Today is my birthday, which means I will whine, bitch and moan, as usual.
So I have had a bit of money. Unlike most people, when I have money, I do not immediately run off to the nearest shopping mall. No, I think I've grown up a bit, and my money goes into my films and shoots and weed and candy.
My money was all meant for this film I had to shoot at a train station this weekend. Being mostly a producer, I am quite frugal when it comes to budgets. I will not spend, as much as possible.
Having had quite a few experiences running away from cops and security guards with a film crew for guerrilla shoots, it would be real easy and quite fun for me to shoot it this way. However, I managed to snag a big name actor, and I would like to work with him again. I couldn't bear the thought of having him run and hide with all of us in public.
I decided to this the legit way. I was going to go to their office, properly get permits and pay the fees. Get it on paper and signed.
Within a few minutes, I managed to get the location and get the price way down, and I was asked to return to get the permits and pay the fees. I was hesitant, as it was my birthday. Actually, not hesitant -- I DID NOT WANT TO. Since there was really nobody else who'd do it for me, I agreed anyway.
Really, the last thing I want for my birthday is to be traveling to a godforsaken place, in this Manila summer heat and pollution, an hour and a half away from home. That, and cancer.
So this morning, I had to drag myself out of bed. I didn't even bother taking a shower, because I knew as soon as I get home, I'd be scrubbing myself for a good 30mins again. When I got there, I was greeted with bad news: "Hey, turns out, we can't give you that low rate we promised you yesterday... So we're going to have to double it."
I was about ready to flip, but instead, I tried to talk to them, in the calmest, most professional way I could. Maybe, if I ask them again nicely, maybe if I explained why I'm doing this, maybe if I tell them that this all came from my birthday money. Maybe.
I've always been quite good at talking to people, but it seemed like they were out for money. The lady was quite firm, and insisted I pay double the price. The pressure of having to shoot in 2 days, the travel I had to go through from home to their office in 2 days, and celebrating my birthday in an old, seedy looking office where I am basically being robbed, brought me on the verge of tears... and I do not cry easily.
"It says you're a producer/director! How can you not have money?!" -- I do not know where it came from that producers and filmmakers all have money. No, we don't. More often, we're broke, unemployed fucks.
It took another half an hour of groveling when she agreed to shave off at least a thousand off the 'double price'. I was tired and dirty and sticky and annoyed and aging, and I just wanted to go home... So I let them win and said yes to their price.
What ticked me off really bad, wasn't just that... While paying, I saw them all give each other these looks, I don't know if I was just being paranoid, but it felt like I was being duped by these people.
Look, if you had the power to lower the price in the first place, why did you have to let me beg for an hour? Why give me a doubled price? And why are you telling me I can't get my deposit back? And why do you have to keep repeating: "This money won't go into our pockets" so many times?
They handed me the letters and permits and told me to pay at the cashier. I was walking out of their office to the cashier when I was tempted to make a run for it. I already have the piece of paper with signatures, so screw the payment.... but I decided to be the decent person and just go through with it.
All the while, I was thinking -- THIS, is why the lower people take bribes. Why people would rather pay low workers on the sly. Rather than give your money to the higher ranked corrupt people, give it to the one who needs it more. I was tempted to do that before. Pay off the guards instead, because it would still come out cheaper, but nooooo. I decided to do the right thing and just got screwed over a couple of thousands.
Happy Birthday to me.
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