What happened?

You are right...that was a crowning achievement.


The actors worked extremely hard to give the audience the WOW. They suggested the three scenes where Roxton and Marguerite touched or held hands. The director went along with the idea. *sniffle*


:)



The Treehouse News on Trapped and Heart of the Storm


BEHIND THE SCENES: "Trapped" and "Heart of the Storm, Part 1"
Actually, the title above should read, "Heart of the Storm, Part 1" and "Trapped," because the last two episodes of Season Three were filmed out of order, Episode 322 before Episode 321.

Earlier in the season, "Brothers in Arms" and "A Witch's Calling" were also filmed out of order, though this was primarily because of scheduling concerns based on availability of the required locations. But for the last two episodes of Season Three, the reason was budgetary.

All year, the entire production team and the story department had worked hard (and, in the case of the art/prop/set departments, worked a few miracles, too) to keep the budget under control. But, during the course of Season Three, there was always that unspoken understanding that if we did go a little over budget on one episode (e.g. "Hollow Victory"), we could always make it up by cutting back on a future episode (e.g. "End Game"). However, with the season's production coming to an end, there were no more future episodes to cut back on. We had two more chances, and everyone knew going in that "Heart of the Storm, Part 1" was going to be one of the more expensive episodes of the season. That put a lot of pressure on the writer and the director of "Trapped" -- Executive Producer Guy Mullally and Catherine Millar, respectively -- to keep that episode under control.

Episode 321: "Trapped"
The biggest cost saving realized for filming "Trapped" as the last episode in the production schedule was a result of having only one film unit work on it. Usually, TLW kept two full units working, five days a week. One of the advantages of using two units was to make it slightly easier (though not less expensive) to schedule all the extra pick-up shots that might be required to fine tune an episode several weeks after it had been shot. In some episodes, the pick-up shots were little more than a close-up of Roxton's hand in the act of drawing a gun. In others, entire scenes were redone.

One example is the cave scene in Episode 314, "The Secret," in which the stone bridge collapses and Marguerite saves Roxton with a giant dinosaur rib. The original version of the scene played very well, but when it was edited into the first assembly of the episode, we all had the feeling that it could be even better if it were made "bigger." So, the art department took another crack at the cave set, changing the design of the bridge and the lighting. Extra shots were added to allow for more CGI effects to be cut in, and about two weeks after they had first shot the scene, Will Snow and Rachel Blakely reprised their performance. Interestingly enough, all the dialogue remained the same, but now the entire sequence had a bigger, more cinematic feel.

But at the end of the season, we all knew that if by any chance a first viewing of the last episode were to leave any of us with a similar feeling that a particular scene might be improved by reshooting, we would be out of luck. The actors and production crew would be long gone on a well-deserved hiatus. Thus, from the beginning, even before anyone knew what the story would be, Episode 321 was planned as a small, tight, inexpensive episode, ideally with no guest stars, minimal CGI, and at least three days of filming that could be accomplished in one set, and with only some of the cast.

Since the cast is paid by the episode, and not by the hour, people sometimes wonder why having fewer cast members in a scene makes it less expensive to film. The answer is "coverage." When a typical scene is shot, directors usually follow a common pattern. The first shot is called a "master," and the camera is set back far enough with a lens that can take in every cast member and the entire set. After the cast has performed the scene to the director's -- and their -- satisfaction, the cameras are repositioned to cover particular groups of actors, perhaps Roxton and Marguerite in the cooking area, and Veronica, Malone, and Challenger at the main table. Now, the entire scene is performed again, usually several times until the director and cast are satisfied once again. This procedure places special burdens on continuity since it's also very important that every movement of the cast and props match the original movements as performed in the master shot.

Finally, the cameras are repositioned at least one more time for close-ups. This time, Veronica, Malone, and Challenger might be off screen entirely, with one camera focused only on Marguerite, and one only on Roxton. (If the schedule allows, the other cast members in the scene will usually remain on the set to give their lines, even though they're not being filmed. Of course, in these situations, the offscreen actors can sometimes decide to torment their onscreen friends by deliberately mangling their lines, or speaking with their mouths full as they eat their lunch. For extremely emotional or complex scenes, though, such as the one between Roxton and Malone in the jungle at the end of Episode 310, "Brothers in Arms," even the offscreen actor delivers a complete performance to help the onscreen actor stay "in the moment."

Since each time cameras are repositioned the set lighting must be changed, to obtain film coverage of all the cast members plus guest stars in a single scene makes for an extremely time-intensive day. Plus, all the actors involved are not available to film other scenes with the second unit or rerecord lines in the sound studio, which might cause even more schedule delays.

So, for Episode 321, putting two and only two cast members in a single set seemed to be a great strategy for easing the burden on the budget. The two questions to be answered early in the planning were, "Which set?" and "Which two cast members?" The rest is history.

To digress for a moment, the two of us have to say that those final weeks of production were a special time for everyone involved with the show. Season Three had begun with all the excitement and confusion of a fire alarm going off at four in the morning. Production had begun before the full crew had been reassembled. Almost every department worked weekends. The post-production schedule was about five seconds away from being impossible. But by the time we had all returned from a two-and-a-half week Christmas break (about five days for the story department), we all shared a real sense of accomplishment -- we had undergone trial by fire and survived. Then came the wonderful production meeting in January when the producers circulated a fax from Los Angeles with the Hollywood Reporter story announcing that New Line had committed to a fourth season of the series even before the 2002-2003 selling cycle had begun. That early renewal was a strong vote of confidence in what we had all been doing and it gave everyone real encouragement as we headed into the second half of the season. (For the record, Christmas break fell into the middle of Episode 315, "Finn.")

It was with that early renewal that Guy and we could finally look to the last episodes not as the end of the series (in which case, the adventures of the Challenger Expedition would have been resolved), but as the end of a chapter in an even bigger story. Thus, instead of revealing everything about Veronica's parents, we could reveal half the story, knowing that the second half could be told in Season Four. And we could move the relationship between Roxton and Marguerite forward by a few steps, instead of to a final resolution. That meant that the rest of Season Three could be a long build up to those "three words" and the next season of TLW.

As soon as Guy had worked out his story of Marguerite and Roxton trapped in a cave and facing death, he knew that would be the time for their true feelings to finally be brought out into the open. Whatever else was in that episode, it was definitely going to have six little words -- three for Roxton, three for Marguerite.

But as everyone recalls, that's not quite how it turned out. We share the blame for that with Will Snow.

Since the two of us knew Roxton and Marguerite were heading to a big moment in Episode 321, we decided to "tease" it by increasing the tension between them in Episode 320, "Legacy." Our plan was to build to what might seem was about to become a big moment, only to have it interrupted by Mordren's magical appearance. That, we felt, would add even more poignancy to the fact that there would be no interruptions in the cave in Episode 321.

To build to the big moment in "Legacy," we wrote the scene between Marguerite and Roxton so it would bring Roxton right to the moment of declaring his love for Marguerite, but then have her stop him. However, on the day that scene was filmed, Will and Rachel became so impassioned by the revelations each of their characters were making to the other, Will didn't stop, but had Roxton say, "I love you," to Marguerite. He later explained to us that as an actor, he just didn't feel right about allowing Roxton to be stopped at that moment, and in retrospect, he was absolutely correct. What we had hoped would be an emotionally moving scene had become even more heightened by the fact that Roxton had now put everything on the line for Marguerite, and she had spurned him! Talk about angst -- and we know you do!

Fortunately, since "Trapped" was not yet a final script, Guy could adjust for that slight change in plans as he polished the dialogue for "Trapped," just as we could adjust some of Mordren's dialogue in "Legacy," to account for what Guy and we were developing as the story for "Heart of the Storm, Part 1." (But what the dialogue was, we'll leave for next season, and a Behind the Scenes look at "Heart of the Storm, Part 2" -- keeping our fingers crossed, of course.)

Episode 322: "Heart of the Storm, Part 1"
"Legacy" was a big episode for the production team, with lots of guest stars and extras, a big fight, and the added scheduling complications of having Jennifer O'Dell play two parts. Going from that episode to "Heart of the Storm, Part 1" was a tough proposition, and once again the construction crews were working three shifts, and the costume department, which had to dress Conquistadors, Druids, and Slavers from the future (right after handling Mordren, Diana, the Avalon Warrior, Abigail in two outfits, and the Leyton Expedition) thought they were back at the beginning of the season again, when all deadlines were yesterday.

But "Heart of the Storm, Part 1" brought out the best in everyone, possibly because we all knew that when it was over, we could finally catch up on our sleep.

Unfortunately, one member of the company decided to catch up on his sleep permanently, before his final scenes were completed.

We refer, of course, to the one TLW guest star in all three seasons who was almost impossible to deal with, never played a scene the same twice, and never spoke a word to the other cast members off the set -- the notorious Arthur the Beetle.

Arthur's role in the Lost World had begun as a bit of an inside joke. Closer to the beginning of the season, there were very preliminary discussions about ways to possibly bring back Summerlee, although, at the time, everyone knew there were major business constraints against doing so, ranging from travel costs to somehow sneaking Michael Sinelnikoff past the very strict Australian regulations limiting the production to one non-Australian guest star per episode -- and ignoring government regulations is never a good idea. When we heard of those discussions -- and the fact that they even included a joking suggestion about ÒWhat if we snuck him back by shrinking him and making him a bug!Ó -- we couldn't resist what sounded to us like a challenge, and we wrote one very small scene in Episode 314, "The Secret," in which Challenger discovers a most unusual beetle which reminds him of a very dear friend.

It was a bit of surprise for us when no one at the production meeting commented on the scene (i.e. no one asked us to take it out), and the art department tracked down an appropriately charismatic beetle. (There were several "Arthurs," as a matter of fact, including one that was already dead so it could be used in the sample jar when the jar was being roughly handled.) It was even more of a surprise to Peter McCauley who found out that he would have to play a scene with a beetle. But in addition to so powerfully portraying Challenger's fire and passion, Peter has a wonderful talent for comedy, and interacted beautifully with his six-legged co-star.

What was supposed to have been the last mention of the beetle occurred at the end of "The Secret," when Challenger needed an excuse to leave Roxton and Marguerite alone. He said he was going to track down that remarkable insect he had found earlier. Even for Challenger, that would be an impossible task.

Or would it? we asked ourselves. Perhaps not if the insect in question *wanted* to be found.

Then came Episode 316, "Suspicion." Now we finally had the opportunity to christen our unnamed beetle and give him a home. Obviously, Challenger had succeeded in finding the beetle after the events of "The Secret," which to us clearly implied that there was more to Arthur than met the eye. (Not to spoil anyone's illusions, but sadly enough for all of us, the beetle portraying Arthur in "Suspicion" was not the same beetle who won the audition for "The Secret." The first Arthur, however, apparently created an audition reel of his performance and went to Japan, hoping to get a role in the next Godzilla film.)

This time at the "Suspicion" production meeting, when the Arthur-the-beetle scene came up, the prop department assured us they could get another beetle, although they were concerned that with his increasing role in the series, the new beetle might soon be demanding his own trailer. Though we didn't say it at the time, we privately worried that when our newest cast member learned what we had in store for him, not only would he hold out for his own trailer, he'd be demanding his own car and driver, and his name in the opening credits.

But, we thought, because Arthur was finished for the season, those demands would not have to be faced for months... until the time came for us to sit down and work out the details of the season-ending cliffhanger with Guy Mullally. One of the first things to come out of that initial story session was that, this time, instead of everyone being together in the final moments, each character would face a different certain death. But as the three of us started writing a list of all the different disasters that might befall the explorers -- each tying into something unique about them and their past -- Judy realized that one very important name was missing. "What about Arthur?" she asked. "Doesn't he get a cliffhanger?"

Well, since we knew what Arthur was and what the future had in store for him, coming up with his particular cliffhanger situation was very simple, and fit perfectly with the story of the "reality storm." There was only one problem.

Arthur's species of beetle, the prop department informed us, was out of season in Australia. Most of his relatives had already faced their own, personal cliffhangers, and had not been renewed.

Fortunately, before the episode began filming, the prop department came through with what was supposed to have been the last living beetle of Arthur's species on the continent. Unfortunately, he did not live long, and the next day when we all watched the rushes of the Treehouse scenes in which Arthur first exhibits his mysterious weight gain, we were all appalled to see that front and center on the scales was a seriously dead beetle.

Now, most times when something unexpected comes up on set, the cast and crew respond quickly and cleverly to save the day. And this day -- the first day of production for the episode -- was no exception. In some of the scenes in which Finn and Veronica peer at Arthur on the scales, Jennifer O'Dell surreptitiously taps the scales to make the dead beetle move. At this point, we didn't know if we were watching an episode of the Lost World, or the Monty Python dead parrot sketch.

Since the ex-Arthur had been filmed and the characters had commented on his weight gain, it was too late to write him out of the episode. The best we could do was to ask that the editors choose shots that didn't feature Arthur up close and personal, and hope the fact that Arthur would spend most of the rest of the episode in his "traveling jar" would help disguise the fact that his traveling days were over.

Heading back to the fortunate side of the street, though, when we saw the first rough assembly of the episode, we were surprised -- and relieved -- to see a living breathing (or, at least, osmosing) beetle in the close-up shots of the scales. The prop department had scoured Australia and found the Methuselah of the beetle world, who gave one last great performance before his time was up.

Fortunately, once again, when/if we get a chance to write "Heart of the Storm, Part 2," Arthur the beetle won't be creating any new problems for the casting department. As Veronica says, Beetles don't spin cocoons. So when that cocoon opens... well, let's just say there will be other casting considerations to think about.

For the two of us, personally, one of the highlights of "Heart of the Storm, Part 1" was to meet Robert Colby, who was making his third appearance in the series as William Maple White, the explorer whose notebook helped lead Challenger to the Plateau.

In Season Two, we brought back a ghostly version of Maple White in Episode 218, "Survivors." After we had turned in the first draft, we were asked what we thought about bringing back the actor who had played Maple White in the pilot. We thought it was an odd question, because in the final version of the pilot, Maple White's role is very small, and the actor's face is never seen clearly -- he's either obscured by rain and darkness, or by blood. In fact, we had always thought the part had been played by a stunt man. But what the heck, we said, sure, and then we were so impressed by Robert Colby's performance that we knew Maple White had to come back again.