Truly Great People

Greetings All,

Yep the August heat continues and this past week was no exception. However I need to tell you about a great group of people that even with the steamy heat and the onslaught by those little blood sucking vampires, braved it all as they donated their time to keep a dream alive. If you have been following for the past few weeks you already know about a project to revive Pirates of the Caribbean from the ocean depths. A quick refresh Pirates of the Caribbean The Immortal Sword is a fan made film that is working on selling the overall story to Buena Vista Pictures. It is my understanding there is serious consideration and after the first two screenings some changes were suggested by executives who attended and others so a couple scene reshoots were arranged. 

Now I am not really here to talk about the movie itself this week but about the people involved. You see I was invited to pitch in however I could, as an assistant, and extra whatever was needed. Well I loaded up my pirate gear and headed to St. Augustine to assist. It has been years since I was on a film shoot and not really being a part of the crew and not knowing most people involved I was a bit lost. However, I found what I can only call an exceptional group of individuals that immediately made me feel welcomed and needed. 

Everyone gathered at a location where a set had been built for the reshoot about 4PM to start rehearsals and make adjustments to the script as needed. As this was a fight scene there was sord play training from professionals. Now not using a true to life fight style because for film you need to over exaggerate. Film requires bigger than life! However the basics to look real are still required. Even though I sucked I found the training very interesting. I could do much better in time! After training and rehearsals we took a break to get into costume and wait for night fall to begin. Right at dark the torches were lite the lantern props were deployed and it was, well, in this case No Lights, Action Camera! 

One of my all-time favorite parts was at one point while working with the traditional bad fitting the era the entire group broke out singing old sea shanty songs. Not only was this an amazing thing to witness and be a part of, as I knew the tunes myself, it brought back some very fond memories of mine. This reminded me of a time at a bar called the Silo when all of my old friends and I were singing with a live band playing Friends in Low places. It also reminded me of a Kenny Loggins concert I attended. At Pine Knob during the bands intermission Kenny sat on the edge of the stage and lead the entire amphitheater in singing campfire tunes. These are the moments in life that remain with us through the years and this one has been added to my memory banks now. 

Ok I could go on but what really needs to be said is how impressed I am with this group of people. It has been a long, long time, since I have been around such a friendly and fun gang of folks. Even though there was alcohol available not a souls was drunk as everyone was focused on doing their absolute best to make this dream by Odin and his crew come alive. Again they were accepting of others and inviting sharing stories and tales throughout the evening that didn’t end till the wee hours of the morning. Not a single complaint was heard about the need for retake after retake that was needed for different shot angles. In today’s world it is hard to find a single soul to donate their time for a project like this and not expect something in return, let alone a group of this size. I humbly say Bravo and thank you for inviting me into your circle. I look forward to spending much more time with all of ye!    

In closing thank you Kidd Carson for the introduction to all of these wonderful people and thank you to Wayne Cooper for introducing me to Kidd. It is a pirate life for me! 

(Pictures are example of part of the set pre-shoot and after dark)

Until we meet again,

Wally T.

 

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