I don’t know her name or official title, but she was clearly one of the Production Assistants on the 1978 Production of Dawn of the Dead. She was very friendly and helpful and extremely busy. Each shot started with her announcing the shot and take, just like in the movies! You can buy a print of this slice of history at my commercial site by clicking here.
Production Assistant on Dawn of the Dead
As a journalist on a movie set you have a license to observe and report. What I found interesting was the mood swings that are cause by events. In this image, the Director, George Romero and Director of Photography (DP) Michael Gornick were trying to figure out how to deal with the reflections from the fountain. The two shots were taken seconds apart on the set of Dawn of the Dead at Monroeville Mall in 1978.. You can buy a print of this image at my commercial gallery by clicking here.
The Joy and Anguish of Directing George Romero 1978
When you think about Zombie films you got to think about the make up. Dawn of the dead in 1978 had a lot of Zombies and they all had different looks. They would arrive on the set hours before the shoot and patiently wait until one of the three make up artists could make them up. Make up would some time include bloody appendages and body parts that were usually made by the Zombie Master Tom Savini. The extras would hang out, play cards, drink coffee and other things until they could be properly gored up.
Waiting for Make Up
I had the pleasure of meeting George Romero in his Pittsburgh Office in 1978 to get press credentials for being on the set of “Dawn of the Dead”. Even though he could have had an assistant handle this, he wanted to meet me first. He basically just asked questions about me and my background and then turned me over to Mike Gornick (Director of Photography) to explain the “ground rules”. This is a picture of him stifling a laugh on the set at Monroeville Mall which was printed in a Pittsburgh Magazine article.
George Romero on the Set of Dawn of the Dead