I have been here on this beautiful island called Sri Lanka for nearly 4 years now, on and off. I was approached by a representative from Canon at a launch of the new C500 Cine Camera. They had heard of me being a film maker and asked if I ever want to use their camera on a project for a test run that I was more than welcome to. What a very generous offer from the kind Canon guys.
After I left the launch it got me thinking and one thing that stood out was the capabilities of the Canon C500 in low light situations. Only one problem, I didn't have a project that required that look, so I decided to write one, problem solved. I wrote the film 'HIGHWAY' and it all takes place over one evening on a highway with minimal light, job done.
Over the next few months I am going to try and make this film here in Sri Lanka. Things work very different here with such a small film industry and, let's say, the sense of any kind of urgency is non existent. As a foreign film maker I will have to stay hidden when all the deals are to be made. There are two prices for everything, the local rate and the foreign rate and it's quite a difference.
I am going to highlight all the great things about shooting here and all the pitfalls. It will be amazing at times but incredibly frustrating. I am used to working in a certain way and have been privileged to have worked along side some of the best film crew in the world. I have been here long enough not to compare or judge, just work differently.
First on the things to do list:
1. Budget and script breakdown.
2. Talent scouting for my lead actors.
3. Finding finance.
That will do for now.
So, the journey begins for the film 'HIGHWAY'.