RSS
Home
On the Set of Humpday
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
On the Set with Lynn Shelton
by Kathy Fennessy (with intro by Steve Clare)
Kathy Fennessy is one of Seattle's most prominent and influential writers on film.But up until last year, she had never actually been on set. The rise in activity in Seattle during the famous "Seattle Summer of Film" of 2008, coupled with the incredible openness and hospitality of Lynn Shelton and Stephen Schardt, allowed her to go on set for the first time. So she, I and the irrepressible Warren Etheredge left the inaugural meeting of the Seattle Film Critics Society to head to Ballard to see what was going on.
Kathy and I had previously interviewed Mark Duplass (pictured right with Lynn) after a showing of his film Baghead,and all in all, it was a nost pleasant experience being around a throughly professional yet very down to earth crew.
With Humpday now reaching a succes way beyond what any of us could imagine, we take a look back at that day on set, and hope that film makers and others can learn what a successful, locally made movie looks like at the start.
HUMPDAY - a synpopsis: Sometimes male bonding can go a little too far. When Andrew unexpectedly shows up on Ben's doorstep late one night, the two old college friends immediately fall into their old dynamic of heterosexual one-upmanship. To save Ben from domestication, Andrew invites Ben to a party at a sex-positive commune. Everyone there plans on making erotic art films for the local amateur porn festival and Andrew wants in. They run out of booze and ideas, save for one: Andrew should have sex with Ben, on camera. It's not gay; it's beyond gay. It's not porn; it's an art project. The next day, they find themselves unable to back down from the dare. And there's nothing standing in their way - except Ben's wife Anna, heterosexuality, and certain mechanical questions. HUMPDAY: a bromantic comedy.
***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****
Last year, through a series of neat coincidences, I ended up on the set of Lynn Shelton's upcoming film, Humpday. The shoot had began on the previous Sunday and had been in progress for four days when Steve and I arrived at the spacious Ballard home of Matt Sullivan (founder of local independent label Light in the Attic).
We were met by line producer/unit publicist Steven Schardt and jack of all trades David Lipson (True Adolescents), who immediately made us feel welcome. It was just after 9pm. While the crew set up for their first scene and the sun disappeared over the horizon, we mingled in the backyard with Schardt, assistant director Jennifer Maas (Sullivan's girlfriend and housemate), second unit camera operator Megan Griffiths (The Guatemalan Handshake, Zoo), and actor Joshua Leonard (The Blair Witch Project).
Leonard at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival
Schardt, a filmmaker himself (see 2004 short Boutique with James Urbaniak), thought it best not to say too much about the plot, not to keep us in suspense, but because he thought the narrative would play best if you don't know exactly where it's going.
When I interviewed Leonard's co-star Mark Duplass (The Puffy Chair) during this year’s Seattle International Film Festival, he described it as "a dude movie," so I suspect it shares thematic elements with Shelton's previous full-length, My Effortless Brilliance, which revolves around three men (Sean Nelson, Basil Harris, and Calvin Reeder).
In this case, the principal cast features two men and one woman (Shelton and Trina Willard play minor supporting roles). In the first scene we caught, Andrew (Leonard) walks through the front door with cinematographer Ben Kasulke (Shelton's debut, We Go Way Back) following close behind. Leonard finds Monica (Shelton) waiting in the entryway with a welcoming smile on her face. He lifts her up, gives her a passionate kiss, and they walk, hand in hand, into the living room. Cut. We caught three takes.
After that, the three-man camera team moved to the second floor. (There were around a dozen crew members altogether.) While they set up for the next scene, Schardt, Lipson, and Maas filled us in on the production. In the process, I learned that Maas has worked with Shelton before and that she's also behind Wheedle's Groove: The Movie, a documentary about Seattle's soul scene. Duplass showed up, and recognized me from SIFF, which was nice. We all grabbed a few bites from the craft services table and had a chat.
Regarding Facebook, to which I've recently become addicted, Leonard said he was wary of social networking sites, but Shelton is a believer (more in Facebook than MySpace). In fact, it was through Facebook that I ended up on the set of Humpday, and Shelton's been doing a great job of providing regular updates on her profile page. When I checked it earlier today, I noticed she had posted the following: "Lynn Shelton has finished acting in her own film. Thank God."
Leonard became more enthusiastic on the subject of Scrabble. Duplass noted that he made a short film (2004's Scrapple) in which a man and woman (Duplass and wife, Katie Aselton) play a game. (Things don't go well.) When I asked if it's possible to view it online, he recommended Atom Films and the Duplass Brothers website.
The conversation then moved on to poker (Leonard and Duplass are avid play-ers, and made plans to get a game together later), and drug movies. I mention-ed that I'd just been watching a documentary (Movin' on Up) about composer Curt-
is Mayfield, who regretted the way Superfly glamorized drug use. Mayfield says he wrote his songs to counteract the images on screen ("Freddy's Dead" and "Pusher-man" aren't exactly pro-smack), but that his plan ultimately failed. Leonard said he thought all drug movies end up being pro-drugs in the end. I would have to agree.
The two men had such an easy rapport; I assumed they had met before. They had. Duplass says he brought Leonard to Shelton's attention in the first place.
Afterwards, Duplass headed upstairs. He and Shelton talked about his scene for awhile, and then they started to roll. In this sequence, Ben (Duplass) enters the bathroom and shuts the door (we watched via Maas’s monitor). Then he looks in
the mirror, runs his hand through his hair, and calls his wife, Anna (Alycia Delmore).
He's been drinking and explains that he shouldn't be driving. Some awkward chit-chat follows. As Shelton later explained, "Alycia was on the other end of that call. She was being filmed in the other key location (a few blocks away from Maas'
house) by Griffiths at the same time we were filming Mark in the bathroom."
We watched Duplass run through the scene three times. He changed his dialogue, but the gist of the conversation remained the same. I told Duplass I liked the off-the-cuff line about the cat and the mouse; it reminded me that he had said, earlier that evening, that he and Katie (his Puffy Chair co-star) are both allergic to cats.
After that, we mingled around some more while the crew set up in the bedroom
on the second floor. Schardt explained that they'd be shooting an intimate scene, and wouldn't be wrapping up until 3am in the morning. By this time, it was around 11pm. My friend and I decided to leave before shooting resumed at midnight.
Four actors and a camera person were going to be sharing a small space, so we would've gotten in the way. Nonetheless, Shelton recommended we take a look at the room, which was done up in filmy fabrics and blue lighting. While there, we had
a brief chat with Kasulke about free food at public events (everybody's favorite!).
Regarding that last scene, I appreciate the fact that no one asked us to leave.
As long as we stayed out of the way and didn't make any noise while Kasulke's camera was rolling, the Humpday crew didn't seem to mind our presence.
And just so I wouldn't feel like too much of a freeloader—nibbling on goods from Cupcake Royale and the like—I washed a sinkful of dishes (I saw Leonard doing
the same shortly after we arrived). Maas was most appreciative. And since she had just made a tasty blueberry-peach cobbler for the crew, there was a lot to wash.
So, that was my first visit to a film set. Shelton was surprised to hear that, but I'd never been asked before; nor had I ever requested a visit (it never would've oc-
curred to me). I suspected a Shelton set would make for an accommodating en-
vironment, and that was exactly what I found. Everybody seemed to know what
they were supposed to do, and there were no arguments of any kind. For some observers, that might sound boring, but to me it felt like a relaxed house party
(and Leonard confirmed that Hollywood movie sets are a lot less interesting).
According to Schardt, Humpday represents a 10-day shoot, which is amazing by any standard. When I had spoken with Duplass a few weeks ago, he said that his shoots usually last around 19 days. And in case this report reads like a puff piece, I should note that I have no idea whether this micro-budget film will actually "work" or not.
Based on the quality of Shelton's previous efforts, though, I have faith. The scenes were intriguing, and since she's working with a more experienced cast, the movie might even attract more attention than We Go Way Back and My Effortless Brilliance despite—or maybe even because of—the fact that she made it on a smaller scale.
Kathy Fennessy
More info: www.humpdayishere.com/about.php
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
