Thursday, February 19, 2009
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
2/18/09
We spent the bulk of the lesson strengthening the script. Julien did almost all of the dialogue editing, as he was the most proficient at English. I also felt the need to let someone edit my screenplay, because I loathe screenwriting (but I love to come up with plots) and am not really good at coming up with strong dialogue - I unhealthily enjoy making the dialogue repetitive, and this is, in a way, really patronizing to the audience. I also tend to make lines unnecessarily long in hopes of lengthening the script (it's a very, very bad habit).
In my previous post, I said "I also intend to have the group work together at all times, as opposed to individuals working at home without really communicating with other members." After this lesson, it's been proved that the statement is useless (I can't think of a euphemism for "useless"). We as a group should have finished reading the screenplay and then conduct research on different aspects - cinematography, lighting, sound, editing and so on. But the lesson had turned into a screenplay-editing session. I didn't really mind, because I was eager to realize my weak points in screenwriting by having someone else edit my script. Next time, I would assign Julien to edit and improve upon my screenplay for homework. He could conduct research on cinematography during the lesson, so I could supervise him and give him advice when it is time to draw a storyboard.
But at least we had the screenplay honed. Towards the end of the lesson, I assigned homework for each one of my team members. This did not mean that I would be sitting at home doing nothing. I would assist them in every way possible by providing them with links on, for example, sound editing, lighting, cinematography, and so on.
There also wouldn't be any casting problems - I've already casted Alec and Sinclair. I've told them to start memorizing their lines, as we will be filming as soon as possible. Julien would also be an actor, as there are three characters in our film (it doesn't mean that he has to be the camera person just because he is the cinematographer; i think that cinematographers automatically assume the role of the cameraman in school projects, because there are not a lot of people involved in the film. Therefore, I'm assuming that a lot of people misconceive the word "cinematographer" as being synonymous with "cameraman").
As for sound, I sent Raphael several Dystopian sound samples that I mixed using Audacity, a free software. I then emailed him the script and told him to make a list of sounds needed for our film. I also told him to investigate different types of mikes and how to minimize ambience pick-up.
For lighting, I gave Chris several links on low budget lighting. I also introduced him to "gobo"s - "a template or pattern cut into a circular plate used to create patterns of projected light." Thanks for the quote, Wikipedia. Gobos are used to texture the walls of an interior location, to make the environment look more interesting. I told him to conduct further research on lighting, especially the ways of lighting up exterior locations.
Julien wanted to further polish the script, so I sent him the screenplay. I also told him to storyboard the first scene for homework. He would show it to me on Thursday, so that I could have a look at it and make necessary adjustments. As he is a photographer, I didn't tell him to research cinematography. After all, photography and cinematography is very similar (not so similar, but similar enough).
As for Hannah the editor, I did not really know what she could do before production. I will, in the immediate future, tell her to look up editing techniques and Final Cut Pro tips. I will also tell her to think about the costumes that characters would wear in a Dystopian environment, and ask her read about fake blood-making.
We have planned to shoot the first scene of the script on Friday. The dialogue-less scene stars Julien and is set in his apartment. I have chosen that location because his apartment has a post-modern feel that satisfies the Dystopian look. We'll be filming subsequent scenes possibly during the weekend at the Cyberport waterfront, which is nearby.
In my previous post, I said "I also intend to have the group work together at all times, as opposed to individuals working at home without really communicating with other members." After this lesson, it's been proved that the statement is useless (I can't think of a euphemism for "useless"). We as a group should have finished reading the screenplay and then conduct research on different aspects - cinematography, lighting, sound, editing and so on. But the lesson had turned into a screenplay-editing session. I didn't really mind, because I was eager to realize my weak points in screenwriting by having someone else edit my script. Next time, I would assign Julien to edit and improve upon my screenplay for homework. He could conduct research on cinematography during the lesson, so I could supervise him and give him advice when it is time to draw a storyboard.
But at least we had the screenplay honed. Towards the end of the lesson, I assigned homework for each one of my team members. This did not mean that I would be sitting at home doing nothing. I would assist them in every way possible by providing them with links on, for example, sound editing, lighting, cinematography, and so on.
There also wouldn't be any casting problems - I've already casted Alec and Sinclair. I've told them to start memorizing their lines, as we will be filming as soon as possible. Julien would also be an actor, as there are three characters in our film (it doesn't mean that he has to be the camera person just because he is the cinematographer; i think that cinematographers automatically assume the role of the cameraman in school projects, because there are not a lot of people involved in the film. Therefore, I'm assuming that a lot of people misconceive the word "cinematographer" as being synonymous with "cameraman").
As for sound, I sent Raphael several Dystopian sound samples that I mixed using Audacity, a free software. I then emailed him the script and told him to make a list of sounds needed for our film. I also told him to investigate different types of mikes and how to minimize ambience pick-up.
For lighting, I gave Chris several links on low budget lighting. I also introduced him to "gobo"s - "a template or pattern cut into a circular plate used to create patterns of projected light." Thanks for the quote, Wikipedia. Gobos are used to texture the walls of an interior location, to make the environment look more interesting. I told him to conduct further research on lighting, especially the ways of lighting up exterior locations.
Julien wanted to further polish the script, so I sent him the screenplay. I also told him to storyboard the first scene for homework. He would show it to me on Thursday, so that I could have a look at it and make necessary adjustments. As he is a photographer, I didn't tell him to research cinematography. After all, photography and cinematography is very similar (not so similar, but similar enough).
As for Hannah the editor, I did not really know what she could do before production. I will, in the immediate future, tell her to look up editing techniques and Final Cut Pro tips. I will also tell her to think about the costumes that characters would wear in a Dystopian environment, and ask her read about fake blood-making.
We have planned to shoot the first scene of the script on Friday. The dialogue-less scene stars Julien and is set in his apartment. I have chosen that location because his apartment has a post-modern feel that satisfies the Dystopian look. We'll be filming subsequent scenes possibly during the weekend at the Cyberport waterfront, which is nearby.
Monday, February 16, 2009
2/16/09
I thought our homework on continuity editing would be shown one by one to the class, but it seemed that I was wrong. Instead, we were introduced to film-noir today following an activity which jogged our memory of various editing techniques. I was quite familiar with the characteristics of film-noir, but I haven't seen old film-noirs before, such as Double Indemnity. My favorite neo-noir at the moment is Roman Polanski's Chinatown, a film set in 1930's Los Angeles. Heat was also one of my favorite movies (as seen in my profile). As for Hong Kong movies, my favorite crime drama films are Johnnie To's Election and Triad Election (which is basically Election 2). I have yet watch Infernal Affairs for the second time; I don't really remember much about it apart from the plot.
As we were introduced to film-noir, we formed groups for the Critereon B assignment in which we have to create a film-noir film. I took up the role of director/screenwriter, Julien was in charge of cinematography, Chris lighting, Hannah editing, and Raphael sound.
As a director, I will have to supervise everyone in my group. This means teaching people what I know and directing them to conduct research in specific areas. Since I've never had any experience on lighting, I will conduct research on lighting first, and then give Chris (who's in charge of lighting) links which are useful for him in understanding lighting. Of course, Chris does not simply wait for me to give him links, I also told him to undergo research by himself to attain knowledge.
Communication is the most important element when it comes to working in a group. I intend to give everyone equal say in deciding things, and I also intend to have the group work together at all times, as opposed to individuals working at home without really communicating with other members. I have chosen to become a director because I know that I'm more experienced in film-making, so it is my job to supervise and educate people, while learning more about aspects that I'm not familiar with myself.
However, there is a fine line to walk on, and that line separates supervision and actually controlling every aspect of the film. I have made the mistake of controlling every aspect of film-making last year and I have to say that it was not a pleasant experience to boss people around. So this time, I will help people and at the same time and adjust what they have in mind if necessary for improvements.
As we were introduced to film-noir, we formed groups for the Critereon B assignment in which we have to create a film-noir film. I took up the role of director/screenwriter, Julien was in charge of cinematography, Chris lighting, Hannah editing, and Raphael sound.
As a director, I will have to supervise everyone in my group. This means teaching people what I know and directing them to conduct research in specific areas. Since I've never had any experience on lighting, I will conduct research on lighting first, and then give Chris (who's in charge of lighting) links which are useful for him in understanding lighting. Of course, Chris does not simply wait for me to give him links, I also told him to undergo research by himself to attain knowledge.
Communication is the most important element when it comes to working in a group. I intend to give everyone equal say in deciding things, and I also intend to have the group work together at all times, as opposed to individuals working at home without really communicating with other members. I have chosen to become a director because I know that I'm more experienced in film-making, so it is my job to supervise and educate people, while learning more about aspects that I'm not familiar with myself.
However, there is a fine line to walk on, and that line separates supervision and actually controlling every aspect of the film. I have made the mistake of controlling every aspect of film-making last year and I have to say that it was not a pleasant experience to boss people around. So this time, I will help people and at the same time and adjust what they have in mind if necessary for improvements.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
2/11/09
I learned a lot about editing today, especially the terminology that described various editing techniques, which I couldn't really describe using words in the past. It was more of an intuitive thing that I picked up over time, so during the lesson I had difficulty trying to explain the "action cut" when I tried to.
In the remaining forty-five minutes of the lesson, we had to engage in an editing exercise, but as there were no raw footage for us to edit, we had to film a scene ourselves. I was aware that a cinematographer has to follow shooting guidelines/rules carefully, or else the editor would have trouble making the footage flow seamlessly because he would have to go through lots of errors that the cinematographer had made. Solutions for this?
Here were some solutions that I thought of:
- the editor would have to keep in touch with the cinematographer and communicate frequently;
- the cinematographer has to know what he is doing, and must take into consideration that the editor's reputation would be tarnished if he makes too many mistakes that can't be erased during post-production;
- a person takes up the role of both the cinematographer and editor
Put short, an editor is almost entirely dependent on the footage that the cinematographer provides him.
Filming the scene and setting up the shots did not take long. The most important aspect of this exercise was the actors' actions and line delivery. As I had taken up the role of the cinematographer and the editor, I had to carefully instruct them to take up the same positions and deliver their lines in the same fashion between different shots from different angles (a director's responsibility?). This was to ensure that the scene would actually flow, even when I cut between shots.
After a couple of importing problems (I forgot about the correct FCP settings), we finally managed to assemble a rough cut after deciding where to make a cut with other team members (Julien and Camille) and fiddling around to get the best action cuts out of the shots we had. I was glad that there were no continuity errors by the end of the assembly, but I was worried about the audio that we would have to get right before the next lesson. The shotgun mike picked up a lot of ambient noises and the audio levels between different shots differed. I plan to take the audio from one shot and apply it to every shot in the cut; with some minor tweaking (by making the audio levels stay consistent) and audio smoothing (by applying cross-fade transitions between audio tracks), I will hopefully achieve decent, consistent audio throughout the scene.
The teacher gave us feedback and thought that we should attempt to place more cuts into the scene. But I felt that the number of different shots in the rough cut was enough - it was functional and effectively portrayed the mood of the scene. The emotions involved in the scene weren't particularly extreme or turbulent, so I felt that cutting down the number of cuts would keep the scene from getting too rhythmic. For lack of a better way to put it, I feel that getting too rhythmic would make one feel like they're watching a TV series complete with formulaic cuts. Of course, quick cuts could be utilized, but only when it parallels a character's state of mind, or in situations like chases.
In the remaining forty-five minutes of the lesson, we had to engage in an editing exercise, but as there were no raw footage for us to edit, we had to film a scene ourselves. I was aware that a cinematographer has to follow shooting guidelines/rules carefully, or else the editor would have trouble making the footage flow seamlessly because he would have to go through lots of errors that the cinematographer had made. Solutions for this?
Here were some solutions that I thought of:
- the editor would have to keep in touch with the cinematographer and communicate frequently;
- the cinematographer has to know what he is doing, and must take into consideration that the editor's reputation would be tarnished if he makes too many mistakes that can't be erased during post-production;
- a person takes up the role of both the cinematographer and editor
Put short, an editor is almost entirely dependent on the footage that the cinematographer provides him.
Filming the scene and setting up the shots did not take long. The most important aspect of this exercise was the actors' actions and line delivery. As I had taken up the role of the cinematographer and the editor, I had to carefully instruct them to take up the same positions and deliver their lines in the same fashion between different shots from different angles (a director's responsibility?). This was to ensure that the scene would actually flow, even when I cut between shots.
After a couple of importing problems (I forgot about the correct FCP settings), we finally managed to assemble a rough cut after deciding where to make a cut with other team members (Julien and Camille) and fiddling around to get the best action cuts out of the shots we had. I was glad that there were no continuity errors by the end of the assembly, but I was worried about the audio that we would have to get right before the next lesson. The shotgun mike picked up a lot of ambient noises and the audio levels between different shots differed. I plan to take the audio from one shot and apply it to every shot in the cut; with some minor tweaking (by making the audio levels stay consistent) and audio smoothing (by applying cross-fade transitions between audio tracks), I will hopefully achieve decent, consistent audio throughout the scene.
The teacher gave us feedback and thought that we should attempt to place more cuts into the scene. But I felt that the number of different shots in the rough cut was enough - it was functional and effectively portrayed the mood of the scene. The emotions involved in the scene weren't particularly extreme or turbulent, so I felt that cutting down the number of cuts would keep the scene from getting too rhythmic. For lack of a better way to put it, I feel that getting too rhythmic would make one feel like they're watching a TV series complete with formulaic cuts. Of course, quick cuts could be utilized, but only when it parallels a character's state of mind, or in situations like chases.
Monday, February 9, 2009
2/9/09
We looked at every single group's recap videos today. I appreciated the decent audio recordings in a lot of the videos. However, I felt that some groups overdid the color effect by adding too much color during post-production, which made it look unnatural and garish. Although I experimented with colors in FCP and managed to nail a natural color tint that sets the mood, the video showed to the class was actually the footage whose colors were manipulated only in-camera, but not in FCP.
I felt that we, as a group, could have done a lot better than the footage we had, especially for the "rule of thirds" one and, of course, the sound effects. A tracking shot for the "rule of thirds" exercise was not appropriate, but at that time, I was thinking, "most of the shots we filmed adhered to the rule of thirds, so let's just forget about it and film a tracking shot." I better follow the guidelines next time. The sounds, on the other hand, were satisfactory. I was intent on learning how to record audio instead of caring about the results, therefore I was content with the sounds that we had.
In my first post, I stated that this was a just-get-it-done-and-forget-about-it recap exercise. Well, I should get rid of that mentality and approach exercises in a more serious manner from now on.
After the viewing, there was one thing that I had to disagree with the teacher - on the sheet, it stated that students should strive to create a documentary-styled shot. Seeing the words "documentary" and "feel", I immediately thought of cinéma-vérité more on the Dogme 95 side, but not on the documentary side. When I filmed, I thought we were to film in Dogme 95-style, but I was wrong. I had cinéma vérité categorized into two styles: one which was the "documentary-documentary" feel, which the teacher asked us to shoot in the style of, and the "documentary-dogme 95" feel, which I felt was superior to the "documentary-documentary" feel (These are not official terms; I just made them up).
Here are two examples:
1. The "documentary-documentary" feel, as seen in Cloverfield:
2. The "documentary-dogme 95" feel, as seen in The Office:
I have to say that the "documentary-dogme 95" feel is more tasteful than the Cloverfield feel. In my opinion, the "superior" feel has more spirit.
*UPDATE (i forgot about the IB-learner qualities): Throughout the lesson I was knowledgeable, reflective, open-minded, principled, communicator... well, everything apart from caring or risk-taking, because we didn't have a chance to work in groups.
I felt that we, as a group, could have done a lot better than the footage we had, especially for the "rule of thirds" one and, of course, the sound effects. A tracking shot for the "rule of thirds" exercise was not appropriate, but at that time, I was thinking, "most of the shots we filmed adhered to the rule of thirds, so let's just forget about it and film a tracking shot." I better follow the guidelines next time. The sounds, on the other hand, were satisfactory. I was intent on learning how to record audio instead of caring about the results, therefore I was content with the sounds that we had.
In my first post, I stated that this was a just-get-it-done-and-forget-about-it recap exercise. Well, I should get rid of that mentality and approach exercises in a more serious manner from now on.
After the viewing, there was one thing that I had to disagree with the teacher - on the sheet, it stated that students should strive to create a documentary-styled shot. Seeing the words "documentary" and "feel", I immediately thought of cinéma-vérité more on the Dogme 95 side, but not on the documentary side. When I filmed, I thought we were to film in Dogme 95-style, but I was wrong. I had cinéma vérité categorized into two styles: one which was the "documentary-documentary" feel, which the teacher asked us to shoot in the style of, and the "documentary-dogme 95" feel, which I felt was superior to the "documentary-documentary" feel (These are not official terms; I just made them up).
Here are two examples:
1. The "documentary-documentary" feel, as seen in Cloverfield:
2. The "documentary-dogme 95" feel, as seen in The Office:
I have to say that the "documentary-dogme 95" feel is more tasteful than the Cloverfield feel. In my opinion, the "superior" feel has more spirit.
*UPDATE (i forgot about the IB-learner qualities): Throughout the lesson I was knowledgeable, reflective, open-minded, principled, communicator... well, everything apart from caring or risk-taking, because we didn't have a chance to work in groups.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
2/4/09
Julien and I recorded sound effects while Hannah and Camille imported what we shot on Monday. We have never had any experience on audio recording, so we set out to gain some experience by first grabbing the equipment for recording. We got a mike and a "sibilance eliminator"; setting up was straight-forward. We went to a room to record the sound effects by vocally producing them. The results were not of great importance, because the aim of the exercise was to get used to how and what to do in order to record audio.
We got back and joined with the rest of the group; Hannah was already in the process of cutting out the bad takes. As the aim of the exercise was to get everyone familiar with Final Cut Pro, I taught my group members how to add text over footage, move the text to a desired position in the frame, utilizing the "snap" feature for the timeline, isolating audio from clip (vice versa), the uses of "insert", "overwrite" and video/audio track management.
I tended to "hog" the computer when it came to editing, but I managed to let some of my teammates test out the things that I had taught them - at least for a while. Towards the end of the lesson, it boiled down to computer hogging again, as other members were conversing. I should have educated them and let them edit most of the footage.
At lunch, Julien and I went back to the multimedia lab to put the exported video into the dropbox. We then opened up FCP to attempt at color correction to make the footage look more professional. When we succeeded in doing so after a couple of minutes, a student asked me how to make the footage look professional. I was reluctant to tell him but showed him very briefly the steps to take to achieve the look. I was showing attitude; I later realized that I was unloading my passive anger on him, which was accumulated when I was "hogging" the computer. (I either hogged it and didn't give anyone the chance to edit, and as a result, other people started talking; or it was necessary for me to edit because other people were conversing. I still am not sure.) If I were not angry, I would still be reluctant to reveal the way to achieve the look. We had succeeded so quickly because I had spent a lot of time figuring things out in the past. Did the person really deserve to know the method without having to go through the steps which I've taken?
Anyway, for any student who is reading this blog (since it's public), here is the way to make your footage look more professional: Click on the "effects" tab and click on the "image control" and "color correction" folder. You'll see the Tint effect and the 3-Way Color Corrector. Apply them into the clip that you are editing, and click "Filters" then "Visual" under the 3-Way Color Corrector filter. You would want to slide the "Blacks" slide a little to the left to make the blacks, or any color that is close to black, darker. This increases the contrast of the shot without ruining the details of the "Mids" and "Whites". As for Tint, you can use it to create mood and atmosphere in a shot. Pick a color and play with the slider to adjust the amount of tint applied over the shot. If you have any problems, ask me.
We got back and joined with the rest of the group; Hannah was already in the process of cutting out the bad takes. As the aim of the exercise was to get everyone familiar with Final Cut Pro, I taught my group members how to add text over footage, move the text to a desired position in the frame, utilizing the "snap" feature for the timeline, isolating audio from clip (vice versa), the uses of "insert", "overwrite" and video/audio track management.
I tended to "hog" the computer when it came to editing, but I managed to let some of my teammates test out the things that I had taught them - at least for a while. Towards the end of the lesson, it boiled down to computer hogging again, as other members were conversing. I should have educated them and let them edit most of the footage.
At lunch, Julien and I went back to the multimedia lab to put the exported video into the dropbox. We then opened up FCP to attempt at color correction to make the footage look more professional. When we succeeded in doing so after a couple of minutes, a student asked me how to make the footage look professional. I was reluctant to tell him but showed him very briefly the steps to take to achieve the look. I was showing attitude; I later realized that I was unloading my passive anger on him, which was accumulated when I was "hogging" the computer. (I either hogged it and didn't give anyone the chance to edit, and as a result, other people started talking; or it was necessary for me to edit because other people were conversing. I still am not sure.) If I were not angry, I would still be reluctant to reveal the way to achieve the look. We had succeeded so quickly because I had spent a lot of time figuring things out in the past. Did the person really deserve to know the method without having to go through the steps which I've taken?
Anyway, for any student who is reading this blog (since it's public), here is the way to make your footage look more professional: Click on the "effects" tab and click on the "image control" and "color correction" folder. You'll see the Tint effect and the 3-Way Color Corrector. Apply them into the clip that you are editing, and click "Filters" then "Visual" under the 3-Way Color Corrector filter. You would want to slide the "Blacks" slide a little to the left to make the blacks, or any color that is close to black, darker. This increases the contrast of the shot without ruining the details of the "Mids" and "Whites". As for Tint, you can use it to create mood and atmosphere in a shot. Pick a color and play with the slider to adjust the amount of tint applied over the shot. If you have any problems, ask me.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
2/2/09
We were engaged in the "Scavenger Hunt" activity to recapitulate our cinematography skills in the first lesson of film. Teaming up with Julien, Hannah and Camille, we mostly filmed in the cafeteria and the seventh floor. I spent quite a lot of time to set up the shots but realized that I had to shake off my perfectionistic approach, so I either a) filmed it thinking this was just an exercise and nothing much or b) let someone else shoot (as we were working as a team, rotating roles as actors and cinematographers for each shot). When I was filming, I preferred to shoot in a more dynamic way, which meant that all of the footage that I shot were done without a tripod. So, I filmed a tracking shot (inspired by the steadicam shot in Magnolia; YouTube clip below), a contrazoom shot (not sure if it's the correct term), and the shot which showed a gritty, documentary feel (inspired by The Office and Battlestar Galactica).
If the DV camcorder were wide enough in terms of focal length, then I would be satisfied, but again, this was a just-get-it-done-and-forget-about-it recap exercise (not that it was an insignificant exercise), so I was satisfied with the footage that we've got.
We'll be recording the sound effects on wednesday and of course, import everything into Final Cut Pro.
If the DV camcorder were wide enough in terms of focal length, then I would be satisfied, but again, this was a just-get-it-done-and-forget-about-it recap exercise (not that it was an insignificant exercise), so I was satisfied with the footage that we've got.
We'll be recording the sound effects on wednesday and of course, import everything into Final Cut Pro.
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