Aprill Winney has spent the last decade working in Hollywood as a script supervisor, with films such as Jobs, Lovelace and Tim and Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie, as well as TV shows like Arrested Development, Family Tree, and The Fosters to her credit. In addition to script supervising, Aprill has also moved into directing, helming independent films such as Counting Backwards, and the award winning The David Dance, as well as episodes of the television series The Fosters. Aprill was kind enough to answer a few questions about her work as a script supervisor and director in the film and television industry.
Can you talk a bit about your duties as a script supervisor?
A script supervisor has many duties. It’s as if there were about a dozen things that needed to be done on a film set and so they created a catch-all position for these random responsibilities. My main jobs are:
-Keep elaborate notes of exactly what we shoot and send that information to post production. This includes the scene number, shot description, camera roll, lens, and any comments the director may have.
-Keep record of our accomplishments, what time we break for lunch, wrap, as well as what scenes are completed, what we owe, running time, etc.
-I am responsible for the information on the slate
-I ensure that what is written on the script page is what we film. If a line of dialogue is wrong, it is my job to fix it or get a rewrite approved.
-Continuity! This is a big one…in which hand was she holding the gun? Was my purse on the right shoulder or left? Did we see this lamp? Was is it turned on? I have to know the answers to these questions.-Reading lines off camera if needed
-Matching frame size when needed.
How did you begin you career as a script supervisor?
I started script supervising 10.5 years ago. I was working in theatre and decided I wanted to switch and become a filmmaker. I was on the fence about film school and decided to go work on set and learn that way. Script supervising appealed to me. It fits my personality and it gave me the opportunity to learn so many things I didn’t know.
What would you say is the most challenging aspect of the job?
There are just so many things to pay attention to. Your brain has to be able to toggle so many things at once…it can become overwhelming. If you are tired or overworked, this becomes even harder. So, that is easily the biggest challenge and accepting that you will make mistakes is just part of the job. I will make 12 continuity notes in any given scene but the one question I will get asked is something I didn’t make note of.
Thank goodness for technology that allows for screen grabs. In general, technology is making the job easier. There are great programs that streamline note taking and allow for screen grabs so that you don’t have to rely on your memory for EVERYTHING.
The quality of a project isn’t necessarily always a deciding factor for members of the crew, depending on the position. Have you found as a script supervisor you’ve been a bit more selective in what projects you take?
When I started out, I had to say yes to everything. When you are building a career you have to cast your net wide and I have definitely worked on some TERRIBLE projects. But now I am at a place where I get plenty of work and I can afford to be more selective. I recently turned down a pilot that was terribly written and kind of offensive. I didn’t hesitate to say ‘no’. That was a nice feeling.
Can you talk a bit about your transition into directing?
As long as I have been script supervising, I have also been directing. I haven’t made a living at directing but I have continued to do it alongside my script supervising career. When I started working on The Fosters (3 years ago), I had directed two feature films, 2 web-series and one commercial. I made sure that the producers of the show knew that I had directing experience and that directing was my ultimate goal. I wasn’t annoying about it. I just made sure that they knew and then went on kicking butt at being their script supervisor.
One day I got to work only to discover that the director had gotten food poisoning and could not make it in today. They asked me to direct for the day. WHAT?!? I had dreamed that this might happen someday but I never thought it would actually happen to me. So, I did. I was terrified and totally unprepared but I did the thing that I believe is the key to success…I faked it. And it worked.
From there they asked me to direct a spin off web-series that the network ordered. Then they offered me my own episode, which got me into the DGA. That went well so they offered me another and in a few months I will be directing my third episode of the show. Now, I still have some massive hurdles to get over before I am “living the dream”. Finding another show to take a chance on me is proving to be a challenge. But, I am super grateful to the folks at the Fosters for continuing to give me opportunities.
What have you found the biggest differences between television and feature film directing?
The main difference is that in TV, the writers have the final say and in features, the director has the final say. So, when directing television there is a real collaboration with the writer, which I love. There is also usually a lot more time give to you when making a feature film. The pace of shooting is slower. In TV, you have a fixed amount of time to shoot that episode, regardless of what is written on the page. So, you really have to go fast. In features, you have a less rigorous schedule and therefore time to craft some really cool shots.
Is directing something you’d like to move into full time?
YES!! That is definitely the goal and something I have been working towards for a long time. In the meantime, I love my job as a script supervisor.
Was working as the script supervisor on Tim and Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie as daunting of a task as it sounds?
That was a challenging shoot. We filmed in an abandoned shopping mall in Palm Springs that was filthy and moldy. Tim and Eric do a lot of rewriting on the spot, plus they are the stars so you have to remain pretty flexible to work with them. Also, there is the challenge of not bursting into hysterics and ruining a take. But Arrested Development Season 4 was the hardest job I have ever done…by far. Nothing even compares to those challenges. We shot 15 episodes simultaneously and we would only get pieces of the script at a time. Everything was interwoven and there were huge gaps in my knowledge of the story. I can’t even begin to tell you how hard that show was to work on. But honestly, the hard jobs are the most fun and the most rewarding. I would do both of those jobs again in a second.
We would like to thank Aprill for taking the time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions for us. The Fosters can be seen Mondays at 8PM on the Freeform network (formerly ABC Family).