Joe Burn summarizes his personal skills audit, outlining the digital technology, post-production, research and planning, and creativity skills he has acquired and developed through his previous coursework project. He explains how these skills contributed to the creation and completion of his previous work. Joe identifies areas for further development during his upcoming A2 project, such as expanding his knowledge of software, learning new editing techniques, conducting additional research, and generating more imaginative ideas through experimentation.

1. Personal Skills Audit Name: Joe Burn
Skills acquired How did these skills How will you develop these
contribute to the creation of skills during the A2 project?
your product?
Digital technology I gained skills in planning by The knowledge I gained from I will continue to use a range of
- What preparing for my project by experimenting with camera software and equipment and
equipment/software using Microsoft Power Point angles and attachable further expand my knowledge
packages did you use to and Word. I also gained skills equipment helped me decide and ability using them by trying
produce your by using the camera often and what angles and equipment new software and
production? experimenting with various would be best used for certain experimenting with them and
camera angles and attachable shots, which gave me the ability using new attachable
equipment like tripods, which to finish my course work to a equipment that I haven’t used
gave me a more detailed higher standard. Practice in before to see what effects they
understanding of using a planning also helped the have on the shots that I take.
camera. production of the film go faster.
Post production I gained skills in using certain Being able to change the During the A2 project I will
- What software did you software related to the tasks we brightness and contrast of the spend a lot of time learning how
use to create your were given, such as Garage picture of our film made it to use the software to a greater
production? Band for the audio of our horror possible to create an standard, to further develop my
- Discuss specific features film and Final Cut Express HD atmosphere to match the type course work. I will use a variety
of the software. for video editing. From this of film. Making the picture of software I am used to and
software I learned to edit video darker created a more tense software that I’ve never used in
footage into a short scene and and scary atmosphere. Skills order to gain a greater
how to change the contrast and like this helped me complete understanding.
brightness of the picture to my coursework to a good
create a certain atmosphere. standard.

2. Research and Planning When preparing for our These new skills helped with During A2 I will research a lot
- What tasks did you sequence I researched BBFC, the project because knowing more things to help with my
complete when which helped me understand what can be in a 15 rated film coursework. I will research
preparing to film your what is appropriate for certain helped us make the film scary more statistics and other media
sequence? certificates of films. I also while still keeping it subtle of the particular type we are
- How did your planning gained skills when researching enough to keep it a 15, which assigned to create.
help the smooth statistics as I learned which widens the audience. Learning
progression of your film? horror films are more what horror films do the best
successful, and when creating helped us define our sub genre.
initial ideas for our film as it
helped me to be creative with
my ideas.
Using conventions of real When analysing real media The development in my skill During my A2 project I will
media texts texts I looked at many different with choice making helped the further develop my decision
- Which texts did you films including Texas Chainsaw group complete our filming on making skills by being faced
analyse? Massacre, Final Destination schedule because when we with many more decision
- Did you take any and 28 days later to create struggled deciding on where to making and thinking outside the
inspiration from the diversity. This helped me with shoot or what angle or method box when making suggestions.
conventions found from choice making and helped of filming we should have used
your research? define my knowledge of horror I stepped in and suggested
films. We ended up deciding as what I think we should do and
a group to take conventions we often went along with this
from Texas chainsaw such as decision.
chase scenes and dark places
that were hard to make out.
Creativity When coming up with ideas for These skills became useful During the A2 project this will
- Were your ideas for your our film we stuck to horror when we decided to not show help me come up with creative
portfolio imaginative and unique conventions while trying to think the identity of the antagonist ideas for my groups music
or did you adhere to outside the box. For example chasing the victim as it with video and how we film it.

3. conventions? our scene was a classic chase experimentation with shots we
scene of an unknown entity were able to suggest it could be
chasing a young blonde girl but anything from a man with a fatal
we tried to be creative with the weapon to a supernatural
shots by taking some 1st person monster.
shots and several long shots
and close ups. We also
experimented with different
ideas for mise en scene before
deciding to stick to conventions
such as having a group of ten
people being chased or having
the scene shot in bright
daylight. This helped me gain
skill in experimenting with ideas
when coming up with ideas for
characters and narrative.