What is it like being a 1st AD ? Hannah Enlund tells all

With a cast of four, a couple extras and a team or more, we caught up with Hannah to discuss what being 1st AD is all about.

Q: What is a first AD for people who don’t know?

H: A First Assistant Director works closely with the Director and Director of Photography to plan out the schedule of the shooting day and makes sure the day stays on time. They are in charge of the safety of the crew on set. They make sure everyone is on track to get their job done so that the day runs as smoothly as possible.

Q: What was the most challenging thing about making this film?

H: The most challenging thing about making Five Seconds to Air was getting all the shots we needed to in the short amount of time we had. Only having two and a half days to fit in all the shots that we needed, to cover all ten scenes, was difficult. Luckily, I had an incredible crew that moved very quickly allowing us to fit in all the shots we possible could.

Q: What was it like prepping shooting “Five Seconds to Air”?

H: The pre-production for Five Seconds to Air went well. The Director, Cam Harris, and the Director of Photography, Brendan Black, and I worked very well together to plan all the shots, camera positions and schedule. We had a good amount of pre-production time allowing us to plan very thoroughly. Our whole crew planned their department well and the transition to production went very smoothly.

Q: How did you keep organized during pre-production and production?

H: I kept organized during pre-production and production by using Basecamp. Basecamp is online project management software that allows you to post documents, updates, schedule on a calendar and private message members. I found the Basecamp platform to be helpful to keep track of what needed to be done and by whom. I would post any documents on there to make sure everyone received it. I would post all meetings and due dates on the calendar to ensure the whole crew was up to date. This was the key to our crew being on the same page during the whole process.

Q: What was your biggest concern on set?

H: My biggest concern on set was timing. I was in charge of making sure our day ran on schedule. It was difficult to keep the day on schedule as things were constantly changing and taking more time than we expected. Despite the ups and downs we did manage to end early or on schedule each day.

Cam talking with Hannah about the schedule for the day

Q: What do you want people to take away from this film?

H: After watching Five Seconds to Air, I want people to take away that it may be difficult to do the right thing but sometimes it needs to be done. Audrey has a very tough decision to make when she finds out that Senator Laurie Dean Hanson is being bribed by Noveris Media. Audrey had to weigh her choices and choose which was right in her heart. This was a difficult thing for her to do because it not only affected her, but she knew that the world needed to know that the Senator was not being truthful. This lesson can be translated to everyday life and I hope this is what people take away from this film.

“Audrey has a very tough decision to make when she finds out that Senator Laurie Dean Hanson is being bribed by Noveris Media. Audrey had to weigh her choices and choose which was right in her heart. This was a difficult thing for her to do because it not only affected her, but she knew that the world needed to know that the Senator was not being truthful. ”

Q: How did you collaborate with Cam in terms of making the schedules and making sure everyone was on task?

H: The director, Cam Harris, and I worked very well together during all of the pre-production and production process. Cam and I worked together to cut down the amount of shots of the shot list in pre-production and made sure we were on the same page moving into production. After I created the first schedule, I sent it to Cam, and we discussed changes. We did this multiple times until we got the final schedule. At the begin of each production day, Cam and I went through the schedule for that day and planned out our first shot. Then after each shot, we would discuss the next and move the schedule around according to ease. This made our day flow well and made sure we were always in sync moving forward.

Q: Do you have any upcoming projects or things you would like readers to know?

H: Next semester we will be working on short narrative films and Public Service Announcements. I hope to be a first assistant director and picture editor on these projects in the fall.