Monday, 2001 July 2
From morning the whole crew is in fever. Everybody is packing: the bags are full of T-shirts, shorts, sunscreen and towels. Everybody is waiting the departure, to start the third shooting stage at Ozora.
At Pipó's we are awaited with delicious roast duck leg.

Tuesday, 2001 July 3
The twentieth day of shooting. With fresh forces, the crew starts the shooting of inserts. First they shoot different cut images on Bezerédi Street with Uncle Cseklik and the "symphonic orchestra" (geese, dogs, bugs, high voltage wires) that accompanies him. The five pages long insert list is diminishing fast. But we face a few serious problems: we cannot shoot the insert on the pasture for the owner of the carriage changed one of the grey horses on a black one. And the G can't find the original one…
After the refreshing shower from the lunch break, we move to the granny's house to shoot the steps of making lunch. Since we decided where to shoot the scene with the mill, the dumplings are made of flour from there. Pour Király's are not happy for the out of turn acting, but finally they reconcile with making again mass in theirs house. The lunch making may start. We shoot how she prepares the dumplings, how she cuts onion, how she plucks the chicken. In the end we record a few inserts with the stew.
For the earthquake scene we demolish a brick stack, and we came to the end of the day.
It turns out that the lens for the macros is completely useless. Possibly the scenes are not recorded well. For tomorrow we request new lenses from Budapest.

Wednesday, 2001 July 4
Further series of inserts. Until we wait for the macros from Budapest, we record a few images with one of Jimmy's "darling", the indecent sow, and with the other animals from the yard (among them with a kitty that seems to be born for acting, and one creaking fence door). We rapidly shoot another earthquake insert too, as the black clothes drying on a rope fall down. We stopped in the center too, maybe we can shoot a stork coming home, but it didn't happen so.
Back in the morning they dug a hole to build the fahrt rail for us to shoot a cut in the old cemetery. This image shall help the special effect makers to draw up the image of a flower growing on a grave. The work is going on well; everybody is doing his job, so it seems that we can record more inserts than we thought.
By the repaired lens arrived we were over lunch, and the crew moved to Gigi's pub to record the spilling spirit. Then we rush to the dressmaker's shop to record the postponed inserts about different sewing machine's spare parts. At dawn we move to the shepherd's farm to shoot again the cut we tried to record in May: the way we go slowly down to the mole's nest.

Thursday, 2001 July 5
It's raining. We should have to shoot the scene with the transport of the harvested wheat. But at breakfast we have to reorganize all those scenes that are going on in cloudy weather or indoors. The crisis-crew gathers and work out the possible program. At Pipó's we shoot some indoor inserts, a gross plan with Aunt Ica, then we move to Jimmy's pigsty where we have to record again its arrival home. (Unfortunately the record made earlier isn't clear.)
By we finish with Jimmy the sun comes out so we can continue with the scenes planned for today, excepting the truck and the tractor.
First we go to the apiary (another one that is not so far away) to shoot the falling bees for the earthquake - five times faster in order to see slow motioned pictures on the screen. After the bees come the frogs. We have to make close plan with the jump, because the other jumps couldn't be seen clearly. By we have to catch the frog arrives Péter Huszák, the animal trainer, and everybody is happy that we won't have to hold the disgusting animal. By the way, Péter Huszák brought the stork from the behind of it we'll see at the first pub scene the bowling men. While the crane-car is drove on its place (that will lift up the stork with its nest + camera and cameraman too) we record some inserts with the old man. Everybody is curious about the scene with the stork, all crewmembers are watching under the crane. After the pub follows the pasture, but it turned to be much harder than the other scenes. Well, it turns out that we have a similar yet completely different carriage with two white horses since the owner of the carriage we record was not willing to give it us because we put some gypsy's horse to it. But this is not all: there are no sufficient cans we requested, more than that we don't have other hose for the pump. Instead of waiting we shoot inserts with the pump. Then we arrange the carriage and the camera in a way the missing things are not to be seen. At twilight we shoot the horse carriage going away.
We have to shoot the earthquake scene when the sweep falls. The G bravely dismantles the sweep from the crane and replaces the metal part with a broomstick. So, with one touch the booth falls beautiful, but there is one problem, the G can't go away fast enough, and we have to repeat the recording. It's almost dark when we are able to shoot. The sweep falls beautiful - if anything could be seen in the dark. (…) In the end the G's crew is putting back the metal part of the sweep.

Friday, 2001 July 6
In the morning everybody is happy. We'll start only at noon. Today we have the wedding scene that is disposed till midnight. Till lunch at half past four we shoot hose inserts in Pipó's yard, then we move at Gigi to shoot the postponed funeral inserts. Meanwhile József Kneisz, the utility man of the village, our best help makes the prepared fire-hose we also need for hose inserts.
The wedding.
Until midnight most of the actors would prefer to go home to sleep. Of course, a few hours ago they felt privileged that they were allowed to enter to the co-operative's diner, but they didn't reckoned that once entered they can't leave…We work extremely fast, and our accomplishment is suitable for Guinness Book: about 40 regrouping (not counting the movement of the camera back a few meters). Around eleven the director and the cameraman have a little debate. According to the director's conception the scene (as the whole film) is based on big total plans and narrow close-ups, but the cameraman's position is that we need narrow total plans too for space effect. The clash of views almost degenerates into a dispute (also rhetoric joke). Finally the director decides that a few cuts won't hurt, and it didn't.
By midnight arrives Kati Balatoni, who came to the shooting immediately after her appearance at Siófok, to interpret the closing song of the film. By that time we let the most part of the actors home.
We finish with today's shooting around two in the morning. (For the overtime we have a little fight with the producer…) Fortunately there is plenty of meat-soup, so we have dinner between the "ruins". It was an exhausting yet beautiful day. The most beautiful scene of the night was when the director and the cameraman embrace themselves after work.

Saturday, 2001 July 7
We start at ten… From early morning the landing stage and stall, which are going to be shattered are built at the fishing pond. By noon we go to the meadows with Aunt Mari to terrify snails and guinea fowls for ours benefit. Unfortunately the guinea fowl is much hysterical than Aunt Mari, and it won't stay in the tree. The assistant, the G's assistant and the director aren't get away unharmed, the bird drops on theirs shirt. But it turns out well. For now everything is going according to the plan, but it feels that everybody is extremely tired. Around one o'clock we move to the fishing pond to soot again the scene recorded before - which turned out useless at editing - about the police investigation and the earthquake inserts with the landing stage and the stall shattering.
On the spot chosen before suddenly arrives the owner, who is not willing to renounce for us of his Saturday afternoon fishing. Because of that we have to move the whole scene on the other shore. We managed to find a 1 m2 dry spot for the camera. We move the camera, the raw material, the director, the cameraman and the focuspuller by boat (the G's assistants row with a row and a shovel). It turns out that the water is so duckweed that in the camera the pond is more like a meadow, so we have to clean the pond's surface. The director of the fishing pond makes a tool for cleaning from tree branches, and the G's assistants are cleaning the green surface. (During the shooting we have to repeat a few times this operation, because the wind unfavourable for us.)
We finish by six in the evening, when we should have finished the ZIL scene.
But there the things are going on faster, however Ildi (yesterday the bride) doesn't prove to be so good driver as her father and the villagers told us. But we manage to do it: our helper, Józsi Kneisz lies on the ZIL's floor at Ildi's feet and pushes the pedals that almost unreachable for the girl.
By this time arrive the people with the balloon, and they feel the weather appropriate to take off. The lights would be good too, but the time we arrive to the takeoff scene, the wind is going stronger. We postpone the shooting of the balloon scene for tomorrow morning.
We move fast to the hillside, from where we see the IFA driving on the road, while Aunt Gyula, the mother of the bride in the film is hoeing the vineyard. The scene is beautiful, but until we finish the setting there isn't enough light.

Sunday, 2001 July 8
From now on Sundays the 8th will be considered the great day of misfortunes in the history of filmmaking. (That is followed next week by a Friday 13th, that is a day of dangers and misfortunes for all human being…) Today's happenings are so filled with misfortune that we ask the weak nerved readers to skip reading
this day. In the name of the whole crew I can give only one advice for our colleagues, namely to avoid Sunday 8th.
When the director and the cameraman woke up at three in the morning to take off with the balloon above the village didn't even suspect that those few minutes when they will fall over the high voltage wires, being between life and death happened just for them to remember over the day the mortal danger, and to live the other problems of the day as something unimportant. That will make easier to bear the events of the day.
The Javelin people arrive at 8 to shoot the scene with the harvest, the policeman's way, and in the remaining time the postponed settings like Aunt Gyula's hoeing in the vineyard.
The much tensed crewmembers watched the sky all the night seeing if it would rain or we may harvest. The Fate took care of theirs joy, even at 10 there were dark clouds running on the sky. "We'll have dramatic sky" kept telling the cameraman trying to cover his despair. By the crane is put together the sun came out, everybody calmed down: we may shoot. We receive the deer too: Rudi and Bambi. The combine ("Dominator") is set, the ZIL too driven by Ildi with the help of Jóska Kneisz.
From here I continue relating the story with enumeration, without comments for not to have to fight with the recollections of that day…
- The big rattling thing in front of her in which it can see another deer, similar to it frightens Bambi.
- Every starting of the ZIL has 50-50% chance, namely it would start or not.
- It remains no wheat in the way of Dominator, so the whole crane has to be moved (cca. 1 hour).
These are only pitfalls given by the complicated scenes, that we manage to solve in time, disregarding the Dominator's activity. At this point came the unexpected troubles.
At second shooting the cut turns to be good. It would have been good, but one of our colleagues is in the image.
We move again, we lose one and a half hours.
The next scene would be good too (namely Bambi is in its place, the ZIL starts, Dominator throws the seeds in the right way…) if the crane's leg wouldn't be in the image.
We move again, we lose one and a half hours.
Between the moves we record some inserts with the Dominator's work. WE try to make something useful…
The next scene isn't good, we didn't managed to turn the Javelin.
The ZIL is full with seeds, we loose another one and a half hours till the crops are delivered to the mill.
Dominator is full too. Another hour lost until it's emptied.
We move again, we lose one and a half hours.
We wish it wouldn't be 40 oC…
If it would be more than one tree to give us shadow…
Last possibility of the day. Within an hour the sun will go down.
The turning with Javelin is not perfect, but we can tell that it worked… until the focuspuller tells us that the automatic sharp didn't worked and the whole record is not sharp.
That was the finishing stroke. We don't have time to move again. We postpone the shooting of the planned scene, but it's a complicated cut. The Javelin crew is ruined. So are we… We may only save the scene with recording some close plans and editing it. We are speechless. Everybody is packing in silence. Some are patting the director's back.
This was our last day here. Good-by Ozora.

Monday, 2001 July 9
Due to some unreasonable reasons this is the only day off before we start shooting in the Budapest area. But the assistant producer, the director and the cameraman decide not to rest, rather they go to find some new scenes. (Naturally, it would be embarrassing to rather rest, because they wouldn't know where to shoot tomorrow.)
In order to avoid boring they visit the operator's relative, the special effect man for ask him to make for tomorrow a water-corps. The special effect man acknowledges calmly the task and in the night he makes the character they asked for.
No doubt that neither the other crewmembers was idling everybody was waiting to meet, to work again.

Tuesday, 2001 July 10
We start at ten at the Zoo. The Budapest air did us a lot of good. A lot of smiling faces, a lot of washed T-shirts, clean hairs, new sandals, sneakers, trendy denims, and ironed socks. We are blossoming. And the work too. The Catfish swims with fantastic talent, catches the frog, the liver, the hook… but the extras, the craps, little snails, water-spiders, crocodiles, sharks and other things are also doing theirs best during the shooting. The liver we put on the hook is floating so great in this strange gray-greenish light as if a protagonist of Grünewald or Bosh came to life in the subway of the Zoo called "Life on the river's bank". We recorded a beautiful underwater world.
In the afternoon we shoot a few insert in the grass near the storage room.
Finally a great day.

Wednesday, 2001 July 11
The Hungarian Television's propmen furnish the Police station from Kesernyés (Bittervile) in a kindergarten, near Gödöllő. From Ozora arrive the actors we need: the policeman, the postman and Annuska too. For this scene we need three extras, which also came. The work is going on very good, everybody is working happy. We need a lot of cuts to get the scene, since everything has to clear up here; the strings are pulled here.
The first really bad experience of the day is the restaurant, when they try to cheat us with the drinks. From here on everything seems to fall apart.
Another race with time. Shortly turns out that we won't manage to finish the work in due time. We rapidly try to shoot every key-cut, we try to figure what are the less important ones, but there are many. Anyway we have omit many close images. This will put together only on the editing table. We hope we'll manage to do it.

Thursday, 2001 July 12
The last day of shooting - till September. We didn't plan so. Tomorrow we should shoot the field-table and the airport. Because the protagonist of the field-table, the mole decided this morning that it won't continue its (underground) life, we postpone today's shooting for September. Then we have to spend another day at Ozora.
Today we start at "Ferencvárosi Malom" (The Mill from Ferencváros), on Sorksári Street.
Then we continue the work in the atelier from Algyógyi Way with recordings of some inserts.
In the evening we drink champagne. We'll miss you boys!

Friday, 2001 July 13
The director and the cameraman meet the producer at "Mokép". They talk through the happenings, and the producer agrees to hire for the next stage of shooting a second-unite that should record inserts with the flying stork and different nature films.

Monday, 2001 July 16
We start editing.

Second half of July 2001
Editing at "Mafilm" Media Center. After that we move to the Avid from "Quality Pictures", because we may not share the computer from Media Center with the editors of "Hídember". The editor and the director may work in worst conditions, lower quality picture, but without time limit. It takes a week to move the material from one computer to another. The director lets the editor to work alone since he is curious what can this artist - who didn't attended the shooting - will make with the images. It's promising how the scenes are put together, but the work seems to be slow. There are more and more personal conflicts between the two of them. The editor can't disregard the bad things that happened with her lately, and unfortunately she projects on her work too. On the other hand the director is impatient, minute after minute he wants to see newer edited pictures. In the small room the atmosphere is getting worst, they are loosing trust in each other, while there is no problem with the movie; it's getting more and more beautiful, more and more interesting. After two weeks work the director loose control and a day after - during a discussion in a coffee shop - with mutual agreement they stop working together. It's great sadness, since they started this film together. The director doesn't know whom to assign with the film editing.

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