Filming: Getting the job done

      Earlier this week, we filmed all scenes of our movie! We started with the outside scenes and then continued the rest of the film inside. Straight after school, we left to go to our filming location. We arrived at about 3:30 pm. Once we got there, we headed to the bathrooms to change into costume. I brought all of the things my character needed. I had red lipstick, a black dress, and a long sleeve coverup. My group mate brought me some fancy, black sunglasses to wear also. Everyone had gotten into costume and then we began to film. We started with the outside scenes. The very first shot of our film took a little while to get right. I had envisioned the shot in a special way so I had to demonstrate and explain the shot to my team member recording the scene. After a few tries we got it perfect!

      The next section of filming was all going to be shot indoors. The location we chose to film at had a receptionist area with a desk set up. This was a big part of why we chose to film in the location. For safety measures, we asked permission to use the desk area for our film before hand. Filming the receptionist scene was harder than I expected because people were talking on the background or you could hear construction going on. Because of those things, the shots took a lot longer to film. We eventually got the footage we needed and moved to a different room for filming. This room is where we shot the rest of the film. Everything went much smoother form here on. It was really interesting to see how much work goes into directing and acting, along with making sure every shot does it’s purpose.

Filming: Get ready, get set, go!

     My group mates and I will be filming this week. Today was the start of our filming process. We first needed to make sure we had everything we needed. My character is wearing a black dress, heels, a coat, and sunglasses. My team mates also brought their props and costumes. I made sure we had access to the shooting script, sound script, and storyboard at all times. As soon as school got out, we all met at the front gates. From there, we went to the filming location. Our filming location is outside of an apartment building as well as inside. The scenes inside will be taking place in the office/lobby area.
     The beginning scenes take place outside the building. Only the outside scenes were shot on the first day of filming. While my group mates set up the camera, I got into character. By that I mean I changed into costume and gathered my props. I also applied the red lipstick. I am the one who drew the storyboard for the first few scenes. Since I drew them, I wanted to share with my group members my vision for how the scene is meant to look. Once I showed them and we took some example shots, we all decided on how we wanted the shot to look. I walked forward and the camera followed me. After the first scenes were done, the last outside scene was to film and establishing shot of me walking into the building.

Filming: rain check

      This past weekend was the start of filming. However, my group mates and I could not film because it was raining. Everyone in the group lives spread out from each other and traveling in the rain was not an ideal situation. We decided to reschedule our filming plans to a later date. Meanwhile, I used that time to finalize the costumes and make up that will be used in the film. I began by analyzing the shooting script again. I also looked at the storyboard to visualize each scene. I reread the script a few times and looked at the storyboard as I did so. I did this so I could fully envision how I want the movie will look once it is filmed. My main focus was trying to finalize details.
      Make-up is an important element of a movie and it’s characters. The first character introduced is the lead of the movie. She will have a natural look on the eye with some highlighter to make certain parts of her face glow more on camera. I thought it would be best fitting for her to have red lipstick because her character is someone that is powerful and determined. The receptionist will have a natural look as well because her character is supposed to appear as an average worker. The last character, the second woman to enter the room, will have pink tinted undertones in her make-up and will have a gloss on her lip. Since the scenes this character are in are in a dimmer setting, she needs  different tones in her make-up. The pink tones are to add more color to her face so on camera all of her features are still defined. Although, my team and I could not start filming this weekend, the time was still spent wisely. The details of a character are important to the way a movie looks and the way the movie will make the audience feel.

Storyboard: Mantis

     For our storyboard, my group and I worked very hard. None of us have very strong artistic abilities but, we felt very accomplished when seeing our results. For the storyboard, one scene was split into four boxes on the paper. It was then divided between my group members and I. On our storyboard paper, we decided to put what camera angles would be in that particular box/scene. We also wrote any dialogue that would happen in the scene under our drawings. The last thing we wrote on our storyboard was a brief description of what is actually happening within the scene.The storyboard is very important because it will help guide us when we are filming each scene. Instead of looking at an entire powerpoint, we can just look at our storyboard papers instead.Storyboards have to be as detailed as possible so that the filmmakers can refer back to it at anytime and know the setting, dialogue, and camera angles. We can do that thanks to a great storyboard!

Title Research: Title design

This powerpoint describes our titles in which we will use for our film. We decided on a name that fits the genre and that is useful to the development of our story. We also discuss the fonts we will use in creating the titles. This is very important because the type of font gives off a certain mood to the viewer. We also decided to only use first names for safety purposes. The titles will be “focused” on the screen. The powerpoint also describes the length of time we will be displaying the titles. All titles will be white for a simplistic viewing. The transitions between each title will also be fitting to our story. Within each title, the first name will be made more prominent. We will do this by making the font larger for the first name and a little bit smaller for the rest of the title. This also gives it a sense of design.

Title Research: Health, Location, Schedule, and Participants

On our powerpoint, we talk about our schedule, location, actors, and health/safety. The second slide is our schedule, which explains each date we will film or edit our final project. February 17th will be the very first day we will start the filming process. Filming will hopefully stretch out from the 17th to the 23rd of February, anything after that will be editing and 'final touches'. The third slide is where we will be filming. My group mates and I have decided to film in the office spaces within my building. There are multiple office spaces which we could film in as well. The fourth slide is about our 'actors' who are just my group mates and I. Savanna will be playing the main character, the receptionist will be played by kelly, and Haylie will play the antagonist. Savanna and Haylie will play the most important parts in our film because they will help create the mood/ genre the most. For the fifth slide which is health/safety, my mother will be with us observing the entire time.

Title Research: Shooting Script

      This is my group mates and I's shooting script. A shooting script describes each scene of a movie. The scenes are what make a movie, so having each scene described in depth is important. These descriptions include everything that happens within the scene as well as few other important factors. The camera angles and shots that are going to be used in each scene are listed in the shooting script. This script is very important for a movie because it is the whole movie in written form. This can also be used as a guideline when creating your film because it helps you plan out the way you want each scene to look. The lighting and types of sounds are also described in this script. This shooting script is vital for our film because it helps my group mates and I see the build up of each scene. Since our theme is thriller, being able to identify exactly when certain climax will be best placed is beneficial.

Title Research: Dialogue and sound script

      Sound is one of the most important features in a film. Since we are creating a thriller film, sound and dialogue are going to play a key role within our movie. In the beginning of our film there is no dialogue but there is diegetic sound of a woman’s high heels hitting the floor as she walks. We believe that this is creating a suspense of what is going to happen next. As soon as the dialogue begins it’s with the receptionist and woman, which comes to an end very quickly as the conversation is short and fast. After this sounds are added in such as soft instrumentals. More diegetic sounds such as elevator dings, keys jangling, drawers closing, and doors opening are added in. In scene 12 the dialogue starts up again from which another person walks into the room and starts talking to the woman. Scenes 11-16 are the most important parts of our film because this is when the thriller genre really shows. It is also when our use of sounds and dialogue is used most effectively.