I returned last week from an intense little "West Coast" filming trip and realized, it's been a WEEK and I still haven't posted about it!
I've reprimanded myself and I am now moving on.
So here's the lowdown:
Last trip: 3 cities in 6 days
Challenge: Shoot 3 really cool segments in very time-crunched situations
Complications: 2 travelling crew members (including me) and 12 bags of gear, including personal stuff... a crazy freak winter storm following us from Toronto across to the West Coast... 3 hour time difference (you chuckle, but I get loopy when I'm thrown off my normal sleeping schedule) and boutique-style hotels (more on this later)
Bright side: I'm officially a professional airport hustler! (not the gangster-kind of "hustlelah" but rather one in transit who hustles quickly and effectively)
First stop -- Seattle
It didn't even occur to me to check the forecasts but a day prior, Mother Nature had unleashed a crazy snowstorm (which in this part of the world, means about 2 centimetres...or slightly more, hah!). So the city was strangely quiet. It was as if the snow had thrown people off kilter and they panicked and stayed home. The day before, roads had been closed, there were accidents a plenty.... Bizarre stuff! Of course, I didn't realize there had been a storm until I watched the news that first night -- so my first impression of Seattle was a bit of a ghost town!
(Seattle snow -- yes, I'm serious!)
To make things worse, I had been trying to kick a bug I had recently caught. I didn't manage to get better before the trip and as a result, I endured some major ear popping and pain on the plane. I've always had some problems with this, but the last few flights hadn't bothered me so I thought I was finally getting accustomed to cabin pressure. No such luck. As the plane full of babies bawled around me, I silently wept with them. To make matters worse, one ear got blocked and didn't unblock until the next day. So I got a little taste of what old age might bring me -- as I leaned in to catch conversations with my "good" ear. Annoying? Yes. Even more annoying: my ears proceeded to pop randomly for the next 3 days! I will never fly with a cold again!
So we check into our hotel -- the Warwick. Nice enough place. Reminded me of the older New York hotels. Since I always post hotel room photos, here you go:
(my room, before I unleashed my usual mass of stuff on it)
It was a nice change of pace to the Days Inns and the Best Westerns I had become accustomed to in production. I like a hotel with a bit of personality! Unfortunately with a boutique-hotel comes a tonne of staff to tip. Don't get me wrong -- I ALWAYS tip for service. But I like to take care of myself and when I'm not permitted to grab a bellcart to transport my own gear, or park my own car, I get nervous. It's not really about the money.... I just like to be self-sufficient (did you catch that, future suitors?). And I guess it does become about the money when you have TWELVE bags and a valet, a doorman, and a bellhop with palms to grease. Pros and cons to everything I suppose....
The next day, we got geared up to drive out to film with SIR MIX-A-LOT!
Yes, my childhood idol had agreed to participate in my little film! My cameraman Mark and I met up with our local soundman Scott and headed out to the burbs. Apparently, Seattle has something like TWO snowplows in all of the city which tells you how often they get the white stuff. So some of the roads turned out to be closed...which required some manoeuvering. In fact, Sir Mix-A-Lot himself finally had to come rescue us and take us through an alternate route! Talk about a genuine, down-to-earth guy!
While we waited for him to claim us, I checked out the lamas. Don't ask....
(contrary to what I first thought, they came over not as a friendly guesture but because they thought it was feeding time)
So we finally made it to Casa Mix-A-Lot, discussed the game plan and got to work. Will I dish more? Nope! It'll be a surprise!
The segment is going to be fab! And it means so much to me to have this man in my film. I got the opportunity to tell him that to this day, when"Baby Got Back" comes on the radio or a dj spins it at a club, I strut my stuff with pride. I told him how, as kids, it was super cool to recite by heart every single word of the suggestive lyrics (back then the only thing I thought about "I'm long, and I'm strong and I'm down to get the friction on" was "oh cool! All the words rhyme!")... ah, childhood innocence....
It was a bit of a shock, though, to realize that though the song feels playful in its delivery, the gentleman certainly has an interest beyond just bowing down to the booty. On the day of our shoot, I realized that the song wasn't written to empower women but to profess a true fetish for booty-lovin. I suppose this caught me by surprise because the songs today on the subject are just so blatant in their message and I assumed Mix's cheekier approach meant a less red-blooded-male-minded.
I hope I get to pull off an un-cut version because some of the footage we filmed is priceless! And completely inappropriate for broadcast television...
(Sir Mix-A-Lot and I in front of his wall of album sales award-goodness)
Thanks again, Mix!!
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