Take a Break

So there we were, on set, late at night.

I was camera oping.

We were trying to get the first shot of the day. And it wasn't an easy shot. What I needed to do was do a pan over from the door, dolly in, and pan down to a spot on the desk where the character was going to drop a magazine.

It wasn't working.


Luke Trying Hard

And I was getting frustrated.

I'm usually so calm and collected. <ha!>

In fact, I got so frustrated that eventually the director, a good friend of mine, pulled me aside and told me I had to chill. He said, "I can't have you like that in there. You're making everyone else upset. I don't care if you totally lose it after you get home from this shoot, but for now, I need you to just grin and bear it."


The Chat

After a few minutes, I was able to go back in and finish the shoot. But it was good that we took the break. Breaks are important for many reasons, but I'll list two major ones:

1. They let us rethink the thing we're working on by giving our brains space to consider other options. Just beating your head against the wall doesn't do anything, but taking a step back may reveal the door.
2. They remind us that life goes on even if what we're working on doesn't. I can get so caught up in the importance of something that I completely forget that, really, it doesn't really matter.

So, next time you find yourself stuck and your blood pressure rising... take a break.

We ended up scrapping that shot entirely.

The movie turned out just fine without it.

~Luke Holzmann
Your Media Production Mentor