Denice Duff on the set of her directorial debut.

t's been two years since I uttered for the first time "Action!" and now I'm finally in post production on the 35mm horror love story, Song of the Vampire. When asked to be in this film, I requested that I direct it too. I've been behind the lens as a photographer for years and I have starred in a popular Vampire series called "Subspecies," so with that angle, I approached the producers and won my first shot at the helm!

When shooting, I would get so caught up in dressing the set, doing make-up for the actors, working out the right lens, and camera movements that I would forget that I, myself, had to act in that very scene! "Gimme a sec to look at my lines, guys!"

For four weeks I operated on three to four hours of sleep. It just proved the "mind over matter" theory. Nothing is more exhilarating than being creatively busy. Seeing my first dailies at the Panavision theater will always be one of the biggest highlights of my life.

A shot of Denice during the filming of Subspecies 4.

What I learned:

• Being nice goes a LONG WAY!
• A good sound guy makes the difference between a cheap film and a pro film.
• Seeing your locations ahead of time save time and money.
• Set aside post production money in a place that can not be touched.
• Set aside post production money in a place that can not be touched. (this repeat is not a typo!)

Camera Corner

Here's a cool photo tip for all you shutterbugs. It's called Cross Processing and is in no way related to cross dressing (though it does produce an outlandish product). Regular color negative film is developed in chemicals called C-41 (look at a film canister). Slide (transparency) film is processed in chemicals called E-6. Here is what you do:

1. Buy a roll of slide film (Kodak 100 EP is the best, but any slide film will work.)

2. Shoot the roll as you would any other.

3. Bring to any photo lab (pro labs are more familiar with this process, but a one-hour photo could be talked into it.)

4. Tell them to cross process it. This means to develop it in the wrong chemicals, which in this case would be C-41. Therefore you'll get negatives with 4x6 prints instead of slides.

5. The end result is a bright, saturated freakish color. Impress your friends with it's coolness. It is a quick and inexpensive way to give a special effect to a photo without retouching it on a computer. View my photography at www.duffimages.com and let me know what your results were.