Saturday June 13th, 8am, Terrance Edward's Flat, Cardiff.
Filming Block 1: Episode 3.
Day 2 of filming saw mostly interior shots for Episode 3. We had a pretty packed schedule, fitting in seven scenes in just over three hours. With the exception of one longer scene (approximately three pages of dialogue), the scenes were short and- in some cases- dialogue-free.
It was Victoria's second day of filming but was the first day for Ellen Thomas, who is playing Steph's flatmate Olivia.
Considering Ellen and Victoria only met briefly at the full cast readthrough, their chemistry is amazing and both actresses really sell the idea that Steph and Olivia are good friends who have known each other a long time. As writer of the episode, I was overjoyed with both Ellen's and Victoria's performances- and I know everyone else was too. Neither needed any direction in terms of 'could you say this line with more intensity' or 'try saying this with more humour'. They both absolutely nailed the friendship dynamic and what was important in the scenes and I cannot wait to see how it all comes together in the final cut.
The scenes were shot at my flat, using the kitchen, hallway and living room. At one point, virtually everyone was in the hallway... which isn't that big!
We have a cat- Dave- who was very inquisitive and wondered who all of these new people were? Ellen and Victoria both loved him and we were trying to see if we could get him on-screen for the last scene of the day. The old adage of 'never work with children or animals' holds true! He was more than happy to nose around and be fussed in between takes - and occasionally made his presence felt during a take...
One of the other major challenges of the day involved props and costumes. The episode is set over a week, which meant a lot of costume changes for Ellen and Victoria. There are also scenes where the characters are having dinner and having a cup of tea and, later, a glass of wine which meant making sure there was plenty of tea and food available in case of multiple takes. Neither actress could actually drink the wine as they were driving (which is fortunate, as the red wine had basically turned to vinegar). I've since joked that the next thing I write will be set in one place, in one day, with no costume changes, props or dialogue!
The day went very well and, after the final scene, we were able to say it was a wrap for Ellen. Huge thanks to her for all her hard work and enthusiasm!
We're filming both days next weekend and it's a bit of a gruelling filming schedule, if we're honest. However, once completed, we will have completed filming on one third of our episodes.
Tez