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Students collaborate to produce the short film “Black Book” on the Paramount lot. The

It’s a hot day in what looks like downtown New York, except big cameras line the streets instead of cars, people are talking into headsets and walkie-talkies instead of cell phones, and instead of flying across the country, UCLA students only had to drive down Melrose Avenue to the Paramount lot.

Students were on the lot last week to film “Black Book,” the winner of the KNOW HIV/AIDS Short Screenplay Competition. The winning script was written by third-year UCLA film student Darren J. Guttenberg. Guttenberg’s prize was $7,500, money he plans to spend on repaying student loans and a vacation to Borneo. But another perk of winning the competition is an all-access pass to the Paramount lot and the professional world of filmmaking.

On the lot, Guttenberg has a desk with his name on it at the production office for his film, as well as permission to use the golf carts. He saw Tom Cruise at the coffee shop and also watched the filming of an episode of “Entourage.” And although the guards might not know him by name yet, he has gotten to work with some of the top executives at Paramount – closely enough to learn some insider information.

“I got so specific as to asking things like how much do different jobs actually pay; how much do you expect to sell a script for – things that are taboo,” Guttenberg said. “And that information alone is invaluable because it helps develop a strategy for a professional career.”

Guttenberg’s script was chosen from a pool of almost 50 entries competing for the chance to have their film produced and aired on mtvU and Showtime on World AIDS Day – Dec. 1, 2006.

The scripts were judged on various criteria such as accuracy, story and ability to convey a message.

“It had to be relevant to today’s times and where the AIDS epidemic is now in people’s consciousness,” said Chris Essel, senior vice president of government and community affairs for Paramount and one of the contest judges. “It’s not considered as big of a problem as it really is. It’s sort of an older story now but we haven’t made enough progress on it yet.”

Guttenberg wrote “Black Book” about an amiable player who keeps a black book of women he has had sex with. He learns he is HIV positive and then has to call the women to tell them to get tested. But Guttenberg made sure to insert humor, describing “Black Book” as “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off with AIDS.”

“Heavy melodrama would have been a little too ... heavy melodrama. So I thought keeping it lighthearted with a strong message would be a good way to reach people of our generation,” Guttenberg said. “There is comedy in everything – it’s about determining whether or not it’s appropriate.” He steered clear of making jokes about AIDS and stuck with more accepted topics like sexuality and condoms.

The project also had to be feasible – as the winning script was going to be produced and filmed on the Paramount lot – so Guttenberg set the story in New York.

“I did some research into what sort of locations they had,” he said. “I knew they had a downtown.”

But unlike a typical film production, Hollywood professionals collaborated with Southern California college students to form the entire crew. And most positions, from director to assistant director to costume designer, were filled by both a student and also a professional to act as a mentor.

The crew all volunteered their time, as did the cast of professional actors. Producer Brian Frankish recruited the crew, most of whom he was friends with or had worked with before. Frankish knew that in order to achieve the highest level of quality, they would have to either spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, or make a few phone calls. He found that people were willing to donate their time or equipment to the AIDS cause, and only needed a little convincing.

“We went to the prop houses and embarrassed them,” Frankish said. “‘Do you have kids? If you have kids they’re going to be sexually active.’”

Frankish said he got the budget of the film down to around $100,000, including catered lunch.

Lenny Mazzola, the mentor production designer and a friend of Frankish, found that in a teaching position there is a very thin line between giving the students a chance and getting the job done right.

“It hurts a little bit because you don’t want to stifle their creative energy, but sometimes they’re headed in the wrong direction,” Mazzola said.

He found that a big part of his job as a mentor is to “make sure they don’t learn by mistakes.”

As a production designer, his job is to create the sets. He explained that one’s first instinct is to place chairs, tables and benches against the wall, since it looks normal and is out of the way. But this doesn’t translate well when the characters are filmed with those props. Pointing out a bench placed against a building, he said this kind of set-up is fine for real life, but not for an actor sitting on a bench as the camera would have no background to film.

“You put this up against the wall and what are you going to see? A friggin’ wall!” said Mazzola. “You always want to film what you’re doing in the foreground.”

He showed off the set he constructed, where a USC student was sawing down a wooden wall to make room for the cameras.

Student costume designer Judy Juo graduated from UCLA in March with a master’s degree in costume design. Juo found the teaching methods of her mentor, Karyn Wagner, to be more practical.

“A lot of what I learn in school is all theory. It’s been good just to shadow,” Juo said.

One of the hands-on experiences Juo has had was removing large patches of a brand name from a sweatshirt. Wagner suggested sandpaper to blend the discoloration. Throughout the week, Wagner has revealed to Juo tricks she has picked up over the years.

“They’re not here to have me tell them what to do,” Wagner said. “(But) there are certain things I know will work and certain things I know won’t work. People were very patient with me when I was starting.”

Besides learning the tricks of the trade, being on the set of a film has taught students about the more subtle procedures of filmmaking.

“You’re learning a lot of etiquette and protocol,” said Suzie Bohannon, a third-year film student and the student script supervisor. For example, she now knows when she can and cannot sit in the chairs behind the camera. “You get up and get out of the way when someone higher up comes along.”

Although it might be intimidating, being around people who have achieved success has been inspiring for Bohannon.

“It kind of gives me a sense of the possibilities for my own future,” she said.

After lunch, Frankish stood up and announced that if they saved just one life, it would all be worth it.

The KNOW HIV/AIDS Short Screenplay Competition was created to spread the word about AIDS awareness and to involve the youth community, who are hit hardest by the epidemic.

Guttenberg is proud that his story was the center of such a collaborative effort for raising AIDS awareness.

“It was an ability to have a message and reach an audience, said Guttenberg. “As a filmmaker, that’s all you can ever hope for.”

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