you can only cover so much territory of course

Well, over a week later and here it is! Now that the season is in full swing, its a very busy time for us (being the entire S&C team) so I apologize for not updating you guys and gals every night. This is also the time when the days just start to blur together, especially when trying to recall what happened one week later. I know there were some studio days where some painting was done, I hung some fabric, I lifted some furniture, I cut some wood, laid some bricks, and somewhere in the crazy week that was, there was a field shoot with Erin McLaughlin. We toured a great open concept kitchen/dining area with her.

On to this week, well, today. Today was a shoot with Alison Milne touring a great loft. For her first time being on camera she did great!

My morning started out in the studio, helping out as much as I could before having to take off to the shoot. Then it was off to the shoot, for the afternoon/early evening, full of tripod, dolly, and CineSaddle shots :)

Also, there is a reason I'm not as descriptive as I was last season or even this summer when I worked on music videos, short films, and corporate shoots. That reason... you wouldn't watch the segments, you'd know exactly what happened before the piece went to air, and we don't want that. I want you to watch the segments which can all be found here :) The tape pieces all start under the 10 minute mark so you don't HAVE to watch the entire episode just to see the field pieces. But, I want you to keep me employed, so try to watch the full episode :p

did you catch that? i'm scribblin' outside the lines

Yesterday was... an interesting day. We were shooting with Andrea Ford in a great location, at a not-so-great time. Lunch rush.

First, pictures :)

Second, the story. 

Denise and I got to the restaurant around 10am, and we went straight to work. Being in an "open" location made things a little interesting, usually we don't have any problems but, being in a restaurant, during the lunch rush, was hectic. It was anything a shoot is for a field assistant haha.

"Field Assistant" is not my official title but it's what I deem myself because I do a lot more than just camera assist. This show is honestly giving me the best experience I could ask for. When we're out on location it's just Denise and I shooting a 2-3 minute segment, where we both wear MANY hats. (This is for the broadcasting kids)... Think about a short film or commercial or corporate video, think of how many people work on that crew-wise, now picture only having you and one of the profs. Everyday. Except they aren't teaching you all the time, they're doing their job. And you have to do yours.

Yesterday was a true test for me and I apologize that I didn't blog last night but I was still comprehending what happened. We moved fast, efficient and got the job done. Once that job was done, we celebrated. At least I did :p Heineken and this....

(note the empty glass)

Today was a studio day and it was a pretty sweet day, I learned how I can.... 

There was a field shoot today but I wasn't able to go because the location was "females only"... Lame. Denise and Natasha (our audience PA) went out on location and I took over Natasha's job for the show. 

Once walkthroughs were completed, the audience was tallied, it was time to send people up :) The show went great and after, it was time to take care of business. I handed in my petty cash forms, shipped packages out, and transferred pictures.

Importing pictures took up most of my afternoon but I did have time to help out with some other small jobs. But once I started importing the final set of pictures (see above) I didn't want to stick around for 233 minutes just to watch a bar crawl across the screen. It was home time for me, and now, it's bed time :)

they light up like independance day

Yesterday was a sweet day, it was a studio day, but as many of you know by now, we shoot in the studio about a week before it actually goes to air. Yesterday's taping was our Halloween special :D A great day to be in the studio!

I got to work in the morning, pretty much completely forgetting that it was the Halloween special... until I saw Steven and Chris. I'm not going to give away anything from yesterday, not even what the theme is, but here's a picture of the studio, maybe you can figure it out :)

After the show taping it was time to tear down all the halloween decorations and put back up the regular set dec. People in today's audience would have NO idea that yesterday was halloween :)

PUMPKIN SEASON IS UPON US!

Today was a shoot with Melissa Coghlan all about about garage organization, or at the least the befores of it. It was all the way in Ajax, Denise and I got there a few hours before Mel did (because she was producing a segment in the studio) so that gave us plenty of time to get all of the b-roll necessary. After shooting the b-roll we took a nice break and had some lunch, when I tweeted the author of the book I just finished :) Not expecting anything back, but low and behold.....

immaculately polished with the swagger of a college kid

These past 2 days have been pretty sweet :) Yesterday was a kitchen and bathroom tour with Lisa Worth, it was 2 separate segments so it was a lot of work but we had a lot of fun along the way. The kitchen was great because we were able to have both Diva lights set up, the camera, tripod, AND dolly all set up so we got some pretty spectacular shots. 

What do you NEED in a kitchen?

After finishing up the kitchen it was time to head upstairs for the bathroom tour....

Shower scene included :)

That's a whole different kind of shoot, and I don't think my grandma's would be as proud of that haha. But we did actually shoot the shower, I'm not just making this up haha. But there were no waterworks... unlike at home.

See that crack?

This one?

Well after getting home and blogging this night, I noticed a little wet patch on my carpet... look up.. BAM! I was all sorts of emotions. Sorry Erin! But nonetheless I carried on with my life and went to work the next day... and this is what Erin sends me halfway through the shoot.

Dexter?

Anyway, I carry on my day and try to not freak out too much about what's going on in my room. We finish and its time to head home.

Today's shoot was pretty awesome to say the least. We were shooting in one of my favourite stores on Dundas West :)

Smash

It was a 10 minute walk from my house AND I got to stop at the Good Neighbour on the way there. Not a bad way to start the day. I've been to this store a few times and it doesn't stop impressing me, today was no different. We were shooting with Andrika Lawren who is a new contributor on the show this season, she's done TV work before so she was great to work with. The day was full of good times, good company, and really cool stuff. Check it!

How much do you weigh?

Authentic mugshots and fingerprints.

You can never have too many pyramid positions.

This ones for you Jack :)

What I am :)

"Like"

Almost done :)

But obviously being surrounded by all this cool stuff had my creative juices flowing and I decided that I need to spruce up my room a little and the best way to do so... Art :) So I bartered with the cashier for a "discount rate" because A) I was there all day shooting the place and B) I was buying 2 prints, not just one. So she gave me a buy one, get one half off deal. I can't complain with that. Check 'em out :)

Now I just need to decide whether or not to frame them... thoughts? Comment below :D

Overall a great 2 days, and to start a great 2 days off, Matt just arrived... It's taco night at 354. G'night.

(And in the mornin', I'm makin' waffles)

eyes wide awake but i'm living in a dream

Well today was a decent day, it started off like any normal studio today, but today was a special studio day. Denise and I were shooting the befores of another fashion makeover :) So that consumed most of the morning, and once we left the fashionistas to do their makeover thing, Denise and I went up to see our editor Dave. He was cutting together the segment we shot with Jo yesterday and from what I saw, its going to look great :) After the quick visit it was time to head upstairs and see what needed to get done.

The answer, not much. So I went down to the studio to see what needed to be done, and what do you think they had me do?

I bet you'll never guess....

So I'll just tell you....

But it involves coveralls....

Rollers....

A tray....

Tape....

That's right folks, I was painting! And thankfully because I've painted enough flats in my time, I now have it down to a science, and that science is... Lay it on THICK! I mean, there is a gallon of the stuff so why not use as much as I can, right?

So that's exactly what I did and thankfully when I went down later in the day to check on the drying process, I was told I didn't have to paint a second coat. Science = Mastered.

After painting, it was time to unload some stuff from West Elm and see what else needed to be done. To be honest there wasn't much, which was really surprising, I'm now used to being asked to do 4 things at once and prioritizing. Well you're probably wondering what I did with the rest of my day.... I went shopping.

I was sent to the Eaton Centre HMV to pick up both the Tim Burton version and the classic version of Alice in Wonderland. I'm not going to tell you why.... until later :)

But yeah, that took up the rest of my afternoon and then it was back to the office to deliver the movies/see if they had more work for me/or see if I could go home. They didn't have anything for me to do, but I couldn't leave just yet because I had to wait for Denise to finish up and help her load all the gear into her car. After that it was time to head home in the pouring rain, and here I am, sitting at my computer, Blackberry on the fritz :(

*switching to iPhone is imminent*

Cheers :)

are you ready?

Wow. Sorry for the lack of post.... remember how I was supposed to post everyday? That went great... for 2 days haha.

Anyway, here's another short novel. Buckle up!

Last Wednesday was a 2 show Wednesday, and we had one of the coolest kid's room vignette's I've ever seen. Check it out!

But to be honest, I don't remember much from that day (I mean, it is almost a WEEK later) other than Dave commenting on the fact that I "never" give him a shout out. Well Dave, today's you're lucky day... DAVE! Better? 

But seriously, this is Dave :)

Rocking Out! (Dave's rockin vocals)

Dave and I share a special bond haha. 1: We both work on the show because of our internships (He interned on the first season of Steven and Chris!) 2: We're 2/3 of the straight men that work on the show [special mention: Xico (Chico)] and 3: I'm basically his Mini-Me. 

Dave, you're awesome, see you tomorrow!

Thursday, Denise and I were up near Aliston shooting a Polo barn with DeeDee Taylor. 

 This shoot was awesome! Lots of tracking shots :) The piece showed today in the studio but unfortunately I didn't get to see it :( I can't wait to see how it turned out (incredible I'm sure).
 

Friday was a studio day, but again, it was a no show Friday (like every week) but that doesn't mean there was nothing to do. I was sent to the cage (again) to unpack the giveaway for this coming week. Some really cool things from Umbra :) This being one of them...

After that it was upstairs to cut some beer labels and do some pick-ups. Head down to shipping, pick up 2 boxes and a lamp, take it up to 6, unload it, take carts back down to shipping to help Sarah and Lindsay unpack the cube van of home decor, take it back up to 6, unload, go back down for round 2, take it back up to 6, unload, and then head upstairs to see if I can head home for the long weekend. Nope! At 5 to 5, I was "cornered" and asked to take the cube van to the gas station and fill it up. That was interesting. I've never driven a cube van before, but I've driven this beast:

So the natural progression is a cube van. I was pretty nervous to drive it I must admit, but I as soon as I got in it and got used to the size, it was a breeze. Thankfully the traffic hadn't picked up or that would have made this trek WAY less fun. So I got to the gas station and filled it up.... Be thankful you don't have to drive it everyday ($107.22 to fill it). I'm thankful that there is this thing called "production fund" where they just give you money for production expenses :) Well anyway after dropping the van back off to Andrea it was finally time to head home for the long weekend! 

Friday was a great night, Erin and I went to my friend Matt's house for a "high school reunion"slash birthday party and had a great time. That's all I'm gunna say about that.

On our way home we followed this guy:

Megabus, you need a better placement for your vent.

Saturday was a day for recovering and getting up to the cottage for some sweet family hangs in the newest addition to the Gray family: the boathouse!

It's incredible :)

Top floor from the staircase

Top floor from the opposite corner

Bulls-eye club!

Our delicious Thanksgiving wine :)

Not a bad set-up

It was a great weekend, kind of a sad one though, Thanksgiving weekend is the weekend we take the docks and boatlifts out of the water and close up the cottage for the season. But I fit an entire summer into one last weekend :) Saturday = wakeboarding, Catan, reading outside, darts in new boathouse, Sunday = docks and lifts, reading outside, relaxing, enjoying time with family, Thanksgiving dinner (CHIFFON), visiting the Duclos Point gang, bonfire, marshmallows, darts in new boathouse, Monday = closin' up shop :(

Today, Denise and I were shooting in Chaz condos' showroom with Jo Alcorn.

Since it was a shoot with Jo, it was a pretty small space, something like 750 sq. ft. Small spaces are generally harder to shoot in because it's so difficult to hide all the equipment, but Denise and I knocked it out of the park like we usually do and I know this segment is going to come together wonderfully :) It was a great day full of overcoming challenges (like any and every production), learning, working, and at the end of the day still going home with smiles on our faces. Anyway, that catches you up to speed with what I've been doing, I'd love to hear from YOU and what you've been up to :) Thanks for following my adventures and I promise I'll get into this, everyday after work, blogging thing. G'night!

i invented swag

So today was a studio day, I arrived at work for around 9am, checked my email and went to work seeing what needed to get done for today's show. The answer: not much. That's the joy of not having a show taping on Friday, Friday's are the day for painting, prepping, and getting any kinks worked out for Monday's show.

I helped out wherever I could but like I said, there wasn't much. Until about 10:30, then the "fun" began. As I've said before I'm the designated elevator boy, elevator man?, elevator master?, elevator specialist?, whatever you wanna call me. I'm the guy that takes everyone from the ground floor up to the 6th floor and to the studio :) Once the audience was loaded in it was time to take my place, behind set, and wait for the blocks to be over. The show is broken up into 7 or 8 blocks (or segments) and in between each block is when the PA's work their magic.

After the show it was time to eat and see what needed to be done for tomorrow's show, that answer: I don't know. I went to the office manager, or "giver of work", or as most people call her, Andrea. She sent me to Isabella (who is in charge of the audience giveaways) and my job for the afternoon was to unload the 2 skids of giveaways for Wednesday's shows. Remember, we shoot 2 shows on Wednesdays and we do that so we have Friday's with no show :)

Well normally this is a pretty quick, painless, easy task...today was a little different though. The skids were buried behind everything in the cage. But, without going into painstaking detail, I unloaded 1 skid. It took me just over 2 hours and once it was done, this is what was left in the cage.

Bags Galore!

In total I believe there are 100 bags... I didn't count all of them, but it was a lot. After unloading this skid it was time to call it a day and head home. 

And with that, I'm done.... doing these 1 day at a time, and right after work, is way easier than writing a short novel. Plus the shorter they are, the more likely you are to actually read them. BYE!

hot like wasabi when i bust rhymes

Wow, sorry for the lack of post. I've been a very busy boy this past week. Here's a taste of what's been going on.

Monday was a shoot with our newest designer Joel Bray. This was our first shoot with him and this was also the first shoot we slated! (as you'll see in later pictures, my slating gets a lot better) Overall this was a really fun, somewhat short day and then it was back to CBC.

Marker!

Tough day on set!

Tuesday was a studio day and my entire day was spent painting. I wish I could tell you differently, but I cant. Legitimately from the time I got to work at 9am till the time I went home 5:30-6ish...I was painting. We have new rolling flats for the show and these flats are giant rectangular prisms, one is 8ft x 8ft, one is 6ft by 8ft, and I have no idea what the other one is. But because they are on wheels, they are about 2 feet wide as well...so now instead of painting one wall, you have to paint three to cover the sides. Well Tuesday I had to paint ALL four sides of BOTH flats. So after painting one coat on, I went and got a much needed coffee, waited for it them to dry and went back at it. While I was waiting for them to dry, I sat down at the piano outside the studio (I haven't played piano since I was like 8? 9? 10? I don't even know haha) But I was sitting there, making a fool of myself and guess who walks up right beside me and gives me a little 1 on 1 lesson? Mr. George Stroumboulopoulous :) I have no idea why but I still get starstuck when I see him...and I see him almost every day I'm in the office. So that was sweet, but back to painting. After putting on a second coat on both flats, I headed upstairs to calculate just how much painting I had done. 576 sq. ft. Thats basically a small apartment that I just painted... And I wasn't done yet. 

Both flat colours (clearly first coat)

After the second coats were dry, I went to set and asked what needed to be done, I bet you can guess what happened. Well after a lot of problem solving it was decided that I had to paint a sheet of Masonite. Not too hard. So I painted the first coat, let it dry, painted the second, got it checked, measured it out and it was 5 inches shorter than we needed. Fun. Nicole and I went and grabbed 2 other (bigger) sheets of Masonite and we measured first to make sure it would do the trick, and it did. Thankfully I only had to paint one sheet and I layered it on thick so only one coat was needed. After that it was time to paint some boxes and that pretty much sums up my day. After my 8 hour painting spree, it was time to go help unload the panel van which was full of stuff for Lisa Worth's segment. Once it was unloaded and upstairs, it was time for me to head home. I wasn't covered in paint, but I did have paint in my hair, on my face, all over my hands, arms, and shoes. Thank god for coveralls!

Wednesday was another studio day, but it was 2 show Wednesday so I helped with loading in the audience. When I'm in the studio, I am now the official elevator boy! Load everyone into the freight elevator like their cattle, go up to 6, unload, go back down, repeat. Both shows went off without a hitch and then it was time to...... PAINT! You remember those flats that I just painted? Well now it was time to paint them BACK to the colour they were before. Thankfully I only had to paint 3 walls of the 8 x 8 flat. After painting and getting the approval from LIndsay, I headed home :)


Thursday was a shoot day and what a shoot day it was! It was our first shoot day with Mr. Frank DiLeo.

(Told you it'd be better)

It was a very tough space to shoot in because it was such a small space (I thought Jo was the small space expert!) So small that we couldn't fit the camera, tripod, lights, Denise AND myself in, so I had to sit close by and wait. But the shoot went well and then it was home time!

Yesterday was a shoot with Erin McLaughlin and it was all about having a nursery that can grow with your child. This was probably the coolest nursery I've ever seen (not that I've seen many/any). It was designed for a 10 month old boy and as you'll see below...Sailboat themed. Denise is a sailor, so she was pretty much in heaven all day. This space was great because it had room for the camera, tripod, lights, Denise AND myself! Bigger rooms require more shooting, but the actual shooting is easier because you have room to move around and get the different perspectives. It was a great shoot day and to end such a great shoot day, we used the dolly :) After using the dolly it was time to wrap, wrap, wrap. We went home and let the weekend begin!

"Like"

The reason I haven't been blogging everyday after work is because I come home, and continue working. You remember that Saturday night like 2 weeks ago when I went to Grace O'Malley's and shot? Well this week was spent editing/rendering... And when it comes time to do the rendering, I leave the computer to do its magic and I go watch tv, eat, hang with friends, anything really :) But as of last night they are all officially rendered and exported :) Time to load them on to a flash drive and take them  back to O'Malley's. That is... after Wonderland :)

Sorry for the lack of post, and it won't happen again (hopefully), but thanks for sticking out the short novel :)