Main Task - Short Film - Draft 4

In this draft I have changed the font and text technique on the title page so that it now looks more like a conventional silent film title page or inter-title. I have done this because I wanted my film to reference an original silent film whilst still keeping the modern twists I have added.

Main Task - Short Film - Draft 3

This is the almost completed version of my short film. 

I have decided to change the name to 'Stick Up for Me' because the two characters weren't really 'Penfriends' any more due to the plot changes. I feel that 'Stick Up For Me' is more suitable.

I am now going to add the finishing touches by refining the fonts I use and adding some more title screens etc.

Main Task - Short Film - Draft 2

This is my second draft of my short film. As you can see I have now added music but there are still some parts I need to edit.

Firstly, in the first walking part I need to neaten up my editing as Kyra sometimes retraces her steps when the angle changes.

Secondly, I need to make Emily's silhouette clearer as several people have commented that she looks like a man which defies my reasons for adding it in the first place. Also, one comment I got was that it isn't clear they are meeting for the first time so I'm going  to change the texts to make this more explcit.

Finally, I found that my happy piece of music didn't fit with the music I have used for the rest of the film so I have found a possible replacement.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5aZQw8449c

I have decided to use guitar music because when trying out other options guitar ones sounded better than piano.

Editing Log - Entry 3

Footage Layering

I have now edited Chloe's silhouette over 'text scene 1' to eliminate any confusion this could have caused with regard to the identity of Lauren's friend.

I have done this by layering footage of Chloe on top of the footage of Lauren texting and then altering the saturation to make it a silhouette.

Music

I have also been looking to music I could use to convey different moods as this is a key part of making my film understandable. Here are my favourite examples of the ones I looked at.

Sad

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_Am4cHMBKM

This piece is a sad song that I think will be good for the opening scene and the scenes where Lauren is blanking Chloe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9haTFoGcvk

This could be another sad piece that I could use although this may be better for the second park scene where the music doesn't have to be as sad because they make up.

Happy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4kjC0jAM9U

This piece sounds relatively happy and I think it will be good to use in 'text scene 1.' I want happier music here because I want to show the transition between her being sad or annoyed in the first scene and happy to be talking to her friend in the second. I may use this piece again in the last scene where they walk into the common room together but I might choose a different piece.

Main Task - Short Film - Draft 1

 

This is my film as it stands. As you can see from watching it there are still a few sections which I would like to re-film or places where I want to add footage. I have already completed the filming for these sections and intend to edit them in in the next few weeks. There are also a few sections where I have some more editing to complete. For example, 'text scene 1' where I intend to make the gender of the person she is texting clearer by editing a translucent silhouette over the footage of the conversation. I also intend to replicate this effect on my poster.

Audience Feedback

I have also decided to get some audience feedback at this point because now is the time to find out if there is anything my audience thinks I could add.

In the questionnaire I asked questions about the areas that I don't feel I can fully judge because I am too familiar with the plot.

What are your overall impressions?

Pretty cool

I liked the flash back in the park scene
 

In scene 1 who do you look at?

The bullies and then Kyra
 

Is text scene 1 too long?

No but you don’t know who is talking.
 

How could I make it more obvious that Kyra is speaking first?

Put the names on or move the text for Kyra next to her
 

Could you understand what was going on in conversation scene?

Yes, and I liked the effect
 

Do you like the music I have chosen at the moment?

Yes

Editing Log - Entry 2

Colour Correction

The camera that I have been using makes the colours of the footage really vibrant. As an artistic person I love seeing the bright colours that are produced as a result but unfortunately this doesn't always fit with the mood I am trying to convey. Since I am now producing a modern day silent film I am having to find ways of conveying the mood through alternative roots to narration and dialogue. The expressions on the actors faces is obviously a big clue but things such as what music you use and the colours of the footage also play a big part in the mood conveyed.

When I filmed the opening scene (Common room scene 1) it was a sunny day and so the colours came out really bright but the mood I want to convey at this point is of loneliness and isolation. To solve the juxtaposition this created, between the action going on and the colours used, I used colour correction to bring the brighter tones down giving the scene a more depressive feel.

colour of original footage

colour after I altered the saturation

To keep the continuity in my film I have made sure that every time I want to portray this mood I have used the same levels of saturation.

Filters

As I mentioned in a previous post one of the conventions of silent films I want to replicate in my film is the use of black and white. When silent films first came out they were completely black and white because colour technology hadn't yet been invented but I don't intend to use this technique throughout my film. My reasons for this are that it would defy what I said above about dulling the tones to create a sad mood and enhancing them for a happy one but also because I like the idea of mixing old and new together. This same mixture of old and new was used in the short silent film 'Colour Shift.'

Colour Shift

Here the creator has set out to make a silent film and has probably looked at the conventions like I have. However, they have played on the conventions modernising it by indicating the shift from an original black and white silent film to a modern day coloured silent film by implying that the characters can also see the change. I won't be using the black and white filter and colour in this way as my characters won't be affected by the change in colour but the idea behind using both to modernise a piece whilst still hinting towards it roots is my incentive for keeping with this convention.

I am going to use the  black and white filter in the climactic scene of the film. This is 'Park Scene 2' where the two friends meet so that Chloe can explain her actions to Lauren. Using complete black and white as opposed to just really dull colours here gives this scene more emotional effect which is why I have chosen this location for this effect.



original colour of footage

black and white filter


Other Influences

Sherlock

The hit TV series Sherlock frequently uses text graphics in episodes to illustrate text messages being sent or Sherlock's thought patterns.

Indicates what Sherlock is deducing from this evidence

Hit TV show Sherlock uses text graphics to show texts being sent and received 

I have also used this technique in several scenes of my film partly because I remembered how effective it was in Sherlock but also because I originally filmed the texts coming in on the phone but the camera was reflected in the screen and it was a really long and boring scene.

This is an article talking about this interesting use of text graphics. 

http://iheartsubtitles.wordpress.com/2010/11/12/sherlock-storytelling-through-visual-text/

In a similar way the show often layers information over the footage behind it as Sherlock is thinking. 

Map layered over the footage of Sherlock

Files layered over the footage of Sherlock

I intend to use a similar technique in my film in 'Text Scene 1.' Currently the audience gets the impression that the person she is texting is male so to solve this ambiguity I am going to layer a faded silhouette of Chloe over the footage of Lauren texting. This will show the audience that Lauren's friend is a girl but not who she is. I chose to do this instead of using a split screen because I want the audience to discover the identity of Lauren's 'text friend' at the same time as she does.