Assignment Sheets

Peer Pitch & Feedback

We were split into groups of three in our class, Charlie, Tasha and I. Each person had to present their Prezi to the other two, whilst writing notes. Here is the feedback I received from Charlie and Tasha:

Good use of media terms demographic and psycho-graphics.

Men do drink more tea than women, false statement in Toby’s presentations.  

18 isn’t the correct age of people who tend to start drinking tea, people can drink tea at any age. 

Good information about the brand, makes the audience understand about the product if they have never heard of the brand.  

Advertised in the morning, although I think that the advert would be better off being shown on TV around 6pm when people are home from work.  

Good idea for the re-branding of the product.  

I like the idea of comparing the new re-brand advert to another product. 

I feel that each of these comments are good to have as feedback but feel that the comment about the age may be incorrect. I feel that most people drink tea but it is at an age that you go out of your way to make your own cup of tea, from this feedback I will change the wording so that its about the age that you make the tea rather than the age that you drink it.

The feedback has also shown me that I should place the advert later in the evening as most people get home from work at this time. I do feel that in the morning is a good placement too as that is a main time for tea consumption. Furthermore when I wrote about women drinking more tea, I forgot to consider labour men whom drink as much tea as social women maybe even more.

Depict - Initial Ideas

Family Photos

As most people enjoy films that have the genre comedy, I feel that this short film would work best at being comedic. My initial idea would be to have two people that stand taller than another person, this making three guys the main focus of this short film. The film would be about the three characters who are in fact brothers, two brothers being exceptionally taller than the other brother. This would be the main story line of the film, the smallest brother would always be looked down on. 

I would try to replicate a family photo, which had these three brothers in. The film would have a voice over, and flicker between pictures of the brothers as if it was a family photo album. Each picture would have a comedic theme about it, with the two brothers constantly looking down on the youngest one. After time has passed and the audience have gained an understanding of what the film would be about. The following shot would be filming rather than a short image, it would be there mother trying to take a picture of the brothers. The mother wouldn't be in shot but you could hear her voice in the back ground, this shot would be most important of all because this would be the turning point of the smallest brother. In this shot the smallest brother would get frustrated with being so small.

The next couple of scenes are created in a montage style, the smallest brother is creating something that he could wear to make him taller for the pictures. Shots of him putting different materials together, using different tools and some shots would have in messing around or sleeping etc. Then on the final scene the smallest brother would walk in to the room with his new height adjuster, and take another picture with the three brothers all being at the same height. 

Pre-Production Paper Work

Storyboard

Location Recce

 

Talent Release

Toby Middleton - Adult Talent

Charlie Wright - Teen Talent

Production Planning

Location Release

Risk Assessment

Budgeting

Requirement For Production

Our moving production was created for the website and competition Depict, which is a company that hunt for creators rewarding them with a cash price if won. The task was to create a 90 second short that we were able to enter into this competition. To ensure that our clip would fit this criteria, we chose to shoot short clips; this way we could cut or add more scenes to change the length of the short film. As the clip had the possibility to be uploaded to Depicts own website, we decided to upload the clip onto youtube. This allows the general public and judges to easily access our clip, I also feel that many directors/creators look for fellow creators on youtube, thus opening the opportunity to be scouted. Word of mouth is also the best way to distribute this clip, so we felt that this was another great reason to upload to youtube. 

Moving image productions don’t have to just be 90 seconds long or for competitions, other examples can be films, adverts and TV shows. Adverts are the shortest in length out of the three as they are created to leave an idea in your head, I feel that adverts are the most difficult to gain attention for. This being because most people either leave or talk during the adverts, missing the entire thing. Films stand at the longest in length but are also the hardest to create, with modern technology nearly every film is created in an alternate reality. The final one is TV shows, the length of these shows completely vary depending on the type of TV Show. The much more dramatic, intense shows are longer, in comparison to funny kids shows which can last for a minimum of 5 minutes. 

As we are in the 21st century now, most moving productions are distributed by the use of the internet, for example emailing or blogging. Another way that clips can be distributed is via DVD, as DVDs are so small and compact you can send them in a flat letter in the post. But this method of distribution is disappearing as not as many people have a DVD player in there house. Cinemas also create a brilliant method to allow other people to view your moving image, an even smaller method of distribution is your home television.

Many creators state that funding isn't the most important thing about a movie production, as the most important thing is its story. In the case that a film needs funding, as it involves lots of CGI or special effects there are different ways to gain funding.

In our filming we were given an allowance of £5, this would have been given to us from the college if we felt we needed props etc. This is our  budgeting list, our film cost a total of 27p to create; unfortunately this cost was for petrol money which we were unable to claim for. Another case were a company is given is a budget is for an advert, a company such as Argos would pay a production company to create them an advert. Hence telling us that another form of funding is from companies to create pieces for them. 

Another source of funding that is becoming more common is Kickstarter, this website allows creators to put forward their ideas. Users of the website can then chose to back a project or ignore it, if they chose to back the project the user can donate from $1 up. If the backer puts forward enough money they can become eligible for rewards from the creators. If the movie is good and gains enough support, then the movie can be produced. This method of funding is from the general public.

They are many different components that make up a moving image that the funding would be spent on, this list displays all of the things that are needed;

• Crew - The crew is made up of a selection of people that help to produce the movie. Each member specialisers in a different field, for example make up artists, camera men/women, directors and digital designers
• Costumes - Each character has a costume, in some cases they may have a wide range of styles.
• CGI - Computer Generated Imaginery, is becoming one of the biggest methods to create a moving image as it shows of an alternate reality, that can be easily modified. The funding is spent on software.
• Props - The amount of props depends on the film genre, for example an action film may require more props in comparison to a romance. Props make the moving image more much realistic and  convincing to the viewer. 
• Transportation - The location that the moving image is set in might be in a open desert, this location maybe very difficult to find locally. 
• Special Effects - Making an explosion for example makes the moving production much more believable. Special Effects are used repeatedly in horrors, as this makes the atmosphere much more intense.
• Equipment - Cameras are crucial in moving image production unless you're creating an animation. Cameras aren't the only piece of equipment needed, tripods and steady cams are also very important.
• Distribution - Getting your moving production out to the public can be expensive, especially if you are showing the films at cinemas.

As our film was very natural, and short. The amount of requirements was minimal, we had just one prop in the film which was a basketball. We shot all of our film on a Canon 700D which we could lease from the college.This only left camera equipment, we decided that we wanted a steady cam shot in our film; we used a standard arc steady cam. For the steadier shots we also had to use a tripod, this being the mount that we chose to use the most. 

Producing a low budget short film would be the cheapest and easiest, moving image production. The team would consist of just a few members depending on the genre. In most cases a low budget would have just two main departs, camera crew and the talents. In some cases the short film may have a make up artist but this would be unlikely. In this short film 'The Camera' the crew only involved three members, a director and two talents. This team of three would have made up a very small fragment of people involved in a Hollywood Feature Film, these films hire a colossal amount of members. Films like these have departs for costumes, make up, production, digital designers, stunt doubles and many more. The immense amount of money spent on hiring these people, comes straight out of the funding for the film. To produce a film like 'Avengers Assemble' they need a lot of people, this list shows all of the cast and crew http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0848228/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast.
Both of these moving productions show from one extreme to the other, a moving production that sits in the middle is TV Shows. These shows have a smaller crew than Hollywood films but a much larger to short films.

When we had decided the genre of the film and what characters were going to be needed we could then give the roles out to the different people. As Charlie and I, were the two heights that really contrasted each other we chose to be the talents in our short film, this left Natasha and Matt with no roles. Natasha had previously told us she was good with the camera so we allocated the filming role to her. Unfortunately, Matt who made up the forth member of our group attended the lessons very rarely so help from him was minimal and basic. Once we had filmed, Charlie and Natasha took a fair share in the amount of editing that needed to be done.
As a few of the shots were filmed in a basketball court we had to gain permission from the PE department to be able to use that area. Making another big contributor Andrew Hemp, who gave us the opportunity to film in that location.

We had approximately a week to film our short film, this meant about 9 hours in lesson given. Unfortunately we had some problems whilst filming such as the weather, availability of the sports hall and the attendance of crew members. Although I do feel that the time that we were scheduled to film in was used productively, We shot all of the scenes in the time given. Once we had finished filming we were then given around 6 hours to edit our short film, This was one of the hardest parts as we had to choose which clips we liked and worked the best together, once we had chosen the clips we had to find a soundtrack that worked for our short film. Looking back I do feel that we did rush to this music as we were running out of time, so if we were to have more time, it would be good to go back and choose audio that fitted the clip.
If deadlines are not met when producing a moving image, the production could gain bad ratings as when released the production might be incomplete. Once the film has been created, it is then watched numerous times, this helps to iron out anything that is wrong with it. If this part is missed the film might not make sense or be ill-fully completed. Luckily we completed our clip in the time frame that we were given, although there are some minor changes that we would have liked to have changed if we were given the opportunity. For example a shot of the ball going over a fence, making the short film flow much smoother.

Getting hold of filming equipment is very easy, many places have everything that you need to make a moving production. One of the best local companies that leases equipment is 'White Label Media', they're located at Anglian House, Norwich. The company specializes in live event coverage in East Anglia, they have a wide range of equipment such as HD Cameras, audio equipment for radio stations and lighting. The equipment is also approved by BBC and ITV, as they are one of their main suppliers.
To produce our short film we were able to borrow equipment from our college.We decided to use a Canon 700D to film, as the camera had a screen that we could move and rotate, making viewing much easier, especially when shooting the steady cam shot. The college had every piece of equipment that a young amateur film maker would need. This meant that we could borrow, cameras, lighting, mounts and SD cards. Gaining these instruments was very easy as all we needed was our student card so they could retrieve the things we had borrowed, if not brought back on time.

We chose to shoot most of our film in a basketball court as this meant that the scenery was perfect for the genre of film. To gain access to the basketball court we had to complete a Recce this basically shows the exact location of where we wanted to film, In

the recce we wrote about when the location was free. The form mainly helps to gain an understanding of the location, once we had completed the recce we gave this form to Andrew Hemp. Including the Location Release, the recce then acted as a reference and showed Andrew what our plans were. He then signed of a Location Release, which gives us the access to use the Basketball court at the times that we had displayed on the recce.
We also chose to shoot at Gorleston Railway, which is a public park that any body can use. At this location we didn't have to gain any permission as this location is for public use. This specific location worked well as we could shoot, the small character running through a low bush. The final location that we shot at was a fence just outside the college, we chose to shoot here as the fence was too tall for charlie to see over but not for mine character to look over.

The fence became very problematic for our group as our original plan was to climb over the fence, when we were shooting our teacher decided that this might have been to dangerous. Meaning that we couldn't have the shot that we wanted, we do feel that this shot still worked out well anyway. Whilst shooting the chasing shot through the tunnel, we found that some of the branches stuck out, to overcome this we chose to shoot at a much slower speed. This ensured that the person filming could keep nice and low. Before each of these steps we filled out a Risk Assessment, this allowed us to highlight all of things that we had to be weary of. 


As we chose to not have any dialogue in our film, this meant that our main source for audio would be music. This is a very difficult hurdle in Moving Production as you aren't allowed to use any music that fits, the music must be copyright free. If you are making a film on a bigger scale then you can pay for the right to play a certain piece of music. If the song is played without consulting the artist you could be sued, as it isn't copyright free. 
To avoid any sort of suing we chose to gain our piece of music from a copyright free website. These are some words that are associated with copyright:

• Clearance - Is a must in production media, for example musicians. Its a comprehensive process of licences that allows companies the use of production for an event.
• Public Liability Insurance - Is an essential piece of insurance that most businesses must have. The insurance covers a member of the public if they are injured at the place of work.
• Completion Guarantee - Is mainly used for private funds, the completion guarantee is signed by the producer to promise that the film will be finished. This meaning that the funding money will not be wasted.
• Regulatory Body - Is a public organisation/group that look out to protect the public. They cover a field of different regulatory exercises for example setting standards in relation to any activity, ensuring compliance and imposing requirements. 

Many companies that fight against indecency and mature content find it very difficult to moderate the amount of younger users to these websites. OFCOM control the TV and satellite broadcasting, this company finds controlling this mature content easier as they're able to show these programs after nine; a supposed time for minors to be asleep. As technology is increasing it is becoming difficult to control what anybody watches. A group called 'Association For Television On Demand', are trying to get on top of the viewing age for what people can watch on demand, for example 4oD has set an 18 age limit on most of there content, which means you have to create an account before watching anything.

To relate this to our Depict Project, I feel that if our short film was to gain a rating from 'bbfc', the age would be very low as their is little signs of violence and no explicit language. I feel that this was one of the best options to create a Depict short; limiting the clip to a smaller audience cold affect the amount of attention/views. 

Members that get together to create a membership is called a trade union. The members must all be workers, as the membership looks out to protect each member in the workplace. These groups are most commonly created out of the field of work, away from the employer. As in most circumstances the trade unions are there to create a balance between the employee and the employer. In some cases the employee may be treating the employers badly, at the point the trade union is able to get involved. 

PACT stands for 'Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television', this UK trade association stand for independent content producers. Mainly covering feature films, television, animation, children's and digital media. 

BECTU is a similar company that stands for 'Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union'. BECTU is a much bigger trade union than PACT as it has around 25,000 members who work in the media sector.

If the situation arises were the employee becomes the founder of this group then its called a trade association. Although the group doesn't have to always be funded by the employee, it can be funded by businesses that work in the same field.  

Depict - Short Films

Salt

http://www.depict.org/2015/salt/?category_request=2015

The first film that I picked is called Salt, I chose this film because I really like how the acting is done. It's a stereotypical 1970s cabin house, with a man and his wife, the camera first sets as man walks in to the kitchen/living room to his wife cooking him soup. The man is firstly portrayed to be horrible and stubborn as he makes his wife jumps; of whom then pours a massive amount of salt into he bowl. Hence the same 'salt', she then realizes what she has down and because of his first attitude pours another massive amount in the pan. Once poured the lady then serves up a ladle to the man, who unknowingly takes a big spoonful to the mouth. He then realizes what his wife has down and asks if she will be having a bowl, she then sits with him and they laugh together. This final scene completely changing the atmosphere.

I found this clip thoroughly enjoyable as the film takes a complete turn right at the end were they look up at each other and laugh. I think that this really makes this film a good watch, as the atmosphere is very tense to start with. Not only does the emotion change throughout the film, the use of camera angles vary every couple of seconds. 


 I feel that this is one of the best shots in the short, as the camera is filmed over the ladys shoulder. The camera is directed straight at the mans face as he watches over his wife, making sure that she is doing the right thing. I think the director chose to add this shot as it makes it look like the man has a lot of power over his wife. I liked this use of camera work to make the man powerful.

The short film doesn't have a soundtrack which I think works well. I really like this clip were the man throws down his spoon into the bowl which makes his wife jump. The main reason this part is so good is because the soundtrack doesn't hide the spoon noise so the viewer can even be caught by the sudden loud noise. Which makes the viewer feel like they are there.

Cool Unicorn Bruv

http://www.depict.org/2013/cool-unicorn-bruv/?category_request=picks

This short film is created in London, the clip has just 3 actors and a horse dressed up as a Unicorn. This short film is made to be a comedy, the boy in the beanie is trying to sell the bike to the guy in the afro, when the man with the unicorn comes along and starts showing off. I really like how this film flows, the camera starts by filming the two as they talk about the bike comes along. When the man comes over with the horse, most of the camera shots are over the shoulder but in some cases the director has used shot reverse shot. Which I feel works really well in this clip as there is lots of dialogue. On the other hand there isn't too much movement that the viewer doesn't become confused about what is actually happening.

This is one of my favorite shots in the short film, its long width means that every thing is caught within the frame. I really like that fact that they have used this as there closing scene as it allows you to gain an understanding of the scene that the film was created it. The director may have also done this to show scale of the horse, making it more powerful and impressive.

In this scene the unicorn is shooting a rainbow out of its horn, this part is very cleverly done. The special effects that the editor used don't look too fake, making the rainbow shooting from the horn much more natural and realistic. The shot is also over the shoulder with just the horse in the background, the man infront is completely out of focus. Almost making this a POV shot.


The Sleepy-Astronaut

http://www.depict.org/2009/the-sleepy-astronaut/?category_request=2009

This is my favorite clip of the three short films, this specific film is about a elderly lady making a toasted sandwich. The clip uses many different clever angles to create a very abstract piece, the thing that makes this clip so original is how its filmed. Its compiled of lots of little clips to make one long massive film, the filming is almost as if its a stop motion film. But because the clip is continuous the editor has clearly just cut the clip every couple of seconds; this making it jump. Once finished in the kitchen the camera leads the old lady to her husband, supposedly the sleepy astronaut.

I really like this clips originality as I have never seen anything done like this before, the sudden stops make it feel like a photo album. I also feel that when the camera takes a close up of the lady's face this makes the film much natural and shows that it would have been made on a very low budget.

In this part when the elderly lady is laying out the pieces of bacon, the camera flows from a worm view. Then moves in a arc a complete 180 degrees to an over the shoulder shot, I really like how the camera transitions to this second camera angle. Its a very smooth movement, which works well.

I feel that this is one of the best shots in the short film, its an extreme close up. The shot really shows that the elderly lady is working hard to create this sandwich, by having the camera so close the viewer is able to see her concentration. The director has portrayed this well by having the camera close up on her face many a time. I really like how the close ups have stitched up many of the frames.