All VTs complete - 4 main VTs - teaser needs to be updated with changes to font (from slanted to straight)
Promo done
Social media - run up to show - lots of advertising
Titles ready - all VTs on machine - 8 / 8:30 - back up of VTs on PC friendly drive incase of any technical difficulties
Older female model dropped out - new older female model found and sent call sheet
Ready to rehearse after the set is put up - hopefully around 11 or 12
Adeline and alfie in at 10, Bonnie in at 10, other contributors at 1
Lights constantly being adjusted through rehearsal - don't worry too much about visuals, just rehearse content
Runners have been sent runner packs by Jemma so know what is expected of them
All cameras to record as well as recording at vision desk
All cameras to turn beep warning off for battery levels - keep an eye on batteries and replace before they run out
Ollie controlling uca live for promo team - Instagram stories of transmission day
Tuesday, 17 April 2018
Wednesday, 11 April 2018
TRANSITION UNIT: Pitch
Before we could go ahead with our idea, we had to pitch to Simon and the class.
Through our research, we decided to go for a documentary / mockumentary in the style of 'Cunk on...' / Moments of Wonder from Charlie Brooker's Yearly Wipe.
We decided on our roles within the group:
Alex - Writer / Director
Melissa - Editor
Me - Director of Photography
Together we decided on the 3-4 minute scene that we wanted to re-imagine in our own style. We picked this scene from Moments of Wonder from Charlie Brooker's Yearly Wipe.
As writer / director, Alex was responsible for:
- Writing the script
- Translating the script to screen
- Planning how the film will be shot
- Selecting cast, contributors and locations
- Liaising with everyone involved to ensure the whole process runs as it should
- Work with the editor from the rough cut to the final stages of the edit
As editor, Melissa was responsible for:
- Collecting all footage and importing it into Premiere
Through our research, we decided to go for a documentary / mockumentary in the style of 'Cunk on...' / Moments of Wonder from Charlie Brooker's Yearly Wipe.
We decided on our roles within the group:
Alex - Writer / Director
Melissa - Editor
Me - Director of Photography
Together we decided on the 3-4 minute scene that we wanted to re-imagine in our own style. We picked this scene from Moments of Wonder from Charlie Brooker's Yearly Wipe.
As writer / director, Alex was responsible for:
- Writing the script
- Translating the script to screen
- Planning how the film will be shot
- Selecting cast, contributors and locations
- Liaising with everyone involved to ensure the whole process runs as it should
- Work with the editor from the rough cut to the final stages of the edit
As editor, Melissa was responsible for:
- Collecting all footage and importing it into Premiere
- Organising the footage on Premiere, creating bins and narrowing down footage
- Creating a sync assembly, rough cut and fine cut
- Editing the footage, audio, effects and transitions into a timeline
- Work with Alex to output his vision, as he’s the director
- Colour grading
- Audio Mixing
- Creating a sync assembly, rough cut and fine cut
- Editing the footage, audio, effects and transitions into a timeline
- Work with Alex to output his vision, as he’s the director
- Colour grading
- Audio Mixing
- Finishing and outputting the mockumentary
As Director of Photography, I was responsible for:
- Deciding how to shoot the piece - which kit works best - test shoots
- Creating the visual identity - looking into colour theory - working with director to bring their vision to screen
- Working out lighting - natural lighting / practical lighting / artificial lighting
- Working out light movement - schedule when to film shots - which time gives desired look
- Work flow of DoP
- Storyboards, shot lists
- Creating the visual identity - looking into colour theory - working with director to bring their vision to screen
- Working out lighting - natural lighting / practical lighting / artificial lighting
- Working out light movement - schedule when to film shots - which time gives desired look
- Work flow of DoP
- Storyboards, shot lists
To get a better idea of my role as director of photography, I did some research into 'Cunk on...', colour theory and documentary cinematography which is available on my critical research. I presented this as part of the pitch to show how I aim to film the piece.
The main feedback from the pitch was to come up with our own subject matter for the mockumentary using key characteristics of Philomena Cunk's character as inspiration for our presenter (instead of our original idea of re writing the scene.) Potential subjects suggested were around the area of politics.
It was also suggested that we would need to cast very strong actors as the presenter will carry the piece and is vital to the humour. We would like our presenter to have similar qualities to Philomena Cunk so will need to be able to act naive with confidence.
'AS LIVE' PRODUCTION: Script Version 5 FINAL
Although we had intended for our previous script to be our final script, there was some feedback from the presenters after the rehearsals. We have updated the script and their cue cards with the changes suggested by the presenters.
- The introduction consistently over ran in the rehearsals, therefore this needed to be cut down in order to stick within the time. The purpose of the presenters' introductions was to allow the audience to get a feel for who they are - Adeline as a fashion expert and Alfie as a bubbly person who needs help with fashion. We had originally intended for Adeline to ad lib a story about how she is always experimenting with fashion to come up with new ways of styling trends, however, this was too time consuming. It has now been changed to suggest her years or modelling have allowed her to gain an insight into the fashion industry.
- Instead of writing out the ad libbed sections in full, we have abbreviated them as the presenters fed back that they do not need these bits scripted.
- The script has also been updated with details of our new older female model Sonja. Unfortunately our previous older female model was no longer available for the shoot date, therefore Sonja has taken her place.
- I have also added IN and OUT words for the VTs. This is so that the presenters can link between the studio and VTs without repeating any information helping the show to flow better.
- The rest of the script has remained the same. The only changes made to this version of the script was from the feedback from the presenters and the addition of the IN and OUT words from the VTs.
- The introduction consistently over ran in the rehearsals, therefore this needed to be cut down in order to stick within the time. The purpose of the presenters' introductions was to allow the audience to get a feel for who they are - Adeline as a fashion expert and Alfie as a bubbly person who needs help with fashion. We had originally intended for Adeline to ad lib a story about how she is always experimenting with fashion to come up with new ways of styling trends, however, this was too time consuming. It has now been changed to suggest her years or modelling have allowed her to gain an insight into the fashion industry.
- Instead of writing out the ad libbed sections in full, we have abbreviated them as the presenters fed back that they do not need these bits scripted.
- The script has also been updated with details of our new older female model Sonja. Unfortunately our previous older female model was no longer available for the shoot date, therefore Sonja has taken her place.
- I have also added IN and OUT words for the VTs. This is so that the presenters can link between the studio and VTs without repeating any information helping the show to flow better.
- The rest of the script has remained the same. The only changes made to this version of the script was from the feedback from the presenters and the addition of the IN and OUT words from the VTs.
'AS LIVE' PRODUCTION: Cue Cards
As we do not have an auto cue for the presenters, we made cue cards for the sections where there is a lot of information to remember. The presenters had just been working off the scripts but for the last rehearsal we gave them the cue cards to see how they coped using these.
The rehearsals went well but the presenters had some changes for the cue cards. This involved removing some bits of information that they didn't feel were needed and adding cue cards with information they felt they couldn't remember off by heart. For example, Alfie wanted some of the Old To New section on cue cards as he felt this was too much to learn off the script - we will make this for him so that he can use this for the information he requires.
The slide show below shows the corrections the presenters wanted made to the cue cards:
We made these changes and printed off new cue cards which the presenters will use for the live show. The majority of the cue cards are for the Styles of the Season section and the interview sections. This is due to there being a lot of information to remember for the Styles of the Season section and there being a lot of questions to remember for the interviews. We also wanted to ensure the presenters didn't run out of questions for the interviews so we also included some safety questions that they could use if these sections were running under time.
These are the updated cue cards for Adeline:
These are the updated cue cards for Alfie:
We printed out these cue cards and stuck them on the cards we got printed professionally. The design for the cue cards was our logo on a peach coloured background. We wanted to ensure the cue cards matched with the other graphics used in the show, therefore we picked the background colour from the same colour group as the logo to maintain the orange tone. The design of the cue cards is very simple which gives it a clean, professional look whilst ensuring that they do not distract the audience from the show too much.
The rehearsals went well but the presenters had some changes for the cue cards. This involved removing some bits of information that they didn't feel were needed and adding cue cards with information they felt they couldn't remember off by heart. For example, Alfie wanted some of the Old To New section on cue cards as he felt this was too much to learn off the script - we will make this for him so that he can use this for the information he requires.
The slide show below shows the corrections the presenters wanted made to the cue cards:
We made these changes and printed off new cue cards which the presenters will use for the live show. The majority of the cue cards are for the Styles of the Season section and the interview sections. This is due to there being a lot of information to remember for the Styles of the Season section and there being a lot of questions to remember for the interviews. We also wanted to ensure the presenters didn't run out of questions for the interviews so we also included some safety questions that they could use if these sections were running under time.
These are the updated cue cards for Adeline:
These are the updated cue cards for Alfie:
We printed out these cue cards and stuck them on the cards we got printed professionally. The design for the cue cards was our logo on a peach coloured background. We wanted to ensure the cue cards matched with the other graphics used in the show, therefore we picked the background colour from the same colour group as the logo to maintain the orange tone. The design of the cue cards is very simple which gives it a clean, professional look whilst ensuring that they do not distract the audience from the show too much.
Tuesday, 10 April 2018
'AS LIVE' PRODUCTION: Background Information Packs and Final Contributors
As producers, myself and Melissa need to be on hand on transmission day with any extra information the presenters may need about the guests on the show. For the interview sections, we have given the presenters plenty of questions to ask the guests (as well as some safety questions incase they run out of the scripted questions) however, in the interview situation the guest may respond to a question with an unexpected answer. For this reason, we put together background information packs on every contributor so that we know every possible detail that may come up in the show. Therefore, if the presenters quickly require additional information we can communicate this through talk back into their in ear monitors.
This background information pack includes details of all our final contributors: presenters, models, DIY / independent seller, drag queen and our audience contributors.
This background information pack includes details of all our final contributors: presenters, models, DIY / independent seller, drag queen and our audience contributors.
'AS LIVE' PRODUCTION: Rehearsals with the presenters and contributors
Today we had rehearsals with the presenters and the contributors - except for our older female model, the audience fashion fails contributors and Bonnie the online seller.
My priority for this day of rehearsals was to get a few full run throughs of the show as we have not managed this in previous rehearsals - we had rehearsed each individual section but we were yet to rehearse the show as a whole all the way through.
We started out by taping the set on the floor with the exact dimensions of the set. We gave Alfie and Adeline the updated script (version 4) and some cue cards for the information / dialogue heavy sections. After the day of rehearsals myself and Melissa checked with the presenters whether there was anything they wanted changing in the script in terms of the language used and whether they wanted any additional information on the cue cards. The script and cue cards will be updated with the changes Alfie and Adeline suggested.
We managed to get 3 full rehearsals of the show in.
Rehearsal 1
- Harry and Kevin's mics not working - there were issues with the microphones all day. Paul and Aimee worked on this to ensure this won't be an issue for the live broadcast.
- Too long was spent on the presenter challenge round up - needs to be more concise whilst still informing the audience about how much was spent / where things were from.
- The fashion fails transition and segment was very rough as this has been the least rehearsed section of the show.
- We had to cut time from the interviews as both Styles of the Season and Fashion Fails ran over time.
- VTs fade to black which makes mixing back to the studio look very rough. These VTs will be re edited to remove the fades.
- Models need to be cued earlier - this requires good communication between the directors and floor managers.
- Graphic for Bonnie's bag needed to be on screen when presenters referred to it.
- The transition between DIY and Drag needs to be looked at.
- The round up section was very rough - the models needed to be ready to go on the catwalk.
Rehearsal 2
- Teaser trailer can be cut to give more studio time. Myself and Melissa had already cut the teaser in the script but the new teaser was not yet ready.
- During the Styles of the Season section we had scripted for the presenter left on the sofa to react to the trend on the catwalk. However, Del suggested that the focus should just be the model on the catwalk and the presenter stood next to the catwalk - we don't need to see the presenter on the sofa. This will be cut from the script which will make the section flow better and also save some time as this section usually over runs.
- Need to make sure models are wearing all the items they're supposed to be wearing.
- The transition to the fashion fails audience section was again very rough. We need to consider either not using handheld and making sure there are cameras set up to face the audience or having another camera at the back of the audience so that we can see Alfie walking towards them whilst the handheld is set up. At the moment there is no shot to cover the handheld whilst it sets up which makes for a very messy transition.
- Bonnie (stand in for bonnie) sitting on sofa before her VT which introduces her - would be better to bring her in under VT.
Rehearsal 3
- +45 seconds on intro - Myself and Melissa will look at the script to see where dialogue can be adjusted to fit with the running order.
- The younger female model's clip mic wire could be seen through mesh top, need to find a better way of disguising the wire.
- Models to enter catwalk from one direction and exit in the other direction. Makes for a cleaner look.
- Graphics for the trends on the catwalk need to be left on screen for longer - allow audience time to read them.
- The counts for some of the VTs were incorrect as a few of them cut to black before presenters cued in back in the studio. These will be looked at by the production manager.
- For the dad trainers catwalk section - Kevin to stay on the catwalk and exit under the VT rather than exiting before VT.
- Bonnie to stay seated at the end of her segment - exit through the back during the drag performance.
- Floor managers need to ensure the mannequin for Bonnie's section is moved after the interview otherwise still on set from Drag interview.
Overall I think the rehearsals were successful. My job (along with Melissa) was to be on hand to cut time / add time to sections if others ran over / under. We managed to keep on time overall but time had to be cut from the interview sections as the intro and Styles of the Season sections over ran. Myself and Melissa will look at the script and see what can be amended to keep these sections to time - following this rehearsal we have already decided to remove the presenter left on the sofa's reaction shot whilst the other presenter is stood by the catwalk describing the trend which will save time. We also need to ensure the directors and camera operators work out how to shoot the fashion fails audience section more smoothly - they need to find a shot to cover the handheld camera whilst it sets up ready for the audience interviews.
It was really helpful to get the models in for this rehearsal as we were able to see how much they would talk back to the presenters on the catwalk and whether we would have to amend the script to cater for how much detail they would respond to the questions with. It was also a good opportunity to check they were happy with the information we wrote about them in the script - we did have to do one change which was changing the wording slightly for Kevin's (our older male model) occupation. As producer I have learnt that it is very important to keep the talent happy so that they stay on board with the project - so checking the script with them was a good opportunity to ensure they were happy and looked after.
My priority for this day of rehearsals was to get a few full run throughs of the show as we have not managed this in previous rehearsals - we had rehearsed each individual section but we were yet to rehearse the show as a whole all the way through.
We started out by taping the set on the floor with the exact dimensions of the set. We gave Alfie and Adeline the updated script (version 4) and some cue cards for the information / dialogue heavy sections. After the day of rehearsals myself and Melissa checked with the presenters whether there was anything they wanted changing in the script in terms of the language used and whether they wanted any additional information on the cue cards. The script and cue cards will be updated with the changes Alfie and Adeline suggested.
We managed to get 3 full rehearsals of the show in.
Rehearsal 1
- Harry and Kevin's mics not working - there were issues with the microphones all day. Paul and Aimee worked on this to ensure this won't be an issue for the live broadcast.
- Too long was spent on the presenter challenge round up - needs to be more concise whilst still informing the audience about how much was spent / where things were from.
- The fashion fails transition and segment was very rough as this has been the least rehearsed section of the show.
- We had to cut time from the interviews as both Styles of the Season and Fashion Fails ran over time.
- VTs fade to black which makes mixing back to the studio look very rough. These VTs will be re edited to remove the fades.
- Models need to be cued earlier - this requires good communication between the directors and floor managers.
- Graphic for Bonnie's bag needed to be on screen when presenters referred to it.
- The transition between DIY and Drag needs to be looked at.
- The round up section was very rough - the models needed to be ready to go on the catwalk.
Rehearsal 2
- Teaser trailer can be cut to give more studio time. Myself and Melissa had already cut the teaser in the script but the new teaser was not yet ready.
- During the Styles of the Season section we had scripted for the presenter left on the sofa to react to the trend on the catwalk. However, Del suggested that the focus should just be the model on the catwalk and the presenter stood next to the catwalk - we don't need to see the presenter on the sofa. This will be cut from the script which will make the section flow better and also save some time as this section usually over runs.
- Need to make sure models are wearing all the items they're supposed to be wearing.
- The transition to the fashion fails audience section was again very rough. We need to consider either not using handheld and making sure there are cameras set up to face the audience or having another camera at the back of the audience so that we can see Alfie walking towards them whilst the handheld is set up. At the moment there is no shot to cover the handheld whilst it sets up which makes for a very messy transition.
- Bonnie (stand in for bonnie) sitting on sofa before her VT which introduces her - would be better to bring her in under VT.
Rehearsal 3
- +45 seconds on intro - Myself and Melissa will look at the script to see where dialogue can be adjusted to fit with the running order.
- The younger female model's clip mic wire could be seen through mesh top, need to find a better way of disguising the wire.
- Models to enter catwalk from one direction and exit in the other direction. Makes for a cleaner look.
- Graphics for the trends on the catwalk need to be left on screen for longer - allow audience time to read them.
- The counts for some of the VTs were incorrect as a few of them cut to black before presenters cued in back in the studio. These will be looked at by the production manager.
- For the dad trainers catwalk section - Kevin to stay on the catwalk and exit under the VT rather than exiting before VT.
- Bonnie to stay seated at the end of her segment - exit through the back during the drag performance.
- Floor managers need to ensure the mannequin for Bonnie's section is moved after the interview otherwise still on set from Drag interview.
Overall I think the rehearsals were successful. My job (along with Melissa) was to be on hand to cut time / add time to sections if others ran over / under. We managed to keep on time overall but time had to be cut from the interview sections as the intro and Styles of the Season sections over ran. Myself and Melissa will look at the script and see what can be amended to keep these sections to time - following this rehearsal we have already decided to remove the presenter left on the sofa's reaction shot whilst the other presenter is stood by the catwalk describing the trend which will save time. We also need to ensure the directors and camera operators work out how to shoot the fashion fails audience section more smoothly - they need to find a shot to cover the handheld camera whilst it sets up ready for the audience interviews.
It was really helpful to get the models in for this rehearsal as we were able to see how much they would talk back to the presenters on the catwalk and whether we would have to amend the script to cater for how much detail they would respond to the questions with. It was also a good opportunity to check they were happy with the information we wrote about them in the script - we did have to do one change which was changing the wording slightly for Kevin's (our older male model) occupation. As producer I have learnt that it is very important to keep the talent happy so that they stay on board with the project - so checking the script with them was a good opportunity to ensure they were happy and looked after.
Sunday, 8 April 2018
TRANSITION UNIT: Colour Theory - Research
As well as researching camera settings, I also looked into colour theory as this also affects the visual style of the piece.
I started off by looking into how using colour can affect emotion.
"Our response to colour varies depending on culture and context" - suggesting that people from different cultures or who have different living situations may interpret colours in different ways. Therefore it is important to note who our target audience is so that we use the correct colour treatment in order to have the desired outcome. As our project is a mockumentary, I will treat the colour in line with the conventions of the comedy genre whilst also using colour to reflect the subject matter of the piece. For example, in this clip from Red Nose Day edition of Philomena Cunk, a warm colour treatment has been given to reflect the subject matter of charity and the warmth in giving.
"Saturated vibrant red tones for comedies" - it has been noted that comedies often featured vibrant colours which are often red in tone. This can be seen in examples such as The Night Before. This colour treatment helps to evoke emotions such as joy, laughter etc. which is the aim of the comedy genre and therefore provides the rationale as to why this colour treatment is often used.
I started off by looking into how using colour can affect emotion.
"Our response to colour varies depending on culture and context" - suggesting that people from different cultures or who have different living situations may interpret colours in different ways. Therefore it is important to note who our target audience is so that we use the correct colour treatment in order to have the desired outcome. As our project is a mockumentary, I will treat the colour in line with the conventions of the comedy genre whilst also using colour to reflect the subject matter of the piece. For example, in this clip from Red Nose Day edition of Philomena Cunk, a warm colour treatment has been given to reflect the subject matter of charity and the warmth in giving.
"Saturated vibrant red tones for comedies" - it has been noted that comedies often featured vibrant colours which are often red in tone. This can be seen in examples such as The Night Before. This colour treatment helps to evoke emotions such as joy, laughter etc. which is the aim of the comedy genre and therefore provides the rationale as to why this colour treatment is often used.
To further my research into colour theory, I also looked into the colour wheel which displays which colours are usually used to evoke which emotion.
This colour wheel displays that the best colours to use to evoke the emotion of joy / surprise (which is often the aim of a comedy) are yellow and green. This suggests that as well as using saturated red toned colours, some yellow and green should be woven into the scenes as well.
I also looked into how colour can be used in an exaggerated manner to further evoke emotions within the audience.
As shown through this video, colour can also be used to create a heightened sense of reality. Using dramatic, saturated colour casts can transport the audience into a heightened sensory state meaning that their reception of the product is also heightened. I could use this technique in our mockumentary to exaggerate colours and therefore exaggerate the emotions evoked. I will test this in the test shoot as I am unsure whether this would work for the genre of our product, however, it will be a good experiment and could deliver some good, impactful results if it does work.
What I have learnt:
- Colour is important in terms of the emotions evoked in the audience. The colour should be thought through carefully, considering the culture and context of the audience as well as which emotion we are attempting to elicit from the audience.
- Reds, yellows, greens and vibrant colours are all proven to be successful in the comedy genre, therefore I could emulate this through the colour grading of our project in order to fit in with the conventions of the genre.
- As our project is a hybrid between the documentary genre and the comedy genre, more consideration needs to be put into the colour treatment. I will need to consider which colours to use in terms of the emotion we wish to evoke from the audience but also which colours to use to keep in line with our subject matter for the documentary genre. As we have not yet decided the subject matter of the mockumentary, I do not know how I will colour grade it yet - but I will need to keep this in mind as the colour grading of documentaries often compliments the subject matter.
- I will apply colour theory to my research into the mockumentary genre.
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