. And they took quite a handful of AMAZING shots. I'm so lucky I know them! Here they are:

Filming the music video portion of the film

Me on set trying to film a scene with a ton of extras ... you can tell it was funny to film but serious on camera!

Me and Heidi (she found me on YouTube!) doing makeup ... I look so stressed D:

one of our scariest zombies on set!

oddly calm for a man being attacked by zombies! xD

my crew & I reviewing footage on a dslr camera. hell yeah only girl! :P

me blocking out a scene with an actor

dancers on set

movie still shot of the human survivors running from the zombies

our sound guy working with the zombies

school girl turned zombie

4 of the lead role characters!

Heidi and I! I look so tired ... this is after the middle of the day and she was about to go home

A new zombie in a car

me trying to direct the music video portion & zombie extras in the back