Final Blog Post

Name: Lucy Stafford

Candidate Number: 8074

Centre Number: 20299

Centre Name: Bishop Walsh Catholic School

Final Short Film

Rough Cuts

I have started the filming for my short film and now have some rough cuts. I will be editing the clips to create the desired effect with them but these rough cuts are what I will be starting with.

Short Film Practice

To begin thinking about the short film or trailer that we are going to make for our final project we were given the task to work in groups to create a mini short film as a practice to get used to using all of the equipment. We were set a narrative to use as the plot and also added some of our own ideas onto the end.

The Narrative
The main narrative was already given to us. It was of a girl in a room who goes into a day dream about walking down a corridor and entering a room, She then meets someone in the room. After this she comes out of the day dream. This was the narrative we were given and then as a group we decided to add an extra bit. When the girl comes out of the day dream she goes back to work and then sees the person she saw in the day dream standing at the door. This is how it ends.


Camera
We needed to include a variety of camera shots to practice for our final project. Also we had to use appropriate shots to compliment the narrative which made us choose our camera shots more carefully.

This is an example of a medium shot from our short film. We used this at different points in the short film as it a good shot size to get enough in the shot without it being too zoomed in. In this frame we can see what is happening clearly and the unnecessary parts of the shot aren't included.

Here we have used a long shot to get the full effect on the corridor. This allows us to see the person walking down the corridor. As the camera was static at this point in the film the character gets closer to the camera as she walks around the corner which adds a good effect.

Here we have used a medium close up in the conversation that was had in the room. This enables us to focus on the character who is speaking. We also used reverse shots when the conversation was happening so we can see the character who is talking.

This is an example of an extreme close up in our film. This is of the main character's eyes as they look to the door and see the other person there. This shot adds a lot of emphasis to what she is looking at as we can only see her eyes change direction and look to the door in the shot. I think the use of this shot separates the use of medium and medium close up shots.

Here the other character is seen at the door and is shown with a low angle. This gives the character power showing their importance in the narrative. The camera pans up to this shot from the floor which adds more suspense as to who will be at the door and makes the end shot when we see the character have even more impact.

Our final shot was a high angle shot of this character again. This contrasts to the previous low angle shot and shows less power. The idea of this character having less power is emphasised by her turning away at the end and not wanting to see the other character.

Editing
Using Adobe Elements I worked on editing the clips filmed for this short film. The software wasn't the best in what it provided editing wise so I didn't change that much. I cut some of the clips down to make them flow better and to cut out any unwanted footage that wasn't needed in the film. As well as this I edited the final clip to fade to black at the end of the film signifying a complete end to the narrative. Then I put in the rolling credits with all of our names at the end. However I didn't like the theme provided by the software so I don't think it is best to use to provide a professional finish.

How will this help me...
Doing this practice short film in preparation has been very helpful to ensure that I have enough knowledge for when I film the final project. It was my first time using any editing software for a film so I think it was a necessary task and it allowed me to explore the different options provided by the software. I now know how to cut footage down and use different edits for clips and transitions. This will come in very useful when I have filmed my final project and come to edit my footage.

Short Film Practice

Katie Jess LUCY from Bishop Walsh on Vimeo.

Short Film: Butterface

Butterface
Mise-en-scene

• view from a moving train - passes by buildings, cars, houses etc. - through scratched window showing the normality or the situation and making it relatable - production company and film title also shown
• inside of normal train - relatable for audience
• camera opposite man and woman sitting next to each other
• man wearing dark shirt/woman wearing oink scarf - showing differences between them
• man goes to bathroom - looking into scratched mirror - basic props that would be seen in everyday life
• woman standing outside train on bare platform

Sound

• constant sound of train moving - diegetic
• man's voice over - as if the man is speaking his thoughts while on the train - thinking about the woman next to him
• doubtful/dull tone in his voice - gives indications to his personality

Lighting

• Natural lighting from window - grey/dull because of weather
• little lighting on train - mostly form windows
• bathroom has darker lighting - contrast in settings from when the man is with the woman and when he is alone

Camera Shots

• point of view shot form opposite the woman and man - medium close up shot - makes the audience feel part of the film
• close up of woman when she is looking out the window - showing the focus of the man's thoughts on her - camera then pans across to look out of the window as well
• point of view shot from man's perspective looking into mirror in bathroom
• camera focuses on the lipstick mark left on the window by the woman - this leaves the audience with an enigma of what would've happened if the man had spoken to the woman
  

Narrative

• man sitting train with pretty woman next to him
• he wants to make a move and speak to her but is too scared
• he goes to bathroom and when he comes back she is gone and is now standing on platform outside waving to him
• then realises the lipstick mark left on the window by the woman showing mutual attraction - leaving the audience with the question of what would've happened between them?

Short Film: Room 8

Room 8
Mise-en-scene

• Set in a prison with few props and a very bare cell - bed and desk is all that can be seen
• Dull costume - dark coloured uniform - emphasises the setting of a prison type of place
• Men seem unclean/dirty and bruised - shows nature of place it is set - dangerous

Sound

• Foreign language spoken at beginning - changes to English between two men in cell
• Eerie diegetic sounds throughout - creaking floorboard and wind - sets a creepy and mysterious tone making the audience on edge
• Non-diegetic music comes in - builds as the characters emotions build - adds eerie tone showing the mystery of what will happen
• Music continues getting louder until prisoner is caught after trying to escape  - suddenly slows down dramatically and gets quieter
• Goes back to foreign language at end as the man tells guards to send the next man in

Lighting

• Lighter outside cell but darker inside, this can be seen from window - shows the idea of being trapped in there
• Low key lighting - dark and dull
• shadowing is used to create suspense with audience and they mystery of what the man is doing with the match boxes

Camera Shots

• Medium/medium close up shots used when the men are in conversation
• Zoom in on man's face when dramatic point occurs emphasising his shocked expression
• Bird's eye view shot of drawer the man is putting the match box in as the audience are shown many other match boxes highlighting that this happens a lot and this adds more mystery because the audience don't know why he does this adding enigma at the end

Narrative

• Story shows a prison that captures people run by a man in the cell
• Confusing concept of space as they appear to be life size but then one man becomes tiny as he climbs out of the box/room
• Man in cell then captures the tiny man in a match box and puts him in a draw along with many other match boxes

Short Film: The Ride

The Ride
Mise-en-scene

• Typical shops with car park outside, white/old car
• Bare landscape, not very busy
• Setting of a small town
• Costume - normal, day to day clothing - trousers and denim jacket/cardigan and top - man changes, wears balaclava at end

Sound

• At beginning there is no dialogue - just diegetic sound can be heard, road/traffic/radio
• Dialogue begins with woman and man - Australian accents - conversations indicates there is history between them
• Woman starts screaming when men in balaclavas get into car - dramatic change from the conversation previously with the man on his own

Lighting

• Washed out colour with bright day light from bleak sky
• Lighting doesn't indicate any drama so it is unexpected when the drama unfolds at the end
• This also shows a contrast between the lighting and plot of the film

Camera Shots

• Long shots near beginning enable audience to familiarise themselves with setting
• Medium close up shots in the car when a character is talking
• Frequent use of reverse shots in the conversation with the man and woman
• Extreme long shot used at end as car is driving away - shows the drama was compacted into the car only and outside of the car everything appears normal

Narrative

• Story of a couple, who have broken up, meeting again while the man is waiting for his friends
• They get talking and the man offers the woman a lift home
• Then his friends get into the cra wearing balaclavas and holding bags from what looks to be a robbery and the man drives off