"The shaka is a simple yet powerful way to remind locals and visitors of the way people look out for each other on the islands and strive to spread aloha day in and day out, in keeping with the Hawaiian principle of malama i kekahi i kekahi, - take care of one, take care of all"
(source: http://www.to-hawaii.com/shaka.php)
My day started off with seeing the sunrise oh Kuhio Beach.
Claudia and Nathalie recommended us to see the sunrise. They had done it yesterday and said it was incredible.
For someone who grew up in center of Long Island, New York, seeing a sunrise on a beach is not a common thing. Especially one where the ocean is as clear as glass and only a touch of cold. This was a magical moment for me. Against the vast but calm sea, I was reminded of how small my existence was on this earth, in the best way.
For breakfast, we went to this highly recommended place on Yelp, called Heavenly.
Let me just say, it lives up to its name.
Heavenly emphasizes its use of local and organic materials in its super cute and nicely decorated interior.
What a way to start a day. Sunrise and good food. And it only got better. Next up: Hawaii 5-0 Set.
We took the bus to studio. Upon arrival we were greeted by Keiko, a producing assistance who was also our unofficial tour guide. We started off by meeting Donne Dawson, Hawai’i State Film Commissioner. She told us about her experiences on the job. I was glad to hear the tax incentive for filmmaking in Hawai’i was doing well. She mentioned that her job was a 24/7 job. This reminded me of the modern day accountability that causes so much anxiety and restlessness in people. But her job is so important and really helps Hawai’i’s economy.
She reminded us that Hawai’i is not unique in land diversity, for many places share similar geographies. Hawai’i has to fight to convince production companies to film here. Shockingly, the entire series of Lost was all filmed on Hawai’i. All of it.
What makes Hawai’i so special though are the sacred lands that many productions are not allowed to use. This struggle with educating production companies and respecting sacred lands is something that has been mentioned a lot. In the end, we are all guests on this land and we need to remember that, always.
She reminds us that even though this work is great, everyone needs to take care of themselves. No work is worth compromising your health. This is something that I’ve been working on lately too, so I was glad to hear her tell us this.
After meeting Ms. Dawson, Keiko takes us to the set and we are seated in video village as we watch them shoot the scene.
Hawai’i Five-0 is one of the few shows that consistently has a 3 camera set up. I am more used to working on student film sets, so seeing this high-tech video village with a 3 camera set up was so cool.
Pauline and I have been doing “research” since we got to Hawai’i and watched episodes of Hawaii Five-0 so we could better understand the set when we got there. So coming onto the set, as a filmmaker and a fan, was just too surreal.
My brain was filled with random questions and excitement that I was a bit embarrassed to share. But eventually, I asked a question to Ty, Chapman Alumni and our Hawai’i Class Mentor.
“How many Assistant Cameras are there? Because I see three cameras but only two people? How do they split up the work and how does affect the flow?” The one question that I felt worthy enough to be asked, but still looking back, what a weird question.
But somehow, the next thing I knew, Ty asked the DIT, Scott about it and he asked if I wanted to see the camera set up for myself.
Flustered and nervous out of my mind, I agreed.
CUT TO: Me walking onto set with my professor. Scott introduced me to the Camera B team and I began talking to the B Camera Operator. Scott said something along the lines of “oh let her look through the eyepiece”. I laughed jokingly. Haha that would be awesome, but it’s okay.
CUT TO: Me was sitting on the dolly looking through the eyepiece. (What is my life?)
After asking the camera operator a few questions, the 1st Assistant Director (1st AD) calls to shoot the scene. My professor and I are escorted to the back where the director is sitting to wait for a good time to leave the set.
We took advantage of this opportunity and posed for some photos.
They took us back to Video Village. I was still numb from that entire exchange when my classmates freak out to me that they saw me on the screens. Soon after, Scott starts bringing small groups of my classmates onto set as well.
Everything becomes a blur after that because I am way too excited about everything that everyone is doing. I get to talk with some other great people on set like the sound mixer and some grips. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly. They were all so willing to share their experiences and talk about their roles on set.
Out of the blue, Scott comes back and tells me that they want me to slate a scene.
I was trying so hard to keep it cool.
I get taken back onto set and I meet the second assistant camera, Caleb. He hands me the slate and wishes me luck. I told him I was super nervous and excited. He just laughed and told me to be calm. He showed me how to write scene on the slate the way they liked it and let me practice calling the slate for a bit.
The 1st AD called the shot. I watched Caleb for my cue and called it.
I ran to where Caleb was standing in the back and high fived him, quietly.
After spending a much longer time than expected on the set, we left the set and were shown around the studio grounds by Keiko.
We got to see various sets from McGarret’s house to the medical rooms. It was so amazing to see these places and how quickly they can come to life with just a few lighting adjustments.
After we finished our tour, we met up with the executive producers and assistant directors. They told us all about what their role on set was from the pre-production stages all the way to post-production.
Something that stood out to me from what they said was that their main audience is an international and mainland audience. Hawaii Five-0 was a fantastic tool to increase tourism and that’s how they help Hawai’i’s economy.
I could clearly see it in the episodes. Hawai’i as a location served as a perfect place to insert pretty scenic shots. The crimes depicted on the show are far from common here. Who is this show really for though?
We ended our wonderful and fulfilling visit by receiving these fantastic shirts:
The front design is of the shaka sign saying “Mahalo” under it.
The back says “The Sixth Season Hawaii Five-0″.
This shirt design basically summed up my entire feelings about the events that happened today.
The crew were so open and kind to us. Ty and Keiko really made our time there so personable. Though this show is more geared toward getting people to come visit Hawai’i, it still provides professional set experience for local filmmakers like Ty and Keiko. For local filmmakers, they can learn the ways of working on set and build relationships with mainland and local filmmakers. And when those relationships reach a point of common visions, they can branch out and create their own content.
Ty told us that the filmmaking community is quite small in Hawai’i and because of that when big productions like Hawaii Five-0 come, the same few people always end up working together. So everyone knows each other. And because of that, everyone is respectable and friendly towards each other.
They showed us their welcoming spirit as well. When they found out we were film students, they made it their mission to help us get first hand experience. They turned our originally short visit to the studio almost a half day stay.
Mahalo nui loa, Hawaii Five-0.
