I recently was cast in the lead role of an adaptation of Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea. I was attracted by the treatment presented and the fact that this would be shot on 35mm film and would have some really fun stuff like underwater shots and fighting an eight foot marlin.

The DP, creator of the project is Conci Althouse, a graduate student at the American Film Institute in Hollywood. This is her last AFI project before graduating next month. AFI attracts some of the best filmmakers from all over the world to come and study at the graduate level and work with some of the best teachers and filmmakers in Hollywood today.

Conci, working with her director Adam McLean and producer Deniese Davis, did an amazing job and put together a fantastic three day shoot. Day one was in a bathroom and bathtub in an old house in Echo Park. That’s where the old man is first seen and where he takes his final breath. Suffering from dementia and a bad case of melancholy, he lives out the last few minutes of his live remembering his biggest battle.

Day two was shooting the fantasy battle scenes with the marlin in a pool in Malibu. With a team of underwater camera operators and specialty underwater lighting equipment, the shoot was flawless and well executed. It was my first time working underwater and I have to say that acting while holding your breath at the bottom of a pool leads to some very real work.

Day three was a sunrise shot at the beach. It went very well and props to my director and co-star Adam who walked into the ocean with out flinching not once, but three times. Way to go.

As if all that wasn’t perfect enough, when we called wrap, a school of dolphins appeared and swam up the coastline near us. With film in the camera, Conci rolled and they were committed to cinematic history.

Loosely adapted, artistically composed, and beautifully shot, I anticipate the footage will look beautiful. I can’t wait to see it and add it to my reel.

For my first AFI film shoot I had an excellent experience and I look forward to more shoots in the future. Thank you Conci, Adam and Deniese, I look forward to working with you all again soon.