WWYD?????

[BEG]

So...my son made a movie for his digital media class.  He didn't send it to me but sent it to other family members.  Finally my Mom told me about it so I called him and asked him why he didn't send it to me.  He said he thought I would get mad.  I asked why and he told me that I would understand after I saw the movie.  SO he fwd it to me and I noticed at the end that there were cop lights flashing.  I wasn't upset but I did wonder what if the police really thought something serious was going down.  I was going to post the movie but decided against it because it has our last name in the credits and I don't want some freak to know my last name.  Chances are there are some DU'ers in Cleveland where my son goes to school as well.     If you want to see it PM me and I will decide if I want you to know my last name.     Here is his explanation of what happened. 

I haven't responded back to his email yet as I don't know quite what to say.  What would you say if he were your son?

The project was Mat and mine's, but we got our friends Max and Will to act. Mat had the suitcase initially, Will was the one receiving the package and had the blue light on him and Max was the one that stole everything and ran off. I was behind the camera the entire time, came up with the most basic concept of a chase movie, picked the location and did most of the stairwell stuff since I wanted all of that since the beginning. I don't want to take anyone else's credit though, there was a tremendous amount of working together involved in everything. The four of us argued over what should go on once we started debating the original script and decided what angles to approach certain things, especially with that hand off scene. We spent about five or six hours filming, got 15 minutes of footage and wound up with those three minutes. I also made the three of them run the entire distance of the stairs about two or three times. Mat and I did all of the editing and music choosing, both of which were very evenly split between the two of us.

Here's how the ending happened. Initially, we were going to have a car chase and have Max wind up stuck in some alleyway where Mat and Will would corner him and gun him down, get their respective items and head their separate ways (we went through about four or five different endings and this wound up making the most sense). What happened was that when we first filmed the carjacking from the inside point of view (I was pretty much in the trunk), Max had put the emergency brake on out of habit (he doubled as the guy getting carjacked) when will gassed it, the car just revved and nothing happened, so we shot it a second time, no more than two seconds into him gassing it, we hear the most terrifying siren ever- some cop on patrol had seen the whole thing.

He apparently passed Max who was still on the ground and asked him what the hell was going on, Max told him it was for a movie and the guy was pretty damned pissed. Of course he thought it was real and he had every reason to be freaked out and pissed, I felt really shitty for him for a few days after that. So basically, siren goes off, he pulls us over, screams at us to shut off and get out of the car, finds out what's going on, calls on some backup, the two of them discuss what should be done and he tells us to pack up and go straight home. Things could have gone much, much worse.

He could have noticed that we were essentially packing- we had airsoft guns since they were carjacking someone and we needed them for that original final scene, you can see Mat trying to rip an airsoft uzi that was strapped around his arm off in the final few seconds when the light first starts flashing and will even had a gun strapped to his side under his coat that he didn't have time to take off, the guy didn't notice any of it. We all acknowledge that it was retarded as ****, but hindsight is always 20/20. We learned, trust us on that.

I turned the camera off when the sirens first went off, then a few seconds later I thought "This will make for a good ending!" so I turned the camera back on which is when it gets super blurry because of the camera's stupid autofocus and when I set it down, I just set it down randomly, but it happened to frame Mat pretty well for that last scene. There's a bunch of stuff that we cut out of it, you hear muffled anger from outside the car and then you hear the cop ask if the camera's still running so I ask him if I can go in to turn it off (no one made ANY sudden movements) and you see me reach into the car, let out a lovely "We're sooo ****ed..." and shut off the camera.

It was definitely a learning experience and everyone that has watched it so far has liked it, so I guess we did a couple things right. Hope this doesn't make you think we're constantly getting in trouble or anything.

Love,
Andrew

[Toastedturningtidelegs]

So...my son made a movie for his digital media class.  He didn't send it to me but sent it to other family members.  Finally my Mom told me about it so I called him and asked him why he didn't send it to me.  He said he thought I would get mad.  I asked why and he told me that I would understand after I saw the movie.  SO he fwd it to me and I noticed at the end that there were cop lights flashing.  I wasn't upset but I did wonder what if the police really thought something serious was going down.  I was going to post the movie but decided against it because it has our last name in the credits and I don't want some freak to know my last name.  Chances are there are some DU'ers in Cleveland where my son goes to school as well.     If you want to see it PM me and I will decide if I want you to know my last name.     Here is his explanation of what happened. 

I haven't responded back to his email yet as I don't know quite what to say.  What would you say if he were your son?

The project was Mat and mine's, but we got our friends Max and Will to act. Mat had the suitcase initially, Will was the one receiving the package and had the blue light on him and Max was the one that stole everything and ran off. I was behind the camera the entire time, came up with the most basic concept of a chase movie, picked the location and did most of the stairwell stuff since I wanted all of that since the beginning. I don't want to take anyone else's credit though, there was a tremendous amount of working together involved in everything. The four of us argued over what should go on once we started debating the original script and decided what angles to approach certain things, especially with that hand off scene. We spent about five or six hours filming, got 15 minutes of footage and wound up with those three minutes. I also made the three of them run the entire distance of the stairs about two or three times. Mat and I did all of the editing and music choosing, both of which were very evenly split between the two of us.

Here's how the ending happened. Initially, we were going to have a car chase and have Max wind up stuck in some alleyway where Mat and Will would corner him and gun him down, get their respective items and head their separate ways (we went through about four or five different endings and this wound up making the most sense). What happened was that when we first filmed the carjacking from the inside point of view (I was pretty much in the trunk), Max had put the emergency brake on out of habit (he doubled as the guy getting carjacked) when will gassed it, the car just revved and nothing happened, so we shot it a second time, no more than two seconds into him gassing it, we hear the most terrifying siren ever- some cop on patrol had seen the whole thing.

He apparently passed Max who was still on the ground and asked him what the hell was going on, Max told him it was for a movie and the guy was pretty damned pissed. Of course he thought it was real and he had every reason to be freaked out and pissed, I felt really shitty for him for a few days after that. So basically, siren goes off, he pulls us over, screams at us to shut off and get out of the car, finds out what's going on, calls on some backup, the two of them discuss what should be done and he tells us to pack up and go straight home. Things could have gone much, much worse.

He could have noticed that we were essentially packing- we had airsoft guns since they were carjacking someone and we needed them for that original final scene, you can see Mat trying to rip an airsoft uzi that was strapped around his arm off in the final few seconds when the light first starts flashing and will even had a gun strapped to his side under his coat that he didn't have time to take off, the guy didn't notice any of it. We all acknowledge that it was retarded as ****, but hindsight is always 20/20. We learned, trust us on that.

I turned the camera off when the sirens first went off, then a few seconds later I thought "This will make for a good ending!" so I turned the camera back on which is when it gets super blurry because of the camera's stupid autofocus and when I set it down, I just set it down randomly, but it happened to frame Mat pretty well for that last scene. There's a bunch of stuff that we cut out of it, you hear muffled anger from outside the car and then you hear the cop ask if the camera's still running so I ask him if I can go in to turn it off (no one made ANY sudden movements) and you see me reach into the car, let out a lovely "We're sooo ****ed..." and shut off the camera.

It was definitely a learning experience and everyone that has watched it so far has liked it, so I guess we did a couple things right. Hope this doesn't make you think we're constantly getting in trouble or anything.

Love,
Andrew

This would concern me greatly! Those guns can be mistaken by the police as real and a tragedy could have easily happened. Thank God it didn't.Not judging BEG but I think I would have a conversation about that alone. I'm glad nothing happened to your son{I have a teenaged son and sometimes their judgement is a little askew.

[Chris_]

Cops are faced with split-second decisions every day, sometimes they respond to the detriment of their own safety. That is something to be respected. That could have turned out so ugly for your son and his friends and it sounds like he realizes that.

The video is well done. Next time, I am sure he will make a courtesy call to local law enforcement prior to a shoot.

[BEG]

This would concern me greatly! Those guns can be mistaken by the police as real and a tragedy could have easily happened. Thank God it didn't.Not judging BEG but I think I would have a conversation about that alone. I'm glad nothing happened to your son{I have a teenaged son and sometimes their judgement is a little askew.

Back at Halloween he wanted us to send him his Nerf gun for part of his costume.  He had painted it when he lived at home to look more like a real sawed off shot gun (why I do not know)......well as real as a Nerf gun could look.  I freaked out and made a big deal about it.  Said if the police had been called they might just get a glimpse of it and assume it was a real gun.  So I made my husband paint the barrel of the gun bright neon orange.  Sent it to him and the little shit painted it back the way he originally had it. 

Here is a picture of him with the "gun".  I realize that to people who know guns that it doesn't look real at all but in a split second a cop or someone who may have a gun it could appear very real.



He thought I was SOOOOO over blowing the situation.

[BEG]

Cops are faced with split-second decisions every day, sometimes they respond to the detriment of their own safety. That is something to be respected. That could have turned out so ugly for your son and his friends and it sounds like he realizes that.

The video is well done. Next time, I am sure he will make a courtesy call to local law enforcement prior to a shoot.

I was planning on telling him they should have notified the police before they did this stunt.  It makes me sick thinking of what could have happened.

[Chris_]

Cops are faced with split-second decisions every day, sometimes they respond to the detriment of their own safety. That is something to be respected. That could have turned out so ugly for your son and his friends and it sounds like he realizes that.

The video is well done. Next time, I am sure he will make a courtesy call to local law enforcement prior to a shoot.

I was planning on telling him they should have notified the police before they did this stunt.  It makes me sick thinking of what could have happened.

I think he knows how you feel (from the discussions you had at Halloween) and that's why he didn't share the video or story with you initially.

[Flame]

Sounds like he learned a lesson through the whole thing.  I'm not sure what WWYD question you are asking,  but he IS 18, and on his own.  He's gonna do stuff.  Not much you CAN do about it.   From a mom pov, I'd suggest he think things through, and give the police a heads up in situations like that, and mention that those "toy" guns could get him killed if they are mistaken for the real thing.

[BEG]

Sounds like he learned a lesson through the whole thing.  I'm not sure what WWYD question you are asking,  but he IS 18, and on his own.  He's gonna do stuff.  Not much you CAN do about it.   From a mom pov, I'd suggest he think things through, and give the police a heads up in situations like that, and mention that those "toy" guns could get him killed if they are mistaken for the real thing.

The WWYD question was basically, how hard should I be on him.  Should I read him the riot act or should I be more calm.  My husband just got home from his father daughter camp out and I showed everything to him.  He is going to call and talk to him.

Oh and he may be 18 but he isn't on his own.  Not until he pays his own way in life is he on his own.   

[morningAngel]

I laugh..because mine is only five 

Someday she will be 18, but am praying that senility will have set in by then and it won't bother me.   

You have my sympathies.  Advice I can't give you.  Other than sending him to his room and NO BARNEY videos until he picks up his toys?

[RightCoast]

Sounds like some pretty serious stuff, I'm tempted to tell you not to over react - yet I don't think the seriousness of what they were attempting to do can be overstated.  As you no doubt know the whole evening could easily have ended tragically.   

With the past several school shootings I would also be concerned with how his school would respond to the material, did he clear the subject with the prof. beforehand?

[BEG]

Sounds like some pretty serious stuff, I'm tempted to tell you not to over react - yet I don't think the seriousness of what they were attempting to do can be overstated.  As you no doubt know the whole evening could easily have ended tragically.   

With the past several school shootings I would also be concerned with how his school would respond to the material, did he clear the subject with the prof. beforehand?

My husband called him and told him basically what we all are concerned with.  He seems to be aware that it could have turned out very different and that they were really lucky.  We didn't ask him if he cleared the subject with his professor beforehand so I'll have to ask him about that when I talk to him next. 

[VelvetElvis]

It's incidents like this one that can take years off a parent's life.

It was only when I was much older that I appreciated how much angst I caused my parents with stunts in the same vein as this one.

BTW, I think you responded just fine, BEG.

[Lord Undies]

"That which does not kill us makes us bolder."

-The Teenman's Lament

[RightCoast]

Sounds like some pretty serious stuff, I'm tempted to tell you not to over react - yet I don't think the seriousness of what they were attempting to do can be overstated.  As you no doubt know the whole evening could easily have ended tragically.   

With the past several school shootings I would also be concerned with how his school would respond to the material, did he clear the subject with the prof. beforehand?

My husband called him and told him basically what we all are concerned with.  He seems to be aware that it could have turned out very different and that they were really lucky.  We didn't ask him if he cleared the subject with his professor beforehand so I'll have to ask him about that when I talk to him next. 

Goodluck with the whole situation

[Texacon]

BEG, I was a pretty uhhhhh rambunctious young'un.  I have 4 brothers and we are only 5.5 years apart.  We got into all kinds of trouble but it is party of a young mans learning curve.  Don't be too hard on him.  Yes, it could have gotten ugly but it didn't. 

My vote is for lenience!   

KC