DORÉ

Producing is one of those weird words slash jobs that connotes a plethora of things. My title at DORÉ is Editorial Director, but that involves a lot of producing. What does a producer need more than another cup of coffee? The perfect bag to get her through her day. I am VERY particular about my bags when I’m on set, particularly a film set where you need things on you at all times, but there’s also this thing called the camera which, if your bag bumps, it’s akin to bumping the queen. So when I was in London a few weeks ago producing a three day film shoot, I relied on the Lo & Sons Waverley bag, worn as a nifty little belt bag.

Read on to find out what 24 hours in a producer’s life entails…

10:00pm – We just got back from our day of scouting. “We” being myself, Michael our DP, and Jamie, his producing partner. Lucky for us, we’re all friends with the same taste in beer, so we’re all staying in the same Airbnb with a fridge of craft beer. We all get a beer and sit on the floor of the living room to storyboard the next day’s shoot, now that we’ve seen all locations.

12:00pm – The guys go to sleep and I’m grateful for the silence to get out all necessary emails for tomorrow. I love working late at night when the world is finally quiet.

7:08am – I’m awake! Sort of! The emails took longer than expected so I allow myself a single snooze.

7:10am – I waddle out of my room and straight into a large black cup of coffee, thanks to Michael–who (to my benefit) suffered from jet lag, has been up since 5am, and decided to put himself to use by getting me and Jamie coffee. Bless. His. Soul.

7:11 – 7:25am – Jamie, Michael and I meet in on the floor of our Airbnb (luckily working with your friends, meetings can happen anywhere, anytime, even in your pjs and at 7:14 in the morning). We go over the 2am emails I sent the night prior and make a few last minute adjustments to our shot list.

7:30am – Jamie and Michael head out to oversee the camera equipment delivery while I use the time to get ready for the day and screw my head on properly. Shoot weeks are the most exhausting, but also the most exhilarating. And when one is exhilarated, one feels alive, so I’m happy despite exhaustion.

I meticulously pack my Lo & Sons belt bag. Glasses, notebook, pen, a little solid perfume because, let’s be honest — we all sweat when we run around all day, but I also have to be super close to people over the next ten hours so I like to put a little fragrance between us. Wallet, phone, clamps, keys, lip balm and I’m out the door.

9:00am – Despite trying wardrobe on in New York, now that we’re in London, Garance and I decide it’s not right. We have about ninety minutes till we need to be on set and are one block away from Regent Street… I can practically smell the shopping montage that is about to ensue.

10:30am – Garance and I arrive on set at the Southbank Centre in London and I check the shot quickly before it’s go time.

11:05am – One of my secret talents is holding pedestrian traffic. How do I do that? Stand just off camera with my legs and arms spread wide open. It weirdly works quite well. Mainly because I think pedestrians think I’m off my rocker (who knows, in that moment, I might be) and thus they put just enough distance between me and them, and also them and Garance doing her thing in front of camera.

12:45pm – I bike across London! Nope, you didn’t read that wrong. One of our props is a huge yellow bike that doesn’t fit in the passenger van, so I bike across London AND SURVIVE. At first I stuck to one way streets, but by the end I was mistaken for Lance Armstrong.

1:15pm – I arrive at our second location of the day, Kensington Gardens in Hyde Park and I help set up props for the next scene.

1:20pm – I hear Garance say, “Who has a clamp? My blouse is doing a weird thing.” You know who has clamps? Me :) Where are the clamps? In my bag. :)

2:00pm – I think I eat? I’m not sure, but I know at some point Jamie handed me a sandwich in Hyde Park and it was consumed. (This is how I typically eat on shoot days, food and coffee are put in front of me and I oblige whoever did it by consuming them).

4:00pm – Garance is wrapped! The rest of us gear up for the last shot of the day. Which is actually a million shots because we’re shooting stop motion. Stop motion involves moving inanimate objects bit my bit while taking a single photo at each moment along the way. It’s also 4:00pm now so we’re all a little nervous about loosing light. Once 4:00pm hits on any shoot a hush comes over everyone as we race to capture everything before the light drastically changes.

5:30pm – I hear a distinct voice say, “Ronnie?” I look up from my position in the grass moving inanimate objects a centimeter at a time to come face to face with a friend from LA. I swear this actually happened. He’s in London with his family and they were strolling through Hyde Park. We both thought we hallucinated this moment at first. I quickly explain the light situation and he gets it, and I promise to meet up with him later for a drink.

6:00pm – We are wrapped on the first day, two more to go!

6:02 pm – We find the nearest pub and take in the glorious tradition of having a pint, standing outside after work. Hands free, I’m able to participate with ease while also laughing my ass off recounting the day with Michael and Jamie as we gear up for the next one.

7:50pm – As promised to my friend, we meet up for dinner. He, being his fancy self, suggests Claridge’s. I oblige, but turn my belt bag into a wristlet for the rest of the night, because, you know…Claridge’s.

10:00pm – In bed! Doing emails in silence. Disgustingly my favorite thing? One day down, two to go.