Posts Tagged casting
Escape from London
Posted by Rockjaw in Day Today, MMO-related on August 12th, 2008
All time are approximate. Except for the ones that aren’t.
8:25am: In Moksha, getting scripts into a form Localisation can work with. Takes longer than expected. Notice ‘LU’ is twice as long as other scripts. Could be an issue.
10:30am: Baffled as to why video that took 20 minutes to render, and is apparently 94Mb in size, runs for 11 seconds instead of six minutes. And why eight of those 11 seconds are one image, frozen.
10:50am: Secure petty cash for London trip. Surely it will be enough to cover a few cabs.
12:15pm: Leave the office feeling like a Sherpa, with three bags slung over shoulders.
12:34pm: On train to Bedford… which I get off at Farringdon.
1:56pm: In Liverpool Street, having that “I’m over here under the big news screen… I’m the one carrying three bags… I have a beard” conversation that you tend to have with total strangers when rendevousing in public via mobile phone.
2:15pm: At costume designers, seeing things which just one week ago were outlines given shape and taken form. Impressed.
4:00pm: Have now seen what a woman painted grey-blue looks like. Life complete.
4:30pm: Making executive decision on length of hemline. In this case, has to be longer.
4:40pm: Swapping casting stories.
5:15pm: Watching costume people accomplish the impossible.
6:08pm: In Cab 2 of 2, en route to photo shoot. Grey-blue woman is in Cab 1 of 2.
7:15pm: Helping to move lights.
7:30pm: Eating chocolate and nuts.
7:45pm: Watching through a laptop attached to a camera. It’s like a live magazine spread. Except when it stops working.
8:37pm: Hurrying things along.
8:45pm: “Too… porno face.”
9:09pm: Seeing the pair together for the first time. Stunned.
9:50pm: Realising we have 25 minutes, not 40 minutes left. Chop chop!
10:05pm: Acting as impromptu wind generator.
10:07pm: Fired from above position.
10:15pm: “Less Bruce Lee hands.”
10:35pm: Ordering cabs.
11:15pm: Choosing best photos off on the way to Liverpool Street (via Brick Lane). Not so easy in the back of a cab, against the clock.
11:23pm: Saying goodbyes, see you next weeks.
11:45pm: Fending off Italian drunk kids with “I’m tired.” Reply: “I have worked eight hours in… [garbled name of shop.] I am tired too…” Check phone. “I’ve worked… fifteen hours right now.” He backs down.
11:53pm: Walking towards Victoria Line in Oxford Circus. Tannoy announcement: “Due to planned engineering works there will be no more Victoria Line services from this station tonight.” Wonder if the guy watching me on video somewhere can hear me swearing.
11:57pm: In cab on way to Victoria Station.
12:05am: On slow train home.
1:18am: Moaning aloud. Pain in calves is delaying progress home.
1:23am: Bed.
1:50am: Finish blog entry.
Post-casting day
Posted by Rockjaw in MMO-related on June 30th, 2008
Ex-haus-ted.
Spent the day in London doing our casting. Saw 16 people – no wait, 17 – and gave the same little five-minute presentation explaining who we are, what we do, and why we want to cast people in these roles 17 times.
I think it was still pretty good, even on the 17th go-around….
Got a big post on the casting process coming, but I’m going to leave it until we officially announce why we’re casting, if that makes sense.
Being in London just reminds me why I left London. Also, got to say, the only thing worse than being stuck in a basement on a hot and sunny June day in London… is arriving and leaving during rush hour. Could have done without that.
Still, really useful and productive day. As always, all of prior expectations were overturned… but that’s a really good thing.
So what’s up with you guys? You’re quiet.
Things that are tough
Posted by Rockjaw in MMO-related on June 2nd, 2008
1. Presentations
Work on my Staffordshire University talk – which I’m giving on Thursday – is proceeding slowly, despite a lot of caffeine and what I feel is a pretty good basic structure.
The subject of of ‘breaking into games’ is a bit elusive, though, to be honest. It’s a bit like asking Tom Cruise how to be a movie star. (I am not, in any way, comparing myself to Tom Cruise. I’m taller, for one thing.) The point is, it’s kind of hard to tell anyone about how to achieve something as nebulous as a career goal. But since I doubt anyone would want me to just stand up on Thursday, shrug my shoulders and go “I dunno!” for 45 minutes on Thursday, I’ll keep working on it.
Doesn’t help that I insist on trying to make every presentation I do better than the last.
2. Judging
Related to the above, I’m helping to judge a competition for the students there. It’s split into various categories for things like Games Environments, Modelling/Animation and so on. Those categories were easy enough to pin down, but Game Design – where I’m looking at trailers and pitches for full games, or mods – man, that’s tough.
Tough because I’m trying to figure out if what I’m seeing would really be a good game, or whether it’s just a good trailer; tough because while some of the ideas are original, their presentation is weak (and vice versa) and just tough, really, because it’s so damn judgemental. Of course, that’s what you deal with when you’re a judge, so….
3. Casting
As I think I’ve mentioned before. We’ve got over 200 applicants for our two roles, now… I’ll be back on that by the end of the week, I expect. It’s not getting any easier. If I feel bad judging student’s games, imagine how I feel rejecting people for having a funny looking nose.
Ah well, back to it.
Thursday thoughts
Posted by Rockjaw in Day Today, MMO-related on May 29th, 2008
Start the day with coffee, and trying to figure out what we have left to do for the UK Games Expo. We’ve done this so many times it should become second nature, and to an extent it has, but there’s always room for error… and the more complacent you get the more errors you make.
We need to buy hangers (for t-shirts) and storage ‘tubs’ for stock and, in fact, t-shirts. Quick trip to Woolies and one of several local ‘pound shops’ and we’re sorted.
Back to the office. It’s Massage Day (woo!) and Chris is having his First Ever Massage. When he comes out he tells me “I don’t know why I waited so long to have that.” Nor do I mate. Read the rest of this entry »
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