Simon Hall, the BBC's crime correspondent in the South West of England, came into our school recently. He talked to us about the trials and tribulations of journalism (an aspiring career of mine) and mentioned how his crew worked with him and his directors and camera men will travel around Devon/Cornwall and report on the top crime stories, he lately reported on the Exeter Cathedral fire and the flooding that cause the closure of the rail line through Devon and Cornwall. He talked about the path to working at the BBC and the lifestyle of a journalist. He was a true inspiration to us all.
From our audience of 16-18 year olds our pitch generally had a negative reception. This however opened our eyes to the poorer/less planned areas of our piece, so from the comments we will look to improve.
Narrative:
Our narrative was unclear and lacking, to entice audiences we will need to explain in greater detail the plan, possibly with help from the storyboard.
Genre:
Although not specifically mentioned by our peers it seems dramas are less appealing to our sample/target audience, to counter this we may make a greater change to the plot of the two minutes so it is slightly more suspenseful and simpler so easier to explain.
Characters:
Although the use of red on the love interest was complemented, using black clothing to connote depression could be controversial in such a realistic film as it plays a negative stereotype of those with the mental illness, just because people are depressed doesn't mean they must wear black, instead the use of sound and acting will be used to denote this to the audience.
Overall we hope to re-do our pitch and our plot as we feel this plot is too ambitious and difficult to succeed in, we also now recognize it doesn't suit our target audience, particularly in such a generation which has huge exposure to action and tension with video games and such, those type of movies generally appeal more to them. One member of our peers suggested adding a comedic aspect which most of the audience seemed to like the idea of so this could be a good idea to incorporate. However we will still look to maintain the same plot and genre, however re-draw our storyboard and anamatic to incorporate our new ideas and more importantly make the plot much clearer for the audience to understand.
This has helped structure my editing so I know the order of clips and which transitions to use. It also given us a rough idea of the length of the piece which fits our 2-2:30 minutes boundary.
Considering I'm in charge of editing within my group, a lesson on transitions and their purposes proved very useful. Here is a quick list, with some examples that I could use in my final task, including my own research.
ALL REFERENCES TO OUR FINAL TASK WILL BE CLARIFIED WITHIN MY STORYBOARD. I WILL LIKELY USE MOST OF THE SHOT TYPES, BUT I'M HIGHLIGHTING THE ONES THAT I WILL USE FOR SPECIFIC EFFECTS WHEN I MENTION ITS USE IN THE FINAL TASK.
Cut -
The simplest transition changing viewpoint and preventing a whole movie of single long shots.
This scene from Shawn Of The Dead uses quick cuts with a zoom for comedic effect.
Cut on action -
Cuts when a character is in the middle of an action that carries on into next frame. Used to show intensity of action and can also create a sense of urgency/tension as action is emphasized to perhaps show near death.
Cut away -
Where the camera cuts to another shot then back to the original. Used to show the subject of the characters conversation and even an eyeline match. We will use this shot to show the main character dreaming.
This example shows that it is commonly used in news to show visually what the interviewee is talking about.
Cross cut -
When the camera cuts between two locations. Often used in telephone calls. Can be used with editing to show high levels of intensity and tension.
This example shows how cross-cutting is used commonly in chase scenes and action movies as it helps show how far each character is from each other and also builds tension
Jump Cut -
When the camera cuts on the same shot. Used to signify a passing of time, a temporal ellipsis.
Jump cuts are used all the time on Youtube videos and vlogs with the person speaking to the camera.
Match Cut -
Similar to a jump cut. But the camera cuts between two different shots that match either by action or composition. We will use a match shot along with a smash cut when the protagonist wakes from his dream.
Fade -
When the frame either fades to a colour or the next scene gradually overlaps the old. Also a temporal ellipsis. Used to connote a passing of time not shown in the shot.
Dissolve -
When two scenes dissolve together. Normally like a fade used as a temporal ellipsis, but also used in montages to show multiple shots at once. Also used as a cross-match but with a slower pace/tempo.
Smash Cut -
When a cut is purposefully jarring/sudden to signify intensity and evoke a powerful emotion from the character of surprise/fear/anger. We plan to use a smash cut when the protagonist wakes from his day dream
Wipes -
Quite a wacky transition, not commonly used as it counters realism but found more often in music videos etc. We plan to use a wipe as an invisible cut/transition.
Invisible cut -
When the cut is purposefully hidden, generally by a dark background or blocking the viewers view of the scene. We used this shot in partner with a whip pan in our preliminary task. And we definitely plan to use similar shots as these are very professional and pleasing to the audience.
Sound Bridge / L cut + J cut
When sound carries across cuts to link the scenes together. The J cut is when the audience hears a sound before seeing the source of it.
Idea
Our idea for our final task is a feel-good drama about a depressed teen, and his journey to happiness whilst following the lead up to the party in 7 days
As you can see we plan to involve some of the editing techniques/transitions that we researched including an OTS Shot, Invisible cut, Smash Cut, Sound Bridge, wipe and others. We hope this diverse range of shot types will intrigue the viewers and also help us to gain a higher mark. We do not know the casting and will animate the storyboard later to help gain an idea of it.
Key Conventions of Drama Opening Sequence
With 'Juno' and 'Scott Pilgrim vs The World' being large influences for our sequence I've decided to analyse the opening of Juno and recognize the key conventions that would be vital to include in my final task.
Although Scott Pilgrim is an action comedy we liked the use of titles and character introduction which though may not be suitable for a drama, we can adapt.
Looking at these titles has helped me think of an order for my film and possible go against convention. Titles are a key part of the editing process so I must also make sure the font and style fits well with the piece.
Above is mine, Harry and Matt's preliminary task. I feel like this isn't the best piece we could've produced, however we learnt a lot about the process of creating a short task and the elements and time contrasts of editing etc. LOCATION We quickly learnt our ideal location, an abandoned hotel, was too difficult to film in. Not only was there health and safety issues, but the interior was very dark and controlling the lighting was very difficult. Therefore we had to restart the filming in a new, easier to access location. Through this we've learnt to take more care in location planning for our assessment, taking in to fact the manipulablitity of the location based on our control of lighting and other factors. CREW Across the three weeks given, someone was on holiday for a week, and two members had to revise for a GSCE retake so this task unfortunately wasn't given top time priority. We now know time management is vital for planning to film/edit. With another member not available over christmas, for our assessment we must work round this and so will likely try to begin filming earlier. SHOTS Our shot-reverse-shot was between 00:33 and 00:48 with it taking place over a phone call. This would've been better pulled-off if we used more dynamic cameras in this shot, such as fast cuts between the cameras and a slight zoom out to convey tension or anger. This would be easier to convey if we showed the two characters to be in the same location, something we will keep in mind for our assessment. I feel the cinematography ended came out very well. Particularly the dutch angle at 00:22, which was used to convey power to Matt's character and also a sense of unease as to way Matt wants to know where "it" is and what he is going to do to Harry. Also the focus on Matt walking from behind the fence which signifies he's in a inaccessible location, creating an enigma of where is it and why is he their. MISE-EN-SCENE The mise-en-scene could've been greatly improved, the captive should be wearing worn, damaged clothes to show he's been held captive for a while. the bike shed setting also wasn't very intimidating and is something we definitely we should take more time in. Going out of our way to produce better clothing and to take more time perfecting the items in the frame would add real credibility to our piece and also make it more interesting for the viewers. The hacking software seemed real, however didn't really fit into the plot, but possibly created another enigma. The background of the last scene also let down the piece. The Halloween decorations really killed the mood and juxtaposed the sincerity of the situation. This again highlights how we should pay more attention to what is in-frame for our main task as it can make or break a piece. SOUND The sound turned out ok. The didn't really music fit with the mood of the movie, it seemed more horror then action as it was in a major key that sounded tense and almost sad/depressing. The change in music with the introduction to the unknown character was a positive however, as it emphasized his presence. We used music from purpleplanet.com, however next time will have to make our own dolly sound effects and potential music. This would add identity to our piece with unique music and it means we could tailor it to would we deem perfect, rather than using royalty free samples. EDITING The editing again wasn't awful but could definitely be improved. The fade after the punch should have lasted longer to add effect, and make the piece seem less messy with the music starting instantly afterwards. The darkness at the end would ideally be filled with titles, but the lack of throughout really let down the piece as such things are vital in opening sequences, particularly our assessment and so we will make sure to include them in that. The whip-pan at 00:12 we feel was a highlight of the piece, with it consisting of two separate clips and is some sort of invisible editing we are keen to involve in our assessment. The shot-reverse-shot was between 00:34 and 00:39 and the action match was in when the characters were in the bunker (bike shed).
I'll be judging the locations of three factors: Hazards, Accessibility and Intrigue. Hazards is measuring the potential health issues of the area we would film, for example at a train station, falling onto the tracks could be a hazard and getting hit by a train is a threat. Accessibility is how easy it is to film in/access the location, this will be a big factor, particularly in this task due to time limitations. Public areas will be harder to film in as certain shot types may be harder to pull off. Intrigue is how cool the location looks, a cool looking setting will entice viewers and make the overall place more interesting. I'll rank places out of 5 for each category, 5 being top, 1 being lowest Locations Hazards Accessibility Intrigue SCHOOL 1 4 1 ABANDONED 4 2 5 HOTEL HOUSE 1 5 3 BUS STOP 3 3 3 CAFE 2 2 4
Ideally a high intrigue will be useful, that is why we have decided to film in an abandoned hotel, although challenging we feel it would create the perfect atmosphere for the scenario we decided upon. *Time Edit* We discovered quickly filming at such a difficult location was not only very hazardous with broken glass and potential asbestos, but it was very difficult to film without lighting within the buildings. Therefore we have decided to film in an area with high accessibility such as a house or at school, which is unfortunate but must be done due to time constraints caused by other commitments such as other exams etc. * We have decided to use a mix of two locations to fulfil our criteria and keep the task interesting. We will be filming at both school and home, which will use encourage us to use cross-cutting techniques will editing. Equipement list - Bag - Camera - Tripod - Blood - Rope - Chairs (x2) - Ripped hooded - Sunglasses - Fake gun Redraft of Storyboard:
This is our example of a match-on-action shot. It is a shot used to make an important action clear to the audience, in this case he is stealing a phone. If he had just walked pass and picked it up it may have been to subtle for the audience to pick up on. It doesn't show to separate events, but stays in the same scene, unlike cross-cutting. It is commonly usde to make a visual bridge to give the idea that time is continous and the scene is going along as normal
The 180degree rule is a basic rule in cinematography... it is put in place so the viewer doesn't get their perspective all wrong.
Film makers draw an imaginary line across the scene where they can't cross. They can do whatever they like within the boundary, but as soon as they cut to the other side of the line viewers get confused as continuity is ruined with the characters seemingly looking at different place.
This rule is followed no matter the scene, whether simple dialogue or a full action fighting scene, the rule is always followed.
There is one exception however, if the camera arcs behind the line in one movement it can be accepted as the viewers see the change in angle. As long as they keep within the new line with the camera, it should all be good.
Rule of Thirds The subjects of interest are placed along imaginary lines that split the frame into thirds vertically and horizontally. Used in cinematography and photography, a very common rule involving any frame as it is a great and subtle way of drawing a viewer's attention to a particular subject that can convey meanings
As you can see in this picture ^ the dogs (subjects on interest) are placed along the lines, especially the bottom right dog who's in the foreground and at a line intersect.
Bokeh Bokeh, translating from Japanese to mean 'blur', is a very popular part of photography where none or only a small part of the video is in focus so everything in the frame is a blur. It's particularly popular as photographers can use it to make viewers focus on a specific part of the image, and it's very visually appealing especially with bright colours.
Active Space Active space is mainly used when taking a picture of a moving object, it is usually in front of the subject for it to move into. The reason for this is because when viewers see an object moving they will generally move their eyes in the same direction, so viewers can see the space they are about to move into.
By filling the frame you add instant impact to your images as they strike out to the viewer and easily catch their eye. This also means subjects are larger and therefore more detail, so it's easier to bring something subtle to the eye. It is also very effective at capturing the mood as facial features are more easily expressed.
Simplify Simplicity involves focusing on the core message of the image, and only that... no excess distractions in the background etc. If too much is in a scene it can be too much for the viewer to comprehend and so annoy them when they are looking at it. This can merely be done by zooming in to cut down background clutter but there are other effective methods.
Point of View Unlike in cinematography where a POV shot is from the perspective of a person; in photography, it simply refers to the view of the camera. This is a vital part of photography as where you place the camera can have a huge impact on the message. Low-angle shots can make grass seem massive, and high angle shots can make skyscrapers seem tiny, it's a very powerful aspect.
Lines of Sight The face has very strong visual weight in photography as it is generally the most iconic aspect of a person as it is what people see first and can make us very unique. This is particularly powerful when viewers can see someone looking at something else in the frame. The natural instinct is to first see that the eyes are looking at something then follow them to see the object they are looking at. This technique is ideal for bringing things that could potentially go unnoticed to light and also highlights the important parts of the frame.
The red lines aren't in the original image, but they depict the path the viewer's eyes take when looking at this image. The lighting is also key here as the people are the only items of interest visible in the shot.
The Rule of Odds
Having an odd number of subjects in the frame means the brain can't naturally pair them and so the viewer spends longer looking at the image, comprehending what's in the frame. This then makes the image more interesting and messages are easier to present.
A Brief Overview of 12 Commonly Used Camera Shots/Angles
Aerial Shot
Aerial shots are basically a hybrid between birds-eye-view shots and establishing. They are shot from
a steep angle looking down on the subject, yet generally, they don't connote the character to be inferior, they instead just show the location.
On the right -> you can see that the image is on a black table. But they differ from establishing shots as you can't see the entire background. Much like in the photo you can't see the entire Sofa. They are also filmed from higher up than establishing shots. This shot was used very commonly during the 1970s opening scenes.
Opening Scene from Grease(1978):
Establishing Shot
Establishing Shot
Like I said, very similar to the aerial shot, except this one generally has a wider field of view and shot from a flatter angle.
Used at the beginning of movies and when a location change has occurred as it is a very easy/quick way to denote where the characters are. However another big difference from the aerial shot is that generally, you don't see the character, more an overview of their location i.e you know the water bottle/character is in that room/city.
Shawshank Redemption(1994) - Opening scene
High/Low Angle Shot
High Angle Shot
High angle shots are used commonly to signify that the subject is inferior/weak as they are looked down upon by the audience
Low Angle Shot
Notice how in this shot the water bottle looks a lot more menacing. That's because the audience is looking up to a subject. Not only does it connote a menacing character, but also a heroic protagonist.
A great exaggerated example of these two shots in Scrubs... notice how the woman seems superior.
Handheld Shot
Most commonly used in the action genre during chase scenes, as the shake effectively immerses viewers as it suggests they are running during the scene as well and are part of the action. Unlike the bottle example -> it is generally a POV shot so it's even more immersive and exciting for the audience as they gain pleasure from the adrenaline.
Example from James Bond;Casino Royale(2006)
Dolly Zoom
The least commonly used shot on this list. The dolly zoom connotes a moment of realization/panic as it zooms out while the camera tracks towards the subject which signifies how they've suddenly been thrown into a intense situation where they're lost/confused.
Famous example from Jaws (1975)
Arc Shot
Arc shots are perfect for use in scenes during action movies when the protagonist is alone/vulnerable as with no one nearby they have no support against the enemy. They can also be used in the horror genre to connote that character to also be alone and so they are an easy pickings for the antagonist. They can also be used to show someone being outgrowded/trapped as they are surrounded and can't escaping.
Example in Black Hawk Down (2001)
Locked-Down Shot
The locked down shot is when characters walk onto the scene then off without it cutting to follow them. It's used generally within a city environment and in romantic/drama films. It's failure to capture the entire movement represents the difficulty in capturing the entirety of life, as it is usually used during an emotional scene, It can also be used as a temporal ellipsis as it could cut to there destination rather than following the entirety of the travel.
Example from A Serious of Unfortunate Events (2004)
Close Up
Close Up/Medium Shot
An extremely common shot used in all genres due to it's may different connotations, its when the camera gets close to an object of importance or generally a characters facial emotions to show the object clearly and to cement it in the viewers mind. It can create poignant moments with a close up of a characters sad face, or in quick succession can create a tense, scary atmosphere.
Medium Shot
Instead of being as intense as close ups, medium shots are sued to show a characters attire, props, the background and just generally more mise-en-scene. It's generally the things inside the scene that connote meaning in this shot, less of the actual shot.
When the camera is at a slight slant rather than horizontal, it connotes something is wrong or a character is a bit edgy and not to be trusted. It can also be used to show a character in jeopardy as they are in an irregular circumstance etc.
Example from Mission Impossible (1996)
Deep Focus
Deep Focus
When the foreground, middle and background are in sharp focus, this shot is used to primarily show important mise-en-scene, but also can crowd the audience with too many things to pay attention to and so purposefully confuse/disorientate them.
Example from Citizen Kane(1941)
using a variety of these camera angles will greatly improve the level of our final task, and so we should specifically frame shots to capture these techniques. It'll also help us storyboard as we can plan these specific shots and convey meaning more effectively
The shot reverse shot a very common shot used all the time in movies, particularly during the dialogue between two characters. It helps make it clear to the audience who is actually speaking. It is done by having two camera positions, A + B, one filming over person X's shoulder and the over person Y's (OTS shots). The cameras don't have to be looking over the person's shoulders, as long as the camera is facing the opposites person it works (i.e. a POV shot would also work).
Here is an example in the Hunger Games (2012)
As you can see it makes it much easier to tell who's speaking if the audience is looking directly at them. In this example, the camera cuts between Peta and Katniss (starts 0:17). The shot can be used to denote certain things; if the cuts are quick it builds tempo and connotes anger between the characters speaking, whereas slower cuts slow down the tempo and create a calm manner.
I teamed up with Matt Bray and Harry Stoakes and we filmed our own example of a shot-reverse-shot. We also had ago editing the short clip using Premiere Pro (which I'll write about in a later blog). Matt (German guy) and Harry (American guy) acted and I filmed...
Here is the clip:
If my description of the shot-reverse-shot wasn't clear enough with these examples here is an image:
This technique will be very useful when filming ourselves as it is a very common and effective technique used in most films, especially throughout a conversation.
By analysing this poster it will help my understanding of semiotics as I look to establish meaning in my own film. It particularly helps my use of mise-en-scene as props and costumes can clearly and quickly portray meanings.
These 5 movies/TV shows will help inspire me to think of an idea for my final task.
It's also important to recognize the continuity editing techniques in these films as I
hope I'll be editing, and can draw ideas from their editing and use it in my film.
My name is Charlie Davey and the following post will let you know a little bit more about me. I have just moved to Sidmouth from Windsor, the change from very urban to rural is very strange!
In my free time I enjoy playing football and watching movies on Netflix. My love for movies is a big reason of why I've chosen to study media at A level because I really enjoy watching movies and am interested in learning how to film/edit them and also understanding the meaning of different shots and sound. I also want to be involved with movie/TV filming in the future, whether it's cinematography or directing I think I'll enjoy it.
Another big reason of why I've chosen media is how relevant it is in modern day, with social media on the rise and Netflix making it easier for people to watch blockbuster movies without leaving the house, it is a huge part of modern society used by medicine, tourism, communications, travel and technology industries. It has also become the face of many industries with many people checking companies website to see if they sell a certain item or have it in stock.
Simon Hall, the BBC's crime correspondent in the South West of England, came into our school recently. He talked to us about the trials and tribulations of journalism (an aspiring career of mine) and mentioned how his crew worked with him and his directors and camera men will travel around Devon/Cornwall and report on the top crime stories, he lately reported on the Exeter Cathedral fire and the flooding that cause the closure of the rail line through Devon and Cornwall. 
