By Anya Bachor
Sure, our team had the idea for our short film for a while. But the clock really started ticking when we decided to enter the College 48 Film Festival. The clock started to tick once our team decided to enter. I am Anya, the director of this film, and I can’t do anything without my incredible team.
Friday, February 2, 2024
7 pm: We’d been planning for months and found a few locations. Now it was time for action. I sit with our writers and brainstorm, draft, and edit our script. As the clock inches forward, so does our movie; I storyboard with our photography director and work through until midnight.
6 am: Wake up and work! Call time is 7:30 am on the third floor of Lesley’s Lunder Arts Center. In the chaos of the it, I remember most running around, checking in with everyone, and making sure all that needed to be done was done.
9:30 am: Action! Then stop. We set up a shot, rehearse, shoot until I like a take, then repeat the process with the next shot. When we finally take a break for lunch, we are only three quarters of the way through the first scene. We have a while to go.
1:00 pm: Tensions are high. The cord that connected our wireless focus breaks, which puts us behind schedule and sets everyone on edge. The only thing that connects us now is our stress and a looming deadline.
4:30 pm: We acquire burritos to calm us, and then get back to work.
10:00 pm: “That’s a wrap!” Everybody cheers, then immediately starts breaking down the equipment. Footage is collected and organized for editing. I’m exhausted. There is a leftover burrito, and I eat it for the strength I will need.
7:00 am: Did we sleep? There are only 12 hours to go!
6:30 pm. I sit back, having just finished adding in the soundtrack. The file exports, and the tension in the room rises. As we do a scan-through, I realize something is wrong: I forgot to delete an audio track, and it's covering up the dialogue. I go and delete the clip, starting a new export. It's 6:50 pm. I stop breathing, hoping my mistake doesn't cost us the competition. After forty-seven hours of effort, what if we don't submit all because I forgot one audio clip?
6:57 pm. The screen reads, "Congratulations! You submitted on time for the College 48 Film Festival!" and I collapse into the chair, letting out a breath I'd been holding for two days.
Three weeks later, our crew logs on to Zoom for the awards ceremony. We're excited; we're proud of our film, and we know that even if we don't win, our film displays our commitment, teamwork, and skills. The joy I feel after that weekend comes from the knowledge that we gave our all, and when we made mistakes, we learned from them and pushed onward. "And the winner of the Best Editing Award goes to… Pen and Pear Productions of Lesley University!" I feel thankful—for the crew that worked day and night, through disagreements and mistakes, all with grins on our faces.
Watch the film here, and be sure to watch the credits to see everyone who worked so hard!