Update 66-01
Update 66-01 A Very Big Thank You13th August 2006 3:37 PM
Hey all, Ben Soh here. Filming with 3 cameras and 4 directors was certainly a novel experience, and personally i think that despite many differences it was certainly necessary to finish everything we wanted to do; though if we had more time we certainly could have done more. Still, the plot, being as comprex and convoluted as it is, certainly looks to be more riveting and logical than the previous films (for those not entirely familiar with the final plot, it involved Jeff the SWAT captain working for the triads, killing Kiat the lead cop, double-crossing Shawn the Triad Boss, and being in League with Elsa the Office Worker all along... comprex huh) and I must say that were this not BLT's last action movie (yup you heard me) before the onset of exams, assignments, etc. it certainly would not have been so grand.
Well, the last two days have been terribly hectic and rushed (as usual with all productions of this scale) but i'm sure we'd all be proud to say that filming is finally over. All told it took about 20 hours and many DV tapes, but i'm sure we've all certainly captured many memorable moments on film, and so many more that weren't, but which we'll keep for a long time to come. I just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved for all your countless hours of invaluable help and effort.
SWAT - Thanks for all your endurance through countless fight scenes, entry scenes, and gun scenes, and your tireless spirit even while sweltering under those vests and uniforms. You know that you've formed an essential part of this movie, (as every BLT production must have a SWAT team) and your efforts certainly will make up a fair portion of the movie. Apologies, of course, for the long wait and long choreography sessions many of you had to go through, as well as several highly-strung and rushed directors near the end of saturday's shoot. Not to mention lying dead for fair durations while stuff continued around you. When the movie's done, least you'll be able to see yourselves kicking ass onscreen =)
Police - Admittedly all of you had somewhat of a thankless job, with long down-times and quick deaths onscreen. Do want to apologize for all of that, and to reassure you that your "deaths" will certainly not go unnoticed. Thanks for being so patient with all of us, and of course being so compliant with our demands, such as lying down in pools of blood (i know that stuff ain't the nicest smelling thing in the world) and getting killed in various cool manners. Also thanks to the bomb technicians for contributing a large part to add to the tension of the story, and for being convincing techies. At any rate, thanks also for an awesome warehouse entry scene from the cars. You died for a good cause!
Triads - Of course, who can forget you? From being menacing henchmen to vicious thugs, I can say that all of you put up a convincing act to ensure the tension and "bad-ass" feel to this movie. Thanks also for waiting so long, especially near the end of saturday where I know most of you were hanging around for close to 3-4 hours with no scenes to shoot, and for complying with our demands - especially to be reused =P with any luck, people will think there were really close to 50 of you (the reality being closer to 20) and we'll achieve that shock and awe feel for this movie.
Thanks also for running about in your suits (which I'm sure got rather hot after a while) and itchy ski masks, and of course, dying over and over again. No conflict or tension could have happened without you!
Leads/Supporting Actors/Actresses - The best action scene ain't worth nothing without a good plot, and I think you all really brought out different shades of emotion in your acting - from Kiat the angry cop to Shawn the cold triad boss to Elsa the sweet but devious office worker to Jeff the confident SWAT captain. Thanks for your tireless effort and input that helped us not only to develop the story strongly, but to fit it around your own personal characters in real life. Thanks also to all supporting actors, who put up a solid show that helped to bring out the feel of each scene, and who all added his or her own important lines to the entire movie. Thanks also for coming down for dramatic reading sessions and being so open to constructive criticism from our external consultants. I know for many of you, this was your first time acting on film, but I must say at the end we were all convinced of the opposite.
Crew - Props to you all for working so tirelessly behind the scenes before and during the film shoot, and taking so much personal pain to mould every plan, every storyboard, and every line of dialogue. Though you may not eventually appear on screen, thanks for being ever so hard-working and compliant with our various demands, and being such good minions =) Haha kidding, only BLT's qualified to say that. I can say that this has been BLT's best planned movie so far, and of course, from cheoreography to script to location to props, you guys made it all happen. Thanks for lending us all your talents and labour, and thanks for helping us make this awesome. Couldn't have done without your help by our side.
External People - To the drivers of the 4 cars, Ali's Dad, Edward, and the rest of the adults, thanks for taking time off your busy schedules to indulge us in our movie-making aspirations. Thanks also to all the parents of all people involved, for letting them stay out late to film, letting them bring props from their houses, and being so generous to all the people involved. Thanks also to Ivan Cheng and his parents for letting us use their house for the flashback scene. Whether we like it or not, we can't change the fact that we're 17 and there's still many things that we cannot do at this point in time - so a huge thanks to all the adults for making everything possible, especially a HUGE thanks to Ali's dad for letting us use (mess) his warehouse again, without which we'd have no location and no movie.
Thanks of course to Malcolm and David Liew, who though beginning as camera people became directors in their own right, assisting and mobilizing people for all the different scenes. As one of you I know you didn't have more than a few seconds' rest to catch your breath and eat a little before rushing off to the next scene. Thanks for working so hard and so independently, without external compulsion or pressure. You guys have certainly shown your dedication to make this film a success, from working professionally in BLT's absence to always keeping a level head and a good sense of time. Thanks also to David for making the bomb - I still remember that time where BLT was walking down citylink mall telling you over the phone "I need two bombs. One primary bomb and one secondary bomb." You guys were even more kickass than your several thousand dollar cameras those days.
Finally, saving the best for last (as should be the case) let's all hear it for BLT, whose single-minded dedication and determination to make the movie to end all movies has certainly been the most key factor in bringing all of us, from so many different backgrounds, classes, and even ages together to work together for these two days, and whose force of personality has made us all believe and work together to this - not just his dream, but ours as well. I know many of you, myself included, have worked with him before on many projects, and will agree that the sheer scale, epicity, coordination, time, duration, logistics, and personnel required of this endeavor beats anything we've ever seen from anyone else. From working on script to coordinating transport, location, props, casting, storyboarding, camera work and now editing, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that no one has worked harder for this than him, and that no matter what we have done it pales in comparison. Now, even as he embarks on the editing and compilation of this movie, I hope you all will pray for him and encourage him, even as he spends the next few weeks intensely on this.
At the end of it all I know, in my heart, as do many of you, that this will be one helluva movie, and in the words of the SWAT captain, the contents will literally blow us all away. But for now that we have crossed the hurdle of the actual filming, I must say that no matter how big or small your part, you people made it all possible. So once again, a big shoutout to everyone.
