A Grand Day (or two) Out

[chriodon]

or A day in the life of a fetish producer

Hello everyone,
I just want to share my latest adventure with you all. I’ve been working with Annabelle and John on a few items for use in upcoming releases, including an upgrade to one of the stage sets.

As part of this work, I travelled to Annabelle and John’s studio the day before last week’s shoot to finalise some details on costumes, the above mentioned set, and various other bits and bobs. I was very privileged to be invited to stay over and observe some of the shoot taking place first hand. It is this experience that I wish to share with you so that you can get a feel for how things work and what it entails being a producer. As you will see, it’s not simply the case of picking up the phone, some models arriving, shooting the material and home for tea !

The actual work had begun well in advance of the shoot as some of the costumes are what can only be described as “long lead items”. Once the costumes had been acquired and the storylines written, the shoot date was set and Annabelle and John then set about hiring suitable models.
In the week or so prior to the shoot, Annabelle had made sure all of the costumes for the day were available and in good order and checked with the models that they were all ready for the day.

I’ll now describe what happened on the day in question.

For me, the shoot day starts at 8 A.M when I am picked up from the hotel by Annabelle and John once they had completed their domestic chores at home. Almost straight away a problem arises. Annabelle’s receives a text message. One of the four models can’t make the shoot. What’s more, it’s a custom shoot day so the pressure’s now on. Immediately Annabelle and John start thinking on their feet. It’s the “what if” scenario. As we drive, the names of various models that may be able to stand in are mentioned and four relatively local ones are contacted. The shoot schedule is also discussed and a plan worked out. The shoot order will be amended so that the set requiring fewer models will now be shot first.

By now we’ve arrived at the studio and the preparation starts for the shoot. Annabelle shows me the costume she took home the previous evening to finish off and it looks great – as usual. The furnishings, cameras and lights are moved to the (now) first set location while awaiting feedback from the models that have been contacted. It doesn’t look good, 1, 2, 3 can’t make it. It seems likely that the stories will have to be altered to use fewer models. But then comes a breakthrough – Jodie Ellen can make it along at a slightly later time, but she can’t stay for the entire shoot. Following a brief discussion between Annabelle and John and another adjustment to the shoot order, Jodie is contacted and is soon on her way. At this point I asked John how often this sort of thing happens and he replied “More often than you might think ”.

A short while later, the first of the models arrives. It’s a very smiley Lucie Kent. I’m introduced and Lucie proceeds to the model area along with Annabelle. Her arrival is closely followed by that of Stephanie Bonham Carter and Zoe Page who both join Annabelle in the model area for a briefing on what’s happening during the days shoot and to complete the necessary “model release” paperwork required by law.

After a brief chat and drink, the models change into their first costumes of the day. First up it’s a Demure Fun set with several costume changes (I think) for each model. Due to a change in personnel, some of the props for use later in the day need changing so I retire to the costume store to make the necessary alterations while Annabelle and John get on with the filming.

At this stage I discover a slight snag. I find that the software I use isn’t directly compatible with that used at the studio and requires a workaround to make the necessary modifications – something the producers can well do without on a pressured and busy shoot day !. Now I know that, I can look into it to ensure compatibility and improve on things - very useful for the future so the day is proving fruitful for me already !.

After about an hour, the Demure Fun work is completed and the models are getting ready for a Damsels in Peril set. During this time the models are “requisitioned” by John to produce some sets for other sites, Panty Amateur and Panty Maniacs I think. Annabelle is busy allocating the girls their next outfits from the rack. When I join them, the models are all in their Damsels costumes and ready for the off.

Jodie’s arrival is imminent, but rather than wait around, Annabelle takes Lucie off to shoot a Panty set while John starts on filming the scenes requiring only Zoe and Stephanie. I’m dispatched to greet Jodie and let her know that they are filming and to meet the others in the model area where her costume is ready for her.

A few minutes later a car pulls up and out gets Jodie, bang on time. She smiles as she bounds toward the studio door. “Hi” she says and I pass on the message to her. She makes her way quietly into the studio.

Ten minutes later, I’m called to the set and the script and first scenes are discussed with the models. Although the plot outline is set, the models and producers all contribute on ideas for the details of how the action should unfold. There’s a lot of “I or we could..” and “what if I ...” It’s really interesting for me to see this. All of the models are putting forward ideas and it seems to work really well. The filming soon starts and is progressing nicely. “Right, we’ll hold it there” I hear John say. I’m wondering why, but it soon becomes apparent. Annabelle and John wish to capture the action from a different angle. “Right let’s go from..” and the girls are back in action.

There’s a lot of ad-libbing by the models. I suppose I should strictly call them actresses as they are acting out character roles which they have really thrown themselves into. I must admit that I’m really impressed by the professionalism of all of them. They’ve had no time to learn lines, but it’s all flowing along beautifully. I’m also impressed by the number of one take shots – very few seem to require repeating. Whether this is normal or not, I’m not sure.

Next there’s a scene involving dragging. Zoe and Stephanie are going to drag Jodie. “Right” says John, “I want you to drag Jodie a couple of feet” “Ready, go”. With that they drag poor Jodie half way across the studio floor! “That’s a big two feet !” says John as everyone laughs. Zoe replies “If a job’s worth doing” with a big grin on her face.

With that I leave them to film the rest of the plot. I hear the occasion round of laughter as they film. It sounds like they’re having fun which is good to hear. On completion it seems to have gone well. I hear one story. The models can usually untie and free themselves after the shoot but apparently Lucie couldn’t. “Who tied you?” asks John. “That would be me !” replies Zoe with a big grin. It would appear that Zoe is a good rigger (that’s the technical term for someone who ties models. It’s an art to get it right as they have to make it look realistic without injuring the model.). I’m not sure if she’s been trained or self taught but it’s another string to her bow.

The day progresses pretty much along the same lines, having a laugh, shooting scenes and moving the sets around. I notice some of the items are quite bulky and heavy so I don’t envy Annabelle and John doing this on a regular basis.

Finally, Jodie has to depart. She seems to have been at it non-stop since she arrived and has stayed right to the last minute to ensure everything has been completed. I’m particularly grateful to her as it meant the four girl Damsel set could be completed as originally scripted – reducing to three models would have unbalanced the storyline. Following a quick round of “byes” she makes her exit looking as lively as when she arrived.

It’s now approaching the end of the shoot and the models have one more set to produce. As they get ready, I start to help Annabelle and John to rearrange the sets and remove the stage props in readiness for the next shoot. The used costumes are gathered up and returned to the store room racks.

Lucie and Stephanie are across from where I’m clearing up. They’re just waiting for Zoe to join them as she’s been shooting some sets for other sites. I hear one of them ask Annabelle “What’s that?” “Oh, that. That belongs to Willie” Annabelle replies. Now for some strange reason my mind conjures up an image of a West Highland terrier (It must be getting late !) Have Annabelle and John got a new dog ? I can’t see from where I’m standing, but both girls are looking puzzled at whatever it is. Then Annabelle says the magic words “Mr Willy” Ahh! The penny drops. It’s Willy NOT Willie ! The light suddenly dawns and It all falls into place ! The girls still look a bit bemused though. Annabelle then goes on to explain what exactly he, or rather it, is.

A few minutes later I notice that they’ve got hold of something which they’re closely examining. It’s Mr Willy ! They’re showing great interest in how it operates. Then I hear Stephanie say “ It’s still got some water in” . I look round and see she’s holding the pump end and has a big smile on her face while Lucie has hold of the actual Mr Willy.

My mind suddenly goes back some fifty odd years as I recall “The Sooty Show”. For those of you not familiar, Sooty was a mischievous glove puppet teddy bear who every week squirted his operator, Harry Corbett, with a water pistol or the like. The dialogue went something like “What are you going to do with that water pistol Sooty” Yep, you’ve guessed it !

Anyway, back to the present and I see Stephanie operate the pump and some “water” comes out onto a wall. Both models laugh and look at the result. I then notice that Lucie has an evil grin and twinkle in her eye and Stephanie is ready with the pump ! Yep, she has another go. They both burst out laughing, “Sorry John, did I get you” asks Lucie innocently (yeah, right !) as John wipes the liquid off the side of his head. Fortunately at this stage Mr Willy becomes detached from his pump. (Don’t worry Mr Willy fans. !- Apparently he designed to do that).

By now Zoe has joined Lucie and Stephanie so it’s back to work. Annabelle, John and the models discuss how best to revise the plot and shoot the scenes and after about five minutes it’s all worked out. I depart with John to take a first look at the day’s content leaving Annabelle to shoot the footage with the models.

John downloads the first camera and shows me some of the raw footage of the Damsels scene and it looks good. He then checks through the other files to see that they are ok. There’s a lot of stuff and this is only from one camera !. Don’t ask me exactly how many updates have been completed, I simply lost count.

About twenty minutes or so pass before Annabelle appears and says she’s finished. Annabelle and John check their list to see that all of the intended sets have been completed. They have, so the models are told that’s it for today. We’re now approaching the six hour mark and everyone seems to have been constantly at it.

The models get changed, say bye and depart to their various destinations. It seems a lot quieter now. The final tidy up then takes place. This takes about half an hour as the studio is not scheduled for use again this year. It will be cleaned and tidied later in preparation for the first shoot after the break.

We then depart to one of the local hostelries for a well earned pint – well at least Annabelle and John deserve one, before I depart on my journey home. Annabelle and John ask me what I think of the day.

Well I can tell you that being a fetish producer is rather like being a publican. Everyone thinks it’d be great to run a pub, but they don’t realise the long hours of hard work that’s required to make it a success. It’s likewise for Annabelle and John. Yes, the shoot is over but it’s only the beginning. It’s now down to editing and rendering of the footage to produce the releases which I’m estimating will take about three or four days to complete. And don’t forget when they get home they have to catch up with all the emails and blog updates that they haven’t had time to do today.

So, what do I take from my day out?
Well my first impression was just how cheerful and friendly everyone was on the day.

I was also very impressed by the professionalism of everyone involved throughout the shoot. The input and contribution that the models make was something I never really picked up on before.

It was non- stop all day but a laugh was had along the way which is something that I like to see. My motto has always been “Fetish should be fun”.

It can also be physically demanding. Having to re-arrange sets mid shoots is something I’d never thought about before.
Although the loss of a model caused problems for Annabelle and John, it was good for me to experience it. I saw first-hand the real pressure side of being a producer and how you have to think on your feet when things don’t go to plan, especially when you’ve got paid for custom shoots on the schedule.

One final question. Having observed the shoot first hand for the day would I like to be a fetish producer? Of course – I WOULDN’T – would you ? I’ll stick to costumes and scripts thank you. It’s much easier!

I’d like to finish by thanking Annabelle and John once again for the invitation. I can now appreciate much better what’s involved with their work, and I hope from this brief insight that so can you.