….
The second major setup of the afternoon tackled one of the film's most visually intricate set pieces: The Dark Tunnel Breach.
In [Train To Catch], the infected responded entirely to what they could see and hear. Without either, they had no idea where anything was and would simply stand motionless in the darkness until a sound caught their attention and sent them into action.
To pull off the sequence where the trio crawls across overhead luggage racks and beneath passenger seats while passing through a mountain tunnel, the LIE Studios stage was plunged into near total blackness.
"Lighting cues on timecode." Regal instructed the control booth over the radio. "When the LED panels switch from daytime valley to tunnel brickwork, I want the light to drop to three percent. Strobe arrays one through four will simulate the tunnel emergency lights… firing once every 0.6 seconds in amber."
"Lighting board locked and synced to gimbal speed." the board op confirmed.
"Extras in position!" Gavin called out from the darkness.
Inside Carriage 11, fifteen infected performers took their marks in the center aisle, frozen in twisted, unnatural poses; heads tilted toward the floor, spines arched unnaturally, perfectly still.
"Quiet on set! Sound rolling!"
"Action!"
The massive curved LED walls outside the train windows suddenly darkened, plunging the set into an oppressive, ink-black gloom.
The only illumination came from the faint blue dashboard LEDs and orange strobe whipping through the glass every half-second:
Flash. Blackness. Flash. Blackness.
Keanu and Rock crouched on their bellies beneath the row of blue vinyl passenger seats.
The camera was mounted on a specialized ultra low skate dolly, sliding smoothly along the floor just six inches ahead of Keanu's creeping face.
Every breath had to be silent.
Inches above their heads, the infected stood motionless, their blood smeared boots resting right beside Keanu's fingers.
With every flash of the amber strobe, the audience was given a split second glimpse of terror: a snarling mouth frozen mid gasp, a hand twitching, milky eyes staring blindly into nothingness.
Then came the auditory trigger.
From three rows ahead, the high school baseball player's prop mobile phone, placed deliberately on an overhead rack to create a diversion, began to vibrate and chime with a cheerful ringtone.
Beep-beep-beep-boop!
The reaction was instantaneous.
Like a single hive mind organism struck by an electric current, fifteen infected extras snapped their heads toward the sound simultaneously.
Their spines cracked in unison as they surged over the seat backs in a frenzied stampede, claws tearing through the fabric right over the spot where Keanu and Rock were holding their breath.
"Hold that lens steady!"
Regal whispered into his comms, watching the high-contrast monochrome monitor–
"Pan up with the feet... let them clear the aisle... and push in on Keanu's eyes!"
The camera glided forward.
In the strobe light, Keanu's eyes were wide, veins pulsing at his temples, his breath caught in his throat as infected feet trampled past his head by mere inches.
"And... cut! Beautiful!" Regal called.
The stage work lights snapped on with a soft buzz.
A collective sigh of relief washed over the soundstage.
Several crew members chuckled at how intensely they had been holding their own breath behind the video monitors.
"Director Seraphsail!" the visual effects lead shouted from his station. "The shadow tracking on the seat underside was clean, we can move ahead without any digital cleanup needed on the floor rig!"
"Print it." Regal said, checking his watch. "Reset the lighting for the terminal platform exterior. We have two hours of stage time before the child labor laws force us to wrap our young lead."
The final sequence of the grueling fourteen hour day moved from the claustrophobic train interior to the expansive outdoor platform simulation on Stage 4.
This was the emotional and physical climax of the day's call sheet: the desperate sprint across the rail switching yard as an unmanned locomotive crashes through the terminal barricades, with survivors fleeing toward an escaping freight engine.
To simulate the massive train collision practically, the special effects crew rigged a full-scale locomotive facade onto an overhead crane track, flanked by air cannons loaded with pulverized cork, rubber debris, and dust.
Keanu stood on the gravel covered soundstage floor, holding the hand of the young actress playing his daughter.
Regal walked over to the young girl, crouching down to her eye level with a warm, gentle smile. "How are you doing with the noise, kiddo?"
"I am okay, Mr. Regal." she said bravely, though her hands were clutching her character's backpack tightly. "The zombies look scary, but Gavin gave me gummy bears earlier and showed me how they take off their makeup."
Regal shot a brief, approving glance toward Gavin, who was standing by the sound baffles checking the ear protection on the background performers.
"Good man." Regal muttered softly before turning back to the girl. "When you run for the train, don't worry about what's behind you. Just keep your eyes on Keanu and stay with him. If you get scared, hold his hand as tight as you can. He will keep you safe."
"He's pretty strong." she giggled softly.
Keanu smiled, ruffling her hair gently. "Don't worry, I won't let you fall."
"First team, final positions!" Simon's booming voice rang out across the stage. "Debris cannons primed! Wind machines to forty percent! Safety crew on decelerator cables!"
Regal stepped back to the master command console.
This was a multi element practical stunt: live pyrotechnics, wind, a moving locomotive facade, twenty sprinting stunt performers, and two lead actors navigating an obstacle course of simulated train wreckage.
"All cameras rolling!"
"Sound speed!"
"Platform Sprint… Scene 102, Take 1!"
CLACK!
"Action!"
The turbine fans began, churning up a blinding vortex of gray dust and paper debris.
The overhead crane groaned as the burning locomotive hull surged down the elevated track, sparks cascading from its undercarriage in a brilliant shower of orange light.
"Run!" Keanu yelled.
He scooped the young girl into his arms, shielding her head with his shoulder as he sprinted across the gravel. Behind them, debris cannons fired with deep, percussive THUMPS, blasting chunks of soft foam masonry across the path.
Out of the smoke emerged the infected horde, sprinting with feral, uncontrolled momentum.
Rock surged into the frame from the flank, using a heavy steel luggage cart.
He slammed the cart into three charging stuntmen, flipping the rig on its side to create a momentary barrier between the horde and Keanu's path toward the escaping engine ladder.
"Get her on the platform!" Rock bellowed through the roaring wind, his work shirt torn and covered in soot. "Go! Don't look back!"
Keanu reached the rear platform of the moving diesel train, lunging upward to catch the iron handrail with one hand while holding the girl securely with the other.
The hydraulic winch caught his harness with perfect, invisible counter-tension, lifting them both cleanly onto the metal grating just as five infected extras lunged at the footplate, their hands slipping against the polished steel rungs.
"Hold that camera on the separation!" Regal shouted, leaning into the monitor. "Keep the distance growing! Capture Rock's face!"
Down on the tracks, surrounded by the swirling smoke and advancing horde, Rock stood his ground before the camera pulled back into a soaring crane shot, his silhouette broad and unyielding against the dying amber light of the burning station.
"And... CUT! THAT IS A WRAP ON STAGE 5 FOR THE DAY!"
A round of cheers, clapping, and whistle-blows erupted from all ninety crew members on the stage floor.
The wind turbines spun down into silence, and the lights slowly transitioned into warm work illumination.
Keanu carefully set the young actress down on the platform, high fiving her before stepping off the rig to shake hands with the stunt team.
Rock wiped a thick layer of dust from his eyebrows, giving a short, satisfied nod to the rigging crew who had managed the impact barriers.
"Great work today, everyone." Regal spoke into the PA system. "Stage reset at seven tomorrow morning. Get some sleep."
….
[Same Day | Regal's Apartment | 11:30 PM]
Regal drove back to his apartment in the dark.
He unlocked the door of his flat, tossing his keys onto the entryway table and shedding his grey hoodie.
He walked into the kitchen, opening the fridge to pull out some leftover food. He ate slowly, leaning against the counter, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out his phone.
There are few missed calls, emails from Samantha Cross regarding the Golden Globes seating charts, and one direct text message from a private, unlisted number.
Regal tapped the message.
=====
[–Regal, my boy!
–I am writing to you from my study, and I must confess, my old tongue got a bit too excited during that chat with David Muir a few days ago. The interviewer was just so polite, and the tea was so warm, and before I knew it, I was telling my true thoughts!
–I hear the internet has gone completely bananas over the news. Joan tells me the kids on the computer are throwing quite a fit! I hope I haven't made your life too difficult with the studio board. You know how those suits in the front offices can get when a secret escapes the bag early.
–But between us, I still think the boy Keanu is going to look spectacular with that metal arm. Sometimes the best stories are the ones that just can't wait to be told!
–Give my best to Seren.
–Your friend, Stan.]
=====
Regal stared at the screen for a moment, a laugh escaping his chest in the silent kitchen. He shook his head, his fingers moving across the screen as he typed a reply:
[–Don't worry about the suits, Stan. We start Phase Two meetings soon.]
He hit send, watched the message status shift to Delivered, and set his phone down on the counter.
.
….
[To be continued…]
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