We’re approaching the finish line, folks. Slowly – very, very, very slowly – but surely.

While I’ve been busy putting together the logistics for the premiere, the crew has been working overtime. Now including Rob and Joe, and with Matt promoted to the fancy title of “visual effects supervisor,” the fx crew was able to finish an absurd amount of shots in an absurdly short amount of time. Meanwhile, John finished the score and Shane got the dialogue edited just right, all in time for our first major production meeting in months.

The meeting was last Wednesday. We originally intended it to be the finish line for the film, but delays being what they are, we still have a couple shots and some sound work to complete; next Wednesday is the new finish line.

We did, however, get to go through the entire movie shot by shot, seeing the finished effects in context for the first time (instead of as standalone bits, which is how I’ve seen them for a couple years now) and tweaking John’s music to best time out with the visuals. (John even managed to whip up a couple new sounds on the spot. We also figured out how best to recycle some notes to fill some gaps. See if you can spot them when you hear the soundtrack.)

Oh, and that Budget Watch headline? That’s because we had to shoot one pickup shot we kept forgetting to film before, in which an extension cord lands on the monster. A 39¢ can of hot dog sauce, spread out over an empty garbage bag (provided for free by Shane, who also served as DP for the one second shot) stood in for the creature. Cheap? Of course. But it got the job done.

Next step is to meet Wednesday, as mentioned above. We’ll fill in the missing pieces, tweak what’s needed, lock everything, and finally, officially, after six long years, be finished.

Can’t wait.