Session 8 & 9: Production & Post-Production

Production Log: 8&9

This week there was no further filming taken due to many diffculties and complications within the group and the actors. This week we planned to complete the 'Party Scene' and finish the rest of the Monologues that hadn't been shot when the previous Monologues were completed. Because of everyone having different timetables it's been hard to get everyone as a group to complete the few scenes we have left. As a group we then plan to complete the whole film on December 4th. I then found a location where I thought was suitable for all the cast and group members to meet which was in Balham where I was able to use a family members house to complete the Party Scene.

Once again the plan to film failed again, actors cancelled last minute and group members didn't meet on time this led to problems within the group. Myself and Thamina the director then went to our Media teacher Mr Pillai to explain the issue and what was happening and asked if there was any alternatives to get more time to shoot parts of the movies as the deadline was catching up with us. Our teacher then went onto explain that this wasn't possible and we had to scape what we had together and shoot a few extra scenes to adapt the story again without the Party scene but still make our audience understand the concept of the story.

I've put together Blog 8 & 9 due to the fact that we had to shoot all our final scenes before December 7th because of the deadline that was two weeks away. Because we had three or four days to do the final scenes as a group we decided to change all the actors apart from two who had previously done their Monologues and get new actors to fill the roles and complete the Monologues and do cut aways for the movie so we could add them in. I took the 'Zeus' role of the story and we got three new girls to cover 'Athena, Hera & Athropdite'. Within those days we managed to complete all the Monologues and shoot cut aways apart from one cut away because she doesn't attend the college as she is the Director Thamina' little sister and Thamina didn't film a cut away when she was filming outside of college.

Now all the shots needed have been completed, I can now begin to edit the final short movie to submit for the deadline. There are minor complications with some of the shots captured that I did not like because for one of the scenes the volume is low also the background doesn't look professional but we have to use these as there's no chance to find a location now and re-shoot all the monologues.

This is one of the shots from the short movie which has the low volume, luckily we had an extra shot which was louder than this shot and we was able to in that shot instead of this one.

This is also one of the shots that we had a problem because of the people walking and talking in the background even though the scene is a general scene we still wanted to make the shot look professional instead of a standard short movie.

Session 7: Production Log

Complications – Again we hit a bump while filming because of the same complications we had last week with timing and the time actors arrive. This week we told everyone involved actors and extras to arrive at the location for ’11 o’clock’ but some of the actors didn’t turn up until after ’13:30’ this wasted a lot of time then we had troubles with some of the actors refusing to wear make-up which led to many disputes and we hit difficulties getting people to participate fully. Again filming was finished early due to all the problems we was facing as actors left and people were getting restless with all the complications we were facing.

Changes – We was going to change it back to a ‘Barbeque Party’ but we decided not to due to the weather conditions we didn’t want the equipment getting wet. So we kept the party interior and got some of the party scene completed but due to the early finish we all agreed to change the final scenes of the party scene to a different location which is now in ‘College’ where we can get more participants which will make it look more like an party scene for the short film. Also while filming Genesis the camera controller also used an different approach while filming using the camera handheld to catch some of the scenes from different angles to make it look more realistic and more free instead of it looking stiff which will be able to be seen when being played back.

Schedule Time – Schedule times have also been checked with each actor so there are no complications as the day to shoot approaches, I have gone to all the actors personally to let them know how important this is and how we really need them to step up so we can wrap up the filming and move onto the editing to complete the short film.

Final Cut Pro – With the footage we’ve collected so far I have began using the program ‘Final Cut Pro’ as I am Editor I started to upload the two tapes we have used for the footage so far and began to start take different parts of the footage we need to put the short film together.

This is an image of Final Cut Pro here you can see that I've made two different events for the two tapes we are using for the filming and you can see parts of the film we have shot so far and the highlighted yellow sections is what I am grabbing to put on the timeline to start editing.

Session 6: Production Log

In the previous Production Log I stated that we needed to change our storyboard below is a screenshot of our final completed storyboard:

Last week we took out the ‘Camera & Tripod’ and began training with the equipment so we can learn all the different features and how to set up the Tripod. The group finally decided a location which was best to begin shooting the film, the location that has been chosen is the Producers house which is Amie using her garden to film the Party scene. This week filming took place I wasn’t able to attend the first film shoot as the original day was changed at short notice but my group members gave me feedback later on the day on how the shoot went and all the complications they faced on the day. Much of the party scene was not completed as actors arrived late to the shoot also actress make-up was prolonged causing more time to be delayed.

During this shoot only the confessional parts of the short film were able to be recorded because all the actors involved either had different plans after the shoot or other commitments so it was very hard to get different parts of the short film completed due to the fact of everyone’s schedule. Due to the fact it’s now winter it’s very hard to get light scenes for the Party scene the scene was meant to be exterior meaning outside but this has changed to interior because it’s getting darker quicker outside but because the Camera doesn’t have a light on it, it’s still hard to film because it’s dark and it’s hard to see some of the actors clearly.

Because of all these complications we had to wrap up early and post-pone the other scenes to another date (next week) also adding to the problem some of the actors didn’t know all of their lines so they kept getting it mixed up so this just added to the pressure of the shooting. For the next film shooting we need to take a different approach to how we get everyone to participate to get everything done on time or get a decent amount of footage recorded as we used one full tape and some of the footage is useless or unnecessary.

Session 5: Production Log

Due to complications with our storyboard and script we've had to push the filming back to make the finishing touches to the storyboard so it can be at a perfect level, once this has been done we are going to proceed with filming also the script needed a few changes to the language so that was changed and characters parts were perfected so the young cast members could be seen in a public light and not in a bad one so peers and viewers of this short film wouldn't class it as another ‘Hood’ movie.  We are training on the equipment and taking practice shots. All members got trained how to use the 'Camera & Tripod' this was done so when we went out to film we were familiar with using the equipment so we wouldn't have any complications whilst filming. As a group we still haven’t made the decision on where the party scenes of the short film is going to be shoot because we need an location where everyone is able to go to without any complications. 

Here is an practice shot from where we was training with camera using the Tripod and taking shots from different angles to get familiar with the camera and the features.

Session 4; 'STORYBOARDING & SCRIPTING'

Script:

Throughout the process of creating a script, in our group we made several versions to our script. The reason for this is because our first script had different variety of language some of which that was not needed and we changed all the language to sophisticated old English. Also we are using a young cast for a old Greek mythology and swearing was used in one of the versions of the script we changed this because we didn’t want young people of our generation to be reflected as bad and also keep the ‘Apple of Discord’ clean. The final script which we adapted is much more longer and detailed which allowed us to create a better and precise storyboard to follow.

This is our final version of our script that we have adapted for the Trojan War story.

For the storyboard I have used 'Slideshare' to upload our final storyboard. Below I am going to put a link up that goes to our storyboard and this also consisted of 73 slides: 

http://www.slideshare.net/rcmartin34/storyboard-trojan-war

Storyboards are important for a variety of reasons it allows you to follow a guideline and fully catch the shots you need to take for your short film feature. The storyboard keeps the film sequence in order to keep an narrative flow. The storyboard words from the script into different units which make it easier to see of the directors ideas can be transferred onto screen.
Storyboards are useful between 'Production' because they can be given out to the whole crew of the group so when filming is being done everyone will know what is required for each shot in the way of the camera movements and movement of the actors. By using a storyboard during the Production it allows this allow the actors performance to be more convincing while they are being filmed because the director is going to be using the storyboard on set.

Session 3: "Generic Influences and Similar Texts"

Me and my group members have decided that we are going to produce a short comedy film. As there are many genre's within the comedy genre we have chose the sub-genre 'Parody', which is a type of comedy which mocks an original movie. To help me identify the codes and conventions of a Parody Comedy I have done some further research into this genre. As it is a short film we have to make sure it is going to be direct and accurate. I have researched three short Spoof's on Youtube, which are listed below:

This is a BBC Comedy from the BBC YouTube webpage, this short comedy is by a comedian called Jazzie and in the genre of comedy this would be classed as a ‘Farce’ comedy because in the short clip improbable situations occur throughout the scene. I’m using this as example as my group has a mixed sub-genre of comedy to choose from.  LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvkC_KdTAcQ





This is a comedy show called ‘The Real Princess of New Jersey’ which is on the channel ‘Disney Channel’ this show is a ‘Parody’ of the real show ‘Real Housewives of New Jersey’. Within this scene they mock and joke about how women in the city of ‘New Jersey’ act also this is also being used because our chosen short film is going to be mocking the original script of ‘The Trojan War’ (Apple of Discord). LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDSq0V_usPU

This is a comedy and the sub-genre is ‘Parody’ this show is based on ‘Reality’ and is called ‘The Office’, this show uses the codes and conventions of the real office like and they convert it into their own and mock how people live their day-to-day life working in the industry. LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzwBnjfRyZ4&feature=related

What makes a parody?

A parody is an imitative work created to mock an original piece of work done by someone else. For example a movie made by someone like Harry Potter or Twilight and then someone can create a different version of the movie mocking it. The codes and conventions target the subject through the means of humours or ironic imitation. The codes and conventions will turn the original story script around to mock the whole story line.

How is sound Used in a Parody?

In a parody there are different types of sounds and sounds effect used within the short parody clips. The sounds used in clips create an atmosphere that the audience would draw into so they can have an emphasis of the clip being funny to them. Sound effects also creates an certain atmosphere which will emphasize the content of the parody more this will contribute to the genre of comedy because the parody will have more emphasis and more meaning behind the context if sound and sound effects help contribute to the dialogue. The dialogue within the parody clip helps contribute to the generic aspects of the sub-genre parody because jokes and mocks, which are going to be made within the short film, need to come across clearly to the audience.

How do you intend to use these elements in your short film?

My group intend to incorporate all these codes and conventions of a parody because we are going to use some of the elements to help us shoot our short film. With our Trojan War clip we are completing change the script and making our own new script to mock the whole storyline of the Apple of Discord. While shooting we have to make sure we have lots of humour or ironic imitation to have the audience drawn in also the sounds effects must contribute in our short movies so it helps the dialogue and so the audience knows that it is a parody and they find it funny.

Session 2: Justification of Final idea, Adaptation choices and Narrative Analysis

My group has chosen the myth story of the ‘Trojan War: Apple of Discord’ to shoot for our short movie which is between 3-5 minutes. We chose this story deliberately because of the good concept behind the main story and we could adapt the story how we wanted it to be and make it more interesting. Below I am showing the original story we searched of the Trojan War and the adapted version we change to how we wanted: http://www.stanford.edu/~plomio/history.html

      This is the website where we got the original version of the ‘Trojan War’.

 

  

   Below is the original and adapted version together: 

   IMAGE NEEDS TO BE PUT IN!

   The structure of our story is based on one part of the Trojan War which is the ‘Apple of Discord’ which is a Greek myth from 1200 B.C. We are focusing on this bit mainly because of the concept behind but we are changing the concept and bringing in our own formula which has a beginning, middle and an opening open.

In AS Media I learnt the 5-Stage theory which I am going to use in A2 Media studies which I am going to apply to the adapted version of the Apple of Discord. These stages consist of the following: Exposition: Introduction to settings & the characters.
Development: Audience develops to know characters, the story starts to kick off and new settings and characters are introduced.
Complication: Distribution or conflict within the story.
Climax:  Distribution & Conflict reaches a peak.
Resolution: Happy Ending, Bad Ending & Open Ending.

      

      

In the ‘Apple of Discord’ my group has applied ‘Propp’s Function’. Propp’s Function consists of 31 function character types and from the following functions they will be incorporated into the short movie. Below I am going to show the four functions we have applied to our adapted version of the ‘Trojan War’.

Also Propp concluded that they’re can be seven different characters types which I’m going to put in below:
Helper: Who assists, rescues, solve and/or transfigures the hero’s.
Villain: Struggles with hero.
Donor: Prepares and/or provides hero with magical agents.
Princess: A sought- for person (and/or her father).
Dispatcher: Who sends the hero off.
The Hero: Who departs on a search reacts to donor and weds at the end.
The False Hero: Who claims to be the hero, often seeking and reacting like a real hero.

Our adaptation of ‘The Trojan War’ includes a ‘Villain’ (Paris who steals the apple), the ‘Prize’ (Apple of Discord which is what everyone is fighting over), the ‘Donor’ which is Eris (she provides the apple to everyone), & the ‘False Hero’ (Zeus- appears to everyone like he’s trying to settle the situation on the other hand he has other things on his mind).

Levi-Strauss looked at narrative structure in terms of binary oppositions. Binary oppositions are sets of opposite values which reveal the structure of media texts. An example would be GOOD versus EVIL. Levi-Strauss theory was a constant creation of conflict/opposition and this narrative can only end on a resolution of conflict. Levi-Strauss narrative relates to our adaptation as my groups narrative is based on conflict because Eris is jealous and fuming that she wasn’t invited so she crashes the party and starts a conflict with the ‘Apple of Discord’.

The moral of our story is based on ‘Vanity carries its own punishment’  this means if you fight over something because your vain means not far behind there will always be punishments for the ones who let vanity control them.

Session 2: Original & Adapted Version

Session 1: Outline of Brief & Preliminary Ideas.

Session 1: “Outline of Brief and Preliminary ideas”

During this production I am required to create a short movie which is going to be about 3-5 minutes. This movie is going to be created in the video medium section area. This includes ancillary task which I have to create a poster and a double magazine spread for the movie to promote the following movie created. Also during this production I have to blog weekly each step which is taken to create the short movie and after the production has been finished I will do an evaluation to evaluate the final product which has been created.

The brief given to us is based on ‘Fairytales, Fables & Myths’. We have to choose one of the following and research any story from any of the given genre’s and adapt the story we are given into are words then shoot a short movie based on what we have chosen and adapted.

My group consist of four members which are; Genesis Adewole, Amie Fofanah, Thamina Begum & myself Ruben Martin. Our production company is called ‘Bigger & Better Productions’.

To create this short movie there are four different roles which have to be taken up in the group to complete the task. The following roles are; ‘Director, Producer, Editor& Camera/Sound’. Everyone in the group has their own individual responsibility, I am the Editor my responsibility is to edit the shots which are going to be taken and put together the short movie to a high standard. Thamina Begum is going to have the responsibility of being Director so she is going to direct the short movie vision the whole movie with Camera sound person which is Genesis Adewole so she is going to film the short movie and get the sound backing which is going to be in the short production and Amie Fofanah has the responsibility of being the Producer so she is going to choose the best locations, settings for the short movie to be filmed in.

My group had ideas and all are ideas were in the myth category and we narrowed it down to one main Myth which is the story of ‘The Trojan War’. We are developing this idea and adapting the story into our own version to create a modern storyline based on the Myth. Below we are focusing on the main part of the Trojan war which is: Taken from (http://www.stanford.edu/~plomio/history.html)

'The Apple of Discord'

The Trojan War has its roots in the marriage between Peleus and Thetis, a sea-goddess. Peleus and Thetis had not invited Eris, the goddess of discord, to their marriage and the outraged goddess stormed into the wedding banquet and threw a golden apple onto the table. The apple belonged to, Eris said, whomever was the fairest.

Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite each reached for the apple. Zeus proclaimed that Paris, prince of Troy and thought to be the most beautiful man alive, would act as the judge.

Hermes went to Paris, and Paris agreed to act as the judge. Hera promised him power, Athena promised him wealth, and Aphrodite promised the most beautiful woman in the world.

Paris chose Aphrodite, and she promised him that Helen, wife of Menelaus, would be his wife. Paris then prepared to set off for Sparta to capture Helen. Twin prophets Cassandra and Helenus tried to persuade him against such action, as did his mother, Hecuba. But Paris would not listen and he set off for Sparta.

In Sparta, Menelaus, husband of Helen, treated Paris as a royal guest. However, when Menelaus left Sparta to go to a funeral, Paris abducted Helen (who perhaps went willingly) and also carried off much of Menelaus' wealth.

In Troy, Helen and Paris were married. This occured around 1200 B.C. (Wood, 16).