Shot Variety

When first planning and storyboarding our opening, I wanted to follow the rough outline of conventional shot sequences however use rapid straight cuts between varying shots to capture the emotional intensity we decided upon.

Dazed begins with a tilt shot into the opening establishing shot of the block of flats displaying the title itself. In the following party sequence we used consistent (extreme) close ups in the glitch sequence before contrasting to the full body and POV running sequence. The obscurity of the protagonist was emphasised through choices in cinematography in the section filmed on the roof. Though planned later on, we had a variation of over the shoulder, POV and close up shots countered by a wide shot zooming out to end the opening. As well as this we explored camera angles as well with as low and high angle shots whereas previously a substantial amount of the opening was filmed at eye level.  

 

Location

In keeping with our desired focus on the challenges and overwhelming nature of young life we decided to film in largely built up urban areas. We had two main locations, filming in low light at the blocks of flats and then in the high key daylight on the roof. The busy streets and loud diegetic sound allowed us to further our desire to reflect the panic and often obscurity of the protagonist in the landscape.

However, in deciding to film at low light levels to fulfill our desire for stark contrasts, we had to pay even closer attention to whether everything was clear in frame. As well as this, filming on a road continually disrupted takes but eventually we filmed the entire running sequence.

Continuity

One the biggest issues we encountered in our film opening was that of continuity. Filming in numerous locations at different times of day would heavily affect lighting and sound quality which we quickly realised in our first shoot. Initially filming inside the block of flats, lighting continued to vary between shots whilst we were first getting accustomed to using the camera. However, eventually getting into the habit of paying attention to light level and focus before recording prevented us from taking longer than necessary for the rest of the film. We found similar problems with mise en scene but it highlighted to us early on to take pictures/notes of costume and frame compositions. In our final film opening, we think paying such close attention to light levels paid off.

Editing in Production Companies

Though the inclusion of production companies do not gain marks, we wanted to use them as a way to establish a tone and quality for the film as well as a sort of colour palette. The use of bright block colours throughout the film amongst the often dark, cold, grey toned settings is consistent in our opening. Examples of this are the lighting of the party glitch scene and the use of pink titles to almost trick the audience into an almost false sense of security for what the film entails. 

First shoot

 

Tuesday was our first time filming for our opening. We decided to film the exterior of the flats and interior of the building shown in the storyboard however, film the party and bathroom shots in my house due to the need for greater space. By doing so, it will require us to pay heavy attention to the mise en scene and consequently the continuity of the overall two minute opening. The main success of the day was our use of lighting in the party scene, briefly shown above. More details and photos to come...