This is my experimental video, in the pre production stages. These images were taken from my storyboard, then put into movie maker to use as my animatics.
Wednesday 9 December 2009
Tuesday 8 December 2009
Project Evaluation
I started my Experimental video just over 8 weeks ago and exhibited my work to the public on December 2nd.
At the beginning of the 8 weeks, it was all about the preparation and the paperwork that I needed to fill out to be able to begin filming. I had never done this part of the work before so it was all new to me, but got the hang of it eventually. First I had to come up with a concept for my video, and then I could work from that and begin to have a final idea. Once I had decided to work on the concept of dreams, I had a concrete idea which meant I could begin the paperwork. I started with the storyboard for my work, which didn't take as long as I thought it would.
Once that was done I had to write up the health and safety sheets for when I would be filming, also this did not take too long so I was able to start my filming as soon as college started after half term.
When we returned I began filming on Tuesday, November 3rd at a house. This filming process took between 90mins to 2 hours. This was due to distractions from those not in my filming. Though once I had filmed the shots I needed, I was happy with the results as they looked quite similar to how I had imagined them and how they were written down.
Next I had to film in my next space which was in Crawley towns, memorial Gardens.
This was filmed on Wednesday, November 11th during the day. The only major issue that day was the weather. It kept raining throughout the day, so I knew when it stopped I only had a few takes to shoot my scenes, in the end I managed about 5 takes in 20mins and got what I needed for my video.
The next part of my project was the editing. It was all going to be done on the Macs and I had never used one before, but once I had a lesson looking at the applications, I was confident enough to begin editing my work. I didn't think this would take me 2 weeks, however I needed every lesson in those 2 weeks to edit my work. Each lesson I was either editing my clips or testing out different audio clips to add into my video.
At the end of those 2 weeks I had edited all my work; added transitions, sounds and the final credits.
The last part of my project was to exhibit my work in front of the general public, which included, friends, family and strangers. I chose the college restaurant to show my work in, and I did that on December 2nd at 7pm with 2 other Media students. I gave each person a questionnaire to fill out after they watched my experimental video.
The only issue with the exhibition was that we had to ask security if we could use the college late at night, and we also had to talk to those in admin, so we could use the car park for our quests, free of charge. We managed to get the all clear with security and admin. The restaurant manager agreed to let us use the restuarant as long as we were not going to be serving food and drinks, as well as moving around the room too much.
The concept of my experimental video is about dreams and how real they can seem, and even though you can't remember much when you wake up, it somehow feels very familiar.
The feedback I got was positive, and the criticism was very constructive.
Many people had said the continuity in the house was very good, so it connected the video well, I also found that the majority liked the audio and thought it fitted well.
Many of the people liked the video clips where I had the 2 people run through the trees with the country music playing, however some did not like how the character went from being in the house to being in the gardens. Though I got positive feedback about the way I edited the clips together.
The country sound was what the public enjoyed about the audio in my video, however not all of them enjoyed the laser sound, which I used to get my character to go looking around the house.
The audio was my favourite part of the experimental video, because it was strange enough that I thought it worked well with the concept of my video.
Overall I found the paperwork the most difficult as I had never had to do any pre production work since I started Media 3 years ago. I also found the experimental video idea, hard to come up with, but I decided to write up a mind map to help me with ideas. Once that was done the plan just came to me, and I had a solid concept to work with. I feel I achieved quite a bit in this project, as I learnt new skills through the editing process along with learning how to plan out a video through pre production. I learnt how to use different applications on the Macs, and have managed to come to terms with what I am able to do and what I need to learn a bit more on.
At the beginning of the 8 weeks, it was all about the preparation and the paperwork that I needed to fill out to be able to begin filming. I had never done this part of the work before so it was all new to me, but got the hang of it eventually. First I had to come up with a concept for my video, and then I could work from that and begin to have a final idea. Once I had decided to work on the concept of dreams, I had a concrete idea which meant I could begin the paperwork. I started with the storyboard for my work, which didn't take as long as I thought it would.
Once that was done I had to write up the health and safety sheets for when I would be filming, also this did not take too long so I was able to start my filming as soon as college started after half term.
When we returned I began filming on Tuesday, November 3rd at a house. This filming process took between 90mins to 2 hours. This was due to distractions from those not in my filming. Though once I had filmed the shots I needed, I was happy with the results as they looked quite similar to how I had imagined them and how they were written down.
Next I had to film in my next space which was in Crawley towns, memorial Gardens.
This was filmed on Wednesday, November 11th during the day. The only major issue that day was the weather. It kept raining throughout the day, so I knew when it stopped I only had a few takes to shoot my scenes, in the end I managed about 5 takes in 20mins and got what I needed for my video.
The next part of my project was the editing. It was all going to be done on the Macs and I had never used one before, but once I had a lesson looking at the applications, I was confident enough to begin editing my work. I didn't think this would take me 2 weeks, however I needed every lesson in those 2 weeks to edit my work. Each lesson I was either editing my clips or testing out different audio clips to add into my video.
At the end of those 2 weeks I had edited all my work; added transitions, sounds and the final credits.
The last part of my project was to exhibit my work in front of the general public, which included, friends, family and strangers. I chose the college restaurant to show my work in, and I did that on December 2nd at 7pm with 2 other Media students. I gave each person a questionnaire to fill out after they watched my experimental video.
The only issue with the exhibition was that we had to ask security if we could use the college late at night, and we also had to talk to those in admin, so we could use the car park for our quests, free of charge. We managed to get the all clear with security and admin. The restaurant manager agreed to let us use the restuarant as long as we were not going to be serving food and drinks, as well as moving around the room too much.
The concept of my experimental video is about dreams and how real they can seem, and even though you can't remember much when you wake up, it somehow feels very familiar.
The feedback I got was positive, and the criticism was very constructive.
Many people had said the continuity in the house was very good, so it connected the video well, I also found that the majority liked the audio and thought it fitted well.
Many of the people liked the video clips where I had the 2 people run through the trees with the country music playing, however some did not like how the character went from being in the house to being in the gardens. Though I got positive feedback about the way I edited the clips together.
The country sound was what the public enjoyed about the audio in my video, however not all of them enjoyed the laser sound, which I used to get my character to go looking around the house.
The audio was my favourite part of the experimental video, because it was strange enough that I thought it worked well with the concept of my video.
Overall I found the paperwork the most difficult as I had never had to do any pre production work since I started Media 3 years ago. I also found the experimental video idea, hard to come up with, but I decided to write up a mind map to help me with ideas. Once that was done the plan just came to me, and I had a solid concept to work with. I feel I achieved quite a bit in this project, as I learnt new skills through the editing process along with learning how to plan out a video through pre production. I learnt how to use different applications on the Macs, and have managed to come to terms with what I am able to do and what I need to learn a bit more on.
A Copy of my Questionnaire
Illusions
Rebecca Fisher
This questionnaire is about the Experimental video “Illusions”. Please answer the questions as honestly as possible, as these will be used in my evaluation.
1 – Did you enjoy this video? Why?
2 – From watching this video, what do you think the concept (story) was about?
3 – Which elements of this video most caught your eye?
4 – What did you think of the audio/sound effects used? Did they work well with what was happening in the shot?
Rebecca Fisher
This questionnaire is about the Experimental video “Illusions”. Please answer the questions as honestly as possible, as these will be used in my evaluation.
1 – Did you enjoy this video? Why?
2 – From watching this video, what do you think the concept (story) was about?
3 – Which elements of this video most caught your eye?
4 – What did you think of the audio/sound effects used? Did they work well with what was happening in the shot?
5 – Which parts of this video did you not enjoy?
6 – Do you think anything could have been improved?
7 – Did you like the way I edited the shots together?
8 – Which scenes were you favourite?
9 – What do you think about the settings for my video? i.e. - house and memorial gardens?
Any additional comments?
Exhibition/Installation Plan
I have decided to exhibit my work in the college restaurant, with 2 other students. I thought this was a way of connecting my video to the exhibition space. My video is about how dreams are so vivid and real. But also how completely random and different they can be. So what could be more different than showing a video in a restaurant. To me, it just doesn't happen everyday.
We have each invited our friends and family. As they enter they will be handed a questionnaire to fill out at the end of each video. This will help us with our evaluations and it will also be great to see what our friends and family think of our work and see what can be improved when we have our next projects.
Our videos will be shown on December 2nd at 7pm. We will have introductions to the evenings events, along with a quick brief on what our videos are about and who inspired our work.
The room will be dark, I hope, which will help the audience understand it's about dreaming, as the darkness you can often associate with sleeping.
Post - Production Diary
Day 5
I didn't have to do much today, except add in a title and credits to my video.
This took around 10 - 15 mins. The main trouble was finding a name for my experimental video, after looking up different word associated with dreams, I found "Illusions" and thought it fitted in perfectly with my video.
Once this was all added, I had to export it onto a DVD which would then be used on the night I was going to exhibit my work.
I didn't have to do much today, except add in a title and credits to my video.
This took around 10 - 15 mins. The main trouble was finding a name for my experimental video, after looking up different word associated with dreams, I found "Illusions" and thought it fitted in perfectly with my video.
Once this was all added, I had to export it onto a DVD which would then be used on the night I was going to exhibit my work.
Post - Production Diary
Day 4
I had trouble finding my footage at the beginning of class, so that took 30mins out of my editing time. However I managed to find the video in time to add in my sounds.
This didn't take long, as I had to just import these sounds, then add them to the right part of my video.
Though before I did this, I had to remove the noise that was on the footage already. I didn't know how to do this, but after it had been explained, it was simple.
I deleted those sounds and added my own in. I played it a few times to myself then to a few classmates who thought it looked quite good, and said the audio went very well.
I had trouble finding my footage at the beginning of class, so that took 30mins out of my editing time. However I managed to find the video in time to add in my sounds.
This didn't take long, as I had to just import these sounds, then add them to the right part of my video.
Though before I did this, I had to remove the noise that was on the footage already. I didn't know how to do this, but after it had been explained, it was simple.
I deleted those sounds and added my own in. I played it a few times to myself then to a few classmates who thought it looked quite good, and said the audio went very well.
Post - Production Diary
Day 3
Today I was looking at which transitions would look good with my clips. I had a few straight forward fade to black choices, however some clips I thought would look good with a more obvious transition that just a quick fade or cut.
Each clip and transition choice didn't take too long, though today I decided I was going to try and find sounds to add into my video.
I had the "benny hill, theme tune" in mind, however I was unable to use that as it would be classed as copyrighting. So I looked for a sound that was pretty close to that theme. I managed to find one that was already edited and cut together, which sounded very good with the video, but also saved me some extra time.
With that being found, I just needed a banging sound to add in, however I thought it was a bit bland and boring, so I thought I would make a different sound. I did this by using Garageband.
The sound is quite weird, but does actually fit in with my video. It's almost like a laser sound you would find in a sci-fi programme or movie.
Today I was looking at which transitions would look good with my clips. I had a few straight forward fade to black choices, however some clips I thought would look good with a more obvious transition that just a quick fade or cut.
Each clip and transition choice didn't take too long, though today I decided I was going to try and find sounds to add into my video.
I had the "benny hill, theme tune" in mind, however I was unable to use that as it would be classed as copyrighting. So I looked for a sound that was pretty close to that theme. I managed to find one that was already edited and cut together, which sounded very good with the video, but also saved me some extra time.
With that being found, I just needed a banging sound to add in, however I thought it was a bit bland and boring, so I thought I would make a different sound. I did this by using Garageband.
The sound is quite weird, but does actually fit in with my video. It's almost like a laser sound you would find in a sci-fi programme or movie.
Post - Production Diary
Day 2
Today I organised my clips in Imovie HD and put them in a right order. I also edited my clips to choose which ones I was going to use in my final piece and then edit out the parts which were not needed or I was unable to use due to lighting, noise or shadows.
One of my clips had some sound, however it was echoed and didn't sound quite right, so I would need to look for a different noise, or create my own sound.
Each of my clips had been edited and I had put them into the slideshow which would create the Experimental video.
I decided that next lesson I need to look at what sounds I would be using.
Today I organised my clips in Imovie HD and put them in a right order. I also edited my clips to choose which ones I was going to use in my final piece and then edit out the parts which were not needed or I was unable to use due to lighting, noise or shadows.
One of my clips had some sound, however it was echoed and didn't sound quite right, so I would need to look for a different noise, or create my own sound.
Each of my clips had been edited and I had put them into the slideshow which would create the Experimental video.
I decided that next lesson I need to look at what sounds I would be using.
Post - Production Diary
Day 1
Today I imported my footage from the camera to the Mac computers. I had never used a Mac before and was trying to get used to what certain applications did and how I would be able to edit my work.
So once my footage had been imported, I uploaded it into Imovie HD and was testing out different effects, transitions and speed.
As I was getting used to the applications I was unable to do much editing work today, however I had an idea of what I needed to do the next time, to start the editing process to get my final piece.
Today I imported my footage from the camera to the Mac computers. I had never used a Mac before and was trying to get used to what certain applications did and how I would be able to edit my work.
So once my footage had been imported, I uploaded it into Imovie HD and was testing out different effects, transitions and speed.
As I was getting used to the applications I was unable to do much editing work today, however I had an idea of what I needed to do the next time, to start the editing process to get my final piece.
Monday 7 December 2009
Production Diary
Day 2 - Wednesday, November 11th.
Today I filmed in the Memorial Gardens, next to town, with 2 actors today. I had a female and a male in my scenes.
I chose this space as the trees made it possible to give the effect I had wanted to put across, to the audience.
The same issues occured today as they did at the house last week. Obviously I had members of the public walking around, making noise, distracting those in the scenes and causing shadows on the floor, which I had not wanted. However the sound would be edited out so that would be ok, and I just had to film a few extra times to make sure no shadows or reflections were not caught by the camera.
If I could of changed one thing, it would be the lighting, however as it was outside I was unable to work around that, so the filming is quite dark.
Today I filmed in the Memorial Gardens, next to town, with 2 actors today. I had a female and a male in my scenes.
I chose this space as the trees made it possible to give the effect I had wanted to put across, to the audience.
The same issues occured today as they did at the house last week. Obviously I had members of the public walking around, making noise, distracting those in the scenes and causing shadows on the floor, which I had not wanted. However the sound would be edited out so that would be ok, and I just had to film a few extra times to make sure no shadows or reflections were not caught by the camera.
If I could of changed one thing, it would be the lighting, however as it was outside I was unable to work around that, so the filming is quite dark.
Production Diary
Day 1 - Tuesday, November 3rd.
Today I filmed at a friends house in Horsham. I had the help of another student, who was the actress in my filming today.
The issues I came across was the lighting and the space for where I would place the tripod. I managed to get the right angles when filming, so my only other issue was the lighting, as I had taken no lights with me, and it was starting to get dark out. However my friend has a bedside lamp, which acted as a spotlight almost.
The other issue was the people in the house, who thought to mess around whilst I was filming, so those in my shots would start laughing, or would be distracted. After a few shots we were able to capture each scene, with about 4 or 5 stops between.
The only other issue was I was unable to get the final shot at the door correct, as the hallway was not long enough, however I will edit this shot once I have all my footage, to make this work.
Today I filmed at a friends house in Horsham. I had the help of another student, who was the actress in my filming today.
The issues I came across was the lighting and the space for where I would place the tripod. I managed to get the right angles when filming, so my only other issue was the lighting, as I had taken no lights with me, and it was starting to get dark out. However my friend has a bedside lamp, which acted as a spotlight almost.
The other issue was the people in the house, who thought to mess around whilst I was filming, so those in my shots would start laughing, or would be distracted. After a few shots we were able to capture each scene, with about 4 or 5 stops between.
The only other issue was I was unable to get the final shot at the door correct, as the hallway was not long enough, however I will edit this shot once I have all my footage, to make this work.
Sunday 6 December 2009
Review - Muto
Muto was created by Blu in May 2008. It's heavily crafted, based on a series of wall images around the world, created by stop frame animation.The concept behind this experimental video is unusual and quite hard to figure out in my opinion. From this video, you can get different ideas from watching it, I had to watch Muto a few times before I had a proper understanding of what the story was.
I thought it was something about a life cycle as the artist tends to draw the images being eaten, or being reborn. The idea of life ending, but it carries on or the idea of rebirth and what can become of it.
The craft behind it took quite sometime; having to create a design then change it slightly to make the images move smoothly together to complete a craft driven piece of art/video.
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