Big Exits

I knew this moment would come. You see, I’m always about a week behind on my blogs. This is a result of the time it takes to actually find a spare moment to get behind the computer, mixed with a desire to keep the comings and goings of our cast a secret (for obvious reasons). But at this point, being a week behind has led to the inevitable: there’s more to blog about, but the movie has wrapped. Yes, everyone’s gone home. I’m writing this blog from my apartment, bleary eyed from lack of sleep, yet buzzed from drinking too much coffee at my favorite diner. Production on THE AIR I BREATHE is over. But there are still a few stories to tell. I’ve spoken of the last days of Kevin Bacon and Forest Whittaker. As our final days approached, there were more big exits to come…

I first met Andy Garcia at a group dinner at my favorite restaurant in our hotel. We talked about picadillo, a remarkable Cuban dish. We marveled at the restaurant’s gift of a large chocolate monkey bearing a gift box of designer chocolates. And then I got to watch the man work. He wears a suit better than anyone I’ve ever met. He enters the set with a hushed charisma that’ll make you a little nervous…until he loudly cracks a joke that makes everyone laugh, instantly putting the crew at ease. He’s often posing for pictures with fans, even when stopped between his trailer and the sound stage. And he never stops trying to make the scene he’s acting in as interesting and spontaneous as possible. Due to scheduling reasons, Andy shot all of his scenes pretty much back to back. Two weeks after I met him, Andy shot his final scene, one of the most intense in the entire film, posed for a couple of pictures with members of the crew, and then left Mexico City later that afternoon.

For Sarah Michelle Gellar’s final scene, she looked through a medicine cabinet. It was just a few seconds of film really. It’s funny the way movies are made, because Sarah has so many powerful scenes, so many unforgettable moments, and after six intense weeks, that’s all we needed, maybe two takes of Sarah and the medicine cabinet. It was very late when we wrapped her. Exhausted, we all took turns saying goodbye. I told her it was great working with her, that we should do it again soon. She said, “Let’s rest first.” I thought that was it. But the next afternoon, as some of us waited for the vans that would take us to set, we again crossed paths with Sarah, on her way to the airport. She seemed completely energized, excited to be getting back home. Another round of goodbyes. This time, as she hugged me, she said, warmly, “Have fun.”

Advice to live by, don’t you think?