Fight Show-Reel

They're trying a new thing this year,

And we’re not really complaining. Usually, we would be using little short films (with fights in them) in groups, however, due to financial cut-backs, this was changed. This year, we had to make a maximum 1-minute long fight choreography in pairs. A Show-Reel’s purpose is to show off your skills, and since this one was for fighting, we did not need to have a full scene. But we did need to have a setting, though whether we chose one from a play or made one up didn’t matter. Costumes were also required, and since we now are third years, we are finally allowed to use the school’s costume department. (yay!) 

We already went to see our locations earlier on in the term (one being Loughton campus, another part of East15, and the other Epping forest, ten min away from Loughton campus). I had been paired with Pippa, and we had originally planned to film at the campus, but because of things that happened, Nick Hall (head of our course and one of the coolest men alive) decided we should go in the forest instead. 

So, quarter to seven Wednesday morning the 22^nd of October, roughly half the class groggily stumbled into the minibus, and we went to Epping forest. But all I could think of was how very proud my mum would be: in my bag were extra socks, extra gloves, extra scarf, a big lunch, two bottles of water, strawberry yam, and a big batch of waffles I made the night before… (in addition of a box full of chocolate cookies for everyone to share).  

A picture Lucas took during filming. The shirt and corset are my own, but the rest of our costume are from the school. We are fighting with military sabres.

One pair filmed theirs in studio1 in Southend on Thursday, for which I crewed as continuity (we all had to crew for each other, in order to learn basics), and the last three couples filmed at Loughton campus on the Friday. Lucky me had not been chosen to crew this day, so I had a nice long sleep.  

Guns...

Surprisingly heavy, not surprisingly loud (cover your ears if you can). Holding one gives a strange chill, but firing one... well, let's go with surpringly exciting. And very much so.