When I wrote this my time on Gravity was drawing to a close but we didn’t know when it was going to come out, only that it had been pushed to sometime in 2013. I would find myself having conversations with people outside of my little bubble that would follow some repetitive patterns. For starters, explaining what the film was about without actually talking in any detail was a problem. Second was trying to explain what I had been doing all these months and why everything took so damn long, and puncturing some of the most persistent misperceptions about my job. Lastly, who is this guy Alfonso Cuaron? It surprised me just how little known he is outside of the film industry despite having made some very popular and acclaimed films. Perhaps Gravity will change that.
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| sent from: London, UK. destination: Philadelphia, PA, USA |
– I’m almost done, only two or three more weeks left on the film
– What is it you’re working on again?
– It’s called “Gravity”
– I don’t know that one. What’s it about?
– It’s umm.. I wish I had a trailer.. it’s set in space, in low-earth orbit.
– I don’t like sci-fi stuff
– No, no it’s not like that. It’s kind of an adventure/thriller. It’s exciting. It’s got George Clooney and Sandra Bullock in it.
– Oh. Not a fan, really. Who else is in it?
– Um. Can’t really say.
– What are they like? You must get to meet them right? That’s got to be a perk of the job, meeting the stars.
– No, I just do the special effects afterwards. It’s not that exciting. We make all the space bits, you know, cos they couldn’t make the film in space.
– Why not make it in space? I see documentaries in space all the time. Ooh you know who I like? Tom Hanks. Why isn’t he in your space film?
– No. Umm. He’s not in this one. You just can’t make this film in space. It’s just not feasible.
– So what bit did you do?
– I made the spacesuits for the actors
– Real ones? I thought you said you didn’t meet them.
– No, yes, I mean, digital spacesuits. I didn’t actually make them, that was someone else, I just made them look like they were moving. It’s hard to explain. You’ll understand when you see it.
– When’s it coming out? Sounds a bit boring to be honest.
– I don’t know when it’s coming out. 2013 sometime. But it’s not boring. The guy that made it, the director, he’s great, Alfonso Cuaron.
– I don’t watch foreign films
– No, he makes English films too. Umm, like Children of Men? A Little Princess? No? Ok, how about Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban?
– Ooh Harry Potter. We saw the last one I think. [off] Harry Potter films? We’ve seen them yes?
– [off] Yeah, the last one. And the books. Which one?
– The Prisoner of Azkaban. It was the third one, perhaps the best one. Anyway he did great.
– So what were you doing last year?
– Same film
– oh goodness they do take a while don’t they? My cousin’s nephew, he plays with computers, just like you. Can he come work with you?
– Um, no.
– It’s amazing what these computers can do these days isn’t it?
– It’s not.. computers can’t.. yes, yes it’s amazing.