Local Fixer

As it happens with most blogs I've left A Lad Who Writes aside during summer because... well, because it was summer. I wasn't at home, I didn't have a proper Internet connection and although I had -and still have- a few things to write about I was too busy doing... let's just say I was doing other things.

Before going on holidays I worked for some days in a project I consider myself lucky to have been a part of. Paul, a great professor and cinema professional who I can also call a friend, asked me to work as a local fixer in a 3D documentary he was about to shoot at the Institut Guttmann Neurorehabilitation Hospital, where they treat patients with spine cord injuries and brain damage. I immediately jumped into it. I found Paul and Martin (the DOP) a flat to stay, translated everything they needed, called/booked taxis to go wherever we had to, did some paperwork, kept the CCO informed and as happy with us as I could... and also took them two out for some drinks. That's pretty much what fixing's about, making sure the team can focus on the shooting as everything else's been taken care of. I was also the documentary's sound mixer so I was pretty busy all the time. It was really good experience I learnt a lot from, not only professionally -which I obviously did- but also as a human being.

Shooting at a neurorehabilitation clinic was as tough as it sounds. Or maybe even more, as it struck me although I was aware of what were we going to see. I'm not talking only about the patients but also about the doctors, nurses and physiotherapists in there who have to put up with all that every day. Kudos to them. It may sound as a truism but when you see people suffering as they push as hard as they can to earn every inch of their recovery it moves you and makes you realise how lucky you are no matter how big you think your problems are. An example: I was following Paul and Martin (Morlock, the DOP) as they shot, carrying authorisation forms the patients had to sign so we could use the footage. As they shot many of them at a time and then they would move on I doing my job while following them. At a certain point I "complained" about how they kept me running up and down. One of the patients (on a wheelchair) said "Kid, I wish I could be running after those two". Not that he was offended -he told me it was a joke as soon as he saw my expression changing- but it makes you think. Or maybe I'm just stupid and don't think before I speak. Make your choice. Be as it may, those few days of hard work as a producer turned out to be one of the most interesting -and fulfilling- experiences I've had this year, and I can't wait to see the documentary when it's done.

Com passa amb la majoria de blogs, he deixat A Lad Who Writes de banda durant l'estiu perquè... bé, perquè era estiu. No era a casa, no tenia una bona connexió a Internet i tot i que tenia -i tinc- unes quantes coses sobre les quals escriure estava ocupat fent... diguem simplement que estava fent altres coses.

Abans d'anar de vacances vaig treballar durant uns quants dies en un projecte del quan em considero afortunat d'haver format part. En Paul, un gran professor i professional del cinema al qual, a més, puc anomenar amic, em va demanar si podia fer de local fixer (productor local, que en diríem) en un documental 3D que era a punt de rodar a l'Institut Guttmann, on tracten pacients amb lesions de medul·la espinal i danys cerebrals. M'hi vaig afegir immediatament. Vaig trobar a en Paul i en Martin (el director de fotografia) un pis on estar-se, vaig traduir tot el que van necessitar, vaig trucar/reservar taxis per anar amunt i avall, vaig fer una mica de paperassa, vaig mantenir la cap de comunicacions informada i tan contenta amb nosaltres com vaig poder... i també em vaig endur aquell parell a prendre alguna cosa. D'això tracta la feina, d'assegurar-se que l'equip es pot concentrar en el rodatge perquè ja t'has encarregat de tota la resta. També era responsable del so del documental o sigui que estava sempre bastant enfeinat. Va ser una experiència genial i de la qual vaig aprendre un munt, no només professionalment -que evidentment ho vaig fer- sinó també com a persona.

Rodar en una clínica de reurorehabilitació va ser tan dur com sona. O potser més perquè em va xocar tot i que era conscient del que veuriem. No parlo només dels pacients sinó també dels metges, infermeres i fisioterapeutes d'allà, que han de conviure amb tot allò cada dia. Tenen tot el meu respecte. Pots semblar un lloc comú però quan veus gent patint, esforçant-se tant com poden per guanyar cada centímetre de la seva recuperació et frapa i et fa adonar-te de com n'ets, d'afortunat siguin com siguin de grans els teus problemes. Per exemple: Estava seguint en Paul i en Martin mentre rodaven, portant un feix de formularis d'autorització que els pacients havien de signar per poder fer servir les imatges. En un moment determinat em vaig "queixar" de com em tenien corrent amunt i avall. Un dels pacients (en cadira de rodes) em va dir "Nen, que més voldria jo que anar corrent darrere d'aquells dos". No és que s'hagués ofès -em va dir que era una broma tan bon punt es va adonar de com em canviava la cara- però et fa pensar. O potser simplement sóc idiota i no penso abans de parlar. Trieu vosaltres mateixos. Fos com fos, aquells dies de treball dur com a productor van resultar ser una de les experiències més interessants -i que més m'han omplert- que he tingut aquest any, i no puc esperar a veure el documental quan estigui acabat.