AS MEDIA BLOG:
MAKDA MICHAEL
10th November
Last week, we continued planning by taking on our own responsibilities. Istabraq was responsible for the synopsis of our opening sequence, planning/drawing out our storyboard, costume listing and organizing our call sheet. Alex was responsible for the synopsis of our film, reece notes- so, editing/uploading the video of the use of our props with description. Also, the risk assessment, and travel plan. Lastly, I was responsible for writing out the script,production schedule, props list as well as equipment list.
How far have we reached in terms of this?
We've finished our storyboard which was drawn by Istabraq- she's drawn the events happening from the start all the way to the end. Alex has recorded/edited the video of Tom explaining how to use the lighting control desk, managing to add music over the clip. I've also finished writing the script for our sequence. So our task for that week had been successful as we've managed to finish everything that we were assigned to do.
What's next?
This week, as a group we're planning to gather more props and finalise our storyboard (be aware of the shots that we're going to use) so that we know what we're doing on the following monday when we begin to shoot. We also need to familiarise ourselves of the video-editing software so that when we begin to edit, we wouldn't be wasting time on how to use it.
What problems do we foresee?
The lighting- As we're in mid-autumn, the lighting wouldn't be great as it turns darker quickly, so we might
Actors timetable- we need to arrange a time where both of our actors are available.
Today, we used our double media session to ensure that our tasks set on our responsibility sheet are done and completed up to full standard. I've continued to work on We've also decided to change our opening sequence title from 'Battle of the classes' to 'Exo-spirit' - the reason why we chose this name is because it has a double meaning (Exo and Spirit) The word Exo describes 'skeleton', it enables us to imagine the human body (the structure of it) as well as Spirit- the innocent's spirit is no longer theirs once the lethal substance enters their bloodstream. Their actual spirits are removed out of their bodies which gives us a supernatural theme.
Istabraq has also had a look on possible footage that we could add for the ending of our sequence when the bodies are being toxinated by the poisonous substance. We spoke to collin about using this footage and he said he'll check if the exam board could allow this. If not, alternatively we could use the software 'after effects' However, Josh, the media technician warned us that it will take a while to use this and we only have 3 weeks to film/edit our sequence so this will be challenging.
What's next?
-Continue to work on our blogs
-Start to gather props and bring them in
-Familiarise ourselves with the storyboard so we remember the events when we begin principal photography next thursday (20th November)
11th November
13th November
During today's lesson, we've been assigned to annotate a script of our choice that's published on the bbc script writers room website. We have to choose one of the scripts, print it out and annotate it, identifying areas or techniques being used then make some other notes. Once we've done that, we have to photocopy the script and post it on our blog.
We've also had a go at filming at our first scene in the theatre and the filming went alright, although I found it quite challenging holding the shoulder tripod and taking into account focusing on Alex's face and getting the right mid shot (so her legs aren't visible) This lesson has taught me how to film using a DSLR camera, and how to adjust the camera on a tripod. I hope that as we begin filming, I'll develop these camera skills and eventually become better at filming - but that was the whole point of this exercise, to practice filming and familiarise ourselves with using a shoulder tripod/how to film on the camera.
These were a few of the shots that we've taken:
17th November
During today's lesson we all had our own tasks to perform. Istabraq produced our animatic storyboard, I've written down our five questions based on the viewers expectations of our genre and Alex edited our practice video shots using Adobe premiere pro from our previous lesson, she also added uncopyrighted music to the video.
I've come up with five questions to ask our target audience regarding our genre (Sci-fi)
-
What do you expect to be included in a Sci-fi/Dystopian film?
-
Which range of vocabulary do you expect to hear in this type of film?
-
Which outcome do you expect from a Sci-fi film?
-
Should there be an equal amount of male and female characters in order to engage you?
-
Think about a previous well-known Sci-fi/Dystopian film (so The Hunger games, Divergent etc) Which features did you find intriguing and why
18th November
What did we get up to?
Today we've used our lesson to wonder around the centre and ask our five questions to our audience (15+)
We've asked an equal amount of boys and girls and it went well. It took us around 25 minutes to do this task so when we've finished, we went back to class and alex began editing the vide. Istabraq continued with our storyboard editing.
We've also discussed with Ben about the flickering lamp and he said that it's possible. However, he warned us that when filming, our bodies might be blocking the light which could affect the overall lighting. We also have to make sure that we move all the chairs located on the side of the theatre. Other than that, we've discussed as a group on our collection of props and we have to start bringing them in for next week. I've also asked the science technician if we could use the science lab along with the equipment (safety goggles,lab jacket and glass beakers) she said I have to write down everything we need and the dates we want it for then give it to her next week.