Looking back at the preliminary task, what do you think you have learnt from the progression from it to the full task?
From filming the preliminary task we learnt the basics of using the cameras, for example achieving different shot types such as high angle and establishing, and using the tripod when needed. We also learnt from the preliminary how to come up with ideas of which shots to use in a sequence, to make it run smoothly and look professional.
When we first used the final cut pro software to edit our footage from the preliminary task, we found when putting two separate shots together, in order for it to be a smooth cut, everything in both shots needs to match up and be in exactly the same position. We remembered this when filming our main task.
When using the editing software at first, we were unsure about how to use it to create the type of look we wanted. For example, with different transitions and fonts for the titles. To overcome this we watched tutorial clips on youtube about how to use final cut pro, this helped us a lot.
This is one of the tutorials we used, to help us add and change the style of text:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEVcn1owl5Q
Friday, 7 May 2010
Evaluation
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
From filming the flickering light of the candle for our final piece, we learnt how to get an out of focus shot by adjusting the zoom. This helped us a lot as we needed the shot to be blurred.
We also found out how to use the effects on final cut pro to achieve the look we wanted by experimenting with it in our free time and getting to know how to use it. This is where we found the ‘glow’ effect that we used on a shot of Naomi surrounded by candles. Without the effect we felt the shot wasn’t good enough to use and would have discarded it.
Towards the end of the time we spent editing we felt we had got to grips with how to use final cut pro successfully and felt confident when adding clips and music to the timeline and changing certain aspects of the production.
From filming the flickering light of the candle for our final piece, we learnt how to get an out of focus shot by adjusting the zoom. This helped us a lot as we needed the shot to be blurred.
We also found out how to use the effects on final cut pro to achieve the look we wanted by experimenting with it in our free time and getting to know how to use it. This is where we found the ‘glow’ effect that we used on a shot of Naomi surrounded by candles. Without the effect we felt the shot wasn’t good enough to use and would have discarded it.
Towards the end of the time we spent editing we felt we had got to grips with how to use final cut pro successfully and felt confident when adding clips and music to the timeline and changing certain aspects of the production.
Evaluation
Who would be the audience for your media product?
The target audience for our film would be teens and young adults, aged from around 15 to 24, as the main character involved is a teenage girl. This would also attract more of a female audience. Our production as the opening of a film, doesn’t give much away, so it would appeal to people on the basis of the genre. Therefore anyone interested in teen dramas would enjoy our film.
How did you attract/ address your audience?
When the titles of the film appear on the screen, as if they are being typed, we added in quick extreme close up shots of Naomi’s face, to immediately let the audience know it is going to be a dramatic film about a teenage girl, and invite them to wonder what the story is about.
We added the whip pan shots of the fast cars into the introducing pan shot of Naomi to introduce the exterior part of the film before jumping straight into it. We also did this to put across to the audience that although there are dark elements to the opening of the film, for example the extreme close ups of Naomi, there are also some more exciting elements to it, to appeal more to the target audience.
As the film came together when we were editing, we felt it was becoming more and more dramatic, so decided instead of using an up tempo piece of music, to go for something a bit more dark and mysterious to fit the mood of the film.
As the plot of the film is about a teenage girl receiving a letter and being afraid to open it, we decided to add in clips with low key lighting to represent the dark place in her mind and her confusion
The target audience for our film would be teens and young adults, aged from around 15 to 24, as the main character involved is a teenage girl. This would also attract more of a female audience. Our production as the opening of a film, doesn’t give much away, so it would appeal to people on the basis of the genre. Therefore anyone interested in teen dramas would enjoy our film.
How did you attract/ address your audience?
When the titles of the film appear on the screen, as if they are being typed, we added in quick extreme close up shots of Naomi’s face, to immediately let the audience know it is going to be a dramatic film about a teenage girl, and invite them to wonder what the story is about.
We added the whip pan shots of the fast cars into the introducing pan shot of Naomi to introduce the exterior part of the film before jumping straight into it. We also did this to put across to the audience that although there are dark elements to the opening of the film, for example the extreme close ups of Naomi, there are also some more exciting elements to it, to appeal more to the target audience.
As the film came together when we were editing, we felt it was becoming more and more dramatic, so decided instead of using an up tempo piece of music, to go for something a bit more dark and mysterious to fit the mood of the film.
As the plot of the film is about a teenage girl receiving a letter and being afraid to open it, we decided to add in clips with low key lighting to represent the dark place in her mind and her confusion
Evaluation
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
We feel our film is representative of troubled teenagers, particularly girls, as the main character is a seventeen year old female. As there are no other characters involved in the film, it is not representative of a specific range of people. We believe, because our film is simplistic and realistic, that many of the target audience will be able to relate to it as it resembles real life situations.
What kind of media institution would distribute your media product and why?
After looking on the IMDB website at other genres of films similar to ours, such as Harry Brown, we think that British film companies might be interested in distributing our film such as Marv Films and WT2 productions. Also, because it is similar to a ‘Skins’ type production, which is based in Bristol, a city in Britain, people from Britain will be more familiar with the type of production our film is.
We feel our film is representative of troubled teenagers, particularly girls, as the main character is a seventeen year old female. As there are no other characters involved in the film, it is not representative of a specific range of people. We believe, because our film is simplistic and realistic, that many of the target audience will be able to relate to it as it resembles real life situations.
What kind of media institution would distribute your media product and why?
After looking on the IMDB website at other genres of films similar to ours, such as Harry Brown, we think that British film companies might be interested in distributing our film such as Marv Films and WT2 productions. Also, because it is similar to a ‘Skins’ type production, which is based in Bristol, a city in Britain, people from Britain will be more familiar with the type of production our film is.
Evaluation
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
The genre of our film is drama, we were originally aiming to produce a thriller, but as we came up with new ideas we found ourselves going in a more dramatic direction. We decided it worked well because we were able to come up with ideas that would be just as effective but simpler to create. As the shots came together we saw that our film had a ‘Skins’ type feel to it, through the use of interesting shots and editing. For example, we combined fast and slow motion to contrast the feelings of calmness and chaos that the main character was going through.
The genre of our film is drama, we were originally aiming to produce a thriller, but as we came up with new ideas we found ourselves going in a more dramatic direction. We decided it worked well because we were able to come up with ideas that would be just as effective but simpler to create. As the shots came together we saw that our film had a ‘Skins’ type feel to it, through the use of interesting shots and editing. For example, we combined fast and slow motion to contrast the feelings of calmness and chaos that the main character was going through.
Some of our Original Ideas...
This is a still of the original whip pan shots we captured. We decided not to use them because the way the camera moved on the tripod made the shot seem at an angle, which was not the look we wanted. Instead we filmed the cars coming up to the camera and driving past, which we felt looked a lot more effective and fit the feeling of chaos we wanted to convey, as the cars were coming towards the camera at a fast speed.Some of our Original Ideas...
This was the first bit of footage we captured for our opening sequence. As you can see, we changed the location, as there was not many people walking behind Naomi so we didn't create the busy look we wanted. Also, when we sped up the footage when editing, there were people walking in front of the camera which didn't fit the style of our film and looked unproffesional.
As well as this, Naomi was wearing her hair down so when the shot was playing at a high speed, you could see her hair moving in the wind when it was supposed to look as if she was still.
To overcome this problem, we cut out the background of the shot on final cut pro, so it was just Naomi. We then slowed this part of the shot down, so it was almost completely still. However, when we then added in the fast motion background, parts of the footage had merged in with the slow motion and people in the shot were disappearing and re-appearing. This was obviously a problem as it looked messy. To improve, we re-filmed this part of the film in a more busy location, and Naomi tied her hair back so it wasn't blowing in the wind. However, when putting all the footage together, we decided not to use a lot of these shots because our ideas had changed slightly, instead we used fast snippets of the clip instead of the whole thing.This is part of the original footage we captured:
Thursday, 6 May 2010
Changes...
We carried out most of our original ideas, but changed some elements as we were filming and editing, because they didn't feel right to use; the shot of Naomi sat on a bench in town was originally supposed to be sped up, but with Naomi kept still as we wanted it to seem as if everything in her life was moving quickly and she was stuck in the same position. However, when we started editing we found this didn't work as we hoped and looked unproffesional. As a result, we decided to do the opposite and slow down the pace to represent to the audience the feeling of apathy by Naomi.
We also originally wanted to use whip pan shots of fast cars going by, but when filming them we found it didn't look as good as we'd hoped. We tried speeding them up when editing, but we felt they didn't suit the type of shot we were going for and looked messy. As a result, we went out to film them again and got some better shots by changing the position of the camera, so the cars going past were filmed as if they were coming towards the camera, rather than going straight past it. When we were putting the shots together we found this worked well and represented the sense of rush we wanted to convey.
We also originally wanted to use whip pan shots of fast cars going by, but when filming them we found it didn't look as good as we'd hoped. We tried speeding them up when editing, but we felt they didn't suit the type of shot we were going for and looked messy. As a result, we went out to film them again and got some better shots by changing the position of the camera, so the cars going past were filmed as if they were coming towards the camera, rather than going straight past it. When we were putting the shots together we found this worked well and represented the sense of rush we wanted to convey.
Titles
We found it difficult adding titles and didn't know how to acheive the look we wanted, so we looked at some clips from youtube giving tutorials on how to use final cut pro which helped us a lot. At first, the transition of the titles we used was just a simple slide accross the screen. However, after looking at different effects we found a transition called 'typewriter', which types each letter of the text on the screen. We felt this was best suited for our film as it is about a letter. We then had an idea of using a handwriting effect, as if the text was being written on the screen instead of typed, however we couldn't find an effect that enabled us to do this, so we stayed with the typewriter effect.
Music
The song we decided to use on the finished peice of film has a slow pace, to match the pace of the film. It has a low pitch with
harmony added on, which we feel adds a sense of hope to the dramatic feel of the film and portrays a sense of calmness. Originally we had chosen another piece of music which was much more up tempo, but when we added it to the film, the pitch got higher and more uplifting so it had a more positive attitude than we wanted to put across to the audience. We felt it didn't fit the feel of the film, therfore, we changed the style of music completely to better suit the genre. After watching the final production, we feel it makes the film seem more mature.
harmony added on, which we feel adds a sense of hope to the dramatic feel of the film and portrays a sense of calmness. Originally we had chosen another piece of music which was much more up tempo, but when we added it to the film, the pitch got higher and more uplifting so it had a more positive attitude than we wanted to put across to the audience. We felt it didn't fit the feel of the film, therfore, we changed the style of music completely to better suit the genre. After watching the final production, we feel it makes the film seem more mature.
Tuesday, 4 May 2010
Transitions
HI Blog..
We have just finished editing our short film. We tried to keep our techniques simple as to resemble the genre and plot we have chosen, which is drama, but aimed at teens and young adults aged around fifteen to twenty-four.
After experimenting with different transitions such as additive colour and dissolve, the ones we chose to use were fade in, fade out, dip to colour and cross disolve. We decided these were the best type of transitions to use because they slowed down the pace of the film and we felt they merged different clips together smoothly , which is the effect we wanted.
Cross Dissolve
Fade in fade out
Friday, 16 April 2010
HI blog...
For the last few lessons, we have been logging and capturing our footage so we were able to start editing. So far we have chosen which shots we want to use and started putting them together. We have used a range of effects such as, slow motion, cross fade, cross cuts and fast motion. We have been experimenting with transitions and seeing which ones work best, so far, cross fade matches the effect we want to achieve the most because it is slow.
The first few shots we used are inerior shots, so to introduce the exterior footage before jumping straight into it, we used very fast cross cuts of fast moving cars which we speeded up on final cut pro, so when showing the shots we filmed outside it didnt cause any confusion.
We have also been looking at sounds on garage band, we want the soundtrack to be a slow and intense track which gives the feel of ambiguity and mystery.
BYE blog
xx
For the last few lessons, we have been logging and capturing our footage so we were able to start editing. So far we have chosen which shots we want to use and started putting them together. We have used a range of effects such as, slow motion, cross fade, cross cuts and fast motion. We have been experimenting with transitions and seeing which ones work best, so far, cross fade matches the effect we want to achieve the most because it is slow.
The first few shots we used are inerior shots, so to introduce the exterior footage before jumping straight into it, we used very fast cross cuts of fast moving cars which we speeded up on final cut pro, so when showing the shots we filmed outside it didnt cause any confusion.
We have also been looking at sounds on garage band, we want the soundtrack to be a slow and intense track which gives the feel of ambiguity and mystery.
BYE blog
xx
Friday, 26 March 2010
More Shooting
HI blog...
For the last couple of lessons we have been trying to get all of the filming done. Last friday we went to Beth's house to film the interior shots of Naomi with the letter. This was a little bit difficult, as we couldnt get the lighting to exactly how we wanted it. To acheive the blurred light effect we used candles, and filmed some shots of the flame out of focus. We felt these shots looked effective and plan to use them in our final edit.
On the following Tuesday, we went to town to re-shoot naomi on the bench in a busy setting. We decided to film it again because when we were taking stills in town we found another bench in a better setting, where people wouldnt be walking in front of the camera. This would help with the look that we are trying to acheive, of Naomi still and everyone moving fastly around her, by speeding up the shot. We had some difficulties editing the people out of the shot last week, but it was too hard to do.
On tuesday we also managed to get some whip pans of fast cars. First we tried using a whip pan shot, but felt it wasnt right for the effect we are trying to get. So instead we filmed the cars going past with the camera still on the tripod, and will edit it to speed it up in the next lesson to see if it is the type of shot we want.
Today we are going to get a few close up's of the letter to add to the film for some more shot types, and try to get some more whip pans of the cars, but in a different location to see which shots look better.
xx
For the last couple of lessons we have been trying to get all of the filming done. Last friday we went to Beth's house to film the interior shots of Naomi with the letter. This was a little bit difficult, as we couldnt get the lighting to exactly how we wanted it. To acheive the blurred light effect we used candles, and filmed some shots of the flame out of focus. We felt these shots looked effective and plan to use them in our final edit.
On the following Tuesday, we went to town to re-shoot naomi on the bench in a busy setting. We decided to film it again because when we were taking stills in town we found another bench in a better setting, where people wouldnt be walking in front of the camera. This would help with the look that we are trying to acheive, of Naomi still and everyone moving fastly around her, by speeding up the shot. We had some difficulties editing the people out of the shot last week, but it was too hard to do.
On tuesday we also managed to get some whip pans of fast cars. First we tried using a whip pan shot, but felt it wasnt right for the effect we are trying to get. So instead we filmed the cars going past with the camera still on the tripod, and will edit it to speed it up in the next lesson to see if it is the type of shot we want.
Today we are going to get a few close up's of the letter to add to the film for some more shot types, and try to get some more whip pans of the cars, but in a different location to see which shots look better.
xx
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Stills
HI blog...
Last lesson we went into manchester and took some stills of the different locations we were thinking of filming in, and where we actually filmed. Today we captured our filming and experimented with the editing. We tried to make naomi (the person in the shot) still, while the surroundings were sped up. We had some difficulty with this as there were people walking in and out and in front of the shot. In the end we slowed down the footage and are going to add the interior footage next friday.
xx
Last lesson we went into manchester and took some stills of the different locations we were thinking of filming in, and where we actually filmed. Today we captured our filming and experimented with the editing. We tried to make naomi (the person in the shot) still, while the surroundings were sped up. We had some difficulty with this as there were people walking in and out and in front of the shot. In the end we slowed down the footage and are going to add the interior footage next friday.
xx
Tuesday, 9 March 2010
First Lesson Filming
HI blog...
Last lesson we went to town and filmed the first shots of our opening. We decided to use a bench in piccadilly gardens as the setting, because it was busy and that is the kind of location we wanted. We managed to get the opening extreme long shot of Niaomi sat on her own on the bench, surrounded by people. As we filmed this we came up with an idea to speed this shot up when editing, to create the effect of Niaomi being still and everyone else moving quickly around her. As well as this, we also got some close ups, extreme close ups and high angle shots. We also used zoom effectivley when zooming in to the letter Niaomi was holding, as the name on the paper came slowly into focus as it got closer.
As we were filming, we came up with the idea of using fast and slow motion together in some of the shots, to add to the sense of confusion along with the out of focus shots. Next lesson we will experiment to see how it looks.
xx
Last lesson we went to town and filmed the first shots of our opening. We decided to use a bench in piccadilly gardens as the setting, because it was busy and that is the kind of location we wanted. We managed to get the opening extreme long shot of Niaomi sat on her own on the bench, surrounded by people. As we filmed this we came up with an idea to speed this shot up when editing, to create the effect of Niaomi being still and everyone else moving quickly around her. As well as this, we also got some close ups, extreme close ups and high angle shots. We also used zoom effectivley when zooming in to the letter Niaomi was holding, as the name on the paper came slowly into focus as it got closer.
As we were filming, we came up with the idea of using fast and slow motion together in some of the shots, to add to the sense of confusion along with the out of focus shots. Next lesson we will experiment to see how it looks.
xx
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
Opening Ideas...
HI blog...
Today we're looking at openings of films that might be similar to the kind of idea we are going for, the out of focus, blurred effect. We are also starting to create a story board of what kind of shots we might use and lighting effects.
In terms of lighting and the out of focus effect, this is the type of look we are hoping to acheive with the fairy lights...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9y6VCawDz0U (0.39 - 1.00)
Today we're looking at openings of films that might be similar to the kind of idea we are going for, the out of focus, blurred effect. We are also starting to create a story board of what kind of shots we might use and lighting effects.
In terms of lighting and the out of focus effect, this is the type of look we are hoping to acheive with the fairy lights...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9y6VCawDz0U (0.39 - 1.00)
A few of the shots from the opening of love actually go in and out of focus and use zoom, which we are going to use in our opening...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWA5KpIH2gM (0.48 - 1.55)
This is the effect we hope to create with the fairy lights...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEJ0jgbizuM&feature=related (0.10 - 0.35)
These are some images of the effect we want to acheive...
xx
Friday, 26 February 2010
Main Task: Shot List
1st Draft Shot List: Interior
- extreme close up of shoulder
- extreme close up of hand
- extreme close up of eye
- zoom in to person holding letter in empty party scene
1st Draft Shot List: Exterior
- zoom out from person holding letter to park & street
- whip pan of busy street
- whip pan of cars
- whip pan of busy street
- extreme close up of shoulder
- extreme close up of hand
- extreme close up of eye
- zoom in to person holding letter in empty party scene
1st Draft Shot List: Exterior
- zoom out from person holding letter to park & street
- whip pan of busy street
- whip pan of cars
- whip pan of busy street
Second Main Task Idea...
HI blog
Last lesson, we decided not to use the thriller idea for our main task and to focus more on the shot types we could use, instead of the genre. This way we could focus more on the mise en scene. We sat down as a group and came up with a few new ideas.
Our first idea was to use shot reverse shot as an opening, of a party scene and showing someone moving restlessly in bed. We wanted to show it as if it was a bad dream, but of something that had already happened. We thought of using a strobe light and filming the shot out of focus to show the unclearness of the dream. However, after the group discussion we decided this would be too complicated to do and that we could come up with something much easier that would be just as effective.
Our final idea was to keep the element of unclearness with the shot out of focus and the shot reverse shot, but instead of using someone in bed, we decided to use someone sat on a bench. We also changed the party scene to someone on their own sat in the middle of a location that looks as if a party had taken place. As a group we decided this would be less complicated to acheive as we wouldn't have to rely on anyone else to film the party.
We looked at a variety of shots and decided the best one to use that would suit the style of our idea was whip pan shots of fast cars and busy streets. We decided this would be best because it would contrast with the stillness of the person sat on a bench and add an element of excitment.
In terms of lighting, we decided to use a dim light, acheived by using fairylights surrounding the person in the abandoned party scene. We thought combined with the shot being out of focus, this would be an effective use of lighting as the shot would be blurred and endeering.
BYE blog
xx
Last lesson, we decided not to use the thriller idea for our main task and to focus more on the shot types we could use, instead of the genre. This way we could focus more on the mise en scene. We sat down as a group and came up with a few new ideas.
Our first idea was to use shot reverse shot as an opening, of a party scene and showing someone moving restlessly in bed. We wanted to show it as if it was a bad dream, but of something that had already happened. We thought of using a strobe light and filming the shot out of focus to show the unclearness of the dream. However, after the group discussion we decided this would be too complicated to do and that we could come up with something much easier that would be just as effective.
Our final idea was to keep the element of unclearness with the shot out of focus and the shot reverse shot, but instead of using someone in bed, we decided to use someone sat on a bench. We also changed the party scene to someone on their own sat in the middle of a location that looks as if a party had taken place. As a group we decided this would be less complicated to acheive as we wouldn't have to rely on anyone else to film the party.
We looked at a variety of shots and decided the best one to use that would suit the style of our idea was whip pan shots of fast cars and busy streets. We decided this would be best because it would contrast with the stillness of the person sat on a bench and add an element of excitment.
In terms of lighting, we decided to use a dim light, acheived by using fairylights surrounding the person in the abandoned party scene. We thought combined with the shot being out of focus, this would be an effective use of lighting as the shot would be blurred and endeering.
BYE blog
xx
Planning Main Task
HI blog.......
In the last few lessons we have been trying to come up with ideas of what we could use for our main task. Our initial idea was to do a thriller, because we felt we could use a range of shots that would be effective to the genre. One of which was a point of view shot, in which we would include the sound of heavy breathing to make it more intense.
However, we had some difficulties in deciding how to use shot reverse shot with this idea, as we wanted to show the TV turning off and the persons reaction, but didn't know how to acheive it without it running smoothly and close to a real film. As a result, we changed the idea of the TV turning off to it being silent and the stereo turning on, because it would be easier to edit and look more proffesional.
BYE blog
xx
In the last few lessons we have been trying to come up with ideas of what we could use for our main task. Our initial idea was to do a thriller, because we felt we could use a range of shots that would be effective to the genre. One of which was a point of view shot, in which we would include the sound of heavy breathing to make it more intense.
However, we had some difficulties in deciding how to use shot reverse shot with this idea, as we wanted to show the TV turning off and the persons reaction, but didn't know how to acheive it without it running smoothly and close to a real film. As a result, we changed the idea of the TV turning off to it being silent and the stereo turning on, because it would be easier to edit and look more proffesional.
BYE blog
xx
Tuesday, 2 February 2010
Finished Preliminary Task
HI Blog...
Last lesson we finished out preliminary task, which we filmed and edited in the lesson. We used a variety of shots including shot reverse shot, close up, pan and high angle. We found the shots weren't as easy to capture as we expected, but we learnt from filming how to improve them. For example, we had to film a close up of Beth's feet walking a number of times before the camera was steady enough and was in the right position, before we were able to use it.
When we edited our shot, we found two particular shots difficult to merge together. This was going from the pan shot to the medium long shot. The positioning wasn't exactly the same in both shots, so we found that this was something we would need to be careful of when filming our main task.
We also looked at different types of openings to thrillers, and found that most of them use zoom and close ups. We have noted this and plan on coming up with a series of shot types that we might use when filming our main task.
BYE Blog
xx
Last lesson we finished out preliminary task, which we filmed and edited in the lesson. We used a variety of shots including shot reverse shot, close up, pan and high angle. We found the shots weren't as easy to capture as we expected, but we learnt from filming how to improve them. For example, we had to film a close up of Beth's feet walking a number of times before the camera was steady enough and was in the right position, before we were able to use it.
When we edited our shot, we found two particular shots difficult to merge together. This was going from the pan shot to the medium long shot. The positioning wasn't exactly the same in both shots, so we found that this was something we would need to be careful of when filming our main task.
We also looked at different types of openings to thrillers, and found that most of them use zoom and close ups. We have noted this and plan on coming up with a series of shot types that we might use when filming our main task.
BYE Blog
xx
Tuesday, 19 January 2010
First Blog
HI blog....
Today we have chosen our genre which will be a thriller, but we were also thinking of adding an element of comedy. We have come up with some ideas for camera shots which we will use in the opening sequence and we have a basic story line. Next lesson we plan on looking at different camera shots and which work best.
BYE blog
xx
Today we have chosen our genre which will be a thriller, but we were also thinking of adding an element of comedy. We have come up with some ideas for camera shots which we will use in the opening sequence and we have a basic story line. Next lesson we plan on looking at different camera shots and which work best.
BYE blog
xx
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