AS Prelim

Our sequence is called “ Ex's “ and has a comedy genre.  This continuity task “involves filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue”. It’s 27 seconds long and is a dialogue between two teachers about the new head of department.

1.Who did you work with and how did you manage the task between you?

In this task I was grouped with Flo Donald, and Ella Budget. As we had a short time frame to do this activity we needed to work well as a group. We started by pitching our ideas for the story of the sequence. After choosing the best idea, we split up the work and each did a certain task. Ella and Flo wrote the script, decided on the props and I drew out the shoot board and shoot times.  We then pitched our individual tasks to the group and each added and altered it. In terms of the shoot and edit, I filmed using the camera, took turns with Flo in using the clapper board and directing the shoot. Flo and Ella acted and when Flo was off stage, she helped with the directing. In the edit we split into two groups and produced an individual edit of the footage. The groups were Flo and Ella and then me by myself. 

2. How did you plan your sequence? what processes did you use? What theories did you try to take into account.

We began planning our sequence by first drawing a plan of the room, so we could visualise where the master-shot could go in relation to the door, and then the shot/reverse shot. We planned the rearranging of the classroom on paper before we started to move desks around to see if it would actually work. We then created a storyboard of all the shots taking into consider the brief of including “opening of a door, dialogue between two characters, crossing of a room, match on action shot/reverse shot, and the 180 degree rule.”  We created a script for a dialogue between Ella and Flo and they rehearsed it between them.  After this we walked through the shoot, as a ‘practise shoot’ so we could get an idea of how long it will take, to check the set-up of the classroom, which shots to go first in the actual shoot to ensure we don’t waste time with the limited short period of time we have. We checked whether our ideas where successful and altered anything which didn't look right or didn't work. Taking into consideration the ‘practise shoot’ and the limited time available, a plan shoot was made by setting and character to prevent delays on the shoot day.  During our shooting we needed to take into account the theories of continuity and framing as well as not breaking any rules such as the 30 and 180 degree rules. We tried to present our genre based on the characters and their dialogue as well as their actions. 

3.What technology did you use to complete the task, and how did you use it?

Technology used on the shoot:

1. Canon HF G30 camera

2. Tripod

3. Headphones 

4. A shotgun microphone

How it was used:

We connected our cannon camera to the tripod to ensure the shots would look professional with no shaking. The shotgun microphone was connected to ensure good quality of sound during the shoot, so the dialogue would be picked up. To make sure the shots were straight and level, we regularly checked the spirit level located on the top of the tripod. Due to the lack of time, we kept the camera on auto settings for ease of use. To create different shot types, the zoom button was used as well as the handle on the tripod for smooth pans and tilts. To ensure the sound was being recorded and there wasn’t any background and unwanted noise, we attached headphones. We used a clapper board at the beginning of each shot so that when it came to editing, the shots could be easily distinguished and then selected for the edit.  We made sure the trips legs were in when we carried it around to prevent dropping it, and a safety precaution we took was ensuring the wires of the headphones were not wrapped around or hidden so that anyone could fall over them.

Technology used to edit:

1.Dual monitor editing station

2.Adobe Premier Pro CS5

How it was used:

In order to edit, I first watched every clip start to finish, noting on a piece of paper which to use. I would rename these shots in the shots list so that there were easily found later on. I then began to review them and chose the ones I wanted. I cropped a rough crop of the clips to make sharp editing easier later on. I then dragged the shots into the timeline where I could crop them to a close cut edit and ensure the continuity flow. Using the two screens of the monitor station I watched the edit on the right and edited the timeline on the left. This was useful as the screen was less compact and continuity errors were found more easily. 

4.What factors did you have to take into account when planning, shooting and editing?

Planning

As we had a very limited time to produce this preliminary exercise our ideas had to be limited. It wasn't possible to try and produce and elaborate sequence and so our group decided to keep things simple yet extremely affective. We had to set up our setting in a way which we could confine to the brief without breaking any camera/ shooting rules such as the 30 and 180 degree rule. Since our group was so tiny, spreading out the work load was difficult as everyone needed to do a lot, in a limited amount of time and so we decided to spread I tout based on ability to get it done quickly.  

Shooting

During the shoot, we needed to confine to the brief of “demonstrating match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule.  To do this, our camera movement, framing, and knowledge of the rules were all applied. This ensured our sequence was continuous. In the limited amount of time we needed to set up the furniture and adjust it so that the composition of it looked nice on camera. We were filming in a busy building and so kept having to do more takes when background noise was heard by the mic. We also had to share one of the locations with another group and so we took it in turn so that our time could be used more effectively. In order to achieve shot/reverse shot, we needed to shoot the whole dialogue three times so that we could cross cut when it came to editing.

Editing

When editing I had to constantly remind myself of the task looking and feeling continuous. Editing techniques such as shot/ reverse shot was difficult and required close cut editing to get the dialogue perfect. Continuity was also hard to edit as it needed to have a perfect match on action so the whole sequence would flow. 

5.How successful was your sequence? Please identify what worked well, and with hindsight what would you improve/do differently?

In my opinion, my sequence was very successful in meeting the requirements of the brief. “We filmed and edited a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue.” The task demonstrated match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180- degree rule.  The only continuity error I have found is the movement of props in the background setting during the shot/reverse shot. Apart from that there are no continuity errors. In shots 1-2 the continuity was very efficient as Ella came through the door. There was also a good sense of narrative in this sequence. During the conversation between Flo and Ella, we used techniques such as eye line match to demonstrate the conversation from different perspectives.  We didn’t break any rules such as the 30 and 180 degree rules and so added to the overall professionality of the sequence. Even though I am pleased with our sequence, camera and editing wise the dialogue exchanged did not fully connote the comical genre and the ending was abrupt and not like a sequence would end stereotypically. It leaves the audience a little confused.  Saying this, in hindsight I would alter the script to make the ending less abrupt and the dialogue funnier to make sure the comical genre is connoted. I would also use more props to ensure the school environment was fully connoted. 

6.What have you learn from completing the task?Looking ahead, how will this learning be significant when completing the rest of your foundation coursework, do you think? 

This task has taught me that organisation is key. This ensures that time is used wisely and isnt lost with unnecessary thinking. I have also learnt that sticking to the brief is fundamental otherwise the task is incorrect and all efforts are lost. Looking ahead I can say with confidence that this task has taught me to think about continuity in a sequence to a great degree. I have learnt many skills such as shot/reverse shot and have been informed about the 30 and 180 degree rules. It has revealed that in a sequence the audience needs to feel a sense of reality and feel involved with the story which is done by continuity. Overall I am pleased with the task and feel that my group has successfully met the brief as well as learnt skills for the future.