REMEMBER

Evaluation

Overall I’m happy with both how I performed on this project and also how my final piece turned out. I’ve put a lot of effort into producing the final piece, and can genuinely say it’s been an incredibly enjoyable experience. I feel I have achieved exactly what I had set out to do, as far as developing my narrative skills. The film looks fantastic and the editing is sharp and well paced. Editing to music is never an easy to pull off, especially considering that I had to keep the narrative structure intact. Originally I was a little reluctant to use slow motion for the majority of the piece. However I need not have worried, the slow motion works incredibly well at emphasizing the importance and emotion of the journey. Both my actors fulfilled their separate roles perfectly, particularly Dave. Baring in mind he has had no acting experience his performance is really believable. Perhaps the biggest success is the colour grading. The hours I spent tweaking skin tones really paid off. The point at which the main character changes his emotion is never spoken off, it’s simply symbolized by the sudden injection of colour. A really distinguishable moment, that emphasizes the turning point of the film. Another place where I feel the grading has showed its uses are the scenes with the rose. In every scene featuring it I went in and really upped the vibrancy. A bit of a fiddly process, but he results speak for themselves.

Though I’m immensely relieved seeing my film being received in a positive light. There are a few tiny issues I have with the piece. Probably the most noticeable one is the monologue. I really regret not realizing its importance sooner. Its still works, its just I’m not to trilled about the clarity of how Dave delivered the lines. There are parts in the film where I almost have to drop the music levels to 0db so what he’s saying is more understandable. Which in turn has created an almost unsmooth flow to the audio. It might just be me though. I haven’t received any comments about it as of yet. Another area which I’m not to pleased with is how I used the camera. The tracking shots worked really well, and yes some shots are a little shaky, but that’s not my main gripe. After now having the camera for over a moth I now realize that keeping the aperture on 1.8 for the entire film wasn’t the best idea. I lost a lot of the background in many scenes, and considering my lack of establishing shots. I feel I’ve missed a trick there. I simply got too carried away with how I could get such a shallow depth of field. At times it can be used to create some truly beautiful shots, but having it wide open for the entirety of the film perhaps wasn’t in my best interest. Also, it’s not a biggy, but I would have like a lot more ambient and on location audio. However it would have been impossible for me hold a camera whilst acting as a sound man.

At the end of the day I’m pleased. I can proudly say that what I produced is the creation of one man alone. All the work I put in does show. I’m always a little to self critical of my work, but I cant help it. If I had another opportunity to try this project again I would definitely set aside time for monologue recording. Keep a tactical approach to aperture size within specific shots. And finally I would invest in recruiting a soundman on shoot days. What I have learnt with the completion of this project I’m grateful. I will definitely be taking into account what I have learnt when attempting my EMP next year.

Closing Statement

I feel the over the duration of the last 10weeks or so allocated for this project i have achieved a great deal. I have improved my skill set in all areas i worked in throughout the process, and with the completion of the project feel i have grown in confidence with narrative writing. Succeeding in exactly what i wanted to achieve. The project for me was all about developing my narrative writing and expression within my work.

I also feel it important to reiterate the key aspects of my submitted work that i feel best show my efforts as a whole towards this brief:

- What i have produced as a final piece has been shot, directed, edited and produced by myself alone.

- The ambient audio used within the piece is 100% original and again recorded by myself.

- I constructed a narrative.

- I wrote and recorded a monologue.

- I shot over various specific locations over many weeks.

- I casted actors with the knowledge of their potential, not out of convenience.

- I applied for the rights of an official Moby track to be used with my piece.

- I allocated time for developing my skills with the DSLR.

- I included dynamic shots. Even building my own track and dolly.

FIRST EDIT

I’m fairly happy with the edit. It still needs a lot of attention though. The colour at sometimes can be a little too “contrasty” also the monologue needs a little tweak to its levels. All of which are easy adjustments. Originally i planned to have a short section before he wakes up in the car showing his journey through the night. I have the footage, just its importance hasn’t seemed justified before now. However during the course of this project i have been wanting an excuse to try out some time lapse shooting. I have an idea that with my unused footage i will include a time lapse of the sunrise to created the journey sequence i had originally intended.

Heres a time lapse test i did. 278 photos over 20+ mins. I tried to catch the sunrise but due to it being so cloudy i totally missed it. Nice clouds though.

SOMETHING’S MISSING

I pretty much finished my specialist project today. Though i wasnt quite so happy as i hoped. I had wanted the audio in the film to primarily be ambient. Though with problems with eqipment and actor avaliablity plus the fact i would be having to film whilst acting as a sound man i never quite managed to pull it off. So instead i opted for a song to be played for the duration of the piece. Which in many ways can be great, i love editing to music. Helps keep the piece focused and the satisfaction when you pull of a transition with a change in pitch to the music is awesome. However i was always thinking causiously, i didnt want to turn the film into a music video. Which unfortunatley is where im at now. Ive decided the best option for me, if i am to redeem my films credibility as a narrative piece is to record a monologue from the male leads perspective, to lay over the top of the film.

Heres what i came up with:

I did it.

I quit.

Why let convenience run your life?

That’s what you always said.

So now I’m lost.

Unsure of what lay ahead.

But i feel ok.

Live life one day at a time right?

Do you remember this place?

So still…

I cant stop thinking about you.

I miss you.

But I’ve got to let go.

After a number of takes of delivering the lines in the wrong tone. We eventually got it right. The monologue is not only supposed to be used as a tool for reiterating the story, but also a reflection of the main characters emotion. Which was another critique i received. With the monologue the story has far more clarity. Here’s the cut I’ll be taking forward into the edit. I’m very happy with how it sounds. And after offering it up to the film edit i really realise its importance.

Dave monologue by jpollard
 

 

 

COLOUR GRADING

Im nearing completion with my editing. I’ll soon be moving into post. I already have a grading for the male characters scenes, but im yet to decide on one for the dream sequences. I’ve started experimenting with Magic Bullet and Final Cut colour grading features. Im still undecided, but I’m starting to realise what key areas i should be focusing on. The following video shows what my thinking.

I’ve narrowed it down to:

Saturation
Diffusion
Colour Wash
Vignettes

Male Colour Grading

With the scenes that include my main actor Dave i have decided on a really cold and desaturated look to the grading, for the most part. I’m really enjoying this process. So addictive, i spend hours on one scene trying to get it just right. Ive tired using Final Cut, Magic Bullet and After Effects to grade the footage. Ive now found a method of grading that feels most comfortable with me. I no longer use AE, instead i begin by applying an initial correction to contrast in Final Cut and then using Magic Bullet i take advantage of its vignette and 3way colour wheel features to create the general look. I then take the footage back into FC where there’s a fantastic feature which enables you to correct specific colours withing the footage. I found this most useful when grading skin tones and the rose.

The following string of images greatly show how advantageous the process can be when used for skin tone. Starting with the original..

Original shot

Very flat. Levels and contrast are all wrong. Over all a very uninteresting shot.

 

 

 

 

Skin Tone

Corrected the levels and contrast. Also brought the skin tone to a more natural look.

 

 

 

 

Creating the Look

Bring down the saturation, add blues to the shadows and up the blacks. Creates a more dramatic look.

 

 

 

 

Making it “pop”

Using the awesome colour selector in Final Cut, highlight the skin tones and pull up the saturation.

AUDIO

The audio will play a very important part in my film. Primarily i will have ambient sound playing along side their assigned scenes. For example, the sounds of waves crashing will feature in the dream sequences. It’s very important to me that the sounds are spot on, crystal clear. There will be points throughout the film where the film is overcome by audio. Therefore taking the sound recordings straight from the camera is out of the question, the mic simply isn’t good enough. I dont want the viewer to notice any unintended wind noise for example. I made the effort to go out and record ambient audio using a rifle mic and the Fostex recorder. Heres some examples of what i recorded.

Sound of waves crashing will be used within the dream sequences.

Waves – Josh Pollard by jpollard

Sound of bird song with waves in the background. Will be used as the main character reaches the outskirts of the forrest. Next scene will be on the beach.

Birds + Waves by jpollard

Along side the ambient sounds i will be using a music track also. The music will come into its own when there is no ambient audio within the scene. It’ll help keep the film moving along. Now the track has to be very particular. The majority of the film will be in slow motion, so i need to find a song that compliments the scenes. I had a track in mind before starting to shoot. Originally i had imagined a piano score. The sort that you find in the film and also TV program This is England.

The track i had been thinking is by Clint Mansell, conveniently titled ” Together We Will live Forever “. It was made famous after featuring in the beautiful Darren Aronofsky’s film “The Fountain”. However after much pondering i decided the track had to big of a connection to an already existing film. Also i felt it a little to down beat for my film. My film is about life getting better. I laid the track over my first edit and it just depressed me.

Jamie then told me about a website called mobygratis.com. A website set up by the artist Moby. I’ll let Moby tell you about it…

hi,
i’ll keep this brief.
this portion of moby.com, ‘film music’, is for independent and non-profit filmmakers, film students, and anyone in need of free music for their independent, non-profit film, video, or short.
to use the site you log in(or on?) and are then given a password.
you can then listen to the available music and download whatever you want to use in your film or video or short.
the music is free as long as it’s being used in a non-commercial or non-profit film, video, or short.
if you want to use it in a commercial film or short then you can apply for an easy license, with any money that’s generated being given to the humane society.
i hope that you find what you’re looking for,
moby

A brilliant idea, and i love Moby so i jump on it straight away! After sifting through four pages of music i found what i was after. Its called “Chord Sounds” and it fits the feel and look of my film perfectly. So the next step was to send off a license request, asking permission to legally download the track for free and stating my intentions for the track. All exciting stuff. This was my request form:

Then i had a days wait. Short story is the application was successful. Though there are some attached rules you have to agree by before downloading. After agreeing, thats it. I can now legally use an official Moby track on my film!

 

 

 

 

RECASTING

After further setbacks over the past weeks, what with my actress canceling shoots and having to work around the new hours she works (Doesn’t finish until 3pm now..way to dark to start shooting), i have decided i can no longer continue with Laura as my actress. Trying to organize shoots and building a project around the off chance of getting hold of my actress just isn’t working. So i have been scouting for a replacement. My new actress Karri used to be a model. She is very comfortable in front of the camera, makes things so much easier. Also she doesn’t work weekends. HOORAY! i Finally have specific days i can shoot on.  The only drawback is the colour of her hair. Laura had jet black hair, the idea was that her hair would match the colour of the horse in the film. Making the link to the horse and the triggered memory that bit more obvious. Karris hair is Blonde. Though this works well for the shots on the beach I’m still unsure whether the link with the horse will work now.

The scenes i filmed with her at Studland beach the other day came out looking fantastic though. Even before colour grading the rose really pops. I’m now debating whether keeping the horse in the film is so important.

ALTERING THE STORY

My original concept for the narratives climax was for the male character to in the end scene reveal what is in the satchel he has been carrying throughout the film. However i thought the idea of scattering ashes was a little bit cliche and morbid. Which doesn’t quite sit right with me, especially when considering the film is supposed to be a story of acceptance, “letting go”. I’m now going to be using a red rose as the item inside the satchel. And rather than scattering ashes the film will close with a falling rose on the waters surface. Also i will have a rose feature in the dream sequences he has, creating a direct link to him and the girl in his visions.

With the female in the dream sequences all in white against an light earthy background the rose will really pop. Which will hopefully give the dream sequences a real lasting mental image.

 

CANCELLATIONS

It would appear my actress canceled the shoot i had planned for tomorrow, which has set me back a bit. We agreed to reschedule for Monday. Considering I’ll be filming my main actor that day I’ll be a bit pushed for time. Ideally i wanted to be done with filming by Monday. Leaving me with the remainder of time for editing and post production. Having such a reliance on someone other than yourself is not the best way to construct a project. Very stressful. Oh well, at least I’ve allocated enough time for these sort of happenings to resolved.

Found this video on Vimeo whilst i was browsing. Kinda sums up the feel and shots I’m wanting to achieve with my shoot with the female actor. Everything from composition of the shots from what shes wearing. Also note the colour grading used. Very washed out and saturated, works really well, giving the piece a surreal / dreamlike feel. For my shoot with my female actor I’ll be having her dress in white. With the use of vignettes emphasizing her relevance.

[Vimeo http://vimeo.com/16117083]

QUICK UPDATE

Haven’t posted in a while. Just a quick one to say how my specialist project is coming along. All is well, couple of problems with getting hold of my actors due to half term work hours. Got some scenes done with my main actor a couple of days ago. Made a quick edit showing some of the shots. I’ll be shooting over the remainder of the week and hope to get it all wrapped up by early next week.

DIY TRACK

You may have noticed a track shot in the above video. Along with using a 7D for my film i really wanted to enhance the look in other areas. Ive seen many short armature films shot on DSLR cameras over the course of this project. Though many are beautifully shot. I couldn’t help but notice many seemed lacking when considering camera movement. Professional films will use all sorts of methods to enhance the look of their films. One of the biggest way is movement. Whether it be hand held or mechanically operated. I intend to bridge that gap with my film. There are an abundance of tutorials on the internet on how to build various jibs, cranes, steady cams etc However money is a bit tight after buying my camera. Although i would love a jib, i just couldn’t justify spending the money for a select few shots. A track and dolly however was definitely what i was after. After taking inspiration from the track and dolly Elliott made last year and various videos on the web i decided to make my very own!

2 / 3 ft Plywood for the tripod deck

6″ PVC tubes x2 for the track

Super soft long board wheels x8 for the umm..  wheels.

 

ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS

Its been a while now since my initial thought for the narrative of my specialist project. I had been questioning the importance of having a narration to coincide with the narrative. After my tutorial with Bob on Thursday I’ve since decided to scrap the idea. I think the only reason i considered including a narration was an attempt to cover my back, in case what i shot failed to convey the narrative to the desired extent. I feel a lot better about making this decision, i was just over complicating the idea. What swayed me was when Bob compared the concept of having very little dialogue in a film to the earliest silent movies. Immediately i thought of Charlie Chaplin, and how popular the films still are today. Its a nice way for me to start my film making career as it were. Following the same routes as that of the actual industry i wish to work in for the future. Starting with a “silent movie” as my first attempt for narrative writing within film. Then comparing it to the films of Charlie Chaplin is a fantastic point at which i can gauge my films success.

In the ways that dialogue can enhance narrative it also has the ability to detract.Not only is a film without dialogue a true representation of the talent behind the camera, but its audience has the potential to transcend that of the film makers national origin. Essentially i now have an opportunity to create a multinational film. An example would be a new series of short films titled EXPO, directed by one of my favourites Martin de Thurah. Famous for his Royksopp -  What Else is There video. His use of evocative scores and ambient sound is definitely something I’m wanting to replicate with my short film.

[Vimeo http://vimeo.com/15940064]