Before we could edit our footage, we had to log each shot we had filmed including the ones we thought we wouldn't use. To log it we simply had to write down what was in the shot, how long it was, when it started and finished and whether we wanted to use it or not, we did this because it would make our capturing much quicker and easier as it means we know exactly when all the different shots we wanted would start throughout all our footage.
After doing this we then had to capture all of our wanted shots onto the computer so that we could edit them together, we made sure that each shot was renamed properly so that we wouldn't get confused on which each shot was later on.
For our editing we have been cutting each shot so that we only have the sections we want and making sure the shot will flow nicely into the next one. We also made sure that we varied the types of shot around a bit but so that it still maintained shot-reverse-shot. The sound and speed of some shots have been edited aswell for example we slowed the last shot of the photo dropping to the floor quite alot and on a couple of shots the audio has been taken out because some that didn't have any speech had some un-relevant sounds in the background.
Saturday, 28 November 2009
Saturday, 21 November 2009
Filming
When we were first starting filming we had two members of the group absent so we had to adapt to that a bit and do as much as we could. As we had one person acting and the other on the camera it meant that we couldn't really do any over the shoulder shots or any that involved two characters. But we managed to get the establishing shot of the door, and the two shots of someone walking and opening a door and then the next shot being them coming through the door on the other side. We also did a medium shot of my character with a line of speech, along with a shot of a photo falling to the floor and landing face up on the floor. This shot took us quite a lot of takes until it went right becuase, when dropped, the photo often drifts over too far so that then it doesn't end up landing in shot and sometimes not the right way up. All of the shots we filmed in this session were doubled up in night vision aswell because we couldn't get hold of any artificial lighting for the dark room so we could only have either all the lights on or no lights and film it in night vision mode which fits with the little story a bit better, but as we didn't have the other twos opinions, we just shot them both.
When we had the rest of our group we went to finish our filming and got the rest of our shots done, we also cut out alot of the speech so that it's more simple. After showing the group the footage we shot the day before we all decided that we liked the night vision shots better so all the shots we shot after that were in night vision.
When we had all of our footage we started to log each shot we had done, including the ones we might not want. We write down what the time code was, what type of shot it was, what happens in the shot and whether we want to use it or not so that when it comes to capturing the film we know exactly where everything we want is.
When we had the rest of our group we went to finish our filming and got the rest of our shots done, we also cut out alot of the speech so that it's more simple. After showing the group the footage we shot the day before we all decided that we liked the night vision shots better so all the shots we shot after that were in night vision.
When we had all of our footage we started to log each shot we had done, including the ones we might not want. We write down what the time code was, what type of shot it was, what happens in the shot and whether we want to use it or not so that when it comes to capturing the film we know exactly where everything we want is.
Monday, 16 November 2009
13th and 18th November Lessons
13th November
In this lesson me and my group mostly prepared for filming next week. We created a basic script and then looked through each stage of our storyboard to see where diffrent bits of speech would fit in well with the shot, this meant that we took out out quite alot of the dialogue so that everything works well. After finishing a rough draft of the script we had a look at one of the proper film scripts on ilearn and saw the complicated format which it has to be write in, we began to understand most parts of it so that we can write our script up in the same format later on.
In this lesson we also wrote up the visual description of each of our shots in our storyboard so that when we come to film them we will know exactly what it is we need to film. We included any camera movements, shot types, actor movement and any lighting we will use.
18th November
In this lesson we came across a slight problem as Fred wasn't here with the script and the finished storyboard and we were prepared to film the majority of our scene today and he was also going to be acting as the other character in our scene along side me. So in the end we decided to set up the equipment in the photographies dark room anyway and test out what lights we wanted where and what worked well. We also did a few test shots to see how the positioning of the characters would look and moved around until it was clear which side the different characters will be on, so that we dont break the 180 degree rule. We agreed on doing the proper filming the next day after college when we would all be free.
In this lesson me and my group mostly prepared for filming next week. We created a basic script and then looked through each stage of our storyboard to see where diffrent bits of speech would fit in well with the shot, this meant that we took out out quite alot of the dialogue so that everything works well. After finishing a rough draft of the script we had a look at one of the proper film scripts on ilearn and saw the complicated format which it has to be write in, we began to understand most parts of it so that we can write our script up in the same format later on.
In this lesson we also wrote up the visual description of each of our shots in our storyboard so that when we come to film them we will know exactly what it is we need to film. We included any camera movements, shot types, actor movement and any lighting we will use.
18th November
In this lesson we came across a slight problem as Fred wasn't here with the script and the finished storyboard and we were prepared to film the majority of our scene today and he was also going to be acting as the other character in our scene along side me. So in the end we decided to set up the equipment in the photographies dark room anyway and test out what lights we wanted where and what worked well. We also did a few test shots to see how the positioning of the characters would look and moved around until it was clear which side the different characters will be on, so that we dont break the 180 degree rule. We agreed on doing the proper filming the next day after college when we would all be free.
Shot-Reverse-Shot, 180 Degree Rule and Match-On-Action
Shot-Reverse-Shot
Shot-Reverse-Shot is a certain film technique which is often used in scenes with alot of dialogue and is part of the continuity editing which makes scenes more realistic to the viewer. It usually starts with an establishing shot with both characters on screen and then cuts to a shot of character one looking at the other, this character could be off screen or the shot could be looking over their shoulder, so that it's clear who they are looking at. The next shot is usually the same type of shot but reversed so that it shows character two looking back at the other one, and because they're shown facing opposite directions the audience assumes they are looking at each other. Throughout the scene the shots will often get closer into the characters faces especially when the dialogue gets more intense, because it pulls the audience into the characters emotions more.
We will be using this type of shot in our preliminary task because we will be having two characters sat opposite each other exchanging dialogue and we don't want the editing to be very noticable. So we will use quite a few shot-reverse-shots to make the conversation seems more realistic.
The 180 Degree Rule
The 180 degree rule is an invisible line in filming when shooting a scene with two people talking opposite each other, which you can not cross. It would also start with an establishing shot so that the audience can see which sides the characters are on. For example character one on the left and character two is sat opposite them on the right. All shots after this one must show the characters on the same sides they were on otherwise it will confuse the audience if character one is suddenly on the right instead of left. The only way you can cross this line is if you actually show the audience the camera movement of it moving round and crossing the line in the scene, and if you do this you must carry on showing the characters on their new sides i.e Character one now being on the right and character two on the left, until you move the camera round again.
We will be using the 180 degree rule throughout our task because we have two people having a conversation across a table and we will be showing each character on different sides of the screen. This means that we won't be able to cross the 180 degree line otherwise our characters will end up on the opposite sides and our audience will get confused.
Match-On-Action
Match on action is a technique in film where you would cut from one shot to another that matches the first shots action and energy, so that the actions look more real to the audience and again makes the editing more invisible. The shots can often be filmed hours apart from each other but the cutting on the action gives the impression of continuous time and when watching the edited footage back. Because the action is begun in the first shot and then carried through to completion in the next shot, it creates a visual bridge which distracts the audience from noticing the cut, therefore making everything that bit more realistic to them.
This video is helpful because we will be using a couple of match-on-action shots in our scene. For example when one character comes through the door and at some point a photo is handed across, so that is another opportunity to use it. We decided to use it in these places because we thought that it would flow from the different shots nicely and be quite un-noticeable.
Shot-Reverse-Shot is a certain film technique which is often used in scenes with alot of dialogue and is part of the continuity editing which makes scenes more realistic to the viewer. It usually starts with an establishing shot with both characters on screen and then cuts to a shot of character one looking at the other, this character could be off screen or the shot could be looking over their shoulder, so that it's clear who they are looking at. The next shot is usually the same type of shot but reversed so that it shows character two looking back at the other one, and because they're shown facing opposite directions the audience assumes they are looking at each other. Throughout the scene the shots will often get closer into the characters faces especially when the dialogue gets more intense, because it pulls the audience into the characters emotions more.
We will be using this type of shot in our preliminary task because we will be having two characters sat opposite each other exchanging dialogue and we don't want the editing to be very noticable. So we will use quite a few shot-reverse-shots to make the conversation seems more realistic.
The 180 Degree Rule
The 180 degree rule is an invisible line in filming when shooting a scene with two people talking opposite each other, which you can not cross. It would also start with an establishing shot so that the audience can see which sides the characters are on. For example character one on the left and character two is sat opposite them on the right. All shots after this one must show the characters on the same sides they were on otherwise it will confuse the audience if character one is suddenly on the right instead of left. The only way you can cross this line is if you actually show the audience the camera movement of it moving round and crossing the line in the scene, and if you do this you must carry on showing the characters on their new sides i.e Character one now being on the right and character two on the left, until you move the camera round again.
We will be using the 180 degree rule throughout our task because we have two people having a conversation across a table and we will be showing each character on different sides of the screen. This means that we won't be able to cross the 180 degree line otherwise our characters will end up on the opposite sides and our audience will get confused.
Match-On-Action
Match on action is a technique in film where you would cut from one shot to another that matches the first shots action and energy, so that the actions look more real to the audience and again makes the editing more invisible. The shots can often be filmed hours apart from each other but the cutting on the action gives the impression of continuous time and when watching the edited footage back. Because the action is begun in the first shot and then carried through to completion in the next shot, it creates a visual bridge which distracts the audience from noticing the cut, therefore making everything that bit more realistic to them.
This video is helpful because we will be using a couple of match-on-action shots in our scene. For example when one character comes through the door and at some point a photo is handed across, so that is another opportunity to use it. We decided to use it in these places because we thought that it would flow from the different shots nicely and be quite un-noticeable.
Monday, 9 November 2009
Sequence using continuity
This is a clip of the film Escape from New York, about 7 minutes 40 into the clip there is a scene between Hauk (on the left) and Snake (on the right) talking across a table. I chose this scene because it is very similar to our task as it keeps to the 180 degree rule, uses alot of shot-reverse shot and it has interesting lighting.
When Snake first walks into the room, the top half of him is in shadow which indicates that he is very mysterious and a bit of a rebel, it then moves to the next shot which shows both characters and the space between them so that the audience can establish the kind of relationship between the two characters. The main lighting for this scene is Chiaroscuro lighting making the room look quite dark, mysterious and intense, also Snake isn't in as much light as Hauk which again relates back to him looking mysterious.
Another thing about this clip is that each time Hauk says a line, it cuts back to Snake who is just looking around like he doesn't care and isn't interested, then it cuts back to Hauk and it continues with the shot - reverse shots. As the conversation goes on between them the camera shots slowly get closer in on their faces, especially when the offer is about to be made. There is also a small series of quick fire shots going back and forward on the two characters faces: Short line, cut, short line, cut etc. This shows that they are trying to make a deal and come to some agreement.
Throughout this whole scene they keep to the 180 degree rule with Hauk always being more to the left of the frame and Snake always on the right.
Our Ideas
After talking and sharing ideas with the rest of my group we now have a pretty good idea on what our scene will be like. We have decided to use the Photography's dark room as a setting and use a couple of the lights in there because we don't want too much light as our scene will be based on horror, so it needs to be quite dark and mysterious. Our basic idea is to have someone enter the room and sit down opposite someone else and they will be trying to realise who the 'killer' is by looking at some photos they just developed. Our scene will start with an establishing shot for a couple of seconds and then a character will walk and open the door and enter the room from the outside, this will then cut to a shot of the person walking inside the room from the other side of the door so that it displays continuity. We will have a couple of match on action shots like when one of the photos is been handed over, and we will also get in closer on the peoples faces as they get more into the conversation and near the end there will be a close up on one of their faces when they suss out everything. Like the clip above, there will be alot of shot-reverse shots between the two characters and we are also thinking on having some of the shots cut in time with a piece of music to produce more tension and a nice sense of rhythm. When discussing our shots we made sure that we took the 180 degree rule in account, especially the shots where it's over the characters shoulder.
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