I drove from my Air B&B to the Stella Arbelaéz studio where James Parris would be spending the day gathering shots for his Procrasticare short. The first location of the day was in Stella’s Master Living room. I helped move the couch to the opposite wall in front of a window and then a set decorator came in and hung curtains and string lights. James had shipped purple and pink outfits for Stella to wear in each shot. The wardrobe was neatly arranged on a movable garment rack in the artist studio. Large lights were everywhere.
James shot the film using a stabilizer for the camera. I don’t think a singe shot required a tripod. My job, other than moving the couch, was to mist the room with smoke before each shot. This would add atmospheric perspective and soften the look. Now that I know this is done, I have started noticing it in films I watch.
This shot required Stella to relax on her couch and scroll on her phone. The couch is actually a recliner so she wouldn’t usually lay prove like an odalisque as she was being asked to do. She would usually kick her legs up I front of her. She looked relaxed and Boo-Boo quickly got in character and lay attached to her hip. The room is blue and James picked a similar blue color as a throw over the leather recliner couch. I bet the warm glow of the Tiffany lamp looked good on screen.
Stella’s cow scull and a wooden hand holding a grass paper lantern stayed where she usually had them, but I don’t think they were in the shots. The wooden secretary in the corner of the room holds so many memories. Stella’s entire back story is housed in that gorgeous antique cabinetry.
Incense was burning on a small side table. That table was moved multiple times as a foreground element in shots. The audience might not notice that the table was moved. All that mattered was what appeared in the camera viewfinder. James was figuring out the final look as he worked. He knew exactly what each shot should look like since he had story-boarded every scene. But in camera he made sure the lighting matched his vision.
This scene only required a few shots of Stella sitting up, scrolling on her phone along with over the shoulder shots to see that she was looking at. I knew from having sketched on other film shoots that the amount of work that went into each shot meant that I would have more than an hour to sketch. Hugo Giraud who also worked at Disney Feature Animation, was also on set helping out. With so many worker bees, I could relax and sketch until the next shot needed to be set up.
Though shot over 9 moths ago, Procrasticare is still in the editing bay. James had farmed out many effects shots that will appear on the phone Stella was holding. Once all that special effect work is complete, they will be added to the final edit of the film. All the acting in the film is silent. No one speaks. Coming from an animation background James knew that a story is best told through action rather than words. Stella would have done well as a silent era actress. Every emotion could be read on her face and gestures.