As a group, we successfully finished our filming, editing, and planning in time. I feel as though the planning went well, and it helped us to create and set the mood of the piece, instead of just doing what came to mind on the set. If we had done that then the filming may have become much more difficult and would not have ran as smoothly as it did. The camera cutting out on the first day of filming acted as a lesson to us as individuals and as a group, and that when it comes to filming again we should always make sure that the camera is fully charged, or that we carry spare batteries or a spare camera just in case that type of problem occurs again. Not only is the camera essential, costume is too. If i was needing to re-shoot any part of my scene, the costume is not too complex or hard to recreate. I am confident using the equipment I need responsibly and effectively, however if in my thriller video i need the aid of a boom mic, assistance may be needed as we did not use this piece of equipment whilst creating the preliminary task.
Adobe Premiere Pro is a very complicated editing software that needs practice, i was able to practice and expand my editing skills during the prelim task, as I got familiar with different editing tools which may come in handy whilst doing my thriller. As said before, one problem I faced whilst using this editing software was compromising the sound levels and making one sound more prominent in the scene than the other. This problem was overcome with the aid of the teacher, and we were able to successfully mix the sounds to our preferred choice.
I think, for our first task, our prelim was a success. The editing made a huge difference to the piece, and allowed it to flow smoothly. One thing I have learnt from this task is that the camera is a major piece, and that any disruption or wobbling of the camera can cause the scene to look messy and unprofessional, for this reason I will take extra care with my camera when filming my thriller. I can use a tripod to help me with this, or lay the camera on a table (this could also give the scene a very mysterious view of the scene, linking to thriller) and any other equipment that is available to me. This does not only apply for camera, as sound equipment that is available to me will also come in handy and will help me achieve the best possible thriller I can make.
Editing;
Once all of the filming had been completed, we started to edit our shots together. To do this, we used Adobe Premiere Pro CS4. We edited the footage in order to make everything fit together smoothly. We added effects, trimmed the clips added sound effects as well as adjusting the existing ones, we also added non diegetic sound when and where appropriate. We added straight cuts and transitions to make the final footage look as professional as possible.
As a group, this was our first time editing, so our first problem was actually working with the editing software efficiently and productively. We did this by asking for advice from the teacher, as well as students who were already familiar with the editing software. By becoming familiar with the editing software during the preliminary process, I hope this will make it easier for me to edit my final task for my coursework.
One problem we faced when editing our prelim was that some of the footage was slightly blurred, and so this footage had to be deleted in order to make our piece the best quality. Some of the footage was not continuous, which was also a problem, however this was easily solved by using the 'trim' tool in the editing software. This acted as a lesson that i shall learn from when editing my Thriller, as i will need to gather more than one footage for each shot, this can be done by repeating scenes more than once, which could lead to getting a successful and continuous thriller without cut backs, making the narrative flow, and the piece as clean as possible.
Filming;
We
decided to film a short thriller scene in order to prepare us for our
coursework, our scene included short dialogue including information that
would encourage the potential audience to continue watching and find
out what happens. Our shots included various angles, shot from different
distances. I was filming the piece, and had to get in the suitable
position to film shots such as extreme close ups, low angles, and pan
shots. Filming the piece wasn't that difficult, however we originally
filmed the piece in a different setting on a different day, but the
camera died half way through so we were not able to complete it without
it having continuity problems as the actors in the scene would be
wearing different clothes. We filmed the piece again the following day,
however chose a different setting as we found that it suited our script
more, we were able to have access to a tripod, backdrops, and lighting.
These all helped to create the best piece as the tripod kept the camera
steady, the black backdrop we used set the scene, and the lighting used
help create suspense and was changed to meet our specific needs. We
filmed the scene from different angles, when one character was talking
we shot an over the shoulder shot so you was able to see them talking,
the same applied to the other character, we then edited this into shot
reverse shot.
I also filmed the two characters in a two shot,
with visible capture of the setting, the table is clear and at the end
of the piece you are able to see Emma smack down on the table. A two
shot of the characters is much more suited here than say a close up of
Emma's face, this is because you are able to see the facial expressions
of both characters, Emma being the angry one, and Amy being the scared,
upset character.We allocated different roles to the members of the
group, myself and Chloe filmed, whilst Amy and Emma were the actors. We
worked well as a group, deciding together which camera angles would be
the most suitable for our piece as well as using the equipment
responsibly.
In the planning for our prelim, we did a brainstorm to publish our ideas on what it will include, the actors, the sound, the editing, mise en scene and the camera.
Storyboard; As a group, we sketched out each shot of our prelim video, and annotated what was to happen within each shot, this allowed us clear visual representations of what we wanted to create and helped us guide our way through shooting. We learnt that this helped us to create the scene as accurately as possible and it is a good idea to plan before you do.We decided on this dialogue as it allows the audience insight on what the film is about, and the suspicious dialogue could make them want to watch it.
DIALOGUE;
"Did you do it?"
"Yes"
"Did she see you?"
"I'm not sure, she came past but i dont know if she saw anything"
"THATS NOT GOOD ENOUGH"
As a group, we successfully finished our filming, editing, and planning in time. I feel as though the planning went well, and it helped us to create and set the mood of the piece, instead of just doing what came to mind on the set. If we had done that then the filming may have become much more difficult and would not have ran as smoothly as it did. The camera cutting out on the first day of filming acted as a lesson to us as individuals and as a group, and that when it comes to filming again we should always make sure that the camera is fully charged, or that we carry spare batteries or a spare camera just in case that type of problem occurs again. Not only is the camera essential, costume is too. If i was needing to re-shoot any part of my scene, the costume is not too complex or hard to recreate. I am confident using the equipment I need responsibly and effectively, however if in my thriller video i need the aid of a boom mic, assistance may be needed as we did not use this piece of equipment whilst creating the preliminary task.
