BY PHOEBE Farrington

1. Question 7Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel that you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? BY PHOEBE Farrington

2. Preliminary Exercise: A filming and editing continuity exercise… Because collectively our group had little experience with continuity filming and editing, and this was quite new to us. We learnt about lots of different camera techniques, such as the 180˚ rule. This meant that the camera is placed on a invisible line, and the cameras must either stay on the left the whole time or the cameras must stay on the right the whole time. This is done to maintain clear spatial directions and onscreen direction. We also used shot reverse shot in our preliminary, which shows the camera changing from looking at one persons face, and then the camera changing to look at the other persons face, to make it look like they are having a conversation. We also showed match on action which means the cut in made on the action. For example if someone were to jump of a table, the next shot would be the person on the ground.

3. Preliminary Exercise: A filming and editing continuity exercise… During our preliminary exercise, we managed to use a range of shots that made our prelim interesting and different. However, we also learnt from our preliminary to keep our shots in focus the whole time and also make sure the eyeline is correct and no one looks at the camera unless necessary. I think the editing of the preliminary also went well because we were able to edit our simple sequence of shots together and learn basic editing skills, as well as spotting our mistakes in our sequence. As well as filming techniques we also had to learn skills such as delegation of tasks and roles, planning and storyboarding. We each had a fair amount of work to do and we all learnt how to storyboard, and use the storyboard effectively. Overall, I learnt quite a lot from our preliminary, that I could improve on to make our actual opening title sequence much better. For example, keeping all our shots in focus was very important, to make an clear and effective opening title sequence.

4. Forming groups and working collectively on the project… We began planning our opening title sequence by collaboratively putting forward all our individual ideas on an A3 piece of paper and adding post it notes to develop our ideas. We then continued to narrow down our ideas until we all agreed on our best one. Both me and another member of our group had never had any experience with media or camera techniques, whilst one of the people in our group had some previous experience with cameras and editing. Therefore we delegated the work depending on what it was based on, whilst delegating the work equally and fairly. Working in a group was rewarding because it meant we could combine our individual skills (like organisation, good at writing and the camera work itself), making our teams work as good as it could be. It was also challenging because you have to make sure other people in your group are organised and have done their share of the work, which can sometimes be difficult. Sometimes if there are disagreements, it can also be quite hard to find a solution.

5. Planning and filming our thriller opening title sequence… We started by making a storyboard of what we wanted our opening title sequence to be, we did this shot by shot so we fully understood and were clear what we wanted each individual shot to be like. We also made other documents such as recces (to make sure the location we wanted was suitable for our filming), shot lists (which told us how long we were going to spend on each shot, so our time management was effective and productive). We also planned what props and costume were needed and who would provide it. Because we planned everything before, it made it easier to be able to get everything we needed, within the time we had to film and not waste anytime because someone had forgot to bring a prop.

6. Planning and filming our thriller opening title sequence… On filming day we were able to use a variety of shots because we were more aware of the techniques and continuity editing. This meant we were also able to shoot more ambitious shots, as we could build on the basic filming techniques we already knew. I was most proud of our first shot, which was a pull focus shot. I think it looks very clear and smooth and adds to the tension within our opening title sequence.

7. Planning and filming our thriller opening title sequence… We didn’t re-film any of our shots, however we did take our some of our shots, as they didn’t match the film and the shots were irrelevant. We picked the day that was meant to be sunny and dry because we were filming in the woods we didn’t want it to be muddy and difficult to shoot in. We didn’t use shot reverse shot in our opening title sequence because, our character doesn’t have a conversation with anyone. So therefore there was no need to use shot reverse shot. Nor did we use match on action because our opening title sequence was conceptual so all the shots were not in a continuity order. We used the 180˚ rule several times throughout our OTS. We made sure if we used a shot twice or was used again later on in the sequence that the character was staying on the left or the right.

8. Planning and filming our thriller opening title sequence… I think our end product is quite successful for the level we are at. I think we handled the camera work, editing and working as a team really well. I also think that we did well with the editing, as we were given a limited time frame, and it was hard to be able to book out extra editing time that we were all able to attend. I think we used our resources well and managed to make our opening title sequence as best as we could. If I could do something different next time, I would make sure that we were more decisive when we were cutting out shots in the editing stage and also, I think we should have taken more spare shots, just incase we lost some footage.

9. Editing … Compared to editing our preliminary, editing the opening title sequence was much harder and much more complex. It took a lot more time than I originally thought it would. I thought it was much harder to edit the footage, however because it was conceptual, it meant the shots could go in a random order and we were able to switch them around until we were happy with the sequence of shots. So I thought the editing was much more complex, however we were also more able to play around with our opening title sequence, as opposed to having to stick to a certain order of continuity – like in the preliminary editing task. We used varieties of effects because we wanted really convey the genre of our OTS and the point of the opening title sequence. We looked through several different effects to make sure we picked the right ones. For example, the correct tints and saturations, as well as sound effects. I think my knowledge of film making and skills have improved massively over the coursework period. To begin with I didn’t know how to edit, and now I can edit to a reasonable standard and know how to use the software for editing. I also think my film making skills have developed in terms of using the camera and what good camerawork is such as making sure it is the correct white balance and the camera is always in focus.