Unrendered

I’ve met some people during my time here. One of them is David. He’s a Magyar in the School of Architecture here in Budapest. He’s a pretty ridiculous guy but so far my favorite. Anyway, he mentioned this project he was supposed to be working on to Jaro and I, and our ears perked up. Besides the fact that it had to do with film, we just wanted to get our creative flow going. A kick start, if you may. So he says, Yeah its this competition and prestigious and we really want to compete but we’re not really sure what to do. You have to make a costume: one in a different reality. A suit that is basically a bio suit. Your home away from home. You have, and can do, everything that you would do or have in your home. (Jaro and I look at each other, perplexed, and yet, intrigued.) So we have to make a suit, and we have to make a short film with it and then submit it.

When’s it due, Dave?

Friday.

It’s Wednesday night. You suck, Dave.

So that’s how it started. While I was at the office editing and working away the next day, Jaro shot some footage (basically B-roll of whatever, it didn’t really matter now that I look back on it) and we met up later that night to make something. Jaro is telling me well Dave doesn’t really know I think you should just edit it together and this should take an hour max and really he didn’t say it was a big deal.

That’s what they all say.

Five minutes later Dave walks in. So I want the footage we shot today in quick bursts for about 45 seconds, and then the last minute is trippy background colorful shit and this has to be how it is because this will be on the background on a big screen as our model walks out in the suit and models it around for people, he says.

Ok. Not like we have a deadline or anything Dave!

Five hours later. It’s two in the morning and the video is exporting. Finally. Final Cut Pro is relatively new to Jaro (he just needs to get used to it again), so I had to take over throughout the night. And basically it was my show (not to toot my horn). When its done, we put it on and damn it looks good but fuck what the hell was that did that frame just say unrendered?! Halfway through the video, soon to be played on a big screen somewhere in Budapest, one measly frame was not rendered correctly. Christ.

We bring it up again and sure enough, there’s that damn frame. How the hell did that happen? Nobody knows. Ok fuck it just take out the transition there and it will be fine. We wait for the export, watch it.

It’s still there.

Well jeez do you think they will notice?

A big fucking unrendered sign in caps against a blue background? Yeah maybe.

So I’m sitting there and thinking and blazing a hole through the screen and Jaro’s talking to god knows who on the phone and I’m still thinking and then it comes to me. FCP is obviously retarded. We can’t change that. Take out the frame that’s unrendered, it will be black but who cares its one frame and our edit is fast anyway, it fits! So I do that, cut out that shit and export it and it works.

Its perfect.

Three in the morning. Making a DVD.

Ok which program do you want to use, iDVD or DVD Studio Pro? I don’t care let’s just use one. No wait. Let’s not use iDVD that would be too easy. Wait what? Do you know what time I have to be up in the morning? Here we go DVD Studio Pro! Ok. Now what? Why is the program grey? Where’s the video? Where’s the menu? How the hell do we use this program? Use a button. Button? Yeah, you know, to hit to start the movie on the menu. Well where are the buttons? I don’t know. This isn’t my computer. Well that’s not helping at all. These fucking buttons are no where to be found and we’re sitting around here like a bunch of…

I’ll spare you the gory details. Dave got smart for once and used a flash drive. Saved it.

No more DVD Studio Pro.

And that was the making of.