Final Question Two

Final Question One

Evaluation: Question Seven Script

7) Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

"Looking back at our prelim, our shot variety was extremely limited which highlighted to us the importance of alternating angle and shot type especially in relation to the aims of our opening. More specifically, I learnt the importance of using match on action and close ups in between initial wide shots. On a basic level, the prelim forced me to begin to pay attention to the specifics of mise on scene for continuity but also verisimilitude. In conjunction with, the choice to have multiple takes and sufficient planning proves so useful for efficient filming. The most noticeable issue regarding sound in the prelim was that there was an error of Emma saying “action” at the beginning of a shot. As a result, this made us pay close attention to the audio when editing and ensure there were no anomalies in sound suggesting there was an error. From this I learnt to balance and layer all types of sound. For our opening, using more than one non diegetic sound and use of foley sound was crucial. Our prelim introduced this to us though we progressed significantly in the making of our final opening."

Tweaking Question One

As I'd mentioned before, I had decided to do a stop motion video for the first evaluation question. It has taken a very long time to edit all of the photos together and make the voice over match exactly. However I eventually decided to not have the entirety of the video as stop motion but also incorporate cutaways of the films and sections of our opening that I refer to in voiceover.  Therefore, the video response now uses varying technologies as opposed to the single use of photos I had initially intended.

Key Problems

I would like to think that overall we were very efficient in all aspects of our film opening, particularly editing as we were quick to make any required adjustments. However, we did encounter a number of problems along the way:

• Firstly, the initial plan for our opening simply wasn't long enough, which we realised after editing and accumulating just 1 minutes worth of fully edited footage. This then meant we had to further our plot in an almost "part two" of the opening which took place on the roof. We decided upon a flashback sequence, contrasting heavily in colour palette and lighting to the opening half. As a group we wanted to avoid the more conventional and often cliché "one week earlier" and it is at that point we took inspiration from seven in a more ambiguous take on the flashback.
• Light levels were a huge issue in filming for both consistency but also in making clear the time of day as to not confuse the audience beyond what we intended.
• In editing the glitch sequence was very tricky, deciding upon the length of each shot, the point at which it cuts as well as the number of alternations. This is where my skills in editing became excruciatingly precise!
• Furthering on from this, we struggled with deciding whether to include sound or not however eventually we looked to audience feedback for the answer (if only we'd done it sooner)

Protagonist

The protagonist of our film opening, played by me, is extremely introverted and evidently anxious. This is suggested in numerous ways beyond solely acting, a key more obvious example being when the text is received, highlighting the need for reassurance. What I found most difficult playing the character was only having the single line of dialogue. I had to always keep in mind that in editing, the inclusion of black screens, alternating sounds and sharp straight cuts would convey the overall sense of "Dazed" embodied by my character. Within the party scene we had hoped for a direct contrast between my character and those surrounding me, smiling and laughing. Its funny to watch back outtakes of us switching between our "film crew" and a bunch of idiots balancing on the roof in hopes of getting the perfect close up!

Evaluation: Question Six Script

6) What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? 

“The process of making our film opening allowed me to further my skills and precision when using editing software as well as practising using a camera on a tripod. Prior to making our film opening, I had very little experience with editing, particularly with using iMovie.  In contrast however, initially I had more experience with using a camera and tripod though we had to adapt to the setting or functions of the equipment provided. When filming close ups, I quickly realised that we would be required to use the touch screen element of the camera to focus on individuals. In contrast, when doing establishing or more intentionally out of focus shots (like the shot assisted by a heartbeat to commence the running sequence) we did not require such attention to detail. Our hopes for shot variety throughout the film meant we were constantly altering the height and positioning of the camera and tripod to create high, low and eye level angles.

The most challenging aspect of the editing process was a glitch sequence. On iMovie we had to ensure we had more frames to make for a more precise cut between the party and the protagonist alone.  Alongside this, I learnt how to download and convert sound files into mp3 and import them into iMovie. Again, this is where I developed my skills in precisely editing clips of footage with the correct sound at the correct volume. The most difficult aspect of this, I found, was when altering the sound levels when the door opens and slams outside the party.”