On the Air Live with Rich and Renee

If you want to listen in when Rich and Renee O'Connor talk live on the air about making "Fitful" with Mary in the Morning just go to www.1067youfm.com and click on "Listen Live". They will be on the air tomorrow morning (9/24) from 7-7:20 am.

"Fitful" in the News

Check out this piece on Fitful production from 9&10 News

Faces of "Fitful"

A few more great pics. From top to bottom: Rich Brauer, Renee O'Connor, Renee O'Connor, Larry Joe Campbell, Renee O'Connor and Larry Joe Campbell.

Things have gone really well all week. Two thirds of the footage is in the can and Rich couldn't be happier with the progress.

Rain is in the forecast for next week so the crew is working on back up plans.

The Interns

One of our passions at Brauer Productions is mentoring the next generation of film makers and growing and developing new crew members for the industry. We have put 8 interns to work in paid positions on "Fitful".

Pictured are David Johnson, Anthony Sprague, Chelsea Compton, Meg Mertaugh, and Angie Wolverton. All of them took one of the PA classes or workshops Rich taught over the past year and they are learning a lot and having a great time. Not pictured are interns Kelly Perrin, Jenn Ryan, and Shelly Newman.

Kidding Around

Yesterday, some of Manistee Catholic's second graders were on set for one of the scenes in Fitful. Larry, Renee, Rich and the crew all had fun working with them and the kids had a blast.

Thank you to the school for making this possible.

On Set

I spent the day yesterday on the set of Fitful in Manistee and was impressed by the teamwork, camaraderie and professionalism shown by all involved.

Larry Joe (photo 5) and Renee (photo 4) are breathing life into their characters "Vigs" and "Paula". I had an opportunity to meet both of them and they are not only extremely talented...they are also both really kind individuals.

Fitful's 1st assistant director, Laura Anderson Burnell (photo 3), and script supervisor, Sheryl Hayward (photo 2), are keeping the heartbeat of production on track and accurate.

And what is Rich Brauer (photo 1) doing to celebrate his birthday today? Making a movie and he couldn't be happier.

All the photos included in this post were taken by Beth Price, owner of Priceless Photography. She was on set yesterday and did an amazing job capturing the faces and places of Fitful. Thank you, Beth!

Fish is Fish

Our lovely associate producer, Kim and equally lovely production assistant, Kelly are displaying the dead salmon props that arrived for Fitful. It's kind of a "Price is Right" moment.

Production is tracking well and things are on course.

My next update won't be posted until Tuesday because I will be spending Monday on set! Rest assured I will be coming back with more great photos and a few tales to tell.

"Fitful" in Action

An excellent report from all involved on the first day of shooting for Fitful! The crew is working like a well oiled machine and Renee is by all accounts amazing. But we knew that would be the case.

Check out these behind the scenes shots of Renee and the crew.

Special thanks to the Boathouse Grill who will be hosting the crew for some of their meals. Owner Chris Diebel has been wonderful and is very accommodating.

And, thank you to Manistee Catholic - some of the school's second graders will be serving as extras.

The Mother Ship

Meet one of the main characters in Fitful - the SS City of Milwaukee. Pretty impressive. Much of the shoot will take place aboard this vessel. Many thanks to the ship's team for their coordination and hospitality.

The load went well yesterday afternoon. By the end of the day, the crew had it lit and ready for today's shoot.

Yesterday there was also time for rehearsal for Renee O'Connor (Paula), Rich (writer/director/DP) and Laura (first AD).

The amazing first day of production wrapped with a delicious dinner at Bungalow.

Day one of "Fitful" Production

The crew made it safely to Manistee and are busy settling in. Binders, crew t-shirts and Chamber packets have been handed out.

This afternoon everyone is heading to the ship so each department can set up. Shooting starts tomorrow!

Manistee Folk

Our team's visit to Manistee yesterday was wonderful. At the Business After Hours event we got to know the heart of the community better - Manistee folk are welcoming and gracious. Everyone the team connected with offered their assistance.

Special thanks to Sheila and Suzanne from the Boardwalk Century 21 office in Manistee for all their assistance.

We are just three days from production and the heat is on!

Manistee Bound

Rich and company are headed to Manistee today to meet with community members (police, tribe, mayor and press) and staying for Manistee's business after hours to meeting and greeting. Ensuring that the community has an excellent film making experience is really important to us.

The team will also be doing a tech scout and additional location scouting, finding those last key locations before heading back to Traverse City.

It's All About Food

When you are working long days on set, well executed craft services can near an art form. But that isn't the food I am referring to. I'm talking about the food that will appear in "Fitful".

Chef Brian Kissell from the Blue Slipper Pizzeria will be on set preparing, styling, and maintaining all the in-scene food. Sometimes you want your oatmeal thin, sometimes you want it thick - he can handle both.

Details

Today and well, really the rest of this week, it's all about taking care of the details. So many elements are set like locations, lodging and catering. Manistee's Chamber has been a huge help in finding the locations and support we need.

The office is humming and the team is working on more logistics and things like trailers for the stars. Pictured are Rich Brauer (left), Fitful's writer and director, Kim Eckstein (right), associate producer, and Kelly Perrin (center), production coordinator, in the midst of a pre-production meeting. Kim and Kelly have been hard at work and cast and crew packets are together and on their way out the door today.