Action, camera, roll 'em; then pull the MGM lion's tale and rehearse your Oscar speech. In-between these steps are a myriad of production problems to be solved by careful planning, rough diplomacy and attention to small details.

Although bandaging wounded egos or swimming with sharks in suits isn't discussed, production manager Deborah Patz does cover all the other procedural basics for moviemaking in Surviving Production (Michael Wiese Productions $37.50)

"The production coordinator," says Patz, "deals with everyone and everything during the course of making a film."

Along with providing extensive lists, etiquette tips and production charts, Patz recall her's grandmother visit to a film set. "Nobody bothers to dress up for work," her Granny observed. "They're all in jeans. Everybody seems to be standing around doing nothing. I don't know how the show comes out in order, everyone looks so disorganized."
0-941188-60-4

[BCBW 1998]