Texting…
My wife: ‘Hows wrk going?’
Me: ‘Not gud. Having to cook the pork chop 4 Jake. He wudnt touch it raw’
As a creator of web videos and a motionographer…I don’t often expect to have to entice a cat to steal a pork chop.
A client asked us to include Jake (our cat) in the ending of a video. I knew at the time that it was a mistake to say ‘sure, we can do that’ but the idea that it might be fun coupled with the unusual nature of the request had tempted me. Plus, in most of our shoots, we have to fight to stop him getting involved…attacking paper cut-outs or pushing the tripod or just walking across the scene.
We started off with a chicken leg. Jake seemed super enthusiastic at first…but once we introduced it to the whiteboard he seemed to go blank – as if the chicken leg had suddenly vanished. After 30 minutes of trying and trying to get him to attack it or at least grab it from the board, we gave in.
Then on to a pork chop. Normally, if we’re cooking or eating a pork chop he would be by my feet waiting for a piece. If I were to put down a plate with a piece of meat on it, he’d grab it first chance he got…not this time. Not the slightest bit of interest. So then I cooked it for him…(yes, today my job included cooking for a cat). Now he seemed up for it! Licking his lips and following me around. However, meat + whiteboard = scared cat. I don’t know why…it just really freaked him out…like big-time freak out! Neck stretched out, fur up on his back and then he fled the office!
Five hours it took me to give in. We decided to use two clips from the original ‘Chicken leg shoot’. The video below shows a client preview render with no voice-over.
Next time a client asks for Jake or any other animal to be used in a shoot…I’ll be politely declining 
**** Shortly after I’d hit ‘Publish’ on this post…Jake strutted in and took the pork chop…while the camera was off!!!
