I finished the runners job in Birmingham yesterday and am a bit knackered now, but it’s okay, I’ve prescribed myself a movie for the afternoon to aid the healing process.

As I’ve mentioned, the job was for a promotional video commissioned by the Birmingham City Council in order to support Birmingham’s bid to be ‘European city of Culture 2008’ … (good luck to Brum, is all I have to say!). I had to ferry Maria, (the AP), Charlotte, (the Director/Camera) and sound guys around Brum for two days. No easy task on the first day as I was doing all of this in my little Fiat Panda! I managed to borrow my sister Pam’s Punto for the second day, much to the crew’s relief.

Basically the shoot was of food people and places in Birmingham and using this as a metaphor for the cultural diversity of the city. Charlotte kept mentioning to people that the shoot was to support Brums bid to be ‘Multicultural city of Europe 2008’ hence this approach but it didn’t make any difference and I reckon it’s going to be very good. Apparantly it’s one of six three-minute films commisioned.

So for two days I was driving between Soho Road, the ‘Balti Triangle’, our Chinese Quarter, (more of a sixteenth really), and the Jewellery quarter; lugging bags and tripods to various restaurants, supermarkets and other food outlets.

It was instructional working with professionals and I guess I learnt a lot but realise that you can get away with quite a lot as compared with that which is taught at the Lighthouse. (I expect it’s different if you’re doing things for the hoity-toity BBC).

All of which should prove useful for the Theatre Prod. shoot with Jaimie which will be sometime next week. Having spoken to the sound guys at the shoot, (coincidentally, one knew Sue and Hammy, two old friends from Glossop), I really feel going freelance is the way to go.