1-Minute short film Project
What if?
Media Research
1-minute short film Analysis
6 AM
Writers Block
TOAST
In this 1-minute short film two scenes are happening side by side the reason for this is to compare the lives of two characters that are very similar. Throughout the short film there is very subtle music that gradually builds itself up getting louder and faster as the characters lead up to finally meeting. There are a lot of close-up’s and mid-close up’s to keep the viewers attention on the two characters rather than the background. To show the day has ended they use a fadeout effect and jump to a close-up on two different alarms going off at 6:00am this therefor links to the reason for the name of the film. The short film has been told in linear with compressed time, having made montages of the two characters routine making there day appear longer than it really is. The film mostly uses natural lighting; it creates a cold tone representing the emptiness in each of the characters homes. Artificial lighting has also been used; high key lighting adds to the cold tone when both characters are at the office contrasting to the lowkey lighting of when they get home, representing the comfort they finally feel after having been at work. On the second day in the short film the montage has sped up following the pace of the music, this creates tension as the characters run out of patience. The mis en scene of the overall appearance of both characters shows they dress smart for their jobs and very comfortable at home which shows they do not go out much; they come home to get ready for bed.
In this 1-minute short film writers block it starts with a wide-shot pan into the room which matches the pan out at the end of the film which almost makes the movie a loop linking it all together nicely. When in the characters office it mainly relies on natural lighting however there is also some low-key lighting from the fairy lights, this adds a warm tone contrasting to the cold natural light from the window. The fairy lights also can be seen in the close-up of the record player enabling the viewer to know where it is in the room as well as adding light. The mise en scene of the typewriter shows that the character wants to be authentic when writing showing the audience her passion for being a writer. The use of the Propp glasses were used to show the characters frustration of the writer’s block taking them off in distress, to really express how the character is feeling to the audience. The characters costume design further shows to the audience she is a professional, her is tied back the room contains Props of briefcases and an office chair. The film is told in nonlinear going back and forth from the characters imagination and reality, the piano music changes to go along with the themed imagination. A loud swoosh can be heard whenever the character goes back and forth from her imagination; however, when she finds the perfect idea the swooshing sound cannot be heard instead the song from the imagination continues, representing her continued remembrance of that idea.
In this 1-miute short film toast it fades in with a mid-shot of the character, throughout the short film there Is low-key warm lighting used to show the audience that its early morning it also adds a very calm tone to the scenes. At the very end of the film the character moves into the light to show he has over come the problem moving out of the darkness and into the light. The film immediately starts with a slow-paced song of chimes it gradually builds up to represent the characters frustration at the fact he can’t make some toast, this goes along with quick cuts when making a montage of all the different ways the character is trying to make toast, therefore the film has compressed time but linear making it easy for the audience to follow along with what’s happening. The camera pans in a lot of the time to direct the audience’s attention, along with where the character looks his facial expressions also help to understand what he is feeling.
There was such thing as magic: a tired student tries every way they can to stay awake and finish their work, nothing seems to work until they drink from a mysterious bottle that appears; suddenly they are wide awake and manage to complete all the work. Could it be Magic?
SWOT
Strengths- available resources
Weaknesses- Sticking to the 180 degree rule
Opportunities- develop editing match on action
Threats- ensuring it makes it to 1 minute
Idea 1
What if?
Idea 2
Ghosts were real: a young student packs up their things after staying behind late, but things seem a bit eerie; the lights flicker, shadows run. it appears someone doesn't want them to go, something perhaps unnatural.
SWOT
Strengths- explores the horror genre
Weaknesses- ensuring the lights can flicker
Opportunities- editing in dramatic music
Threats- availability of people
Idea 3
There was treasure at the end of a rainbow: when a bored child happens upon a treasure map of course they have to find the treasure, taking them all across the town only to find a locked door. what could possibly be on the other side?
SWOT
Strengths- available resources
Weaknesses- continuity
Opportunities- using props (mise en scene)
Threats- not going over 1 minute
Analysing:
Using my questionnaire results I know that everyone prefers my Idea 1, they have stated the plot line keeps them interested with the twist at the end and that it would be an enjoyable watch. This therefor confirms my reasoning for wanting to film Idea 1. It has been brought to my attention that Idea 2 and 3 would be a bit harder to film with the lack of time a recourses to do so. I do believe that if I had more time available these two Ideas would be more popular. I also discovered that peoples favourite genre didn't seem to persuade them into what film they liked, it appears they went with what story line appealed to them most. The feedback from the class still supports my first idea as the most popular, as well as support on my second idea noting the difficulty of creating the illusions of figures.
Research Preperation:
Question?
How to do a whip pan?
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What Camera Directions am I using?
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How to convey warm/cold
lighting?
What kind of research?
YouTube tutorial
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YouTube short films
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Webpage
Primary/secondary?
Secondary
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Primary + Secondary
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Primary + Secondary
Methods used
Qualitative
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Qualitative
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Qualitative
Relevance
Using a Whip pan will help me to transition in my short film and add something I've never used before, Using the YouTube video I can be fully informed with what to film beforehand and then how to edit.
Watching other examples of short films gives inspiration for different camera directions and how significant they can make things.
It will me help to get the right lighting for my short film
combining my own knowledge and information from the internet to understand how to make light warmer/colder.
Research:
How to Whip pan YouTube video: How to Smooth Whip Pan Camera Transition with almost ZERO Editing (Premiere Pro Tutorial)
Watching the YouTube video I know I need to follow the steps:
Shot A) Pan smoothly and then whip your wrist around quickly towards the end of the shot to create a quick motion blur.
shot B) Start at a stand still (in the location of the last bit of shot A) and then whip around again to the scene where you want to end up (Hand knocking on door)
And then when editing:
- find the point where the motion blur starts in shot A
- cut out the everything after that point
- find where the motion blur starts in shot B
- cut out everything before that point
- put both ends together (could use a cross dissolve)
What camera directions to use:
Watching and having analysed the short film TOAST I now know that I want to use a lot of slow zooms to ensure the audience follows what the character is looking at, which will also signify the importance of what the camera is zooming into. It also made the short film TOAST more appealing to watch as the slow zoomed made the film flow nicely without any jar cuts.
How to convey warm/cold lighting: Photo-Video Creative
Reading through the website linked above, I gained knowledge on how to change the white balance to get a more orange or bluer tone accros the scene, using high-key artificial lighting throughout .
A high colour temperature=warm light above 3000 K higher orange the light
A low colour temperature =cold light below 3000 K lower bluer the light
Artificial LED lights will be used with white/orange filters over them to give a colder tone to the lighter when in reality and changing the filter to a orange when in the dream creating a warmer tone. I will also get the character to wear something pink as this is shown to e a colour of boredom.
Pre-Production
synopsis - a brief summary or general survey of something (Dictionary)
Idea 1
A young student struggling to stay awake tries all the ways they can to so they can finish there work, by drinking coffee, exercising, forcing there eyes open. Soon enough they shut there eyes for a couple of minutes, suddenly they are woken u to the sound of a drink on the desk. Looking around there is no one in the room, where could the drink of come from. Still tired they decide to just drink the drink thinking it was theirs, all of a sudden they are wide awake managing to complete all of the work. 'Knock knock' looking around a person at the door point to the computer and walks away, looking back to the computer they realise it was a dream none of the work was done, they then begin to type the scene fading out. My target audience is for young adults/teenagers who can relate to being too tired to finish their work.
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Treatment - an integral part of screenwriting. It will plan and organize your movie, feature, or short film screenplay
Beginning:
Opening with a wide shot, showing the character in an empty classroom. Overall the short film will be Linear. moving to the character trying to write out work on the computer, struggling to stay focused/awake. The camera will make sure to show a post-it note stating the urgency of the work needing to be completed, therefor the character tried all the ways they can to stay awake. Using a high angled shot it will show them walking away form their desk and bringing back a coffee the camera will then move to the POV of the computer, viewing the character drink the coffee. Cutting to them running on the spot and trying to keep there eyes open, the pace of the sound picks up. Compressing time. They finally have enough and decide to fall asleep, the screen going completely black.
Middle:
A loud noise of the bottle hitting the floor plays over the black screen, cutting to a close-up of the bottle on the floor, matching the cation of the character picking the bottle up. 'Magic Drink' written on the side of it. Thinking nothing of it they drink the drink.. Cutting to the bottle being on the desk, then moving to the POV of the computer the character moving into the shot eyes wide open. Typing and typing, work piling up, a to do list being ticked off, repeating, the drink slowly running out. The music continuing to build up, the cuts getting quicker. A knock at the door slows the music down.
End:
Using a whip pan the camera moves round to the door, close up of the hand knocking. Turning back around to show the character with there head down on the desk, moving to a close up matching the action of them slowly lifting up their head looking down at an empty to do list, with the work un marked and an empty computer screen. The camera slowly zooms out from the original spot it opened from fading out.
Production Requirements:
Characters: 2 (the main character, someone to knock on the door)
Mise En Scene: Computer, Folders/paper, Bottle, Mug of coffee, clock, work costume, smudged mascara
Location: Classroom (1hr-2hr)
Equipment: LED lights, Camera, Tripod
Skills Requirements:
Editing, Research, Creative thinking, Organising, Time management.
Project Timetable
Date
Week 10
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Week 13
Activity
Start of one minute short film Ideas, coming up with three. Questionnaire, deciding on a final idea. Beginning the pre-production checklist.
Person in charge
Me
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Needs
Computer, Note book, Pen + Pencil
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Week 14
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Start Filming the 1-minute film idea,
Morning: Finish pre-production (Story board + Schedule.
Afternoon: Present idea to gain equipment
Next day: Then begin filming
Lastly: Look over footage (if anything needs to be re-shot. Upload to file.
Me + Sophie + Tilly
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Camera, Tripod, Drink, Notebook, Pen, Classroom, Computer, LED light, Battery's.
Week 15
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Editing:
Choosing all the footage that I want to edit together, adding music, ensuring the match on action is smooth, Sound effects.
Me
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Computer, Avid.
Key Personnel
Name
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Task
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Freya
Director/Producer/Editor
Sophie
Camera Woman
Actor 1 (main character)
Tilly
Actor 2 (Knock on Door)
Cymberley
RECCE Sheet - Research on location
Activity at location(s)
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Filming in a classroom
Audio Problems
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Lighting available, Permission to film, Is there power? Access been agreed.
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Overcoming the problem
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Might not have a classroom available for the whole day, could become occupied at times.
Could be noise from the hallway (chatting) people walking past.
To ensure there are no background noise I will mute the footage when editing and keep the door closed when its not being filmed. The classroom I'm in should hopefully be free which I know is not being used to film in. If there are other people filming instead i will find an empty classroom elsewhere.
Filming in a classroom
Lights could go out
I would instead have to film at home.
Health and Safety
Activity
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Hazard
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Action/controls
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Who is at risk?
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Level of risk?
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Putting up Lights
Tripping over lights wire
Keeping them to the side/covering with matts.
Anyone who walks around the room (Me my group, students and teachers)
High (could cause serious injury)
Contingency Plan
Unavailability of location
If the room I want to film in is in use there are two options, 1 being finding a different room to use. However I could also film the parts that do not involve viewing the whole room and wait until the people leave to film anything that views the whole room.
Equipment Faulty
I will ensure to get extra batteries for the Camera. By staying in the college I can always ask for help.
People are unavailable
I have made sure to do it on the days we are supposed to be in college and in a location everyone can get to, if someone can not make it I will have to step in myself and do that job. Or film everything I can without them.
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Mood Board
Storyboard
Post-Production
1-minute short film:
Procrastinating
My project
My Project is about a young student struggling to finish their work, relating to my target audience especially when it comes to procrastinating. The student then falls asleep imagining they have completed all work only to be woken up and discover they have not. The over-all skills i wanted to use throughout my project would be camera directions and directing, to implement these skills i planned out beforehand my shot types on a storyboard making it easier to know where the camera needs to be placed as well as the character. Directing was a little hard only because i have never done it before, but after a while I felt more comfortable telling the actor exactly what to do. Looking over my pre-production planning i believe i was successful in conveying most of my ideas, I did manage to film all of the shots I wanted however not all of them were edited in, i did also have to move classrooms as the one I was in was occupied.
Feedback: Target audience teenagers/young adults
Person 1- The shots flowed very well together making the storyline more entertaining for the target audience (I'm guessing is our age,16) ,one thing I would change however is making the 'Magic Drink' more aesthetically pleasing. From this feedback I have gathered more strengths then i have weaknesses, being the shot transitions and story line. For the weaknesses, I should work on improving my directing skills (keeping the props inline with the camera) and incorporating creativity within the props.
Person 2- The shortness of the shots made the short film more enticing, keeping the storyline going and not dragging on, the dramatic music also added a sense of comedy. One thing I did not like was how the filter you used gave it a very orange undertone. From this feedback yet again my biggest strength was the quick transitions that have shown to be very effective on keeping the storyline going as well as the attention of the audience, my weakness being keeping the lighting the same throughout all the clips and choosing a better filter to not make the film so bright.
Person 3- I really liked the transition between the character and the door, along with the sound effect as it made it clearer they were out of the dream. one thing that you could improve on is the lighting making sure the brightness is about the same between the shots. From this feedback I now know my main strength which is the editing of the camera transitions, and the weakness I need to improve on is the lighting, ensuring next time the camera is on the right setting.
Person 4- The ending was a surprise which gave the story a twist, the film as a whole flowed quite nicely making it easy to understand what was happening. I did notice a tripod left at the end of the film maybe make sure your keeping the continuity throughout each clips. From this feedback I Know my strengths would be the story as a whole and the way each shot planned out to make it make sense. Next time I must ensure all equipment is taken out of the shot as well as as anything that wasn't there originally.
Person 5-
Strength's:
One of my biggest strengths in my film would be the smooth match on action another the audio match up i believe i managed to find the right sounds throughout the film although being difficult, my last biggest strength would be my organisation skills ensuring i had all the pre-production ready, the right resources and a team.
Weakness's:
One of my biggest weakness's throughout the film would be my camera work as some of the shots were out of focus and a little bit shaky, another weakness is my lack of directing skills as i was not sure of what i needed to tell the actor (movement, facial expression's etc) my last biggest weakness in the project would be the lack of shot types i could of been more creative including more close-ups.
Barriers:
In pre-production i had decided to film in my classroom but faced the practical problem of people being in their, however there was luckily a classroom free. My creative problem would be the fact the drink tasted disgusting so nobody wanted to drink from it, so instead i asked Sophie in my group to pore out the drink to get the shots of it seeming like it was being drunk, i also ended up having to change the drink from coffee to a bright coloured squash. Doing the project again improvements i would make would first of all ensuring all the shots are in focus before finishing filming, as well as making the label on the drink out of paper to make sure it does not rub off. When editing i would try to film my own audio to make sure it 100% matches up with the action. To also make it more obvious the character was in a dream i would have 2 shots of a clock one before falling asleep the other shot once they wake up to show how only a couple of minutes have passed.
Overall:
Overall from the project i have learnt how to add audio from sound library's when editing, Improved on my match on action by planning before hand the shots which will help when editing and filing future projects. Now know what to say next time when directing to ensure the actor does exactly what i need them to do. All these skills being transferable. And getting more used to the camera only hoping to keep on improving when filming again.
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