Actor Release Form

It is important for my actor to sign a release form because you must have proof of consent to film in certain situations. Normally a legal requirement in industry, it helps to have this used in my coursework because it gives me an idea of what I will have to use if I make it into the filming industry.

I filled the entire form out for my actor by providing his name and my own in the correct spots. I then handed it over to him in order to receive his signature. My telephone number and email is not provided on the form as I didn't see it fit to include those. I also opted to not have him write his phone number and email as I didn't write my own and that would be unfair.

Having something like this also adds professionalism to the short film and in some way I feel that it makes my actor and I work harder as the project seems far more real than just a school project.

 

Actors used - Arun Sharpling

 

Name - Arun Sharpling

Age - 18

Location - London, UK

Ethnicity - Anglo-Indian

 

Arun is the actor I have used in my short film, I chose Arun because I felt that he had a serious mind set and would be the best to work with. Arun is 18 years old and fits the role well as he is around about the age of my target market, this is probably the best out come as the nameless/faceless protagonist is used for the audience to project themselves onto and having an actor that shares an age with the audience means it would be easier for the audience to relate to him.

Narrative structure of my short film

My short film follows what is known commonly as a linear narrative. This means that the story plays through in a straight line with no jumping backwards or forwards.

The advantages of linear storytelling are that the film feels consistant and does not confuse the audience with ostentatious jumping backwards and forwards that could possibly confuse and unsettle the viewer. I chose a linear narrative as I wanted the message in my video to be the main thing that people focused on and saw.

Props List

My props are basic household items that almost everyone has and everyone uses on a day to day basis. I chose these items for varying reasons. Some were purely coincidental and other has a deeper underlying meaning.

The mug and the kettle are two items that I selected specifically to use as they are common items that people can naturally relate to. The mug was chosen specifically because I wanted a very plain looking mug without it becoming boring. The moustache on the magazine has recently seen a lot of popularity after being adopted by the fashion movement known as "hipster". Having an identifiable item like this allows the audience to relate to my video far more as they will be able to identify with it.

The newspaper was used in order to juxtapose against the whole idea of the film, most people nowadays would get their news from the internet, the TV or their Smartphone so having this juxtaposition in the film gives a small nod towards the paper print industry.

The phone is used to demonstrate how much of a wasteful society we are; the protagonist has the TV on as background noise and is now on his phone. It is key to the film as it forces the audience to question the ways that they live and how much they have wasted.

The television head itself creates the idea that the protagonist is now consumed y the media and he is now unable to actually save himself. He has gone too far into the world of the media. This prop also makes the audience question their morals and ideals; it causes them to rethink their lives and the way in which they act and how they use their time.

 

Media Theory - Question 1A - Digital Technology

Throughout this year I have used all manner of digital technologies in order to achieve the standard of coursework I deem acceptable. This has been a particularly interesting task as I’ve had to get to grips with new technology that I had previously no experience with and that has been very difficult. Primarily I had to get used to new program packages such as the Adobe Master Suite which features many of the products that professionals would use in industry, for example; Adobe Photoshop CS6 and Adobe Premiere CS6. I had to harness my previous abilities with the older versions of Photoshop in order to get to an ability level where I can easily create a professional looking poster and article. One tool I found very helpful on Photoshop was the magic wand tool because it removes the backgrounds of you photos allowing you to replace it with a new background or to manipulate images. I also used adobe premiere to make my video the best quality it could possibly be, during the re-arrangement of my clips I found that the razor tool came in very handy because it lets you split clips into two with the press of a mouse button. I also used the camera to film my video, it was the first time I have every used a DSLR and I found it very tricky to get to grips with certain elements because it is very tricky. I used the ISO clicker to find the correct ISO for my video in order to make sure that the lighting looked correct.

Media Theory - Question 1A - Creativity

My short film is very creative as it harnesses different ideas and genres in order to present a hidden message to my audience about their media consumption. The idea of the television head prop came to me when browsing the internet, I then adapted it and created it so it was suitable to be worn by my actor with comfort. Creativity was of the up most importance when I was filming as I needed to make sure that the message was brought across accurately and with a good enough focuses to not blur the entire film. I used creativity in my shot variation as well considering I used many close ups and I then started to play around with the focus of my clips. Creativity was especially relevant when I was creating my poster and my article; I had to think up questions that my actor and I could answer in order to make sure the magazine was still interesting.

Media Theory - Question 1A - Research And Planning

Research and planning have been key to the production of my short film as they have helped me mould my short film into the ideal product that I wanted it to be. Through research I have managed to see a whole host of short films and from there I have been able to build on it and implement the ideas from those short films that I was fond of into my own project. The research also helped me create my poster and my article as I read loads of articles and looked at many posters in order to get a clear understanding as to what I should be producing if I wanted my own poster and my own article to look like it was professionally made. The planning phase of my project allowed me to gather my ideas that I collected from the research phase and implement them into the ongoing project. This was very helpful as I feel without the planning phase I wouldn’t have been able to implement all of my previously established ideas because I may have forgotten them along the way. I found using the internet and YouTube very helpful when it came to research and planning as it allowed me to watch thousands of videos that could possibly give me ideas relating to my own project.

Contact Sheet

Over my shooting of my short film I only took one image as it was all that I needed to use for my poster as my article features pictures taken directly from the short film. I chose for this particular image to be the main image that my tasks focused around as it is dark and mysterious and creates a lot of intrigue around my short film.

Call Sheet

This is the call sheet for me to use when looking at the organised dates I have set aside for shooting. The sheet looks like it contains very little information and it does but this is because my short film is an exceedingly small production in the sense that it is all shot in one month at one location and it only requires two people, me and my actor Arun. I will be taking 1 or 2 cameras out in order to get multiple shots or angles; this is still to be confirmed at a later date as I am not certain on that yet. The call sheet will help me to get an understanding of the schedule that I need to stick to. This post is similar to my schedule post but it goes more into detail than that post.

Alterations made along the way - Article

BEFORE 

Big empty space

 

AFTER

Empty space is filled with a small fact file about the film 

 

BEFORE 

Lacks a nice title

 

AFTER

Title placed and looking good against a white background

Alterations made along the way - Poster

BEFORE 

My poster looks slightly empty here, not much going on with barely readable text.

 

AFTER

I chose to implement the colour bars in the poster as I wanted them to become my house style or my house theme as they look nice and capture what I want the film to be. I also put the BBFC rating at the bottom nice and obviously so that people could see it. This was all done to make my poster seem much more real and much more like an actual poster.

Script

My script features no dialogue as there is no dialogue throughout my entire film. Instead I have created a script that will help my actor understand the shots how I would like them and what actions he must complete in order for this film to be a success. In some of the actions I have described where the camera is or when the shot changes and this is for my actor so that he can understand how the shots will look and how the camera will move throughout the film.

I've included the time of day on the scene headings as well so that I know what time everything should be shot and how the rooms should be shot in order for the film to keep within the correct continuity.

This is a screen capture from the program Celtx. I used Celtx to create the script because it is a handy piece of software that makes creating a script nice and simple. The program is very intuitive and easy to understand. This is also very helpful as I have never written a script before.This is my script as it will look to my actor. I will have to explain certain aspects to him but hopefully not too many.

OPENING QUOTE

INT. LIVING ROOM DAY

PROTAGONIST IS SITTING WATCHING TV, BACK TO THE CAMERA,
MOVING FEET IDLY AROUND ALMOST WITHOUT KNOWING.

FACING CAMERA, LOOKING PAST IT AT THE TV OUT OF SHOT. PLACE
REMOTE TO THE SIDE AND RAISE PHONE INTO VIEW.

CLOSE UP ON REMOTE OUT OF FOCUS. LIFT THE REMOTE AND TURN
OFF THE TV.

TITLE CREDITS

INT. BEDROOM EARLY MORNING

PROTAGONIST SITTING ON THE EDGE OF THE BED PROTAGONIST
SLOWLY RAISES HIMSELF AND THEN WALKS OUT

INT. HALLWAY MORNING

PROTAGONIST WALKS DOWN THE STAIRS AND INTO THE KITCHEN

INT. KITCHEN MORNING

PROTAGONIST PREPARES BREAKFAST WITH A MULTITUDE OF CLOSE UP
SHOTS.

INT. LIVING ROOM MORNING/MIDDAY

PROTAGONIST WALKS INTO THE ROOM FROM OUT OF SHOT, PLACES TEA
AND FOOD ONTO THE SMALL TABLE AND WALKS TO THE SOFA.

PROTAGONIST TAKES A SEAT ON THE SOFA AND PROCEEDS TO READ
THE NEWS PAPER.

PROTAGONIST TURNS TWO OR THREE PAGES AND THEN PAUSES ON A
STORY.

INT. KITCHEN MIDDAY

PROTAGONIST TIES UP SHOES EXTREME CLOSE UP

EXT. GARDEN MIDDAY

PROTAGONIST STEPS OUTSIDE WITH NEAR ROBOTIC MOVEMENTS

PROTAGONIST LOOKS AROUND AT THE OUTSIDE WORLD WITH WONDER

PROTAGONIST CROUCHES BY THE EDGE OF THE GRASS AND PICKS UP A
LEAF. PROTAGONIST STUDIES THE LEAF CLOSELY BEFORE PLACING IT
DOWN.

PROTAGONIST STANDS UP WITH GREAT PAIN, SLOW MOVEMENTS AND
WALKS/STUMBLES ONTO THE GRASS.

PROTAGONIST FALLS TO HIS KNEES AND THEN TO THE GROUND.

CLOSING QUOTE

Once the script was printed I used 3 highlighters to give Arun a clear understanding of what everything meant. I used green to do locations, blue to do his movements and orange to do the movements and the locations of the camera in each of the shots.

Health and Safety Evidence

In preparation I have had to make a few changes to my house in order to make 100% sure that my actor will be safe during the filming of my short film.
There have been a select few problems that I have encountered whilst filming that I will outline and then explain how I have rectified the problem in order to ensure safety.
Problem:
Television head mask - The actor cannot see out of the television head mask when it has the face plate section on it and this means that the actor cannot see where he is going. This could possibly lead to a serious accident if he were to fall down the stairs.
Solution:
I have replaced the plastic cover that I initially used with some black sugar paper. My actor can now see out of the mask with ease and he can now see where he is going. This is key for safety and for filming as he can now focus on the acting more so than the walking.
Problem:
Dogs - I have two dogs that are ever excitable and they would get in the way of filming and possibly even cause my actor to fall. They are a health hazard when it comes to the film.
Solution:
My neighbour graciously accepted to look after my dogs whilst I shot my short film. This is very helpful as now I can film in peace.
Problem:
Tea - During initial planning I began to think about the fact that my actor could accidently spill piping hot tea on himself during filming and this would not only cause the clips to be useless but it could hurt him a lot.
Solution:
We will film using cold water from an unboiled kettle in order to make sure that if something spills then it will not affect filming or hurt my actor.

 

Editing Software

The editing software I have been given to use is the Adobe Master Suite CS6. Obviously I will not be using every single aspect of the master suite but I will be using a few. For example; I will be using Adobe Premiere CS6 and Adobe After Effects CS6.

I have very little to no experience with these two pieces of software as I have never really needed to make or edit a video before AS. Throughout AS and A2 I have learnt more and more about Premiere and I now feel comfortable using it and I believe I will be able to use it to a professional standard.

Premiere (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Premiere_Pro)

Adobe Premiere is an editing program that allows users to move clips around, edit the sound levels and to add images or other pieces of media as overlays. In its most basic form Premiere is a very very professional version of Windows Movie Maker. Premiere Pro supports high resolution video editing at up to 10,240 × 8,192 resolution, at up to 32-bits per channel colour, in both RGB and YUV. Audio sample-level editing, VST audio plug-in support, and 5.1 surround sound mixing are available. Premiere Pro's plug-in architecture enables it to import and export formats beyond those supported by QuickTime or DirectShow, supporting a wide variety of video and audio file formats and codecs on both MacOS and Windows. When used with Cineform's Neo line of plug-ins, it supports 3D editing with the ability to view 3D material using 2D monitors, while making individual left and right eye adjustments.

Character Styling and Costume Planning

Initially the protagonist of my short film will be dressed in business dress. I have opted to use a smart shirt with smart trousers, a tie and smart shoes as I feel it's an outfit that many people can relate to as most people have to dress smart for work and for school.

The Shirt and The Tie:

The shirt is going to be a simple buttoned up white shirt. I have chosen it to be a plain shirt as I feel this is not only the easiest type of shirt to get but I feel that using simplistic clothing will be helpful as it will not detract from the focus of the video and the other elements of the video. Using a simple shirt will allow the audience to focus on other aspects such as the storyline and hopefully on the message. I also feel that the bland nature of the shirt will establish a secondary meaning of how clothing is important to everyone and how it should not be important at all. The tie is a simple black tie. It suits the plain shirt nicely as it contrasts well with it. The use of these different shades will juxtapose nicely with the backgrounds and settings of the video as it will establish the differences with nature and technology.

The Trousers and The Shoes:

The slate back trousers will match the Tie and help to juxtapose to the natural settings. the use of this juxtaposition will help push my short film into the light and make it more interesting to the viewer. The shoes will be your average everyday smart shoes. This is yet again another key item of clothing as it will be used for various close up shots that will help to pin down the idea of nature vs. technology or nature vs. industry as I will use a shot of the protagonist stepping in mud.

After the "Transformation" the protagonist will have a television head. this head will serve as a reminder to the audience as to how the media industry has consumed our lives and taken over our minds.

The Television Head:

The television head will be created using an old TV unit that is now damaged. by removing the components I will make it suitable to be worn. I will be adding a padding around the neck hole to provide comfort for the actor. The components will take time to remove as there are surely many components. I will be attaching a hinge to one side to allow the head to be opened and worn. The TV will be heavy but with the components removed it shouldn't be too heavy.

PRODUCTION LOG - Planning for the article

Today I complete my film poster. Obviously it still needs the images from my short film, I will be obtaining these images upon shooting my short film.

I have been using Adobe InDesign CS6 to create my poster, this has been an interesting experience for me as I have found getting used to the new update very challenging, obviously all of the previous items are either there or improved, but with these new upgrades comes a certain need for revision of the software.

The poster itself has come along nicely. Throughout its life the poster has proven to be a challenging feat. Now that it is 99% complete I can begin work on my actual article.

So far the article features many placeholders. This is so that I can visulaise the page before I actually make steps to complete it.

This is what my article looks like after today's lesson. The blue boxes represent where I will be placing images once I have obtained them. The placment text was good as it gave me na understanding as to what I should be writing and how much space it was going to take up. It also gave me an overall feel of what the article would look like with the text added.

You may notice a box on the first page that has been coloured grey. This is the only complete item on my article so far and it is a small fact file type box.

Storyboard

This is the storyboard for my short film. The storyboard will help me and my actor work out the scenes and how they should look whilst we are filming. This is important as it will let me get as close to the vision in my head as possible. It will allow a near exact copy of what I want from my film. I have written in what the audio will be doing whilst the clip is rolling, this will help me later on during the editing phase as it will remind me what is to happen

 

 

 

 

Location Release

This is my location release that says I am able to film at my selected location on the set dates that I need to. I used microsoft word in order to personalise the premade document so that applies to me and my situation.
 

Film Poster Draft

This is the first draft of my film poster. So far it lacks the main image; the main image of course will be the main focal point of the poster as it’s what grabs the attention of the viewer. I used Photoshop to create my title piece. The title piece was created by writing my text in my chosen font; I then duplicated the layer and added a gray tint to it, with the correct angling I managed to create the blur-like title you see before you. At the top of the poster I have place five reviews from a mixture of magazine and real directors. I decided to add the quirk of certain comments as I felt it would juxtapose nicely with the seriousness of the poster. An example of this quirkiness is the review from Shane Meadows. In the review I have written that he believes he can learn something from me, thus implying he used to mentor me. Creating this false universe around my film adds nicely to the image I am attempting to build. 

I am hoping to improve this drastically as you would assume. The main points I am looking to focus on will be the credits at the bottom of the poster. This is mainly because it is the part of the poster that I feel will require the most work to ensure that it will look correct.

 

For comparison, here is another official movie poster for the film "War" you can see where I have taken the typical conventions of a film poster and added them to mine, for example;

• The title stands out in bold taking up a large portion of the lower screen but not too much, making sure it doesn't detract the focus from the main image.
• the credits at the bottom, they are near illegible as there are so many,
• Reviews at the top demonstrating how my film was received.

Some things my poster could use from this official poster would be;

• the use of text at the very bottom of the screen to tell the viewer when the film comes out
• The name of the actors.

Visual Progression

The visual progression of my short film is going to start with extreme close ups and slow paced editing and it will ultimately end up with fast paced long shots.

My idea begins with the protagonist waking up and eating breakfast. I will use long cuts. One scene for example will be that of an egg cracking and going into a pan filled with sizzling oil. as the egg sizzles violently for the first few seconds the camera will remain but as the sizzling dies down it will cut to a shot of the protagonist putting the eggs on a plate from close up.

For example the opening scene to dexter is a great demonstration of the shot's I'd use. The centre image there of the egg is likely one I will use.



Later on once the change has been initiated the protagonist will be wearing the TV on his head he will enter the field and it will contain extreme long shots, the ominous music will add to the horror atmosphere of the film.

I have opted to use this structure for my visual progression mainly because it suits the atmosphere to the short film very well and it will keep the audience on edge. Recently I have been studying The Hurt Locker for AS Film Studies, it is a film that uses camera movement and visual progression very well to build suspense and create the correct and intense atmosphere so that the audience remains encaptured within the film.