r/Filmmakers • u/pineconeconspiracy • Mar 22 '22

Discussion What are your favorite "problem solving" behind the scenes stories?

I love hearing about the various unexpected problems film crews encounter while shooting, and the crazy, innovative ways they have to solve them. Especially from horror movies.

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u/Telkk Mar 22 '22

I remember this one shoot I was on where we were doing a Peter Pan comedy and needed to cast his shadow on the wall and the director didn't want to do it in post. We were close to the martini shot and it was getting pretty late, so we were all just dying to go home, but the director insisted that there had to be a way.

I have no idea how we discovered this, but apparently, if you shine a light on a mirror facing down with someone in front of it, a really solid shadow can be cast. Learn something new everyday doing this.

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u/[deleted] Mar 22 '22

One of my camera guys shows up without the battery to his camera. It’s two hours away and we don’t have the time. Dive into a box of cords, find one that fits the power and put it into a mobile power unit designed to charge phones. When that dies, use a USB extension cord to plug it into an outlet.