I hadn't done the Media Studies IGSCE, so I was going into the subject without having done it before. The other classmate, Evie, hadn't done any filming in Key Stage 4, though had more knowledge in deconstructing media texts in general, and writing storyboards.
Other than amateurish use of camera with smartphone and before that disposable camera when I didn't have a smartphone, I had only participated in two film productions.
One in 2012 where I was the volunteering boom operator for a short film "(Behind Closed Doors") by a student organisation, and in a coursework in Art at my old school, however we only used a GoPro and I wasn't part of the editing team, while I mainly focussed on storyboarding and directing the actors, as well acting in it myself.
I had gained others experiences through acting in a promotional trailer for a theatre production, directing actors in theatre clubs, and learning the basics of cinematography in an Acting For Screen workshop.
I had never used
- a camera or a tripod for filming
- a portable harddrive, I had never needed to transport such large files so a USB stick had always sufficed.
- directed actors on a shoot (only on stage before)
- never used Final Cut Pro or ever edited before
- never used a Mac before
- never storyboarded before.
- some of the narrative theory was known to me, but I had never applied it creatively before, and my knowledge on narrative, audience and other media theory has been greatly expanded
- time management and indecision are my biggest weaknesses, I have to become able to work around these issues,
Before going to my coursework production, I practiced together with my coursmate Evie Gibbons on three short film productions: Prelim, Micro Drama and Swede.
One major thread throughout learning about the nature of media production is naively underestimating the time needed for each part of the process.
- no tripod
- first use of storyboard
- used narrative enigma, learned how to hook my audience, we had watched Bridget Jones's Diary, an example of a film opening where the audience is immediately overloaded with exposition
- filmed in two immediately next to each other locations.
Unlike in future productions I didn't have a huge amount of extra footage from the final cut, the short clips were very easily to edit together. I didn't edit. Other than narrative enigma and the 180 degree rule we didn't apply any other theories. We didn't think about if/how we had anchored the protagonist, in reflection due to the camera following the girl and her victimising in the narrative of the the audience will most likely sympathise with her.
There was a continuity mistake which needed to be sorted out in the earlier footage, with Billy putting on lipstick. I While it was an inconvenience to be worked around, I in retrospect enjoyed the creativity that resulted from it, turning it into Billy trying to adapt to mainstream society, and her getting nothing out of it sending a message to the audience that it's wrong to change who you are just to be accepted, both in terms of your peers and people you have romantic/sexual interests in.
What I learned is that while the all the major aspects of a filming production need to be properly set up, an occasional minor problem can lead to creative solutions and improve the plot even.
My techniques of getting audience feedback also developed, adding more questions.
When asking Sachin, a 16-year old expert in films, he gave me some advices on texts I should look at for inspiration. It was too late for that, but I learned from that that I should have approach audiences for some suggestions earlier, using focus groups.
When learning about the theory of convergence in class, the evaluation question on technology made much more sense to me.
I have also learned how my own personal reading of my text can change over time (deep down Hugh Curtis is insecure because he keeps adjusting his suit),
-
I had never used
- a camera or a tripod for filming
- a portable harddrive, I had never needed to transport such large files so a USB stick had always sufficed.
- directed actors on a shoot (only on stage before)
- never used Final Cut Pro or ever edited before
- never used a Mac before
- never storyboarded before.
- some of the narrative theory was known to me, but I had never applied it creatively before, and my knowledge on narrative, audience and other media theory has been greatly expanded
- time management and indecision are my biggest weaknesses, I have to become able to work around these issues,
Before going to my coursework production, I practiced together with my coursmate Evie Gibbons on three short film productions: Prelim, Micro Drama and Swede.
One major thread throughout learning about the nature of media production is naively underestimating the time needed for each part of the process.
PRELIM
- Used Sony A58- no tripod
- first use of storyboard
- used narrative enigma, learned how to hook my audience, we had watched Bridget Jones's Diary, an example of a film opening where the audience is immediately overloaded with exposition
- filmed in two immediately next to each other locations.
Unlike in future productions I didn't have a huge amount of extra footage from the final cut, the short clips were very easily to edit together. I didn't edit. Other than narrative enigma and the 180 degree rule we didn't apply any other theories. We didn't think about if/how we had anchored the protagonist, in reflection due to the camera following the girl and her victimising in the narrative of the the audience will most likely sympathise with her.
MICRO DRAMA
- applied narrative theories (Stuart Hall, Propp, Levi-Strauss, Todorov, Barthes)
- filmed in multiple spaces in one location, which included film outside of a building
- had problems with tripod, at first had to compensate with chairs and boxes as stabilisers, eventually managed to
Our teacher's feedback and us analysing our micro drama neutrally without brining in any knowledge from the production helped me to put into the mindset of the examiners what they will be looking out for, which in turn strengthen my semiotic deconstruction skills.
TYRANNOSAUR SWEDE
- Filmed in three separate locations all in school, one, the common room, which would feature in my feature production, I already found out then there were no issues with sound, although later in the day with the shutters down it will be dark.
What I learned:
- Intentionally intertextualising other media texts ("I've got one these for you Sunny Jim", reference to This Is England, where a character with a name seen by working class characters as posh is sent up)
- I didn't intend on acting in my own coursework before my teacher recommended me doing it, in retrospect using my voice to portray an upper-class character was a good way of preparing the role of Hugh.
- In retrospect it was a very big mistake not to practice more with cinematography, as was evident when I started getting sample footage for my main coursework.
What I learned:
- Intentionally intertextualising other media texts ("I've got one these for you Sunny Jim", reference to This Is England, where a character with a name seen by working class characters as posh is sent up)
- I didn't intend on acting in my own coursework before my teacher recommended me doing it, in retrospect using my voice to portray an upper-class character was a good way of preparing the role of Hugh.
- In retrospect it was a very big mistake not to practice more with cinematography, as was evident when I started getting sample footage for my main coursework.
FILM OPENING
- made some choices in production with reflection on distribution potential,
- filmed in three separate locations
- recorded audio in different locations, across national borders
Learned that when depending on actors to bring costumes or props, not to simply tell or write it to them via a message on social media, but to write a clear list of what they need to bring.There was a continuity mistake which needed to be sorted out in the earlier footage, with Billy putting on lipstick. I While it was an inconvenience to be worked around, I in retrospect enjoyed the creativity that resulted from it, turning it into Billy trying to adapt to mainstream society, and her getting nothing out of it sending a message to the audience that it's wrong to change who you are just to be accepted, both in terms of your peers and people you have romantic/sexual interests in.
What I learned is that while the all the major aspects of a filming production need to be properly set up, an occasional minor problem can lead to creative solutions and improve the plot even.
My techniques of getting audience feedback also developed, adding more questions.
When asking Sachin, a 16-year old expert in films, he gave me some advices on texts I should look at for inspiration. It was too late for that, but I learned from that that I should have approach audiences for some suggestions earlier, using focus groups.
When learning about the theory of convergence in class, the evaluation question on technology made much more sense to me.
I have also learned how my own personal reading of my text can change over time (deep down Hugh Curtis is insecure because he keeps adjusting his suit),
OBJECTIVES FOR NEXT COURSEWORK
- Really consistently blog about all features, daily, that is the key to getting on with the complex task of planning, production and evaluation-
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