Question 7

1. Question 7
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you
feel you have learnt from the progression from it to
the full product?
By Ariana King

2. Pre- production
• The pre-production of my preliminary task consisted only having a script and a rough
storyboard. I did not prepare with the costume and locations as well as the angles and
shots were not clear in my head. Furthermore, the timing in the schedule was only
discovered last minute, which meant that myself and the actors were not prepared to film
the scene. This meant that the quality of the section looked very rushed and unfocused.
However, in my last product, I had a clear view of the storyboard and knew exactly what the
shots were going to look like. I had made a production schedule in order for my actors and
myself to prepare a reasonable time for the shooting, as well as leaving some time for any
shoots that did not achieve its potential. This therefore meant that the quality of my film was
higher and it also made me to have the time and effort to enhance the camera shots and
the mise-en scene in the frame. Similarly, to make the two minute film engaging, I did an in-
depth research on the Science Fiction genre and the target audience. This lead me to
create a film that completed the many conventions that suited the audience and made me
to develop the location, actors, costumes, props and narrative. From the Science Fiction
research, I had found out that special effects and costume can improve the film significantly
by putting in effort and time for the production. This meant that the organisation and the
planning has lead me to create the key convention for a Sci-Fi genre as well as creating a
professional look.

3. Sound
• In my preliminary, sound was a huge problem that affected the quality of
the scenes. This meant that the fixing the problem through the amounts
of editing, caused the issue to be very time consuming. This is because
in the dialogue scene, the microphone only picked up the strong wind of
the area. It meant that the actors were not properly heard, and therefore
it finished with an uncomfortable sound across the whole dialogue
sequence. This meant that it was very difficult for me to edit as I had to
try and pick out the dialogue that was mostly heard.
• However, in my final product I have managed to find a time of day that
had limited wind. The problem was also solved as the majority of the
opening was filmed inside. Additionally, as I had left myself more time to
create the script in the pre-production; I have also incorporated non-
diegetic special effects and voiceovers, in order to enhance the
soundtrack and the tension between the scene.

4. Lighting
• In my preliminary, I have always used natural lighting,
it was a huge issue as it was presented during mid -
morning. However, it resulted with a dull and a basic
look. Therefore, In my final product, I used lighting to
show the contrast of the dark room and the actors
face, in order to highlight the tense and chilling
atmosphere. However, I did not have much
experience with lightning from the previous product,
therefore the lighting was still not efficient as it should
have been. This is also evident through the responses
from my questionnaire, as the audience pointed out
that some parts of the shots were a little grainy. This
meant that in the dark, the camera did not pick up
much light, therefore it made me consider to use more
LED light, in order to enhance the quality of the film
and present the actors in the light as much as
possible. Overall, the lighting managed to create the
opening film to be more eerie and engaging for the
audience throughout the opening film.

5. Camera Shots
• In my preliminary, the quality and the time spent for each
shot only took few minutes. This meant that camera shots
were not thought through and efficiently consistent. The
reason for this is because, I did not use a tripod in any of the
scene for my preliminary, This meant that each individual
shot reverse shot was slightly different than the other, as the
hand held shot is not as reliable than a tripod. It also meant
that some shots were slightly tilted and jolted at points of the
scene. The quality across the opening, forces the audience
to watch this uncomfortably.
• However in my final product, I took to consideration of using
a tripod and used it constantly though out the film.
Eventually, I had created steady and stable shots
throughout. Furthermore, I have also looked further into my
own research, on how to use sophisticated tricks with only
using a tripod, in order to create new skills of the camera
movements. For example, I used a steady pan of the paper
on the ground, panning up towards the character. This
enhanced the performance of the opening sequence and
made it appears more professional. The questionnaire
results also states that 56% of the target audience think that
the camera angles and movement were the strongest point
of my product.

6. Narrative
• To convey the narrative of my preliminary, I
began by having a sequences of shots and
sequences of long takes, that consisted a girl
walking from her house to her destination. I felt
that this did not grab the audience’s attention
and became very basic and repetitive,therefore
when planning my opening scene, I set the
scene with a sequence of short takes through
a cctv camera with a long shot of the girl
walking. I felt that this was effective as it hides
the obvious question and it enables the
audience to want to know who and why the
character is there. The sequence of different
angles and shots, makes the audience wonder
what the character is doing, therefore
becoming a more efficient and engaging
narrative. The idea of using a narrative that
opened up to many question forces the
audience to continue watching through till the
end.

7. Mise-en- scene
• Costume - In my preliminary, I have used the genre of the film to be a
comedy. The actor was dressed in an old grey jacket and colourful,
knitted, patterned jumpers and green, sparkly scarf. The clash of the
combination of the colours made the actor to be very funny and
comical. However, as I wanted to present the actor to be an old lady,
this did not create that effect, as the actor was only16 years old and
the jeans and the no make up clearly demonstrated that she was in
fact a young girl. I have used an effective use of costumes, similarly in
the final product. In order to show the sci-fi conventions, I have used a
white, sterile overall cloak, mask and gloves, to immediately highlight
the protection and the danger from the character’s surrounding. The
sterile costume also significantly makes the audience engaged to the
character and it also made her look authentic. Furthermore, the use of
normal black top and leggings at the second part of the opening, also
makes the audience relate to the character and her age.
• Props - In my preliminary, I did not focus on the props as needed.
However, I did use a phone for the young girl actress, in order to show
that she is a teenager as well as presenting a green bucket, in order to
create a comedy effect of the grandma. I have similarly used props in
my opening to show the high advanced technology of the Sci Fi genre.
However this time, I had time to focused on the minor details of the
location to create the scene as scientific as possible. For example, the
mask onto of the laptop, the earth globe and many more.

8. Location
• Due to the minimum amount of time in the
production, I had to find a convenient location for
the scene to take place. When reflecting on this,
the end of the scene did not make sense as to why
the character has missed the bus, since the bus
stop was not shown in the shot. However, I felt that
the location did suit well with the particular
convention of the comedy genre, and it made a
family audience to relate to the characters as it is
set in a subordinate rural location, making it very
recognizable for the audience. Therefore, when
planning the location I had to find an area that
suited well with a sci fi convention. Eventually, I
had settled with the a isolated forest with solar
panels, in order to create the furriest atmosphere. I
have also chosen an ordinary, typical British
home, in order for the teenage audience to connect
well with the character and the family drama.

9. Actors
• For my preliminary, I had only prepared the scene on the
weekend, which meant that I had actors that were
convenient to shoot at that particular time. This meant
that the actors were not prepared to deliver their lines
and develop their characterisation. It was very time
consuming as myself and the actors did not focus and
the delivery of the lines and it was less effective as
myself and the actors had no knowledge in delivering
them, therefore making the editing much harder to
create. Learning from this experience, I had cast an
actor that has had acting experience, who would
therefore understand my point of view and would take
the acting seriously. I have also chosen this actor who
had a lot of free time, in order to shoot the film and to fix
any mistakes. This lead the time efficiency to be more
successful and it also enabled me to have a rehearsal
before shooting. Reflecting on this, I feel as though the
actor’s facial expression and the pace of her movements
to deliver the characterisation was accomplished well in
order to set the tense atmosphere. Using an actor that
was a similar age to my target audience made the
character believable and relatable, which was a key
feature that was lacking in my prelim.