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Today was the day that I began to get a hang of how to use the editing software myself, rather than struggling to help Coupy get our footage in shape. We started cutting down clips into the right size in order to make the film flow better and to approach the advised two minute time guideline for the short film. The process has started quite slow, as we expected, but compared to last editing lesson, things seem to be going quite well.
‘Oh god, it’s so bad’ – a direct quote from Coupy.
Today did not go well to say the least, but surely it can only get better from here? We found so many mistakes in our filming that it’s seeming impossible to put anything even close to resembling a professional film opening together! From wobbly cameras to continuity errors, from mirror mistakes to lighting mishaps, anything that can go wrong has gone wrong.
But on the bright side at least we’ve got our footage in some kind of recognisable order…
Today was the first day of the editing process. We began the lesson by talking through what we had achieved over the Christmas holidays, and by deduction, what we had left to do. We discussed the fact that we would have to find two more actors in order to film the last four shots of the conversation between the detective and the neighbour. Fortunately for us, a couple of people in our media set volunteered to help us out with this scene at the weekend coming.
The main bulk of our work done today consisted of uploading the video and audio footage onto the iMacs and choosing what footage we were planning on using and what we could discard for now.
Today Coupy and I only managed to film one shot, but probably the most difficult shot – the SteadiCam shot. As I explained in a previous post, the change in actors meant that I would have to use the SteadiCam, where as Coupy was the one who had been practising with it, leaving me with only a short space of time to get the hang of it. However, I think that we pulled it off successfully, and produced a use-able piece of footage.
We had hoped to complete all of the filming today, but unfortunately because of an unsuccessful recruitment of actors, this proved impossible. Therefore, we plan to use Monday 5th to get all of our filming completed providing that we have actors available on this day. If this doesn’t happen, we will have to film our last four shots when we get back to school as we will be out of time this holidays due to personal and working circumstances.
But, despite the mishaps today, the filming process went well. The lighting was on point and with the help of some slick editing, hopefully the piece of footage should transition on nicely from the work we filmed on our first session.
Me and Coupy began filming at my house today and on the whole it went very well despite the fact that we had a last minute change in actors leaving me to do the filming and sound recording. We managed to get the majority of our shots done today, taking us a fair four hours, but had to postpone the rest of the filming for another day as our camera ran out of charge. We probably could have finished all our filming within the time we allowed ourselves today if we had not been so cautious and careful with each shot that we took in order to get it as close to perfection as possible.
My concern for the next filming session is that, obviously now that Coupy is acting, I am going to have to use the SteadiCam which I haven’t had any practice with, where as Coupy has. So, I shall be getting in as much practise as I can with the equipment between now and the next filming session in order to not fudge it up on the day. Another problem on the agenda that Coupy and I are yet to solve is who we are going to get to act in the final few shots of the opening, and when we are going to film them.
Ahh! We’ve run into what could potentially be a HUGE problem, as the actor we were originally planning to use for the part of the ‘main man’ (my dad) can no longer be with us to film on the days that we planned… So, we’ve decided that the easiest option will be for Coupy to take his place in that role. However, obviously this is going to cause problems in the filming and sound recording department, as only I will be able to handle the equipment during recording time.
Our film opening involves four characters: The main man, the dead woman, the detective and the neighbour. Each of these characters will not only need to be casted correctly using appropriate actors, but will also need the appropriate costume and make-up, if needed.
The main man:
After researching your average supposed psycho-killer I found a list of must have attributes about the guy:
Fitting these criteria happened to be a guy as close to home as you can get – my dad – how convenient.
Coupy and I decided that our main man would have to be wearing pyjamas to show the audience that he is moving around in his own or his girlfriends home.
The dead girl:
Your average dead girl:
Due to a lack of people volunteering to act for this part, and the fact that this character only appears in one shot, we decided that I would do to play this role.
I need to find appropriate white costuming and a way of making myself look sufficiently dead (as shown in the video below).
The detective:
At this point in time we don’t know who is going to play our detective character although, once again, there are a few criteria that are actor must fit:
As well as this, during my research I’ve noticed that all detectives wear long coats, i don’t know why, but i suppose it has to be done.
The neighbour:
The neighbour can literally be any old randomer off the street, lets be honest! Is there a definition of what a neighbour should look like? I think not.
So, for this part, I think we are likely to use my actual next door neighbour if it is convenient for them, because it’s certainly convenient for us!
After writing the fist draft of the script we were daily pleased with the out come, and this was a basis for us to start storyboarding. We used a script writing software called ‘Writer Duet’, which enables copy and myself to work on the script writing simultaneously, which makes the task easier as we can edit parts that we don’t like and add to others. This takes the pressure off having to write everything up at school, as we can be writing the script from the comfort of our own homes.
we have currently drafted in some dialogue for the end of the clip which is likely to be changed at a later date, as we still aren’t sure exactly what we want our actors to say. However this is only the first version of our script. We plan to make as many revisions as required in order to perfect our script before we begin to film in the Christmas holidays.
Today, we had to present our idea for our short film to the class in order to receive feedback and comments on how we can improve. We gave an outline of the whole plot of our film in order to give the class a better idea of how the film opening would link in with the bigger picture. Our whole film outline involved a man who is trying to prove his innocence for the murder of his wife. However, an ongoing investigation and bombarding accusations make him question his own sanity.
But anyway, the basics have been outlined, but for a full version of our plans check out the video below!
Together Coupy and I, after pithing our initial idea to the class and receiving feedback, came up with an outline for our film opening:
It’s a cold, winter’s morning, in what seems to be a derelict house. The chilled sun has not yet fully risen, in order to melt away the morning frost. A man, wearing pyjamas, begins to prepare breakfast; an exquisite full English, with all the works, ready to be washed down with a refreshing glass of orange juice. The man seems happy, like he hasn’t a worry in the world, as he joyfully begins to play his favourite record on his vinyl player, while constructing his food masterpiece. The man carefully places the contents of the breakfast onto a tray, making sure the presentation is at a top quality standard, before finally placing a freshly picked flower onto the tray to complete.
The man slowly carries the tray upstairs, making sure not to drop the food and ruin the cuisine he had carefully put together. He creeps inside a bedroom, tip-toeing, as if not to wake anyone up. Carefully, the tray is delicately placed onto the bedside table, directly next to a bed. However, on the bed there is a lifeless body; the body of a young woman wearing a dressing gown. The body is completely still, the face is as pale as a ghost and blood can be seen on the woman’s neck…
Later that afternoon, the frost has melted away, but the air is still freezing cold. A detective and police officer stand outside the rundown property, which is now completely covered in police tape. The rookie police officer turns to the detective and nervously asks,
“Weird guy don’t you think?”
The detective quickly glances at the police officer and then returns his attention back to the house.
“Certainly seems like it.”
Jazzmin Fotherby's AS Media Studies Blog 