Prelimiary Task: Self Assessment (Georgia Skipper)

Preliminary Task Self Assessment

Georgia Skipper

I believe my group have used continuity in our editing and I feel it is apparent within the video seeing as our video never skips from one shot to another showing an obvious missing sequence. there is constant editing in our video which is fluent and matches up however in our first two camera shots their are other people in frame which show the cut, I feel we should have gone back and re-filmed this. In addition to this, looking at our audiences feedback I believe our narrative was unclear and this could have been down to the beginning being too long and unclear for a two minute film clip. in our audience feedback we were asked why we used black and white, we used it as we felt it set an atmosphere and showed un-clarity, looking now I believe I wouldn't have used it as the movie cut strait into colour and I fell this looked very unprofessional and amateur, we were also asked why we used slow motion and it was to mark the moment and to co-inside with the black and white and to create an apparent need for strength and light. I feel that we didn't follow the brief as we didn't use all that the brief entitled us too, however we did follow part of it. we did not show a character opening a door and we did not use chairs although this was primarily down to our location as where we had originally hoped to film was unavailable.
We did use match on action in our film clip when Scarlett leans forward and hands the letter to Jane, there is an over the shoulder shot of Scarlett passing the letter and an instant cut to an over the shoulder shot of Jane taking it, we did not however use shot reverse shot in our preliminary as we thought a wide shot showing the two characters would have fitted our preliminary better as it was showing the support of the friends and how they are in it together whereas we felt that shot reverse shot added a segregation and separation and therefore caused a distance which wouldn't have matched up with the performance. This is because I shot reverse shot consists of filming one character, cutting to the other and then another cut back to the previous character and so on, we felt this didn't show the partnership we needed or the reactions of both characters to show the visual juxtaposition which we had originally intended and for that reason we decided not to use it.
I feel we did observe the 18-degree rule as we never broke it and we stuck to the one side of the action, This is proven when the two are sitting down and both characters always remain facing the direction that they were previously and we have an arc on the 180-degree line.
for the preliminary task I had the role of an: actor, director, writer and editor. I feel I made a huge contribution to the group as I came up with our initial idea and co-wrote the dialogue for the clip, I also co-edited the film and directed whilst acting I feel that without my input a lot of the work would not have been completed or on time.
During the process of creating the preliminary I have learned to get the majority of the work done as soon as possible as time creeps up on you and things do go wrong for instance our whole completed film was erased and we had to re-make it. therefore I have learned to use my time effectively and always have the film saved. I have also learned not to work with people who do not have the same drive to succeed as me.

 

 



Preliminary Task-Script

Maisie:

Whats wrong?

(Georgia hands over a crumpled letter)

Is he allowed to do this?

Georgia:

I dont know

Maisie:

what do you mean, you dont know?

Georgia:

 i dont know if he's allowed to? if hes allowed to send me letters, but first he killes mr brother, now he is coming after me

Maisie:

what are you gonna do about it?

WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT?

Georgia:

i dont know

Maisie:

get revenge

Georgia:

what like get him before he comes for me?

Maisie:

i guess its just an eye for an eye

(written by Georgia Skipper)

Preliminary Task-Initial Ideas

Our first idea for the Preliminary Task was to make a horror scene as an extract from a film. This would consist of Georgia being possessed within her classroom and none of the class would have found out until she started attacking people within her class (Maisie and Jack). However, we agreed that making a horror would be too awkward because you have to get a preference from an audience first and we did not have the technology for impressive cinematography. 

(Maisie Walker)

Another idea we had was to create a Romantic Comedy extract. The clip would have consisted of Maisie and Jack being on a date and another girl (Georgia) walking in who is also dating Jack. It would consist of an argument between the girls and Jack and Jack trying to explain himself, followed by the girls getting revenge.

However as a group we decided that this idea wouldn't have been our best option as it didn't give us the creative opportunity that we wanted.

(Georgia Skipper) 

Group Roles

Maisie Walker:

Directing

Camera Work 

Editing 

Acting

Georgia Skipper:

Directing

Acting

Editing

Jack Whiteley:

Directing 

Camera Work 

Music 

Josh Ford:

Music 

Camera Work 

Preliminary Task: Self Assessment (Maisie Walker)

Preliminary Self Assessment

Maisie Walker

 

I believe our film had consistent editing throughout the film due to the fact that it did not jump to anything without recognition. In addition, most of the film flowed and it was clear to the audience what was going on. On the other hand the narrative was quite unclear but that was not anything to do with the editing. The slow motion edited into the film gave it a sense of importance as it marked the moment and indicated to the viewer that the character was about to the enter the room. Secondly, in my opinion, the black and white worked quite well as it indicated the mood of the characters (scared, dull and on edge). On the contrary, this could have been improved because the film switched from black and white to normal colour without anything in between therefore it did not flow as well as we would have hoped.

 

We did not follow the brief exactly, this was because we thought it would be more creative to work around the brief and do something similar. Ours consisted of running through a door and falling to the floor, the other character then helps their friend out and they exchange dialogue on the floor. We chose this because Georgia's character (Scarlett) and my character (Jane) are weak and misunderstood therefore putting the characters on the floor would indicate their vulnerability. I thought this was a good idea as the audience were mostly looking over the characters feeling a sense of dominance over the characters. In addition, we didn't follow the brief exactly as it limited how much we could have done with the movie. On the other hand, not following the brief caused us to go off task slightly and we wasted a lot of time showing Scarlett running through the school instead of introducing the technical side of it which were the camera shots and angles.

We have used a match on action within our preliminary film when Scarlett hands the note to Jane to read. This gives the viewer a chance to see what the character before is doing and what the other character is doing after. If we followed the brief exactly, we would have used a match on action if Scarlett walked through the door as you would be able to see Scarlett from behind and then see her as she enters the room. I believe the way we used the match on action was effective as it makes a big deal about the note and sets the viewer up for when Jane opens the letter. It builds suspension and puts the viewer on edge.  A match on action involves showing an action from a character before a cut and then after the cut, the action is picked up from where they left off. For example, if a character throws a ball, it can be edited to introduce two different views of the action. The first shot being the characters throwing the ball and then the second shot of the ball halfway through the air. Match on action shots can only be maintained if continuity is maintained. This means that it only flows if both shots are exactly perfect from where the first shot had left off. For example, when throwing the ball, the characters hand should be in the same position as when they threw it to when the ball is in the air or it wont be effective and will not flow.

We have not used a shot reverse shot within our preliminary film. The only place we could have used it would be when Scarlett and Jane were having their conversation however we did not use it there as we used the 180 degree rule instead. The conversation was very short therefore what I would improve for next time would be making the conversation longer and having less running at the beginning to make the narrative clearer. A shot reverse shot involves two characters for example, in a conversation. The camera starts facing one character whilst they are talking, secondly, the camera then cuts to the second character when they talk. The camera then cuts again to the first character who was originally speaking to show all of the characters speaking. This is effective as it gives the viewer a chance to see each characters facial expressions and body language whilst they are speaking. Next time I will add in the shot reverse shot as it is a vital chance within a conversation to indicate characters expressions.

We have used the 180 degree rule within our preliminary film when Scarlett and Jane are having a conversation on the floor about the letter that Scarlett has received. This is effective as it shows the whole conversation. This particular camera shot shows both character facial expressions in relation to the dialogue and it gives the viewer a chance to see both characters reactions to the conversation instead of just one. I believe this would be better than shot reverse shot as sometimes, if not done properly, it can look rushed and too quick which would not look as a good as a the 180 degree rule. The 180 degree rule of shooting keeps the camera on one side of the action throughout the scene. The camera must not cross over the axis of the action, if the camera shoots across the axis it may show the viewer that the actors' positions in the scene have been switched.  Throughout the scene the camera does a semi circle motion round the characters constantly staying on one side of the action.

I played the roles of acting, editing and filming. These consisted of editing the film and making sure that all of the camera shots flowed together maintaining continuity. I feel that I did well for editing due to the fact that there were no major parts in the film where it did not make sense therefore I managed to maintain continuity. On the other hand, some parts were quite rushed and the camera cut too quickly therefore it did not flow as well I would have wanted it too. In addition, the black and white parts of the film did not flow when I went straight to the normal colours again therefore that would be something I should work on for next time. My role of acting was not large as the preliminary film was not long however, I thought my performance was very good and I maintained the performance to a good standard throughout. The only thing I should have filmed again would be the part when I smiled slightly when the camera was close to my face. This would be another improvement for next time to make sure that if the performance isn't at its best to film again so it looks realistic. Finally, my role for filming was quite small as well as I shared it with Jack and Josh and I was mainly in the film as an actor. I believe I worked well with the filming as I made sure each shot was to a good standard before moving on, I also gave my input for a lot of the shots. I mainly filmed the parts where Georgia was running through the school, this consisted of using a tripod that was mainly placed on the floor to capture the lower part of Georgia's body keeping her identity a secret until the ending of the preliminary.

I believe I worked hard for the preliminary and I had a large contribution to the group as I constantly gave my input when necessary for help and ideas on how to make the film better. I also completed a lot of the editing for the film, even though there were improvements, it was quite smooth and it flowed well. I also helped a lot for the filming which is also a large aspect to the film. I have learnt that creating a film isn't as easy as it looks and there is a lot of work involved. Additionally, when publishing the film, we had trouble as we took all of our videos off of a removable storage device therefore when it came to publishing the movie, it did not work. This set us behind a few lessons. Even though it was quite a large problem and we had to edit the film again, I have learn from next time to transport all of the files to the computer first before editing. I have also learn that taking too long to start the film can be tedious and may cause the audience to loose interest. This is important as we need the audiences full attention throughout the real task. As a result of this, next time I am going to try and make sure that the film doesn't take so long to start and the narrative is easy to understand. Time management is a key element when creating a film as it can set you back if you do not work to a certain time frame/schedule, because of this, I am going to make sure I allocate time for each task for the main task to make sure my group and I are always on time and not falling behind.

Preliminary Task

Preliminary Task-Pitch

Pitch

Name of play: Eye for an Eye

The chosen genre for this preliminary task is going to be a thriller.

 We have chosen to film within the Howard School particularly on the field and within the PE 

Block. 

 It will take place in the afternoon/evening

This short film will consists of three characters; Scarlett, Jane and Paul.

The Narrative for the film consists of;

·         Five years ago Paul brutally murdered Scarlett’s brother and they are planning to seek revenge on him before he causes them any more harm.

·         This causes quite a problem with the people around them as they go out of their way and harm others to receive the revenge they deserve.

     

     We have chosen to do the preliminary task at the opening of the film. Firstly, we start with a medium shot of Jane sitting at a table on her own with a blank expression. This will foreshadow the fact that Scarlett is about to walk into the room and cause a problem. Then we cut to an over the shoulder shot of Scarlett walking through the door in a distressed manor as if she is either hiding something or has something on her mind. Next we then see a match on action front facing from the door. This shows that Scarlett is walking from one place to another. Then we have a two shot of Scarlett and Jane sitting at the table covering about something important. We have chosen to make this a mysterious conversation so the audience are on edge, this will make the audience feel uncomfortable. 

     When the conversion has ended Jane looks slowly to the table where there is a close up of a letter which Scarlett has written with an outlined word 'Revenge'. There is then another match on action and a push in of Jane taking the letter out of Scarlett's hand. This then causes an argument between the two friends which results in a medium close up of the two girls arguing. Finally there is a worms eye view of Paul standing without his face on an area of grass. This will cause a mystery for the audience and build suspense. 

      The Key roles within the film are;

·         Scarlett is the sister who plans revenge on Paul.

·         Jane is the friend of Scarlett who witnessed the murder and was not taken seriously telling the police who allowed the murderer to walk free

·         Paul is the man who murders Scarlett’s brother.

Director

Jack Whiteley
Maisie Walker 
Georgia Skipper

Camera Work

Josh Ford
Maisie Walker
Georgia Skipper
Jack Whiteley

Actors

Georgia Skipper

Maisie Walker
Jack Whiteley 
Editors
Maisie Walker 
Georgia Skipper 
Jack Whiteley 

Dialogue;

Jane- What are you doing?

Scarlett- Nothing.

Jane- I know you’re up to something

Scarlett- Something you’re not involved in

Pitch written by Maisie Walker and Georgia Skipper

Audience Feedback: Our pitch wasn't fully complete therefore we received some audience feedback to ensure our pitch was at its best. 

• The first bit of audience feedback we received was about the 180 degree rule. As we didn't add it into our pitch we had a suggestion on how to add it in. Due to the fact that we have a conversation between two people we had the idea of putting two people at a table having the conversation about Scarlett wanting to get revenge on Paul. We will then move the camera around the conversation 180 degrees. 
• We need to ensure that we maintain the camera position on one side when the two people have the conversation. 

(Maisie Walker)

• The audience said they wanted to find out why they wanted revenge and see the murder as a flash back. They wanted to see the back story in order to understand the story. They also wanted us to use close ups and extreme close ups to emphasize the characters emotions so that, within the 5 minute clip, they are able to understand the character and feel sympathy for them. Another piece of feedback was the use of these camera shots will help to understand our complicated narrative and add drama and tension to the clip.

(Georgia Skipper)