Filming report dated 8th December 2015

Below is the schedule that I used to film on the 8th December 2015

DS4 

I found that this shot was quite easy to shoot. However, there was a struggle to place the cigarette in the mouth properly on the first two takes but then did this successfully on the third take.

DS16 

This shot was very problematic as it was difficult to gauge where the actor should place his foot when kicking and also for how long to hold his foot over the camera after kicking. The actor also struggled with keeping stable with kicking and having enough room to extend his leg in a way that made his kick look realistic enough.

DS15 Punching body against door+ punching fist shot

For this shot, I positioned myself against a door and had the actor simulate punching me in the side. As you cannot see my face, the present character is actually the officer's wife. The actor recommended punching towards my right side so that it looked more realistic as no contact can be seen being made between the fist and body.

For the punching shot, the actor punched across the screen which gave an almost streamlined feeling to his actions and only took one take.

DS19 

For this shot, I aimed the camera behind the actor so that his gun could be seen as it is drawn. The light from in front could be seen in between the actor's left arm which I was happy about. I tried a second take where the light could be seen in between both arms but I felt that this was not as good as the first take.

Filming report dated 6th December 2015

Below is the schedule that I used to film on the 6th December 2015

Below is the raw footage acquired from filming.

DS9

I found that this shot was quite difficult to film as I had to find a substitute for cocaine to film with. After looking online for different alternatives, I came across a website with the recommendation of baking powder. I ended up using baking powder after doing this research and trialling with flour as its consistency lacked the realistic consistency of cocaine based on its heavy density as well as other factors. I filmed three takes of this shot and used a vacuum cleaner to simulate the cocaine being snorted. Acting as a buffer, I used a dollar bill that was rolled up to hide the fact that a vacuum was used. Because the audio over the shot is music, it does not matter that a loud machine can be heard over the raw footage.

DS18

This shot was a change from the original shot as the original looked unrealistic and set up in a way that did not seem authentic. I filmed a shot of the draw being closed (to be put in the intro of the song) and a shot to replace shot DS18 of the draw being opened and the gun being taken out. The only issue that I found was that my shadow could be seen over the wood in some of the takes but finally was happy with the the that I chose to use for the final project as the shadow does not distract from the message that I wanted to create in this shot.

Filming report dated 25th November 2015

Below is the schedule that I used to film of 25th November 2015.

Below is my introduction clarifying details.

For this shoot, I filmed a large quantity of my shots that were a spread between Scenes B,C and D. However, most of these shots were in Scene B where the officer is outside the building and ends up shooting the little girl. I still have more shots to cover but feel that after editing these shots together, I will have a clearer perspective of how much time I have currently filled of my two minute limit. Depending on this length, I will be able to gague if Scene A will fit within this limit and if the scene is necessary or requires to be shortened. At this time, I feel that Scene A will most likely require some shortening.

At this point, I have filmed 21 shots which works out to just under half of all my required shots. Seeing that I have two more weeks to film (and have taken about the same time to film this half), I feel confident that I will be able to finish my shoot on time.

I have not uploaded the raw footage for each shot and instead am using this post to address the existence of the shots that were not detailed or addressed in other filming reports.

Filming report dated 24th November 2015

Below is the schedule that I used to film of 24th November 2015

Below is the raw footage acquired from filming.

B5

I found that shot B5 was quite easy to achieve apart from finding an appropriate angle to shoot at and keeping the keys in the center of the frame. At first, I was concerned that the shot would be too long but found that it fit into the opening perfectly.

B6

I found that shot B6 had issues with being able to see the reflection of the camera in the dial screen. I had to manoeuvre the camera to an angle that stopped this reflection from being visible. I also had to make a decision of to change the shot from a speedometer to the on screen lights as they not only provided better lighting, but also stood out more in the shot. I then had to choose which of the lights on the dashboard that I should use and which lights fitted into the frame best.

B7

I found that shot B7 was not as possible as I planned. I found that setting up a camera at the back of the car caused an issue with lighting and that a darker shot was required. I ended up using the interior light of the car door that turned off when the door was shut. With the shot, I had problems with the light not turning off when I shut the door as I had not closed it properly and also framing issues. Finally, I was able to solve these problems by opening the door further which ensured that the light shut off and that I had time to re-position the camera.

B8

I found that shot B8 did not match my envisioned shot as the radio did not have a dial to turn to increase the volume. I tried to create the illusion that I was turning a dial but found that this did not look realistic enough. I ended up choosing to just press on the volume buttons to get the shot. 

Filming report dated on 22nd November 2015

Below is the schedule that I used to film of 22th November 2015.

Below is the raw footage acquired from filming.

DS5

I found that shot DS5 was somewhat difficult to shoot as I had trouble sourcing a zippo lighter and instead had to revert to a cheaper red lighter instead of the more expensive and branded zippo lighter with a lid. I had never used a zippo lighter before and firstly struggled with getting a flame to appear without moving outside of the shot. I took 3 takes and chose to use the above take which is the second take.

At this point, I have completed 5 shots and have begun to place the shots in the corresponding order on a project using the program Pinnacle.

What have I done to improve my blog? 20th November 2015

Post blog review amendments

As in my last post, I identified that I needed to increase my use of ICT on my blog. Below are some of the few examples of when I used a more unique version of ICT and the blog this was done on.

• Prezi used on my blog which was an analysis of the opening to Leon: The Professional
• Prezi used on my blog which was the screenplay and script for my film opening
• Slideshare on my blog about the character elements of the police officer in my film opening
• Slideshare used on my blog about considering representing Disability in film opening
• Addition of mp3 file on my blog about music and sound in my film opening
• Links to Youtube clips on my blog about sound in Thrillers
• Bubbl.us used in blog about coursework brief and initial ideas
• Bubbl.us used in blog about choosing a genre and the conventions of that genre- Thriller
• Spicynodes used on my blog about actors and character elements for film opening
• Spicynodes used on my blog for script and screenplay for film opening

I have also added more detail to my blog about actors and character as well as adding more detail to my blog about props, costumes and hidden secrets.

What is lacking from my blog? 18th November 2015

Self Blog Review

After peer and self reviewing my blog, I was told that this blog has few errors/problems apart from a few details about the actors and costume. I agree with this and will include more detail to clarify how these are applicable with my genre of Thriller and the film opening that I am creating. I also feel that I need to clarify how I would like the audience to respond to my film opening.

I have been given 15/20 marks which is the top of the third band of marks. The main reason that I am limited on gaining more marks is because I am lacking in my use of ICT including: prezi/slideshare/spicy nodes even though I have already used prezi once for my screenplay. I will now be sure to increase my use of ICT and change some past blogs so that they are presented in different ways.

Dated: 18th November 2015