Enough with the ancient engineering marvels!

I've been shooting scenes for "The Untitled Around The World Project" in Angkor, Cambodia. Angkor Wat is a phenomenal construction, it's apparently the largest religious site in the world. It's vast to the point of being vastly vast. It's basically this huge compound constructed entirely out of carefully cut stacked and carved stone. There's no mortar or cement, inertia is the only thing keeping the walls up and in position.


The thing is, we've been scouting locations and shooting in Angkor (home to tens of these temples) for a week now. As beautiful and astounding as these structures are, I'd be glad to have some time where I'm not schvitzing like a kinnish as I schlep myself up the catywampus stairs.

Oh the stairs. As we all know, stairs are deeper than they are high. This integral part of their design is in place so that our feet can find purchase and security as we ascend and descend. Well, the ancient Kmher (Cambodians) hadn't worked that out, or at least didn't care. It's not uncommon to climb up a 15' flight of stairs with each step being 18" high and only 4" deep. It's basically like rock climbing with a really easy (but still potentially deadly if untethered) slope.

If this seems unnecessarily glum of me, I have it on good authority that anyone who travels through Europe for an extended period gets tired of visiting castles and looking at rennaissance paintings. That said, these locations photograph beautifully. I'll post pictures once I sort out my digital camera e-cafe blues. Despite an eensie budget, this project is going to have some of the most beautiful backdrops ever committed to film (ok HDV tape).

I think we've got about 4 more days left and then its on to Laos.