This post first appeared on Ren’s Patreon page.
Currently I feel like I’m doing all possible stages of the filmmaking process at once.
I have just reviewed the current draft of the Season Three script preparatory to writing a new version.
Chris Dane and I have just cast a new character who will appear in that season and also in pick-ups for Season Two which go before the cameras this coming weekend.
Those pick-ups of course require all the other pre-production tasks like organising crew, transport, locations, insurance and so on. Rose and Ash have been busy preparing props and miniatures too.
On Thursday morning we film a few shots with a skeleton crew and a horse and rider, then on Saturday we return to the farm to prepare for our main pick-ups shoot the next day. And the following Thursday we’re heading to the Peak District with another small team to get some landscape shots.
Editing of the season is ongoing. Cat and I spent last Monday refining episodes 201-203, which have now come to life with temporary music and even a few VFX shots here and there.
Nine people are presently working on the visual effects for the season. We have about 80 VFX shots, similar to Season One, so it’s a huge part of the work. Shots underway at the moment range from the spectacular, like Ren using her Mahri abilities, to things that you won’t even notice, like painting out modern lights.
Dale has been busy editing the sound for 202, and he’s just taken delivery of 201 and 203 to start work on those. This includes building the background sounds that give the setting realism and atmosphere, like the chattering of tavern-goers or the keening wind of a lonely hilltop.
Last night I held a screening of the edits as they currently stand, inviting several friends who hadn’t been involved in the making of this season (though some were key to the making of Season One, namely co-producer Michelle Golder and scenic artist Amanda Stekly). The aim was to see if people who hadn’t been on set or read the script could follow the story and if it was pacy enough to hold their attention. It’s an important part of post-production and I’ve done it with everything I’ve produced or directed. It always picks up problems you can’t spot because you’re too close to it, and sure enough I came away with copious useful notes.
Pretty much the only thing we aren’t doing at the moment is writing the music, but that will come soon enough!