Today was the first day of my shoot. I am filming the scenes featuring Ellie.
Call sheet:
I was the crew for my shoot - I acted as the director and shot the footage on camera. I decided against having more crew as all I needed to capture was visuals and therefore only needed myself on camera - had I needed audio as well then I would have recruited an additional person for my crew.
Despite it being very cold in my filming locations, the shoot day went very smoothly. Ellie turned up on time and we started filming almost immediately. The costume I gave her was an entirely black costume with a brown faux fur coat. This was so that the orange roses that she was carrying / dropping would stand out from / contrast with her outfit. The outfit also gave a very natural feel - which was very important to Ellie’s character as I wanted her character to look fresh faced and natural.
The first location I filmed in was the lane. I directed Ellie to walk down the lane in both directions whilst I followed her with the camera in a medium shot. I decided to get her to walk both ways down the lane so I could pick which way looked best when it came to the edit. For every shot I did which featured Ellie, I filmed the shot without her in it too so that I could flicker the shots in the edit. After filming the medium shots following Ellie, I made sure I filmed all the other shots I outlined in my shot list plus a few extras (including: close up shots of the flowers dropping on the floor and close up shots of the flowers on the floor). I wanted to ensure I had as much footage as possible to play around with in the edit (without deviating too much from the shot list).
The second location I filmed in was the open field. Again, I followed my shot list for this location as well as getting additional shots of the roses being dropped and lying on the ground.
The final location was the wooded area. Again, I followed the shot list and gained additional shots. In each location, although I only needed one shot in following Ellie in each, I decided to get at least three incase I lost focus in any of them whilst tracking her. This wasn’t essential but I thought it was a good practice to put in place in case I got to the edit and realised the footage was out of focus / had soft focus.
What went well:
- I managed to obtain all the footage I outlined plus extras - Ellie was very easy to direct - she did everything she was asked to do and offered her own input into how to make the shot better. When following Ellie, I had originally planned to just have her glancing back over her shoulder, however, during the shoot we realised that her face was obscured by the coat. So together we decided to have her spin around to face James and then spin back around and keep walking. I really like the effect of this and think it works better than my original idea. - Most shots we got on the first attempt - some of the more complex shots were filmed several times to ensure at least one of them would be in focus for the edit - however, the content of each shot was correct and as outlined in the shot list. - The camera performed well and I am happy with all the shots I filmed - in our News Production unit we couldn’t get the camera to focus crisply in our live segment. Following this I decided I would always test the focus on the camera before shooting. Because I did this, all my shots are in focus this time.
What could be improved:
- I only had 3 hours to shoot with Ellie so I had to ensure we stuck to the shot list quite closely. Although I did get some additional footage, it would have been nice to experiment some more if I had more time. In future I could schedule my shoot better so that there is more time to film. - After reviewing the footage, I realised some shots were slightly over exposed (however, not so much that this couldn’t be fixed in post production). I will need to make sure the exposure of these shots match with the exposure of the shots I will film of James on Sunday.
After finalising my idea, I got straight to writing out a shot list and script. Due to my idea being mainly revealed visually, I decided to include my only piece of dialogue in my shot list along with the blank shot that accompanies it.
The only piece of dialogue occurs at the very beginning of the piece, the rest of the narrative is revealed visually rather than verbally - this increases the importance of forming a shot list as I need to ensure I shoot all the correct type of shots so that my film will work as a visual narrative.
On the shoot days I will focus on filming the visuals and not worry about audio. I will film the audio after I have formed a rough cut and then match the audio with the visuals I would have already filmed.
Audio I would like to get:
- buzz / wild track inside and outside - natural sounds (e.g. birds, trees blowing in winds, crunchy leaves) - footstep sounds as the piece is about following (concrete, field and woods settings) - traffic sounds for the background of the voicemail - siren sounds for when James is walking through the lane - clock ticking - sounds for when the shot flickers (static sounding shot)
Shot List:
Black screen - just audio - Ellie leaving a voicemail
“oh, hi love, its me, running a bit late, traffic’s mad, did you want me to meet you at the restaurant or actually no, I’ll text you when I’m coming down the lanes okay”
Medium shot of James’ eyes
Close up shot of clock 12pm
Medium shot of eyes looking concerned
Close up up shot of clock 12:20 pm
Close up shot of clock 12:50pm
Close up shot of clock 1:35 pm
Quick montage:
Close up shot of tying up shoes
Close up shot straighten tie
Close up shot grab flowers
Close up shot lock door
Medium shot James walking down lanes towards camera x3
Final shot, James stops with blank expression on face - blue flashing lights reflecting on his face
Close up shot flowers drop to the floor
Medium shot James looking at photos of Ellie with distressed expression on face
Sound of post through the door
Close up shot of single rose on doormat
Medium shot of James opening door
Medium shot of trail of flowers on pathway
Medium shot following James following trail (lane)
Close up shot of James face (confused)
Close up shot of James face (slightly happier)
Long shot of Ellie walking and dropping flowers
Close up shot of Ellie turning around
Medium shot of her feet walking away past flowers
Medium shot of James following Ellie (he walks towards camera) track
Medium shot of Ellie walking through woods (she walks away from camera) track
Medium shot tracking forwards through woods (without Ellie in shot)
Medium shot of James walking towards camera through woods - track
Close up shot of Ellie turning around
Medium shot of Ellie walking through field (away from camera) track from behind
Medium shot of James walking through field (towards camera) track
Medium shot tracking through field (without Ellie in shot)
Close up shot of Ellie turning around
Medium shot of Ellie walking through lane (away from camera) track
Medium shot of James walking through lane (towards camera) track
Medium shot tracking through lane (without Ellie in shot)
Close up shot of Ellie turning around
Close up of Ellie dropping flower
Medium shot of James walking through lane (towards camera) track
Medium shot of James walking through lane (away from camera) track
Medium shot of James looking around (facing camera)
Medium shot of James looking around (away from camera)
Close up shot circling James
Close up of arm linking through his
Long shot of Ellie and James walking through lane away from camera
Long shot of James walking through lane away from camera
I asked Mike for further feedback on my new project proposal. He commented that:
- it was a good development which adds / clarifies a narrative arc to my original idea.
- the extra complexity allows some sentimental / poetic imagery which is very appropriate to the poem
- some good opportunities for montage and movement
- the narrative arc is easier to explain verbally than to reveal visually but the way I have laid it out will work well
- maybe think of a time lapse as a descriptive option when depicting the passage of time.
This feedback has been useful and has given me confidence for my shoot. I will film both my original idea of using different shots of the clock to show the passage of time and the time lapse and choose whichever works better in post production. I now feel that I have a clear narrative and a clear idea of the visual aesthetic I want to achieve in my project.
Although I have had to adapt my project proposal, the actors, locations and equipment I wish to use remain the same (with the addition of a male actor as I have had to add a character in my project).
Cast:
Ellie will be playing my main character 'Ellie'. I have decided to keep the characters and actors' names the same as their names do not feature in the film. I used Ellie in my Directions Unit so I know she works well with the camera and with being directed. I wanted this character to be very fresh looking and natural - Ellie fit this description perfectly.
Ellie (the main character) is the 20 year old girlfriend of James. She calls James on her way home from work stating that she will be a bit late, only to be involved in a car crash moments later.
We follow her throughout the film as she drops roses to guide James along her path. She is showing him that she is still present all around him even if she is not there in body. The characters reunite at the end, however, Ellie flickers away. This symbolises James accepting that she is there with him in spirit.
James will be playing my other character 'James'. I wanted this character to have a more mature look with a thoughtful, caring nature - James fit this description.
James (the secondary character) is the 21 year old boyfriend of Ellie. We follow James at the beginning as he finds out the fate of his girlfriend. The rest of the film is spent showing James following Ellie through different locations.
James is in a state of shock for the majority of the film. He is in shock at first at the scene of the car crash. Then later he is in shock / disbelief that he can see his girlfriend Ellie.
My biggest consideration when casting these roles was making sure they looked as if they could be a couple. They don't feature in any shots together until the very end of the adaptation so it must be clear to the audience that they were a couple when Ellie was still alive. I have confidence that both my characters will perform well.
Locations:
The main locations will be outside in nature as inspired by the poem. The only inside location will be the house in which the character James lives. For this I will use my own house with its simple design as it will suit the character.
I want a country lane as one of my locations - this features many different aspects of nature such as bushes, leaves, birds etc. I wanted this location to represent the general natural theme of the sonnet, whereas, my other locations mirror more specific pieces of the sonnet.
I also want a wooded area for my shoot. Ideally, I would like sunlight to flicker through the branches to represent the 'sunlight on ripened grain'. However, this depends on the weather on the day of the shoot. Even if the weather doesn't cooperate, this location will still help to portray the imagery of nature which is prevalent in the sonnet.
The final natural location I wanted to feature was an open windy field. This will represent the line 'a thousand winds that blow'. Again, this is weather dependent but will still make a good location if the weather doesn't cooperate.
In all of these locations I would like the setting to be blue toned / desaturated whilst the character is warmer in tone / more saturated. I want the main colours featured to be blues / purples for the backgrounds and oranges / pinks for the characters. I would like these to contrast but compliment each other. This is outlined in my mood board / visual design.
Equipment:
For my shoot I wish to use a DSLR as we have been using these in our experimental workshops and I am very comfortable using it. I also want to do my project handheld, therefore I feel the DSLR will be better than a panasonic which could get very heavy if being used for constant handheld shots.
I will be applying certain techniques with the DSLR which I discovered in the workshops such as:
- circling around the subject to create a sense of confusion
- following / tracking a subject
- handheld footage
I also feel I can achieve the visual look I want easier with a DSLR as I am more familiar with the settings and therefore know how to set the camera so that I can get the most out of the shot both whilst shooting and in post production.
Following Mike's feedback from my original project proposal, I decided to give more thought to a narrative for my adaptation. I came up with a new project proposal which retained some features of my original proposal (e.g. the flickering shots) but this time I put more thought into a narrative arc.
My New Proposal:
Interpretation: The poem is about comfort in the time of loss. The voice of the poem has passed away
and is telling the reader / their loved one that they are still present in all things around
them. I will show this by showing the character being present in different surroundings
(inspired by the poem - so ‘a thousand winds that blow’ will be portrayed as a windy open
field & ‘sunlight on ripened grain’ will be portrayed as sunlight flickering through a
wooded area). I want to briefly show the characters together at the end to show that they
are both still together although one is not there in physical body, and then flicker the shot
so that the deceased is no longer there in body.
Summary: James is waiting for his girlfriend Ellie to come home so they can go out for a meal / date / lunch date. She leaves him a voicemail to say she’s running a bit late but quite a bit
of time passes and she’s still not home. James becomes concerned and heads down the
lanes that Ellie usually drives down to find there’s been a car accident, he drops the
flowers he had for the date. Cut to James looking distressed and looking at pictures of
Ellie. A flower is posted through the door, the same kind that James dropped at the scene
of the accident. He opens the door to find a trail of flowers. He follows the trail to find a
girl dropping the flowers. It is Ellie. He follows her through different locations and she
flickers between being present and absent from the shots. He loses her, he begins to look
around. An arm links through his, it’s Ellie, they walk off, she flickers to being absent from
the shot.
Beginning: Start with black screen - just audio - Ellie (girlfriend) leaving a voicemail - “oh, hi love, its
me, running a bit late, traffic’s mad, did you want me to meet you at the restaurant or
actually no, I’ll text you when I’m coming down the lanes okay”
Cut to shot of boyfriend James’ eyes - then to the clock - then to eyes looking concerned
- then to the clock - couple more shots of clock to show time passing
Cut to quick montage - tie up shoes - straighten tie - grab flowers - lock door
Cut to James walking down lanes towards camera - few shots of this - on final shot,
James stops with blank expression on face - blue flashing lights reflecting on his face -
flowers drop to the floor - cut to black
Middle: Cut to James looking at photos of Ellie with distressed expression on face - quick cuts
fading to black showing his distress
Sound of post through the door
There is a flower (the same kind that James dropped at the scene of the accident) - flicker
back to clip of James dropping flowers - then flicker back to flower on the doormat
James opens the door to see a trail of flowers - track / pan to show trail
James begins to follow the trail to find where it leads
After following it for a couple of scenes - he sees a girl in the distance walking and
dropping the flowers - she looks over her shoulder - it is Ellie
He follows her - she is showing him that she is still present in all these surroundings even
if she is not there in body
We follow her through a couple of different locations (showing different aspects of nature
e.g. a wooded area, an open field area, a country lane) she flickers between being present
and absent from these shots
James loses her - he looks around, confused
End: An arm links through his - he looks to the side - it’s Ellie - they walk (we observe from a
long shot) she then flickers to being absent from the shot.
Below are some images which I found inspiration in for the visual design of my project. I knew from the start that I wanted to play with saturation and contrast. I then decided that ideally I would like to use blue / purple colours for the background / setting shots and contrast this with orange tones in the characters. Due to this desire to use the colour orange in the characters, I selected orange roses for my character to drop as a trail.
I like the idea of using coloured gels on lights to create this sharp contrast between colours, however, I do not think this will be possible or practical on a shoot involving following characters through several locations. Instead, I will use this idea in post production and play with colours in the edit to enhance the purples in the backgrounds and the oranges in the characters.
I also like the idea of using costumes to contrast the colours. I want the orange roses to contrast with Ellie's outfits - therefore she will be dressed in dull colours to enhance the brightness of the roses. She will be dressed in a brown fur coat - this also adds to the softness / naturalness of her characters. James will be dressed in a bright pink shirt in the beginning to contrast with the dull blue atmosphere.
I also found shots with layered opacity. I like the look of the shots being spread apart - I will try this in my own project. My original plan was just to flicker between Ellie being present / absent / translucent but positioned in the same place - I may now try to position her at different points in the frame. This adds a dream like / hallucination look which I think is quite appropriate to the narrative as James is supposed to be dazed / confused whilst following her.
In order to gain some inspiration for my experimental short film, I decided to have a look at some music videos which followed a narrative. I found many music videos that seemed to follow some of the experimental techniques that we have learned about whilst also following a narrative.
The Wombats - Greek Tragedy
Synopsis: A young girl is obsessed with the band - almost on a stalker level. We begin in the present with flashbacks (in the form of what looks like old video recordings). We then follow the girl from the past to the present day (following her schemes to murder and tie up the band in an old abandoned warehouse so that she can have them all for herself).
How it has inspired my work: The music video starts with some flickered images, which is something I want to do in my adaptation. The video flickers from a slow motion shot of a girl in some dark surroundings to some flashback scenes and then back to her again. It repeats this several times. I plan to do this in my adaptation by layering different opacity shots, however they have achieved this by showing several different opaque shots. It has made me consider different ways I could achieve my flicker effect.
The music video starts off with a few shots in this style - slow motion dark shots just focusing on this girl. Then flashbacks are inserted in time with the music. This is similar to how I would like to achieve the present / absent shots of my character walking through the different locations - I would like to use a similar technique to flicker the image.
This screen shows how it flickers between shots. I like the effect of tv static, however, I don't think it would work for my piece as it would then suggest the character is watching back an old recording. Instead of using a tv static flicker, I will change the opacity of my shots and layer them.
It then flickers back to another slow motion shot from a different angle. I will be doing something similar, but instead of flickering back to another angle, I will flicker to a different location.
Interspersed in the flickers are some flashback images that foreshadow what happens at the end of the video. This has made me consider whether I would like to include some flickered images of a car (to allude back to the idea of a car crash) - this is something I will consider and experiment with to see if I can pull it off effectively - my concern is that it will confuse the audience as to why there are just random images of a car.
Foster The People - Coming of Age
Synopsis: The music video features many different stories related to the song title - coming of age.
How it has inspired my work: The shots used in the video are all very interesting in terms of the framing, the camera movement and the colours. I was drawn to this one shot of the camera circling around a couple as they meet and thought I may do something similar in my adaptation as I have the idea that at the end, my characters will briefly reunite.
As the characters meet, the camera circles around them. This shot creates a sense of disbelief in the characters as they almost can't believe they are together (either again or for the first time). The circling creates that confused feeling which adds to their disbelief. I think this would work well in my piece.
In a series of shots, the camera tracks into each character (the male as he gets off his motorbike and the female as she looks out over the valley). I really like the look of the constant tracking in, I think its effective in making the audience want to know more - why are we getting closer to these characters? what does it mean? I would like to do something similar in my adaptation but following the characters - hopefully this will pose the question of why we are following them. Crystal Fighters - Follow
Synopsis: A woman follows a scarecrow through an alley. After the first little video section, the rest of the video is in stop motion. The colours they are wearing and details such as objects in the photo frames change in each frame.
How it has inspired my work: I aim to follow my characters through different locations. The idea of doing this through stop motion and changing things around the characters in the scenery is quite fascinating. I could possibly use this to show my character being present then absent in the shots, however I feel like this could end up looking like a mistake rather than it being the purpose of the shot.
This video has also given me ideas with how to frame the scenes as both this and my piece are about following.
I like the idea of following one character from behind and the other character walking towards the camera.
Crystal Fighters - Good Girls
Synopsis: The video follows a character on a bike.
How this has inspired my work: Whilst a lot of the locations in this video are quite suburban and built up, I like the colours used and feel I could use this for inspiration in my work. This video uses a lot of blue toned images with colours like orange standing out. I want to use colour as a prominent feature in my work and feel this has provided a lot of inspiration for me in terms of contrasting colours.
The blue sky and blue tone of the building contrasts with the orange sign. Whilst it is very subtle, I like this contrast and will attempt similar in my work.
This shot tracks out with the goal posts / square in the centre of the frame. I like the idea of tracking out from somewhere where there is a reference point in the frame. I also like the contrast of the orange bike part with the blue surroundings.
Kodaline - Brother
Synopsis: The video starts with a funeral which is later understood to be that of this little boy's brother. At night, the boy discovers his brother hiding under a blanket (like a ghost). They spend the night together playing. In the morning, the boy wakes up to find his brother gone. As his parents comfort him, you see the brother's reflection in a photo frame before he walks away.
How it has inspired my work: This music video has a very similar theme to my adaptation. The boy is playing with a brother he thinks it there but actually isn't. There are little nods throughout the video that the brother isn't there anymore. Firstly, the fact he is dressed as a ghost hints that he himself is a ghost. There are unnatural occurrences such as the brother being able to make fruit float around. As they walk past a mirror, the brother isn't hooded in the real shot but is in the mirror. And then finally he is gone in the morning, just to be seen in the reflection of a photo frame.
The video has given me a few ideas of how I can suggest that the character is no longer alive in body - showing a different / no reflection in the mirror, show them gone from real life but around in a reflection. Swim Deep - One Great Song and I Could Change the World
Synopsis: We follow the singer around with tracking shots.
How this has inspired my work: I aim to use tracking shots in my work, following my characters through different locations. I wanted to look at this video to see how far away from the camera the character stands and how different techniques can be used to follow them. Bastille - The Draw
Synopsis: The video is a constant sequence of black and white shots which track backwards.
How this has inspired my work: I aim to track my characters through different locations. This video has shown me that even simple camera movements can be effective.
Frank Ocean - Pink + White
Synopsis: The video is full of imagery to match the lyrics of the song.
How it has inspired my work: Whilst it doesn't directly relate to anything I am doing in my work, the video is full of natural imagery that has given me ideas for shots I could use in my work.
I would like to use a wooded area in a scene in my adaptation and thought this looked striking. I do not think it will be possible to find a location as ideal as this but I would like to bring features of it across such as sunlight flickering through the trees (which also depends on the weather).
Again, whilst this doesn't directly relate to my work, the colours and framing used were really striking to me. I like the contrast of the pink skin with the blue hue of the city. Contrast is something I would really like to experiment with in my adaptation, especially with warm colours like pink and orange with cool colours like purple and blue.
London Grammar - Oh Woman
Synopsis: This video uses some experimental techniques with opacity and colour - two things that I would like to experiment with in my project.
How it has inspired my work: I would like to use contrasting colours as well - where they have used green and red I would like to use colours like blue and orange. Techniques are used to flicker the beginning of the video as well - something which I want to use as a theme in my piece.
Looking at music videos has given me more ideas of how I can create mood and atmosphere in my piece as well as focusing on the narrative. I have also found new ways I can follow my characters - i.e. following from behind, having them walk towards the camera, tracking shots etc. I may attempt stop motion but I feel this would be too difficult with my narrative arc. I also have a clearer idea of how to convey that my character is not there in body anymore.
