2. Quality of holding a shot steady
During our preliminary task, we used a monopod to film some of our
footage, however, we were given a tripod to film our real opening
sequence. It wasn’t difficult for us to get to grips with and we used the little
symmetry ball to make sure the camera was filming straight. As the light
and tripod we used during filming were fairly big, it took up a lot of space in
Phoebe’s room and so we decided to film some shots with the camera
hand held. We were quite good at this however there was times in which
the camera was slightly shaky and less steady that it could have been if we
had enough space to use the tripod.
3. Quality of the framing shots
Mid shots and close ups were what we used in our preliminary task
to follow the discussion between the two people. This meant that
there wasn’t really much focus on the mis-en-scene. We knew that
for our opening the mis-en-scene was key as it accentuates our
genre. The teachers had always told us to take care of exactly what
was in our shots as everything makes a difference. Therefore, we
spent much time setting up the room and took care to detail
everything that the camera would have in sight.
I also learnt to move the camera around to get the right positioning
fort the shot. Pull focus and the depth of field was another thing I
picked up.
4. Quality of shooting material appropriate to the task
set – i.e the content of your film pre and post
editing was consistent with the exam directives
We were aware that we had to use the 180 degree rule when filming and
that we had done it wrong in our preliminary task. Therefore, we took this
into consideration very carefully when Sam was drawing the story board
and filming. We also made sure that we completed all the tasks on time
according to the sheet of “to do’s” that our teacher had provided us with to
help keep on top of all our work. We wasted no time during lessons and
always tried to perfect and spend more time on our work to perfect it
further. We worked very well as a team and our efforts were completed to
the best of our abilities.
5. Quality of selecting mise-en-scene including colour,
figure, lighting, objects and setting;
We had to think about al the mise-en-scene we were going to use
very carefully as in our preliminary task, we didn’t take much care to
this as we focused more on using the camera and getting to grips
with that. We tried to incorporate the feminine colour pink as well as
other soft colours as much as possible to help set the genre. We
also used as much light as possible to help the setting look bright
and vibrant. The objects we used included make up, books and
magazines which showed gave the audience an insight into what
the protagonist is fond of to have a further understanding of her
personality. We set the opening sequence in Naomi’s bedroom as
we thought it would help our target audience relate to her more
because they can see her possessions and it is typical of a
Romantic Comedy as we saw in others such as “Legally Blonde”.
6. Quality of editing so that meaning is apparent
to the viewer
I believe we had some good practice with our preliminary tasks as
we made some smooth cuts in the reverse shots during the
conversation and the entrance through the door. We didn’t want to
use any fades or swipes in our editing for our opening sequence as
this is not a convention of our genre. We stuck to simple cuts which
gave our film the necessary continuity and flow. One of our good
methods was to leave 5 seconds before and after filming a clip of
action. We found that this helped a lot during the process of our
editing as we had enough time to cut exactly where we wanted to.
Overall I think the cuts in our opening sequence are doing very well.
An issue we had in our preliminary task was the 180 degree rule.
We made sure that we didn’t make the same mistake in our
opening sequence.
7. Quality of using sound with images and editing
appropriately to task set;
We didn’t use any non-diegetic sound in our preliminary task as we
knew we had to follow the task that was set which involved a
conversation. We also didn’t know how to add music and felt it was
unnecessary. However, in our opening sequence we knew we had
to include non-diegetic sound as well as diegetic sound. If we didn’t
use these things, we would have had a silent film which is not
allowed and the audience would not have felt so engaged.
Therefore, we carefully picked the music we thought would be
suitable for our genre. As for the diegetic sound, there is no
dialogue in our opening so we used the shower, Naomi’s writing on
the mirror and the squeaking of the door. We took our time to
achieve these sounds as well as editing them in properly with
perfection. I think we did a great job and all our diegetic sounds are
very realistic and professional.
8. Quality of positioning and movements of
actors
During our preliminary task, there was quite a bit of movement before the
conversation as first actor entered the building, walked up the stairs, etc.
As our opening sequence was set in a house with little space, we had to
make the most of this and wanted to show the transition of our protagonist
getting ready as well as possible. We made sure our actor was in the frame
as much as possible which made the audience aware of her importance in
and hinted that she is the protagonist. We also wanted to give the idea that
she is confident and so made sure her movements were direct and bold
showing self-assurance and bravery.
9. Quality of group planning, meeting targets,
organisation
There was not much planning for us to do during our preliminary task as we
knew what to do and only really had to make a story board. However, for
our opening sequence we knew we had to plan literally everything and that
this was going to be a big project. We therefore divided the tasks amongst
each other so that everyone was putting in the same amount of effort and
our work was done as efficiently as possible. We set targets for ourselves
and made a timetable of all of free periods to see when we could meet up.
We also decided to come into the media suite on some lunch times to
complete our editing which we mostly did altogether. Our organisation was
great from the start and we could always keep in contact outside lessons
as we have each others numbers and could organise days for filming.
10. Group dynamics, i.e how did your group work
together
I believe we worked really well together. Sam and Phoebe have been
friends for a long time and I only met them back in September but have
grown very fond of them over this time and they are two lovely girls – I am
glad I formed part of the group with them! There was trust in our group and
we had the confidence to tell each other if we didn’t like something which is
key when working in a team. We all gave our own input during the project
and there were never any disagreements. We made sure everyone had a
part to play and was giving all they possibly could. One of the things that
has made our opening sequence as successful as it is, is our group
dynamics and organisation skills.
11. Other points of evaluation (e.g equipment
related, etc)
The school always provided us with all the equipment we needed
for filming. For our preliminary task we were given a HD camcorder,
monopod and memory card to film. For our real opening sequence,
the school provided us with a HD camcorder, tripod, memory card
and light. We notified the teacher every time we wanted to take any
of these things out and we were able to take them on weekends for
filming.
12. Other things I picked up
As well as picking up many practical skills, I also learnt a lot on
audience, genre and institution. Beforehand, I was aware of film genres
however I would never take time to think about target audiences which
now I know is very important. I was unaware of the fact that there were
so many different institutions working together to make a film and then
distribute it. Not only have I now learnt the different types of institutions,
but I have also researched a number of them in my research and
planning and gained knowledge on how they operate and their different
techniques, i.e viral marketing on social networking sights.
