Page 47 of See Her

Mayzie

"Almost done,"Anita, the makeup artist says, as she paints my lower lip with a deep, berry red lipstick. I'm standing on a small, makeshift dance floor near the windows of the abandoned warehouse, while cameras and lights are being set up around me. My hair has been blown out, teased, and falls wildly around my shoulders. I've been given Cleopatra cat eyes, with a smoky eye shadow, and my cheeks have been contoured, whatever the hell that means.

I’m in my usual dance clothes, only with a dark and edgy flair to them, and paired with my makeup, I think I look the part of troubled, but badass. I’m actually digging the off-shoulder t-shirt and the fishnet tights, but sadly they won’t show a whole lot as I’m going to be partially backlit, giving off a mysterious silhouette vibe as I dance. Hopefully I don’t get blinded and go flying into any expensive equipment.

Just as Anita is satisfied with her work and takes her leave, Ron walks up, giving me no time to stand there awkwardly. I wonder if the people in this industry just naturally run like a well-timed machine or if it’s deliberate.

“Have you practiced dancing to the song?” he asks in a friendly tone.

“Yep,” I nod, slightly nervous, but the truth is I feel as good about the choreography as Jack does with the lyrics. I had little time to work with, but with Jack’s voice singing about how he sees me to guide me, I think I came up with something truly moving. “Yeah, I’m good to go,” I say with more affirmation.

“Great, glad to hear it.” He smiles and nods his confidence. “Just go with that and you’ll be filmed. You’ll be asked to go through it and re-shoot several moves so that they capture the right shot, but hang in there.”

I gathered by the ungodly hour we’re here, and the coffee and food set out, that this was going to be something of a process, so I’m not surprised.

“We’re also going to film a little of you not dancing,” he adds.

Say what?

“We want to capture some of the duality the song describes aboutHer, aka, you,” he explains to my dumbfounded expression.

“Got it,” I assure him, even though I’m still slightly apprehensive on the inside at this new info.

In the next few moments, there’s lots of shouting for people to find their marks, and finally a cue for the camera to start rolling.

When I hear the opening notes of See Her start pumping through the speakers, I shakily start my routine. It’s several eight-counts before I settle into it, just listening to the song, pretending I’m alone in the studio. The bass drum, the electric guitar riffs, and the deep, ominous tones Jack is singing in give me the motivation I need. There is an occasional cut so that the director can tell me he wants to see a certain move again, or wants me to do it with more intensity, and by the time they call it good, I’m out of breath and slightly hangry.

I’m gratefully chugging from a cold water bottle when I hear a low and rough but velvety voice approaching me.

“Wow,” Jack muses as Anita shows up again at my side to touch me up with some powder. "Look at you,” he adds, his gaze scoping down and back up again.

"I know. Don't I look crazy?"

"Definitely. But it's crazy pretty." I realize he's in black jeans and adark blue Henley that fits tightly across his chest and arms. No problem with this look at all. "We're shooting right after they're done with you, so I have to go help set up." He gestures to the far corner or the warehouse. "I just wanted to come say hi to my girl first."

“You’re sweet,” I send back to him in a low tone, and I get a kiss on the cheek before he heads back to join the guys. I let that little show of affection fuel me for more and more takes, this time of doing mundane things like gazing out the window while trying to look deep in thought. I feel awkward as I’m not an actress. Sure, I have to express emotion and tell stories through dance, but that feels completely different.

I’m trying to ignore the camera as I look out at the overcast, now-late morning when I get an idea. It’s summer, so there’s no frost or condensation, but it’s better than doing nothing. Leaning in, I draw in a deep breath and release it onto the pane, leaving a small foggy patch. Then, like kids love doing in the cold weather, I take my finger and slowly etch the wordsSee Me.

I hear an approvingYes!– I’m guessing from the director – and he hollers for the camera to move in and get the words before they evaporate with my makeshift mist. The director has me do it again a couple more times so they have the best quality shot before they finally cut for good, freeing me to get myself some sustenance, and hopefully watch the guy’s portion of the filming before we move to the other location.

“You totally nailed the look we were going for,” the director says, high five-ing me before turning to tell the rest of the crew to head over to where the guys have set up. "Jack, Matt, you guys ready?"

"Good to go,” Jack says, slinging his electric guitar over his shoulder.

"You should grab some food, honey," Anita says, patting my back as she walks past me.

Hell yes.

I head over to the catering table and load up a paper plate with some light snacks so that I can quiet the beast but not stuff myself too full for the additional dancing I have to do later.

I glance over towards the shoot to see Anita hurriedly dabbing a little makeup on all the guys before walking away, and the director starts shouting out the usual commands. The song starts,actionis yelled, and the guys start playing and singing along with it. They can’t be heard over the track and the sound is going to be dubbed, but I like that they are singing anyway.

With my plate of fruit and cheese, I sneak over to where Ron and the director are sitting and peek over their shoulders at the monitor, curious to see what this might look like on people’s screens. I’m surprised to notice that Jack’s eyes repeatedly dart away from the camera as he concentrates on the singing.

“Not… what I saw on stage,” I hear Ron murmur, and the director nods at him before yelling, “Cut!”

“Jack,” he calls out to him and Jack raises his eyebrows at him. “You need to look into the camera at some points.”

---