My Original Plan:
In the beginning, I had the idea of shooting a variety of establishing shots of the surrounding city of Sheffield. I would then go on to add a colour filter over each different shot and add text along with the occasional over-layed image. I also wanted to involve foreshadowing with regards to how the programme would play out. The idea still stands that it is the title sequence for a fictional drama series rather than a documentary.
In terms of live-action shoots and graphic post-production elements I had originally set-out to make the majority of the sequence live-action and only add in post-production graphics where they were needed. I always find it is good to have a balance with the two.
During the early stages of pre-production each of us were given the task of located title sequences we were familiar with and choosing three of them to analyse. With this task I set out to find the main features of the three sequences I found most interesting and influential and then propose an idea which would elaborate on how I would incorporate these features into my final project. As well as this method of research I also set-out to gather information on my chosen sin, ‘Greed’. However, I did not dedicate much of my time towards this as I was simply looking for the punishments for the sin along with a small number of trivial facts which I could translate into my own piece of work.
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What worked out:
In the end, I settled for going almost full graphics, except I maintained my rule of trying to find a reasonable balance between the two. For example, there are shots of disturbed water in the background during several shots. This was shot practically, at home, and then additional graphics were over-layed.
The characters which appeared in the title sequence were live-action but given a solid fill therefore creating a sort of silhouette. This is very much a nod to the effective artistic success of the Bond title sequences which feature mainly silhouettes of men and women with vivid, moving backdrops.
Some elements of the sequence which were supposed to interact with the actors were computer generated and so this would prove to be somewhat challenging in post-production. However, upon completing the title sequence I found that such objects as the gun at the very beginning, seen to be in the hands of the greed character, worked well and was hardly recognizable as an object added in after filming. I believe that this was due to adding the motion blur to the layers with added shapes really advantaged the blending of the live-action layer and the shape added in After Effects.
The same applied for the bullet which hits the second actor who plays the rich victim; though these are minuscule details they still count towards selling the effects and contributing to the pacing of the sequence so it was always important I maintained a realistic pace and made all interactive objects appear to be in the same environment as the actors. This effect also proved to be successful and there were no major problems in its development.
The fact that there were no test shoots prior to the eventual shooting of the project only contributes to the positive outcome of the sequence; I simply discussed possible approaches I would take towards the final shoot in the proposal and then, when put into practice, forwarded the methods which worked well. I had reviewed some After Effects walk-throughs regarding the animation of text. I already had some experience in animating text with the software beforehand however it advantaged me, largely, to have viewed the tutorials as I was able to mix my prior knowledge with that of the new discoveries. The outcome of text animation is demonstrated during the shot where the title of the programme is revealed.
Challenges:
Though, for the most part, I was extremely pleased with the final product there were one or two different challenges throughout the entire production process. Some were more important than others. For example, one challenge which I encountered was that I had created a computer generated balcony for one of the silhouettes to be stood on. This would add to the artistic portrayal of wealth and how this character soon falls into the role of the victim and is murdered by the character overcome with greed. We see a bullet enter the scene from the right-hand side of the shot and the character is hit with blood appearing from their back. This character then falls backwards off of the balcony and the front barrier is taken down with them.
When reviewing the footage after editing the images together I found that I had sliced the balcony layers in half and placed them below the live action footage layer. This was evident on playback as we see the actor behind the balcony layer and then when the bullet hits they suddenly appear to be over the top of all the balcony layers and therefore in front of the railings. This was easily taken care of as I simply relocated the live action layer,which was also sliced in half and turned into a freeze frame layer then animated, and placed it below the two balcony layers which would, visibly, be placed in front of the character.
Another challenge which surfaced came to light after the completion of the project. Members of staff had reviewed the finished sequence and applauded my artistic approach. However, they had realized that on the final shot, which features the titles of the hypothetical TV programme, I had placed the rather large number seven out of proportion with the TV safe borders. This meant that rather than having the number seven visibly covering the top and bottom of shot it was edging further towards the bottom and therefore appeared to be cut short and falling out of shot.Originally, I set-out to make it touch the top and bottom of the shot and then have the remaining words of the title smaller but surrounding the larger number seven. I was already aware of the TV safe border rule where you have to keep text and objects of significance, and relevance, within the boundaries of what is visible on-screen.
I had attempted to go back through and correct this along with additional pieces of text which were deliberately placed to the corners of shot but found that the software was acting strange. After a while I decided it was best to leave the product as it was; For the most part it was a success and not only was I satisfied with the outcome but the feeling appeared mutual with the staff members who had reviewed it. The problems which came to-light in the final product, in some ways, show my progression and how, next time, I will aim to remember the rules and better the positioning of relevant text.
One other challenge I faced with the final product was that the shot with the official title, ‘The Seven Deadly Sins’ was not on-screen for long enough to be registered. This was another minor problem picked-up by staff. They asked if I could extend the duration of the title shot so that it was easily read by audiences. I instantly took it upon myself to go back through and correct this problem. After a brief moment of time re-mapping in After Effects the shot was completed and though there was still a slightly fast pace to it the shot lasted longer and did not tamper with the overall pacing of the shots and of the music.
Conclusion for final product:
In conclusion to my final product, I believe that there were more positives to be celebrated as apposed to negatives; Of course there were one or two challenges faced throughout the production of the piece but I am hard-pressed to recall a project which does not come with challenges. Each time I encountered a challenge, during this project, I would instantly set myself the task of finding ways to overcome it and it did not take long before I had several ideas of how I could better the production process and work towards completing the sequence.
However, I cannot take all the credit for overcoming the challenges; The people I have worked with on the piece were extremely helpful in assisting me to achieve the shots I needed. All the actors were enthusiastic and keen to put their own twist on the performance of the silhouette-based characters. When it came to post-production we each help each other out by suggesting ideas for creating better shots and movement within the sequence or even to overcome problems with the green screen.
Admittedly, I would have been happier going back and sorting out the issues with the positioning of text as I would have fully achieved the look that I wanted for my title sequence but sometimes a project is not as successful if it lacks one or two, minor imperfections. Of course, next time a project requires creative use of text I will bare in mind the TV Safe rule and make sure I do not misplace certain elements of the piece. Having been familiar with this rule beforehand it should not be hard to remember for next time.
Feedback:
Having screened the final product to the class I have received a considerable amount of feedback. All was extremely positive however there is always room for constructive criticism and, as mentioned earlier, this was provided by the members of staff who previewed the sequence shortly after it was uploaded. Whilst the sequence was screened in-session some of the students put-forward their views on it including the fact that it was artistic and a well balance of live-action and graphics. These were the outcomes I originally hoped to achieve and since other members of the class noticed this I felt that the project was successful and the feedback was of a perceptive nature.
One of the first reactions to the piece, provided by the current member of staff, was confusion; They found that, although it was enjoyable, the sheer pacing and the variety of events taking place threw their concentration off balance. They each understood that the sin was greed as there were several references to people stealing money from others and even the word, ‘Greed’ was displayed on-screen for two seconds. Many enjoyed the use of the silhouettes and found that hey added to the artistic and edgy atmosphere. This proved that I had achieved what I wanted to achieve through my methods of shooting and planning.
As I stated before, I wanted to achieve a successful balance between live-action camera work and computer generated imagery. Since this did not seem to, majorly, disadvantage the style of the sequence, make it difficult for the audience to focus on the movements, I can only feel satisfied and at-ease with the final project despite the small imperfections.
Brandon Hobson 
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