Hearts' Desires (6 page)

             
“Well…” The ice was broken. Meredith laughed and reached for the makeup utensils. “I’ve seen worse!
However…
I think your hair might be too short if I remember the descri
p
tion of your ch
a
racter correctly.”

“Yes, I guess so,” admitted Vance without opening his eyes. “But there was nothing I could do about that! They cast me only a week ago. So, unless you are going to put one of those ugly wigs on me – and I hope Alison has not mentioned an
y
thing in that direction - we have to deal with my Marine hai
r
cut.”

             
Alison walked past the equipment, giving every position
a
last check. The team with the additional lighting was ready, the focus pullers and the grips gave her a thumb-up, too. The two cameras were in position – even if Jake yawned pitifully. The sound-assistant just gave last instructions to his helpers.
             
As planned, they would start with the first scene on sch
e
dule, what accidentally happened to be the first meeting b
e
tween father and daughter. It was taking place outside on the porch. Alison spotted Vance and checked his appearance. Yes, this was more or less how she had pictured
Arend
M
a
rens
in reading the script: shabby white suite with missing bu
t
tons, half open shirt… Of course, the hair was definitely too short, too orderly. Well, she would see in a few minutes, if it worked despite this flaw!

             
“Good morning, Alison. Satisfied?” Vance asked, noticing her visual check-up.

             
“We shall see.”
The comment left
no doubt of her skepti
c
ism
.

             
Vance’s pride was stung by her remark
and her behavior.
A
p
parently s
he
thought
he was one of those action stars who
couldn’t’
do
anything but
shout order
s, shoot and wrestle in the mud
!
Well,
he would show her differently
!
He was a pro and would not give her any reason to complain. On the co
n
trary! Yes, he’d show her! He was a graduate of the prest
i
gious Montreal School of Performing Arts! He would act
with every finesse
he was capable of, as if an Oscar was at stake, if only to see her jaw drop in su
r
prise!

             
“Vance,”
Jake shouted across the set, watching the scene,
“
give us your best hangover-face ever!
”

             
“Shouldn’t be a problem!”

             
From the corner of her eye, Alison saw Lauren Bastian on the garden path, dressed in a costume that made her in fact look like the innocent 16-year old from a convent school.
             
Wonderful! Good job! Never thought this was possible!

             
“Ready to go everyone?”
Alison asked.
“
Positions ever
y
one
!”

             
Vance stepped up on the porch. Lauren installed herself next to the requisite cab with the extra as driver, a guy who smelled disgustingly of garlic, she noticed. One last look around, then assi
s
tant director Mendez declared “Picture is up”. A moment later the clapper gave the sign. Alison felt the remnants of her jet lag dizziness vanish, when she called “A
c
tion!”

             
Marens
stood leaned against the banister, scowling down at the girl with all the annoyance of a drunk woken up too ea
r
ly. ”What do you want?”

             
”I’m… sorry. Sorry for... I mean…”
             
“What is wrong, Miss?”
             
“Don’t you … recognize me?”
             
Heavens! She really looks as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth,
Alison thought.
             
“Should I? Don’t play games with me, young
lady,
I’m a very busy man!”
             
“I’m… Camilla…
Dad.”
             
“Cut!” Alison jumped up. “Okay, Jake, I want a camera close-up on both of them during the last sentence! – Lauren, you’ll go one step ahead, so we get the right angle. … Jake?”
             
“Just perfect, Alison! Need some extra light, though! The sun is shielded too much by the branches at this angle!”
             
The
lighting grips with the bounce reflectors positioned them to catch the sunlight and cast into the shadows.
Then they were ready for the second try…
 

Four hours later, the film crew was ready to gather around the tables and eat.
Vance loaded a double helping of potato salad on his plate and signaled the young Indian helper from the catering se
r
vice to add two sausages on top.
             
“Hey, you won’t fit into your costume anymore, if you keep eating like this,” said Jake, watching him.
             
“What – I’m starving!”
             
“Perhaps you should eat breakfast instead of two
cups of
co
f
fee and three cigarettes!”
             
They sat down under one of the sunshades. “You know me; I’m full of bad habits! … And this tastes delicious!” Vance felt good, despite the tiredness.
Working
gave him a special sort of fulfillment and satisfaction. The worries about his pe
r
sonal life slipped into the background, at least for a few hours.
             
“So, what do you think of our directing dragon?” Jake asked in between two bites.

             
Vance turned his head in Alison’s direction. She sat alone, in front of her Vegan menu,
iPhone
next to her and a
b
sorbed in her thoughts. He leaned in to his friend. “Well, as you said: she’s a pe
r
fectionist and a workaholic. I bet she can be a real pain in the ass for some people.”
             
Jake grinned. “I heard rumors that that was the real re
a
son Barnes turned down her offer! You know he was su
p
posed to play your part…”
             
“And my agent thought I might be the right choice to defy her?!”

             
“You’re a perfectionist, too, Vance!”

             
Vance’s eyebrows rose for a second. “You should try the salad, Jake. We’re probably
gonna
work until midnight…”

The day was supposed to begin with the shooting of scene 23, a meeting between Thabo alias Louis and Lauren alias Camilla. Until now the crew had struggled to set up dollies and spotlights.

             
“What are you doing with those cables over there? You can’t leave them there, guys, or we’ll have them right in the picture!” Jake
Bertoni
yelled.
             
Alison looked to Thabo where the makeup team put on the finishing touches of his makeup. Lauren Bastian took the opport
u
nity to sit down for a moment to watch Vance, who waited for his turn, dozing in a chair. It was midday and very hot, so he had disposed of his jacket and rolled up his sleeves.
             
“Lauren, are you ready?” Alison did not miss how Lauren was eyeing Vance.
Little bitch – if she could, she would just go and undress him right here!
“Lauren?
Up in position!”
Al
i
son clapped her hands, and the young woman finally moved with, in Alison’s op
i
nion, a little rebellious reluctance.
             
The familiar sound of the clapper board, and the next second they were filming.
             
“Louis!”
             
“Miss Camilla! I didn’t expect you to be here. Mister
M
a
rens
said he was taking you hunting today.”
             
“I’m not –“
             
“Stop! This does not work!” Alison felt very picky at the moment. Maybe the usual ‘mood swings’ of her age – wha
t
ever, but she was angry. “Thabo, Lauren, I want to see a little more emotion in your dialogue! You are two people in love for
the first time!
And,
Avi
?”

             
She turned in the direction of the guy responsible for the co
s
tumes. “We need to find another shirt for Thabo! He’s a farm he
l
per, and this thing makes him look like a high school student in New York! Moreover under these lighting conditions he will be just one big bright spot on the screen. It does not work. We have to shoot this scene again and the one we did yesterday with Thabo as well.”
             
Annoyed, Lauren dropped on one of the cable boxes and waited. That little idiot Thabo! Now they had to do this damned ‘first-meeting’ scene yet again where she had to look him in the eyes as if she had just found the immortal love of her lifetime! What a joke! The young woman sighed. He was just a little kid, nothing more! Moreover, she was already hu
n
gry. How long would it take now? And this idiotic dress! It was
fastened
with some
pins
in
back, and the fabric itched ever
y
where.
What
girl in the world would walk around wearing such potato sacks?!
             
Steps approached and Lauren turned around, discovering one of the crew with a glass of water. “Here you go!” He handed it over, and she was grateful indeed, even if the silly grin in this guy’s face was very obnoxious! Okay, she had flirted with him a little last evening to play to the gallery in front of Vance. Now this nuisance seemed to think she was inte
r
ested in him?
             
“Thanks. Good idea.”
             
“Yeah, thought so.
Pretty hot today.”
             
“Hm.”
             
“You should come join us under the sunshade.”
             
“Thanks, but I think we’ll continue soon. I’m fine!”
Just leave me alone!

             
Alison walked through the set. She hoped Thabo would ma
n
age the next performance better than this morning, where
they had done 5 takes to no avail! Lauren had given him a hard time, it was true. She was not very patient; an intelligent, hard worker with little understanding for other people’s pe
r
haps slower pace. And Thabo, he let himself be distracted all too easily …
             
In the sunshade in front of the crew’s RV some team members had gathered for a little midday chat. Words about all sorts of daily problems reached Alison, who tried not to pay attention. She did not want to get personally involved in her staff’s personal issues. This would compromise the climate on the set. However, she could not completely evade the worries of Chang about his two kids at school, or Terence’s co
m
plaints about his around-the-clock-shopping girlfriend. Alison felt annoyed, but at the same moment a little part of her e
n
vied them. She had never been part of this daily business and family matters, of chats like this. She blocked every stray thought, locked the little troublemakers up in the backyard of her mind. She couldn’t afford to spend time hanging out and being lazy! And she surely did not need a husband or kids to get on her nerves on top of everything else!
             
Leaving the RV behind, Alison stepped up to the first camera. She shaded her eyes and
used a handheld viewer
lense
to anti
c
ipate how the next scene would work. Filming in a garden area with trees and ample bushes was always diff
i
cult. It meant lots of sharp contrasts to master. However, Jake
Bertoni
was very good at doing this – a little ‘wizard’, as some people in Hollywood called him!
             
“Alison?” She turned around and discovered Max.