Editor,
Principal photography for “Haley,” the UNM Interdisciplinary Film and Digital Media program’s groundbreaking movie, wrapped the other day.
It was a fantastic production to be a part of, and it was so much fun to film.
“Haley” is the story of a research geneticist who returns home after the onset of the apocalypse only to find his house destroyed and his wife dead.
Luckily, his robot servant saved the life of his baby daughter, Haley. Ten
years later, living in a nuclear winterized shantytown, the bad guys come and kidnap Haley, now 11. Her father sets off to rescue her — battles, cloning and crying ensue.
As an aspiring Albuquerque actor, filming “Haley” was a dream come true.
In addition to running around in a “The Outlaw Josey Wales” meets “Mad Max” type world, and filming imaginary fight sequences against a green screen, the 30 UNM students in the crew were outstanding and a joy to work with.
Our director, senior Jason Ponic was great.
At the onset, I didn’t know him by name, face or reputation. By the end of the shoot, he had taken the top spot as my favorite director. I never once saw him get rattled, always saw him with a smile on his face, and often times saw him with the glint in his eye of someone who knew what his vision was — and knew how to communicate it to his actors.
Other crew members supported him. They were also hardworking, professional in their attitude and passionate.
Evan Bobrick, the affable first A.D is an example.
It was enjoyable watching him develop under the watchful eye of IFDM Professor Charlie O’Dowd.
“Always stay one step ahead of the current shot, Evan,” I overheard O’Dowd say. “Remember, every time 90 seconds is wasted here or there, multiply that by a cast and crew of 30 people, and that equals 45 minutes wasted, and time equals money.”
Actually, time did not equal money on this particular set, because no one got paid.
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But like college football players, it wasn‘t about the money. It was about the passion, which more than made up for the lack of pay.
We had our share of trials and tribulations, of course.
We had freezing cold weather, the prolonged din of passing Rail Runner trains when we filmed at the rail-yard, some uncooperative ducks and a homeless individual who kept disrupting the set and stole a PA’s purse.
The film is now in “post-production.” The YouTube trailer and Facebook page, “Haley” (film)” are online. The IMDB page will be up soon, too. Seniors, including Ryan Romero and Jeremy Bernstein, will spend the next month or so using their wizardry to add the computer-generated robot plus other visual effects to the film.
Others are creating a “making of” the video, as well as a “Haley” video game app. Following that will be the exciting premiere (hopefully at the Hard Rock Casino), followed by submissions to film festivals such as Sundance, Cannes, Toronto and Tribeca.
The crew members are definitely this production’s unsung heroes.
Everyone chipped in. Everyone was treated with respect. Everyone “showed up,” and everyone mattered. There was a lot of camaraderie. This production, and any success it enjoys, belongs to them.
James Lawrence Sicard
Community member
