Linus Griswald’s embarrassing public marriage proposal goes horribly wrong. As he’s close to abandoning all hope, he finds life-changing advice in… a fortune cookie.
I’m Isaiah Jeffries, writer and director of Fame and Fortune. Follow my journey through our film’s delightful production process!
Sweet Beginnings – Pre-Production
The story of Fame and Fortune is an idea I’ve had since I was a kid. In my juvenile mind, the idea of a guy who finds a magic fortune paper that changes his life was the coolest thing I could think up. I found it fitting to wrap up my college experience by honoring my younger self and giving this story a chance.
People change. I’ve changed. The story my younger self drummed up wasn’t exactly my cup of tea today. As I wrote the script, I tried to capture the childlike simplicity of my original story while using the storybuilding skills I’ve learned at BYU-I. The finished product adds more conflict, drama, intrigue, and pizzazz than my younger, uneducated self could have dreamed of.
I knew we’d need top-notch actors to pull this story off, so I enlisted some very talented friends of mine who have extensive experience acting. All of them either currently study theatre here at BYU-I or graduated with theatre degrees. I am grateful to them for lending their talents to this film.
I spent a significant amount of time creating props. There were several props in this film requiring professional Photoshop and print work. Thanks to the broad range of skills I’ve had the opportunity to learn in our Communications department, it was no issue, and it was fun!
I set up a table read/tech rehearsal to help the actors feel more comfortable with the story, and the crew to have time to master the equipment we planned to use.
Each member of our team did a great job in preparing for our production shoots. Whenever I delegated responsibilities, people were eager to do their jobs. I helped ensure everyone knew what they needed to, and when they needed to do it by.
With our pre-production checklists wrapping up, it was time to shoot this thing!
Show Time – Production
Knowing how an excess of locations can make life torture on set, I wrote the story with only a few locations in mind, without making it feel too stagnant. Our producer, Itala, had access to the perfect set of locations that worked for almost every scene we needed.
For our first week of production, we shot our night scenes in the apartment location. Once a scene was shot at a candelight dinner, so I made sure our production designer was on candle duty to make sure it was always lit for shots, but blown out in between to keep it from melting too much.
In our second week of production, we captured our film’s montage and outdoor shots. I knew I wanted a specific dolly shot, but alas, we are on a budget of zero dollars… so I borrowed my friend’s wheelchair he bought at a thrift store.
We shot most of our scenes on one Saturday in our third production week due to the busy schedules of our actors. All locations that day were within close walking distance, and everything went smoothly.
Almost There – Post-Production
As I’m writing this article, Fame and Fortune is nearing completion.
Watch our trailer!
Our editor, Keith, is doing a fantastic job! I’ve met with him in edit bays several times to add direction, and he is bringing my vision to life.
Timing and pacing are as crucial in the editing process as they are with our actors on set. Comedy needs to breathe at a very particular pace.
Connor, our gaffer, also took on the duty of coloring our footage. I’ve seen what he’s done, and given my input, and it is looking visually stunning.
Now we’re in the process of perfecting our audio. We’re almost there.
If my younger self could see what we’re doing with this story now, he couldn’t believe it! I’m honored to have the opportunity to finally tell this story that’s been brewing in my head for years.
Thanks for reading! Be sure to follow Fame and Fortune on YouTube and Instagram for updates and our film’s release!