TASK :
To film two varying shots of maximum ten-seconds in length to be edited into a sequence in class.
PRE-PRODUCTION
This was one of the first projects the class received. Being someone who has always worked individually on media projects, I was looking forward to this assignment without any concerns.
Although we weren’t expected to prepare any pre-production documents for this task, I did have a one-on-one session with my mind palace to come up with an interesting concept. I have always been a fan of the ‘new and unique’ and I did not want to submit something ‘expected’ or ‘predictable’, coming from a student in year 1 of film.
The previous mini-task, ‘Task 0’, had been filming a 20-second clip on your mobile device of anything. Even for that task, I wanted to present something intriguing to watch and eye-catching. It led me to shoot an extreme close-up, still shot of my sister’s pink Croc on the stairs, her putting it on her foot then walking towards the front yard. Throughout the entire video, the only object in focus is the pink Croc and when it is out of the close-up frame, the entire video is out of focus.
So, personally, I needed to come up with a concept for this task and not just film two different videos. I kept this close in my mind because we would have to edit these clips together in class, and the inner experimenter in me started to arise.
Being an avid fan of films and TV shows, I started looking at videos online, scribbling ideas on sheets of paper and scrunching them into balls that would be thrown into a trash bin when I got too ambitious or impractical… or just boring!
In the end, like a sign from above, I settled on doing two shots inspired the idea of ‘The Upside Down’ from ‘Stranger Things’ on Netflix. It would allow me to experiment with editing as well as showcase some interesting filming techniques. I eve used my phone to film some test shots inside my house, carrying out the specific camera movements needed to achieve the look of the concept.
Equipment used: Fujifilm FinePix Camera, Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) – Task 0
PRODUCTION
This assignment was the first opportunity where the class had to rent out equipment from the IT office. It was exciting and concerning since we would have to take extra care of the sophisticated equipment, otherwise, we would have to bear the consequences. Nevertheless, I was excited to film my concept!
But life does not always go as one plans it and I faced problems with my SD card. The Black Magic Pocket Cinema Camera requires a certain SD card specification to record and read data. I had bought mine online and the price was close to the market standard. Although, I faced the perils of online shopping and it was a faulty card. Funny enough, it works on other cameras (on my Fujifilm) and other devices perfectly, but not on the Black Magic cameras. The whole thing remains mysterious until today… The specifications listed for the product are probably not correct, I DON’T KNOW!
Other than that, production ran smoothly. Even though there were quite a few takes for each shot, the process was quick to finish.
POST-PRODUCTION
Even though the official post-production phase of this assignment was to be held in class, I did my own trial version of the concept at home using the software, CyberLink PowerDirector (software that has been with me from year 9, the first year I took media studies).
To my relief, the clip blended quite well and looked great! The best part was that it looked realistic, and the transition from the ‘real world’ to the ‘upside down’ worked brilliantly. I couldn’t wait to show my class and the Professor my concept.
FINAL VIDEO:
This is the edited version, with both the separate videos put together –
Task 0 – 20-second clip shot using a mobile device
Auteur Theory 