Random Acts of Romance script supervisor Lara Fox braved the Vancouver wind and rain to come and talk with Sparkjoy Studios about her work on the film. What emerged was a riveting conversation that spanned over an hour, with Lara sharing stories from her long and distinguished film career. This is the first of a three-part weekly series.

Lara explained her many overlapping responsibilities to RAOR, both before and during production. She is responsible for knowing the script intimately before cameras ever show up on set. She times out the entire script, scene by scene, prior to shooting and is responsible for keeping the director on track throughout production. “I know the script inside out,” she says. “I have to know about makeup, hair, wardrobe, sets, props, camera angles.”

Part of Lara’s job is to make sure the camera shots are aligned so that the film can be edited together to tell a smooth, captivating story. “I’m the eyes of the camera. I record everything that goes on through the camera for the editors, so that they can edit it together with no problems.”

These duties fall upon her shoulders alone. “I’m a one person department, I have no assistants, I cannot delegate my work. It’s all in my head and in my script. I’m basically the only one on set that’s got a script handy at all times.”

One thing that’s certain: Lara’s job is not for the scatterbrained or sleepy-eyed. Think of her as the air traffic controller of the film industry; the sinew that holds everything together. Carrying a stopwatch and mini video camera around at all times, Lara keeps track of every minute detail that could affect the continuity of the story, or pose editing problems during post-production: what was shot, what data card it was shot on, how long each scene was, how many takes it took to bag a keeper, the lighting conditions, the time of day, how the actors are dressed, what they’re holding, what they doing, how they’re doing it…the list is virtually endless.

“We used to be called continuity,” she says, “but now we’re script supervisors because we’re the ones that say ‘This is wrong, this is wrong, and fix it.’ So, basically, we’re supervisors of the script and of the people that are involved in the script. And if there’s any inconsistencies in the script, then I have to talk to the writer, the producer, the director, that these are going to be problems in shooting.”

Lara has worked with many of the most renowned movie and television stars. She even worked on the quintessential icon of television Canadiana, The Beachcombers. But, better than hearing it all from us, we’ll let Lara to tell you about herself and her experience working on Random Acts of Romance in her own words.

Stay tuned for that story in a week’s time. If you would like to be notified when we post it, or would like to receive it directly in your inbox, you can either “like” of friend RAOR on Facebook.

Lara is a freelancer in the Vancouver area. If you would like to inquire about her services, you can contact her at foxlp@telus.net.