The Preliminary Task

On Tuesday the 7th of October, we conducted our first piece of coursework: the prelim task. In my group, there was four persons: Gabe, Zella, Indie and myself.

Here is the video we created:

This is the storyboard in which we structured our filming. Gabe and myself were the main actors in the shoot, and Indie and Zella worked the camera. But we later changed so we all had a thorough go using the camera. 



Pre-filming

 Before we started filming, as a group we quickly and precisely selected the order of filming, which would mean we would be the most efficient and productive as possible. Additionally, we were quick to learn our lines, and we put our white tape markers on the set so Gabe and I knew where to stand, to keep our continuity as similar as possible. Finally, I asked our Assistant Director, Matt, for a gun prop to use, as it suited our storyline that we wanted to use. 

Filming

We filmed our first interpretation of the scene using a wide angle shot. This was to get the entire set into the shot, and to get Gabe's and myself's whole body. This enables the audience to gather an understand of how we are feeling about the situation. Afterwards, we did an over-the-shoulder mid-shot of Gabe's face, taking into account the 180 degree rule. As a group, we disagreed at first where to setup the camera to make sure we stayed correct position wise. After a group discussion, we came to the correct of conclusion of where it should be placed. We then swapped the camera's position, to do an over-the-top mid shot on myself. The over-the-top shot is a great method to demonstrate to the audience that a conversation is going on between characters.  Then we did some close up shots on both Gabe and I, too emphasise our emotions which we were trying to portray in the scene.

Extra filming


As a group, we decided that we wanted an extreme close up of both my finger pulling the trigger, and of my eyes; to emphasise the emotion of sadness and isolationism. We struggled with these shots, because it was hard to place my finger exactly in the centre of the lens every time, as when using an extreme close up, there is no margin for error. But we eventually got the shots we wanted, after some help. Additionally, we wanted a shot of Gabe leaving the room as he turned around and said 'I can't wait for you...I won't wait for you'. We wanted this in to convey how serious he is, and to end Gabe's camera time with a powerful impact on the audience. To ensure that the girls weren't the only ones using the camera, they decided to be part of an extra scene we did, which meant Gabe and I had an opportunity to have a go on the camera. Gabe filmed a wide shot of Zella, Indie and I lying on the floor and on the sofa. Then after that, we wanted an extreme close up of Indie's hand, which has a large significance in our sequence. I bubbled the camera, focused it and zoomed into on the hand. Using instructions 'Standby, Rolling, Action', I filmed that scene. I then filmed a tilt shot of Gabe's feet, then travelling up his body. This was to symbolise his power of the other characters, an to portray that he was the villain. Then, we decided to do a low angle shot of Gabe. Zella and Indie adjusted the tripod, and I setup the camera's lens to a low angle. We finished the low angle shot by Gabe slowly lifting up the gun, and pointing it and the camera, but didn't pull the trigger. This was our intention as we wanted to end the sequence on a cliffhanger. 

Post filming

After we finished filming, we watched and went through our footage. We didn't do this as we went along, as this would have been too time consuming. Additionally  Matt gave us advice on how we could've improved, such as scenes we should have and shouldn't have included. which is greatly appreciated. 

I had a crazy amount of fun, and I cannot wait to start editing it and finishing the project.  



 Editing the Prelim Task


  What did you learn/cover? 

Our main tip given was tip choose which shots to use, and to name each one. If we didn't do this, we would have 12 minutes of unorganized and mainly useless material. 
 

•What software did you use?

After having finished our filming, we then went to edit our prelim task using Adobe Premier, which is a new editing software.

   This is the Adobe Premier logo and what it looks like when opened.

•What important rules were you shown?

We were shown how to link our shots with mostly match-on-action. This is when you cut from shot to shot when the character is performing an actin such as opening a door, or drinking a cup of tea. 

•What elements did you feel worked well

I enjoyed how we came up with the idea of having longer, tense shots of the eye close ups, as it gave the sequence a lot of tension and suspense. 
 

•What would you focus on improving next time?

I think we could have been more precise with our editing, as there are lots of noticeable errors, such as the character speaking in a shot for a tiny amount of time, then hearing it slightly in the next shot. Also, I think when we finished, we tried to go back and alter our work too much, and I think it would have been best to just stick with our original piece and leave it alone.

•Are there any skills you can take forward to your production group?
  
I think that when I get going, my ideas about how to shoot something can be quite exciting, but I will need lots of support from my fellow members. But also I think I am quite good and reassuring people about their ideas, and encouraging them to put their ideas forward. 

•How did you find the task?

Overall, I loved the prelim task as it was my first real attempt at filming a sequence and editing it, which was highly enjoyable and a great experience.