Soapdish

Some time ago, my friend Harold asked me to PD a video for him set in a magician's show. My initial idea was to hang bulbs around the stage - something I did in the Chubibo video that I've been wanting to experiment with again without being too repetitive. Harold wanted something around the bulbs, for them not to be so bare, too. Of course, I had budget constraints to consider as well.

The shoot was on a Saturday and on the Tuesday of that week, I still had no idea what I was going to do -- until I realized I never used my corrugated cardboard chandelier. I was going to use it for a shoot but I didn't end up PD-ing it anymore so... I decided to use that as my weapon of choice for this shoot.

A far-off view of the stage at one set-up.


A closer look at the black chandelier,
and me trying to multi-task and do make-up too.
I miss doing make-up everyday!


Set men setting up the curtain fall.



The lights at their feet.


A far-off view of the band performance set-up
with a LOT of those "chandeliers."


A bit closer...

I spent two whole days cutting the chandeliers (with Marco's help!!). Some are made of foam boards, others of cardboard... I didn't use corrugated cardboard anymore since it's much harder to cut than foam boards... =)

Super thanks to Ayo and Harold for the pictures! I forgot my camera in this shoot! =( And I think this is the end of me and cardboard chandeliers for PD-ing jobs! I think I'll just make them for fun now... =)

You Surely Can Eat a Shuriken!!

Nobody believed in Mihk when we were shooting this. Mackie tried to shut down production by saying there would be no time in the first day of shooting to squeeze this in. We didn't have a tape to shoot with. Pong was getting frustrated. I wasn't even on set when they were shooting it; I just dressed up Gutch and Bea. But here they are! Three wonderful, genius virals about Shuriken Bars - something you'll see in Episode 2 of 'Kada Kwento. =)

The Sandwich Guy

I tried food styling last week for my friend Maui and his branch of The Sandwich Guy. The whole week prior to the shoot, I was so scared and anticipating that I'd be stressed during day itself. I thought I'd be a major cause of delay because I'm not really a food stylist, right? I wouldn't know what I was doing! Haha!

But it was actually a lot of fun! The food was pretty simple; I just had to set them on plates that rotated. I just kept in mind that I had to make the meals pretty, clean and shiny all the time! =) Here are some of the plates we took. Mackie did a great job lighting them too -- especially since he had very limited lights. =)

Chili Con Carne Baked Potato


Seafood Carbonara


Veggie Salad
(in which, I had to whip up my own version of egg yolk!
Since only the egg whites were available... funny!)


Pesto


English Egg Salad


Italian Style


Their Best-Seller! Ham Bacon Lettuce and Tomato (HBLT!)


Chicken Fillet


Pollo Rosmarino


Peanut Butter Banana


Crabstick Mangoes


Bigtime

Online Flyer with all the plates we shot!
Check out their website guys! www.thesandwichguy.com
And drop by their branch at Total Corp. Building in the Fort! =)

I don't know how to label this post.... Hahaha! I guess I'll start a food styling label with this as my only entry!

'Kada Kwento Shoot Day 1

The project that's been keeping my busy in recent weeks is a series of short films, called 'Kada Kwento. It's produced by Pelicola.tv and Globe Telecom, and its first episode and trailer came out last week (click to watch!). We just wrapped the second day of shooting as well, but since only the first shooting day results are out, I can only show pictures of what happened then.

This is Jen Chuaunsu; she plays a character named Dani. Episode 1
is her story, and we shot in Divisoria for the entire morning of the shoot.

Since it's a very congested marketplace, we endured the heat,
and a lot of human traffic to get certain shots. By the end

of that location, we were all exhausted and it was only noon!

There are seven characters in the series, all with distinct personalities that come together at the night of their friend's birthday. I'm styling it, and the job seems pretty easy since it's just one outfit per character for the entire duration of the shorts. One of them, however, Jackie, has an imagination that runs so wild that she sees the characters from the book she is reading come into her real life, and we had to include one of those imaginary friends in the trailer. The book was the Wizard of Oz, and the character was the Scarecrow.

Jackie, played by Gaille Reyes,
and the Scarecrow, played by Keith Tan (who is also our editor!).

With the help of Carmie, the make-up artist of the shoot, I think we were able to come up with something to be proud of. Keith doesn't look like a real REAL Scarecrow, but it works! I love the eyebrows as well, I think the make-up was such a crucial part, and that Carmie did a great job with it. That, along with some canvass, brown spray paint, dead leaves from my garden, thick rope, and thick dark blue upholstery material, brought life to the Scarecrow that was no longer just in Jackie's imagination.

With Carmie and Keith, who was really patient with us as we
dictated to him what he could and couldn't do -- like scratch his face. =)


Just had to include -- me trying to be a DOP again hehe =)

The trailer is attached to Transformers 2 showings at Rockwell Cinemas, but due to a boo-boo by Rockwell on the first day (which just so happened to be when 91 of us cast and crew members, friends, and colleagues watched together), we didn't get to see it on the big screen. =( Problem fixed now though, and it should still be showing! =) Check out the website: http://www.globe.com.ph/kadakwento weekly for the next episodes, and for who else is behind them! =)

And lastly, a clue for 'Kada Kwento Shoot Day 2:

Wizard of Oz + My chrome fingers = Which character next?!?! =)