The Final Cut

During this last week we have worked extremely hard to bring the edit together with adding the new sounds we recorded, adding the poem, music, grading and generally cutting down shots to make it run more smoothly. Whilst watching the final edit today I came to realise just how well we had worked together to achieve the final product, as I could see how all the elements of our roles had come together and the structure and journey of emotions through the film finally came together which for the film we were working on is an achievement in itself without giving it away at too much of an early stage.

I am really pleased with how the group has come on and how well we have worked together as a team, it just goes to show delegation works best as sticking to our roles yet asking for help as and when needed has made the process come together smoother than I could ever imagine. This was particularly shown during the casting process although Lydia’s names role was Casting/Locations it came to a point where there was too much to do and I contacted housing companies and Tesco’s constantly until we gained feedback on permissions from them while other group members researched other companies we could approach, also with casting we each found further sites/forums/associations/people we could contact and each sent out the master casting call letter. Without the delegation here I could have seen us falling apart quite easily.

In terms of delegation as well as my position as Producer I think I fulfilled my role quite well, keeping on top of paper work and making sure that each time we met we had an action plan to discuss and went away with an action plan to research/work on until the next meeting, also trying to guide the group in the right direction in discussions and on a weekly basis on the films progression. I have enjoyed taking on this role again and feel it is something I would quite possibly like to do in the future. I like this role because I like to be able to plan ahead in terms of scheduling and keep on track of productions as a whole but also help where needed in other departments. As whole we tried to stick to our roles and I think that we did this very well and gave us the chance to see how important each of the crew roles are and how they interlink with one another.

If I could go back and change the film there are a few moments that I would re-shoot; for example some of the close-up reaction shots particularly in the kitchen as the angle they are currently shot in are slightly strange as most are hand-held as we did not have enough room in the area we filmed to place the tripod like when we filmed the shot from under the cupboard looking up at Daniel as he checks his list – initially this was to be shot from inside the cupboard but the cupboard was too small for the camera to fit. Also sound which particularly in the house and supermarket were a problem as there is quite a lot of buzzing in the background and for some reason when we filmed the settings were set on the camera so that channel 1 and 2 sound were joined therefore in the edit we had the clear sound of the radio mic and the noisy buzzing from the rifle, which is something to also think about and look at in the future. These are just a few issues that when resolved we will be able to distribute it to a film festival as we suggested in the beginning, which is quite an experience in itself. All in all I am very proud of the piece we have produced and like to think that I have learnt a lot from this process now that I can work in a much more professional manner and cut out a few more silly mistakes which are made along the way (like our overcoming with the casting).

The Edit Begins..

During today’s production meetings with the tutors we discussed where our film was at, what footage we had shot and where we wanted to take our film now. This was an important meeting as from this point we will be able to tell what the outcome of our film will be like after seeking through the footage and gaining various feedback on our work to date, also with some tips for improvement.

First of all we discussed how we thought the shoot had gone which is what I wrote up on my blog yesterday, this led us into showing the tutors our footage. With not actually having looked through all of the footage ourselves yet we showed the best shots that we had seen in our short playback sessions after the shoots and those that stood our according to our Continuity Edit Forms. Below are some screen shots of some of the clips we showed;

The shot above is tracking shot I particularly like this shot as we filmed several of the same shot throughout the store using different aisles and the distance adds to his loneliness.

Again talking about the characters loneliness this shot captures this again with Daniel as the tiniest  pinpoint in the distance, just before he reaches the final stage of letting go. suggesting where his conscience is at at this moment, not quite ready to go forth with what he is about to. I really like all of the shots we took in the St Nicholas Church location as there is so much depth to the shots and even the colours add to the dreariness of Daniels life at this time.

This shot is not one of my most favoured ones however that moment when he looks up the stairs as though looking up to his wife is a real touching moment in the film and the further events like this add to the longing to see his wife again.

Next this close-up of the anniversary card is the first time the audience begin to grasp the story and this is the moment when and audience first expects to meet his wife. I like the off-centre framing of this shot as he pulls the card towards him, this will be followed by a point of view shot of his face as he looks again longing for his wife. Moments like these are really important to the story and I think in the edit these are the shots that will slow down the pace as the other parts of the scene will be quite quickly edited then when a moment like this appears it gives time for the audience to think about the character and relate with him, which becomes more and more clearer what the audience is relating with (loss) as the story unfolds.

This was useful to do as we were able to see exactly what the shots looked like, however one of the problems we did have was finding the right clips as none of them had been labelled nor were they in a time-line. The tutors were able to give us some feedback particularly on our lighting set-up and some issues we may face with grading due to this. Also they commented on as a whole how well shot the piece seemed to be as we had an array of shots/angles for every scene, which was very good to hear but we will see if this is the case when an actual edit has been put together. Another issue with showing footage this way was that you could not get a real sense of the films pace, story and continuity as as it stands there is no structure to the piece. Therefore we set ourselves a target for the next two hours to pull together a rough cut of the film so that we could get a sense of the previous and be able to receive more constructive feedback.

During the rough cut we stuck closely to the structure of the script and as a whole used shots that were held for a long period of time in the scenes, as still the clips had not been labelled and therefore finding all of the close-ups we wanted to insert in such a short time period was highly time consuming. Therefore after the edit had been seen I took it upon myself to sort through the clips, labelling each as I went and inserting those that were not so good into a ‘Not Using’ folder so should we need to use them later on we still had copies of them but all of the ‘best’ shots were all in one place. The edit once together stood at 6min 45sec, which still did not give justice to the film in terms of pace however the structure and the fitting together of dialogue/atmospheric sound became apparent. At this point we realised how important the sound design would be in the final edit and how unimportant some of the dialogue seemed, as although we can see by his facial expressions how he is feeling I think that it would be even more effective with the correct atmospheric sound and possibly some form of voice over, also in terms of the dialogue some of the lines come across half-hearted when played back compared to when we actually filmed which is quite problematic as our piece is quite emotive – when the tutors came back we spoke to them about this. During this discussion we spoke about re-recording some of the sound which we had already anticipated like in the supermarket where because we were filming after hours there was no one in the store and there were constant bangs of the staff stocking shelves, however this sound we still wanted to keep to a minimum without the hustle bustle of a normal supermarket to highlight how empty Daniel’s life is, also in the house we want to record the sound of a TV/Radio crackling in the background to make it seem as though he could have company in the house, although it is clear that he has not as this is one of the key things about his piece making the audience think that his wife is still there. At the discussion it also came about about a voice over but possibly not from Daniel but from a narrator/point of view, as this would give the piece a whole new level of onlooking and I think would add to the audiences emotions and bring more of their involvement into the film. This we thought about in the form of poetry/monologue which is something we researched after the meeting. The voice over we would like to write ourselves but draw from other pieces for inspiration, as through this we would like to show the development of his thoughts from his love for his wife ‘like a poem for an anniversary’ that moves to the stages of bereavement to finally letting go. I really like this idea of a poem as it will en-capture the story through another level if written well and through some extra research it will be interesting to see exactly what stages people go through in the grieving process and look at pieces they have written. This is quite close to home as this is a process I have been through, as have most of my group, but with a grandparent and not a lover – so in the research it will be eye-opening to see how this differs.

Moving on during the rest of the feedback there were a few more suggestions made about the edit – using a stabiliser effect to make some of the shots less ‘jerky’ which is a very useful tool to have, this was of particular notice in the tracking shots in the supermarket although the tracks were all connected correctly with no gaps and they were placed on a flat surface. When we tested out this effect a couple of days later it does make a lot of difference to the presentation of the shot and takes away the slight movement. We will also apply this to a couple of the other shots as although every shot was shot using a tripod there is some slight movement in selected shots which could have been down to not having the tilt/pan locked off, but with this effect we have solved the problem. Finally the order of the edit was mentioned and it was suggested that we could move away from the linear narrative by playing with the structure of the scenes, so for example we tried this with the extreme long shot of Daniel walking through the trees and placed this at the beginning as a way to set the scene for the audience and using the same shot later on where he is closer to the camera. I liked this was of structuring the piece as the opening shot was much more interesting and draws the spectator in compared to what we initially had at the beginning (Daniel eating), which was quite mundane and almost questioned why exactly does an audience want to watch it.

After this we had a group meeting to discuss the outcomes and brought together our thoughts. As a whole we were pleased with the feedback as a lot of it was what we were expecting and I think that although there is still a lot of work to do given that we still have two weeks everything is possible so long as we keep on top of what needs doing. At this point we designated who was to do what so as to not waste and time. From here onwards Matt and Faye were to edit and therefore would gain feedback from the group when we met and receive the extra parts of the edit to insert as and when they were ready – sound clips, voice over piece, also look into grading in more detail. Kayleigh was to look in detail at the sound development and bring in what sounds were needed for the edit. Then Lydia and I as Co-Producers were left to over see the films development, research for the voice over and pass on this information for Kayleigh to write and help with sound recording and any other components that need completing. We have a lot to do over this next week yet I think we will in turn for our hard work produce something to certainly be proud of.

That night I went away and researched into bereavement/grieving stages for the voice over, below are a selected few that I found would develop our ideas for what we would like to write as a poem;

First of all I found a site which allowed me to see the seven stages of grieving and looking at the final stage this was: ‘Acceptance and Hope’.

you learn to accept and and deal with the reality of your situation. Acceptance does not necessarily mean instant happiness. Given the pain and turmoil you have experienced, you can never return to the carefree, untroubled YOU that existed before this tragedy. But you will find a way forward.

I think that this is a vital moment in the stages of grieving because of course you will never get over something as such so quickly and from experience it is something that will stick with you forever and it is something that you think about each and ever day no matter how hard you try not to. So in terms of the poetic piece we would like to write I would like to see a quite emotive journey underlying beneath it as we follow Daniel on his final journey.

Another site I came across was really helpful in terms of wording: http://www.thebereavementjourney.com/Poetry/index.htm The selection of poems that people have written, it is clear is from the heart and although in our piece we do not want Daniel to be saying it, it is still from his perspective and I would like to see the development of this and his train of thoughts from start to finish as it begins with his ‘undying’ love through to that acceptance that Ellie has gone and she will be missed greatly.

Some of the poems I found really useful I have labelled below and just added in the lines that stood out and read almost as I would like to see our poem read;

(For For Moms Memorial – Linda M Noyola)

I listen for your voice in the sighs of the wind

I find you in everything.

You said you’ll always be with me

You are as close as my breath.

We cannot be apart

The words used here particularly in lines 4/5 I like how although it speaks of death and missing the person it could also be used to describe them if they were still with us. Which in terms of wording is how I would like the first few verses of our poem to sound like. Also line 1 just stands out and really made me think about how you are always expectant to hear the person one more time and for the case of Daniel, his wife this is something so poignant particularly as in the film we want to have moments where we see him reminiscing, thinking about her which is a very important part of the process.

(Superman – Elizabeth Casella)

I stand within this room blanked and stripped of your essence

Please forgive me, I didn’t hear you. Were you calling me? If only a little louder

I search for your face, I search for a sign, where are you? Reveal yourself to me, Oh I know, you will be there in person soon, so my heart tries to deceive me, Oh will this nail ever be taken from my heart?

I also like the form of the poem above – as though talking to the person and how the lines are broken up by pauses listing the emptiness of their lives now, yet still expectant of their loved ones person.The use of questions are really moving as well, as they open up the thoughts of an onlooker to the poem and deepens their awareness of the loss.

Moving on from this I found a couple of videos that also had some really interesting lyrics/lines;

Loss – Sebastian Deledda:

Take a breath

Take another step

Take one more

Take a breath and let it go

Now another day has come live once more

Now another day is done here’s the sun

Now another day is new live this one

We just might make it through

What I liked about these lyrics is the repetition and the simple structure as this gives the audience a time to think and engage in more depth rather than trying to analyse a complicated text with a deeper hidden meaning. Also the first part to the lyrics strikes me as the first notion of coming to terms with a loss ‘take a breath’, the line is simple and informative. However although I would like to hear a poem that is self explanatory I think that this style is too simple and only has a light ‘on the surface’ meaning.

Tonight I Hold This Candle:

My love will shine through

I close my eyes there are so many things I want you to know

I miss you

Again I like the short, simple lines used here which allow thinking time but there is something about the delivery that is not right when watching the video and some of the lines really stand out as ‘cheap’ rather than well thought about – take line 1 I drew out above for instance, which lets the whole piece down that is something we will need to look out for when writing our own.

Finally, How to Save a Life – The Fray

Where did I go wrong

I lost a friend

Some where alone in the bitterness

And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

Looking at the lyrics to this well known song sums up exactly how Daniel is feeling in the film, he has lost his best friend his sole mate as it were and the questions that are asked throughout the lyrics ‘where did I go wrong’ are all the types of questions you ask yourself at this time of bereavement. This is quite a good angle to look at the situation and that self-blame is one of the early stages of loss, so although I don’t think that this way of writing is the way we would like to for the end poem I would like it to have some sense of questioning that results in why do these things happen?

In conclusion to all of my research I now feel a lot more aware of how to write about feelings and hope that when I pass my research and explanations on Kayleigh will see the same. The poem needs to have real depth to it and I think the best form would be in short verses and bursts of various elements so for example; memories, figure of his imaginations of her, sensing her warmth, emptiness and letting go.

One of the early versions of the poem written by Kayleigh is as follows;

EDIT ONE OF POEM

Blissful happiness when I see you smile
The glint in your eyes so bright
Sitting, talking, times going so fast
Rushing past in indecent haste

One year has passed since that crisp autumn day
The White dress of linen still hangs
I still see your smile, much larger than life
Ready for our next big adventure

I hear your voice through the whisper of the wind
The crunching of leaves beneath my feet
Sometimes its nature just calling to me
Just one last step, one last breath, one last touch

The wonder of realisation is a beautiful thing
The loss of the loneliness I feel
You are not to be pitied in your peaceful slumber
No last step, no last breath, no last touch

Firstly I really like the style of her writing and the short verses allow for the thinking time, also when read out loud it reads really well and fluidly fits verse by verse telling that story and adding to his journey. However there are a few problems with this version there is a few repetitions which seem irrelevant (her smile), the repetition seems unintentional which is why it does not work whereas if it had been purposely inserted to the start of both consecutive verses. Also the ‘Autumn’ day, because of when we filmed the scene is certainly not autumn and more early spring like therefore this part of the poem is not fitting with time and space, taking away from the actual story. After making these changes and developing the notions through the verses we came up with a second version which Kayleigh, Lydia and I worked on to get it right:

EDIT ME/LYDIA

The wonder of realisation is a beautiful thing
I hear your voice through the whisper of the wind
Sitting talking times going so fast
It seems so hard to forget the past

The white linen dress still hangs high
I find it so hard to say goodbye
The glint in your eyes so bright
Everything seems so perfectly right

Blissful happiness when I see your smile
A year has passed since that walk down the aisle
An empty house, an empty chair
A wifes love no longer there

You can remember her and only that shes gone
Or you can cherish her memory and let it live on
You are not pittied in your peaceful slumber
No last step, no last breath, no last wonder

Your heart can be empty because you no longer see
But I feel your still with me finally free
As the sky calls you home you fly like a bird
My sweetheart, my love, dont say another word

Its hard to move on, its hard to cope
I wish for you back but can only hope
A gap in time even I cannot undo
Dearest Ellie I miss you

I much prefer this version and when you read through it you can feel the journey of emotions, from verse 1 where he appreciates her for her beauty, verse 2 the connection is lost but it could be through anything, verse 3 missing her now she has gone, verse 4 trying to think about the good times, verse 5 she is still there in spirit and verse 6 he can move on in time. This is really fitting with what we want the audience to understand from the piece, that although times are hard you always find a way to live on. Next and most importantly on the list is getting someone to perform the voice over, it needs to be read with emotion but not to a theatrical point so much so that the visuals still apply and the voice is just in the distance. For this Brian Mansi helped out as he has done many voice overs in the past and we have been pleased with what he has done.

The Shoot

04/03/11

Today we conducted a final Test Shoot to ensure that we would be able to set up the lighting correctly in the house location. The reason for doing the test shoot was so that we knew exactly how we are going to set up the lights tomorrow. One of the main areas we already knew would be an issue with the lighting is in the kitchen and this is down to the room lights being a series of spot lights and the large amount of natural sunlight that on a bright day could wash out the whole room as the window area is so big. We had to use both light sources to make the room look as natural as possible on camera. One slight issue with the lighting as it was, was that the ‘spots’ cast a down shadow on any objects/characters in place which is not what we wanted as we wanted to see the whole of the characters face with only natural shadows, like that that three point lighting gives. This we went on to achieve using a single Dedo light pointing upwards at the spots to counter balance the shadows, and decrease the brightness of the room.

Another aspect we looked at was the JVC-700 camera itself as the most experienced of us all and camera person Matt is unable to join us on day one of the shoot. This could be an issue in the edit as the set up and style of shots could be different later on but Faye the Director will make sure that this will not be the case and guide both camera people on the shoots. However we all refreshed ourselves with the camera as some of us are more experienced than others so that should there be a problem one of us would know it.

During this day we also went over the final shooting schedule for the forthcoming next two days;

Saturday

• 09:00 dress set at house location
• 10:00 actor arrives and brief
• 10:15 begin shoot – all house scenes (kitchen, hallway, leaving, driving off)
• 13:30 lunch break
• 14:00 taxi to graveyard and shoot
• 16:30 depart

Sunday

• 16:00 arrive at Tesco – verify permission and recce again
• 17:00 actor arrives, brief and begin shoot in Tesco
• 19:30 depart

We did the shooting schedule to make sure we are keeping within our time limits when filming, although particularly for the house shoot I have arranged for more than enough time at this location as there are quite a few separate scenes that will need more time than others.

Also today I brought together all of the documents I had written and completed that we would need during the  shoot so that all of the equipment and paperwork is all in one location ready for the morning. This meant the Health and Safety/Risk Assessment Forms for each location, Actor Release Forms, Location Release Forms and Continuity Edit Forms. All of these are vital to have on me as Producer during filming should someone approach us and ask to see any of them and particularly with the Risk Assessment Forms so that we have our own backs covered.

Next together with Faye the Director we went through the Shot List we had put together to check that all of the relevant shots were written down now that we had seen all of the locations, minus one which I am still in the process of contacting (Tesco). We also went through Props Lists and checked the scenery to ensure that all of these objects were in place and all together ready for the shoot.

05/03/11

During the setting up for the shoot in the first hour we gave ourselves, things ran smoothly – the lighting went better than expected as the natural light coming from the window was quite dull meaning we did not have to worry about over-exposure. At this point we designated roles as well as due to Matts absence we had to fill in for the camera person, meaning Faye was Director (as she is), Kayleigh took on the Camera as she felt most confident using the JVC-700, Lydia managed the sound and Boom Mic and I continued with my role of Producer filling out the Continuity Edit Forms, overseeing the whole process, making suggestions where needed and paying particular attention to detail (continuity of object placement, and actor movement). This set up seemed to work well until there were a couple of very minor issues with the camera; Kayleigh was unsure how to fix the focus using the ‘back-focus’ at this point I stepped in as I was aware how to manage this and fixed the problem ready for us to continue.

Just before 10am Chris Skinner our actor arrived and Faye briefed him while I wired him with the Radio Mic. With the sound checks we had saved ourselves time with having the set-up period before he arrived, but we still checked the levels of his voice for the dialogue sections and listened out for and rustling when he moved. This went to plan and we almost immediately then went on to shoot.

Our actor was brilliant and open to suggestions particularly when he did not speak lines how we wanted to hear them. Also he was willing to shoot the same sequence several times from different angles without getting agitated which was a bonus. A couple of times he used the wrong hand in a different shot but Faye was quick to pick up on this and we re-shot it to ensure our continuity would stay in place.

Some of the closer shots in the kitchen became quite dark and after opening the Iris on the camera and it not making a lot of difference we used a reflector to bounce the light to enlighten those darkened shadows that appeared. We were unable to borrow a reflector from the loan shop however we used our ingenuity and made one ourselves from tinfoil.

As a whole the morning shoot and all of the house orientated scenes went really well which I am pleased about. This is mostly down to our good organisation and by selecting the right actor for the job as the actors are the most important part, if they are not happy the footage does not work as you can tell the actors are not on form.

During the designated lunch break I rang Tesco again to check our permissions and to clarify times for shooting tomorrow. The Manager was unavailable the first time but luckily before our next part of shooting I was able to get hold of him and clarify this. Gaining the permission at such late notice after having such trouble contacting them was news to our ears. I was very happy about this as I have spent a good part of the last two weeks constantly ringing Head Office and various other areas trying to speak to the right people.

The next scene to shoot was at the graveyard. When we arrived the sky had become quite overcast which was a good element as on camera it added more colour to the preview/footage we recorded, which added more depth to the character as the bright sunlight would have distracted an audience away from the key meaning of the piece particularly at this key moment in the graveyard. Cinematically this was a brilliant location and the quietness and emptiness of the graveyard itself really added to the loneliness of the characters life now that his wife has passed-away. The only problem with the graveyard was given the quietness to the location there was a children’s play area nearby and throughout the shoot you could hear all of the children’s voices screaming and shouting, on occasions this was fainter than others. To overcome this we recorded a wild track of the ambient sound from the other side of the church where there was a lot less background noise which we can adjust in the edit.

Despite a few problems today went really well; first of all we stuck to our schedule, we all communicated well during takes, we overcame the problems that we faced, we stuck to the shooting list and shot further shots as well and finally after looking back at the footage we all really like the style and how the piece is coming together. I noticed from looking at the footage how some of the lighting in the shots varied which we had no control over particularly at the graveyard, but this was not something that was so wrong that it could not be adjusted and corrected in Post Production. The group has worked together really well, one thing I did find a little unprofessional/uncomfortable was when I was on camera person and two of the group members couldn’t decide which shot to go with next which began a small argument and you could see the actor getting distressed along with us, but this aside the whole day has ran rather smoothly and after talking to our actor about the day at the end he seems to be pleased with the films progress and has enjoyed working with us so far.

06/03/11

Day two and final day of the shoot. We arrived early at Tesco early to make meet the management staff and to clarify our permissions. This was quite an easy process as management asked again what we were doing and how long we would be then asked us to wait until close then we had the go ahead. After moving all of the equipment in there was still customers in the shop so we could not set up, however this meant that Faye and I could have another recce of the store so that we know exactly which aisles we would like to film in and from what angle. This was helpful as when we came to film we moved swiftly from location to location within the store.

Once all of the customers had left we began setting up at this point however there was only three of us Matt, Faye and Me so we had to move speedily so that we were ready for when our actor arrived. This set up time also gave us the chance to practice the tracking shots we had hoped to get following our character from aisle to aisle.

The set up ran smoothly and by 5pm both our actor and Kayleigh had arrived, to begin the shoot. During the shoot itself there were not any major problems. One aspect that was slightly problematic was the track at times occasionally when using it the tripod would bounce over the bumps, but to overcome this each time we moved the track we made sure that we had connected each of the pipes as closely together as possible. Another issue we had was the store being so empty as we had to film after hours – this positive to this however was that we are trying to show how empty the characters life is so the derelict supermarket brings this to life. In conjunction with this we did use ourselves as extras in the background so that the store did not seem quite as stripped. Another minor issue was the noise in the background as constantly through shooting you could hear trolleys banging and coins falling due to the staff re-stocking the shelves – this could be solved by recording and dubbing over the sounds from a supermarket, as the dialogue sections are recoded well through the Radio Mic.

After packing all of the equipment away this was definitely a wrap for filming. We had shot the individual interactions from several angles which should cover us in the edit should we need to use them.

I am looking forward to the edit this week as it I really satisfying seeing how the project is coming together. Although I have only seen the footage on playback and quickly when uploading it on to my hard-drive I am beginning to get more of a sense of how the film will actually look and the compared realities of the locations.

Update

Since our dilemma at the beginning of this week with the casting and our auditions not going to plan we have begun to think on our feet.  After a meeting with our tutors it came about that we still have plenty of time to send out casting calls, audition and film with plenty of time to edit at the end of the process.

First of all I began e-mailing various local theatre groups and drama societies to see if anyone would be interested in the part, fit the role and was available for the not so distant weekend 5th/6th March. It seemed like a lot to ask but I knew that something would come of this, each of us set to work and hoped for a reply. Some of the theatres/societies I contacted were as follows; Concordia Theatre, The Loft, Cubbington Players, The Saints Amateur Drama Society, Priory Theatre and Ruby Theatre. In total I e-mailed 16 therefore there should be some chance of a reply from someone who would be interested, so close to the shooting dates. I also sent out e-mails to two contacts that Ross Varney one of our tutors passed of the details of. Furthermore Faye uploaded the casting call on to starnow, gumtree and a site I found on the off chance which may or may not be of good use thecastingwebsite.

Within two hours we had received a varied amount of replies mostly from the theatres, a lot were negative given the short notice however two actors seemed very keen so we sent them more details and

One of our tutors, Ross Varney, gave us two email addresses of friends who knew local actors. We have emailed them asking if they now anyone who would be suitable for the roll.

We posted our casting call on the website  and  We have already had two replies from thecastingwebsite. This website seemed the most professional because Faye had to contact someone by phone to be registered on the website. Instead of posting a casting call that is for all to access, we had to look and select the actors we thought were suitable and invite them to an audition.

While we were waiting for replies I used this time to create the documents that are needed ready for the shoot and indeed prior to this regarding permissions. Below I have included all of the forms (blank) ready for use towards the end of this week;

By Wednesday afternoon we had received enough replies to invite the actors to an audition which we were conducting Thursday afternoon at Coventry University and via Skype due to such short notice. A lot of the replies were asking for more information and we did not hear back off a few of the applicants after this or we turned them down as they did not suit the role. This meant that for the audition tomorrow we now have two people lined up, one at 4pm and one at 5pm. I prepared a structure for the auditions so that we knew where we were at;

• Introduce ourselves and our roles
• Ask ‘actor’ about themselves – hobbies what they enjoy
• Talk about their influences
• Talk about what work they have done prior to this
• Their Monologue
• Script Exert
• Any questions

The auditions went really well and lasted around 10minutes each which was a reasonable amount of time for the auditions to last considering how much we had to get through. There was quite an age gap in the two actors that auditioned one was in his mid 40′s and the other mid 20′s which meant their playing ages were slightly different too. The older male actor was not quite what we had expected his delivery of the lines was really good and suited the character of Daniel however he asked too many questions and when he spoke about what he had done you could see the amateur dramatics coming out of him. However our other male who was just as we had expected,

during the script exert he used breath and his line delivery was quite powerful and just for a moment here got us as media producers thinking how this could be used to develop our film further into something quite poignant. He also had quite wide facial expressions and was able to control this with out making it over the top. Another aspect to Chris Skinner the younger actor was that he was so young it brings the story to even more life as you would least expect someone to loose their wife after just one year of marriage let alone a young couple, with his playing age of late 20′s.

This whole turn around was a relief and with Chris’ confirmed availability I was able to begin putting the schedule together properly for the weekend. Now tomorrow all we have to think about is the location confirming, bringing together all of the props, dressing the set and conducting a test shoot.

As a whole the casting process was a lot like I had expected but in the beginning we were far too confident about using one site – Mandy. This has certainly been a learning curve and from holding an audition that failed certainly taught me a lot of things about this process – if an actor shows interest it does not mean that they actually want the role (it is an experience for them too), not to be afraid to say no to actors who just do not suit the role because should we have auditioned and actually used them it would have taken away from what we were actually trying to create in the film, stay positive even when it does not go to plan (the advice from tutors was brilliant after our failed audition and this was a moment where as a team we really pulled together and all helped with the casting finding new sites to post it on, e-mailing individuals and thinking on our feet), be finally careful when I tried to cast on Casting Collective we were nearly pulled into the agency and would have had to pay £250 per day for the use of the actors. Most importantly I have learnt from this is as soon as characters are confirmed in the script start casting, the earlier the better and to as many sites as possible and if this means holding a series of auditions to shorten the list of interest then this will be the case.

Meeting 22/02/11

Today we had a meeting with the tutors to check where our film is at and what we need to do to push things along.

During the meeting we explained our situation with casting and how we were going about overcoming this. From here I took it upon myself to contact the Belgrade Theatre and the Theatre tutors to see if we could have any advances on casting this way. Also I made a casting call poster which we are to distribute as of tomorrow.

We also looked at locations and all 3 tutors were pleased with our progress on this as we were and we asked advice on the final location we were still yet to find. Out of the 4 locations – house,supermarket, car and grave yard; between the group we have been able to get permissions for all of the locations apart from the house. This has been a problem throughout the project as we were aiming for a new build – show home, as Daniels house is very modern and this would suit him however we have been passed from person to person within companies. Ross suggested trying Cassidy homes which is a smaller company so hopefully they will be able to help us out or contact the council to see if they have anything available, if not we will use a house that is already available to us and will most suit the film.Also we were having issues with actors for the car scenes as they were asking about insurance and after research I was unable to find how to insure an actor to drive, which I brought up at the meeting and it was suggested to use ‘trick’ shots, so th getting into the car, a shot pulling off, pulling up at grave yard and then getting out, which logistically would make more sense. Finally with locations is the permission in Tesco although we have permission we need to find out if we are covered with public liability insurance either by the chain or the Uni.

Onto the script and story board so far the progression is good however there are a few things we still need to tweak to ensure that the film is an even bigger success (LINK to Storyboard). First of all the structure is fine it is just the way he does things and goes about the situation so for example at the moment the script makes him seem a bit mentally scared and the coming to terms with the flowers and graveyard at the end seems unrealistic. Therefore our options are to either tone down so it really is him mumbling to himself rather than as if she is there or change the ending so the film becomes a loop where he does the same thing the next day the next which is his way of coping.

Although there are a few minor and major aspects we need to conquer before filming I think that we will be able to produce and excellent product from what we have. As a team we work really well together and are all willing to put the extra hours in. I really like how this project pushes us and is very much how we would work in the real world, particularly with the production process, casting, progression, idea – product etc.

Meeting 21/02/11

Today was meant to be solely for casting however we have had a few problems with the actors which has come as quite a shock as everything was going so well. All 5 actors who were invited to auditions neither turned up in person nor on Skype which we had arranged as an alternative.

This means that we need to get on with casting again and indeed audition as we plan to shoot 5th, 6th, 7th March. I took it upon myself to set up on another casting site as I had already done one before with Mandy.com and this time used castingcallpro.com hopefullywe will receive some replies sharp as ideally we need to audition before the end of the week as the shooting dates are creeping up fast.

Looking at locations between us we have done a very good job and spent some of the time when we were meant to be auditioning ringing Tesco and various housing developments. Firstly Tesco have given us permission to film which is brilliant we are just awaiting a confirmation e-mail. However with the house we are unable to use some of the bigger companies such as Barratt Homes as they produce 10,000+houses a year and only allow people to film if it will promote them further as it would be taking time off their hands even if we produced them a copy and suggested contacting local house builders/smaller companies. Which is our next step for research. We will also check again on locations on screenwestmidlands.co.uk to see if anything else has become available.

Finally we decided on exact roles for the group;

• Producer – Me
• Co-Producer – Lydia
• Director – Faye
• Camera – Matt
• Sound – Kayleigh
• Lighting – Me
• Locations Manager – Lydia
• Set/Props – Me/Kayleigh
• Script – Faye
• Casting – Lydia

Car Insurance Issues: below are a few sites I found which seem to insure actors however there does not seem to be a policy for soley actors therefore I will bring this up at the meeting  tomorrow.

http://hencilla-firstact.mmbox.co.uk/Additional+Covers+Available/Motor+Insurance

http://www.quoterack.co.uk/HighRiskOccupationCarInsurance.aspx

Casting

The workshop on casting today was really helpful, at first I admit it was quite frightening thinking that we would have to audition and cast ‘professional’ actors for our films. However it did not come as a surprise and I want to go through the whole production process as professionally as possible. One thing is getting the casting call right, but another is finding the right actor for the job, which is what worries me most at this stage. However the workshop did itself justice and we were able to see what sorts of websites to use and how to write a casting call looking at some that were good and others that were bad.

In addition to this I drew up an overall list of pro’s and con’s to that of a professional actor and a friend

After the workshop on casting where to look and how to write I went away and wrote the groups casting call to upload on to a number of websites;

The lead role in a 3 minute Short Film.

The film is about a loving husband who has recently lost his wife to cancer.

You need to be:

• Male
• Playing age 33
• Roughly 5”11′ (180cm) tall.
• Average build
• Brown eyes/hair
• No glasses
• White British

You will be playing the part of a lonely man, who is struggling to come to terms with the loss of his wife and first love. You will be talking to your late-wife as if she is still there as you use this as a coping mechanism. There are no other actors so you have to feel comfortable talking into open space.

All travel expenses will be covered.

We are scheduled to shoot end of February beginning of March (dates to be confirmed). Auditions will take place prior to shooting.

Please e-mail your CV and photo to Lydia.

shortandsweetproduction@gmail.com

This I will immediately post up on to Mandy as this is one of the most commonly used casting sites and I have heard lots of really good feedback from this site in the past.

Week 4

Over the last week we has developed our idea quite a lot going from a lonely middle-aged male who is setting up a birthday surprise to find at the end it is all for himself and only he turns up into a story about grieving and the final stages of letting go, telling it from the point of view as if his wife is still there.

One of the biggest issues in terms of feedback was if the script is not written correctly it could sound like he has some form of mental illness therefore conducting research on people talking to themselves would help this situation. Also his age was a concern as to why we chose a 40year old male and this was because it is unusual for a man of this age to be widowed as it were so it adds a new level of concern from the audience. Furthermore we just generally need to work on our idea to take it to the next level, which we discussed in our group meeting drawing upon ways to not make him sound like he is ill. Also during this meeting we discussed locations and touched upon how we would like them to look fitting for the character according to his profile which we all created together.

After the group meeting we each went away to complete individual tasks; Me – Outline, Faye – Script 1st Draft, Lydia – Todays Developments on Group Blog and Matt – Character Profiles written up on blog.

The reason for  delegating various roles is so that it takes the pressure off one person and in doing so means we can meet more frequently to discuss our developments. Also this was an easier option to share the work-load before getting into film roles which we will decide on in the next week.

My task for Thursday is to write the Outline, as we discussed the full structure of the Short Film today and did quite a lot of character development it is important that the Outline is written so that we have it on paper and can refer back to it when writing the script.

OUTLINE

A 33 year old man, Daniel lives from memories since he lost his wife Ellie and the time they spent together is seen through his everyday life. Her presence is always with him and any decisions he makes he ensures she knows about them so that they can decide together, which shows how strong their relationship was.

During this day in his ordinary week we see Daniel go through a series of mundane events as he talks to his wife as if she were there, reminiscing the time they spent together particularly as it is their anniversary on this day.

We begin the journey in his home at the breakfast table as we see Daniel eating his cooked breakfast opposite an empty plate where Ellie has already eaten. He is quick to finish as the task of shopping is first before he spends the rest of the day with his wife. He goes over the shopping list and decides what needs to be added while shouting upstairs to Ellie to agree on a few of the products before he heads to the supermarket.

In the supermarket a series of events happen as he wanders up and down the aisles. First of all he needs to check with Ellie a couple of things and rings her to ask about them and finally at the check-out when purchasing the goods, and of course the treat of flowers, we see how much he cares for Ellie.

When he arrives home again the picnic basket is already laid out and just needs the finishing touches – the food. He shouts Ellie from upstairs and they continue with the journey to the picnic area. Next is the car journey where he tells Ellie all about his shopping trip and describes all of her favourite foods he has carefully picked to put into the picnic basket.

Finally they arrive at the destination for the picnic and Daniel walks ahead to find a dry spot for the pair to sit, it is only then that we realise that this beautiful field is in fact a graveyard. Daniel sits in front of his Ellie’s gravestone and places the flowers on the headstone.

Contextualisation

In order to see what was already out there and to gain ideas on how to shoot, story process and development and characters I began some contextualisation. This is a really vital process in terms of the pre-production as this is where we begin to draw upon what is already out there and realise what we can produce which is different and ‘new’ which is certainly something that I would like to achieve as a result of this production.

I have already started to think what sort of film I would like to create and have began discussing this with the group – I want to create a film that can relate to most, picking up on a topic that we have all faced at some point in life and regardless of age will all face at some point if we have not already. Ideas I have already been thinking about are;

• Pregnancy – a girl suffering from rib-ache soon comes to realise she is pregnant and her life falls apart (this could be quite slow moving, but it came up in my mind-map)
• Imaginary relationships – always blaming someone who is not really there and using them as an excuse not to socialise with colleagues/this could be old or young/something that has spiralled out of hand/mental illness? This could be shown through a child who actually has no friends but he is always seen laughing with another until we see the loneliness he really suffers from
• Getting over the death of someone and coming to terms with them no longer being there

Below is some of the research that I conducted prior to gaining my ideas above;

Strangers – Erez Tadmor and Guy Nattiv

Thinking about the theme of strangers after our last group meeting I went away and researched around this topic and one of the films I found was one that we discussed within the meeting. This is a really well thought out short film set on a train where a male jumps on board a train recognises the male opposite him is a Jew and shows his necklace so that they are both aware of each other and when a group of Germans come on board they know they are in trouble and run for their escape. With no words only sounds this film really stands out and the fact that there is no speech emphasises the fact the characters are strangers. The most powerful shot of all is the head nod where the two Jews draw eye contact and run followed by a half smile and raised hand suggesting peace and good work. This just goes to show that the simple ideas are the best. One final pointer about this film was the sound and that emphasis on breath to build up the characters nerves and audience suspense.

Here is the video;

Blogger – Derek Hemmeke and Colby Williams

This film follows a “blogger Lucy Ludwig who travels to a Midwestern motel to find stories that will make her site popular again, but when guests begin dying, Lucy becomes the author of a more sinister story than any reader would expect”. Although this short is a lot more complex than the previous one it has to be to sustain the longer running time of 7minutes. However the simple idea behind the structure of the film and the big reveal at the end unveiling her as the murderer are elements that a great short should consist of. The reveal at the end is something I want to concentrate on too as in previous short films I have made this has been the let down. In addition to this all of the shots used were really engaging and although some of the scenes in the bedsit were quite long the constant change in shots kept me engaged through out – which is something I would like to look at if we have scenes that are quite long in one area of one location or indeed the whole film is shot in one location, the array of shots from CU to Long and the constant angle change really worked and added to that quirkiness of her personality, watching it back for a second time all of these elements are triggers that she is an unstable character but it is not apparent until the end.

Also what I liked about this film were some of the shots, although most were quite mundane longer shots some like the one below really triggered the train of thought and gave the audience time to work out the story:

Below is the link to the video;

http://filmchallenge.org/2010-Finalists/2010-finalist-blogger.html

Teeth - John Kennedy & Ruairí O’Brien

When you hear the phrase ‘short and sweet’ this is what best describes this beautiful little short of two elderly men minding their own business on a boat when one sneezes to loose his teeth and the other cannot stop laughing, but tries to cheer his friend up. Not just the story line but how beautifully shot this film is makes it stand out for me. This is where I think about how important locations are and not just sticking with what we know but actually finding relevant locations granting permissions etc.

Above is the establishing shot at the very beginning of the film with the boat just in the distance. It is so picturesque and the shot itself draws the audience in. Which is followed by a closer shot which can be seen below of the two characters as a shadow in the distance. This is something I would like to bring into my short film – beauty, I do not want it to be a typical student film and would like for it to have shots outside of the usual box. Allowing me/the group to experiment and dependant on which idea we go with can really work the camera.

Below is the video link;

The Optician – Jane McGee

A sweet story based around the optician John who is in love with his assistant Barbara, when he comes across a pair of glasses that Barbara found outside that show part of the future but where will this get him. The use of voice overs in this film really works to highlight how much he admires her with his baffled speech and constant arguing shall he so, shall he not often missing out on an opportunity because of this. If we were to have a dialogue based film this is what I aspire to create, given the circumstances whether it be a series piece, poetic, comedic or narrative, this film shows how important the dialogue is even if there is only one line in the whole film. Again the idea is simple coming from something we have all been through telling someone you like them. Mostly with idea development it is the developing the story is the most difficult bit – to keep it simple. See the film below;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p00b65gs

Plastic Bag - Ramin Bahrani

A slightly longer short film of 19 minutes that follows a  plastic bag on his journey.  This is loosely based around the idea that we all have a purpose in life and a plastic bag has many purposes and even when its day is up it can still be used.  This simple idea works really well and the use of the voice over the bring out those inner-feelings of the plastic bag really makes the film and if you were to close your eyes and just listen to the speech it could quite easily be applied to something else this is why in this case it is so important that the visuals are up to scratch. To emphasise that the story is about the plastic bag shots like below are used where the bag is completely in focus and the rest of the scene is not, this is also achieved by the amount of close-ups that are used.

Video Link;

About A Girl – Brian Percival

For my final contextualisation for this post I am going to look at a film which I had seen in the past but it had such an impact on me the first time I have gone away and analysed it in more depth.

The short film ‘About a Girl’ is a drama set in the poor, common end of Manchester and explores the feelings in which a teenage girl feels as she tells various stories about her life flashing back to moments that show how the people closest to her treat and think of her, with an ending that is unexpected in line with the dialogue and her actions.

To begin with there is a low angled long shot of a silhouette of a girl dancing framed by the line of a field and the dark rain clouds behind her, this represents how far away she is from the people who are closest to her and how she wants more of her life (as from an audience point of view we look up at her), she is living in the shadows. As she dances she sings Britney Spears song ‘Stronger’ which connotates how her dull lifestyle and lack of support has made her stronger than a normal teenage girl.

There is an abrupt cut to a street. As she walks along it there is a medium close-up tracking shot which switches to and from a close-up of her face so that the audience can see her full facial expressions and understand some of the confusion she feels. Her strong Mancunian accent makes her look bold on the outside but clearly she is hurting on the inside, this is shown by the words in which she uses to describe moments of her life. Also now that she is in the light you can see her costume which is a big, thick white jacket which looks dirty and depicts her background and lack of money.

The scene cuts to a scene with the girl’s mum where all of her children are present, the medium long shot presents the lack of communication between each other particularly as the girl keeps her distance from the rest of the family present which suggests she is frustrated by the way her mother treats her but wants someone to be there.

As she continues walking down the street continual cuts go from medium close-up to close-up building up to a faster and faster pace, portraying the irritations she feels in her life, which constantly taunt her.

It then cuts to a scene with her father, the medium long shot used as they sit in the café suggests the distance they have between each other also the movement is kept to their own side of the table and when she speaks her father ignores her and with there being no change in shot it implies that he has always been stubborn like this and treats her like a child, although she is far from it, because he is never there when she needs him most.

As her journey continues she sits outside a pub she begins to sing ‘Stronger’ again and the long shot which zooms out highlights her being pushed further away from family and a happy lifestyle, but the song being repeated suggests her passion for singing and hopes for the future.

The next section of the film consists of quick cuts from the bus to her walking as she talks about her dream to be in a band with her friends which portrays how strongly she wants this to happen, also there is a change in her facial expression – almost a smile.

As she walks down the street there is a medium close-up which helps the audience to relate to her – most young teenage girls want to sing or be in a band when they are older. When she is on the bus a medium close-up is used again as the girls have fun laughing and singing at the back of the bus, to highlight that this is when she is happiest. Also as she is on the bus she has a change in costume – she wears a smart black coat and a scarf, which shows how she wants to make more of herself and with a little effort change her image. This leads into another medium close-up which is used when she is in the perfume shop yet again suggesting she wants to do better and take care of herself rather than wasting away.

This moves into a long shot of her as she sits by the canal plastic bag by her side, exposing how lonely she really is. As she sits there, there are more flashbacks of her and her father with long shots of the action as he tries to keep his distance because he does not want her to move in with him. There is a high angled shot as she walks towards the canal showing the lack of power she has to change how her life is, this cuts to a close-up of her face as she describes her being ‘good at hiding things’ at this point the audience begin to think and focus on all of the previous things she has mentioned. This is followed by another high angled shot as she is about to throw the plastic bag into the water and as we look down on her we see she does not know any better because of how she has been brought up. As she throws the bag into the water there is a close-up of her face and a high angled shot as it floats away, this is suggestive of what will happen to her life, she will just gradually fade away. A close-up of the bag in the water surprises the audience as a dead new born baby falls out and sinks deep into the canal. This moves into a level shot of the canal as the bag floats on the surface of the water, the audience then recall her previously saying that the canal reminded her of a puppy which her mum told her neighbours to through into the canal. The final shot is a high angled shot looking over the girl, canal and plastic back as she walks away from a major experience which has happened in her life. The series of shots brings to the audiences attention what she is really talking about as all the way through there are signals in the dialogue but it is not until this point that it is completely apparent what is happening, and the high angled shot that slowly pulls back as she walks on down the canal justifies her loneliness, which she talks about through her tales and it can be seen clearly in shots with family members like her dad who ignores her.

Throughout the film the lighting is dim which suggests that not only is the girls life dull now but it will probably stay like this for the rest of her life, although she has ambitions to succeed.  Also, the majority of the sound within the film is diegetic suggesting that the girl is in one place and will probably not experience anything in anywhere much further from home.

This film is typical of a short film; it has a small cast (girl, mother, father, friends and few extras), few locations (field, street, canal side, perfume shop, restaurant and outside the pub), it is concept driven and puts the audience through a number of emotions as the girls stories unfold, finally the dialogue although the film is carried by a monologue there is little conversation between her and the other characters.

What I admire most about this film is the simple structure and how the story develops both verbally and visually. Although there is an extensive script mostly speech driven the story could still be told through the imagery which is most important when looking to write a short film to ‘show’ rather than ‘tell’, the speech just adds to the powerful images that are seen. This is why preparation and idea development is so vital because although all of the elements of a successful short have to work together to tell the story it is important that each is polished and portrayed so well that without another the story could still be read by an audience.

See this Short below:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p0055x2k

The more and more short films I watch the more inspired I feel to come up with a great short. In addition to this HERE is link to the post on the group blog where we brought together some of our research and ideas we had discussed at the meeting to develop ours ideas further. The ideas that stood out the most were imaginary relationships/friends as this is something we had all been through as a child and overcoming a loss, again something we had all experienced but we would like to portray it in such a way that no one would know that the person who has passed-away has until the twist at the end. Also the reason why I liked these main ideas in-particular was because I thought that it would be a really good challenge both through the script and the camera work. In terms of the script any dialogue will need to be very well written and the storyline very clear, also the locations will have to be picked out very carefully in order to suit the nature of the film. In terms of camera work we will have to be crafty and work carefully as to make sure that extra person cannot be seen, maybe shot from their point of view or very close-up like the style of ‘Peep Show’. So far I like how we are working together and soon when we get into roles and begin the development of our film further I think we will do which ever idea we go with justice as already I can see that the people I am working with are dedicated and together we bounce of each others ideas which is very important.

Nokia Short

For this task we had to create something similar to that of the Nokia Shorts that came about in 2006 through a competition, using a mobile phone to make a short film up to 30seconds long. This is a really short time frame however it made me think about exactly what to put into it, planning every shot and not using irrelevant footage. Also bringing together a storyline that was easy to portray in few shots, which is a good skill to have in the long run as the storyline is the most important part of the film and if it goes off on a tangent the whole films becomes less and less relevant. Another aspect of this exercise is bringing together the whole process and development of a project on a smaller scale to that of the actual short film we will begin working towards after this and then we will be able to see what areas need improvement and which are strong.

To begin with we grouped up into groups of five. The people who I am working with are Adam Broome, Aaron Wade, Ben Baker and Samantha Soane, the reason for working with these people is because I have never worked with them before and on challenges like these it is always good to get to know how different people work, particularly in the long run for the actual short film we will be making as we all may have skills that counter balance one another. In cases like this it is good to see what skills other people have and perhaps if they are strong on camera swap roles so that we get to work on components that are not as natural.

So thinking about skills what skills do I have already; previously I have taken on roles such as Producer, Camera and Sound therefore I think I have quite a range of skills already. Furthermore I conducted a skills audit where I was able to see that from previous experience I had been able to develop my own skills in time/project management, organisation and communication these skills I could see had developed from my time as Producer on various projects as for this role you need to be able to communicate well with all team members to ensure the project runs smoothly, keep on top of the paper work (organisation) and making sure that alls contacts (for example actors/location) are all aware of what is happening when and generally overseeing other team members work and help them where needed. In terms of Camera I have good listening skills and can take criticism or advice from fellow colleagues in order to make sure the shots are as the Director wants them, I am also patient which is vital when setting up a scene and the camera is in place but the props/set are being put back to their original state to keep continuity and I am a pro-active thinker whereby on set I am constantly thinking a new shots that could be used that maybe the Director has not already thought of and am not afraid to voice this in order to develop the project, I am working on, further. Something that I already know I am uncomfortable with and a skill I would like to develop further is working outside of my comfort zone, the reason why I am not so good at this is because I usually take on the same roles as I already know they are what I enjoy, although I may well enjoy something else more should I give it a go.

Before the meeting tomorrow and before we start mind-mapping ideas I went away and started to conduct some contextualisation work to see what was already out there and to perhaps gain some inspiration from this. After a little while browsing I came across the YouTube channel that some of the original shorts had been posted on.

The first video I played was ‘The Tour of the House’:

This is a short and very simple idea, with a tour of the house to find a stranger in the living room who jumps out of the window. The idea is really effective and the whole sequence is filmed using one shot which works for the documenting style of film that it is. Also that light-hearted comedic element at the end adds to the piece much more than if it were the cameras persons friend and the ending was him saying for example ‘Hi Steve’, which there would not have been a point of producing the film for. This comedic element is something I found when looking at further videos. Another video I found below is relevant because the characters are people we see everywhere we look.

Ah, Youth:

A ‘harmless’ little piece well-shot and edited together. This time it is shot using a series of close-ups and longer shots of all of the characters to engage in what they are doing, the voice over is really effective as it follows the elderly ladies thoughts, but in reality this is what most people would think in this situation when seeing a young couple kissing each other so passionately unaware of anyone around them. This is a simple idea and a situation we are all familiar with and because of the characters used the audience find it easy to relate to. Also the slight twist at the end is un-expectant which brings the audience to smile yet cannot help but think the situation is grotesque, but because of the light-humour there is no harm or offence caused. Finally the music that lightly plays underneath the piece adds to the audiences thoughts of what may happen with is slight tempo and occasional beat.

After watching a few more of these shorts I soon came to realise that they all follow this very simple structure and have very little or no dialogue. Some were edited more carefully than others but the idea, story and portrayal of what ever the topic was there. This is actually a really good exercise to do as well in terms of camera as this will be the first time we actually use the JVC-700′s so it will be a good test to see how they work to our advantage and what sort of product we can get out of them. Most importantly with this camera, it is a camera specifically made for drama and therefore if used correctly we could create a really cinematic piece.

At the meeting we came up with several ideas both simple and slightly complex so we wrote them all down then discussed the pro’s and con’s for the most popular;

• I-Pod (see a character dancing away – end realise I-Pod is not plugged in) – for a beginning idea this is not bad however it is quite mundane and unless pulled off right will not have any comedic value what so ever which is something we all discussed having in our piece.
• Obese Person (they think they fat but they are really tiny) – touches on issues like anorexia which is relevant to today’s society, there is not really a story as such other than the reflection in the mirror and it could become offensive.
• Suggestive (someone grinding a pepper tube) – could work with close shots and good use of sound but would it sustain 30sec, I do not think it would which then becomes irrelevant to the task in hand.
• Fancy Dress (follow a feminine figured male to a pub to find it is a male) – good idea but could be quite lame may be better portrayed if it were getting ready for a party of some sort by a series of close-ups of make-up and nails etc to reveal the overall figure and image of a male, which could be quite comical however this has been seen hundreds of times before and we want to create something different.
• Photo-booth (perfectly respectable male walks in to a photo-booth and when walks out leaves photos – next customer sees and laughs – he dresses up/drinking etc) – I like this idea the most as a Photo-booth is always something you expect to see something funny out of and are always anticipating what your own photos are going to look like so for it to purposely be funny should work quite well.

We set to work on this idea and produced the outline and began location scouting. One of the better locations with the Photo-booth was at the SU so we gained permission for the shoot and used ourselves as the actors as it is only a short piece. To give ourselves more control we each took on a role; Director – Me, Camera/Editor – Ben, DoP – Sam, Sound – Aaron and Male Actor – Adam.

The shoot went really well on the day and we pulled together costume and props for the photographs which we took against a white background so that it looked as though it were taken inside the photo-booth.  Below are a couple of snaps from the shoot and the final edited short;

Final Product:

When I saw the final edit I was really pleased with how it had all come together as I was aware that at the planning and preparation pre-production stage we missed out a few vital elements like documents for example; shot lists, continuity edit sheets, location release  forms, hazard forms and the list could go on. For the actual Short Film I go on to Produce I want to know that all of these documents are written and in place very early on in the process so that all they need doing to them is filling in. If when I get into a group for the final short I am able to take on the role as Producer I would really like to put this role to the test again now that I have a much wider knowledge of what it is this role entails as it is 6 months since I last took on this role. In terms of the pre-production stage I would like to be on top of every aspect and work through the process as shown in ‘Dawkins and Wynd’ as although we followed aspects of this for this production when looking back it would have been far more successful had we worked through each stage properly and spent time thinking, discussing and changing ideas early on so that we have enough time to produce the final product we decide on. Also documents like the shot list, how vital this is, as when we came to shoot as director I had some shots in mind but a lot of it was guess work and none of us were making record of this as we shot either – particularly in terms of a bigger project like the final short this will play an extremely important role as the product should be 3 minutes long and if shots are not thought about we could end up with a film that does not even resemble a film and the storyline will fail because of bad preparation and because of this bad shot composure. In addition to this the documents that need signing like the location release forms and actor release forms all need to be completed as should we enter this to a film festival at the end or screen it somewhere other than the university if there is a problem with that location being shown we have the document to prove that this was ok for us to film. Also actors will be professional and not just ourselves as it is clear that Adam and myself in this film are not actors and in order for our film to look professional and to be excepted at a high standard I would like to think that actors will be considered very carefully. Finally the sound design, for this piece it was very simple but for my bigger piece I would like this element to be well thought about and composed whether this be through music, atmospheric sound or dialogue and a mixture of them all, as already I am aware that a bad sound design will only let the film down and not live up to what it is worth. This is an element I am less confident with but I am sure as a group although in roles we will be able to help one another with this.