He waits and watches as they keep taking the current scene.

Eventually they cut and the actors go get their adjustments to makeup and hair and costume for the next scene. The director beams at Sunwind. "Good evening!"

Sun's descent graces our meeting! If we are being formal. Hello! I have seen many movies in the last two days and- well, you know why I'm here, yes?

"Set tour and also the producer says you might want to do a background flyover!"

I do! That will be seeing what it is like. If it's likely to be tolerable for a whole movie and a sequel so I don't have to bicker about the sequel clause that so worries me.

"He looooves his sequels. All right, you see that shrub thing over there?"

Yes.

"If you go there, and take off and fly in a big arc up -" she points, "and land over by the cacti there, I think it'll look neat behind the scene we're shooting. You should know there's no guarantee the scene will be in the final cut, though it probably will, or that we'll use a take with you in it, though again we probably will."

He tracks his gaze from one end to the other.

I honestly don't care whether or not you use a take with me in it, at least for this. How long should my flight take, and when should I start it? And what is this scene about? 

"About one minute, and - will you be able to hear the actors talking from there, how good is your hearing?"

I can go slow, then... I don't understand words, I understand what you mean when you talk. I won't hear them in the Onesong from over there.

"But could you recognize the sound of some words if we told you what to listen for?"

Probably yes, if I'm not flying at the time!

"Oh, I meant you'd listen for a line, then start flying. Peshi over there - the tall one - is going to say 'then that's what we'll have to do'. And then you take off."

Understood.

He gives an upwards tail-flick, then remembers to nod as well.

Anything else?

"Nothing fancy. If we need tweaks we can do another take, and if it's hopeless we have a good-enough take of the scene from yesterday. All right, let's try to get a few in before the sunset's over!" She claps her hands. "Scene thirty-eight take twenty now with added background space alien, places!"

He goes over to the designated bushy thing.

The actors get in place.

"The trail's only going to get colder while we camp for the night," says one, "but there's no way to follow it in the dark, not - not anymore."

"If we wait for morning at least we'll be rested. And maybe she'll come back, she might find us - you can't rule that out."

"We can't count on it, we can only try to keep going on our own."

"Then that's what we'll have to do."

He hesitates for a moment, then takes a running start and claws his way into the air. Up, level flight, and down. No tricks or anything. (Going up involves a lot of flapping, and going down none at all.) Then he starts walking back towards the set.

Don't go that way, you'll cut into frame - go wider - says the director.

...Good thing he was paying attention to the director specifically. He goes wider. He doesn't say anything back - art is being made, you don't interrupt craft like that.

Eventually the scene cuts - the rest of it after he takes off doesn't have much talking, they're just messing with props fixing fictive dinner - and everybody relaxes.

He waits until the director seems to be free and then asks, Is the daily process of movie-making basically like this, over and over and over?

"Basically! Some of the scenes are more complicated," the director says.

I see. This doesn't seem too bad at all. And you pick the most perfect one when all is done?