Team meetings

Tuesday 20th November 2012

Today,  Jamsheed and myself begun editing our footage from the second filming session which was on friday.  We had re-shot the scenes of tyler getting out of bed as our old footage lacked in light. We also decided that we would be filming this Wednesday at 13:00 O'clock.

Wednesday 21st November 2012
Unfortunately we had to re-schedule our filiming to Saturday 24th November 2012 as the weather condition for Wednesday was very atrocious!

However, as you can see the forcast is predicting that it will rain; yet this is an advantage for us as it is pathetic fallacy and refelcts Tobias being unclucky.

Saturday 24th November 2012
Originally, we were set to film today morning; however, our main actor was not available. Our filming has been delayed.

Tuesday 27th November 2012
Today we have discussed with Vanessa the problems we have been encountering with our casting crew; a team meeting has been adjourned today at 11:25am and we will be discussing the following issues of whe filming can be done in order to move on to the next tasks.


Also the actors have given an availability of filming tomorrow at 2:20pm, and the weather is predicted to be chilly with sunny intervals!

We have been currently experiencing a lot of delays due to everyone's tinmetable; thus our main actor has cancelled on Wednesday's filming; so therefore we have to film Tomorrow - Thursday 29th November 2012 9:00am in the morning in order to get majority of things complete.

FINAL FINAL FINAL DRAFT OF CASE STUDY! =D

Research and Planning-Case Studies

My first narrative is similar to James Lee: ‘short and sweet- A cute animation’ (February 3^rd 2012) as his story is about adorable, little creatures trying to find love. The extract follows a linear narrative structure of the pink creature longing to be loved and find the right person, which is shot using animation to display a comic affect for the audience. The theme expresses the concept of love being hard to find and how people are so determined to acquire it. The characters are represented via their colour which is stereotypical as the female is pink and the male is blue; however the person the pink creature admires the most is a taller peachy-pink male, who appears quite laid back: wearing glasses and smoking whilst tossing a coin. Initially, the audience are aware of what characters represent what gender; yet I believe the moral of the story is to fall for your own kind; hence the cooler male being a peachy-pink colour it connotes how your own kind is better rather than falling for someone who is completely opposite for you. The cutting rate is quite slow throughout the movie to depict the drama going on within the long shots; although it also uses close ups to show the pink creature’s facial expression so we gain an better understanding of what is occurring. There are numerous sounds being used for example: the establishing shot begins with a non-diegetic upbeat tempo accompanied by the pink creature happily walking; whereas further on in the scene we hear diegetic sounds of the creature speaking and rain falling to portray a reality crisis and gloominess falling down upon them, yet in the animated world. The film is targeted at a unisex range of people aged 10-27 years of age who enjoy comedy through the great wonders of animation or people in general who want entertainment to relax.

This short film gave me a concept of a teenage girl and boy meeting every Wednesdays at opposite sides of a tube station, they will only communicate through various types of body language, smiles and writing on notepads (animation will be included here) as they both are returning from college. It will consist of a simple narrative structure of them both wanting to go out; yet the girl being stood up by the boy.  In addition, the following  Wednesday the boy see’s the girl yet with another guy, whom he previously encountered problems with, on the day he was supposed to go on his first date with the girl on the other side of the platform. The technique which inspired me from the extract is the use of exerting animation which keeps the audience entertained and the form of how they openly display emotions of the creature smiling - when she saw the tall handsome male and crying, sad or upset- when she was rejected due to her height - these are all stereotypical features of teenage girl; hence are audience is predominantly female as they can relate to the feelings of rejection being expressed. Whereas in reality films, the character always expresses emotion through body language only. However animation breaks that condition of making the emotion come to life as all its surrounding for example: the weather, location and atmosphere are reflecting reality which emphasises being in love can happen anywhere at any time, this also emphasises with the audience of females as they can relate to this with real life scenarios of being in love or facing rejection; therefore the animation exaggerates this in the entire short film.

My second short film is a romantic comedy following a simple, linear narrative structure: ‘Ben and Jackie’ by: JMGmedia (February 28^th 2011). It is about a taxi driver (Ben) who falls in love with a passenger (Jackie) that he takes shopping every Monday. The film is shot in live action, through a master shot of the exterior of the front car window, which give us an insight of what is occurring. The establishing shot features captions to introduce the predominant characters, which also provides us with selective focus on depths of fields, which supplies us on feeling included and gains us a clear focal view of action taking place. This is aided by the diegetic sounds of the radio being played, people talking, and a voice over of Ben which reinforces the realism of his stereotypical life of being represented as an archetypal taxi driver who is alone and has a low-paid job; whereas, Jackie is connoted as being a beautiful young girl who is a regular customer. The narrative applies Todorov’s theory (1960), of a state of equilibrium which held a peaceful and calm beginning  of him taking his passengers to their destinations; Yet, ends with a recognition that a change has occurred which is Jackie introducing her boyfriend to him.  The general narrative problem is of Ben living an average life of a single male who has no hope in the future; until he meets the women of his dreams but they cannot be together as of the people in her life, which Ben falls onto the belief of him always being unlucky and hopeless. The main target audience for this film is anyone who can relate to narrative or has difficulties expressing themselves to their loved ones which is predominantly the unisex gender of both failing to attempt to tell the opposite sex their feelings for another. However, the element of comedy displays Ben always having the worst customers for example: the Muslim male who calls Ben a racist, the group of boys fighting in his cab and the drunk who vomits- these are all portrayed to highlight the funny and hilarious scenes which keeps the audience engaged and entertained throughout the movie as well as the romantic genre flowing through, giving the overall view of the short film being simplistically sweet yet sad.

This has helped me to illustrate a narrative structure that will be about a man on a quest to find love and experience it which is in similitude to ‘Ben and Jackie’ but it will be more modern, containing comedy. The egoistic male will approach any woman and try his luck in a weird, ridiculous manner; but the man will be rejected by all women until he learns that he needs to let love find him. This affects the audience as it can implicate love cannot be searched but it can be found. The techniques I will be demonstrating is: using voice over of the male character to portray what he is feeling and thinking, long shots on when the male and female character so the audience can identify their characteristics which reinforces realism for example: their clothing, accessories and what they do for a living and master shots will aid to gain the audience access into their personal life for example: a wide shot of a stereotypical teenage male, student’s bedroom is imagined to be messy with clothes everywhere, books on the floor, posters, untidy bed and a hobby object (preferably a guitar/skateboard). This is to get a clear and precise view of what is occurring throughout the short film which will make scenes appear natural and spontaneous as it exerts a sense of a typical family home.

My final example: ‘Just My Luck’ directed by Donald Petrie in 2006. In Manhattan, Ashley Albright (Lindsay Lohan) is a lucky woman and very successful in the agency where she works. The clumsy Jake Hardin (Chris Pine) is an unlucky aspirant manager of the rock band McFly, who is unsuccessfully trying to contact the entrepreneur Damon Phillips to promote his band. When Ashley meets Jake in a masquerade party, they kiss each other, swapping her fortune with his bad luck. The scene which has enthused me the most is when Jake is firstly introduced in a medium shot scene he is represented as a messy nerd,  in a car key green outfit portraying him as scruffy and dishevelled. The scene of him exiting his house, whilst the non-diegetic sounds of a ‘splat!’ of bird poo falls onto his shoulder and him hopelessly responding “thanks” shows it is a normal routine that he wakes up to in the morning which is: adversity. Also, the panning shot of him walking across the streets and nearly getting run over by a man on a bike and car shows how he is not careful and also seems to be tied misfortune. This has given me the idea of inserting a comedic effect in my short film of the male character always stumbling on bad luck, for example: being late, forgetting his wallet, keys and phone, missing the bus, and getting splashed by a puddle- which will entice the audience and keep them amused. Throughout the film of ‘Just My Luck’ there is a slow cutting rate of how the events of good or bad luck and normality appears for both characters as it appears spontaneous and natural- I will be applying this method in my film to show how unordinary and unexpected events can occur. The technique I will be utilising is: having a medium shot of time passing by whilst my male character wakes up late preparing to go to college, I will either be denoting: someone grabbing toast from a toaster or putting the kettle then blurring this and making the background clock the depth of field in order to emphasise on time- this will display the norms of a typical household to the audience. Moreover, for additional emphasis on misfortunate luck e.g. trying to open the male character’s front door as he forgets the bouquet of flowers and chocolate - I will be shooting a wide shot then zooming in closer on the male to gain the audiences attention this will also be supported by the non-diegetic music playing in the background (Yolando Be cool- We are no Americano) as it will help to elevate humour and entertainment for the viewers as it is a clichéd, tacky song.

Latest Filming Production Schedule On Tough Luck

Wk. 1 Oct/Nov	Monday 29th	Tuesday 30th	Wednesday 31st	Thursday 1st	Friday 2nd	Saturday 3rd	Sunday 4th
Half-term	Filmed ‘Tough Luck’ on my Canon HD Video Camera- Scenes: 1-24 By: Jamsheed+Yusra Went over storyline and character roles with actors at Tyler’s house. Here we filmed Tobias (Tyler) being late in the morning and rushing out the house.	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments
Wk. 2 November	Monday 5th	Tuesday 6th	Wednesday 7th	Thursday 8th	Friday 9th	Saturday 10th	Sunday 11th
Deadline of filming	In media, Miss went over the coursework we needed to complete: Recce and Prezzi also embed YouTube links.	Jamsheed, Ela and Yusra finalising decisions of changing the treatment and location of a scene. We altered the bus stop scene to Lloyd’s Park, Walthamstow, London- more convenient.	Our teacher confirmed that she will give us extra time to film as our actors were performing in a show: ‘Fiesta Latina’.	Yusra was absent from lesson- Due to being ill.	Initially we were supposed to have our second filming session here; however we would have been absent from our Media lesson with Zafar Aslam; therefore, Vanessa advised us, to utilise the whole of next week to film.	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments
Wk. 3 November	Monday 12th	Tuesday 13th	Wednesday 14th	Thursday 15th	Friday 16th	Saturday 17th	Sunday 18th
Final Week Of Filming	Brought video camera in and uploaded the footage; Also, booked a tripod and a camera for Friday’s filming session. In addition, began editing scenes.	Editing the remaining of the first scenes and adding a cheesy element of music (Yolando Be cool- We are no Americano)	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. College/Work/Appointments Completing final drafts of coursework and uploading it on to blog!	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. College/Work/Appointments	We are supposed to be filming following scenes: of Tobias meeting Zara and Tobias being late for his date.	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. Work/Appointments	Actors we’re not available due to other priorities e.g. College/Work/Appointments

Team Meetings

Today, we discussed our issues with our filming production and decided we will change the location from the bus stop to Lloyd's Park, Walthamstow London. Initially we planned that Tobias Would meet Zara at the bus stop; Yet, we changed the venue to a more convenient location. Here we shall film, how Tobias being late, sees Zara for the first time (day 1) they both walk past each other (day 2) consists of both of them sharing a smile. Day three will feature Tobias being early and sits opposite of Zara on a Bench and asks her on a date via a notepad.

Since Monday, we began editing scenes on Mac which we filmed over half-term, our teacher assessed the first scenes which we ensemble together and said the following feedback's:

• The long shot scene of Tyler getting dressed as he is late for college has poor lighting and appears dark; therefore Miss suggested we film this scene again for a better lighting.
• Add cheesy music song "We are no Americano" (By: Yolando Be Cool)- gives the element of entertainment and humor to the audience.
•  Redraft filming production of showing when and what we filmed on particular days.
• When we are filming Tobias waking up in the morning, film things to show time passing by for example: Toast coming out of the toaster, someone putting the kettle on or shouting goodbye.Helps it to become more realistic of a family morning routine. 

In addition, due to our actors being overly-booked by performances in college, they have been extremely busy since the start of half-term; hence we have not been able to schedule a free day since our first filming session. Yet I have spoken to the actors and we have all decided to film on Friday 16th November 2012 to their availability at 11:25 am.

Walthamstow's Weather Forecast- As you can see Friday is predicted to be a misty, cloudy day, with some drizzle. Hopefully this will not hinder our filming and everything shall go according to plan.

Location Recce

Location Recce

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Tyler’s Room

Pros

·         Accommodates 2-3 people comfortably

·         Natural light coming in through window, which can be controlled using the curtain

·         Electric light on the ceiling.

Cons

·         Not enough room to move/set up a tripod easily.

·         No space next to bed to film from different angles of the bed.

·         Free-weights/equipment on the floor in one corner

Other notes

·         Film in the morning to midday/ before 3.30 during November

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Upstairs of Elphinstone Road

Pros

·         Accommodates 2-3 people comfortably

·         Electric light on the ceiling which can be controlled using a light intensity dial/knob.

Cons

·         Narrow spacing

·         Other rooms around, possibility of interruption of filing from others in the house.

Other notes

·         Film in the morning to midday/ before 3.30 during November

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Upstairs bathroom (Elphinstone Road)

Pros

·         Accommodates 2-3 people comfortably

·         Natural light coming in through window

·         Electric light on the ceiling.

·         Mirror can be used to film a variety of angles

Cons

·         Mirror can limit the angles from which scenes could be filmed.

·         Natural light cannot be controlled

Other notes

·         Film in the morning to midday/ before 3.30 during November

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Staircase

Pros

·         Has an L-shaped layout, meaning other shots can be filmed from here.

·         Uses lighting from upstairs which can be controlled.

Cons

·         Narrow passageway, so mobility is limited.

·         Stairs can cause risk of falling

Other notes

·         Film in the morning to midday/ before 3.30 during November

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Downstairs (Elphinstone Road)

Pros

·         Accommodates 2-3 people comfortably

·         Natural light coming in through window in door

·         Electric light on the ceiling.

Cons

·         Too narrow for more than one/two people to operate.

Other notes

·         Film in the morning to midday/ before 3.30 during November

Streets

Pros

·         Very spacious and large

·         Allows for a variety of camera angles

·         Various entry and exit spots

Cons

·         May have lighting issues due to only having natural light

·         Weather may become an issue

·         No electricity supply in case of battery failure on camera.

Other notes

·         Film during the day before dark.

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Bus stop

Pros

·         Very spacious and large

·         Allows for a variety of camera angles

·         Various entry and exit spots

Cons

·         May have lighting issues due to only having natural light

·         Weather may become an issue

·         No electricity supply in case of battery failure on camera.

·         The public may not approve of filming

Other notes

·         Film during the day, near the morning

Feedback after half term

Today, Jamsheed, Ela and myself have discussed how we can improve our grade as our whole produiction grade is an overall C- ; hence we spoke to Miss and she told us what needs to be handed in and what tasks needs to be impoved for example: Recees - in order to boost our grades. Also, we have gone over what has been filmed from last week to show what is still needed!

Story boarding On Tough Luck

Here is our detailed story boarding on our short film 'Tough Luck':