Evaluation Question Seven

Preliminary exercise: Continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule.
Research
For the preliminary task we didn't do any research about the genre of the prelim because it was just practicing shots and breaking the 180 degree rule, however for our film opening we researched the typical conventions of a black comedy and we also researched actresses in the films and the music. A lot of detail went in to the planning so that we could get a good representation of what our film genre is.
Titles
For the titles of 'Neighbours' we looked into the film 'Heathers'. At first i used a sans-serif text for the titles to denote the twisted theme throughout the film. However with feedback i decided to change this because "It didn't connote the dark comedy of 'neighbours'"- Alex Vanzomerplaag.

Therefore i changed it to a red text and it was 3D, this came across as rather comical; connoting the high school location. However this came across as too happy and not dark enough for the dark comedy. 

This also didn't connote the dark comedy of the film; and focussed to much on the high school location. The audience watching this connoted that it was a happy teenage film. Much like mean girls, however our film is more based on the film 'Heathers'. Therefore i changed t again to a darker serif font. I kept it like this because of the distressed bold text it connotes dark high school.

I kept with this because it is black and bold and also connotes high school, the distressed serif text also connotes the dark high school theme. I also moved the titles around the screen to attract the audience's eyes around the screen. I took inspiration from the film 'Heathers'. I used the location of the scenes to spot the titles around.

For the prelim we didn't use any titles we just got straight on with the task.

Planning

• For the preliminary task we planned by using storyboards to plan the shots.

First we got into partners and we filmed each other using the 180 degree rule.

• For 'Neighbours' we planned by creating the storyboard for each of the different scenes. We also created the call list and the shot list for 'Neighbours' to make sure that everything went smoothly during filming. However throughout the process of filming some camera shots were changed or added.
• We also created a group chat of our actresses to plan filming times and to plan when we were all free. Filming happened over a period of 4 weeks' due to there being six of us it was difficult to plan when we were all available.
  
• This is an example of our group chat and discussion about when we are available for filming.

Time Management

The prelim was a brief shoot and a quick turnaround, we filmed the prelim in an hour however for our film 'Neighbours' overall we filmed for 5 hours in multiple locations. Opening for a bigger project we needed far more planning for a larger cast and more technologies were used throughout the production of 'Neighbours'. We managed multiple shoots.

Shoot one was in Izzy's house (filmed by Rian)

Shoot two was fimed in Niamh's house (filmed by Niamh)

Shoot three was filmed in Ilkley Grammar School (Filmed by Rian and Niamh)

Shoot four was flmed in Ben Rhydding Graveyard filmed by (Rian and Niamh)

Shoot five was filimed in Niamhs house (filmed by Niamh)

Our time managment for the film could've been better throughout, we had a deadline and we did stick to this deadline however we complete the filming within the last two days of the deadline. We had to complete the graveyard shoot later that planned due to us filming in December; the weather was temperamental. Initially we planned to shoot the graveyard scene in the early days around the 8th of December; however we ended up filming on the 14th of December.

Pitches

Initially we had to pitch our ideas that we had constructed in front of the class to pitch who was working with who. Me and Niamh decided to work together because both our initial film ideas involved the protagonist being female and being set in a high school. Although Nimah's initial idea was heavy based on the realism of films and mine was based on murders we compromised and our films came together.

 Instead of the protagonist being a part of the clique like initally planned she is seperate from the group and alone. Where as instead of the protagonist being a gender stereotypical girl she is a countertype.

Casting

The casting for the preliminary task was simply created by opportunity, we used the people in our class surrounding us. This is because they were all on similar time schedules and they were in the class together that day. Therefore we didn't think about the genre roles or the age and appearance. The characters didn't have a particular role therefore there was no key genre types needed or roles to play. No dialect was used therefore we didn't need to think to deeply into the key roles, it was our actors walking into the scene and sitting down on the chair.

 However for our film 'Neighbours' our casting was thought through in detail. We needed three girls that were relatively the same height so that when walking through the corridor they looked simultaneous and they looked coordinated. We also needed the antagonist to be shorter with darker hair. This helps the antagonist stand out from the clique and be able to wear darker clothing.

 We used Sarah for the antagonist because she is shorter and she also has dark brown hair helping her to look like a darker character than the clique. We used Izzy as the main protagonist due to her being taller than the other girls; helping her stand out and represent her being the leader of the clique. The two other girls as part of the clique were a similar height to Sarah therefore they can blend into the background. The girls were also wearing pink lipstick and this represents the clique staying together.

 If we had more time we would introduce a male protagonist for the secondary audience being males and older females. Introducing a male would also bring in the possibility of a romance, therefore the film 'Neighbours'; would tie into a romance genre. attracting a wider audience.

 From the prelim until producing and planning our film 'Neighbours' I have learnt that it is effective to choose your cast correctly for the preferred reading. For example for 'Neighbours' I wanted it to be

clear that Izzy was the main protagonist and that Sarah was the antagonist throughout. Therefore the height of the girls and there overall appearance was key. In the prelim we used random cast members to film, if you were watching as an audience member it may be confusing as to why there two characters are meeting.

Mis-en-scene

The mis-en-scene throughout the film was key for the representations and for us to get the preferred reading across to the audience.

 Throughout the film 'Neighbours' we didn't use many props due to most of the shoots being outside and using clothing as strong representation of personalities. We printed off photographs of our friends and stuck them on a wall, whilst Sarah (antagonist) crosses them off, this was to get the preferred reading off the audience that Sarah is the killer and has killed this girl - linking to the graveyard scene.

 Another prop that we used was the letter and the candles surrounding the letter (the letter is being read out as an voice over in that last 30 seconds on Neighbours). We used tea candles to surround the letter to give the impression of something that isn't quite right and that there is an ambiguity behind the letter; a dark past between Isabelle (Izzy) and Sarah.

 Costume was key in our film 'Neighbours;, we used costume and make-up to portray the girls as being binary opposites and who is part of the clique and who isn't apart of the clique (Sarah). For costume for the clique (running order from left to right);

Amy is wearing a white top with blue jeans and we added a pink and purple kimono to add a feminine touch.

Izzy is wearing black jeans with a white top also, then is wearing a light blue denim jacket, this lightens up the outfit and helps the audience connote that she is apart of the clique and is more feminine in comparison to Sarah.

Rian is wearing a white top also, and black jeans. She is also wearing a clack jacket from Zara; which is a popular retailer.

All the clique members are using handbags for school bags and they are also all wearing white tops and pink lipstick. We did this to connote that they are tied together and they are all apart of the clique. When the shot pans over to Sarah we see the contrast; Sarah is wearing a dark jacket and dark jeans. Sarah is also not wearing the same dark pink lipstick. We took inspiration from the film 'Mean Girls' when they all wear pink and they have a strict dress code within their clique.

 when the clique visit the graveyard together they are all wearing black which again juxtaposing the clothing they wear to school. This is showing respect for the dead. Wear as Sarah is standing in the background; she is actually wearing a lighter coloured jacket. Showing that there is no respect coming from Sarah. Leaving the audience questioning why isn't she respecting the dead. At the end this all becomes clear; Sarah was the on to kill this girl in that the clique were visiting in the grave. Sarah crosses off her face on the wall.

 Whereas for the prelim we didn't think about costume, we filmed in the clothing that we came in, the props that we used was a piece of paper that connoted a important piece of information. We also used tables and chairs to film the shot reverse shot that we had to involve in the prelim.

 Location Scouting

For our location choices we had to choose carefully for the shoot that involved the graveyard and also for the housing section showing that these two girls are neighbours.

 For the prelim we had to choose an area within the grounds of school wear there was space to walk through a door, sit down and pass a piece of paper over to the other character. We chose the courtyard cafe. This involved a door and walking in a straight line towards the table and chair where the other character was already waiting.

 For neighbours there was more than one location that we had to choose. Overall there were four different locations that we chose.

-School grounds

-Niamh' house

-Izzy's house

-Graveyard

We chose Izzy's house because it is a terraced house on a quiet road therefore we were able to film an establishing shot of Sarah and Izzy walking out of their houses - showing that they are neighbours.

We chose Niamhs house to film Sarah waking up because of Sarahs character being indie and darker we needed the mis-en-scene of her bedroom to be darker than Izzy's. Niamh had a tie-dye cloth hanging above Sarahs bed; connoting that she is more individual than Izzy, whose bedroom was white and bland.

We chose Ben Rhydding graveyard because it is quiet, this helped with our choice because we didn't want to be disrespectful to family members buried there. We chose the grave located in the corner of the graveyard, with the most natural light, so that the shot wasn't dark and didn't have lighting issues in the editing.

We then also chose Ilkley Grammar School because it was our natural environment and it involved long corridors that we were able to use for long shots of the clique walking down the corridor. We had to wait till the end of the day to film this scene sue to getting consent of surrounding members of the school being in the shots. Therefore by the end of the day there were very view people left in the school, and also this gave the effect that the school was eerie, helping the darkness of the film.

Sample Shoots

For the prelim there wasn't any sample shots, we simply planned with a story board and then went in to our decided location and filmed the prelim. We did this due to a short time frame and the fact that the prelim only had to be a few seconds long. However from doing practice shots of 'Neighbours' i would've done practice shots of the prelim to help me created the intended effect.

 For 'Neighbours' we did a couple sample shoots to get the idea of how we could make the school look eerie and we found that some shots worked better than others. An advantage of the sample shots that we filmed, some went very well and we were able to involved them into our final cut of 'Neighbours' helping the mis-en-scene for the audience to get an image on their heads of what the school and other locations are like.

Audience Feedback

Audience feedback on the preliminary exercise was whether it was shot and edited correctly or not. The feed back that I got was mainly positive, we involved the shot reverse shot and we also broke the 180 degree rule. However I could edited the prelim better by adding a introduction to what the audience is about to watch; however the continuity worked very well.

 The audience feedback for 'Neighbours' was vital for the help of our production and editing of our final cut. Initially we didn't have the voice over of the letter reading out for Sarah to never come back. There audience feedback was that weren't sure about what was happening and what was Sarah's motives to kill these girls - Madeline Wormold. Therefore I added the voiceover to add the extra information that Sarah and Izzy had a background and that Sarah has come back even though Izzy told her to never come back in the letter. We also have the overlapping shots of the younger girls playing, connoting that Sarah and Izzy used to be friends.

Rough Cuts

The rough cut for the prelim task was the end task, because they were intended as rough cuts. Some shots needed re-filming because of this being the first time I used a camera, some shots were shaky and we missed out some vital continuity shots. Therefore they were re-filmed and edited into the final cut of the prelim.

 My film 'Neighbours' had 4 rough cuts, some with music, some without and the final cut then had the final improved music. Also there were rough cuts with testing the titles for the film and as we filmed more scenes we added them to the rough cuts, creating more rough cuts to upload to youtube and then embed to our blog.

Sound editing and creating original sound tracks

 We used Final Cut Pro's already downloaded music for the prelim on a loop. This was continuous and rather boring. If the prelim was any longer than 30 seconds this would have to be changed because the audience would loose interest.

 For my film 'Neighbours' I created my own soundtrack using garage band on the mac. This was my first time using garage band on a mac; therefore it took a while to understand and create a soundtrack that flowed and gave the intended sound and effect that I wanted. I used the pre-recorded tracks down the right hand side column, I put theses on a loop, with multiple tracks overlapping it added the effect that the tension was rising thought out the film. I allowed the music to fade out at the end of 'Neighbours' I did this in garage band by editing the sound volume by double clicking on the track that I wanted to fade out. Overall I changed the music around three times to get the intended sound for the effect of building tension. I wanted there to be a sudden change in the tone of the music when the audience began to understand or get the preferred reading that Sarah and Izzy had a dark background. This soundtrack is playing throughout the opening two minutes of 'Neighbours'. This is non-diegetic music throughout.

 We also used another type of non-diegetic music at the end of the two minutes. The reading of the letter aloud by Izzy (ready by Niamh). This is the only dialogue in the opening two minutes. There is no diegetic dialogue because I felt it would take away from the soundtrack created on garage band. From the prelim I have learnt how much of an effect music can have on the reading of the film by the audience. Showing an audience my film without any music, the feedback was that is became quite boring and the timings of the shots happened too quick to realise what is happening. (Alex Vanzomerplaag). Adding the music to the beat of the interlocking shots in the begging played well and already brings the audience into the film more than without music. If we had added music to the beat of the shots in the prelim we could've emphases the importance of the piece of paper. However I just used the same music all the way through;  keeping the tone and intentions the same all the way through even though this wasn't my preferred reading.

Company Idents

We didn't create idents for our prelim, however for my film 'Neighbours' me and Niamh both created ident that appear in the final cut of the film. The ident shows that you were apart of producing the film. Niamh's ident is a light bulb being smashed and brightness studios appearing. My ident is a cake with icing sugar powered over it saying 'Scaife Studios'.

Range of FX used

 Effects that I used in the preliminary task were limited, I added sound effects of footsteps as we filmed the close shot of Alex's feet walking toward the camera.

 However in the film 'Neighbours' I used a variety of effects. Including; split screen, double exposure, opacity and different transitions to create the sense of Sarah's thought processes. 

I initially used double exposure to help the audience connote that there is a history between these two protagonists (Sarah and Isabelle) and help to get the preferred reading. I did this by added the clip of two girls and overlapped them to Sarah overlooking the three protagonists in the graveyard scene.

I then used double exposure again to create the effect that the world is spinning and everything is happening quickly. Using the panning shot of the graveyard and the tracking shot of Sarah following the three protagonists in the graveyard. I also increased the speed of Sarah walking to 50%. This creating the sense of urgency and the fast pace added some tension for the audience. 

 Finally I used double exposure to get the preferred reading form the audience by adding the panning shot of the letter to Sarah crossing off a face on  her wall. Then I had the letter being read out by Isabelle to make it clear for the audience to understand the letter and why the girls have a history. But still leaving some ambiguity for the audience as to what motives Sarah has to kill these girls. 

 Another effect that I used was split screen of Sarah and the three protagonists walking through the main entrance of school. I used the split screen to show that Sarah was following the girls with her eyes. An issue I had with this was that the timing was different between Sarah's eyes following the girls walking. Therefore to get around this issue I slowed down Sarah's shot so the timing was correct. It also added dramatic effect for the audience. 

 Finally when Sarah and Isabelle were getting ready I used split screen and quick interlocking shots to show the binary opposition between the two protagonists. This showed how they got ready and how they are very different. The mis-en-scene helped with this. Helping the audience connote clearly how the girls are different. It also helped the denote the mis-en-scene of the girls. 

 Another effect I used was transitions in the graveyard scene when focussing on Sarah's face. The close shot of her fact combined with the double exposure gave the effect that this is in Sarah's memory and she is deeply thinking about the past as she looks at Isabelle in the graveyard.

Range of shots used

 Focusing on the graveyard scene we used a variety of shots to add tension and a sense of ambiguity to the scene; as to why Sarah is there and why the clique are there looking over the grave. We used a variety of non linear shots because in the film 'Neighbours' overall it's linear however in the graveyard scene there was no necessary shots that needed to be before each other. We used close shots of Sarah's face to pick up the detail of her face and this enables the audience to connote her eyes and how she is focusing on the three girls wearing black at the grave. I then then shot some medium shots of Sarah to show where she was behind the girls. Over the shoulder shots were also filmed to get a perspective of Sarah on her view of the girls. This added a sense of tension and darkness to the film. Finally we also shot a panning shot of the whole graveyard to give a view of the mis-en-scene and where they are in perspective. Also I filmed a tracking shot of Sarah following the girls to give the audience the perspective of Sarah again. The variety of shots helped the audience understand where the girls were and how Sarah isn't apart of the group, otherwise she would be standing with the group.

Holding the shot steady

In the preliminary task it was a quick one hour filming shoot. Therefore we had to film shots in a short space of time; not thinking about how steady the shots were or whether to use tripods or handheld and the different effects this would give for the audience. I was an inexperienced camera man therefore wasn't sure on  the different effects of whether the shots were handheld or used with a tripod. Due to needing to break the 180 degree rule I often used handheld throughout the prelim task; enabling me to get a variety of close shots.

 Whereas in the film 'Neighbours' I used a variety of filming on a tripod and handheld to give the intended effect. For example in the tracking shot of Sarah in the graveyard scene I used handheld and it was shaking. I did this on purpose to get the effect onto the audience that Sarah is following these girls and everything is fast pace. However in the first shot of 'Neighbours' I used the tripod to film Isabelle in bed. This gave a still steady shot which was perfect for editing the interlocking shots. In this shot I also used handheld camera shots for the close shots of Isabelle's face. I did this because I wasn't able to use the tripod over her face ; therefore using the close shots in the interlocking shots during editing needed to be faster so that you weren't able to notice the slight shakiness of the camera shots.

 Form the preliminary task I have learnt that different handheld and use of the tripod give different reading for the audience. Generally from audience feedback, handheld tracking shots built more tension than the steady shots. This is keeping tot he typical conventions of action films.

Working on the film 'Neighbours'

For the production of 'Neighbours' I worked with Niamh (Brightness studios), we shared the different scenes to film and worked together on a couple of scenes as well.

Scene One (Sarah; filmed at Niamh's house) - Niamh filmed this

Scene One (Isabelle; filed at Izzy's house) - Rian filmed this

Scene Two (outside houses; neighbours) - Rian filmed this

Scene Two (School) - Niamh filmed this - Rian played a protagonist

Scene Three (Graveyard) - both Rian and Niamh filmed this

Scene Four (Sarah's house; filmed at Niamh's house) - Niamh filmed this

However after the filming we decided to edit and create our music separately; sharing the footage. We made this choice because both had different ideas and so that we could both show what we put into the production and editing of the film.

 For the prelim we all worked in a group of four, with little discussion of who had what roles. I took part in the acting and editing; whereas Niamh took role of filming and editing. Although we didn't really discuss this and there was minimal acting to do. Whereas in the production of the film 'Neighbours' we decided on the roles and shared them equalling between us. By the end we both had our own edited film of 'Neighbours' using the same footage but in different ways.

Conclusion

Overall what I have learnt from the preliminary task to the filming of 'Neighbours:

• The different effects of handheld and tripod filming.
• How to use garageband and create my own soundtrack.
• I have learnt how to finalcut effectively and change the opacity therefore overlapping the clips giving double exposure.
• I also learnt how to apply a split screen and add two clips of the film to one shot.
• From the prelim I learnt how to use slow motion editing, I applied this to the film 'Neighbours'.
• I learnt that working in a group and giving out roles is far more effective than not planning who does what roles until we are filming (like we did in the prelim exercise.
• I learnt the different effects of a range shots throughout the film. In the film 'Neighbours' there is a variety of shots at different lengths, enabling the audience to connote the tension between the protagonists.
• I learnt that it takes far longer to film a full two minute opening in comparison to a ten second shot.
• Using the people around you for cast is far easier than asking people who fit the character profile for the intending reading of the film 'Neighbours' was far more difficult.