PROD 200 : Jake Jobe

My third film is about an obsessive photographer who wants to achieve the perfect shot. However, his model fails to provide the correct look he wants, so he decides to take drastic action into his own hands.

In pre-production, I had fully developed a completely separate idea. The night before the shoot, the person who owned the house I planned on shooting in canceled, so I had to write a different story, since my previous one was reliant on the location. I wrote a new script, made a new shot list, and contacted the actors about the change.

On the day of the shoot, I arrived at the new location a little early, and both actors showed up on time. I was the only person on crew, and I didn’t have any need for lights or sound, so all I needed to do was production design, direct and work the camera. The production went pretty smoothly and quickly. Although it was the first time I met the lead actor, I was able to easily communicate the action of the shot, and felt very comfortable giving direction. In the end, the whole production took about two and a half hours. I worked with three locations on-campus, so once we started rolling, we got through everything.

My second film is about a man who is lonely, and seeks out physical intimacy with an artificial-intelligence human-like doll. However, his plans are cut short when he breaks the robot, and is left with only one minute to spend with it.

In pre-production, I had many half-developed ideas; I worked with four different pitches. I did not choose the one I did for any particular reason. If anything, I thought it would be the easiest to complete. Additionally, I had already agreed to do the cinematography for a film shooting long overnight hours that same weekend in San Diego. I knew that would take a lot of effort and energy, so I wanted my film to be more relaxed and have fun with it. I wrote the script, made a shot list, contacted the actors, and filled out the permits to be ready to shoot on Sunday.

On the day of the shoot, I slept on the ride back to LMU from San Diego. We got back to campus with an hour or so before my film. During that hour, I rushed around and double checked that I had everything that I needed. I arrived at the location a little early, and both actors showed up on time. I only had one other person on crew, who worked as a grip. I didn’t have any need for lights or sound, therefore all I needed to do was production design, direct and work the camera.

The production went very smoothly. At most I need three takes for a shot, but often the actors got it right the first or second time. I was able to easily communicate the action of the shot, and frame it with my vision. I was acquaintances with both of them, so I felt very comfortable giving them direction. In the end, the whole production only took about one hour and a half. I worked with one location and one set, so once we started rolling, we got through everything.