Growing in Greece: Acropolis and Gelato

January 10th, 2011

8:22pm

Aghia Paraskevi

Apparently I got really busy really fast over these last few days. Friday we went to the New Acropolis Museum downtown which was nice with a fantastic view, then headed to the Acropolis. Apparently it wasn't open today so we had some free time before dinner, where we ate at a nice restaurant family-style. Family-style= ordering a massive amount of food and passing it amongst the 25 of us so the cost isn't as much and we can try more stuff. So delicious! I was totally stuffed after leaving there. And then we went to a chocolate shop, where we had delicious chocolate treats! There was creme brulee, raspberry cheesecake, chocolate towers, so amazing! Such a stuffed metro ride home, and then off to bed!

Saturday was a very chill day for me. I stayed at the apartment, cleaned up my area, did some homework, basically lounged around. It was Arnold's 23rd birthday so later that night, and when I say later, I mean like 11pm, the entire group went out to a cocktail bar and celebrated. Pretty chill, nothing too crazy went on.

Sunday we had an Acropolis rain-check: clear and sunny skies were the forecast. We all took amazing pictures that day, the Temple of Athena, the Parthenon, leaning over the edge to see the hundreds of feet to the bottom; a literally breathtaking site. I sat under a tree and wrote my poem of the day and even though there were a few tourists around it seemed so calm and serene. An Iranian guy came up and started talking to me about what I was writing, where I'm from, all of the above. It strikes me as interesting that people from different cultures always want to know where you're from. Americans would think this was rude or intrusive but Greeks and most of the tourists from different countries I've met are always interested to learn about us. We eventually wound our way down the huge hill and had lunch together at a small taverna tucked behind a corner. Normally host and hostesses from restaurants are hounding you to eat at their restaurant, but this one didn't seem to care. The food was both diverse and delicious and everyone had a splendid time.

But of course after you're stuffed with Greek food you always get gelato! Instead of my normal mango this time I went with tiramisu- decent choice, I'm trying to branch out, maybe pistachio next time. Emily and I broke off from the group and found our way back to Syntagma station all by ourselves and with great time. We met up with Suzanne and bused/walked back to the apartment after stopping at a bakery to get treats for our production meeting. Our meeting consisted of a script read-through from top to bottom. Considering the writers had been slaving away on this script from day break to nightfall for the past week, we were all super excited to see how it was. Plus, I'll admit, the original 'script' or outline was really rough and the film honestly seemed juvenile. We took turns throughout the group reading the narration, the interiors and exteriors, cuts, alternate scenes; the works. It was, at least for me, a very informative meeting. Everyone was having a good time, we all laughed at the funny parts, especially when the janitor says "Stable Boy" as an inside program joke. I think everyone left feeling a lot better about the program, the script, and felt more sure of what their positions entailed when related to the film.

Today, Jamie and I made plans to go to the library as soon as it opened (8:30am) and make the hundreds of copies we needed. We had went earlier in the week and the librarians told us they needed to verify our study abroad information before they would issue us print cards and that our instructor had to be present. So we brought Taso and Suzanne along, but with no luck in the progression area. Even though Taso can speak Greek and can communicate much better with people here, sometimes I feel like he's a little ill-informed about what we already know and what we want to accomplish. We ended up using the free printing from communal computers to print 10 copies of the script (each one's 31 pages long), plus printing out appearance releases, location releases, shot lists, and video logs. Tons and tons of printing with little printers. We felt so bad using up all of their paper and ink! Then it was off to the stationary store to buy folders for the scripts, making sure they didn't get torn up by their owners and it was easy for everyone to carry around. Sandwiches and donuts at the bakery down the street and then back home!

As soon as we got home we read through the script and wrote down all of the extra characters that had been added and needed to be casted. We discussed who should play which characters and the other tasks we needed to get done. At 2:15pm we had a meeting with Taso and the assistant director to discuss our respective tasks and the new casting. The end result was a bulletin board information area and two new people being in charge of props. Everyone was supposed to meet at 3pm to do a practice run through of a fight scene with George and the Janitor in the amphitheater on campus: video, audio, and makeup, just so everyone could finally merge what they knew about their role in the film to what they were actually doing on set. The practice run-through went well, we all understand where we're supposed to stand, how to be absolutely quiet as soon as the assistant director yells 'action,' that continuity needs to make sure everything's the same for the next shot, etc. It was a very enlightening experience and we all walked away a little more comfortable. I feel like I say that a lot, that we're all finally understanding our parts in the program/film, buts it's true. Slowly but surely we piece together everything we know and by working together it keeps getting better and better.

After the run-through the AD (assistant director), AP's (associate producer), and continuity were supposed to meet up to discuss the shot list for the next day. These meetings will happen every day after shooting and after our decision we'll post the verdict on the bulletin board for everyone to see. This is especially important for props because until we understand how fast or how slow we shoot, they will only have a few hours to obtain all of the props we need for the next shooting day. A crazy job but I have no doubt Emily and Meera can get it done perfectly. A few of us ended up staying even after that meeting to discuss new organizational methods that need to be implemented so that not only Taso but every other group knows what each other is doing and what needs to be done. In about ten minutes, Caitlin (the AD) and I are meeting to discuss different organizational techniques we can use for everyone's benefit and how to organize the shot list. It's been an incredibly long day and I still need to write in my field notebook! So crazy! But I'm lovin' it.

Did you really have nutella for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner?

Susie :)