The Shoot, Day 2

Thursday, July 10, was the second day of the shoot for "The Bride and the Grooms," our feature-length romantic comedy. The first had been in February.

At this rate, the movie will be done in 2024.

These, actually, were bonus days. A way to get ahead. We had a rough stretch ahead of us, so I scheduled this second day a week ahead of our marathon run. We could knock out some small scenes, one big scene and make our day, giving us confidence.

We started with a scene outside of Bath United Church of Christ in Bath Township, Ohio. We had two Panasonic DVX100 cameras, three cameramen, a sound guy, five actors (Jacilyn Ledford as Taylor Green, Oliver Gray as T.J. Teodoro, Sara Rouse as Elizabeth Green, Steve Ryan as Mr. Green and Linda Ryan as Mrs. Green) two extras and myself, and everyone was well-rested, on time and ready to go.

We knocked out the quick scene and moved inside to the beautiful sanctuary, where Director of Photography Christopher Gresham gave me a glimpse of the magic we would discover the rest of the month. A shot required a pastor (T.J.) to look at his congregation and notice a woman (Taylor), his longtime friend.

Problem was, our congregation was comprised of eight people.

We found a way to make eight people fill the frame, and Gresham created a shot where T.J. turned and Taylor was framed under his chin and next to his neck. Just as he turned, she smiled.

I asked Gresham if he was proud of himself. He said no.

He should have been.

It's a possible trailer shot.