Friday 17th March 2017- I have completed my proposal.

I have gathered together ideas to form a short synopsis for my final major project. I now have a clear idea of what I want to do.

I did this to ensure that when asked to explain my idea I have a clear list of all details regarding my project and what it offers as a unique product. This planning also allows me to tell people who my target audience will be and what requirements there will be for the production of my project.

One problem I encountered in completing the proposal was staying close to the word count. I tended to over complicate my explanations and add unnecessary extension to my sentences.

However, after having it proof read by a member of staff I was able to cut down each section to a reasonable few sentences. Each detailed but brief. This will help me improve my writing skills when approached with a word count in future; Be it through an evaluation or risk assessment or checklist.

With that established, I will be able to focus on the more important and perhaps practical aspects of my project.

Friday 24th March 2017- I have completed my presentation for my pitch.

I have ran through my idea and given reasons for why it is a unique approach to an adventure film project. I added images to further elaborate on the types of shots I want to use in my final project.

When first creating the presentation I was unsure how I could be more extensive with my explanations. I was unsure how I could further elaborate on how I would achieve a final look for my film.

However, after reflecting back on the presentation and returning to previous pages I managed to give more detail and explain why I had chosen certain themes and events in the project.

For future projects, I believe that being able to add more detail when explaining an idea will have a great advantage over my planning as the people  work with will be more confident in knowing what my idea is and how I intend to create it.

Now I may consider which shots will involve movement and which shots will be still. The brief discussion of shot types in my presentation will now influence me to go out and capture test shots which will be the same shot types I will use in my final project.

Friday 31st March 2017- I have completed my pitch and a presentation explaining, in detail, my idea. In doing so I demonstrated my developed communication skills and as well as the amount of detail I had injected into my final major project idea.

I have been granted the director’s position and have chosen the rest of my group and their individual roles. This has allowed myself and the others to begin research into techniques they may use.

I have begun researching the locations out in the Peak District where I intend to film the remainder of, ‘Gateways’. I have begun recording these locations in a PowerPoint document along with two mood boards displaying the colour scheme I am aiming for and shot types. This has allowed me to be more detailed with my demands to the other members of the group. (Cinematographer: I Can show what type of shots and looks I want for the final product).

Before carrying out my pitch I was told to cut down the text in my presentation. This, at first, was a set-back as I had worked on collecting information for the document and suddenly had to transfer it all into a word document and use it as a prompt for my actual speech during the pitch.

With all of this done I can now focus on moving forward with production and perhaps start creating a storyboard and/or shooting script.

Friday 7th April 2017-

This week I have completed secondary research based on my specific role. I looked up different scenes from films which had relevant features to what I am aiming to achieve (Camera Movements/Character Placements/Shot Types/etc). I looked at how actors were placed and how they were directed to interact with their surroundings. I recorded all of this in a presentation and on a post on WordPress. This was extremely useful as it allowed me to understand how certain methods were used in other films. It also allowed me to be able to gather ideas for my shot list which I have also started this week. At first, I struggled to find much more research to carry out for the presentation. However, I managed to move on to looking at locations I wanted to shoot at and recorded each of them in the presentation along with what is going to be happening in them.

Also, I have created a survey and placed it in the T1B group page on Facebook. This was useful as each question was regarding films of relevant genres to Gateways. I asked what methods were most admirable by the chosen audience and am still receiving responses. This was also very helpful as it allowed me to understand what audiences are looking for and whether they will enjoy what I am planning to do.

I have used Harvard referencing to record all my sources of research so far. As of now, I have mainly referenced the books I have used but will go on to reference websites I used as resources. This will all count towards bettering my abilities in the art of Harvard referencing. Especially, with future projects.

I am now moving on to carry out more primary research along with some experimental work. This may be testing camera movements I referenced in the Research Portfolio post and testing some additional methods.

Friday 28th April 2017- I have carried out a series of research methods including a survey, in relation to primary research, and moodboards with examples of shots I would like in relation to secondary research.

At first, I was told that the survey was not necessary however, I carried the idea forward and received helpful responses. From the responses I received, I was able to begin writing out a script and even make a start to my AV list.

I have almost completed my AV script and aim to have it done, at latest, by the end of next Wednesday, the third of May.

As mentioned earlier, I completed the script and will add a few minor alterations where needed. After having my script looked over by a member of staff, I was told to change the narrator to the main character as it made more sense being that they were the only character on-camera throughout. At first, I was unsure whether or not this would make any negative changes to my project and therefore felt hesitant to make that change.

However, after a brief moment of consideration I found that it did indeed make more sense and would not dramatically alter my idea. Now, with the script completed, I can focus on moving towards making the storyboard and even finish off the AV script before my chosen deadline. These complications helped me put my initiative back into practice and find a more rational decision.

Friday 5th May 2017- This week we traveled out to the Peak District on an experimentation day. This meant that my group and I were able to test a series of shot sizes, camera movements, Foley recordings and location scouting techniques.

Whilst there, myself and the cinematographer tested out a shot which involved the actor running along a pathway at the top of a hill in the far distance. The intention with this shot was to have the sky in shot and disappearing behind the grass. The sky would act as a backdrop for the actor to run along and even create a mild silhouette effect over the actor as they ran from one end of shot to the other. The setting up of the shot and the final look was of an exceptional standard. We used the Telephoto lens which was able to zoom in from a great distance and make the actor more visible on-camera.

XLS TEST

However, the biggest complication was communication; Being that we were rather distanced from the actor, verbally directing was not as simple as it would have been if closer-placed. Sometimes, when trying to give the actor directions he would confuse my attempt at communication for a sign telling him to begin acting out the given situation. Before starting the set-up we agreed to communicate via mobile with the actor. When unsure of what was next, the actor simply called us, and vice-versa, until we were sure of what was next. This ensured there were a minimal amount of complications when actually carrying out the shoot.

This bettered my directing skills and tested their limits as I put into practice directing from a distance as opposed to sticking to basic, up-front directing. Being that the shot still turned out the way we, as a group, wanted it to I believe my skills were added to as well as the cinematographer’s who helped put together our initiative and find a more useful technique for capturing the shot.

 

Friday 12th May 2017-This week I have traveled out to the chosen locations and shot my final project. As a whole, the process was successful as we captured a good majority of the shots we needed in order to make the final edit run smoothly.

However, upon further reviewing of the footage my group realized that there were one or two continuity errors. For example, in one shot the protagonist of the film crosses the road wearing a black coat. In the next shot he enters the scene from the left now wearing a backpack. This would bring up a lot of questions with regards to how he came to put on the backpack between the two consecutive shots.

We are now in the early stages of editing the film together and so the answers to these questions will soon be found.

We filmed in all three locations listed for the Peak District over the two days we were out there and encountered hardly any complications. Of course, we had to make sure all shots filmed in a certain location were filmed before we moved on to the next location and so this set us back slightly meaning we had less time to film in the next location. This was more of an issue when shooting, day three, in the city center.

Another set back was that, when directing the drone operator I was informed that the live feedback of the footage being captured was missing in the software. This was a technical fault which affected all of the drone operators and the different groups wanting aerial views for their projects. However, we still shot the footage and now have two files which we will be able to pick apart in order to find some footage, caught by the drone, which would be visually satisfying.

I believe my directing was successfully carried out as we were able to capture all the shots and moments, from the script, that I wanted. However, when shots began to make less sense upon comparing with the shooting log we, as a group, had to find a compromise and come to an agreement on whether we should alter shots or dispose of them completely. In the end, the best part of the footage was true to my original ideas and did not disappoint me in any way.

One major complication I faced this week was when myself and another member of the group realized a piece of equipment was missing. This piece of equipment being the Marantz kit which held all high quality audio from the film. After realizing we had left it out in the last location we shot at we decided to head, with a member of staff, back out to the Peak District and, spontaneously, found the Marantz recorder laying in the grass, unharmed. This problem was quickly overcome as we were able to upload all of the audio files the next day and found no problems when reviewing them back.

All of these set backs were useful experiences as I now know what to expect, in the future, and how I can avoid these complications the next time around. I am now going to begin working on the visual effects for the film over the entirety of next week. I will also record my progression as I go along.

Friday 19th May 2017-This week has been largely dedicated to working on the visual effects on the final footage.

In doing so, I believe that for a majority of the time the process has gone well. When working on such scenes as the scenes set out in the Peak District, I was able to successfully track the camera’s movement and translate it onto the computer-generated element that was the gateway in order to make sure it looked part of the scene and not just something added on without consideration.

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However, there were several complications and one being that during a moment where the protagonist puts his hand through the gateway and scares the man walking by, there was no clear shot of the actor’s hand that could be used as part of the C.G. element. When I added the gateway effect then rotoscoped the hand I found that it was no horizontal, as it should have been, and the lighting was considerably brighter and did not fit in with the blank plate in the background.

To overcome this problem, I decided to add an alteration to the script and have the protagonist explain that his abilities were not always easily hidden, in the narration. This allowed me to still use the reaction shot/ cameo of Behzad, the cinematographer, and add a comedic touch to the scene. When added in, no interruptions were made and the pacing of the edit was stable. As a whole, there were no noticeable changes which would disrupt the delivery of the remaining scenes.

As a whole, the editing of the visual effects on Gateways, this week, has been considerably pleasing even if it came with some complications. It has proven to be a productive past three days and I have managed to complete almost all shots involving visual effects. Next week, I will continue on to complete the remaining visual effects and supervise the crew as we work towards the completion of my final major project.

Friday 26th May 2017- This week, I dedicated my time to finishing off all of the Visual Effects for, ‘Gateways’. I have now, successfully, completed all of the effects and have sent them to the sound mixer to add in all Foley and additional Sound effects as well as the narration from the actor.

I have also completed the titles which appear at the beginning of the movie. They, to, are of an exceptional standard. However, with both the visual effects and the titles there were several set-backs and one being that when I first started on the effects  I set myself a target to have them finished at the beginning of this week. However, there was one specific shot where the protagonist first steps into the gateway and there was an unbearable amount of rotoscoping to complete in one single session. As well as this, there were several times where I observed certain shots, with effects added, and just could not determine what it was I did not like about them. After a short while, I managed to bring the shots up to the standard I thought was most acceptable and these problems were soon fixed.

In confronting these issues, I believe I have further adapted my time management skills and have begun setting myself more realistic deadlines for pieces of work. As well as this, I believe I have developed my rotoscoping skills as the quality of the effect appeared better than it had when experimenting. Of course, not all dedication of my time went into rotoscoping during experimentation week but, all the same, there is still a clear sign of development within my rotoscoping skills.