Sophie Waters evaluated her skills-based filmmaking task, summarizing what went well and could be improved. Transitions between shots flowed well, though the drone shot was a different scale. Sound effects were louder than dialogue, and abrupt stops in music were unnatural. For future projects, she would ensure consistent camera sizes, use lighting and microphones, add transitions between shots, and spend more time editing than filming to improve cohesion. She learned to plan thoroughly, follow a storyboard, take varied shot types, and add sound and video simultaneously during editing.

1. Skills Based Task Evaluation – Sophie Waters
My skills based task was a successful outcome. The things that went well were the transitions
from the shots. For instance, at the beginning the film started with a drone shot and then
continued with an establishing panning shot and this flowed well. This was good because it
gave the audience a clear understanding of what the setting was like and it also showed the
car driving on the road continuously. Next, I was pleased with the over the shoulder shot of
the boy making the aeroplane because it made the audience feel as if they were with the boy
in the scene. After that I added an extreme zoom shot of the boy closely making the paper
aeroplane. I liked the transition from the boy making it in full shot and then the camera
zooming in on his fingers as the angle shot was closer on him making it so more detail was
on view. Also, this sped up how quick he was making it and it made it better to watch from
an audience point of view, so it didn’t go on for too long.
Moreover, I was pleased with the medium shot when the boy opens the car door as the
camera focused well on his yellow coat so it signified his character well. Then, the same
medium shot cut off and we could see him shut the door and walk off. I decided not to add
any music when he was closing the door so I could add a closing door sound effect. This
made it sound more realistic and emphasised that he shut the door with power. I was also
pleased with the horror sounding music that went with the setting shots at the beginning
because as the car was moving the music made the car feel spookier. In addition, the time of
day was in the evening so the light was dark which also added to the eerie atmosphere of the
film.
The things that didn’t go too well was the drone shot at the start because it was taken with a
different camera so the shot frame wasn’t the same size scale as the other videos. The shot
was fitted smaller so when the next video frame came, it filled more of the screen and it
didn’t flow very well. Next, the time of the day was in the evening so we couldn’t help the fact
it was dark when we were filming,but we could have used a camera. This is so we could have
seen the actors as well as the dark background and this would have been clearer for the
audience to see what was happening.
In addition, the scary music and sound effects added from the internet was much louder than
the speech that was spoken from the characters. This didn’t flow well for the film because the
audience could tell what sounds were from the internet and what sounds were made with the
camera. The voices were too quiet and even if the filming was quieter than the sound effects I
could have used an edit effect on Premiere Pro to make the conversation the same volume as
the music. Also, when the voices were speaking on top of the dramatic music it was hard to
hear what the actors were saying as the volumes were contrasted largely between the
background music and conversation. Moreover, I stopped the dramatic music before the boy
had an extreme close-up so it would give a feel of a dramatic pause but the music stopping
was very sudden and it wasn’t faded so it didn’t sound right when the music began after that
frame shot.
The things I would change would be the size scale of the drone shot compared to the other
shots. The drone shot was smaller because it was taken on a different camera so I needed to
ensure when putting the drone shot in the size was the same as the other shots. I would do
that because then the shots look more fluent and the film fits all the screen, which would
make it look more professional. Next, I would ensure, when filming the shots, I add a
headlight or place a light on top of the camera so the actors face lights up so we can clearly
see who is speaking in the darkness of the evening. Also, the use of lighting on the actors’
faces could also represent how dominant and important their characters are. For example,
the lighter their face could show their vulnerability and the darker shadows shownon their
face could show how bad or dangerous that character is, in comparison. In addition to a
light, next time we can use a microphone on the camera so we can clearly hear what the

2. Skills Based Task Evaluation – Sophie Waters
actors are saying and in this case, we wouldn’t have needed to turn down the sound effects if
the conversation volume had matched.
Next time, I would also add transitions so the transfer from one shot to another would flow
better and would make the film look better. For example, when the boy got out the car and
shut the door, he then runs through the forest but since those two shots are very contrasting
I could have used a fade in transition so it was clear to the audience a bit of time had passed
between those two shots. Lastly, I would add titles at the beginning so the film was clearly
seen as a conversation and so the audience knew what it was about and at the end, I could
have added titles so the audience knew the film had ended because otherwise after the
screaming sound effect, the end of the film was rather abrupt.
I have learnt for next time to try and stick with one camera to film so all the video types are
the same size scale in the film. If I decide to use a drone camera also, I will need to ensure
the size of the video is the same size as the other camera so the film is all the same size. I
have also learnt to make sure when I record the film, I take enough different shots so the film
is varied between close-ups, extreme close-ups, over the shoulder shots and medium and
establishing shots. I will also include panning and titling when recording because it gives the
film more purpose and effect on the mise-en-scene. In addition, whenI do my real film, I will
remember to stick to my storyboard and script. This makes it easier so the film is planned
out and I won’t need to redo anything when I have finished, like re arranging the shots in the
storyboard. In result, I need to ensure I plan the film well and ensure I used various shots so
I can stick to the storyboard accurately. In the skills based project, we didn’t stick to the
storyboard as we found a different location to film so shots filmed were picked on the spot.
Next time, I will ensure when I record all the parts of the video, they are renamed and they
are in order because it will be quicker to choose what videos I want at certain points in the
film. I didn’t have my videos in order, so it was very difficult for me to compare some videos
with similar ones and pick the best ones. I also have learnt for next time to spend more time
editing the film than filming. For my skills based film, I spent too long deciding where to
film, what time of day and planning was too long. Then whenI finally filmed that took me
too long so when we had to edit our films, I only had a couple of hours to edit and it made me
rush it so it wasn’t ready to finish. Next, I have learnt to add camera shots videos and sound
effects at the same time. This is so the sound matches with the shot at the exact right timing.
In addition, this ensures long sections of music doesn’t overlap other sounds and shots. This
makes it easier to add in music as I go and then I canexperiment with different sounds and it
doesn’t mess up what I have done with the shot timings already, otherwise I must select and
move them all again.