Monday, 28 April 2014
Idea development and process
As a group we came up with 2 ideas that we could work with. We had a team meeting to discuss the 2 ideas and found that my idea wasn't quite there yet and was lacking an ending to the piece. Due to the time limits we thought it was best to go with the first idea. Throughout the process however, I kept working on my script and getting an idea in place as a contingency.
The first idea:
This was our first idea that we started developing as a team. It was based on dream sequences and awkward relationships between a couple and an ex partner, set on a plane going to Kuala Lumpur. We had a lot of ideas that would have developed this idea further, however as a group we decided this story was lacking a strong narrative and was too difficult for a 5 minute short film. We also had an issue with locations as a plane was too difficult and some team members did disagree on the location. This could have been communicated better to save us time. We did do some research into other options such as tutorial videos and different locations such as trains or waiting rooms to give that inescapable feeling.
http://www.videocopilot.net/
The first idea:
This was our first idea that we started developing as a team. It was based on dream sequences and awkward relationships between a couple and an ex partner, set on a plane going to Kuala Lumpur. We had a lot of ideas that would have developed this idea further, however as a group we decided this story was lacking a strong narrative and was too difficult for a 5 minute short film. We also had an issue with locations as a plane was too difficult and some team members did disagree on the location. This could have been communicated better to save us time. We did do some research into other options such as tutorial videos and different locations such as trains or waiting rooms to give that inescapable feeling.
http://www.videocopilot.net/
The second and final idea:
Whirlwind.
A story about infatuation and young love that's positive and changes the way we think about love.
As the first idea fell through I made sure that as a team we worked together to help develop the idea I had created as a contingency. We were really lucky that we had a contingency with everything in place. After we changed our idea our communication and team work drastically improved as I made sure everyone contributed and no one was left panicking about the process. We changed idea mainly because mine was achievable and ready to film straight away as I had been working continuously on a script and story. Through email communication I got the help of my team to help me develop a visual idea for the piece.
I also created short back stories for the characters by answering a series of questions. Even though I didn't answer them all it gave me an idea of who the characters were and what they would act like and wear.
We looked at existing short films on Vimeo that were similar to how we wanted to structure our piece. This helped us to think about how we'd tell quite a developed story into a simple short 5 minute drama.
https://vimeo.com/63898509 - what I liked about this and took on board the most was how the music and sound stood out. It wasn't over the top so your attention was never diverted away from the story - which is based on real events. The sound and music was really crisp and clear and worked well with the theme of the piece which is why it was so subtle.
https://vimeo.com/60959747 - as a short film I felt that the story fitted in very well in 17 minutes and didn't feel rushed. The camera moves fluently and helps you glide through the story.
Thursday, 24 April 2014
overall process
The overall process has been a mixture of learning and doing. We've all had to work really hard as a small team to get this project finished and I am really proud that we got it done despite all the changes we had to encounter. Even though there are parts of the film that still need a little improving, as a team we've done really well at learning new techniques and getting this project off the ground in the short time frame we had.
Things were extremely difficult in pre production as we never got chance to pitch our first idea and get feedback from it. I feel this hindered our work and we weren't prepared for reactions to the script/idea. I think changing to a simple idea really paid off and the idea was well organised and structured. Due to the filming times we had to use though, it didn't quite bring the script to life, especially in terms of location.
I think the shoot was the easiest part of the process despite there only being me and Myles available to shoot. Because of the strong and positive relationship we had with the actors however, I feel that this is why it was so easy. None of us felt pressured to get it filmed, we took our time and made sure everything was planned out perfectly so we didn't feel overwhelmed especially as it was 2 of us filming instead of 4-6 people like most other groups. I think that having a small group made us have more work but through communication managed a fine balance.
I feel that sometimes people in the team didn't communicate well and either never replied to messages or gave very late replies. I think that this made us have some differences when it came to what would be in the edit. I think the teamwork was good but often felt a little awkward when people didn't reply when we all needed help and opinions. I think after having tutorials we realised that we all needed to meet up and discuss what had been done so far and move on. I think our teamwork overall has maybe given off a bad impression but it was actually really good and I think the small problems we did have we came to terms with and learnt from. Overall, it didn't affect our edit, or anything in Post production. The edit was difficult as we had to learn new techniques such as syncing sound and mixing the levels. This still isn't perfect but as a learning curve is definitely something to reflect on and keep working on.
Things were extremely difficult in pre production as we never got chance to pitch our first idea and get feedback from it. I feel this hindered our work and we weren't prepared for reactions to the script/idea. I think changing to a simple idea really paid off and the idea was well organised and structured. Due to the filming times we had to use though, it didn't quite bring the script to life, especially in terms of location.
I think the shoot was the easiest part of the process despite there only being me and Myles available to shoot. Because of the strong and positive relationship we had with the actors however, I feel that this is why it was so easy. None of us felt pressured to get it filmed, we took our time and made sure everything was planned out perfectly so we didn't feel overwhelmed especially as it was 2 of us filming instead of 4-6 people like most other groups. I think that having a small group made us have more work but through communication managed a fine balance.
I feel that sometimes people in the team didn't communicate well and either never replied to messages or gave very late replies. I think that this made us have some differences when it came to what would be in the edit. I think the teamwork was good but often felt a little awkward when people didn't reply when we all needed help and opinions. I think after having tutorials we realised that we all needed to meet up and discuss what had been done so far and move on. I think our teamwork overall has maybe given off a bad impression but it was actually really good and I think the small problems we did have we came to terms with and learnt from. Overall, it didn't affect our edit, or anything in Post production. The edit was difficult as we had to learn new techniques such as syncing sound and mixing the levels. This still isn't perfect but as a learning curve is definitely something to reflect on and keep working on.
Wednesday, 23 April 2014
Producing
The producing process.
As we had less time due to changing ideas later on in the process, I became the producer as well as director so I could quickly organise the shoot and have everything I wanted and needed for it in place. I thought this was best as I knew exactly what was needed for the project and had everything I needed ready to go. To make sure everyone was on board and knew what was happening I organised schedules so the actors and team could prepare themselves and nothing was last minute. Below, are the schedules I sent out. As the producer I organised the entire production including actors, locations, schedules etc... so it was important for me to be on time and prepared for anything. As a producer, I emailed my actors and crew every day to keep them informed especially if anyone had ideas or something changed.
As we had less time due to changing ideas later on in the process, I became the producer as well as director so I could quickly organise the shoot and have everything I wanted and needed for it in place. I thought this was best as I knew exactly what was needed for the project and had everything I needed ready to go. To make sure everyone was on board and knew what was happening I organised schedules so the actors and team could prepare themselves and nothing was last minute. Below, are the schedules I sent out. As the producer I organised the entire production including actors, locations, schedules etc... so it was important for me to be on time and prepared for anything. As a producer, I emailed my actors and crew every day to keep them informed especially if anyone had ideas or something changed.
Equipment Lists
Locations
Getting the location was also crucial as I didn't know anywhere in Sheffield well enough. Myles went and scouted locations with me and we found 3 locations that were very easy to get to and very convenient for filming. I wanted a bus stop on a busy city centre road, a park and a quiet street. The first location actually had a park attached to it so we decided to use this and make the shots appear as if they were 2 completely separate places e.g. you couldn't see the park from the street. We also filmed various cut a ways in the city and park but these were all done in the same place.
Location 1/2 - street and park - Gell Street
We chose this location as it was out of the way and had a more rural feel to it as opposed to the city centre scene which has traffic and large buildings. It was also really local so the actors and crew had no problem getting there, especially with the equipment. This street was really quiet and peaceful surrounded by trees so gave us a really good visual look. As for the park, we asked for permission to film first and that was fine. The park itself was small and had lovely serene surroundings and was always empty.
Location 3 - City centre bus stop.
This was the 2nd location and we used the entire street and an out of service bus stop outside of the adsetts centre. This location was perfect to use as we had access to an empty bus stop where you could see all the traffic going by and buildings all the way up the road.
Getting the actors.
As soon as the idea changed over I instantly emailed actors I knew from University and asked them if they'd be interested. I sent over all the details including - script, potential schedule, treatment and character bios so they could really get the idea and understand what I am trying to achieve before agreeing to film and act for us. Overall I emailed 4 actors - 2 boys and 2 girls just in case any were to say no or were not available on the dates. Luckily, I got fast responses and met up with my actors a few days later for a script read through and to discuss any issues or ideas they had for me.
Communication
As we changed ideas I also decided that I needed to find a simple way to communicate with my team. I didn't think social media was a good way to do this especially as some team members had no social media. I wanted it to be professional and equal so everyone could get involved whenever they had something to share. I thought the best way was to set up a group email where we could attach documents, links and share ideas whenever we wanted. As well as this I also got the contact numbers of my team to inform them if I had anything that required a response asap. This proved to be really effective for us and everyone in the team communicated much better like this and it was easier for when we were not at university. I also arranged full team meetings twice a week to make sure everyone knew what was happening. If some one was able to attend I copied the information to them via email. I do think that some members could have contributed more and this might have affected our student ship but overall we communicated and got along well.
Directing and Director notes
I wrote up these notes for each team member based on their role. I did it to help them know exactly what they needed and what they had to do. It made sure that as a team we were all organised and prepared for the production both pre and post. It tells them what equipment they need for each role and what exactly they need to do. Hopefully it will ensure that we don't run out of time to fix problems such as sound levels or camera mishaps.
Establishing Roles
As a team we sat down and discussed our strengths and weaknesses and then worked in the role we thought would be best for us. This made it fair for everyone in the team and no one was left feeling uncomfortable and worried about the work they had to do. As we changed to my idea, I thought it was best to be the director too as I had already organised everything and knew exactly what was needed throughout the process from the vision to what days we would be filming. I thought that this was best for me as I am very organised and got the team to do the work in plenty of time.
Carrie Marples - Director/Producer
Myles Chimutanda - Cinematographer/Editor - We both worked on 2 roles each as they kind of work hand in hand as it is and as a team of 4, made it easier for us.
Chris Kelly - Sound Design/ Recordist
Nyle Roberts - Sound Recordist/ Design - These roles were both shared out as the sound was a large part of the film due to the narration and this eased the workload, giving the team more time to focus on getting it right.
Carrie Marples - Director/Producer
Myles Chimutanda - Cinematographer/Editor - We both worked on 2 roles each as they kind of work hand in hand as it is and as a team of 4, made it easier for us.
Chris Kelly - Sound Design/ Recordist
Nyle Roberts - Sound Recordist/ Design - These roles were both shared out as the sound was a large part of the film due to the narration and this eased the workload, giving the team more time to focus on getting it right.
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