Ronald and Jim sat in the production office, reviewing the shot list Jerry Zucker had left behind. Together, they mapped out a battle plan for the remaining five days of Second Unit photography.
Gale helped them hire a Second Unit Cinematographer. They agreed to meet the next morning, Monday, at 5:30 AM to grab establishing shots at Mount Carmel High School.
The next morning, Ronald met the new DP. He was a lanky British expat, a common sight in the 70s Hollywood camera departments.
Ronald, relying on his language training, subtly shifted his accent, adopting a touch of BBC broadcast tone to sound more authoritative.
The DP chuckled, recounting a few self-deprecating stories about his drunken antics at a pub to break the ice. The three young filmmakers quickly found a rhythm and began prepping the first shot.
"I need a static wide shot, about three to five seconds," Ronald instructed. "I want a gentle ray of morning sunlight illuminating the school building."
The British DP raised an eyebrow. "Wait, mate. Gentle sunlight? How exactly do I meter for 'gentle'?"
"Just shoot it normally," Ronald said. "The light right after sunrise is naturally softer and warmer, isn't it?"
"Right," the DP sighed, checking his light meter. "I'll stop down the aperture. But you should know, Roger Corman gave us the short ends left over from the last production. This Kodak daylight stock is expired by at least a year. It's going to lose some speed and probably shift color. That yellow morning sun might look a bit washed out."
"That's fine," Ronald said. "It adds to the gritty look."
"Corman feeding us garbage again," Jim grumbled, adjusting a C-stand.
They rolled the camera.
"Cut! That's a print."
Ronald checked his list. "Where are we for the next setup?"
"We need a shot of the school sign," Jim said, tapping the storyboard. "A close-up of the 'Vince Lombardi High School' lettering."
"Well, there isn't a sign here," the DP noted, looking at the dilapidated Mount Carmel facade.
"Let's get in the van and scout the perimeter," Ronald said.
They packed the camera gear into the back of the production van.
"Do you know where there's a good structure to hang a sign?" Ronald asked Chris, the driver.
Chris thought for a moment. "There's an old billboard frame behind the gymnasium wall, near the road. Might work."
Chris steered the van to the back of the campus. It was an overgrown sports field, weeds waist-high, surrounded by a rusted chain-link fence. Right by the road stood a large, blank billboard at the perfect height.
"Excellent!" Ronald grinned. "Good eye, Chris. Let's hang the sign Jim painted."
Jim pulled a large canvas banner from the van. It was painted yellow with bold green lettering: VINCE LOMBARDI HIGH SCHOOL.
(Vince Lombardi was the legendary, disciplinarian coach of the Green Bay Packers. Principal Togar's totalitarian character in the film was modeled after his win-at-all-costs philosophy.)
The four men wrestled with a folding ladder, propping it against the billboard. Ronald and Chris held the ladder steady while Jim climbed up to staple the canvas, calling down for adjustments. "A little higher on the left... good. Perfect."
The DP framed the shot through the viewfinder and gave a thumbs up.
Ronald grabbed the clapperboard himself, chalked in the scene number, and snapped the sticks in front of the lens. He checked his watch. "One, two, three, four, five... Cut!"
Second Unit shooting was fragmented and tedious. They usually needed only one or two shots per location, spending the vast majority of their time driving, waiting for the light to change, hauling equipment, and dressing sets.
Ronald finally understood Roger Corman's obsession with consolidating locations. Moving the company for a single shot was agonizingly inefficient.
But the three men worked seamlessly. Over the next three days, they burned through Jerry Zucker's shot list.
Jim even directed a motorcycle stunt sequence. He personally rode the motorcycle, with the British DP strapped to the front of the bike facing backward, hand-holding the heavy Arriflex camera for a visceral Point-Of-View (POV) shot.
It was Jim's idea. He utilized the old trick of undercranking the camera, shooting at 18 frames per second. When projected at 24 fps, Jim riding at a safe 20 mph looked like he was tearing through the streets at breakneck speed.
After wrapping that day's exterior work, Ronald and Jim delivered the exposed film cans to the New World offices to be sent to the lab.
They ran into the boss in the lobby.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Corman," Ronald said.
"Ah, Ronald. How is the Second Unit progressing?"
"We've completed the bulk of the list. Tomorrow we go back to Mount Carmel to get B-roll of the explosion scene while Allen shoots it with two cameras. The day after, we have a phone booth insert, and we need to wait for P.J. and Dey Young to finish their gym class scene to grab a quick cutaway. After that, Rock 'n' Roll High School will be officially wrapped."
"Excellent. I really like your work style, fast, accurate, and cost-effective," Roger praised him.
"By the way," Roger added, "I dictated your recommendation letters. Gale has already sent them out with your applications via Federal Express. Don't forget to come back and make a movie for me after you graduate."
"I won't, Mr. Corman. Thank you." Ronald was genuinely moved. Not all Hollywood executives would go out of their way to help a PA get into college. Corman was famously cheap, but he recognized and rewarded hustle.
"Where is Jim?" Roger asked, looking around. "Have him come to my office. I'm assigning him to the Special Effects department for the new sci-fi film. That kid's head is full of miniatures and matte paintings; he's bothered me about it three times this week."
"He's upstairs talking to Gale, Mr. Corman. You'll see him."
Roger nodded and headed for the stairs.
Hearing that his college applications were officially in the mail, Ronald felt a surge of anticipation. Would it be Columbia in New York? NYU? Or maybe UCLA, right here in the California sun, next door to Hollywood?
He poured himself a cup of instant coffee at the front desk, imagining a campus quad.
A few minutes later, Jim came bounding down the stairs, his face flushed with triumph.
"I got it, Ronnie! I'm building the models!"
"Congratulations!" Ronald laughed, giving his friend a tight hug. It was a beautiful thing to see someone turn their obsession into a paycheck. "When do you start?"
"Right after the Christmas holiday."
"Perfect. That means we can still hit the Rock 'n' Roll High School wrap party together."
Jim's excitement was vibrating off him. He suddenly snapped his fingers.
"Hey! I brought the tape of my short film! You want to watch it?"
"Absolutely. Is Gale coming? Has she seen it?"
"She said she only caught the last minute of it before. Let me go grab her."
"I'll ask the receptionist how to hook up the VCR in the conference room," Ronald said, realizing he had no idea how to connect the clunky VHS machine to the TV.
Shortly after, Ronald, Jim, and Gale sat in the darkened conference room, staring at a 21-inch Sony Trinitron.
The VHS tracking was poor, a line of static rolling across the bottom of the screen.
The title appeared in harsh white letters: XENOGENESIS.
The letters typed out one by one across the screen, accompanied by synthesized electronic sound effects that sounded like a cheap Atari video game.
Then came the opening credits. On the small, fuzzy screen, the text was hard to read. Ronald and Gale had to squint.
The credits dragged on.
For a twelve-minute short, a full minute of white text on a black background felt like an eternity. Ronald just wanted to get to the robots.
Finally, the last card appeared. In Hollywood, the most important credit is saved for last.
DIRECTED BY
The Atari sound effect beeped as the letters materialized.
JAMES CAMERON
Ronald blinked. "Wait. James? That's you, Jim?"
"Yeah," Jim said, his eyes glued to the screen, watching his creation. "Jim is short for James."
Authors Note:-
Well, how is it so far.... I've tried to add the correct terms and information with regards to the cinema parts and real people information.
Hope you guys are enjoying it.
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