It was our final assignment of the entire first year and I can honestly say this was on of the most enjoyable assignments. The blog work this time was slightly lighter and I felt I really perfected all of my blogs on this particular go, whereas previously I have had so many, I almost lost control. I feel my organisation is now under control and I plan in advance when I am going to blog, to make sure the outcome of them is as high as it needs to be.
1) Evaluate how you have grown and developed as a practitioner, during this assignment?
I feel as though my editing and organisation skills in the planning of a production has significantly improved compared to previous projects and assignments. Even though our time for each project in this assignment was limited, we had a feasible amount of time to plan, film and edit a production to the best of our ability, and still make it look quite good! I have thrown myself into the planning side of things too, by creating storyboards and brain-storms to make the production easier to film.
2) What 2 things are you most proud of?
During this assignment, I am most proud of My Recurring Dream, which was the recreation of the actual My Recurring Dream, directed by Andre Chocron. I really like the way I edited this, and my friends and family have also looked at my videos from this assignment and agreed that this was the sleekest project. I feel as if I really got into this, and enjoyed critiquing the original movie, and writing up how I edited and processed mine. I am also proud of the quality of my blogs. I feel as if they have improved in the sense of perfecting them. I have included links and a number of quotes during critiques, and really gone quite in-depth detail of when I write up about my personal productions.
On the whole, I really felt as if this was my favourite assignment by far. I have loved every single production and the editing of my projects has improved dramatically. I feel as though I could improve on editing productions a bit better when we have to create a soundtrack. The Foley production we had to create, I found quite difficult, and felt with a little more time to plan and execute the edit, I could've done much better on this.
I have throughly enjoyed my first year at Plymouth College of Art, and cannot wait for the second year. I would just like to say a big thank you to Tim, Billy, Mike, Neil and Wendy for being absolutely incredible tutors and helping me when needed! See you in September and roll on Year 2!
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
Wednesday, 4 June 2014
Tuesday, 3 June 2014
Documenting The Doing #30: Waggle Dance
It was our final production of the 1st year and we had been assigned quite a special task for this. A board game has been designed and will soon be going on a number of shelves in well known toy and department stores. Our challenge was to create "How to Play" video for the game.
Waggle Dance is a board game that consists of a number of different challengers throughout that are not as easy as your average day-to-day board game. The main challenge was to collect as many honeycombs as possible, in order to win the game.
Planning was underway on the morning after we had learnt how to play, and this was crucial. This was the part that we could really get our heads down and experiment with the ideas of how to film. We had to make is pretty simple, yet effective, as we had to teach people how to play a game, which isn't easy! For a clear idea of our plans, we had created a brain storm in which we would jot down every single idea that came into our head. By doing this, we could always inter join 2 ideas with each other and make them twice as good.
There were a number of issues we had to resolve whilst filming this production, and the main concern was the numerous lighting changes. As the lighting we were using was predominantly natural, we were dependent on the weather. The sun kept going in and out, which began to get quite frustrating. In the end, we had to rise above this and accept the fact it wasn't going to be perfect. We had tried for hours to get it right but it just wasn't working as well as we'd hoped. We sometimes used studio lights to try and cover up the lighting changes, however this created a number of fierce shadows which just looked worse.
Waggle Dance is a board game that consists of a number of different challengers throughout that are not as easy as your average day-to-day board game. The main challenge was to collect as many honeycombs as possible, in order to win the game.
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| Waggle Dance |
The first task we had to complete was actually to play the board game, so we could get our heads around the concept in order for our video to make sense and be a lot more beneficial for us as well as the audience. The game itself took us around 3 hours to play before we completely understood the rules, regulations and benefits of each component.
Planning was underway on the morning after we had learnt how to play, and this was crucial. This was the part that we could really get our heads down and experiment with the ideas of how to film. We had to make is pretty simple, yet effective, as we had to teach people how to play a game, which isn't easy! For a clear idea of our plans, we had created a brain storm in which we would jot down every single idea that came into our head. By doing this, we could always inter join 2 ideas with each other and make them twice as good.
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| Storyboard and Brain storm |
It took us a while to figure out what would be the simplest yet most effective way of filming this. We began to think of using a green-screen, and this would have been amazing, however we were so limited on time we physically wouldn't have been able to do this. Our idea was to make it look as though we were in the game itself, and the objects would be the same size as us. We would then begin to use voiceovers to narrate the production, as this would be fairly easy for the audience to follow. We also wanted to make it quite humorous, as the last thing we wanted was for the audience to get bored.
After numerous decision changes and a lot of debating, we finally settled on quite a simple approach to this production that we thought would work in a simplistic yet effective way. Myself, Chloe, Naomi and Kim would play Waggle Dance around the table, and Matt would take control of the filming. Whilst we were playing the game, Matt took a numerous amount of close up shots and reactions. We also had a couple of shots of me throwing the dice, Chloe picking up her pieces and Naomi turning the cards, so when it came to editing, we could have a lot of cutaways and different angled shots to keep the audience interested.
Other elements we added, that we had picked up from previous productions, was a time lapse and a stop-motion animation. This would create a little more depth with the production as a whole and make it that little more interesting for the audience. As we know what it's like to watch many animations and time lapses ourselves, we thought it would be a nice touch and both elements really worked in the edit.
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| Close up/cutaways |
There were a number of issues we had to resolve whilst filming this production, and the main concern was the numerous lighting changes. As the lighting we were using was predominantly natural, we were dependent on the weather. The sun kept going in and out, which began to get quite frustrating. In the end, we had to rise above this and accept the fact it wasn't going to be perfect. We had tried for hours to get it right but it just wasn't working as well as we'd hoped. We sometimes used studio lights to try and cover up the lighting changes, however this created a number of fierce shadows which just looked worse.
Other than the filming side of things, we also had to develop a number of different audio sounds to create a wild-track. This would be the main bulk of our production backing noise and would also have a few other noises connected to it. The rolling of the dice and the flipping of the cards were just two of the many sounds we recorded to create our own unique soundtrack, as opposed to getting it from the internet.
The filming took a total of 8 hours, and this didn't include our final and most important factor of the production. Voice overs. This was another key element of our production, and would either make it or break it. The following day after filming, we hired out an edit suite in college to have a little privacy when it came to editing all of our clips together. We then had to create a script to ensure a steady speech recording to create a base narration that would explain the game to the audience. We then matched up the narrative speech with the actions on the game board.
On the whole, I am really happy that we managed to pull such a difficult production off. We had a number of problems in which we had to solutionate but I believe we did this to the best of our ability. The only thing I would go back and change would be the lighting; I would make it much more natural and make sure we focused more on the technique other than the content.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
Wednesday, 21 May 2014
Documenting The Doing #29: My Recurring Dream
This production all began with watching an extremely well executed production that I took a real shining to. My Recurring Dream is a music video directed by André Chocron and produced by Andrea Ottmar.
For this production, we had to recreate the video but put our own stamp on it. This would be a production we completed as a group, but did our own segment in groups of 5-6, and then added together to create one big video. The transitions were the most important feature of the whole video and we had to work around this really well, as they could make or break the whole thing.
As a class, we had a trip to Mount Edgecombe booked for the Tuesday. Unfortunately, I was unwell so couldn't go on the trip. This is where I would've filmed the 'practice' run of the production. This was to get a rough idea of the filming and production side of the video, in preparation for the real and important shoot we would do the following week.
Transitions were the key factor during this whole production, as stated before, and this would have been near on impossible to organise between the other groups. Tim, Neil and Billy decided to take control of this and sort us out with what we had to do. The plan was to be in synchronicity with the previous and next groups, as this would ensure smooth transitions from one group's video to another.
The editing process of this video was a challenge as I wanted to exceed the expectations and remain in synchronicity with the soundtrack. We had no choice about the sound, we had to use the My Recurring Dream song which was used in the original video (directed by André Chocron). During the editing process, I used a number of effects such as colour balance and adjusted the brightness and contrast. As we all filmed in different locations with extremely different lighting, I wanted to ensure the lighting for all of the shots was roughly the same. I understood it wouldn't be exact, but by dimming some segments and lightening others, I believe I matched them up to the best I could.
For this production, we had to recreate the video but put our own stamp on it. This would be a production we completed as a group, but did our own segment in groups of 5-6, and then added together to create one big video. The transitions were the most important feature of the whole video and we had to work around this really well, as they could make or break the whole thing.
As a class, we had a trip to Mount Edgecombe booked for the Tuesday. Unfortunately, I was unwell so couldn't go on the trip. This is where I would've filmed the 'practice' run of the production. This was to get a rough idea of the filming and production side of the video, in preparation for the real and important shoot we would do the following week.
Transitions were the key factor during this whole production, as stated before, and this would have been near on impossible to organise between the other groups. Tim, Neil and Billy decided to take control of this and sort us out with what we had to do. The plan was to be in synchronicity with the previous and next groups, as this would ensure smooth transitions from one group's video to another.
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| The transition plan between all 10 groups |
The following week, we had 3 days to plan, shoot and edit our part of the production. On the Monday, we began the planning. This meant storyboards, floor plans and general discussion about the production we would be completing on the Tuesday. As the weather was a bit hit and miss, we would have to take the destination of the final filming. The planning actually took a lot longer than anticipated. As we weren't really too sure on what we would do, we had to be extremely open minded on how we would shoot our section.
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| 2 x floor plans |
The day of the filming consisted of finding a location which ensured we would be inside for the duration of the day, as it was absolutely awful weather. We had been advised to film in the new building which was a light, open space with a lot of windows, meaning we had lots of natural light and big surroundings. I worked with my colleagues Naomi Doddridge, Tanye Chauruka, Chloe Binding and Kim Noot on this particular project. Tanye filmed with a fig-rig, ensuring a stable shot which would then be much easier to edit. Myself, Naomi and Chloe threw paper aeroplanes, and Kim was the blindfold holder which would be one of two key transitions to link us to the previous group.
Our two transitions featured a black out, which was the blindfold, and the Iron Brew drink. This would be the start and finish of our segment which ensures that our part of the production would be in synchronicity with the previous and next segments.
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| Transitions from group 7 > 8, and group 8 > 9 |
The editing process of this video was a challenge as I wanted to exceed the expectations and remain in synchronicity with the soundtrack. We had no choice about the sound, we had to use the My Recurring Dream song which was used in the original video (directed by André Chocron). During the editing process, I used a number of effects such as colour balance and adjusted the brightness and contrast. As we all filmed in different locations with extremely different lighting, I wanted to ensure the lighting for all of the shots was roughly the same. I understood it wouldn't be exact, but by dimming some segments and lightening others, I believe I matched them up to the best I could.
We also used a number of film burns which gave it that little extra depth that we needed. For some shots, they began to get quite shaky in the sense that it was almost hard to watch. Instead of just cross-fading the cut clips, I decided to add a film burn to mix the edit around and make it a little unique.
After a number of cross fades and flash burns, it came to the end of the clips and this meant I had to fill about 1 minutes worth of song. After debating for about half an hour as to whether to do ending credits, I decided to do something I'd never done before and did a slight mix up within the edit. This can be seen at 0.15, 0.54, 2.37 and 3.25 mins. I'm not too sure what you would call it, but it added about 5 seconds each to the whole video. I reversed the video for a split second, so it duplicated the clip which meant you watched a segment twice. I thought this was quite a quirky feature and made it quite enjoyable to watch.
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| Flash burn with groups 2 and 4 |
After a number of cross fades and flash burns, it came to the end of the clips and this meant I had to fill about 1 minutes worth of song. After debating for about half an hour as to whether to do ending credits, I decided to do something I'd never done before and did a slight mix up within the edit. This can be seen at 0.15, 0.54, 2.37 and 3.25 mins. I'm not too sure what you would call it, but it added about 5 seconds each to the whole video. I reversed the video for a split second, so it duplicated the clip which meant you watched a segment twice. I thought this was quite a quirky feature and made it quite enjoyable to watch.
The only confusing part about this production was the concept of the filming. As we were trying to make it supernatural make it unique, we would film the footage moving backwards. With this, when we edited it to make it go forwards, it would make it look like the objects within the video look like they were moving in an impossible way. My personal favourite was the segment at from 0.59 - 1.07. I really like the way the glasses and tie look, and thought this was a really clever way. Well done to Matt, Charlie, Sam, Seth, Joe and Jay for this!
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In a sense, this was one of my most favourite productions for this whole assignment. My favourite part of this was the editing, as I really felt like I could go to town with it and experiment with Adobe Premier Pro with lighting, colour balance and reverse technology that then put my own spin on the final edit. I really hope we do another project like this in the second year, as I enjoyed the editing process on this.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
Monday, 12 May 2014
Critique: My Recurring Dream
My Recurring Dream is a music video directed by André Chocron. André is a Norwegian video director, who began with a dream to be a musician, but later changed to a music video director when he realised the talent that lye beneath him.
This production is a series of dizzy tracking shots that employ a ton of different techniques (time lapse, backwards film). It also shows some fantastic scenes of underwater dancers, apocalyptic landscapes, skateboard commutes and mysterious women on trains. It's got that 'virtual insanity' sensibility - hypnotic enough to keep you glued.
This music video has a number of incredible transitions from one scene to another which keeps the audience guessing on what will happen next. It draws the viewer in with a number of random yet fascinating features, which personally, I have never seen in a music video before. It's such a simple concept, yet so effective.
There are many different destinations in this production as a whole which targets audiences of all ages. I really like the concept of the video as it creates a simplistic look with one shot scenes, yet the transitions make it very professional and sleek. There are many scenes in which Chocron reversed the sequence in post production, meaning the camera is moving forwards, but everything in shot is moving backwards.
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"The narrative is just free imagination, visual ideas I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and stuff I came up with while listening to the song. Matching the energy and the beat of the song is something I’m very concerned with in general, and especially on this one." - André Chocron
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There is a particular feature that I read during an interview with director André Chocron that fascinated me in a sense that I didn't think it would. André stated that he didn't use a green screen at all during this production. "Everything was shot on location! I'm not very fond of green screens, at least not when it's just an easy way out." I really like his honesty here, and how everything we saw in the production was real. Music videos and movies in general all seem to have computer generated images these days and it's really great to see a production that doesn't have all of the over-rated stuff that supposedly makes videos good.
The title of this video also interlocks with the concept. There are a number of recurring features and scenes that are in synchronicity with each other that are discreetly under wraps. The scene in which the older woman, dressed in yellow, is on the train is intertwining with the scene that appears later on in the video, and this is the scene in which the younger girl is running through the hospital. The shot of the older woman shows she is trapped, and therefore the younger girl is running away.
Throughout this video we see a number of absolutely incredible transitions that I have never seen before in any video. It's such a simplistic design yet the outcome is perfect, and the transitions are the main focus of the video. My favourite transition is approximately 54 seconds into the video. The instant switch from the stairs on the actors t-shirt, to actual stairs, was an absolutely incredible switch and I think this is the most complexed of all the transitions.
The shot in which the camera is slowly moving downwards towards the bottom of the stairs is a really simple yet amazing shot. The slight movement of people in the background gives it that little extra depth. I can only imagine the production behind this segment, as it would've had to have been a camera dolly-like piece of machinery to create such a steady flow of the movement. It has inspired me to try something like this at some point in the future.
http://welcometolegs.com/directors/andre-chocron/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.stereogum.com/1250642/cold-mailman-my-recurring-dream-video-stereogum-premiere/news/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.onepointfour.co/2013/03/27/emerging-talent-director-andre-chocron/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
This production is a series of dizzy tracking shots that employ a ton of different techniques (time lapse, backwards film). It also shows some fantastic scenes of underwater dancers, apocalyptic landscapes, skateboard commutes and mysterious women on trains. It's got that 'virtual insanity' sensibility - hypnotic enough to keep you glued.
This music video has a number of incredible transitions from one scene to another which keeps the audience guessing on what will happen next. It draws the viewer in with a number of random yet fascinating features, which personally, I have never seen in a music video before. It's such a simple concept, yet so effective.
My Recurring Dream - Cold Mailman
The video begins with a long shot of a hospital corridor, which leaves us with a cold atmosphere due to the blue and grey tones in the shot. This sets the scene of the whole production which then begins to develop the mood of the production in the sense that no other video has done before.
There are many different destinations in this production as a whole which targets audiences of all ages. I really like the concept of the video as it creates a simplistic look with one shot scenes, yet the transitions make it very professional and sleek. There are many scenes in which Chocron reversed the sequence in post production, meaning the camera is moving forwards, but everything in shot is moving backwards.
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"The narrative is just free imagination, visual ideas I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and stuff I came up with while listening to the song. Matching the energy and the beat of the song is something I’m very concerned with in general, and especially on this one." - André Chocron
- - - - - - - - - - -
There is a particular feature that I read during an interview with director André Chocron that fascinated me in a sense that I didn't think it would. André stated that he didn't use a green screen at all during this production. "Everything was shot on location! I'm not very fond of green screens, at least not when it's just an easy way out." I really like his honesty here, and how everything we saw in the production was real. Music videos and movies in general all seem to have computer generated images these days and it's really great to see a production that doesn't have all of the over-rated stuff that supposedly makes videos good.
The title of this video also interlocks with the concept. There are a number of recurring features and scenes that are in synchronicity with each other that are discreetly under wraps. The scene in which the older woman, dressed in yellow, is on the train is intertwining with the scene that appears later on in the video, and this is the scene in which the younger girl is running through the hospital. The shot of the older woman shows she is trapped, and therefore the younger girl is running away.
Throughout this video we see a number of absolutely incredible transitions that I have never seen before in any video. It's such a simplistic design yet the outcome is perfect, and the transitions are the main focus of the video. My favourite transition is approximately 54 seconds into the video. The instant switch from the stairs on the actors t-shirt, to actual stairs, was an absolutely incredible switch and I think this is the most complexed of all the transitions.
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| Transition from t-shirt design to real stairs |
The shot in which the camera is slowly moving downwards towards the bottom of the stairs is a really simple yet amazing shot. The slight movement of people in the background gives it that little extra depth. I can only imagine the production behind this segment, as it would've had to have been a camera dolly-like piece of machinery to create such a steady flow of the movement. It has inspired me to try something like this at some point in the future.
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On the whole, this music video was one of my most enjoyable videos to watch and review. The concept was so simple, and the transitions were so effective. They were the epitome of the whole music video and I really believe that it should be given a lot more credit in the film and movie-making industry.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://welcometolegs.com/directors/andre-chocron/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.stereogum.com/1250642/cold-mailman-my-recurring-dream-video-stereogum-premiere/news/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.onepointfour.co/2013/03/27/emerging-talent-director-andre-chocron/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
Wednesday, 7 May 2014
Documenting The Doing #28: Foley
Production number 28 was well underway, and taking into consideration that we only had 1 day to plan and record this, I think we did quite well. Myself and fellow colleagues; Matthew Jury, Naomi Doddridge, Chloe Binding and Sam Shaw were all in a group together.
Our task was to recreate a scene from a given film, however only using sound. Foley was the key inspiration here and we had to use everyday objects to produce sounds which matched the scene from the 1979 hit film Alien. Our scene consisted of 2 main characters that appeared to have been in a ship which had crashed, hence the volume of sheer panic and catastrophic events.
Firstly, we had to create a Gantt Chart, which would make our lives a lot easier when it came to recording the sounds for the final production. A Gantt Chart is a type of bar chart, which was developed by Henry Gantt in the 1910s, that illustrates a project schedule. Gantt Charts illustrate the start and finish dates of the terminal elements and summary elements of a project.
We used this Gantt Chart to illustrate the specific sounds we would make, how long for and in what order. This made it a lot easier to edit, as it was just a case of matching this up with the footage. Before we began the chart, we watched the clip we were given and tried to think of ideas as to what sounds we could remake with everyday objects.
We made sounds like with jewellery clanging on metal, heavy breathing, and deodorant spray for the steam/smoke. Taking everyday objects to create the sounds was easier than we thought it would be, as we just continued to find random things to bash together. Looking back, the planning was more work than the actual recording.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gantt_chart - accessed on 2nd-June-2014
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078748/ - accessed on 2nd-June-2014
Our task was to recreate a scene from a given film, however only using sound. Foley was the key inspiration here and we had to use everyday objects to produce sounds which matched the scene from the 1979 hit film Alien. Our scene consisted of 2 main characters that appeared to have been in a ship which had crashed, hence the volume of sheer panic and catastrophic events.
Firstly, we had to create a Gantt Chart, which would make our lives a lot easier when it came to recording the sounds for the final production. A Gantt Chart is a type of bar chart, which was developed by Henry Gantt in the 1910s, that illustrates a project schedule. Gantt Charts illustrate the start and finish dates of the terminal elements and summary elements of a project.
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| Our Gantt Chart |
We used this Gantt Chart to illustrate the specific sounds we would make, how long for and in what order. This made it a lot easier to edit, as it was just a case of matching this up with the footage. Before we began the chart, we watched the clip we were given and tried to think of ideas as to what sounds we could remake with everyday objects.
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| Foley Sound List |
As we only had one day to complete the recordings, we were restricted on time and destinations. When it came to recording, we used Zoom and Boom microphones. In some cases, we used a 'dead cat', which is a fluffy texture that covers the Boom mic that blocks out any background noise, and focuses on the foreground noise that we made closest to the mic.
We made sounds like with jewellery clanging on metal, heavy breathing, and deodorant spray for the steam/smoke. Taking everyday objects to create the sounds was easier than we thought it would be, as we just continued to find random things to bash together. Looking back, the planning was more work than the actual recording.
As stated before, as we used the Gantt Chart, is made our lives a whole lot easier when it came to editing. All we really had to do was follow it and make sure it matched up to the original clip we were given which had no sound on. We edited it all together as a group, because if we all followed the charts individually, we would pretty much have the same edit. Each and every one of us did have a specific input during the edit.
If I have the chance to do a Foley production again, I'd like us to be given at least a week to complete it, as I feel we rushed it and it wasn't as good as we thought it would be. We were so restricted on time that we didn't really plan any destinations to record in. I hope we get to experience another Foley production as I'd love to do a longer segment of a film, and maybe a film of our choice.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gantt_chart - accessed on 2nd-June-2014
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078748/ - accessed on 2nd-June-2014
Tuesday, 6 May 2014
Research into Foley
Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to film, video and other media in post-production to enhance audio quality. These reproduced sounds can be anything form the swishing of clothing and footsteps to squeaky doors and breaking glass. The best foley art is so well integrated into a film that it goes unnoticed by the audience. It helps create a sense of reality within a scene. Without these crucial background noises, movies feel unnaturally quiet and uncomfortable.
Foley artists recreate the realistic ambient sounds that the film portrays. The props and sets of a film do not react the same way acoustically as their real life counterparts. Foley sounds are used to enhance the auditory experience of the movie. Foley can also be used to cover up unwanted sounds captured on the set of a movie during filming, such as overflying airplanes or passing traffic.
The man behind the Foley effect was Jack Donovan Foley. Jack was born on 12th April 1891 and died on 9th November 1967. The art of sound began in 1927, when Jack Foley helped turn the film studio's "silent" Show Boat into a full-on musical extravaganza. Because microphones could only pick up on dialogue, Foley had to add in the other sounds later. He projected the film onto a screen and recorded the footsteps, the movement, the props - all in one track. He walked with a cane to create the footsteps of three people.
A few years ago, Alex Joseph, one of the country's premier Foley supervisors, stated:
Foley artists recreate the realistic ambient sounds that the film portrays. The props and sets of a film do not react the same way acoustically as their real life counterparts. Foley sounds are used to enhance the auditory experience of the movie. Foley can also be used to cover up unwanted sounds captured on the set of a movie during filming, such as overflying airplanes or passing traffic.
The man behind the Foley effect was Jack Donovan Foley. Jack was born on 12th April 1891 and died on 9th November 1967. The art of sound began in 1927, when Jack Foley helped turn the film studio's "silent" Show Boat into a full-on musical extravaganza. Because microphones could only pick up on dialogue, Foley had to add in the other sounds later. He projected the film onto a screen and recorded the footsteps, the movement, the props - all in one track. He walked with a cane to create the footsteps of three people.
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| Jack Donovan Foley |
A few years ago, Alex Joseph, one of the country's premier Foley supervisors, stated:
"A Foley artist can be playing a big brute one minute and a cute little girl the next. A footstep is not just a footstep - it can be angry, happy, sad, confused, clumsy, slick, swaggering, light, heavy, wet, dry, young, old, male, female, slutty, sophisticated... The list goes on. It's the performance that gets across the meaning to the viewers. And that performance could only ever come from the human mind."
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Foley has been used in a number of different film genres, but one that stood out for me is Pixar. I came across an interview with Jana Vance and Dennie Thorpe, who were Foley Artists on Pixar's Up.
There were many questions within the interview that interested me but one in particular stood out, and this was: "There are a lot of dogs in 'UP'; How did you create their footsteps? Did you shoot feet for the dog stampede?" I've always had an interest in how animal noises for animated films are created as they obviously have a very particular sound. The sound of a dogs paw is completely different to a normal footstep, but as this film was a stampede as opposed to an individual dog, it was probably a lot easier to blend.
The answer given by Dennie Thorpe was:
"I did Dug, Rotty and the bulldog. The information was that Dug should have NO nails and be friendly and have a soft, padded sound. Rotty and the bulldog could have nails. They weren't supposed to be as friendly - they were supposed to be more menacing. Their body language also creates their emotional qualities and we support that sonically. We did shoot feet for the dog stampede. We shoot those kind of scenes working together in a format where we concentrate on the left side of the screen, then the center, then the right. Depending on the shot, we will also definitely also concentrate on close, medium and far."
- - - - - - - - - -
From a personal experience, I have been lucky enough to have a tour of Media City UK in Salford, Manchester. During this, I was taken to a radio studio in which the staff participate in making realistic noises with everyday objects to create a radio piece. I understand that this isn't pure Foley, but I thought it was really interesting to see all the different lay outs, rooms and objects that create artificial sounds, yet sound like the action being described.
The radio station is more for people that have challenges with sight, so this makes their hearing ability a lot clearer and more sensitive. They can notice a difference in a hose pipe drip of water, and a tap drip. Male footsteps and female footsteps sound a lot different to them, as do things like a metal spoon tapping on a glass rather than a mug. The little everyday things we don't notice, are noticed by so many people, which is a real talent to have I think.
- - - - - - - - - -
Rounding up the research of Foley, it's a really unique and simple way of creating layers of sound for a production which may need a helping hand with its soundtrack. Creating sounds with different everyday objects gives a film that naturalistic sound and can be used all around the world.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
The answer given by Dennie Thorpe was:
"I did Dug, Rotty and the bulldog. The information was that Dug should have NO nails and be friendly and have a soft, padded sound. Rotty and the bulldog could have nails. They weren't supposed to be as friendly - they were supposed to be more menacing. Their body language also creates their emotional qualities and we support that sonically. We did shoot feet for the dog stampede. We shoot those kind of scenes working together in a format where we concentrate on the left side of the screen, then the center, then the right. Depending on the shot, we will also definitely also concentrate on close, medium and far."
 |
| The dogs from "UP" |
- - - - - - - - - -
From a personal experience, I have been lucky enough to have a tour of Media City UK in Salford, Manchester. During this, I was taken to a radio studio in which the staff participate in making realistic noises with everyday objects to create a radio piece. I understand that this isn't pure Foley, but I thought it was really interesting to see all the different lay outs, rooms and objects that create artificial sounds, yet sound like the action being described.
The radio station is more for people that have challenges with sight, so this makes their hearing ability a lot clearer and more sensitive. They can notice a difference in a hose pipe drip of water, and a tap drip. Male footsteps and female footsteps sound a lot different to them, as do things like a metal spoon tapping on a glass rather than a mug. The little everyday things we don't notice, are noticed by so many people, which is a real talent to have I think.
- - - - - - - - - -
Rounding up the research of Foley, it's a really unique and simple way of creating layers of sound for a production which may need a helping hand with its soundtrack. Creating sounds with different everyday objects gives a film that naturalistic sound and can be used all around the world.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmmakersonfilm/8853473/Foley-artists-heard-any-good-films-lately.html - accessed on 19th-May-2014
Wednesday, 30 April 2014
Documenting The Doing #27: Havoc
This particular production was something I took a shine to from the minute we were told the initial idea. A video in slow motion. I have always wanted to complete and produce something like this ever since I watched The Slow Mo Guys on YouTube.
On Monday, we were instructed to go to the theatre, as this is where we'd be filming and producing our rendition of "HAVOC". Our morning began by watching this production and we were all super excited to put our own stamp on it and create our own. It all began with head tutor, Tim, giving us an introduction to the set-up of our project, choosing the production team and picking our own individual groups of four. Myself and my colleagues; Naomi Doddridge, Charlie Baylis and Sam Shaw all decided spontaneously that we would work together. It began with us not really knowing what to do, but we had 3 hours to plan before we filmed our segment of the video at 12.15 so we had a while.
After we went for a quick tea break, we watched a couple of videos of slow-motion techniques on YouTube and began falling in love with a few ideas that we thought would look amazing. As we all wanted to go for something different, Sam and Charlie went with a 'shaking head and body' technique, whereas myself and Naomi decided to get some party-poppers, as we thought the confetti effect would look really illuminative slowed down.
When it came for our turn to film, it didn't take as long as I thought. My colleague's; Liam Woodridge, Abi Cannings, Sam Sheard and Nick Bennett were the production team and Tim, Billy, Neil and Wendy were there to observe and direct. With Liam and Abi operating the camera dolly, which would ensure a smooth running circle around all 4 of us. It only took us 2 takes to get it spot on, with the first take being a practice run. I really enjoyed filming this as I was in the same boat as everyone else, which meant my anxiety wasn't as bad as it normally was.
After we finished our individual group shot, we had about 2 hours to kill again. When it was time to film the second production which involved everyone in our group, we all gathered in the studio theatre to take part in the final production which would be the main attraction for the project, the main course if you like. This part involved getting into pairs, with one person standing behind the other, and the camera dolly would then continuously loop the attractions until it had gone round a total of 3 times.
The logistical side of this whole production was that our tutor, Tim, was the main director. Having done this over the years with a number of different classes, it was easier for both him and us if he directed. Throughout the day, things were very organised and that's why I think I enjoyed it so much. The first part of the afternoon class productions was to rehearse the layout and content of the clip we were about to shoot. In pairs, we had to stand behind one another around the 'clock face', and perform our individual set actions, which would look amazing in slow motion.
It took a few rehearsals before we could get it absolutely spot on, but I think considering there were 50 of us, we did pretty well with the timing's and synchronisation of the whole thing. The second part of the class filming was the 'switch'. This was quite similar to the previous segment, except when the camera came past us on the dolly, we would switch places. I personally found this one to be trickier than the first film, as it involved us having to be spot on, and if one person was too early/late, it would look totally fallen through and rubbish.
We filmed two segments as this would give us a lot more to play around with in the edit. The whole point of this production was to learn the importance and simplicity in the effect of the 50 frames per second (fps), instead of the default setting of 25 frames per second (fps). This was slow down the footage in the process of editing so it was 50% slower than what we originally shot it in. As we had the freedom of doing our own thing within the edit, it was a real eye opener for me as I was really looking forward to doing some real creative things with the footage.
With editing, I started at 9.45am on Tuesday and didn't finish until 3.15pm the same day. It was all going really well. I had began with the shot of our class 'switching', and then gone into a montage of the individual groups of 4 shots which would match the beat of the soundtrack when the bass-line dropped about 1 minute in. I then began to fill the rest of the footage in by switching it round, mirroring, rotating the frame so it was the same thing but upside down, and making it really quirky. The final cut was absolutely incredible in my opinion, and it was one of my favourite productions I had edited as it really made me think about the soundtrack and footage we had to expand to fill the time.
Unfortunately, that edit is nowhere to be seen. This is because Premier Pro decided to crash on me whilst I was exporting, and it hadn't saved the original file either. I was/am absolutely gutted. I had put so much effort into it for it to just disappear in seconds. I had spent a lot of time making sure the sound effects during the 5 minute long soundtrack were synchronised with the footage we had taken for the final production. As I physically had no time left to edit, my friend and colleague Sam Shaw managed to let me have his edit so I at least had something to play around with. There were a few bits I kept the same, but other bits I changed and put my own spin on it.
On the whole, I did really enjoy being part of this production, and I thought the directing and production teams did an amazing job with controlling 50 of us in a routine mechanism light and thought we all really pulled it off to the best of our ability. My favourite part of this production was the way we used the camera dolly to make the production very professional looking and almost making it look high budget.
I look forward to using the camera dolly again as I feel it really made a big impact to the production on the whole.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
On Monday, we were instructed to go to the theatre, as this is where we'd be filming and producing our rendition of "HAVOC". Our morning began by watching this production and we were all super excited to put our own stamp on it and create our own. It all began with head tutor, Tim, giving us an introduction to the set-up of our project, choosing the production team and picking our own individual groups of four. Myself and my colleagues; Naomi Doddridge, Charlie Baylis and Sam Shaw all decided spontaneously that we would work together. It began with us not really knowing what to do, but we had 3 hours to plan before we filmed our segment of the video at 12.15 so we had a while.
After we went for a quick tea break, we watched a couple of videos of slow-motion techniques on YouTube and began falling in love with a few ideas that we thought would look amazing. As we all wanted to go for something different, Sam and Charlie went with a 'shaking head and body' technique, whereas myself and Naomi decided to get some party-poppers, as we thought the confetti effect would look really illuminative slowed down.
 |
| Our group in the filming theatre |
When it came for our turn to film, it didn't take as long as I thought. My colleague's; Liam Woodridge, Abi Cannings, Sam Sheard and Nick Bennett were the production team and Tim, Billy, Neil and Wendy were there to observe and direct. With Liam and Abi operating the camera dolly, which would ensure a smooth running circle around all 4 of us. It only took us 2 takes to get it spot on, with the first take being a practice run. I really enjoyed filming this as I was in the same boat as everyone else, which meant my anxiety wasn't as bad as it normally was.
After we finished our individual group shot, we had about 2 hours to kill again. When it was time to film the second production which involved everyone in our group, we all gathered in the studio theatre to take part in the final production which would be the main attraction for the project, the main course if you like. This part involved getting into pairs, with one person standing behind the other, and the camera dolly would then continuously loop the attractions until it had gone round a total of 3 times.
 |
| Behind the scenes pics - Camera Dolly on the left |
The logistical side of this whole production was that our tutor, Tim, was the main director. Having done this over the years with a number of different classes, it was easier for both him and us if he directed. Throughout the day, things were very organised and that's why I think I enjoyed it so much. The first part of the afternoon class productions was to rehearse the layout and content of the clip we were about to shoot. In pairs, we had to stand behind one another around the 'clock face', and perform our individual set actions, which would look amazing in slow motion.
It took a few rehearsals before we could get it absolutely spot on, but I think considering there were 50 of us, we did pretty well with the timing's and synchronisation of the whole thing. The second part of the class filming was the 'switch'. This was quite similar to the previous segment, except when the camera came past us on the dolly, we would switch places. I personally found this one to be trickier than the first film, as it involved us having to be spot on, and if one person was too early/late, it would look totally fallen through and rubbish.
 |
| The switch from Emily in front, to me in front |
We filmed two segments as this would give us a lot more to play around with in the edit. The whole point of this production was to learn the importance and simplicity in the effect of the 50 frames per second (fps), instead of the default setting of 25 frames per second (fps). This was slow down the footage in the process of editing so it was 50% slower than what we originally shot it in. As we had the freedom of doing our own thing within the edit, it was a real eye opener for me as I was really looking forward to doing some real creative things with the footage.
For the edit, there was only one 'rule' we had to follow, and this was to make sure our footage meet the total length of the soundtrack, which Neil Rose had produced for us. We had to play around with the clips of all the individual groups of four, and the 2 class videos we filmed in the afternoon. Speeding up, slowing down and mirroring the footage was the sort of thing I wanted to go for, and I really wanted to match the video with the correct sound of the soundtrack. Similar to a soundtrack Neil had produced before, it was in almost two halves. The first half was quite calm and reserved, yet the second half just went mental and meant we could really go to town with our editing.
With editing, I started at 9.45am on Tuesday and didn't finish until 3.15pm the same day. It was all going really well. I had began with the shot of our class 'switching', and then gone into a montage of the individual groups of 4 shots which would match the beat of the soundtrack when the bass-line dropped about 1 minute in. I then began to fill the rest of the footage in by switching it round, mirroring, rotating the frame so it was the same thing but upside down, and making it really quirky. The final cut was absolutely incredible in my opinion, and it was one of my favourite productions I had edited as it really made me think about the soundtrack and footage we had to expand to fill the time.
Unfortunately, that edit is nowhere to be seen. This is because Premier Pro decided to crash on me whilst I was exporting, and it hadn't saved the original file either. I was/am absolutely gutted. I had put so much effort into it for it to just disappear in seconds. I had spent a lot of time making sure the sound effects during the 5 minute long soundtrack were synchronised with the footage we had taken for the final production. As I physically had no time left to edit, my friend and colleague Sam Shaw managed to let me have his edit so I at least had something to play around with. There were a few bits I kept the same, but other bits I changed and put my own spin on it.
On the whole, I did really enjoy being part of this production, and I thought the directing and production teams did an amazing job with controlling 50 of us in a routine mechanism light and thought we all really pulled it off to the best of our ability. My favourite part of this production was the way we used the camera dolly to make the production very professional looking and almost making it look high budget.
I look forward to using the camera dolly again as I feel it really made a big impact to the production on the whole.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
Tuesday, 29 April 2014
Critique: Havoc
Havoc is a music video directed by André Chocron and produced by Andrea Berentsen Ottmar. It was shot in one take at 300fps using a Red Epic with a 75mm master prime. This music video by Norwegian band While You Slept features elaborative live special effects, pyrotechnics, and choreography, all captured in a single 18 second shot. Filmed at 300 frames per second, the footage plays back in beautiful slow motion over the course of 3 1/2 minute video.
The percentage in which André had to slow it down by was 8.3%. 25fps was the normal speed, and this was then divided by 300 (the highest speed), which equals 0.083, then times by 100 would total the 8.3%.
This music video begins with an out of focus shot of the main model, which creates a mysterious atmosphere and a brilliant opening scene for any music video. It intrigues the audience into wanting more. This opening shot lasts for approximately 9 seconds, before slowly coming into focus and revealing a very sinister look on the models' face. Being in front of a black background, it's clear that the main focus of this shot is still on the woman. Lights and camera flares begin to flash up on screen, before the lighting appears to make a significant change. With the background colour grading changing from black to white in a matter of seconds, it experiments with the audiences' mind to capture the essence of this mysterious and endearing video.
The next significant segment begins at around 29 seconds, and this is the part the video gets going and grips the audience in a way that I have never seen before. With the figures slowly emerging from the background, it begins to layer the production to create more depth and a story-like theme which continues to take an interest in the audience. This segment lasts for around 50 seconds before the whole video just comes to life. The mysterious figures in the audience begin to make sudden movements and approach the foreground to throw themselves around in a number of different shapes and positions.
By the time the video has reached the 2 minute mark, there are a number of different actions and events going on, which looks completely random, but somehow works. We now have the main model, the 4 men in the background and a number of artificial lighting techniques; such as fire, flashing and confetti.
There are a number of segments during this video that I really like, but there is one that stood out amongst the rest for me, and it's' by far my favourite. The scene from 2.12 - 2.21, in which the main female is dancing to the theme of the music. When the music seems to drop and become quite simple, so does the video. I really like the contrast of this and how it matches because I think it's something that not many people will notice, but when they do, it's a beautiful feature.
There were between 40-50 people involved in this production, and the director had to ensure everybody had a job, as with a shoot like this, dead weight is just impossible to control. As everybody had such a crucial role within the shot, one person missing would be a disaster for the whole thing and it just wouldn't work. Responsibility and dedication was one of the key factors for this production, in my opinion.
- - - - - - - - - - -
With this whole production being a one shot, the editing of this would've been quite simple. With the layout of the video set up before hand, and a singular song as the soundtrack, the only editing I can think of that was completed was the lighting, brightness and contrast of the whole thing. I really like the way this was edited together, and the lack of bright colours made the whole thing very dark and gloomy, but I really liked this. The bass drop of the song really set the scene of the whole production as a mysterious and I feel all of the features throughout this video interlocked with each other, which is quite a difficult thing to find in music videos in this day and age.
After watching this production, I then went and watched the behind the scenes video. This gave me a real insight as to how much thought and knowledge went into the production as a whole. The most important technique the cast had to master was ensuring they knew their cue and when to appear within the production. With this, it would be crucial for everyone to do their best to complete their part in the production to the cue. As it's a one shot production, there are no cuts or second chances. It's all or nothing.
Another concept the directors would've had to take in the fact that the floor wouldn't have been possible to be in shot, as this is the pinnacle of the success throughout the video. the crash mats, camera dolly, lighting and wires would've been impossible to hide, and there would've been no other way of recording this shot. As there is so much going on in the video, nobody would tend to notice the fact the floor isn't visible.
The behind the scenes video was absolutely fantastic - I love the concept of having the shooting being recorded itself. With this, the director can look back and see it from other people's angles and points of views, and take into consideration any advice they have.
- - - - - - - - - - -
On the whole, I absolutely love this video. I really like the frame rate during the whole production as it gives a different touch and technique for the audience to enjoy. I really like André Chocron's work, and look forward to seeing him again in the future.
We had the pleasure of getting to recreate this video with our own twist, in both a class production and individual groups. Read the blog post here: Recreating Havoc
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://laughingsquid.com/havoc-by-while-you-slept-slow-motion-music-video-filmed-in-1-shot/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.frokostfilm.no - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.directorsnotes.com/2013/08/15/while-you-slept-havoc/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
The percentage in which André had to slow it down by was 8.3%. 25fps was the normal speed, and this was then divided by 300 (the highest speed), which equals 0.083, then times by 100 would total the 8.3%.
8.3 / 300 = 0.083 x 100 = 8.3
Havoc - While You Slept
This music video begins with an out of focus shot of the main model, which creates a mysterious atmosphere and a brilliant opening scene for any music video. It intrigues the audience into wanting more. This opening shot lasts for approximately 9 seconds, before slowly coming into focus and revealing a very sinister look on the models' face. Being in front of a black background, it's clear that the main focus of this shot is still on the woman. Lights and camera flares begin to flash up on screen, before the lighting appears to make a significant change. With the background colour grading changing from black to white in a matter of seconds, it experiments with the audiences' mind to capture the essence of this mysterious and endearing video.
The next significant segment begins at around 29 seconds, and this is the part the video gets going and grips the audience in a way that I have never seen before. With the figures slowly emerging from the background, it begins to layer the production to create more depth and a story-like theme which continues to take an interest in the audience. This segment lasts for around 50 seconds before the whole video just comes to life. The mysterious figures in the audience begin to make sudden movements and approach the foreground to throw themselves around in a number of different shapes and positions.
By the time the video has reached the 2 minute mark, there are a number of different actions and events going on, which looks completely random, but somehow works. We now have the main model, the 4 men in the background and a number of artificial lighting techniques; such as fire, flashing and confetti.
 |
| 2 minute mark of Havoc |
There are a number of segments during this video that I really like, but there is one that stood out amongst the rest for me, and it's' by far my favourite. The scene from 2.12 - 2.21, in which the main female is dancing to the theme of the music. When the music seems to drop and become quite simple, so does the video. I really like the contrast of this and how it matches because I think it's something that not many people will notice, but when they do, it's a beautiful feature.
There were between 40-50 people involved in this production, and the director had to ensure everybody had a job, as with a shoot like this, dead weight is just impossible to control. As everybody had such a crucial role within the shot, one person missing would be a disaster for the whole thing and it just wouldn't work. Responsibility and dedication was one of the key factors for this production, in my opinion.
- - - - - - - - - - -
With this whole production being a one shot, the editing of this would've been quite simple. With the layout of the video set up before hand, and a singular song as the soundtrack, the only editing I can think of that was completed was the lighting, brightness and contrast of the whole thing. I really like the way this was edited together, and the lack of bright colours made the whole thing very dark and gloomy, but I really liked this. The bass drop of the song really set the scene of the whole production as a mysterious and I feel all of the features throughout this video interlocked with each other, which is quite a difficult thing to find in music videos in this day and age.
After watching this production, I then went and watched the behind the scenes video. This gave me a real insight as to how much thought and knowledge went into the production as a whole. The most important technique the cast had to master was ensuring they knew their cue and when to appear within the production. With this, it would be crucial for everyone to do their best to complete their part in the production to the cue. As it's a one shot production, there are no cuts or second chances. It's all or nothing.
 |
| Behind the scenes of Havoc |
Another concept the directors would've had to take in the fact that the floor wouldn't have been possible to be in shot, as this is the pinnacle of the success throughout the video. the crash mats, camera dolly, lighting and wires would've been impossible to hide, and there would've been no other way of recording this shot. As there is so much going on in the video, nobody would tend to notice the fact the floor isn't visible.
The behind the scenes video was absolutely fantastic - I love the concept of having the shooting being recorded itself. With this, the director can look back and see it from other people's angles and points of views, and take into consideration any advice they have.
- - - - - - - - - - -
On the whole, I absolutely love this video. I really like the frame rate during the whole production as it gives a different touch and technique for the audience to enjoy. I really like André Chocron's work, and look forward to seeing him again in the future.
We had the pleasure of getting to recreate this video with our own twist, in both a class production and individual groups. Read the blog post here: Recreating Havoc
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://laughingsquid.com/havoc-by-while-you-slept-slow-motion-music-video-filmed-in-1-shot/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.frokostfilm.no - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
http://www.directorsnotes.com/2013/08/15/while-you-slept-havoc/ - accessed on 3rd-June-2014
Monday, 28 April 2014
What is a Camera Dolly?
A camera dolly is a specialised piece of film-making and television production equipment design to create smooth camera movements (cinematic techniques). The camera is mounted to the dolly and the camera operator and focus puller or camera assistant usually ride on the dolly to operate the camera. The dolly grip is the dedicated technician trained to operate the dolly.
Types
Studio dolly's are large, stable and can feature hydraulics. These are the first choice for studio, backlot and location shoots when using professional cameras. A studio dolly usually needs a specialised operator called a 'dolly grip', and many are built for the operator to ride on the dolly with the camera.
Lightweight dolly systems are more simple, affordable and are best used with lighter-weight cameras. Lightweight systems are usually favoured by independent filmmakers and students because they are easier to carry and operate. These dollies support only the camera, and the operator needs to move alongside. Some lightweight dollies are small enough to be carried in a backpack.
There are many films in which the 'dolly shot' is used, as it creates a steady camera angle. These are also known as tracking shots, as the camera follows a character or object during a scene in a smooth and paced direction to create a neat finish. I recently discovered this shot from The Avengers, which was filmed with a camera dolly.
In this scene, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) is being chased by The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). Whilst running through a tight narrow space, a camera dolly moves in a backwards motion within synchronicity to the character. This shot has also been slowed down to emphasise all of the explosions and scenery behind Black Widow. As a camera dolly has been used, the footage is much clearer that what it would've been if a hand-held camera was used.
There are many films and television productions that have used a camera dolly as it ensures a steady motioned shot which can be edited however many ways, and it makes it a lot easier as it is so still.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
https://vimeo.com/40689260 - accessed on 7th-May-2014
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_dolly - accessed on 7th-May-2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tffnWvaFkI - accessed on 18th-May-2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KBp9bw3iPw - accessed on 18th-May-2014
Types
Studio dolly's are large, stable and can feature hydraulics. These are the first choice for studio, backlot and location shoots when using professional cameras. A studio dolly usually needs a specialised operator called a 'dolly grip', and many are built for the operator to ride on the dolly with the camera.
Lightweight dolly systems are more simple, affordable and are best used with lighter-weight cameras. Lightweight systems are usually favoured by independent filmmakers and students because they are easier to carry and operate. These dollies support only the camera, and the operator needs to move alongside. Some lightweight dollies are small enough to be carried in a backpack.
 |
| Left: Studio dolly - Right: Lightweight dolly |
There are many films in which the 'dolly shot' is used, as it creates a steady camera angle. These are also known as tracking shots, as the camera follows a character or object during a scene in a smooth and paced direction to create a neat finish. I recently discovered this shot from The Avengers, which was filmed with a camera dolly.
In this scene, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) is being chased by The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). Whilst running through a tight narrow space, a camera dolly moves in a backwards motion within synchronicity to the character. This shot has also been slowed down to emphasise all of the explosions and scenery behind Black Widow. As a camera dolly has been used, the footage is much clearer that what it would've been if a hand-held camera was used.
There are many films and television productions that have used a camera dolly as it ensures a steady motioned shot which can be edited however many ways, and it makes it a lot easier as it is so still.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
https://vimeo.com/40689260 - accessed on 7th-May-2014
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_dolly - accessed on 7th-May-2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tffnWvaFkI - accessed on 18th-May-2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KBp9bw3iPw - accessed on 18th-May-2014
Wednesday, 16 April 2014
Documenting The Doing #26: Zombie Apocalypse
For the first day back after the Easter break, we had the most exciting production ever. A zombie apocalypse. What a way to start this term! Our tutors, Tim and Billy, had told us we would be shooting our footage on Plymouth Hoe. A big open space where we could really go to town with the video and make the most of the topic.
Our first section of this 1.5 day production was to come up with a plan of attack and an escape route we would take if this zombie apocalypse was to happen in real life. I, unfortunately, didn't really think this was serious and kind of came up with a random selection of ways to kill all the zombie's, and my friends helped me...
After we completed our plan of attacks, we had to decide what sort of 'costume' we would partake in during the film. Zombie's, victims or directors; and I personally chose a victim. This was because I'm pretty sensitive to anything with artificial colours/flavours on my face, so I couldn't wear any make-up. I was pretty gutted, as I quite fancied being a zombie!
When we reached Plymouth Hoe, we were split in to 6 mini groups to each film our own scene for the final mass edit we would be doing on Wednesday. With this, it was a better way to get more footage, and we would interlink groups together during editing. With just 90 minutes to film our mini scene, which had to be at least 2 minutes long, we had a lot of work to do. I worked with my colleagues Naomi Doddridge, Chloe Binding, Tyler Sinclair, Jess Mitchell-Fowle, Abi Cannings, Simon Childe and Matthew Jury. We began to film near the lighthouse, and really wanted to create a spooky atmosphere with this shoot, so we took things quite slowly in terms of camera angles and scene lengths.
Our first section of this 1.5 day production was to come up with a plan of attack and an escape route we would take if this zombie apocalypse was to happen in real life. I, unfortunately, didn't really think this was serious and kind of came up with a random selection of ways to kill all the zombie's, and my friends helped me...
After we completed our plan of attacks, we had to decide what sort of 'costume' we would partake in during the film. Zombie's, victims or directors; and I personally chose a victim. This was because I'm pretty sensitive to anything with artificial colours/flavours on my face, so I couldn't wear any make-up. I was pretty gutted, as I quite fancied being a zombie!
 |
| Zombie Apocalypse - fun plan |
We all made our way up to Plymouth Hoe; yes, all 50 of us, with 25 of us looking like full on Zombie's. The looks we were getting from the public were absolutely brilliant. Thankfully, the weather seemed to be on our side, it was mild and overcast but suited the mood and atmosphere for our shoot just fine.
 |
| Joe, Kim, Chloe & Charlie |
When we reached Plymouth Hoe, we were split in to 6 mini groups to each film our own scene for the final mass edit we would be doing on Wednesday. With this, it was a better way to get more footage, and we would interlink groups together during editing. With just 90 minutes to film our mini scene, which had to be at least 2 minutes long, we had a lot of work to do. I worked with my colleagues Naomi Doddridge, Chloe Binding, Tyler Sinclair, Jess Mitchell-Fowle, Abi Cannings, Simon Childe and Matthew Jury. We began to film near the lighthouse, and really wanted to create a spooky atmosphere with this shoot, so we took things quite slowly in terms of camera angles and scene lengths.
Our footage took the full 90 minutes to film, as we were given 2 main rules which we had to complete. The first rule was that we had to have a shot of a newspaper just gushing in the wind, and the second rule was we had to have the finishing scene shot in an enclosed environment, as if the victim was trapped and couldn't leave, just like a real horror film!
Our footage was finally complete, and after we had filmed our individual groups, the whole of the class came together in one mass zombie gathering at the end, completing a number of different scenes which would be included in our own final edit. These shots consisted of a number of different concepts, in which all the zombies would walk together towards the camera, and another using a GoPro, which ended up as a mass pile of zombies on top of Matt.
 |
| Final group shot - behind the scenes |
The shots above are taken from the making of the final shots which involved all the zombie's creating a group shot. It was absolutely hilarious being on this side of the camera and watching them all act - they were brilliant. Round of applause to the zombie's!
When it came to editing, myself and my colleagues; Matt Jury, Naomi Doddridge and Chloe Binding all decided to chip in and complete a group edit. This would save time for all of us, as we feel they would've been pretty similar had we have edited our own individual productions.
We chose to make the whole production black and white as this would create the correct atmosphere needed for the zombie technique. Before we began editing, we were given the soundtrack which would go over all of the sound of the production. There were points in this where it was slow pacing, and other points that were a lot faster. Our challenge was to synchronise the soundtrack with the footage, ensuring the theme of the sound would match the pace of the video.
In my opinion, I think our edit went really well. There are a few points, that looking back on, I would change. The section from 0.20-1.05 went on for a little too long, and should've perhaps had some cutaways of scenery around. However, with only 90 minutes to film, it was quite tricky to get everything spot on. My favourite part of our personal edit is the section at the end, when we see Tyler and Jess running from the zombie's into a dead end, and the camera is cutting from them to the group of zombie's.
I really enjoyed this production and hope we do something vaguely similar in the future. This time around, I would love to be the equivalent to a zombie as opposed to the victim!
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
Wednesday, 26 March 2014
Assignment 3: Evaluation - Looking Back
''The creative treatment of ACTUALITY is one of the greatest gifts a filmmaker can have.''
This whole assignment went so quickly in my eyes. We have done so many creative work within one day, one week and almost one month. I really enjoyed the mini-documentaries we completed as it gave an extreme time-limit on most of the productions and I really enjoyed working to strict daily deadlines.
1) Evaluate how you have grown and developed as a practitioner, during this assignment?
There are many ways I have developed during this whole assignment. Working on my own with pretty much nobody to help me was a real eye opener to how much I like working on my own. It gives a real element of my own understanding of filming, planning and editing during both short and long assignments and I feel I am ready to do even bigger productions in the future.
2) What two things were you most proud of?
I am most proud of the Pandora Advertisement that myself and my colleague, Naomi Doddridge completed about half-way through this assignment. We had about two weeks to complete it, including research, planning, filming and editing, and I feel as if we did an amazing job with it all. We're best friends, so working as a team was pretty easy and we were both into the topic of the advert, which made it extremely easy to look into and research around.
The second achievement I am most proud of is how my editing skills on Adobe Premier Pro have grown. Since purchasing a MacBook Pro and Adobe Creative Cloud, I have been able to complete a number of my own videos and productions at home in my own environment. This gives me again, the freedom of my own creativity in a way that I can't find in college. Being in my own space really helps me concentrate more on both blogs and editing.
3) What two things do you think you could improve in the future?
I have said this for every assignment, but I would improve how I manage my blog work. As our deadline was 2 months 'long' so to speak, I assumed we had loads of time to complete blogs, so I focused on the production side of things more. Research in blogs takes time and I need to realise that before I decide to leave things until the last minute.
The second thing I am going to improve is the level of my critiquing in blogs. I tend to do more of my own opinion without backing it up with evidence, and I feel like I am ready to take the leap and go into research next time I do a critique, as my writing skills are fine, but research need more work.
4) Write down some future targets you would like to achieve...
There is only one main target I would like to achieve, and that is being comfortable when being interviewed on camera. I feel really self conscious and anxious, and I prefer to operate the camera as opposed to being on it. Over the Easter holidays my friend is going to do some camera exercises to complete to try and make me more comfortable, so hopefully in the next assignment, it won't take me an hour to record a 5 minute interview.
Roll on the next assignment!
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
This whole assignment went so quickly in my eyes. We have done so many creative work within one day, one week and almost one month. I really enjoyed the mini-documentaries we completed as it gave an extreme time-limit on most of the productions and I really enjoyed working to strict daily deadlines.
1) Evaluate how you have grown and developed as a practitioner, during this assignment?
There are many ways I have developed during this whole assignment. Working on my own with pretty much nobody to help me was a real eye opener to how much I like working on my own. It gives a real element of my own understanding of filming, planning and editing during both short and long assignments and I feel I am ready to do even bigger productions in the future.
2) What two things were you most proud of?
I am most proud of the Pandora Advertisement that myself and my colleague, Naomi Doddridge completed about half-way through this assignment. We had about two weeks to complete it, including research, planning, filming and editing, and I feel as if we did an amazing job with it all. We're best friends, so working as a team was pretty easy and we were both into the topic of the advert, which made it extremely easy to look into and research around.
The second achievement I am most proud of is how my editing skills on Adobe Premier Pro have grown. Since purchasing a MacBook Pro and Adobe Creative Cloud, I have been able to complete a number of my own videos and productions at home in my own environment. This gives me again, the freedom of my own creativity in a way that I can't find in college. Being in my own space really helps me concentrate more on both blogs and editing.
3) What two things do you think you could improve in the future?
I have said this for every assignment, but I would improve how I manage my blog work. As our deadline was 2 months 'long' so to speak, I assumed we had loads of time to complete blogs, so I focused on the production side of things more. Research in blogs takes time and I need to realise that before I decide to leave things until the last minute.
The second thing I am going to improve is the level of my critiquing in blogs. I tend to do more of my own opinion without backing it up with evidence, and I feel like I am ready to take the leap and go into research next time I do a critique, as my writing skills are fine, but research need more work.
4) Write down some future targets you would like to achieve...
There is only one main target I would like to achieve, and that is being comfortable when being interviewed on camera. I feel really self conscious and anxious, and I prefer to operate the camera as opposed to being on it. Over the Easter holidays my friend is going to do some camera exercises to complete to try and make me more comfortable, so hopefully in the next assignment, it won't take me an hour to record a 5 minute interview.
Roll on the next assignment!
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
Documenting The Doing #25: The Final Documentary
It was time for the absolutely-final-amazingly-important documentary. You know something's important when you have to do every single bit of paperwork possible and have 3 final weeks to complete it in.
The final documentary. This was a real chance to show off my skills in every area possible. Planning, pitching, filming, editing, directing. It was all based on this one documentary. Exciting, but nerve-wracking. To make this more challenging for myself, I decided to throw myself completely into it and work on my own. This way, I know I could really showcase my creative side and put my ideas on the table, without having to try and push them on to anyone else.
It was extremely hard for me to settle on a particular topic. I went from Oreos, to perfume, to celebrities, but finally settled on country music. I knew this would be a pretty big challenge to film, as where in Devon is there anything to do with country music..? Thankfully, my auntie works at a caravan park, and the owners were kind enough to let me film in their clubhouse, which was designed in a country and western theme.
Week 1 was all about the planning. Getting all the paperwork together was a real challenge, as I just wanted to get out there and film. The first Monday it began, we were told we had to do a quick power-pitch, which would last no more than 2 minutes. Pretty informal, sitting at a desk, with my Prezi in front of me, showcasing my final idea off to one of my tutors.
When it came to the filming of the clubhouse, I ensured I recorded around 3 minutes worth of footage. With this, I would have more than enough shots and cutaways when it came to editing. I would mix this footage with a recording of myself talking about country music, and ensured that I mentioned something about working in a Texan bar and grill, therefore it would fit in with the film.
In the clubhouse, I filmed things like the jail that has been set up, the features on the wall and the bar area. This would then coincide with the country music film. I really wanted to make it seem genuine so I kept the orange-tinted colouring to fit in with the western-theme.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Editing
During editing, I had a bit of a problem figuring out how to keep my personal video and the sound in synchronicity with each other. The editing process was over 2 days as I had so much to do. I also wanted to gather clips of country music artists and festivals to slip in to break up me talking, and the country club. In documentaries I have seen previously, they have had archive footage from internet-based clips. I wanted to make my documentary as professional as possible so I saved a couple from YouTube and incorporated them in with what I say.
My colleague, Scott Friday, showed me many techniques on Adobe Premier Pro to enhance the footage and make it look extremely professional. When I was filming, I didn't use a tripod, and this meant the footage was a little shaky. As my idea was for the shots to pan, I wanted to make the whole thing as smooth and sleek as possible. With this, we used the Warp Stabilizer. This stabilizes the shot and stops it shaking, without seeming blurry.
The final edit was 2.5 minutes long. I made it this length so it wasn't dragging out for too long and still seemed interesting by the end. It was a challenge to pan it out for so long, as personally, I don't like talking in front of the camera. It's something I need to overcome a fear of during the Easter holidays so I can just crack on with it the next time I have an assignment like this.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Overall, I did really enjoy completing this production. My favourite part was filming at Chapmanwell Caravan Park, as this gave me the creative freedom I needed to explore an area I was particularly interesting. I thought I incorporated everything in the final edit really well.
The only couple of sections I would change during my production is I would find people to interview, as this would be another body in my production instead of just me. I feel like if I had done this, it would've looked even more professional, as nearly every documentary we see on the television, includes an interview of some sort.
I am really looking forward to completing my next individual project as I feel like I have much more to give and can be even more creative next time.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://www.chapmanswellcaravanpark.co.uk/ - accessed on 26th-March-2014
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_music - accessed on 26th-March-2014
http://www.youtube.com/ - accessed on 26th-March-2014
The final documentary. This was a real chance to show off my skills in every area possible. Planning, pitching, filming, editing, directing. It was all based on this one documentary. Exciting, but nerve-wracking. To make this more challenging for myself, I decided to throw myself completely into it and work on my own. This way, I know I could really showcase my creative side and put my ideas on the table, without having to try and push them on to anyone else.
 |
| Risk Assessment |
It was extremely hard for me to settle on a particular topic. I went from Oreos, to perfume, to celebrities, but finally settled on country music. I knew this would be a pretty big challenge to film, as where in Devon is there anything to do with country music..? Thankfully, my auntie works at a caravan park, and the owners were kind enough to let me film in their clubhouse, which was designed in a country and western theme.
 |
| Chapmanswell Caravan Park Clubhouse |
Week 1 was all about the planning. Getting all the paperwork together was a real challenge, as I just wanted to get out there and film. The first Monday it began, we were told we had to do a quick power-pitch, which would last no more than 2 minutes. Pretty informal, sitting at a desk, with my Prezi in front of me, showcasing my final idea off to one of my tutors.
I originally decided to aim my documentary at a younger audience, and hoping to bring country music to life with people my age and possibly even younger. I tried my hardest to determine the target audience during the filming and editing of the final piece however it was really hard. I filmed at an secluded location which none of my colleagues could access, so there was no possible way of me interviewing anyone. Time wasn't on my side and I just wanted to have something under my belt before the final deadline.
When it came to the filming of the clubhouse, I ensured I recorded around 3 minutes worth of footage. With this, I would have more than enough shots and cutaways when it came to editing. I would mix this footage with a recording of myself talking about country music, and ensured that I mentioned something about working in a Texan bar and grill, therefore it would fit in with the film.
In the clubhouse, I filmed things like the jail that has been set up, the features on the wall and the bar area. This would then coincide with the country music film. I really wanted to make it seem genuine so I kept the orange-tinted colouring to fit in with the western-theme.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Editing
During editing, I had a bit of a problem figuring out how to keep my personal video and the sound in synchronicity with each other. The editing process was over 2 days as I had so much to do. I also wanted to gather clips of country music artists and festivals to slip in to break up me talking, and the country club. In documentaries I have seen previously, they have had archive footage from internet-based clips. I wanted to make my documentary as professional as possible so I saved a couple from YouTube and incorporated them in with what I say.
 |
| Editing process |
My colleague, Scott Friday, showed me many techniques on Adobe Premier Pro to enhance the footage and make it look extremely professional. When I was filming, I didn't use a tripod, and this meant the footage was a little shaky. As my idea was for the shots to pan, I wanted to make the whole thing as smooth and sleek as possible. With this, we used the Warp Stabilizer. This stabilizes the shot and stops it shaking, without seeming blurry.
The final edit was 2.5 minutes long. I made it this length so it wasn't dragging out for too long and still seemed interesting by the end. It was a challenge to pan it out for so long, as personally, I don't like talking in front of the camera. It's something I need to overcome a fear of during the Easter holidays so I can just crack on with it the next time I have an assignment like this.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Overall, I did really enjoy completing this production. My favourite part was filming at Chapmanwell Caravan Park, as this gave me the creative freedom I needed to explore an area I was particularly interesting. I thought I incorporated everything in the final edit really well.
I am really looking forward to completing my next individual project as I feel like I have much more to give and can be even more creative next time.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://www.chapmanswellcaravanpark.co.uk/ - accessed on 26th-March-2014
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_music - accessed on 26th-March-2014
http://www.youtube.com/ - accessed on 26th-March-2014
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