The following are notes taken from the camera workshop feedback from the Chatham Dockyard trip:
-Preferably cut to a zoomed out shot rather than show the zoom- Makes it look 'filmed'/ Unnatural.
-Pans must be 45 degrees maximum.
-Must use ten to fifteen second holds.
-Camera / shot must start and end steady (still)- reveals from point A to point B.
-Three tight shots for every wide shot.
-Zoom and then frame up the shot- Not at the same time- Zoom for re-framing purposes.
-Camera movement requires motivation.
-Reset cameras before each shoot.
-Make sure to white balance every time there is a change in location including moving between exteriors and interiors of specific locations.
-People in shot- Just hands, just face, then everything in shot.
Wednesday, 29 March 2017
Chatham Dockyard: Shooting on Location Experience
Our trip to the Chatham Dockyard allowed us the opportunity to practice and experience filming a documentary on location.
We were split into our usual groups for the documentary unit, although we were a crew member short, to move to different locations and try to get some footage and create a story without the use of interviews. Our area of shooting was both inside and outside the life-boat building. The area included several pieces of machinery plus an entire exhibit dedicated to the evolution of the both the life guard services and the life-boats.
One particular thing that helped us to create a story around this subject was a helpful timeline of events over the last century. The timeline showed specific dates of events in the evolution with pictures depicting different types of life boats, most of which were held in the shooting area. Our idea was to have the camera shooting the timeline and going along it to show it in its entirety. However, we would focus on certain parts of the timeline and then cutaway to a shot of the type of boat depicted in the picture shown.
I feel that we were successful with this idea as it allowed us to present the story of the evolution of the life boat. The shots of the boats were particularly successful thanks to some careful shot planning and some creative decisions. Some that stick to my mind are a focus shot on a flag and a shot which pulls away from a mannequin and presents the boat behind it at an angle. However, I don't think that our shots of the timeline are clear enough due to being positioned too far away from it.
My role for the day was monitoring the sound which proved quite difficult due to the loud background noises (as it is still a fully working dockyard). Some of these sounds work very well as atmospheric noise as it suits the scene, however, some were slightly overbearing so we decided that the use of the fur cover on the boom was necessary.
Problems we encountered that we need to keep in mind for our proper shoot is the fact that we need to make sure that we gain permission from anyone who would appear in the shot which needs to also be written down. Thankfully, we didn't have anyone else in shot and we managed to dodge a school trip that was taking place in the location after we had got the majority of our shots.
We were split into our usual groups for the documentary unit, although we were a crew member short, to move to different locations and try to get some footage and create a story without the use of interviews. Our area of shooting was both inside and outside the life-boat building. The area included several pieces of machinery plus an entire exhibit dedicated to the evolution of the both the life guard services and the life-boats.
One particular thing that helped us to create a story around this subject was a helpful timeline of events over the last century. The timeline showed specific dates of events in the evolution with pictures depicting different types of life boats, most of which were held in the shooting area. Our idea was to have the camera shooting the timeline and going along it to show it in its entirety. However, we would focus on certain parts of the timeline and then cutaway to a shot of the type of boat depicted in the picture shown.
I feel that we were successful with this idea as it allowed us to present the story of the evolution of the life boat. The shots of the boats were particularly successful thanks to some careful shot planning and some creative decisions. Some that stick to my mind are a focus shot on a flag and a shot which pulls away from a mannequin and presents the boat behind it at an angle. However, I don't think that our shots of the timeline are clear enough due to being positioned too far away from it.
My role for the day was monitoring the sound which proved quite difficult due to the loud background noises (as it is still a fully working dockyard). Some of these sounds work very well as atmospheric noise as it suits the scene, however, some were slightly overbearing so we decided that the use of the fur cover on the boom was necessary.
Problems we encountered that we need to keep in mind for our proper shoot is the fact that we need to make sure that we gain permission from anyone who would appear in the shot which needs to also be written down. Thankfully, we didn't have anyone else in shot and we managed to dodge a school trip that was taking place in the location after we had got the majority of our shots.
Monday, 27 March 2017
The Independent Live Music Scene In Medway Research
On researching the current status of the Kent independent music scene, I stumbled upon an article which I found very interesting.
The article is titled 'Club Owner declares "The Medway music scene is dead"' and goes into details on how this particular club owner feels about the current state of the music scene as a whole. This particular club owner is noted for suggesting that there is no place for the live independent music industry in Medway. His venue in Chatham called the 'Tap n Tin', stated to be a focal point for the live music scene in Medway, has reportedly been left without any customers of a weekend in recent times. Reports indicate that there are spaces of several months before live bands would play at the venue or at least have any customers to attend these performances.
Due to the lack in popularity for live bands, the venue had to shut down of a weekend. I must make note that this article was published in mid-2011, so the scene may have changed for better or worse since then. However, I feel that this article is a good indication of how the industry has fallen in the past and might still be struggling to this day.
Reasons for my beliefs that independent live bands are still facing the same problems today as would have been when this article was published are as follows and are also mentioned by the club owner in the article:
Part of the article states:
'The Tap has fallen victim to the current "X Factor and Primark" culture, which seems to have a stranglehold on The Towns".
This is still a point that is very prominent and would cause problems for independent live bands today. Media such as Television shows like X Factor and The Voice are dominating the music scene across Britain. The contestants are usually picked on the way they might look and it is questionable whether there is actually any talent given to audiences by these people. The contestants who feature on this show are immediately given media coverage, even sometimes when they are not close to winning the contest and are instantly made famous by this coverage. This is in complete contrast to independent bands who put in the work in the hope to become recognized over a long period of time (if at all). This is proof that consumers of music would only know of and and are more likely to pay attention to who the media want them to see rather than those who might actually posses something that the instant-fame individuals may not.
Another reason which can be attributed to this is the charts. Independent bands are usually not given much of a chance to hit the charts due the the over crowded and controlled nature of how the charts work. Whenever a contestant wins the X Factor, their 'winning song' is immediately placed towards the top of the charts. The charts are based off of the popularity of a certain artist or a specific song from those artists. This means that whenever a certain artist might die or just bring out some new material, their original material is placed at the top of the charts due to a high number of people downloading their music at that time. Similarly, at certain points in the year, especially Christmas, artist like Mariah Carey and even Slade overtake the charts due to their popular Christmas song, again taking the chance away from new independent artists to reach the charts during this time.
Perhaps one of the biggest reasons for the lack in popularity of live independent bands is the fact that consumers can now just download everything from websites, This can mean that an independent band's CD release might not sell too well and having their music put on a label so they can be downloaded from music sites can be more difficult. Thus people would be less likely to watch live bands when they can just download the music and listen to it elsewhere.
This proves that the biggest problem for live independent bands is the lack of coverage as well as the lack of opportunities for coverage due to the media and the vast amount of alternate options given to consumers in modern society.
These would indicate that the article stated earlier still has relevance to this day.
I looked up the specific venue and they do still several events. However, looking at the star ratings for these events, they either lack popularity still or the quality of the content is dwindling due to lack of people taking interest in them.
Article Site Link:
http://www.kentlive.news/chatham-club-owner-declares-medway-music-scene/story-12862830-detail/story.html
The article is titled 'Club Owner declares "The Medway music scene is dead"' and goes into details on how this particular club owner feels about the current state of the music scene as a whole. This particular club owner is noted for suggesting that there is no place for the live independent music industry in Medway. His venue in Chatham called the 'Tap n Tin', stated to be a focal point for the live music scene in Medway, has reportedly been left without any customers of a weekend in recent times. Reports indicate that there are spaces of several months before live bands would play at the venue or at least have any customers to attend these performances.
Due to the lack in popularity for live bands, the venue had to shut down of a weekend. I must make note that this article was published in mid-2011, so the scene may have changed for better or worse since then. However, I feel that this article is a good indication of how the industry has fallen in the past and might still be struggling to this day.
Reasons for my beliefs that independent live bands are still facing the same problems today as would have been when this article was published are as follows and are also mentioned by the club owner in the article:
Part of the article states:
'The Tap has fallen victim to the current "X Factor and Primark" culture, which seems to have a stranglehold on The Towns".
This is still a point that is very prominent and would cause problems for independent live bands today. Media such as Television shows like X Factor and The Voice are dominating the music scene across Britain. The contestants are usually picked on the way they might look and it is questionable whether there is actually any talent given to audiences by these people. The contestants who feature on this show are immediately given media coverage, even sometimes when they are not close to winning the contest and are instantly made famous by this coverage. This is in complete contrast to independent bands who put in the work in the hope to become recognized over a long period of time (if at all). This is proof that consumers of music would only know of and and are more likely to pay attention to who the media want them to see rather than those who might actually posses something that the instant-fame individuals may not.
Another reason which can be attributed to this is the charts. Independent bands are usually not given much of a chance to hit the charts due the the over crowded and controlled nature of how the charts work. Whenever a contestant wins the X Factor, their 'winning song' is immediately placed towards the top of the charts. The charts are based off of the popularity of a certain artist or a specific song from those artists. This means that whenever a certain artist might die or just bring out some new material, their original material is placed at the top of the charts due to a high number of people downloading their music at that time. Similarly, at certain points in the year, especially Christmas, artist like Mariah Carey and even Slade overtake the charts due to their popular Christmas song, again taking the chance away from new independent artists to reach the charts during this time.
Perhaps one of the biggest reasons for the lack in popularity of live independent bands is the fact that consumers can now just download everything from websites, This can mean that an independent band's CD release might not sell too well and having their music put on a label so they can be downloaded from music sites can be more difficult. Thus people would be less likely to watch live bands when they can just download the music and listen to it elsewhere.
This proves that the biggest problem for live independent bands is the lack of coverage as well as the lack of opportunities for coverage due to the media and the vast amount of alternate options given to consumers in modern society.
These would indicate that the article stated earlier still has relevance to this day.
I looked up the specific venue and they do still several events. However, looking at the star ratings for these events, they either lack popularity still or the quality of the content is dwindling due to lack of people taking interest in them.
Article Site Link:
http://www.kentlive.news/chatham-club-owner-declares-medway-music-scene/story-12862830-detail/story.html
Friday, 24 March 2017
'Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer'
'
Hypothesis- Questions posed? How tested? What was it enlightening us about?
Death Penalty:
-Mental health
-Does it prevent/ punish crime?
Case Study:
-Murder or Self Defense?
Hypothesis- Questions posed? How tested? What was it enlightening us about?
Death Penalty:
-Mental health
-Does it prevent/ punish crime?
Case Study:
-Murder or Self Defense?
Commision: Sequences and Actuality
Sequences and Actuality:
Directing Documentaries:
-Documentaries do not just happen.
-they have to be researched, meticulously planned, scripted and set up.
-Control is key throughout the pre-production.
Sequences:
-Artist representations of reality.
-Close ups are key!! Repeat he action ad beware continuity.
-Make it interesting, creative, relative to subject/ person. Properly set up light and sound.
-Always use a tripod unless you want to have shots where you are moving around.
-Ask questions before filming.
Sequencing contributors and talent:
-When dealing wit paid talent you can usually ask them to do whatever you creatively want for the film (within reason).
-When dealing wit members of the public this potential is more tricky.
-Ensure you have talked through your pans with them prior t the shoot so that you know hey are happy with arrangements.
-Gaining trust is key to dealing with 'real' people- this is built up during the pre-production process.
1. Hold shot for no less than 10 seconds.
2. 3: 1 - Close Up to Wide Shot.
3. Action and Reaction.
4. Compress time. (three minutes to twenty seconds)
5. 'Peak Moments'.
Get good coverage- Shoot to edit:
-The art is going to get as many options as possible for your edit.
-I.e. shoot lots of different angles which cut together for coninuity.
-Remember the rule of three.
Always get cutaways:
-To ensure that you can always 'cover' your edits, it is always essential to shoot cutaways.
-GVs (general views) are great for doing this.
-They are generic shots which are relevant to the subject and location which can be slotted anywhere into the edit.
Continuity:
-Continuity of performance and orientation.
-Performers need to ensure their delivery is also as similar as possible each time you retake on a different shot size.
Match cut on action:
-Editing between different size versions of the same shot necessities matching the action.
What is actuality?:
-Actuality is a type of documentary filming which captures events and does little if anything to control them- REALISM.
-Therefore, in contrast to sequencing, you will NOT be directing the action but responding to it!
Actuality shooting strategies:
-Letting the subject enter and leave the frame.
-Apply the rules of sequencing by controlling what and how you shoot.
-Filming plenty of reaction shots.
-Filming cutaways, establishing shots and non-sync wide shots.
-Always getting GVs/ cutaways.
-Only shoot what you need
-Plan use of sound kit carefully e.g. radio mics on main camera.
-Always get wild-track/ buzz-track.
Brief your camera op:
-Be careful discussion prior to filming and through keeping your eye not only on events before you, but in the way in which they are not being recorded, you can maintain a degree of control without interfering with events, but it is a careful balancing act to be learnt.
Why do we need sequencing and actuality?
Aren't interviews enough??
-It conveys a better feeling of 'real life'.
-Engaging the viewer- pace (faster than interview sync heavy)
-Helps to edit and illustrate sync clips.
Visible or invisible director?
-Reflexivity- The technique of exposing the film making process, thus distancing itself from the personal authorship in making documentaries.
-Self Reflexivity
- Exposes not only the process of making a film, but also the authors' own views and the journey they themselves make.
- Thus the director can become part of the film itself and takes on a more active role in the film.
- By making your own assumptions clear the viewer is empowered with a new understanding of the truth.
Screening: Nick Broomfield's 'Aileen- Life and Death of a Serial Killer'.
Directing Documentaries:
-Documentaries do not just happen.
-they have to be researched, meticulously planned, scripted and set up.
-Control is key throughout the pre-production.
Sequences:
-Artist representations of reality.
-Close ups are key!! Repeat he action ad beware continuity.
-Make it interesting, creative, relative to subject/ person. Properly set up light and sound.
-Always use a tripod unless you want to have shots where you are moving around.
-Ask questions before filming.
Sequencing contributors and talent:
-When dealing wit paid talent you can usually ask them to do whatever you creatively want for the film (within reason).
-When dealing wit members of the public this potential is more tricky.
-Ensure you have talked through your pans with them prior t the shoot so that you know hey are happy with arrangements.
-Gaining trust is key to dealing with 'real' people- this is built up during the pre-production process.
1. Hold shot for no less than 10 seconds.
2. 3: 1 - Close Up to Wide Shot.
3. Action and Reaction.
4. Compress time. (three minutes to twenty seconds)
5. 'Peak Moments'.
Get good coverage- Shoot to edit:
-The art is going to get as many options as possible for your edit.
-I.e. shoot lots of different angles which cut together for coninuity.
-Remember the rule of three.
Always get cutaways:
-To ensure that you can always 'cover' your edits, it is always essential to shoot cutaways.
-GVs (general views) are great for doing this.
-They are generic shots which are relevant to the subject and location which can be slotted anywhere into the edit.
Continuity:
-Continuity of performance and orientation.
-Performers need to ensure their delivery is also as similar as possible each time you retake on a different shot size.
Match cut on action:
-Editing between different size versions of the same shot necessities matching the action.
What is actuality?:
-Actuality is a type of documentary filming which captures events and does little if anything to control them- REALISM.
-Therefore, in contrast to sequencing, you will NOT be directing the action but responding to it!
Actuality shooting strategies:
-Letting the subject enter and leave the frame.
-Apply the rules of sequencing by controlling what and how you shoot.
-Filming plenty of reaction shots.
-Filming cutaways, establishing shots and non-sync wide shots.
-Always getting GVs/ cutaways.
-Only shoot what you need
-Plan use of sound kit carefully e.g. radio mics on main camera.
-Always get wild-track/ buzz-track.
Brief your camera op:
-Be careful discussion prior to filming and through keeping your eye not only on events before you, but in the way in which they are not being recorded, you can maintain a degree of control without interfering with events, but it is a careful balancing act to be learnt.
Why do we need sequencing and actuality?
Aren't interviews enough??
-It conveys a better feeling of 'real life'.
-Engaging the viewer- pace (faster than interview sync heavy)
-Helps to edit and illustrate sync clips.
Visible or invisible director?
-Reflexivity- The technique of exposing the film making process, thus distancing itself from the personal authorship in making documentaries.
-Self Reflexivity
- Exposes not only the process of making a film, but also the authors' own views and the journey they themselves make.
- Thus the director can become part of the film itself and takes on a more active role in the film.
- By making your own assumptions clear the viewer is empowered with a new understanding of the truth.
Screening: Nick Broomfield's 'Aileen- Life and Death of a Serial Killer'.
Thursday, 23 March 2017
TV Theory:23/ 3/ 2017
-Genre: Sci-Fi/ Comedy
-Audience: Late teens to early adult.
-Scheduling: Viewing 5-7pm
-Market: English Speaking countries, Japan (because of the genre).
There are hints of the western genre, contextualized with one of the characters who write westerns. This gives contrast to the Sci-Fi related genre and setting.
The opening titles feature a view piont on women from the male gaze. This may not be possible for TV shows to do in modern times due to the changing of the times and would possibly cause an uproar.
Form and Theory?
(Critical Interpretation)
-Audience: Late teens to early adult.
-Scheduling: Viewing 5-7pm
-Market: English Speaking countries, Japan (because of the genre).
There are hints of the western genre, contextualized with one of the characters who write westerns. This gives contrast to the Sci-Fi related genre and setting.
The opening titles feature a view piont on women from the male gaze. This may not be possible for TV shows to do in modern times due to the changing of the times and would possibly cause an uproar.
Form and Theory?
(Critical Interpretation)
Wednesday, 22 March 2017
First Pitch:
Up and Coming
Logline:
The music industry is becoming more and more difficult to be successful within, due to digitization and a closure of music venues. We follow teenage band, Bonhomie, as they work their way through the risky industry of music, interviewing other interested parties along the way.
Character Profiles:
Bonhomie:
Dan Williams- Lead singer/ lead guitar, confident, eccentric, lead songwriter, person who formed the band 3 years ago.
Ben Lincoln- Drummer, relaxed, younger member of the band.
Michael Belfrage- Bassist, also relaxed, more eccentric.
James Reader- Rhythm guitar, matter-of-fact persona.
The Attic:
Manager (yet to attain name), manager of the attic, owns a popular venue for teens and independent bands so would be a valuable source of information on the independent music scene.
Landline- 01233 877440
Locations:
-The Attic- Ashford- 27 Bank Street, Floor 2, Access via Norwood Street, Ashford TN23 1DG
The Attic is a venue which show many various activities such as live bands, screenings of various films and has an included bar.
We hope to go to this location as one of the bands we are considering to interview will be playing there on a specified date. This way we can hope to gain footage of the band in action as well as get interviews from the band members.
Here, we could also have the chance of speaking to the owners of the venue and the people who work there to give their view on the activities that go around and the effect that the music industry has.
-The Royal Albion- Maidstone- Fremlin Walk Shopping Centre, 19 Havock Lane, Maidstone ME14 1QE
Story Synopsis:
Logline:
The music industry is becoming more and more difficult to be successful within, due to digitization and a closure of music venues. We follow teenage band, Bonhomie, as they work their way through the risky industry of music, interviewing other interested parties along the way.
Character Profiles:
Bonhomie:
Dan Williams- Lead singer/ lead guitar, confident, eccentric, lead songwriter, person who formed the band 3 years ago.
Ben Lincoln- Drummer, relaxed, younger member of the band.
Michael Belfrage- Bassist, also relaxed, more eccentric.
James Reader- Rhythm guitar, matter-of-fact persona.
The Attic:
Manager (yet to attain name), manager of the attic, owns a popular venue for teens and independent bands so would be a valuable source of information on the independent music scene.
Landline- 01233 877440
Locations:
-The Attic- Ashford- 27 Bank Street, Floor 2, Access via Norwood Street, Ashford TN23 1DG
The Attic is a venue which show many various activities such as live bands, screenings of various films and has an included bar.
We hope to go to this location as one of the bands we are considering to interview will be playing there on a specified date. This way we can hope to gain footage of the band in action as well as get interviews from the band members.
Here, we could also have the chance of speaking to the owners of the venue and the people who work there to give their view on the activities that go around and the effect that the music industry has.
-The Royal Albion- Maidstone- Fremlin Walk Shopping Centre, 19 Havock Lane, Maidstone ME14 1QE
Opposite the Maidstone Museum and Art Gallery, The Royal Albion Pub is a popular Maidstone bar which, like The Attic, holds various events such as live bands and even karaoke nights. One of our bands will also be playing there.
Opportunities for interviews here will be greater as well as not only will we have the band and possible the owners and staff to interview, but we might have a chance of interviewing several customers with their permission and get a view of independent bands and the music industry from the eyes of the local community.
Story Synopsis:
- 40% of the music venues in London alone have shut down.
- We will follow independent band Bonhomie, through the high and low points of life producing independent music.
- We will also address the bigger picture involving the independent music scene in Maidstone and Ashford.
- We will discuss this with the venue owners, venue staff, music journalists, the general public/ venue attendees and the members of Bonhomie themselves.
Treatment:
- Mostly interviews and statistics will be used but with an upbeat nature to fit in with the teen spirit theme.
- Main Characters- All members of Bonhomie, Manager, Staff and customers of 'The Attic' and 'The Royal Albion Pub'
- The story will be told by a narrator who is outside of the subject matter.
FEEDBACK:
Our feedback to this is the fact that our pitch was too short for the ten minute time gap that we were given. Plus we still need to have a clear idea of who the characters are rather than having the short statements about each character that we had.
One major piece of feedback is that we should contact someone from BBC Introducing. This person has been said to enable us with contacts to other bands and also would be a great source of information on how the industries are as a whole at this current day and age and will possibly be able to meet with our band to discuss the industry as a whole which we would be able to film.
We need to make these call straight away so that we allow enough time for these people to get back to us. I believe that this will be a very good idea as it will add a lot more weight to our current idea and give us more story for our documentary.
FEEDBACK:
Our feedback to this is the fact that our pitch was too short for the ten minute time gap that we were given. Plus we still need to have a clear idea of who the characters are rather than having the short statements about each character that we had.
One major piece of feedback is that we should contact someone from BBC Introducing. This person has been said to enable us with contacts to other bands and also would be a great source of information on how the industries are as a whole at this current day and age and will possibly be able to meet with our band to discuss the industry as a whole which we would be able to film.
We need to make these call straight away so that we allow enough time for these people to get back to us. I believe that this will be a very good idea as it will add a lot more weight to our current idea and give us more story for our documentary.
Sunday, 19 March 2017
Location Recces
Location Recces:
There are two primary locations which we are planning to shoot parts of our documentary film.
The first is a venue named 'THE ATTIC' in Ashford.
The Attic is a venue which show many various activities such as live bands, screenings of various films and has an included bar.
We hope to go to this location as one of the bands we are considering to interview will be playing there on a specified date. This way we can hope to gain footage of the band in action as well as get interviews from the band members.
Here, we could also have the chance of speaking to the owners of the venue and the people who work there to give their view on the activities that go around and the effect that the music industry has.
The second location is 'THE ROYAL ALBION PUB' in Maidstone.
There are two primary locations which we are planning to shoot parts of our documentary film.
The first is a venue named 'THE ATTIC' in Ashford.
The Attic is a venue which show many various activities such as live bands, screenings of various films and has an included bar.
We hope to go to this location as one of the bands we are considering to interview will be playing there on a specified date. This way we can hope to gain footage of the band in action as well as get interviews from the band members.
Here, we could also have the chance of speaking to the owners of the venue and the people who work there to give their view on the activities that go around and the effect that the music industry has.
The second location is 'THE ROYAL ALBION PUB' in Maidstone.
Opposite the Maidstone Museum and Art Gallery, The Royal Albion Pub is a popular Maidstone bar which, like The Attic, holds various events such as live bands and even karaoke nights. One of our bands will also be playing there.
Opportunities for interviews here will be greater as well as not only will we have the band and possible the owners and staff to interview, but we might have a chance of interviewing several customers with their permission and get a view of independent bands and the music industry from the eyes of the local community.
Friday, 17 March 2017
Feedback on Interview shooting tutorial plus tips.
Focus- Well focused
Framing- Well framed, enough space to fit the caption, eye line is natural. Close-up on face is well balanced
Exposure- Not exposed enough. There is key lighting but no
White Balance- Well balanced
Sound- Background noise can be heard (mower in the background), other students. Microphone, dialogue, sounds clear.
Content- The questions are good, but the answers are not clear.
Aesthetics- Items in background could distract viewers.
When cutting to different shots in an interview, make sure that the interviewees are in the same position as they were before the cut.
'Listen to the sound quality on the headphones, watch the sound levels on the camera display'
Framing- Well framed, enough space to fit the caption, eye line is natural. Close-up on face is well balanced
Exposure- Not exposed enough. There is key lighting but no
White Balance- Well balanced
Sound- Background noise can be heard (mower in the background), other students. Microphone, dialogue, sounds clear.
Content- The questions are good, but the answers are not clear.
Aesthetics- Items in background could distract viewers.
When cutting to different shots in an interview, make sure that the interviewees are in the same position as they were before the cut.
'Listen to the sound quality on the headphones, watch the sound levels on the camera display'
Hellen session 17th March 2017
Title:
-Choose a title for your film- usually y agree a 'working title' until the film is progressed to the point where a final tile is agreed.
The title is important as it:
-Sells your film to its audience- 'tease'.
-Encapsulates what your fil is about.
The Treatment
-Your treatment need be no more tan a page, but anything up to 3 or for pages, outlining HOW you intend to tell the story.
-Main characters/ interviewees
-Locations
-Style/ format
-narrative Structure
-Whether using a presenter.
Treatment should include;
-transmission ('TX') time and channel/ platform
Scripting:
-Sequences
-Interviews
-Reconstructions and dramatizations
-Actuality Cutaways/ GVs
-Sync
-Commentary
-music
-Archive/ stills
-Graphics
-NB documentary films should be as much about the pictures as any other film.
Scripting stages:
Shooting Script:
-Witten prior to filming.
-This forms the template for your finished film.
-It should be informed your research ad allow you to effectively think through your film's picture.
-Summarise answers.
-Write to pictures.
Pix= The Picture
Sync/ Comm= Sound/ ambience, dialogue questions and responses.
Starting;
-Always start by writing your commentary and interweave with a summary of each person's sync eg. Fred describes his like in London (research informs your commentary)
Scripting conventions:
-eg. Write Comm or V/O for commentary
-SEQ- Sequence
-ACT- Actuality
-C/A- Cutaway
SYNC- Interview Clips
-SFX- Sound Effects
Commentary- is usually in italics/ in bold- also help during voice over record if they are numbered.
-Line and a half spacing- makes it easier to read.
Finding the film's narrative:
-A central thread of some kind will hold your story together eg. day in the Life/ journey of exploration.
-The central thread could involve the process of investigating the answer to a particular question or theory.
-The film's narrative is influenced by the characters, location, period of time it is covering and the events presented.
- BEWARE- time based narratives cannot be fractured- ensure you check the logic of your story and keep to it!
Light and Shade and Tension:
-Consider how you will inject LIGHT AND SHADE- it is important to coincide the overall experience of watching your film.
-Tension- this is a key element of storytelling, adding suspense and drama. these should be identified during the research process if possible.
Ways to create tension:
-Scripting (V/O)- emphasise dramatic moments and tease.
-Bringing together opposing groups/ individuals within the film.
Narrating styles:
-There are a number of narrative styles which can be sued in documentary filmmaking.
Actuality Driven narrative vs Sequenced narratives
Actuality driven:
- More observational whose structure and story develops how it happens.
Sequenced narratives:
-Planned
Subject driven and character driven films explained:
-When choosing your subject y might find I seems a little 'dry'.
-If the result takes over the drive of the film, it needs to change.
-Edit Prep
-Final script
Copyright:
-Copyright applies to all artistic works which have been created and preserved in some lasting way. eg. Written work, film, video, photographs, theatrical works, music, paintings, sculptures, images...
-Choose a title for your film- usually y agree a 'working title' until the film is progressed to the point where a final tile is agreed.
The title is important as it:
-Sells your film to its audience- 'tease'.
-Encapsulates what your fil is about.
The Treatment
-Your treatment need be no more tan a page, but anything up to 3 or for pages, outlining HOW you intend to tell the story.
-Main characters/ interviewees
-Locations
-Style/ format
-narrative Structure
-Whether using a presenter.
Treatment should include;
-transmission ('TX') time and channel/ platform
Scripting:
-Sequences
-Interviews
-Reconstructions and dramatizations
-Actuality Cutaways/ GVs
-Sync
-Commentary
-music
-Archive/ stills
-Graphics
-NB documentary films should be as much about the pictures as any other film.
Scripting stages:
Shooting Script:
-Witten prior to filming.
-This forms the template for your finished film.
-It should be informed your research ad allow you to effectively think through your film's picture.
-Summarise answers.
-Write to pictures.
Pix= The Picture
Sync/ Comm= Sound/ ambience, dialogue questions and responses.
Starting;
-Always start by writing your commentary and interweave with a summary of each person's sync eg. Fred describes his like in London (research informs your commentary)
Scripting conventions:
-eg. Write Comm or V/O for commentary
-SEQ- Sequence
-ACT- Actuality
-C/A- Cutaway
SYNC- Interview Clips
-SFX- Sound Effects
Commentary- is usually in italics/ in bold- also help during voice over record if they are numbered.
-Line and a half spacing- makes it easier to read.
Finding the film's narrative:
-A central thread of some kind will hold your story together eg. day in the Life/ journey of exploration.
-The central thread could involve the process of investigating the answer to a particular question or theory.
-The film's narrative is influenced by the characters, location, period of time it is covering and the events presented.
- BEWARE- time based narratives cannot be fractured- ensure you check the logic of your story and keep to it!
Light and Shade and Tension:
-Consider how you will inject LIGHT AND SHADE- it is important to coincide the overall experience of watching your film.
-Tension- this is a key element of storytelling, adding suspense and drama. these should be identified during the research process if possible.
Ways to create tension:
-Scripting (V/O)- emphasise dramatic moments and tease.
-Bringing together opposing groups/ individuals within the film.
Narrating styles:
-There are a number of narrative styles which can be sued in documentary filmmaking.
Actuality Driven narrative vs Sequenced narratives
Actuality driven:
- More observational whose structure and story develops how it happens.
Sequenced narratives:
-Planned
Subject driven and character driven films explained:
-When choosing your subject y might find I seems a little 'dry'.
-If the result takes over the drive of the film, it needs to change.
-Edit Prep
-Final script
Copyright:
-Copyright applies to all artistic works which have been created and preserved in some lasting way. eg. Written work, film, video, photographs, theatrical works, music, paintings, sculptures, images...
Thursday, 16 March 2017
TV Theory: 16th March 2017
What do we mean by 'virtualism'?
-In media context, the simulation of 'the real': primarily through digital construct and manipulation.
-The aesthetic tension between physical and digital material vs immaterial; 'the uncanny valley'
Virtualism in visual media:
-Game of Thrones- Fantasy Drama
-Dramatic elements (narrative and character) relies on realism.
-Fantasy (non-realist) elements relies on digital constructs.
Aesthetic Tension:
-What is 'real'?
-What is 'created'?
-Analogue (practical) or digital?
-How do we perceive difference?
'The Uncanny':
-'An uncanny effect often arises when the boundary between fantasy and reality are blurred'- Freud, 'The Uncanny' (1919)
-Heimlich- the familiar and comfortable.
-Unheimlisch- the unfamiliar and strange.
'The Uncanny Valley'
-Following Freud's theory, the perceptual gap between that which is perceived as 'real' and that which is 'almost real' (or a close simulacrum).
-Provokes aesthetic sense of discomfort, eeriness or revulsion.
-In media context, the simulation of 'the real': primarily through digital construct and manipulation.
-The aesthetic tension between physical and digital material vs immaterial; 'the uncanny valley'
Virtualism in visual media:
-Game of Thrones- Fantasy Drama
-Dramatic elements (narrative and character) relies on realism.
-Fantasy (non-realist) elements relies on digital constructs.
Aesthetic Tension:
-What is 'real'?
-What is 'created'?
-Analogue (practical) or digital?
-How do we perceive difference?
'The Uncanny':
-'An uncanny effect often arises when the boundary between fantasy and reality are blurred'- Freud, 'The Uncanny' (1919)
-Heimlich- the familiar and comfortable.
-Unheimlisch- the unfamiliar and strange.
'The Uncanny Valley'
-Following Freud's theory, the perceptual gap between that which is perceived as 'real' and that which is 'almost real' (or a close simulacrum).
-Provokes aesthetic sense of discomfort, eeriness or revulsion.
Tuesday, 14 March 2017
Benefits Street
Benefits Street is a series that was aired on Channel 4 originally released between the 6th January 2014 and the 1st June 2015
It has been met with some criticism due to alleged misrepresentations of the people living on benefits.
Even in the opening monologue, we see from the rapidly cut footage that there is going to be some conflict within the community. When these moment happen however, they are treated like a soap opera, with dramatic music to punctuate whatever is happening on screen.
It is moments like this that take away from the reality of the subject matter and thus makes the street appear to be part of an ongoing drama.
I believe this to be because the documentary filmmakers chose to use footage for entertainment factor, depicting the benefits community in a darker light and taking the viewer away from the actual truth. If this is the case, could Benefits Street even be considered a documentary? Events are turned into more dramatic set-pieces so I believe that this is definitely not an accurate portrayal of this type of life.
It has been met with some criticism due to alleged misrepresentations of the people living on benefits.
On viewing the show, I found that there was a rather happy disposition among the residents of benefits, most simply being presented as people who make the most with what they have. We feel that there is a sense of a family connection within the community. These present the residents in an understandable manner; or at least at first.
Even in the opening monologue, we see from the rapidly cut footage that there is going to be some conflict within the community. When these moment happen however, they are treated like a soap opera, with dramatic music to punctuate whatever is happening on screen.
It is moments like this that take away from the reality of the subject matter and thus makes the street appear to be part of an ongoing drama.
I believe this to be because the documentary filmmakers chose to use footage for entertainment factor, depicting the benefits community in a darker light and taking the viewer away from the actual truth. If this is the case, could Benefits Street even be considered a documentary? Events are turned into more dramatic set-pieces so I believe that this is definitely not an accurate portrayal of this type of life.
Monday, 13 March 2017
The Final Idea
Our final idea has now been confirmed.
I was late in joining the group so my own knowledge on the subject matter is a little less than those of the others in the group.
However, we have decided on creating the ten minute documentary around known independent bands plus taking a look at the various revenues that they will be performing at. The subject matter we would look at involves how important the music industry and bands such as these are to the revenue and the effects that independent bands (or the lack thereof) have on both the music movements and the their own businesses.
I feel that this idea will certainly work in terms of 'teen spirit' because the independent bands mostly consist of that age range, plus I believe that this will be suitable for BBC3 because of the more 'younger generation' topic.
The only problems I see involve having a reason why now would be the specific time to create a documentary for this (i.e. is the independent music industry failing?). Also we need to make sure that we do not focus on too many bands in case of possible lack of focus.
I was late in joining the group so my own knowledge on the subject matter is a little less than those of the others in the group.
However, we have decided on creating the ten minute documentary around known independent bands plus taking a look at the various revenues that they will be performing at. The subject matter we would look at involves how important the music industry and bands such as these are to the revenue and the effects that independent bands (or the lack thereof) have on both the music movements and the their own businesses.
I feel that this idea will certainly work in terms of 'teen spirit' because the independent bands mostly consist of that age range, plus I believe that this will be suitable for BBC3 because of the more 'younger generation' topic.
The only problems I see involve having a reason why now would be the specific time to create a documentary for this (i.e. is the independent music industry failing?). Also we need to make sure that we do not focus on too many bands in case of possible lack of focus.
My Second Initial Idea
My second initial idea for the documentary subject matter involves how different cultures have changed Britain.
To elaborate, this would include the involvement of cultures such as different religions, other people of different ethnic groups coming over and different cultures coming through from the media. Plus the effects on how sexual orientation is viewed and how cultures have changed allowed those views to evolve.
I feel that this idea would be very interesting to talk about as it covers a vast range, although we would have to keep the documentary focused on one point in particular rather than trying to create a broader picture. Doing this would allow us not to appear misguided in our focus and create a documentary that isn't overly complicated.
I think that focusing on one particular aspect of how culture has would be the best way to approach this with smaller reflections on other cultural impacts.
This subject would fit in perfectly with the theme of 'Teen Spirit' because the changes in culture ultimately impacts the younger generation for the future, thus we could interview younger members of the public to see their reaction to these changes.
However, I am still not too sure that this subject matter will be 'edgy' enough for BBC3.
To elaborate, this would include the involvement of cultures such as different religions, other people of different ethnic groups coming over and different cultures coming through from the media. Plus the effects on how sexual orientation is viewed and how cultures have changed allowed those views to evolve.
I feel that this idea would be very interesting to talk about as it covers a vast range, although we would have to keep the documentary focused on one point in particular rather than trying to create a broader picture. Doing this would allow us not to appear misguided in our focus and create a documentary that isn't overly complicated.
I think that focusing on one particular aspect of how culture has would be the best way to approach this with smaller reflections on other cultural impacts.
This subject would fit in perfectly with the theme of 'Teen Spirit' because the changes in culture ultimately impacts the younger generation for the future, thus we could interview younger members of the public to see their reaction to these changes.
However, I am still not too sure that this subject matter will be 'edgy' enough for BBC3.
Saturday, 11 March 2017
The Camera That Changed The World
The Camera That Changed The World is a documentary directed by Mandy Chang which informs viewers of the revolution of a type of film camera. the people that collaborated involved two groups from different parts of the world.
Film cameras, mostly for documentary use, were all very cumbersome; the equipment was very bulky and very heavy, meaning that there was difficulty if movement was needed. All documentaries were stilted.
The only way to create moving action then was to use the 'Wind up camera', however, it would have to be wound up as the action was going on and could only capture 20 second chunks. The winding sound made noise so they didn't record sound at the same time as the camera. Users had to record an audio track afterwards.
The initial new type of documentary put forward was suggested to contain 'Action without actors' and would capture footage 'only possible if captured personally'.
One example of trying to create an of being in the moment, featuring people putting up a big tent, were actually recorded at different times over a few months, edited to give the illusion of all of the footage happening in real time.
A team of Americans created the first 'Oracon' camera that was only one third of the weight of its normal size, created by drilling out parts of the camera. This meant that the light weight would enable the filmmakers to follow their case studies if they moved. This was the first camera that could film any type of action in this way.
However, French filmmakers tried to create a completely new camera from scratch rather than try to adapt from an existing camera. This was created so that the reeling in of the film did not create as much noise as other cameras, created what was described as a 'quiet gliding noise' in stead of the sound of the reel. It only weighed four pounds.
In America, a proposal was made to film John F Kennedy at his presidential primary, telling him that he didn't have to take part in any interviews but just allow himself to be filmed. the sound was still being recorded by a separate device, as mall sound recorder, recorded in real time to the camera. There were no tripods so when JFK moved, they could follow him through use of handheld techniques. The film enabled the public to see JFK not only as a presidential candidate, but as a person. The last day of filming, included filming footage of JFK finding out that he had won the primary. The final film was called 'Primary'.
However, there were technical problems during the editing process. None of the audio recorded were not synchronised with the picture because the sound recorder ran at a different speed rate to the camera. this meant that every piece of sound would have to be matched up to the picture manually. Some parts of the sound remained out of sync because the filmmakers were exhausted with the whole process. despite these difficulties, this film marked the start of the 'Fly on the Wall' documentary style.
Another project in France involved recording the everyday life of the people of Paris. The start of the shoot involved the use of a heavier camera which had to be used on a tripod. The filmmakers eventually became frustrated with the bulky equipment. However, a new camera had been developed which was both light and silent. They eventually opted to use this camera, allowing a shot that could move from various locations, including one specific shot which moved from a dinner table into the streets of Paris. it was described as the camera and the director being 'in communion with the subjects rather than being outside of them'. This film faced the same problems in terms of audio in editing as the Americans. However, the Swiss were able to create a machine that allowed for the sound to run at the same rate as the picture, meaning that both the sound and picture were perfectly synchronised.
With the capability to record both picture and sound as equal, filmmakers were spurred to create more and more documentary films. These included the capture of many significant moments in 20th century history. These included the desegregation of certain areas in America. Because of the raw nature of documentaries such as these, the television networks were not interested in showing any documentaries. In 1962, the original American group of camera engineers split away from each other, feeling that their aspirations were too big for television. This was not the case in France, however, as the industry continued to thrive and grow with new technologies being engineered year after year.
From the 1960s and onwards, the handheld camera captured many key historical moments, allowing both the filmmakers and the audience to be involved in the action and sound taking place on screen. The handheld camera gave viewers a 'Window on the World, but is also said to give viewers a 'Window to the Past'.
Film cameras, mostly for documentary use, were all very cumbersome; the equipment was very bulky and very heavy, meaning that there was difficulty if movement was needed. All documentaries were stilted.
The only way to create moving action then was to use the 'Wind up camera', however, it would have to be wound up as the action was going on and could only capture 20 second chunks. The winding sound made noise so they didn't record sound at the same time as the camera. Users had to record an audio track afterwards.
The initial new type of documentary put forward was suggested to contain 'Action without actors' and would capture footage 'only possible if captured personally'.
One example of trying to create an of being in the moment, featuring people putting up a big tent, were actually recorded at different times over a few months, edited to give the illusion of all of the footage happening in real time.
A team of Americans created the first 'Oracon' camera that was only one third of the weight of its normal size, created by drilling out parts of the camera. This meant that the light weight would enable the filmmakers to follow their case studies if they moved. This was the first camera that could film any type of action in this way.
However, French filmmakers tried to create a completely new camera from scratch rather than try to adapt from an existing camera. This was created so that the reeling in of the film did not create as much noise as other cameras, created what was described as a 'quiet gliding noise' in stead of the sound of the reel. It only weighed four pounds.
In America, a proposal was made to film John F Kennedy at his presidential primary, telling him that he didn't have to take part in any interviews but just allow himself to be filmed. the sound was still being recorded by a separate device, as mall sound recorder, recorded in real time to the camera. There were no tripods so when JFK moved, they could follow him through use of handheld techniques. The film enabled the public to see JFK not only as a presidential candidate, but as a person. The last day of filming, included filming footage of JFK finding out that he had won the primary. The final film was called 'Primary'.
However, there were technical problems during the editing process. None of the audio recorded were not synchronised with the picture because the sound recorder ran at a different speed rate to the camera. this meant that every piece of sound would have to be matched up to the picture manually. Some parts of the sound remained out of sync because the filmmakers were exhausted with the whole process. despite these difficulties, this film marked the start of the 'Fly on the Wall' documentary style.
Another project in France involved recording the everyday life of the people of Paris. The start of the shoot involved the use of a heavier camera which had to be used on a tripod. The filmmakers eventually became frustrated with the bulky equipment. However, a new camera had been developed which was both light and silent. They eventually opted to use this camera, allowing a shot that could move from various locations, including one specific shot which moved from a dinner table into the streets of Paris. it was described as the camera and the director being 'in communion with the subjects rather than being outside of them'. This film faced the same problems in terms of audio in editing as the Americans. However, the Swiss were able to create a machine that allowed for the sound to run at the same rate as the picture, meaning that both the sound and picture were perfectly synchronised.
With the capability to record both picture and sound as equal, filmmakers were spurred to create more and more documentary films. These included the capture of many significant moments in 20th century history. These included the desegregation of certain areas in America. Because of the raw nature of documentaries such as these, the television networks were not interested in showing any documentaries. In 1962, the original American group of camera engineers split away from each other, feeling that their aspirations were too big for television. This was not the case in France, however, as the industry continued to thrive and grow with new technologies being engineered year after year.
From the 1960s and onwards, the handheld camera captured many key historical moments, allowing both the filmmakers and the audience to be involved in the action and sound taking place on screen. The handheld camera gave viewers a 'Window on the World, but is also said to give viewers a 'Window to the Past'.
Friday, 10 March 2017
Helen Session:10th March 2017
Lessons learnt so far:
-Casting- Appropriate actors for the roles need, appropriate ages, use of Casting Call Pro
-Locations- I need to make sure that I seek permission several weeks in advance for locations.
-Paperwork- All paperwork needs to be in depth, put in all ideas/ development.
Health and Safety- Recce
Permissions- Recce
Casting
Organisation- Backup Plan- Research
Scheduling- Timings
Location- Health and Safety, Permissions- Recce
Research and developing an idea:
-Test the viability of your story.
-Develop your script and rough schedule/ budget
-Essential for you to understand the potential of your idea,
Where to research:
-begin researching online ad relevant journals, publications and newspapers.
-Acquaint yourself with the broader picture and background to your story.
-Establish key contacts.
-NB- NEVER make a call to any of these contacts until you understand the basis of of the story you wish to tell and have an appreciation of the remit/ specialism of the individuals you are calling.
-You can then prepare some basic questions which you would like to ask your contacts.
Relevant background information:
-Legislation/ regulations.
-Organisations and experts.
-Existing research- up to date as possible, if unpublished better- exclusivity.
-Case studies.
-Previous coverage on TV/ archive as appropriate.
Factual films require a 'Journalist's Nose':
-What makes your story worth commissioning.
-What is new- Your angle.
How much research should you do prior to pitching?
-Enough to answer the basic questions about the story and to form your proposal.
-Who/ what/ when/ where/ why/ how?
-Find your USP (Unique Selling Point)
Pitch:
Email Helen with a summary of pitch idea:
-Working Title
-Top line
-One paragraph synopsis
BY 3PM on 21st MARCH
Present in whatever style and with whatever supporting material you feel is helpful and relevant to your idea.
Practice your pitch and time yourself- 10 minutes of pitch of questions.
What is 'Representation'?
Disability
Income/ class
Values/ culture
Ethnicity and Race
Religion
Sexuality (gender)
Issues e.g. Crime
TOKENISM!
Youth/ Middle/ Old Age.
Relevant Organisations:
OFCOM (regulatory body for broadcasters)
-Press Complaints Commission (independent self-regulatory body deals with complaints about the editorial content of newspapers and magazines (and their websites)
-Broadcasters
-Pressure Groups
Representation:
Ensure the people you feature are:
-A fair representation of the wider context.
-Fairly treated and represented (honesty)
-Avoid stereotypes and reinforcing prejudices.
-Avoid 'lazy' journalism.
-treat people with respect.
Who's film is it anyway?
-You as a filmmaker
-The contributors
-the owners of locations
-those connected with the subject matter
-Those paying the bills- sponsors/ commissioners
-The film's 'facilitators'.
Dealing with 'real' people:
-It can feel daunting at first, calling what are effectively complete strangers- some of whom will not be expecting your call and may initially feel worried or nervous about even speaking to you.
-People are very aware of the power of the media and its potential to do ham as well as good, therefore you need to find a way of dealing with people which not only helps you and your film, but which represents the industry.
Finding case studies/ characters:
-These should be the people who best illustrate your story and who are also the best talkers/ characters.
Where to find them:
-Via relevant organisations- usually via press office.
-Via experts- e.g. Doctor/ scientist/ professor conducting study- cases.
-Via reported cases in the media- think of yourself as a detective! Piecing together a story can be exhaustive.
Meeting your characters:
-You should always meet potential case studies in person having initially had a brief chat on the phone outlining who you are, how you have found them and what you are doing.
What to ask?
-Name/ age/ contact details.
-Availability
-Potential locations for filming them
-Potential sequences
-If under 18, always need parental consent.
-If in any way 'vulnerable' seek relevant permissions e.g. If mental or other health issues.
Contributor consent forms:
-Use consent forms provided to gain permission to film your major contributors.
-As a courtesy, you can create a small sigh which explains that you are filming at the location today so that people can decide whether they want to be in the background of any shoots.
RECCE LOCATIONS:
Your research should include recce of locations- again press officers, case studies and experts etc.
You should be considering:
- Locations aesthetics
- Practicalities
- Relevance
- Permission
-Shot and storytelling possibilities
- Costs
-Filming possibilities.
Do not commit too soon and make promises you cannot keep.
-Applies to all people you deal with.
Professionalism:
-'Friendly but not friends'
-Behave as if to a potential employer.
-Don't get too involved.
Keep accurate and legible notes and keep them safe and organised:
-Keep records of discussions.
-Type up notes- essential information.
-Casting- Appropriate actors for the roles need, appropriate ages, use of Casting Call Pro
-Locations- I need to make sure that I seek permission several weeks in advance for locations.
-Paperwork- All paperwork needs to be in depth, put in all ideas/ development.
Health and Safety- Recce
Permissions- Recce
Casting
Organisation- Backup Plan- Research
Scheduling- Timings
Location- Health and Safety, Permissions- Recce
Research and developing an idea:
-Test the viability of your story.
-Develop your script and rough schedule/ budget
-Essential for you to understand the potential of your idea,
Where to research:
-begin researching online ad relevant journals, publications and newspapers.
-Acquaint yourself with the broader picture and background to your story.
-Establish key contacts.
-NB- NEVER make a call to any of these contacts until you understand the basis of of the story you wish to tell and have an appreciation of the remit/ specialism of the individuals you are calling.
-You can then prepare some basic questions which you would like to ask your contacts.
Relevant background information:
-Legislation/ regulations.
-Organisations and experts.
-Existing research- up to date as possible, if unpublished better- exclusivity.
-Case studies.
-Previous coverage on TV/ archive as appropriate.
Factual films require a 'Journalist's Nose':
-What makes your story worth commissioning.
-What is new- Your angle.
How much research should you do prior to pitching?
-Enough to answer the basic questions about the story and to form your proposal.
-Who/ what/ when/ where/ why/ how?
-Find your USP (Unique Selling Point)
Pitch:
Email Helen with a summary of pitch idea:
-Working Title
-Top line
-One paragraph synopsis
BY 3PM on 21st MARCH
Present in whatever style and with whatever supporting material you feel is helpful and relevant to your idea.
Practice your pitch and time yourself- 10 minutes of pitch of questions.
What is 'Representation'?
Disability
Income/ class
Values/ culture
Ethnicity and Race
Religion
Sexuality (gender)
Issues e.g. Crime
TOKENISM!
Youth/ Middle/ Old Age.
Relevant Organisations:
OFCOM (regulatory body for broadcasters)
-Press Complaints Commission (independent self-regulatory body deals with complaints about the editorial content of newspapers and magazines (and their websites)
-Broadcasters
-Pressure Groups
Representation:
Ensure the people you feature are:
-A fair representation of the wider context.
-Fairly treated and represented (honesty)
-Avoid stereotypes and reinforcing prejudices.
-Avoid 'lazy' journalism.
-treat people with respect.
Who's film is it anyway?
-You as a filmmaker
-The contributors
-the owners of locations
-those connected with the subject matter
-Those paying the bills- sponsors/ commissioners
-The film's 'facilitators'.
Dealing with 'real' people:
-It can feel daunting at first, calling what are effectively complete strangers- some of whom will not be expecting your call and may initially feel worried or nervous about even speaking to you.
-People are very aware of the power of the media and its potential to do ham as well as good, therefore you need to find a way of dealing with people which not only helps you and your film, but which represents the industry.
Finding case studies/ characters:
-These should be the people who best illustrate your story and who are also the best talkers/ characters.
Where to find them:
-Via relevant organisations- usually via press office.
-Via experts- e.g. Doctor/ scientist/ professor conducting study- cases.
-Via reported cases in the media- think of yourself as a detective! Piecing together a story can be exhaustive.
Meeting your characters:
-You should always meet potential case studies in person having initially had a brief chat on the phone outlining who you are, how you have found them and what you are doing.
What to ask?
-Name/ age/ contact details.
-Availability
-Potential locations for filming them
-Potential sequences
-If under 18, always need parental consent.
-If in any way 'vulnerable' seek relevant permissions e.g. If mental or other health issues.
Contributor consent forms:
-Use consent forms provided to gain permission to film your major contributors.
-As a courtesy, you can create a small sigh which explains that you are filming at the location today so that people can decide whether they want to be in the background of any shoots.
RECCE LOCATIONS:
Your research should include recce of locations- again press officers, case studies and experts etc.
You should be considering:
- Locations aesthetics
- Practicalities
- Relevance
- Permission
-Shot and storytelling possibilities
- Costs
-Filming possibilities.
Do not commit too soon and make promises you cannot keep.
-Applies to all people you deal with.
Professionalism:
-'Friendly but not friends'
-Behave as if to a potential employer.
-Don't get too involved.
Keep accurate and legible notes and keep them safe and organised:
-Keep records of discussions.
-Type up notes- essential information.
Thursday, 9 March 2017
TV Theory:9th March 2017
What do we mean by 'sexuality'?
-Distinct from 'gender' or biology.
-The expression of sexual identity through internal feelings and external behavior.
-Can also refer to sexual activity (in particular visual representation.
Sexuality in the media:
- Visual presentations of sexual expression (eroticism, pornography)
-Identity representations of sexual expression (LGBT, asexualism, pansexualism)
Visual representation:
-Eroticism (erotica)- aesthetic depiction of sexuality; may not involve nudity.
-Pornography- explicit depiction of sexuality; using via nudity and graphic sexual activity.
Media Censorship:
-Depictions of sex and sexuality in media traditionally mediated by external censors.
-UK- Broadcasting legislation, watchdogs (ofcom)
-US- FFC (Federal Communications Commission)
-Broadcast networks also have individual editorial guidelines.
-'Moral majority' also act as external watchdogs (Mary Whitehouse, national press)
Sexual representation:
-Sexual representation in TV and film historically tightly controlled until 70 s liberalisation.
-First portrayals of nudity and gay characters.
-Stereotypes.
Sexual stereotypes:
-Libertine
-Camp
-'Butch'
-Asexual
Queer Theory:
-Theorists such as Judith Butler argue gender and sexuality are social constructs informed by media and representation.
-Alternative to gay and lesbian critical theory which places sexuality in historical, social and political contexts.
Freud and sexual theory:
-'The unconscious'- repressed or sublimated sexual desire expressed through 'subtext'.
-Polymorphism- existing in different forms (sexual deviancy outside hetero-normative)
-Scopophilia/ Voyeurism.
-Oedipal and Electra Complex.
-Distinct from 'gender' or biology.
-The expression of sexual identity through internal feelings and external behavior.
-Can also refer to sexual activity (in particular visual representation.
Sexuality in the media:
- Visual presentations of sexual expression (eroticism, pornography)
-Identity representations of sexual expression (LGBT, asexualism, pansexualism)
Visual representation:
-Eroticism (erotica)- aesthetic depiction of sexuality; may not involve nudity.
-Pornography- explicit depiction of sexuality; using via nudity and graphic sexual activity.
Media Censorship:
-Depictions of sex and sexuality in media traditionally mediated by external censors.
-UK- Broadcasting legislation, watchdogs (ofcom)
-US- FFC (Federal Communications Commission)
-Broadcast networks also have individual editorial guidelines.
-'Moral majority' also act as external watchdogs (Mary Whitehouse, national press)
Sexual representation:
-Sexual representation in TV and film historically tightly controlled until 70 s liberalisation.
-First portrayals of nudity and gay characters.
-Stereotypes.
Sexual stereotypes:
-Libertine
-Camp
-'Butch'
-Asexual
Queer Theory:
-Theorists such as Judith Butler argue gender and sexuality are social constructs informed by media and representation.
-Alternative to gay and lesbian critical theory which places sexuality in historical, social and political contexts.
Freud and sexual theory:
-'The unconscious'- repressed or sublimated sexual desire expressed through 'subtext'.
-Polymorphism- existing in different forms (sexual deviancy outside hetero-normative)
-Scopophilia/ Voyeurism.
-Oedipal and Electra Complex.
Wednesday, 8 March 2017
My Initial Idea
My initial idea for my group's documentary involves the changes in which the UK will be getting their power.
After noticing that more and more of our power stations are being knocked down, I wondered if this would be a good focus point for our small 10 minute documentary. Because, we will not be supplying our own power due to the power stations being decommissioned and demolished, we are having to find power from various other sources including borrowing from other countries.
I believe that this idea could be interesting to cover because it poses the question of where the power will be coming from in the future and how both the current and future generations feel about it.
To my knowledge, there were many protests against power stations such as Kings North in Hoo, Rochester. I believe this would be a good opportunity to interview both sides of an opinion. We could try to interview a member of the protest to see how they feel now that their goal so many years ago has come in fruition. similarly, we can try to talk to locals, both of whom might be opposed to the shutting down of the power station and also who might be happy about it.
The demolishment of these power stations also means loss of jobs and we might even be able to try and alk to people who have been effected by this.
However, I'm not sure if this would be suitable for the theme of 'Teen Spirit' which we have been assigned despite its association with a younger generation's future. I also don't think that it is the type of 'edgy' story that BBC3 would be looking for.
After noticing that more and more of our power stations are being knocked down, I wondered if this would be a good focus point for our small 10 minute documentary. Because, we will not be supplying our own power due to the power stations being decommissioned and demolished, we are having to find power from various other sources including borrowing from other countries.
I believe that this idea could be interesting to cover because it poses the question of where the power will be coming from in the future and how both the current and future generations feel about it.
To my knowledge, there were many protests against power stations such as Kings North in Hoo, Rochester. I believe this would be a good opportunity to interview both sides of an opinion. We could try to interview a member of the protest to see how they feel now that their goal so many years ago has come in fruition. similarly, we can try to talk to locals, both of whom might be opposed to the shutting down of the power station and also who might be happy about it.
The demolishment of these power stations also means loss of jobs and we might even be able to try and alk to people who have been effected by this.
However, I'm not sure if this would be suitable for the theme of 'Teen Spirit' which we have been assigned despite its association with a younger generation's future. I also don't think that it is the type of 'edgy' story that BBC3 would be looking for.
Zoe Session: 8th March 2017
How do you have a good idea?
Curiosity:
-You have an interest in something and want to find out more about this specific subject.
Sources:
-Contacts, keep the contacts booked in case of loss of data otherwise.
Other media:
-Look in the papers that the rest of the media don't read. Read the letters pages. Listen to talk radio.
-Get behind the headlines- scoop up all the key interviewees about a seminal moment.
Brainstorming with energetic people:
-Say and the unsayable- in CA brainstorms, the pretend to be someone else.
Location:
-Come up with interesting location and generate an idea or fil through that- a gym in a town beset with weight problems for example. A BBC 2 series used Victoria Bus Station as a focal point to look into the trials and tribulations of economic migrants.
Investigate:
-Go Digital- whether its a Google advanced search, Twitter hashtag thread or a Facebook community, social media sites can help you to source original stories.
-But proceed with caution- you need to ensure that it's genuine and the people authentic.
-Amazing Footage- user generated or intimate archive- the internet now has a huge range of 'tools' that can help you find content.
A Good Title or a Well Worn Format:
Get a Life:
-Don't sit in front of a computer, go for a walk. Find inspiration.
A Big Question:
-Think about what question we are aiming to answer by the end of the documentary.
The Hook:
-Let the viewer know what they are going to experience.
Strong Central Characters
Universal themes/ relatable:
Every great story has to either affect your mind, heart or wallet. Does your story make the audience happy, angry or play on their fears.
A Strong Narrative and Structure:
Beginning, middle and end to sustain the story.
-Finally, the best stories are simply told with great characters, human emotions and beautiful pictures.
Curiosity:
-You have an interest in something and want to find out more about this specific subject.
Sources:
-Contacts, keep the contacts booked in case of loss of data otherwise.
Other media:
-Look in the papers that the rest of the media don't read. Read the letters pages. Listen to talk radio.
-Get behind the headlines- scoop up all the key interviewees about a seminal moment.
Brainstorming with energetic people:
-Say and the unsayable- in CA brainstorms, the pretend to be someone else.
Location:
-Come up with interesting location and generate an idea or fil through that- a gym in a town beset with weight problems for example. A BBC 2 series used Victoria Bus Station as a focal point to look into the trials and tribulations of economic migrants.
Investigate:
-Go Digital- whether its a Google advanced search, Twitter hashtag thread or a Facebook community, social media sites can help you to source original stories.
-But proceed with caution- you need to ensure that it's genuine and the people authentic.
-Amazing Footage- user generated or intimate archive- the internet now has a huge range of 'tools' that can help you find content.
A Good Title or a Well Worn Format:
Get a Life:
-Don't sit in front of a computer, go for a walk. Find inspiration.
A Big Question:
-Think about what question we are aiming to answer by the end of the documentary.
The Hook:
-Let the viewer know what they are going to experience.
Strong Central Characters
Universal themes/ relatable:
Every great story has to either affect your mind, heart or wallet. Does your story make the audience happy, angry or play on their fears.
A Strong Narrative and Structure:
Beginning, middle and end to sustain the story.
-Finally, the best stories are simply told with great characters, human emotions and beautiful pictures.
Dreams of a Life Documentary
Dreams of a Life is a documentary detailing the life of a woman named Joyce Vincent whom was found in her house after being dead for three years. It was directed by Carol Morley.
Narrative Structure:
-Interview, testimony
-Timeline: The conclusion is shown first, Joyce crosses the timeline (watching the interviews on the television, riding in a taxi with her advertisement on he side)
-Dramatized- Her life-- CHARACTER
-Police-- Investigation
We are watching Carol Morley carry out an investigation into Joyce's life. The result is a much more engaging narrative.
-Joyce's singing builds character, creates a visual motif.
Challenges for the Director:
-An investigation:
Needed police on board, allowing access to the investigation.
-Permission:
Family members need to give permission, may not want to give information.
-Funding:
Actors, crew, interviewees.
-Not prejudicing the case:
Investigations need to be in the public domain.
Narrative Structure:
-Interview, testimony
-Timeline: The conclusion is shown first, Joyce crosses the timeline (watching the interviews on the television, riding in a taxi with her advertisement on he side)
-Dramatized- Her life-- CHARACTER
-Police-- Investigation
We are watching Carol Morley carry out an investigation into Joyce's life. The result is a much more engaging narrative.
-Joyce's singing builds character, creates a visual motif.
Challenges for the Director:
-An investigation:
Needed police on board, allowing access to the investigation.
-Permission:
Family members need to give permission, may not want to give information.
-Funding:
Actors, crew, interviewees.
-Not prejudicing the case:
Investigations need to be in the public domain.
Hellen Session
What is factual programming?
-Factual is the over-arching term for non fiction programming and filmmaking,
-There are many varied genres, devices and formats within factual filmmaking.
-Each have their own conventions (habits/ clichés in style/ format/ delivery/ content/ edit...)
-Fictional and factual programmes share the same formulas.
-ALL films- fictional and factual- are constructed to some degree. i.e. whether it is in the pre, production of post production stages- human intervention in unavoidable.
-How is REALITY and TRUTH treated (Representation).
-Different genres of factual programmes, in particular documentary films, involve different degrees of intervention.
Truth and controversy:
-In 2007 the BBC's reputation was seriously damaged by revelations of 'fakery', faked competition winners 'Blue Peter' in particular.
-2016, Human Planet accused of faking parts.
Notionally, the degree of 'accepted intervention is as follows:
Least:
-Verite- Observational- News
-Reality TV- Science- Documentary Soap
-Factual Entertainment- Wildlife- History
-Drama Documentary- Mockumentary
Most:
'Hidden Kingdoms''
Fcatual Genres
Factual Programmes can be divided into a number of genres:
-Current Affairs
-News
-Documentaries
Current Affairs
Current affairs programmes take an in depth look at the current issues of the time:
-Investigative
-Consumer
-Political
-Often reporter led and deal with weighty subjects with a harder news edge.
-They have a less observational feel to them and are more obviously constructed.
-Relies more on journalism and less on character and actuality.
documentaries Defined...
Definition:
-The term has evolved over the many years since cinema began and covers many sub genres.
-Loosely can be describe as 'Artistic Represenattion of Actuality'.
Why do we make documentaries?
-Documentaries speak about or allow others to speak for themselves. The documentary filmmaker often acts as a representative of the public.
-Voyeurism- inevitable documentaries have elements of voyeurism. A question often posed is whether a piece of film is 'in the public interset' in justifying the intrusuion documentaries make into peoples lives.
-Documentaries provide a particular view, interpretation or understanding of the evidence.
Other mutations of the genre.
-Poetic
-Expository
-Educational
-Observational
-Reflexive documentaries
-Participatory
-Performative
-Drama Documentary
-Documentary Soap
-Reality TV
-Factual Entertainment
-Structured/ Scripted Reality
-Multi Camera Observational
Factual Formats:
-Multi Camera Observational
-Presenter/ Reporter Led
Conventions
-Style- shooting and editing- different factual genres utilise different conventions in germs of style.
-structure
-Format
-Shots.
-Narrator/ Voice of God
-Music- e.g. Classical Music- 'serious' film.
-Experts- used to add 'intellectual weight'.
-Conventions are often subject of satire- exposing the established methods by which stories are told but possibly also limited.
Factual Devices:
-Particularly types of factual programme rely on particular storytelling devices.
-These various formats become established methods available to maker of factual programmes.
-For example, engineering 'TENSION' is a common technique. By bringing together, through careful casting, opposites a film gains tension. This allows LIGHT AND SHADE to come through the film.
-Funding and Truth:
-How and by whom factual films are funded ahs an important impact upon their style, content and their viewpoint.
-Truth, just like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. Who pays the bills will have an important impact upon who a film casts as villain or hero.
-Documentaries can be used for propaganda purposes e.g. 'Triumph of the Will' (1935)- Nazi Germany.
Subject/ Content of Documentary:
-Wildlife
-Science
-History
-Health
-Social Affairs.
Purpose of Factual Programmes:
-Revelation
-Entertainment
-Storytelling- Portrayal of 'REAL' life- portray and convey this as accurately as possible.
-Style and Content- ALWAYS CONTENT OVER STYLE.
-Factual is the over-arching term for non fiction programming and filmmaking,
-There are many varied genres, devices and formats within factual filmmaking.
-Each have their own conventions (habits/ clichés in style/ format/ delivery/ content/ edit...)
-Fictional and factual programmes share the same formulas.
-ALL films- fictional and factual- are constructed to some degree. i.e. whether it is in the pre, production of post production stages- human intervention in unavoidable.
-How is REALITY and TRUTH treated (Representation).
-Different genres of factual programmes, in particular documentary films, involve different degrees of intervention.
Truth and controversy:
-In 2007 the BBC's reputation was seriously damaged by revelations of 'fakery', faked competition winners 'Blue Peter' in particular.
-2016, Human Planet accused of faking parts.
Notionally, the degree of 'accepted intervention is as follows:
Least:
-Verite- Observational- News
-Reality TV- Science- Documentary Soap
-Factual Entertainment- Wildlife- History
-Drama Documentary- Mockumentary
Most:
'Hidden Kingdoms''
Fcatual Genres
Factual Programmes can be divided into a number of genres:
-Current Affairs
-News
-Documentaries
Current Affairs
Current affairs programmes take an in depth look at the current issues of the time:
-Investigative
-Consumer
-Political
-Often reporter led and deal with weighty subjects with a harder news edge.
-They have a less observational feel to them and are more obviously constructed.
-Relies more on journalism and less on character and actuality.
documentaries Defined...
Definition:
-The term has evolved over the many years since cinema began and covers many sub genres.
-Loosely can be describe as 'Artistic Represenattion of Actuality'.
Why do we make documentaries?
-Documentaries speak about or allow others to speak for themselves. The documentary filmmaker often acts as a representative of the public.
-Voyeurism- inevitable documentaries have elements of voyeurism. A question often posed is whether a piece of film is 'in the public interset' in justifying the intrusuion documentaries make into peoples lives.
-Documentaries provide a particular view, interpretation or understanding of the evidence.
Other mutations of the genre.
-Poetic
-Expository
-Educational
-Observational
-Reflexive documentaries
-Participatory
-Performative
-Drama Documentary
-Documentary Soap
-Reality TV
-Factual Entertainment
-Structured/ Scripted Reality
-Multi Camera Observational
Factual Formats:
-Multi Camera Observational
-Presenter/ Reporter Led
Conventions
-Style- shooting and editing- different factual genres utilise different conventions in germs of style.
-structure
-Format
-Shots.
-Narrator/ Voice of God
-Music- e.g. Classical Music- 'serious' film.
-Experts- used to add 'intellectual weight'.
-Conventions are often subject of satire- exposing the established methods by which stories are told but possibly also limited.
Factual Devices:
-Particularly types of factual programme rely on particular storytelling devices.
-These various formats become established methods available to maker of factual programmes.
-For example, engineering 'TENSION' is a common technique. By bringing together, through careful casting, opposites a film gains tension. This allows LIGHT AND SHADE to come through the film.
-Funding and Truth:
-How and by whom factual films are funded ahs an important impact upon their style, content and their viewpoint.
-Truth, just like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. Who pays the bills will have an important impact upon who a film casts as villain or hero.
-Documentaries can be used for propaganda purposes e.g. 'Triumph of the Will' (1935)- Nazi Germany.
Subject/ Content of Documentary:
-Wildlife
-Science
-History
-Health
-Social Affairs.
Purpose of Factual Programmes:
-Revelation
-Entertainment
-Storytelling- Portrayal of 'REAL' life- portray and convey this as accurately as possible.
-Style and Content- ALWAYS CONTENT OVER STYLE.
Monday, 6 March 2017
Commision: Documentary
Documentaries:
-'Cinema, as Jean-Luc Godard wrote, is truth 24 times a second. Documentaries both prove and disprove the point'.
-Research, develop and set-up a brief documentary.
-Documentaries are real stories and real people in real situations.
Storytelling:
-Originality is key.
-Must be able to answer 'Why....?'questions- Journalism.
-Research develop and construct your documentary to tell this story.
Unit aims:
-Promote understanding of commissioned piece of work.
-Understanding of the ethical concerns and impact of representation in documentary production.
-Facilitate research for storytelling support and development.
-Support the development of relevant professional techniques.
-Will need to work in groups of 3 or 4 to produce a 10 minute documentary.
-Film must meet the brief outlined and consider relevant brand and audience expectations.
-Will pitch ideas as a group, receive developmental feedback.
-Assessment considers not just the final product but the preparation and development process. INDIVIDUAL INPUT.
-Be sure to EVIDENCE work to be able to gain marks in assessment (journal).
Outcomes:
-Demonstrate ability to synthesise creative skills in response to brief.
-Develop broadcast strategies for clients and audiences paying due regard to relevant ethical concerns/representations.
Assessment:
-30% online portfolio.
-70% documentary portfolio.
Contextual research:
-Pre-production research and development:
-Visual and written reference material to use to inform content and methods of documentary making.
-Evidence of preparation work.
-Choose a documentary TV programme to review, deconstruct and contextualise with reference to your own documentary.
-Minimum of two entries per week. Detail own work- what you have learnt, watch and read.
Online portfolio
-Workshop material
-Final film and all development.
Journal Portfolio content:
-R&D evidence
-Shoot reflections.
PROJECT BRIEF:
-Research, cast, script and edit a 10 minute documentary for a simulated 10 documentary strand.
-Ideas should seek to inspire and empower the teen audience- think of positive role models and emphasise diversity.
-Piece should be from 'teen's eye view'.
Ideas:
-Health/ wellbeing
-Family/ relationships
-Science/ technology
-Community/ social affairs
-Music/ arts/ culture
-History
Consider:
-Given information
-The duration, channel, branding and intended audience (research thoroughly and evidence this research)
-Treatment- what format, style and storytelling mechanisms will you adopt?
-All films must include appropriate planning for shooting sequences, et ups, GVs and actuality- be creative.
-Will mean thinking about the people connected with the stories you tell, not just explaining issues and facts.
1. Establishing shots
2. Actuality interviews
3. GVs/ General Views
4. Sequences- Compresses time.
5. Commentary
6. Characters
Project Brief
Stage 1 details:
-Idea to be pitched on Monday 22nd March.
-Can use any preferred presentation method to present your idea. (PowerPoint, Clips, Video, Props etc.)
Completed draft script and research by 31st March (7th April- final sign off)
25th April- 5th May are the SHOOT WEEKS:
10th May= Sync Assembly Deadline
12th May= Rough Cut Deadline
-'Cinema, as Jean-Luc Godard wrote, is truth 24 times a second. Documentaries both prove and disprove the point'.
-Research, develop and set-up a brief documentary.
-Documentaries are real stories and real people in real situations.
Storytelling:
-Originality is key.
-Must be able to answer 'Why....?'questions- Journalism.
-Research develop and construct your documentary to tell this story.
Unit aims:
-Promote understanding of commissioned piece of work.
-Understanding of the ethical concerns and impact of representation in documentary production.
-Facilitate research for storytelling support and development.
-Support the development of relevant professional techniques.
-Will need to work in groups of 3 or 4 to produce a 10 minute documentary.
-Film must meet the brief outlined and consider relevant brand and audience expectations.
-Will pitch ideas as a group, receive developmental feedback.
-Assessment considers not just the final product but the preparation and development process. INDIVIDUAL INPUT.
-Be sure to EVIDENCE work to be able to gain marks in assessment (journal).
Outcomes:
-Demonstrate ability to synthesise creative skills in response to brief.
-Develop broadcast strategies for clients and audiences paying due regard to relevant ethical concerns/representations.
Assessment:
-30% online portfolio.
-70% documentary portfolio.
Contextual research:
-Pre-production research and development:
-Visual and written reference material to use to inform content and methods of documentary making.
-Evidence of preparation work.
-Choose a documentary TV programme to review, deconstruct and contextualise with reference to your own documentary.
-Minimum of two entries per week. Detail own work- what you have learnt, watch and read.
Online portfolio
-Workshop material
-Final film and all development.
Journal Portfolio content:
-R&D evidence
-Shoot reflections.
PROJECT BRIEF:
-Research, cast, script and edit a 10 minute documentary for a simulated 10 documentary strand.
-Ideas should seek to inspire and empower the teen audience- think of positive role models and emphasise diversity.
-Piece should be from 'teen's eye view'.
Ideas:
-Health/ wellbeing
-Family/ relationships
-Science/ technology
-Community/ social affairs
-Music/ arts/ culture
-History
Consider:
-Given information
-The duration, channel, branding and intended audience (research thoroughly and evidence this research)
-Treatment- what format, style and storytelling mechanisms will you adopt?
-All films must include appropriate planning for shooting sequences, et ups, GVs and actuality- be creative.
-Will mean thinking about the people connected with the stories you tell, not just explaining issues and facts.
1. Establishing shots
2. Actuality interviews
3. GVs/ General Views
4. Sequences- Compresses time.
5. Commentary
6. Characters
Project Brief
Stage 1 details:
-Idea to be pitched on Monday 22nd March.
-Can use any preferred presentation method to present your idea. (PowerPoint, Clips, Video, Props etc.)
Completed draft script and research by 31st March (7th April- final sign off)
25th April- 5th May are the SHOOT WEEKS:
10th May= Sync Assembly Deadline
12th May= Rough Cut Deadline
Thursday, 2 March 2017
Project Evaluation:
Having successfully finished the filming, editing and sound design of my film based on scenes from 'The Living Daylights' directed by John Glen. I have learnt from my experience in ways which highlight both positives and she rather glaring negatives about my work. The following is my thoughts on each aspect of my project as a whole. I will outline what I thought were very positive aspects and how I would like to use similar techniques in future projects as well as talking about the issues I have faced and how i shall learn from these mistakes for in future circumstances.
Firstly, the filming process:
One of the first mistakes I made was not actually going to Casting Call Pro from the start and instead trying to find actors through known associates. This ultimately fell through as various actors which I had acquired were suddenly unable to help due to other engagements such as family and work. It wasn't until the week before that I was feeling rather desperate and finally worked towards using professional sites on the internet to find my actors. During this process, however, I was lucky enough to find my casting for the character of 'James Bond' while helping a fellow student film their project and thus acquired the actor at short notice. The main actress to play Kara was contacted through Casting Call Pro and I was able to successfully acquire her acting services. For the future, I have learnt to go straight to professional sites on the internet from the start when looking for my actors.
The filming process, although difficult in theory, proved to be quite easy to accomplish. I was able to create a buzz track on the bus while it was in motion straight away, capturing the sound of the engine from inside at varying levels of speed for use in sound editing. The actors arrived relatively earlier than I had initially panned so we were able to start filming early with the equipment already set up.
I believe that each of the shots which take place on the bus itself were successful. The shots were all either mid-shots or close-ups of the characters on board the bus which I believe successfully conveyed reactions from the actors whenever something happens. For example, the bus was audibly slowing down so I would have a close-up on a character's face reacting to what might be sowing the bus down so suddenly. One particular shot which I am rather proud of is when the police come onto the bus: the camera starts which a close-up of their feet from outside the bus, then raises to an over-the-shoulder shot as they enter and follows as such when they walk down the bus aisle in one continuous shot. I believe that this worked very well and shows use of a technique that I'd wanted to use through research of other directors.
However, several shots that take place outside the bus were not so successful. One particular shot which depicts the police-man waving at the bus as if for it to stop appears very over-exposed. Another shot depicting the police taking Kara off of the bus appeared fine when the shot was inside the bus but then it moves outside of the bus and immediately becomes over-exposed and there are even noticeable marks on the screen where the sense of the camera has not been properly cleaned out.
I believe these problems to be attributed to two main things. First of all, I didn't have a big crew. There were, in fact, only two of us in the crew: myself on directing and cinematography and one other operating the sound equipment. This is due to the fact that the people originally in our crew were unable to make it to the shooting location at the last minute. This lead to myself concentrating too much on the directing aspects and not giving enough attention to setting up each shot properly, despite my best efforts to configure the exposure level for each shot. What I have learnt from this is that I should always have a replacement crew member in mind or insist someone at the last minute if they are able and happy to help.
The second reason I would list as the cause for the lower quality in picture is the fact that I didn't give myself a larger time-gap to film all of my scenes. By this, I mean that I only allowed myself from ten in the morning to three in the afternoon to get every single shot and rap up the shooting in its entirety. I had originally planned to shoot over two separate days but one of the days became unavailable due to the TV studios requiring the cameras on the second day. Despite this, I still could have used the day before the first day of shooting but didn't, thinking I could get all of the filming done in one day. I did, but not to as high a quality as I would have liked. From this, I have learnt to give myself more time to film and not try to film so much in such as tight time-frame.
The scene that takes place in the toilets where Bond finds the rifle Kara's guitar case is successful for the most part; I make use of various different types of shot while also adding certain parts of humour with the toilet cleaner reacting to the noise which Bond is making in the cubicle. One shot which I had planned from the start and I think was a success was a shot which travels through the cubicle door and ends in a close-up on Bond's face. I used editing to put two shots together to create this effect. In hind-sight, however, I feel that sound effect would have made the shot more effective.
When Bond actually unzips the guitar case and tinkers with the gun, I ended up using an array of sound effects. I don't think this worked too well. I would have like to have a prop gun which Bond would have visibly pulled out but unfortunately health and safety regulations restricted me from using the prop at the late stage of planning the scene. In the future, I will need to make sure that I will sort out the requirements that will fit the health and safety regulations when it comes to props. I believe the sound effects will allow audiences to know that he is actually holding a gun but it is not as effective as it could have been with an actual prop.
The last scene is where I believe my variation of shots are it their best. I used close-ups, long shots, mid shots, over-the-shoulder shots, POVs and many tracking shots as Bond and Kara have their conversation in Kara's bedroom. However, the shot I am most happy with is the first shot where Kara enters the room and the camera pans around the room to see it has been ransacked and then focuses back on her with Bond appearing behind her. There are some minor problems, however, such as the dressing of the set. Although there are many clothes thrown on the floor, a lot of the room still looks in tact such as books in the bookcases and the teddy bears still neatly placed on the bed despite the covers being complete wrecked. I feel to develop the idea of ransacking the room, I would have simply made the room look more destructing, even with extra bits of furniture toppled onto the floor. I would have had to have been careful of the amount of floor space, however, as it would have been even more limited than it already was. Another problem I have with this scene is the amount of exposure coming through the bedroom window. Reasons and improvements for this I have already aforementioned.
I do like all three separate scenes as a whole though, conveying a concise story successfully and I don't believe than an audience would be confused about what had just happened by the end of the seven minutes. Several revelations unfold during the conversation in the third scene anyway, explaining what was happening in the previous two scenes. The actors were both very good to work with and followed my direction exactly how I would have wanted them to and they both gave genuinely good performances throughout.
Post Production:
Editing:
I feel that my skills with Premiere Pro have increased significantly through my use of the software when editing my scenes. I have discovered several new capabilities that would never have been able to work out before.
My editing of the scenes appears successful in the final cut of my film, despite the difficulty I had with the editing process. These difficulties arose through some of the actors positions or movements not matching up between shots, meaning I would have had to cut the shots slightly earlier or later than I would have wanted to avoid inconsistent action on screen. These sort of problems also occurred when I became aware of problems with the shots such as the over-exposure or soft-looking images. To try and tackle this, I tried cutting as much of the flawed shots as possible so they are not visible for a long period of time. I think this approach was mostly successful although the roughness of the picture quality in these shots can still be seen. For several of the over-exposed shots, I tried using the basic picture correction tools to reduce the amount of exposure. This was mostly successful but often led to the colour looking somewhat unnatural. I lowered the level of the black colour levels for every shot to give the film a more gritty and cinematic look. I think this works as it fits in with the dark tone of a spy thriller and it does not make each scene too dark in their presentation.
Sound editing and design:
The sound editing for the project I found was rather was when I knew what I was doing. At first I wasn't sure how I was to add atmosphere or even any snd effects and how I would place them in the scenes for the right effect. It turns out that once I had worked out how the multiple tools on the editing software worked, the process was actually quite simple.
The first problem I encountered was the different sound levels and noise between each shot, especially those taking place on the bus. I had already created the buzz-track for when the bus was in motion so that wasn't an issue and I feel that editing the sound of the bus while at different speeds proved successful in conveying the fact that the bus was slowing down suddenly. The issues took place when the bus was stopped and the police are boarding the bus and threatening Kara. There was a distinct click between each shot where the audio levels and background noises where changing. To tackle this, I simply faded the audio between each shot into each other to rid of the clicking sound and adjusted the volume so that it was consistent throughout. I found this to be successful as now the audio transitions appear to be smooth.
For atmospheric sounds, I used various different sounds taken from the internet. The bus depot needed so more sounds to emphasise the fact that it was a working environment. There were actually working doing construction work at the time of filming on location and their voices and various tools can be heard in the distance. However, I simply added the sound of hammering to further emphasise this and make the sound more obvious to viewers. I believe this works very well because I adjusted the the volume of the sound effect between each shot to create the sound as if from different distances. If anything, I might have been able to develop this further with more sound effects are even recorded voices to put into the background. The atmospheric sounds which I use when Kara walks across her front garden consist of birds chirping and distant traffic. I feel that I didn't need to include too m much sound for this part as the neighbourhood appeared quiet and there was no traffic on the road at all.
The biggest use of sound effects was of course used when Bond is tinkering with the rifle from the guitar case. Many of the shots don't actually show Bond while this is happening so I left it to the power of suggestion as to what could be in the case. The sound effects I used involved mostly reloading of the gun, a round falling onto the floor and then the sound of a magazine being unclip and emptied. I feel these sound effects are successful in conveying the fact that there is a gun however, more watchful audience may notice that the various sound effects come from several different types of gun. I think to develop this further, I would need to make sure that I am able to acquire the right sound effects to match the one type of gun that is being eluded to.
In terms of music for the piece, I created it through my own equipment. The music was created through the Audacity software and mostly just recorded from synthesised sounds from a keyboard. I wanted to give Bond a motif without directly copying the famous theme used in the films themselves. It consists of just a two note bass line throughout which only occurs when Bond is moving fro one location to another or when something starts to peak his interest. I believe this to be successful as it fit in with the mysterious spy thriller aspect and bears a similar style to that of the themes o James Bond and even, to an extent, The Pink Panther. Another piece of music is just two string section notes. These are sued when something mysterious and unseen by the audience such as Bond unloading the gun. The most developed piece of music, however, was my idea for Kara's theme. She has a very short motif which plays primarily during the third scene. This develops into what eventually become the music for the credits. I think this piece of music is successful however I wish that I had used it earlier on in the other two scenes involving Kara to have the motif repeat consistently throughout. Overall, I would have liked to have developed the music even further because, on rematch, the music is admittedly not as polished as I think I could have made it with various parts speeding up out of tempo and the percussion sometimes being out of time with the rest of the instruments. However, I feel that I was able to appropriately implement it at the right times during the editing process for the best effect. What I've learnt from this is to either allow myself more time to create a more polished piece of work or even just find royalty-free music from the internet to use.
Overall, I find my project to be a bit of a mixed bag. I feel that I have been able to capture the feel and visual style of a gritty spy thriller like the older James Bond films and have been able to differentiate my directing style and camera work to that of John Glen, using several continuous shots and being more experimental rather than using the more traditional style of directing that John Glen utilises. The actors were both great and gave great performance and will happily use them again in any further projects if need be. Despite this, the problems with the quality of the image are a major negative and the fact that I did not give myself enough time will have attributed to this fact. Therefore, the biggest improvement I would give to myself is to allow myself more time make sure that the quality standard of every aspect of my project is high.
Firstly, the filming process:
One of the first mistakes I made was not actually going to Casting Call Pro from the start and instead trying to find actors through known associates. This ultimately fell through as various actors which I had acquired were suddenly unable to help due to other engagements such as family and work. It wasn't until the week before that I was feeling rather desperate and finally worked towards using professional sites on the internet to find my actors. During this process, however, I was lucky enough to find my casting for the character of 'James Bond' while helping a fellow student film their project and thus acquired the actor at short notice. The main actress to play Kara was contacted through Casting Call Pro and I was able to successfully acquire her acting services. For the future, I have learnt to go straight to professional sites on the internet from the start when looking for my actors.
The filming process, although difficult in theory, proved to be quite easy to accomplish. I was able to create a buzz track on the bus while it was in motion straight away, capturing the sound of the engine from inside at varying levels of speed for use in sound editing. The actors arrived relatively earlier than I had initially panned so we were able to start filming early with the equipment already set up.
I believe that each of the shots which take place on the bus itself were successful. The shots were all either mid-shots or close-ups of the characters on board the bus which I believe successfully conveyed reactions from the actors whenever something happens. For example, the bus was audibly slowing down so I would have a close-up on a character's face reacting to what might be sowing the bus down so suddenly. One particular shot which I am rather proud of is when the police come onto the bus: the camera starts which a close-up of their feet from outside the bus, then raises to an over-the-shoulder shot as they enter and follows as such when they walk down the bus aisle in one continuous shot. I believe that this worked very well and shows use of a technique that I'd wanted to use through research of other directors.
However, several shots that take place outside the bus were not so successful. One particular shot which depicts the police-man waving at the bus as if for it to stop appears very over-exposed. Another shot depicting the police taking Kara off of the bus appeared fine when the shot was inside the bus but then it moves outside of the bus and immediately becomes over-exposed and there are even noticeable marks on the screen where the sense of the camera has not been properly cleaned out.
I believe these problems to be attributed to two main things. First of all, I didn't have a big crew. There were, in fact, only two of us in the crew: myself on directing and cinematography and one other operating the sound equipment. This is due to the fact that the people originally in our crew were unable to make it to the shooting location at the last minute. This lead to myself concentrating too much on the directing aspects and not giving enough attention to setting up each shot properly, despite my best efforts to configure the exposure level for each shot. What I have learnt from this is that I should always have a replacement crew member in mind or insist someone at the last minute if they are able and happy to help.
The second reason I would list as the cause for the lower quality in picture is the fact that I didn't give myself a larger time-gap to film all of my scenes. By this, I mean that I only allowed myself from ten in the morning to three in the afternoon to get every single shot and rap up the shooting in its entirety. I had originally planned to shoot over two separate days but one of the days became unavailable due to the TV studios requiring the cameras on the second day. Despite this, I still could have used the day before the first day of shooting but didn't, thinking I could get all of the filming done in one day. I did, but not to as high a quality as I would have liked. From this, I have learnt to give myself more time to film and not try to film so much in such as tight time-frame.
The scene that takes place in the toilets where Bond finds the rifle Kara's guitar case is successful for the most part; I make use of various different types of shot while also adding certain parts of humour with the toilet cleaner reacting to the noise which Bond is making in the cubicle. One shot which I had planned from the start and I think was a success was a shot which travels through the cubicle door and ends in a close-up on Bond's face. I used editing to put two shots together to create this effect. In hind-sight, however, I feel that sound effect would have made the shot more effective.
When Bond actually unzips the guitar case and tinkers with the gun, I ended up using an array of sound effects. I don't think this worked too well. I would have like to have a prop gun which Bond would have visibly pulled out but unfortunately health and safety regulations restricted me from using the prop at the late stage of planning the scene. In the future, I will need to make sure that I will sort out the requirements that will fit the health and safety regulations when it comes to props. I believe the sound effects will allow audiences to know that he is actually holding a gun but it is not as effective as it could have been with an actual prop.
The last scene is where I believe my variation of shots are it their best. I used close-ups, long shots, mid shots, over-the-shoulder shots, POVs and many tracking shots as Bond and Kara have their conversation in Kara's bedroom. However, the shot I am most happy with is the first shot where Kara enters the room and the camera pans around the room to see it has been ransacked and then focuses back on her with Bond appearing behind her. There are some minor problems, however, such as the dressing of the set. Although there are many clothes thrown on the floor, a lot of the room still looks in tact such as books in the bookcases and the teddy bears still neatly placed on the bed despite the covers being complete wrecked. I feel to develop the idea of ransacking the room, I would have simply made the room look more destructing, even with extra bits of furniture toppled onto the floor. I would have had to have been careful of the amount of floor space, however, as it would have been even more limited than it already was. Another problem I have with this scene is the amount of exposure coming through the bedroom window. Reasons and improvements for this I have already aforementioned.
I do like all three separate scenes as a whole though, conveying a concise story successfully and I don't believe than an audience would be confused about what had just happened by the end of the seven minutes. Several revelations unfold during the conversation in the third scene anyway, explaining what was happening in the previous two scenes. The actors were both very good to work with and followed my direction exactly how I would have wanted them to and they both gave genuinely good performances throughout.
Post Production:
Editing:
I feel that my skills with Premiere Pro have increased significantly through my use of the software when editing my scenes. I have discovered several new capabilities that would never have been able to work out before.
My editing of the scenes appears successful in the final cut of my film, despite the difficulty I had with the editing process. These difficulties arose through some of the actors positions or movements not matching up between shots, meaning I would have had to cut the shots slightly earlier or later than I would have wanted to avoid inconsistent action on screen. These sort of problems also occurred when I became aware of problems with the shots such as the over-exposure or soft-looking images. To try and tackle this, I tried cutting as much of the flawed shots as possible so they are not visible for a long period of time. I think this approach was mostly successful although the roughness of the picture quality in these shots can still be seen. For several of the over-exposed shots, I tried using the basic picture correction tools to reduce the amount of exposure. This was mostly successful but often led to the colour looking somewhat unnatural. I lowered the level of the black colour levels for every shot to give the film a more gritty and cinematic look. I think this works as it fits in with the dark tone of a spy thriller and it does not make each scene too dark in their presentation.
Sound editing and design:
The sound editing for the project I found was rather was when I knew what I was doing. At first I wasn't sure how I was to add atmosphere or even any snd effects and how I would place them in the scenes for the right effect. It turns out that once I had worked out how the multiple tools on the editing software worked, the process was actually quite simple.
The first problem I encountered was the different sound levels and noise between each shot, especially those taking place on the bus. I had already created the buzz-track for when the bus was in motion so that wasn't an issue and I feel that editing the sound of the bus while at different speeds proved successful in conveying the fact that the bus was slowing down suddenly. The issues took place when the bus was stopped and the police are boarding the bus and threatening Kara. There was a distinct click between each shot where the audio levels and background noises where changing. To tackle this, I simply faded the audio between each shot into each other to rid of the clicking sound and adjusted the volume so that it was consistent throughout. I found this to be successful as now the audio transitions appear to be smooth.
For atmospheric sounds, I used various different sounds taken from the internet. The bus depot needed so more sounds to emphasise the fact that it was a working environment. There were actually working doing construction work at the time of filming on location and their voices and various tools can be heard in the distance. However, I simply added the sound of hammering to further emphasise this and make the sound more obvious to viewers. I believe this works very well because I adjusted the the volume of the sound effect between each shot to create the sound as if from different distances. If anything, I might have been able to develop this further with more sound effects are even recorded voices to put into the background. The atmospheric sounds which I use when Kara walks across her front garden consist of birds chirping and distant traffic. I feel that I didn't need to include too m much sound for this part as the neighbourhood appeared quiet and there was no traffic on the road at all.
The biggest use of sound effects was of course used when Bond is tinkering with the rifle from the guitar case. Many of the shots don't actually show Bond while this is happening so I left it to the power of suggestion as to what could be in the case. The sound effects I used involved mostly reloading of the gun, a round falling onto the floor and then the sound of a magazine being unclip and emptied. I feel these sound effects are successful in conveying the fact that there is a gun however, more watchful audience may notice that the various sound effects come from several different types of gun. I think to develop this further, I would need to make sure that I am able to acquire the right sound effects to match the one type of gun that is being eluded to.
In terms of music for the piece, I created it through my own equipment. The music was created through the Audacity software and mostly just recorded from synthesised sounds from a keyboard. I wanted to give Bond a motif without directly copying the famous theme used in the films themselves. It consists of just a two note bass line throughout which only occurs when Bond is moving fro one location to another or when something starts to peak his interest. I believe this to be successful as it fit in with the mysterious spy thriller aspect and bears a similar style to that of the themes o James Bond and even, to an extent, The Pink Panther. Another piece of music is just two string section notes. These are sued when something mysterious and unseen by the audience such as Bond unloading the gun. The most developed piece of music, however, was my idea for Kara's theme. She has a very short motif which plays primarily during the third scene. This develops into what eventually become the music for the credits. I think this piece of music is successful however I wish that I had used it earlier on in the other two scenes involving Kara to have the motif repeat consistently throughout. Overall, I would have liked to have developed the music even further because, on rematch, the music is admittedly not as polished as I think I could have made it with various parts speeding up out of tempo and the percussion sometimes being out of time with the rest of the instruments. However, I feel that I was able to appropriately implement it at the right times during the editing process for the best effect. What I've learnt from this is to either allow myself more time to create a more polished piece of work or even just find royalty-free music from the internet to use.
Overall, I find my project to be a bit of a mixed bag. I feel that I have been able to capture the feel and visual style of a gritty spy thriller like the older James Bond films and have been able to differentiate my directing style and camera work to that of John Glen, using several continuous shots and being more experimental rather than using the more traditional style of directing that John Glen utilises. The actors were both great and gave great performance and will happily use them again in any further projects if need be. Despite this, the problems with the quality of the image are a major negative and the fact that I did not give myself enough time will have attributed to this fact. Therefore, the biggest improvement I would give to myself is to allow myself more time make sure that the quality standard of every aspect of my project is high.
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