It’s hard to think of where to start when recalling a trip, as Paul describes, that was ruled by rumor and innuendo…
Per example- Paul: “Hey Dan, did you hear that we’re not going to North Carolina?” Dan(VFX Supervisor): “What!? No one told me, where are we going then? Paul: “I think I heard someone say something about Portland.” Dan: “Oregon or Maine” Paul: “I think maybe Oregon… Who knows.”
So- that said, I’ve arranged some photos that accurately convey the delightful mayhem and logistical whimsy that ensued.
Welcome to Vegas, Rob. Now you sit in this chair in a parking lot for 6 hours and watch the traffic with Pedro the security guard.
Wow! The Hoover Dam is really a breathtaking sight! Paul and I really can’t report too much on the scenery though… we were set up with a feed from the VTR guy in the Men’s Bathroom. That situation got extra super fun when Milosh, the 6’10”, 350 Pound AD came in to use the facilities. We think he stopped up the whole Dam itself. Gross.
Long way down! We saw exactly how long when the script supervisor left her script notes on the ledge and we watched as a gust of wind sent them all flying down to their watery deaths. No script notes for the Hoover shoot.
Paul, being the self-proclaimed coffee snob, was delighted at seeing an endless supply of Folger’s Crystals at each location. Especially after hearing that BBDO specifically BANS Folgers on their shoots. Starbucks Shmarbucks.
On to the great city of St. Louis! Ever been? Neither had we.
This was the swanky “private jet” we took from Vegas to St. Louis. The flight was trés ooh-la-la until we’re told we have a stop-over in ‘Pueblo’ Colorado to be refueled. The plane starts it’s “decent” and Paul and I look at each other with the unmistakable “Are-you-f*cking-kidding-me” expression as the plane starts shaking like its about to be torn in two. The pilot leaves the cockpit and starts rummaging through some atlas with this “we’re-all-gunna-die” expression. We ended up landing in some cornfield, I mean airport in Lamar Colorado. Two hours later we were all fueled up and ready for the second leg of the trip to St. Louis. Total trip time from Vegas to St.Louis via private jet: 7pm-2:30am. If you ever have a chance to fly on a private jet, let me be the first to say, it’s TOTALLY worth the thousands and thousands of dollars.
These were the barf-bags on the flight… literally the size of an envelope. How could these have been useful?
Meet Phil! One the first of many friendly faces we met in St. Louie…
Paul’s conversation with the chap went a little something like this:
Paul: Hey please take us to the Ritz Carlton Hotel.
Phil: Did you call for a cab beforehand or did you just hail me?
Paul: We called, aren’t you the cab we called for?
Phil: Hell no! You gotta call dispatch and tell them to cancel the other cab!
Paul: Oh, OK. That’s no problem … [Paul on the phone] Hello, we just caught another one of your cabs so you can cancel the one we called for. Thanks bye.
Phil: Aw man! You just totally screwed me over! Oh no! I’m busted, I can’t believe you just did that!
Paul: Did what? I did exactly what you told me to do!
Phil: But you weren’t supposed to say that I picked you up! Now I’ll owe the other guy my fare!
Paul: Uhhhhh… Dude… I don’t really know too much about Taxi dispatch politics. I’ll give you a great tip, just get us to the Hotel.
… Paul then generously doubles the fare, giving the guy 50 bucks for a $20 cab ride… Paul later gets about 25 calls from the taxi company wondering who the guy was that gave us a ride to the hotel. I think Phil stole a cab the day before made $30 extra bucks that day.
The first day of shooting in St. Louis was interesting. At the beginning of the day, I asked around 4 different PAs if Paul and I could get a table and two chairs. These amenities never showed up and Paul and I were loading VTR footage on our feet for the first three hours… interestingly enough, after lunch Paul and I sat down on a hill about 100 yards from where the shoot was and noticed this random table and two chairs hanging out by the side of the road… Coincidence?
Instead of using the table/chairs we found on the side of the road, I stumbled upon this van-seat. So, appropriately, I buckled up and waited for the directors to show.
These are the directors. I’m serious.
Here’s Paul’s bathroom at the Ritz-Carlton St. Louis. It was super glam- especially when Paul went for his first shower and noticed the 12 inches of raw sewage hangin out in the tub. The nice people at the Ritz then upgraded Paul’s room to a super fancy suite. Dan, the VFX supervisor affectionately referred to Paul’s room as the “Poop Upgrade” from that point on.
The Pièce de résistance had to be the imagery we noticed just before we left for the airport. Here's the recap in the video below...
