Fin's AS Media Blog : November 2015

Fin Craven-Wilkinson

City of Norwich School

Media Preliminary Evaluation

What planning did you do for this task, and how did this planning aid the filming?

To plan this task, we started by brainstorming ideas about a dramatic moment and settled with the idea about someones phone getting stolen. Everyone then decided on what role they would play in the task. My role was shooting all the outside camera shots, editing and making the soundtrack. We each then drew out storyboards and stated what kind of camera shots were going to be used for each shot. We decided on a variety of shots based on the effect they had on character. For example, when the camera is looking down on a character (high angle shot) it makes them seem weaker and less significant whereas a low angle does the opposite. With this in mind, we could apply this to our film to portray the difference in power in the dramatic moment, which was an argument. One editing technique I knew needed to be used was match of action for continuity editing in consideration of having a walking subject at the beginning - the cuts between shots needed to change so that the subject’s action in one shot matches the one it cuts to. This would be used to achieve consistency of an action, in this case it was walking. Before filming we thought about the continuity of costume as we were filming over a period of days so it was important that actors were wearing the same clothes in each shot to create a more credible realism and for the viewer to not get confused while watching. Another factor we considered was the weather, which cannot be controlled so we knew we may encounter problems where one shot is sunny and the next is cloudy.

Before we started filming we did some practice shots to make sure they were what we wanted and if not we could make changes to our storyboards. After this we began filming.

My storyboard-

What is the 180-degree rule, and how is the rule important to the filming task?

The 180-degree rule is filming guideline where an imaginary line (called an axis) is split through the centre of two characters so that the camera can stay on one side when filming. Breaking the line is when the camera breaks the axis and should not be used unless wanting to create a certain effect.

Breaking the line creates disorientation as it confuses the audience of the spatial awareness of the position of action in the scene.

This makes breaking the line common in horror movies especially the psychological-horror movie, The Shining.

We used 180-degree rule in our filming task when the two subjects had a conversation:

What shot types and camera angles did you use in your filming, and to what effect?

We used a variety of camera angles and shot types. The film started with an establishing long shot to show the audience where action is taking place. (Photo on the right).

This was a shot of the character walking into the frame and when the character walks out of the frame I cut it to a tracking shot where I followed the subject walking from behind. (Photo on the left).

The effect of a tracking shot is to maintain action with a moving subject and it can also make the audience feel more part of the film if they are following the character. Since this character was walking I wanted to keep a constant movement with him.

I filmed a close-up of this characters hand opening the door. Close-up shots allow the audience to see more clearly what is happening. I think it creates tension as it makes the viewer anticipate that the door is leading to something important. Since our task was to include a dramatic moment, building tension prior is very important.

We also used a shot reverse shot when the characters were having a a conversation and made sure the 180 degree was used so we didn't disorientate the viewers by breaking the line.

This shot (on the right)

is a shot reverse shot from an eye level angle of the person the character is talking to. Eye level shots are neutral because there is no dramatic power. Had we been able to redo this shot, I would have filmed this character at lower angle to show she

had more power. We did however, use a higher angle shot which gave this character less power.

What editing skills have you developed?

Using Adobe Premiere Pro was a new experience to me and my group, but since I do some music production I could see similarities in the software I have used before so I took charge in the editing while another member of the group helped by feeding in ideas and overlooking what I was doing.

One editing skill I have developed is trimming a clips length. For example we may have been talking at the beginning or after action so by trimming the clip means we only have what’s important in the clip. Trimming also helped me achieve match of action when the character was walking in different clips. I had to make sure the characters movement was consistent in each clip by trimming them so there is a steady, realistic flow. Here is an example of match of action:

Another skill I have learnt is how adding transitions such as ‘dip to black’ can make cuts more natural.

A very important skill I further developed was volume control. I used this editing technique when the two characters had a conversation in which I turned down the volume of soundtrack so the characters conversation could be heard more clearly and when the conversation was over the soundtrack volume could be increased back to normal.

I have also learnt how to put effects on clips.

What effects did you use in post production and how do you think they improved the appeal of your film?

One effect used in post-production was black and white. We decided to use this effect when the character walks inside because this is when more tension is building towards the dramatic moment. Black and white gave the clips a more ominous feel and created an unsettling atmosphere which improved the appeal of the films dramatic moment. I think that had the dramatic moment been in colour, it would not have had the same sinister mood as before. I think it was wise for us not to over use this effect as having it change from in colour to black and white was a good way to signify something dramatic was nearing and it built up tension well.

Another effect that was used was slow motion. This was used when the character aggressively opens the door. By doing this it directs emphasis, creates anticipation, and focuses the viewers on the essence of the narrative.

The soundtrack

The last thing we did in post-production was the soundtrack which I made myself after completing the editing. The reason we wanted our own soundtrack was because we had more control over creativity. It didn’t make sense for us to use an already existing soundtrack, as it would not have likely of matched the feel of our film. By having an original soundtrack meant we could also make use of syncing it up with dramatic points in the film. For example when the character slams open the door, we could sync up a suspenseful sound to complement the action and build tension when it was needed. This is why we finished the film before adding the soundtrack.

Here are some screenshots of the soundtrack being made:

I had never made suspense music before but I knew the general elements of the genre. I made the soundtrack quite fast paced to immerse the audience from the beginning. I made the song out-of-key to effuse an uneasy mood. I took advantage of sync points, for example, the character slams open the door and an eerie sound is played. This improved the appeal of our film because it created a tense atmosphere throughout.