Friday, May 13, 2011
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Monday, May 09, 2011
Monday, March 07, 2011
Editing
Day 1 - 07/03/2010
To edit the footage we used Final Cut Express on a iMac computer.
We we spent a whole day editing the footage that was shot on days 1 and 2. Once all the footage had uploaded it was time to start cutting and putting together the clips in the right order. It took about 3 hours to get 3 mins of the film cut down and in the right sequence, we then had to go back and put in transitions and fix any clips which looked odd. In the first scene Saira and jordan were meant to come out of their house's using a split screen i would put these two clips together however when i did this it didnt look very good as one of the shots was unsteady and they both had different ways of coming out the house. I decided to leave this out and just have to seperate clips of them coming out of their houses. I also had difficulty trying to do the pan and zoom edit as final cut express was not letting me edit the clip i wanted to edit and would keep going back to the orgianal cut rather than the cut i had made. I left this for another day when my teacher could figure out what was wrong. When editing the footage we realised that there wasnt enough proof to show that jordan was running late, it was a little bit vague. This made us reconsidering re-filming some new scenes, which we could put in to make it seem like it more. By the end of the editing setion we completed 3 and 1/2 minutes of our short film, we still have 3 more minutes to go.
Day 2 - 08/03/2010
Today we did more editing and were able to finish editing the sequence of our film however there is still a lot to do. Firstly, once the clips were cut down and put together we started to look for non-copyright music which we could use to put in our film. Our whole film is going to have music throughout there isnt going to be any diegetic sound apart from the alarm clocks at the beginning. We found a couple pieces of music, but when we put them with our footage it didnt go very well, instead of doing the music we fixed some more of the clips by slowing a couple down and speeding some up, as some of the clips seemed to take two long.
Feedback from editing days 1&2:
Our media teacher said that we needed some good pieces of music to go with our film, as the film would rely on the music going with the film. He also thought that the beginning didnt show well that Jordan was running late and maybe we should add some extra shots of the time.
Day 3 - 09/03/2010
Today we had to figure out what music would go with the film, it was quite difficult trying to decide on a piece of music that would fit it. Eventually we found a couple pieces of music that might be able to fit with the film. We decided that we were going to make a contrast between Saira's and Jordans scene by making the music completly different. Sairas music will be calm representing that she is on time and Jordans music is quite fast paced showing that he's in a rush.
To edit the footage we used Final Cut Express on a iMac computer.
We we spent a whole day editing the footage that was shot on days 1 and 2. Once all the footage had uploaded it was time to start cutting and putting together the clips in the right order. It took about 3 hours to get 3 mins of the film cut down and in the right sequence, we then had to go back and put in transitions and fix any clips which looked odd. In the first scene Saira and jordan were meant to come out of their house's using a split screen i would put these two clips together however when i did this it didnt look very good as one of the shots was unsteady and they both had different ways of coming out the house. I decided to leave this out and just have to seperate clips of them coming out of their houses. I also had difficulty trying to do the pan and zoom edit as final cut express was not letting me edit the clip i wanted to edit and would keep going back to the orgianal cut rather than the cut i had made. I left this for another day when my teacher could figure out what was wrong. When editing the footage we realised that there wasnt enough proof to show that jordan was running late, it was a little bit vague. This made us reconsidering re-filming some new scenes, which we could put in to make it seem like it more. By the end of the editing setion we completed 3 and 1/2 minutes of our short film, we still have 3 more minutes to go.
Day 2 - 08/03/2010
Today we did more editing and were able to finish editing the sequence of our film however there is still a lot to do. Firstly, once the clips were cut down and put together we started to look for non-copyright music which we could use to put in our film. Our whole film is going to have music throughout there isnt going to be any diegetic sound apart from the alarm clocks at the beginning. We found a couple pieces of music, but when we put them with our footage it didnt go very well, instead of doing the music we fixed some more of the clips by slowing a couple down and speeding some up, as some of the clips seemed to take two long.
Feedback from editing days 1&2:
Our media teacher said that we needed some good pieces of music to go with our film, as the film would rely on the music going with the film. He also thought that the beginning didnt show well that Jordan was running late and maybe we should add some extra shots of the time.
Day 3 - 09/03/2010
Today we had to figure out what music would go with the film, it was quite difficult trying to decide on a piece of music that would fit it. Eventually we found a couple pieces of music that might be able to fit with the film. We decided that we were going to make a contrast between Saira's and Jordans scene by making the music completly different. Sairas music will be calm representing that she is on time and Jordans music is quite fast paced showing that he's in a rush.
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
Filming
Day 1 - 01/03/11:
Today the group started the first day of filming. The group met at our actor Jordans House, where we would film the first shots. The first thing we shot was Jordan waking up to his alarm, we got a close-up shot of his alarm going off. We also got the neccessary shots of him getting ready. Once we had done this we went and filmed the shots of Jordan missing the train and where he got the drink spilt on his top. We had a few Shots of Saira done today, the ones that mainly involved Jordan in the scene. We focused most of our filming on Jordan today.
Things that went well:
- Got alot of different camera angles
- Made a lot of progress towards getting quite a lot of scenes done.
Things that didnt go so well:
- When looking back at the footage, team members were also in the shots
- Actors kept looking at the camera
Day 2 - 04/03/11:
Today we spent more time on filming the scenes where Saira and Jordan Finally meet. This was film in Hyde Park in London. There was the scene where they meet at the fountain and the different shots of them at the Cafe and having a water fight.
Things that went well:
- The weather was good which set the mood for our romantic comedy.
- We were able to get all of saira and jordans scenes together done
Things that didn't go so well:
- There was dark lighting in one of the shots which we didnt realise at the time, this may need to be re-done or cut out of the film.
- There were a few mise en scene mistakes
Feedback from filming
We showed the footage we had filmed on days 1 & 2 to our media teacher, who fedback that the footage we had didnt seem to fit the story it was supposed to tell. He also thought that we could re-do a few of the handle held shots as they werent steady and instead use the tripod as well as including more close-up shots to furthur reflect the emotions of the characters.
Day 3 - 10/03/11
Today we went and filmed the morning scene with jordan again, from the feedback received from our media teacher we used to tripod to film the front door scene so that we had a good steady shot. We wanted to film this scene again as we wanted to make jordan look as if he was in a rush and late as it wasnt quite clear in the first set of footage.
Things that went well:
- The acting was more convincing and portrayed the right situation.
- The film will hopefully make more sense now we have filmed the new footage.
Things that didnt go so well:
- We had to re-film a scene as he was wearing the wrong t-shirt.
Today the group started the first day of filming. The group met at our actor Jordans House, where we would film the first shots. The first thing we shot was Jordan waking up to his alarm, we got a close-up shot of his alarm going off. We also got the neccessary shots of him getting ready. Once we had done this we went and filmed the shots of Jordan missing the train and where he got the drink spilt on his top. We had a few Shots of Saira done today, the ones that mainly involved Jordan in the scene. We focused most of our filming on Jordan today.
Things that went well:
- Got alot of different camera angles
- Made a lot of progress towards getting quite a lot of scenes done.
Things that didnt go so well:
- When looking back at the footage, team members were also in the shots
- Actors kept looking at the camera
Day 2 - 04/03/11:
Today we spent more time on filming the scenes where Saira and Jordan Finally meet. This was film in Hyde Park in London. There was the scene where they meet at the fountain and the different shots of them at the Cafe and having a water fight.Things that went well:
- The weather was good which set the mood for our romantic comedy.
- We were able to get all of saira and jordans scenes together done
Things that didn't go so well:
- There was dark lighting in one of the shots which we didnt realise at the time, this may need to be re-done or cut out of the film.
- There were a few mise en scene mistakes
Feedback from filming
We showed the footage we had filmed on days 1 & 2 to our media teacher, who fedback that the footage we had didnt seem to fit the story it was supposed to tell. He also thought that we could re-do a few of the handle held shots as they werent steady and instead use the tripod as well as including more close-up shots to furthur reflect the emotions of the characters.
Day 3 - 10/03/11
Today we went and filmed the morning scene with jordan again, from the feedback received from our media teacher we used to tripod to film the front door scene so that we had a good steady shot. We wanted to film this scene again as we wanted to make jordan look as if he was in a rush and late as it wasnt quite clear in the first set of footage.
Things that went well:
- The acting was more convincing and portrayed the right situation.
- The film will hopefully make more sense now we have filmed the new footage.
Things that didnt go so well:
- We had to re-film a scene as he was wearing the wrong t-shirt.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Checklist, Storyboard & Film Schedule
The next part of the planning required us to create a storyboard, we wanted a clear picture of what our film would look like and to help us when filming and editing.
The storyboard.
The film schedule is to help us know when which shots to film on what days.
The film schedule.
The checklist is a list of things we need when filming.
The checklist.
The storyboard.
The film schedule is to help us know when which shots to film on what days.
The film schedule.
The checklist is a list of things we need when filming.
The checklist.
Mood Board
This is the visual mood board for the topic of our film. (Shown below)
It shows aspects of what our film is going to be about.
It shows aspects of what our film is going to be about.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Treatment
A journey of both boy and girl going to meet on a date, the boy comes across many obstacles which delay his arrival, whereas the girl's day runs smoothly, she has no troubles getting to the meeting point.
The boy: he starts his day as normal things are going fine, but, the moment he leaves his house troubles come caving in. Simple things like him forgetting his oyster and missing his train bringing him to stress. Having to run back and forth in and out of his home before he even makes his journey. He begins to stress that he will be late as he looks at his watch constantly, checking the time in hope that the girl isn't there before him or has been kept waiting and left. Once he finally gets on his train and his journey begins to look like it's on the bright side, things start to go wrong again the moment he gets off the train. There's crowds of people its extremely busy he bumps in to people and ends up spoiling his top as coffee get's spilt on to it from bumping into them. He then has to run to the nearest shop to buy a new top and ends up not having enough money, so he then resorts to a charity shop and buys any random cheap top, which makes him look like a tool. on his way to the meeting point he manages to see a man selling roses off a stall and buys one for her with his minor change left. He feels like this is never going to happen his fate has been ruined. He's very ambitious and strives to achieve his set goal.
Girl: She wakes up in the morning being woken up by a radio alarm, straight away she's up with a smile upon her face. She's excited about her date, she gets ready with ease everything goes perfectly. She get's up she eats breakfast, brushes her teeth does her make up. Her journey is simple and stress free and she even has time to have a look in the passing shops as she has time to waste whereas the boy doesn't. They eventually meet up and the boy is there before her In shock to himself and the audience. They walk off holding hands into the sunset.
The boy: he starts his day as normal things are going fine, but, the moment he leaves his house troubles come caving in. Simple things like him forgetting his oyster and missing his train bringing him to stress. Having to run back and forth in and out of his home before he even makes his journey. He begins to stress that he will be late as he looks at his watch constantly, checking the time in hope that the girl isn't there before him or has been kept waiting and left. Once he finally gets on his train and his journey begins to look like it's on the bright side, things start to go wrong again the moment he gets off the train. There's crowds of people its extremely busy he bumps in to people and ends up spoiling his top as coffee get's spilt on to it from bumping into them. He then has to run to the nearest shop to buy a new top and ends up not having enough money, so he then resorts to a charity shop and buys any random cheap top, which makes him look like a tool. on his way to the meeting point he manages to see a man selling roses off a stall and buys one for her with his minor change left. He feels like this is never going to happen his fate has been ruined. He's very ambitious and strives to achieve his set goal.
Girl: She wakes up in the morning being woken up by a radio alarm, straight away she's up with a smile upon her face. She's excited about her date, she gets ready with ease everything goes perfectly. She get's up she eats breakfast, brushes her teeth does her make up. Her journey is simple and stress free and she even has time to have a look in the passing shops as she has time to waste whereas the boy doesn't. They eventually meet up and the boy is there before her In shock to himself and the audience. They walk off holding hands into the sunset.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Final Idea
Boy Meets Girl
A short film about a boy who struggles to attend a well planned date in advance, coming across various troubles along the way. While in the meantime the girl is able to reach the meeting place in time.
10 Point Summary
A short film about a boy who struggles to attend a well planned date in advance, coming across various troubles along the way. While in the meantime the girl is able to reach the meeting place in time.
10 Point Summary
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Initial Ideas
We came up with an initial idea each.
Kaltrina's Intial Idea // Saira's Initial Idea // Jessica's Initial Idea
Feedback on initial ideas
After reviewing all our ideas, our teacher suggested we use a really simple idea that would still grab the audience and can be easily done really well. Some of the ideas were too complicated to film and we knew the end result would look nothing like the original idea, for example, Saira and Jessica's idea seemed too typical and suited a more feminine audience.
Kaltrina's Intial Idea // Saira's Initial Idea // Jessica's Initial Idea
Feedback on initial ideas
After reviewing all our ideas, our teacher suggested we use a really simple idea that would still grab the audience and can be easily done really well. Some of the ideas were too complicated to film and we knew the end result would look nothing like the original idea, for example, Saira and Jessica's idea seemed too typical and suited a more feminine audience.
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Codes & Conventions of a Romcom
A Romcom is a hyrbid genre which mixes Romance and Comedy together. Here are some often used codes and conventions:
- An introduction: usually dialogue which introduces the main characters
- The main characters are usually a boy and girl
- The setting of the film is usually in a big city which is well recognised.
- There is a happy ending
- Boy meets Girl plot
- Happy music with good lighting
An example of a Romcom is Love Actually (2003)
Love actually is a film about the love stories between 10 different characters, it is set in London
It follows the codes and conventions of a Romantic Comedy by being set in London which is a well known city, the story is told during Christmas which is seen as one of the romantic holidays in the year where family,friends and couples get together. Another element which shows the film followed the conventions is by the choice of music, they released to cuts of the film for US and the UK, in the UK they used known artist of the UK and for the US cut they used well known artists in US. For example the UK cut included Sugababes- too lost in you but in the US cut this was replaced with Kelly Clarkson - The trouble with love is.
- An introduction: usually dialogue which introduces the main characters
- The main characters are usually a boy and girl
- The setting of the film is usually in a big city which is well recognised.
- There is a happy ending
- Boy meets Girl plot
- Happy music with good lighting
An example of a Romcom is Love Actually (2003)
Love actually is a film about the love stories between 10 different characters, it is set in LondonIt follows the codes and conventions of a Romantic Comedy by being set in London which is a well known city, the story is told during Christmas which is seen as one of the romantic holidays in the year where family,friends and couples get together. Another element which shows the film followed the conventions is by the choice of music, they released to cuts of the film for US and the UK, in the UK they used known artist of the UK and for the US cut they used well known artists in US. For example the UK cut included Sugababes- too lost in you but in the US cut this was replaced with Kelly Clarkson - The trouble with love is.
Monday, February 07, 2011
Research: Short Films
To get started, we looked the history of short films and where they originated. They started in the 1910's in the United States. They were first known as short subjects which followed features and could be either animated cartoons or live action. They were usually comedies and some were in the structure of travelogues. From the 1930's till the 1960's, short films started to become minimal, resulting in disappearing in total. It was only in the 1980's that the short subjects were known to be 'short films'. In the modern age, they are seen as contemporary non-commercial motion pictures which are shorter than feature films.
We then looked at some short films to give us an idea of the codes and conventions of short films and to aid us in coming up with some initial ideas. We looked at 'Signs' which was a simple romantic comedy where no dialogue was used, but words on paper. This introduced us to simplicity and how we could make effective short films with simplistic ideas. We also looked at 'About a girl' which was a social realism/ drama which followed a girl on her way to a canal as she talks about specific events in her life, resulting to her dumping a new born baby into the canal. This introduced us to the idea of an ending with a twist which catches the audience off guard. This was another element to consider when coming up with a film idea. We watched 2 other films, Harvey Krumpet and Black Button, both of which were created out of different Medias (animation and film).
From watching these shorts, we concluded these typical conventions of short films:
With the research taken into account, we discussed what type of genre we would be interested in doing and decided upon a romantic comedy.
Saira's Powerpoint // Jessica's Powerpoint // Kaltrina's Powerpoint
We then looked at some short films to give us an idea of the codes and conventions of short films and to aid us in coming up with some initial ideas. We looked at 'Signs' which was a simple romantic comedy where no dialogue was used, but words on paper. This introduced us to simplicity and how we could make effective short films with simplistic ideas. We also looked at 'About a girl' which was a social realism/ drama which followed a girl on her way to a canal as she talks about specific events in her life, resulting to her dumping a new born baby into the canal. This introduced us to the idea of an ending with a twist which catches the audience off guard. This was another element to consider when coming up with a film idea. We watched 2 other films, Harvey Krumpet and Black Button, both of which were created out of different Medias (animation and film).
From watching these shorts, we concluded these typical conventions of short films:
- They are between 5 and 20 minutes.
- They consist of a beginning, middle and end.
- They tend to be low budget films, using low quality effects such as the white space in 'Black Button', which was basically a white sheet and made to look smoother with an effect from the editing software they used.
- They look more gritty and realistic than smooth and glossy.
- They are low key, putting character names at the end or not including them at all as they are unknown and aren't significant in comparison to big budget films.
- The narratives tend to be original.
With the research taken into account, we discussed what type of genre we would be interested in doing and decided upon a romantic comedy.
Saira's Powerpoint // Jessica's Powerpoint // Kaltrina's Powerpoint
Thursday, February 03, 2011
Brief
Our brief was to create a short film from any genre of our choice and had to be between 5 and 10 mins. We were all enthusiastic about this project as it wasnt as limited as our last thriller film project and the time limit was longer.
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