....
The filming of the [Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix] had begun under the new director, Lena Crawford.
The first scheduling of the filming mostly contained indoor shoots.
This had been the production team’s suggestion and Lena had agreed with it completely; she understood that it wasn’t that they lacked faith in her ability, but because she understood the difference between confidence and recklessness.
The start had to be confident, and the team needed to get onto the sa page. It was the first statent of a directorial voice, and she wanted that statent to be intentional rather than improvised.
And also the Regal team made sure the script had been finalised to her satisfaction and her involvent.
Honestly, it was pretty much similar to the first one, except for a few minute changes.
Hmm, can it even be called changes? Chris Columbus thought as he scanned the ongoing shooting.
He could see Lena being busy with DOP for the next shoot.
She is good.
Well, obviously Regal opted for her because she is good.
However, maybe she is a woman, but the small and minute changes happening in the script were mostly concerning the emotional beats of the characters.
She wanted them to land harder than any of the films, while making sure it still matches the style of previous films.
Right, on her debut film itself, Lena didn’t hesitate to ask what she needed; which is what makes her every more special.
....
Chirs eyes landed elsewhere.
It was on the main trio.
Daniel Radcliffe, Lily Harris, Rupert Grint, sat outside of the caravan in their costus.
And amongst the trio, there is another little girl about five years old.
It was just the first week of official shooting, and Chris had been passing by every now and then to check up on the team.
No matter he might not be part of it, [Harry Potter] franchise is sothing he really likes to call his own; that was the luxury he had, and he knows it will be the sa for Lena continuing forward.
Anyway, not waiting to disturb the set atmosphere, he moved towards the trio, while his previous team mbers gave him a nod while passing by, without breaking their work.
Indeed, the set atmosphere of [Harry Potter] really is sothing else. He nodded to himself, slightly being proud once he was part of it.
....
As he stopped in front of them, the main trio looked up and smiled.
However, nestled between Daniel and Lily was a small girl of approximately five years old who was wearing a very serious expression and a pair of oversized headphones that were clearly not producing any sound.
Must be for noise cancellation.
Sotis, a set can get chaotic for a child.
"Chris." Daniel straightened slightly. "
"Hey kids." Chris greeted them.
He looked at the girl. "Who’s this?"
"This..." Rupert said, without opening his eyes. "Is Mae. She is the daughter of Lena, our director. She had been with us since our reading sessions."
"It’s you guys who are always with my mum." the girl said, with the patient correction of soone who had made this point before.
She looked at Chris with the direct assessnt of a person evaluating a new arrival’s credentials. "You don’t have an ID."
Chris looked down at his chest, and she was right.
It’s just that no one dared to point that out or even ask him to wear one...
"Mister, people without IDs aren’t allowed." she inford him, as the headphones shifted slightly as she tilted her head.
"Look, even I have one." She held up her lanyard; a bright yellow visitor pass with her na on it in large letters and a small sticker of a star that she had clearly added herself.
"I left mine at ho." Chris said.
Chris didn’t know it, but on the first day she had complained about being bored on set, so Lilly had quickly invented a ’job’ for her: checking whether everyone was wearing their ID badge and reporting anyone who wasn’t to an adult.
The strategy had worked perfectly. It kept the little girl busy and made her feel important.
She considered the gravity of this. "Okay. I will ask my mum to allow you."
"Would you? That’s very kind of you."
"Hehe..." She seed satisfied with this, and returned her attention to whatever she had been doing before his arrival.
Chris sat down in one of the folding chairs.
Daniel offered him a coffee from the thermos on the step, which he accepted.
"How is she doing?" he asked. Keeping it general but aning Lena specifically, which Daniel understood.
"Hmm, honestly? She is brilliant."
Chris looked at him over the rim of the cup. "Brilliant, huh? You know, when your lot first showed up on my set, I rember getting a very different reception. I’m trying not to take the comparison personally."
Daniel opened his mouth to respond, but Rupert beat him to it without even opening his eyes.
"Oh, co on. We were kids."
"As if you’re not still one now." Chris shot back imdiately.
"Hey-"
"Leave it, Dan." Lily said, still focused on the notebook in her lap.
Chris smirked. "Funny hearing that from the person who looked the most devastated when Regal stopped directing."
Lily slowly looked up at him. "Ugh... why do you always bring that up?"
"Because teasing you is entertaining." Chris replied shalessly. "Your reactions are priceless."
"You’re making angry."
"No, actually, you’re kind of adorable when you’re angry." he said thoughtfully. "Dan can confirm that if you want."
Daniel instinctively nodded in agreent, then imdiately stopped the second he noticed Lily staring at him.
Chris burst into a quiet laugh and finally decided to ease off.
"Alright, alright, I will let you live." he said, taking another sip of coffee. "Now... where was I?"
Lily imdiately used the opportunity. "Yeah... As Dan said, before he was distracted. Our new director is genuinely capable, and she’s been at the monitor all morning with the DOP, working through the lighting for the interior sequence."
"Regal picked well." Chris said.
"When does he not?" Rupert muttered. "I an, the man picked ."
"I still rember the audition tape they showed after I ca onboard as director. I actually saved that thing on my phone." Chris laughed, making the other two giggle.
Rupert groaned while the others burst into laughter.
"Oh no." Daniel said through a grin. "You still have it?"
"Of course I do." Chris replied proudly. "That footage is cinematic history."
Mae looked up from her stones, and she had been listening with the half-attention of a child who appears occupied and isn’t.
"You said forgot your ID." she said to Chris. "But do you work here?"
"I used to." he said.
She thought about this seriously. "What did you do?"
"I made the first three of the four films."
She looked at him with the expression of soone who has received information that requires verification. "I am not going to believe that." she said. "My mum said it’s very tough to make even one film."
"Your mum is right."
"She’s making one now." Mae said. "We used to watch the ones she made before at ho. and papa." Sothing in her face was simply matter-of-fact about this, the way children are matter-of-fact about the things they love. "Now she makes the big ones."
"Yeah you are right." Chris said. "And she’s very good at it."
Mae appeared to agree with this without it being particularly surprising news. "She also lets watch sotis." she said. "When it’s not the loud parts."
"Smart rule."
She looked at him with the patient tolerance of soone who had spent the week with these people and had developed a complete picture of each of them.
Then she picked up another stone from the step and handed it to Chris without explanation.
He looked at it, a small, grey, with a streak of white through the middle.
"It’s for you." she said. "Because you said my mum was good."
He looked at it for a mont.
"Thank you." he said.
She had already turned back to her arrangent, the transaction complete, a gift given and received and filed away, her attention fully on the next problem in front of her.
Chris held the stone and looked at the set; at the lights being adjusted inside, at Lena and the DOP still deep in their conversation, at the three actors outside the caravan who had grown up inside this franchise and were still growing up inside it, at the small girl on the step rearranging her stones in the morning light.
The set atmosphere of [Harry Potter] was sothing else.
He had thought that for years.
He still thought about it.
He put the stone in his jacket pocket and drank his coffee and let the morning continue around him.
.....
"What are you doing next?" Lily asked him, the notebook closed again.
"I already done one, rember? Mr. Bean." Chris said.
Mae, without looking up from her stones, said: "I know Mr. Bean too..."
Everyone looked at her.
She looked up, registering her attention.
"He falls down." she said, with the certainty of soone reporting an established fact. "And things go wrong." She thought about it. "I like it when things go wrong for him."
"Thank you for watching." Chris said.
She looked at him properly now. "Why are you thanking , mister. Did you act in it?"
"I made the show actually."
She studied him for a long mont with the expression of soone conducting a thorough reassessnt.
"Mister." she said. "You should not lie this much. My papa said lying is bad."
"Hhaahaa." - "Bhahahwwwa." - "Haaha."
The three of them broke simultaneously; Daniel first, then Rupert, then Lily, the laughter arriving in different registers but landing at the sa ti.
Mae looked between them with the dignified patience of soone who had made a reasonable point and was waiting for the room to recover.
Chris was laughing too, which seed to be the most suspicious developnt of all.
She looked at him, then back at her stones, picked one up, studied it, put it back.
"I will ask my mum about you." she said finally, in the tone of soone who has decided the matter requires a higher authority.
"Please do, the na is Chris." Chris said.
....
.
[To be continued...]
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