This was created with 987 polaroids and no computer compositing.
Brilliant !
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Monday, November 05, 2007
SPP Setting Goals Presentation.....
My aim is to create a final year piece of work where the style and cinematography is instantly impressive. If this is achieved i hope to go on to work as a cinematographer hopefully working my way up become a director of photography. I feel that my knowledge of the lighting equipment is stopping me from achieving this goal. My past work has suffered due to my inability with the lighting. In The Holding Pattern, a piece of work from last year, a few scenes did not look as good as they could have been due this.
In order to gain more experience in this field i could try and lend my help to as many of my peer's projects this year, helping out on friend's work and offering to set up the shot. Without overloading my own work load, obviously......
People in the industry could help me achieve this goal and gain experience.
If i reach my goal i could be able to create work that is synonymous with David Sexton. One person who i feel have achieved this goal is Edgar Wright. Director of the television series Spaced and films Shaun of the Dead & Hot Fuzz. Below are some examples of his work. There is a consistent feel to all of his work no matter what style.
In order to achieve this goal i must continue with my reading into cinematography and continue to get as much experience as possible between now and the end of the year.
In order to gain more experience in this field i could try and lend my help to as many of my peer's projects this year, helping out on friend's work and offering to set up the shot. Without overloading my own work load, obviously......
People in the industry could help me achieve this goal and gain experience.
If i reach my goal i could be able to create work that is synonymous with David Sexton. One person who i feel have achieved this goal is Edgar Wright. Director of the television series Spaced and films Shaun of the Dead & Hot Fuzz. Below are some examples of his work. There is a consistent feel to all of his work no matter what style.
In order to achieve this goal i must continue with my reading into cinematography and continue to get as much experience as possible between now and the end of the year.
Costumes......
I've found myself a spider costume to rent for my shoot. It was looking more and more likely that i would have had to go with the bee costume after all the theatres i contacted couldn't help...... But now i think, hopefully, i should have a spider costume this week. Possibly filming on Wednesday...... The spider costume looks really good and i think a human fighting an eight legged spider will be quite funny. Although i mayb have to change my script to 'An Arachnid's Worst Nightmare' ?
I'll be in touch.....
I'll be in touch.....
Monday, October 29, 2007
Bug Spray
This is a rough little script for my client project advert..........
An Insect’s Worst Nightmare.
Scene 1. Int. Living Room. Day.
The main character, Jack, is sat down reading a newspaper/watching television. Suddenly there is the sound of a door being open aggressively.
Cut to:
Scene 2. Int. Living Room. Day.
A giant insect is standing in the doorway. One arm on the open door. He is staring at Jack.
Cut to:
Scene 3. Int. Close Up of Jack’s face. Day
A look of extreme, over dramatic fear comes over Jack’s face. Soon followed by rage.
Cut to:
Scene 4. Close up of insect’s face. Day.
The insect has not moved an muscle.
Cut to:
Scene 5. Int. Living Room. Day.
Both character’s charge for each other colliding in the middle of the room and falling to the ground together. They continue to wrestle for 15-20 seconds, forcing each other into different rooms.
Cut to:
Scene 6. Int. Hall way. Day.
As the fight is reaching it’s climax, Jack reaches for a can of insect repellent. In the background the buzz of an alarm clock gets louder.
Cut to:
Scene 7. Int. Bedroom. Night.
The alarm clock gets louder as we can now see the bedroom it is in. There is a big double bed in the middle of the room. A hand reaches out and turns it off. Then we see the insect in bed. He sits up, wipes away a cold sweat from his brow and falls back down on the bed.
Cut to:
Scene 7. Int. Living Room. Day.
Jack is pointing the can at the camera in an angry face while the text reads. “Fly Swatter – An Insect’s Worst Nightmare”.
The End
I'm really looking forward to making this bad boy, if i can get it looking how it is in my head i think it'll be really cool...... One word that is ringing in my head though, choreography. I'm currently storyboarding but i need my actors to know exactly what they're doing and where they're going. I read an interview with Matt Damon about the fight scenes in the new Bourne film (which rocks by the way) and he said it was just like learning a really fast dance....... So maybe i'll get my actors to pull out their dancing shoes......
An Insect’s Worst Nightmare.
Scene 1. Int. Living Room. Day.
The main character, Jack, is sat down reading a newspaper/watching television. Suddenly there is the sound of a door being open aggressively.
Cut to:
Scene 2. Int. Living Room. Day.
A giant insect is standing in the doorway. One arm on the open door. He is staring at Jack.
Cut to:
Scene 3. Int. Close Up of Jack’s face. Day
A look of extreme, over dramatic fear comes over Jack’s face. Soon followed by rage.
Cut to:
Scene 4. Close up of insect’s face. Day.
The insect has not moved an muscle.
Cut to:
Scene 5. Int. Living Room. Day.
Both character’s charge for each other colliding in the middle of the room and falling to the ground together. They continue to wrestle for 15-20 seconds, forcing each other into different rooms.
Cut to:
Scene 6. Int. Hall way. Day.
As the fight is reaching it’s climax, Jack reaches for a can of insect repellent. In the background the buzz of an alarm clock gets louder.
Cut to:
Scene 7. Int. Bedroom. Night.
The alarm clock gets louder as we can now see the bedroom it is in. There is a big double bed in the middle of the room. A hand reaches out and turns it off. Then we see the insect in bed. He sits up, wipes away a cold sweat from his brow and falls back down on the bed.
Cut to:
Scene 7. Int. Living Room. Day.
Jack is pointing the can at the camera in an angry face while the text reads. “Fly Swatter – An Insect’s Worst Nightmare”.
The End
I'm really looking forward to making this bad boy, if i can get it looking how it is in my head i think it'll be really cool...... One word that is ringing in my head though, choreography. I'm currently storyboarding but i need my actors to know exactly what they're doing and where they're going. I read an interview with Matt Damon about the fight scenes in the new Bourne film (which rocks by the way) and he said it was just like learning a really fast dance....... So maybe i'll get my actors to pull out their dancing shoes......
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Advert
This is an advert i saw a few months ago now but i just think it's absolutely amazing..... it's got that Usual Suspects thing of two different performances. One for the first time you watch it and a completely different audience experience the second time you watch it.
Anyway, enjoy ! and try not to watch it again the second it's finished.....
Anyway, enjoy ! and try not to watch it again the second it's finished.....
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Web Help
Today Deborah Tuck gave us these websites.....
http://del.icio.us/
http://clipmarks.com/
they have already proven to be quiet useful.
You see !? three posts in one day !! i'm back to the good old days......
http://del.icio.us/
http://clipmarks.com/
they have already proven to be quiet useful.
You see !? three posts in one day !! i'm back to the good old days......
The Holding Pattern
I think having the one piece of work for this whole module really helped me. In the same way i am looking forward to my third year work, i was concentrating on one particular project for many months. This meant that for all of my time spent on the direction module was focusing on one goal. One 'vision' if you will.....
I drew out plans and stuck to them, allowing me ample time to re-write, re-shoot and re-edit the film in a hope to achieve exactly what i set out for at the start of my documentation. With no disrespect to the other modules, I was quite passionate about my film and would never have forgiven myself if i had handed in a copy i thought could have been better. Obviously, and somewhat ironically, i have grown to dislike parts of the film. One scene in particular where Bogdan changes the radio station from the backing song to a Russian song. The character's dip out of the narrative and into the audience's third-party view now feels out of place. Similar thoughts were echoed in Jool's marking of the film. I also think the film lacks a shot of the radio Bogdan is using.
Throughout the edit i tried to make editorial changes in order to stay true to the film's overall feel and mood. Drawing back to my passion for the module and determination to hand something i would be proud of, i decided to cut a scene i had re-shot three times in my final edit. The scene was one added to the script my myself in order to create more sympathy for Bogdan when he encounters a group of British youths and things turn nasty as they abuse him, racially and psychically. As a director i did not fully control the scene in the first take and allowed the actors to move freely around making editing through the camera shots virtually impossible. The second take was choreographed much better but problems occured again with the takes and audio problems were also apparent. The third take was a lot better, having already made two quite crucial errors in the first two takes i knew exactly what to do with the third.
With the scene edited i umm'ed and ahh'ed about whether or not to keep it in it's original place in the film. I moved the scene around into different parts, each time watching the whole film through and asking myself is it really relevant ? what does it bring to the story ? and where does it take the story ? My answer.... to an overly aggressive and un-nesessary area. It was hard completely cutting the scene i had laboured over for so long but looking back now i 100% agree with my decision. Also, with the flash back sequence right at the end of the film i was able to include a few frames from the scene in order to tell the audience Bogdan's life was not a pleasant one. I had so much footage that did not make the final cut most of the flash back sequence is fresh, new footage of 'filler' scenes. Ideas i came up with on the shoot, like Bogdan crying on his bed, Bogdan packing his bag, Bogdan coming home after the encounter with the youths. With these scenes included in the final cut the film was aprox. 7 minutes long. So using them to move the story along was very satisfying. I painstakingly edited that final scene, watching every flash before adding or deleting one or two frames so the audience did not see some as clearly as others. For example, the first frame of the envelope was only short, to grab the audience's attention and maybe brace them for the flash sequence. Whereas the first flash of the altercation is much longer than those that came before it. I wanted to get the pace of the attack portrayed in the flash so the audience sees Bogdan's flinch backward as the youth approaches him. Then three flashes of the back being packed, the photograph left and Bogdan's final look of the room brings the story right to the present as my new best friend from Coventry City Council calls him back to reality. The lady, Rita, really stole the show i think !!! i owe her everything. My main concern for the film was not being able to portray the 'government building' correctly but having a member of staff from an actual government building with a rather substantial speaking role told me i had nothing to worry about !!!
I wanted the audience to connect in some way with Bogdan and hopefully sympathize with him. I asked myself what does an audience need in order to connect with a character ? Sympathy ? the character's possitive attitude in a negative situation ? or a clear understanding of the character's aims and needs ? I am in awe of writers who can draw in the audience's relationship with a character before taking the story to it's climax. A few of my favourite examples of these are Bjork's character Selma in Dancer in the Dark. Sara Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream and Tim and Dawn from The Office. Drawing on my experiences, when all three stories reach their emotional end the audience is either in highest ecstasy or trying to shake a horrible feeling from the bottom of their stomach. This kind of story telling really inspires me, you would not feel these emotions if you were not emotionally connected to these characters and i think by the end of a story if you are not feeling anything for the characters, either it be positive or negative, the director has failed. I hope the people watching The Holding Pattern felt something at the final scene.
You can view the full film and the deleted scene below..... Hopefully you'll agree that the scene is just faaaaaaaaaaaaar too aggressive for the finished cut. (Excuse the quality, i haven't really mastered the compressor)
The Holding Pattern :
Deleted Scene :
ohhhh this quality is awful !! i'll replace it when i get the time....
I drew out plans and stuck to them, allowing me ample time to re-write, re-shoot and re-edit the film in a hope to achieve exactly what i set out for at the start of my documentation. With no disrespect to the other modules, I was quite passionate about my film and would never have forgiven myself if i had handed in a copy i thought could have been better. Obviously, and somewhat ironically, i have grown to dislike parts of the film. One scene in particular where Bogdan changes the radio station from the backing song to a Russian song. The character's dip out of the narrative and into the audience's third-party view now feels out of place. Similar thoughts were echoed in Jool's marking of the film. I also think the film lacks a shot of the radio Bogdan is using.
Throughout the edit i tried to make editorial changes in order to stay true to the film's overall feel and mood. Drawing back to my passion for the module and determination to hand something i would be proud of, i decided to cut a scene i had re-shot three times in my final edit. The scene was one added to the script my myself in order to create more sympathy for Bogdan when he encounters a group of British youths and things turn nasty as they abuse him, racially and psychically. As a director i did not fully control the scene in the first take and allowed the actors to move freely around making editing through the camera shots virtually impossible. The second take was choreographed much better but problems occured again with the takes and audio problems were also apparent. The third take was a lot better, having already made two quite crucial errors in the first two takes i knew exactly what to do with the third.
With the scene edited i umm'ed and ahh'ed about whether or not to keep it in it's original place in the film. I moved the scene around into different parts, each time watching the whole film through and asking myself is it really relevant ? what does it bring to the story ? and where does it take the story ? My answer.... to an overly aggressive and un-nesessary area. It was hard completely cutting the scene i had laboured over for so long but looking back now i 100% agree with my decision. Also, with the flash back sequence right at the end of the film i was able to include a few frames from the scene in order to tell the audience Bogdan's life was not a pleasant one. I had so much footage that did not make the final cut most of the flash back sequence is fresh, new footage of 'filler' scenes. Ideas i came up with on the shoot, like Bogdan crying on his bed, Bogdan packing his bag, Bogdan coming home after the encounter with the youths. With these scenes included in the final cut the film was aprox. 7 minutes long. So using them to move the story along was very satisfying. I painstakingly edited that final scene, watching every flash before adding or deleting one or two frames so the audience did not see some as clearly as others. For example, the first frame of the envelope was only short, to grab the audience's attention and maybe brace them for the flash sequence. Whereas the first flash of the altercation is much longer than those that came before it. I wanted to get the pace of the attack portrayed in the flash so the audience sees Bogdan's flinch backward as the youth approaches him. Then three flashes of the back being packed, the photograph left and Bogdan's final look of the room brings the story right to the present as my new best friend from Coventry City Council calls him back to reality. The lady, Rita, really stole the show i think !!! i owe her everything. My main concern for the film was not being able to portray the 'government building' correctly but having a member of staff from an actual government building with a rather substantial speaking role told me i had nothing to worry about !!!
I wanted the audience to connect in some way with Bogdan and hopefully sympathize with him. I asked myself what does an audience need in order to connect with a character ? Sympathy ? the character's possitive attitude in a negative situation ? or a clear understanding of the character's aims and needs ? I am in awe of writers who can draw in the audience's relationship with a character before taking the story to it's climax. A few of my favourite examples of these are Bjork's character Selma in Dancer in the Dark. Sara Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream and Tim and Dawn from The Office. Drawing on my experiences, when all three stories reach their emotional end the audience is either in highest ecstasy or trying to shake a horrible feeling from the bottom of their stomach. This kind of story telling really inspires me, you would not feel these emotions if you were not emotionally connected to these characters and i think by the end of a story if you are not feeling anything for the characters, either it be positive or negative, the director has failed. I hope the people watching The Holding Pattern felt something at the final scene.
You can view the full film and the deleted scene below..... Hopefully you'll agree that the scene is just faaaaaaaaaaaaar too aggressive for the finished cut. (Excuse the quality, i haven't really mastered the compressor)
The Holding Pattern :
Deleted Scene :
ohhhh this quality is awful !! i'll replace it when i get the time....
My days !
has it really been January since my last post ? good lord that is embarrassing. Well i hereby go on record as saying i will try and keep this up to date no matter what work piles up, which should be none ! i think that is what caused lack of updates. The whole animation thing, me and animation did not really get on too well. I will certainly not be putting any of my animation work on here for the world to see..... I was semi-happy with my web design work overall, very embarrassed by the animation work overall but, thankfully, quite pleased with my direction for camera work. So i will fill you in on the blanks.......
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Direction Stills Video
So, after much deliberation and lots of re-takes and photo editing.... Here is my direction stills video. It's my little attempt at being a soppy idiot like my friend below.... although mine pales in comparision (i really should have put mine on here first and then put his on a week later) ! The three sounds are 1.) A Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds song called 'Love Letter' which inspired this whole story. 2.) Recording i done at the train station and 3.) Becks recording some breaking up catchphrases. I had to tweek them in soundforge and put some effects on them which i am SO bad at doing it's unreal ! sound really isn't my specialist subject. OK then, here's me being soppy.... I don't know whats happened to me ? my first year narrative had my housemate running upstairs and throwing some chicken soup out of his mouth then DYING on my bathroom floor ! and now i've got some loser mopping about looking at a love letter from his girlfriend..... maybe i'm getting old. (although i hated that after i done it and i actually quite like this)
ENJOY !
ENJOY !
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
The C.O.V Projects
This is my friend from Coventry's final year piece for audio engineering. He's doing it down in London but we shot this film in Cov. He had to make a film with the main focus being on the sound, inspired by Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind he has used slow down and muffled audio to create a sort of inside the character feel...... He's a bit of a master of pro tools and a talented little boy so it's his song in the background aswell. He is also the multi-instrumentalist i mentioned before who's gonna help me out with my music for the Holding Pattern.... so.... i scratch his back, he scratches mine.....
I like this video. I think he's done really well and it gave me a little taste of acting.... which is very hard work. The out-takes could literally go on for about 25 minutes ! We recorded it over about three days. The first of which had SEVEN in the pissin' morning wake up call !!! Had to be out in the countryside by sun-rise but the weather was exactly as he expected. Foggy as.... Which looks really, really good for what he wanted. I do actually look DEAD at one point ! Anyway, enjoy.....
He should be proud of it so i thought i'd put it on here so.....
Consequences
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and the making of........... (his Brummie TWANG in the first scene doesn't represent Coventry on a whole. We're far, far away from that place.)
The Making Of Consequence Documentary
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I like this video. I think he's done really well and it gave me a little taste of acting.... which is very hard work. The out-takes could literally go on for about 25 minutes ! We recorded it over about three days. The first of which had SEVEN in the pissin' morning wake up call !!! Had to be out in the countryside by sun-rise but the weather was exactly as he expected. Foggy as.... Which looks really, really good for what he wanted. I do actually look DEAD at one point ! Anyway, enjoy.....
He should be proud of it so i thought i'd put it on here so.....
Consequences
Add to My Profile | More Videos
and the making of........... (his Brummie TWANG in the first scene doesn't represent Coventry on a whole. We're far, far away from that place.)
The Making Of Consequence Documentary
Add to My Profile | More Videos
It's back !!
It's back !! It's back in my life..... I have in my possession the first six episodes of day six !! Every single year i wish away 24 weeks of my life and pray for them to go faster and faster.... Everyone should have a Bauer in their life.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Stills
The sequence of stills and audio track portfolio gave a great taste into what people are going to create for their direction piece. Over the videos I watched there was a wide variety of styles and techniques. Everyone who has attempted the stills exercise brought their own unique ideas and vision to it. Although some did not meet all of the criteria set on the brief I think all of the stories managed to tell a story very well. It’s hard to get a story across in still image form which is why audio was so important in this task. It’s easy to put a song over a piece of film and let it play out but to really tell the story to the audience you mean other sounds in the film. One film in particular used the sound of a shop till over a still image of crisps and chocolate bars. By using this technique the viewer’s mind automatically connects the sound and image and you have told them that the character has left his house (where he was in the last shot) purchased sweets and returned home. This is all done in a second, maybe less.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Animation Man
yesterday was my favourite animation lecture of the whole year. I was so impressed again by what you can do on 3DS Max if you just know what your doing. We started with this box.....
And then by extrude and bevel the right polygons from it i created this little man with hands, knuckles, feet and toes !! mental !!
And then by extrude and bevel the right polygons from it i created this little man with hands, knuckles, feet and toes !! mental !! Monday, January 15, 2007
Mise en Scene
Due to the lack of dialogue in The Holding Pattern story I feel the main way to get an emotional response from the audience will be in the form of close ups. Although the script was presented with no character speech I have the opportunity to add some in my script re-write, which I plan to have done by before the Christmas holiday. However, at this point in time I feel with the use of close ups, especially on Bogdan’s face I will allow the audience to make up their own narrative for Bogdan’s inner-monologue. However, in order to portray Bogdan’s social actions I will have to use long or medium shots to show the environment he is in and how alone he is. Showing close ups of the face and hands will juxtapose the long/medium shots used to show Bogdan’s solitary existence.
Scene Breakdown :
1.) From day one I have always had a clear idea in my head about how I will shoot this scene. The scene will start with the sound of whizzing cars on a black screen then fading in the audience will see Bogdan stood at the side of the road. The audience hears nothing but the cars, each one rejecting Bogdan’s plea for a ride. As soon as I started to think of locations I imagined this scene being filmed on the main, busy road leading out of Nottingham towards the motorway. With the backdrop of the nuclear power plants and nothing but desolate landscape I think the location will tie in with the forthcoming story. Fading back to black the intro to the song will play. The shortlist reads Gong by Sigur Ros, All Things to All Men by the Cinematic Orchestra or Transmission 1 by DJ Shadow. All of these songs are quite slow and will hopefully establish the film as a sad tale from the off. However, for the sake of copy write and showing the film at festivals I have decided to create my own music for the film in a similar style. For some reason I have always pictured Bogdan in a suit while he is hitchhiking. Although the script says nothing of a suit I just pictured Bogdan in a suit and tied loosened. I’m not sure whether this will work in the overall story of the film as I see Bogdan’s living conditions as slightly run-down and his living situation just as bad.
2.) This is the most important scene of the film for me. The scene where Bogdan is awaiting to be seen at the government offices. I am struggling to think of a location for this scene. I want the office to look professional but filming in an actual government building would be very hard I imagine. The last thing I want is the film being dragged down by one scene shot in a shoddy location. I am currently designing the posters mentioned in the script to put on the walls of the office. Bogdan’s lunch is critical to this scene. I think it gives a great insight into his life. The sandwich will be very plain and half eaten already. Instead of Bogdan taking water from a cooler I think it would give more of an insight into his life if he also had a bottle of water from home, not a purchased mineral water.
3.) For this scene I have been trying to keep my eye out for a tabloid paper with a racial headline. I think this would work very well with Bogdan’s personal situation being portrayed in the national newspapers. I have been keeping my eye out for newspapers with immigrant headlines. I think having Bogdan reading the Daily Mail or The Sun newspaper might add to the story. Again, Bogdan’s bottle he re-fills is present in this scene and this time he is eating a small pastry, maybe a cheap supermarket sausage roll. I don’t see Bogdan buying his pastries from Greggs or another high-street bakery.
4.) This scene is very important to the film as it is Bogdan’s link to home. The scene will be filmed in his bedroom, instead of the living room where he was reading the newspaper. Bogdan will be hanging up his clothes or doing other daily tasks but then when flicking over the radio to the Romanian station his will abandon his simple household task and dance around the room. The only time the audience will see Bogdan genuinely happy. Bogdan’s room will be very cheap room with very basic furniture. The walls will be bare but the bed-side table will have a small picture of a female. The picture will be old and sepia but will play a great part in the film.
5.) Once more, when there are other characters in the scene they have nothing to do with Bogdan. This scene has a football game being played in the background. These characters will be at a great distance from Bogdan and will not acknowledge him. Bogdan will be counting the little money he has out onto the bench. There will be plenty of coins, lots of silver and not a lot of pound coins. Bogdan will be sitting on the bench or maybe he will get up from the bench and walk around to where the football is being played with maybe a literal barrier between them.
6.) Once again, the location of this shot if vital to the film. The easy option would be to have Bogdan writing the email in the university computer rooms, its quiet at times and I can film in there very easily. However, it could jeopardise the film is Bogdan is this outsider character but then all of a sudden has access to student computer faculties. So I am thinking about filming this in a public library, if permitted. Bogdan will not have a great knowledge of computers and his typing will be slow. I imagine Bogdan to be sitting right up close to the computer as well, absorbing the information, presumably sent from home. Maybe a link to this picture we have previously seen.
7.) Again, back at Bogdan’s house. He will receive this official letter that decides his fate. I think I will film this in the living room again, with maybe Bogdan collecting the letter from the hallway. I think this mise en scene report is not really what I’m going to put in this scene but it’s more about what I am taking out of my locations. I will be removing the vast DVD and CD collections on show in my living room and taking down the film and women posters associated with most student houses. The room will be bare. Apart from this picture Bogdan has been looking at all film, maybe a loved one from Hungary.
8.)The Holding Pattern really only has a handful of locations and once again we are back to the government building in scene two. Having already set the scene earlier in the film I can now concentrate on Bogdan’s facial expressions in this scene. The audience knows he is dealing with the government so his face should be all they want to see in this scene.
9.) The film has came full circle as we are brought back to the first location again. Bogdan is standing by the side of the road again but now we know his story we are much more connected to him. Bogdan will tear up the letter and take another look at his little picture. (See scene one)
Scene Breakdown :
1.) From day one I have always had a clear idea in my head about how I will shoot this scene. The scene will start with the sound of whizzing cars on a black screen then fading in the audience will see Bogdan stood at the side of the road. The audience hears nothing but the cars, each one rejecting Bogdan’s plea for a ride. As soon as I started to think of locations I imagined this scene being filmed on the main, busy road leading out of Nottingham towards the motorway. With the backdrop of the nuclear power plants and nothing but desolate landscape I think the location will tie in with the forthcoming story. Fading back to black the intro to the song will play. The shortlist reads Gong by Sigur Ros, All Things to All Men by the Cinematic Orchestra or Transmission 1 by DJ Shadow. All of these songs are quite slow and will hopefully establish the film as a sad tale from the off. However, for the sake of copy write and showing the film at festivals I have decided to create my own music for the film in a similar style. For some reason I have always pictured Bogdan in a suit while he is hitchhiking. Although the script says nothing of a suit I just pictured Bogdan in a suit and tied loosened. I’m not sure whether this will work in the overall story of the film as I see Bogdan’s living conditions as slightly run-down and his living situation just as bad.
2.) This is the most important scene of the film for me. The scene where Bogdan is awaiting to be seen at the government offices. I am struggling to think of a location for this scene. I want the office to look professional but filming in an actual government building would be very hard I imagine. The last thing I want is the film being dragged down by one scene shot in a shoddy location. I am currently designing the posters mentioned in the script to put on the walls of the office. Bogdan’s lunch is critical to this scene. I think it gives a great insight into his life. The sandwich will be very plain and half eaten already. Instead of Bogdan taking water from a cooler I think it would give more of an insight into his life if he also had a bottle of water from home, not a purchased mineral water.
3.) For this scene I have been trying to keep my eye out for a tabloid paper with a racial headline. I think this would work very well with Bogdan’s personal situation being portrayed in the national newspapers. I have been keeping my eye out for newspapers with immigrant headlines. I think having Bogdan reading the Daily Mail or The Sun newspaper might add to the story. Again, Bogdan’s bottle he re-fills is present in this scene and this time he is eating a small pastry, maybe a cheap supermarket sausage roll. I don’t see Bogdan buying his pastries from Greggs or another high-street bakery.
4.) This scene is very important to the film as it is Bogdan’s link to home. The scene will be filmed in his bedroom, instead of the living room where he was reading the newspaper. Bogdan will be hanging up his clothes or doing other daily tasks but then when flicking over the radio to the Romanian station his will abandon his simple household task and dance around the room. The only time the audience will see Bogdan genuinely happy. Bogdan’s room will be very cheap room with very basic furniture. The walls will be bare but the bed-side table will have a small picture of a female. The picture will be old and sepia but will play a great part in the film.
5.) Once more, when there are other characters in the scene they have nothing to do with Bogdan. This scene has a football game being played in the background. These characters will be at a great distance from Bogdan and will not acknowledge him. Bogdan will be counting the little money he has out onto the bench. There will be plenty of coins, lots of silver and not a lot of pound coins. Bogdan will be sitting on the bench or maybe he will get up from the bench and walk around to where the football is being played with maybe a literal barrier between them.
6.) Once again, the location of this shot if vital to the film. The easy option would be to have Bogdan writing the email in the university computer rooms, its quiet at times and I can film in there very easily. However, it could jeopardise the film is Bogdan is this outsider character but then all of a sudden has access to student computer faculties. So I am thinking about filming this in a public library, if permitted. Bogdan will not have a great knowledge of computers and his typing will be slow. I imagine Bogdan to be sitting right up close to the computer as well, absorbing the information, presumably sent from home. Maybe a link to this picture we have previously seen.
7.) Again, back at Bogdan’s house. He will receive this official letter that decides his fate. I think I will film this in the living room again, with maybe Bogdan collecting the letter from the hallway. I think this mise en scene report is not really what I’m going to put in this scene but it’s more about what I am taking out of my locations. I will be removing the vast DVD and CD collections on show in my living room and taking down the film and women posters associated with most student houses. The room will be bare. Apart from this picture Bogdan has been looking at all film, maybe a loved one from Hungary.
8.)The Holding Pattern really only has a handful of locations and once again we are back to the government building in scene two. Having already set the scene earlier in the film I can now concentrate on Bogdan’s facial expressions in this scene. The audience knows he is dealing with the government so his face should be all they want to see in this scene.
9.) The film has came full circle as we are brought back to the first location again. Bogdan is standing by the side of the road again but now we know his story we are much more connected to him. Bogdan will tear up the letter and take another look at his little picture. (See scene one)
Saturday, December 23, 2006
Godspeed ! you black Emperor
Stop me if i'm getting a bit carried away here but this is a poem that Godspeed ! you black Emperor recite over one of their songs..... it's pretty dark but i enjoy it a lot !
the car's on fire and there's no driver at the wheel
and the sewers are all muddied with a thousand lonely suicides
and a dark wind blows
the government is corrupt
and we're on so many drugs
with the radio on and the curtains drawn
we're trapped in the belly of this horrible machine
and the machine is bleeding to death
the sun has fallen down
and the billboards are all leering
and the flags are all dead at the top of their poles
it went like this:
the buildings tumbled in on themselves
mothers clutching babies picked through the rubble
and pulled out their hair
the skyline was beautiful on fire
all twisted metal stretching upwards
everything washed in a thin orange haze
i said: "kiss me, you're beautiful -
these are truly the last days"
you grabbed my hand and we fell into it
like a daydream or a fever
we woke up one morning and fell a little further down -
for sure it's the valley of death
i open up my wallet
and it's full of blood
The track is called 'Dead Flag Blues' taken from the album f#a#.......
the car's on fire and there's no driver at the wheel
and the sewers are all muddied with a thousand lonely suicides
and a dark wind blows
the government is corrupt
and we're on so many drugs
with the radio on and the curtains drawn
we're trapped in the belly of this horrible machine
and the machine is bleeding to death
the sun has fallen down
and the billboards are all leering
and the flags are all dead at the top of their poles
it went like this:
the buildings tumbled in on themselves
mothers clutching babies picked through the rubble
and pulled out their hair
the skyline was beautiful on fire
all twisted metal stretching upwards
everything washed in a thin orange haze
i said: "kiss me, you're beautiful -
these are truly the last days"
you grabbed my hand and we fell into it
like a daydream or a fever
we woke up one morning and fell a little further down -
for sure it's the valley of death
i open up my wallet
and it's full of blood
The track is called 'Dead Flag Blues' taken from the album f#a#.......
A Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band
The wheels are in motion, i have in my arsenal.... one violin player, one guitarist, a pianist and one very talented mulit-instrumentalist / producer and access to a recording studio ! The Holding Pattern sound is about to be created......
I want slow, emotive, semi-classical music for my film. The main inspiration coming from my beloved 'A Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band' which i love saying at every given opportunity ! They are a side-project from the members of one of my favourite bands 'Godspeed You! Black Emperor'. Examples of this bands excellence can be found here.....
Thats such an amazing few scenes. The film (28 Days Later) sort of goes downhill after they leave the empty London i always thought. But the music is used SO well, end of the world scenes put to an apocalyptic Godspeed !.... track ! So if you like that i strongly suggest buying every single thing the band have ever recorded ! cause it's ace !
anyway, passionate rant over. A Silver Mt. Zion.... are my inspiration for The Holding Pattern theme (working title). I've never conducted anyone before so i'm quite looking forward to it. If you are interested to see how i HOPE it will sound check out their myspaz.....
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=128287312
i saw them at the Rescue Rooms last year and they absolutely blew me away ! Just realised this post has basically been a David Sexton likes.... music post !
I want slow, emotive, semi-classical music for my film. The main inspiration coming from my beloved 'A Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band' which i love saying at every given opportunity ! They are a side-project from the members of one of my favourite bands 'Godspeed You! Black Emperor'. Examples of this bands excellence can be found here.....
Thats such an amazing few scenes. The film (28 Days Later) sort of goes downhill after they leave the empty London i always thought. But the music is used SO well, end of the world scenes put to an apocalyptic Godspeed !.... track ! So if you like that i strongly suggest buying every single thing the band have ever recorded ! cause it's ace !
anyway, passionate rant over. A Silver Mt. Zion.... are my inspiration for The Holding Pattern theme (working title). I've never conducted anyone before so i'm quite looking forward to it. If you are interested to see how i HOPE it will sound check out their myspaz.....
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=128287312
i saw them at the Rescue Rooms last year and they absolutely blew me away ! Just realised this post has basically been a David Sexton likes.... music post !
Monday, December 18, 2006
End of 2006
Thats it then, i'm back in the C.O.V...... The end of another term. Feels like it's gone so fast i barley unpacked. I did enjoy myself though, probably my favourite term so far. I think it's just cause we don't do anything we don't want to anymore. I enjoy all my modules quite a lot, enough to get me out of bed for 9.00am ! Once again, within a few views of my own coursework i don't like it anymore. I don't know if it was seeing everyone else's in the presentations or if i just over-analyse my work too much, But everyone's their own worst crictic aren't they..... Maybe 2007's new years resoultion will be to make a piece of work i actually like one month later...... we'll see what i can do.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Animation
Now thats it's finished i will now premiere the ident for Channel 27, cleverly entitled.....
DAVID SEXTON'S CHANNEL 27 IDENT !!
DAVID SEXTON'S CHANNEL 27 IDENT !!
For your peace of mind.....
Thats what you call a 15.59 hand in !! got it done in time and it's all handed it. Thats this year's coursework done. Now i can stay up all night again and not have to worry about being fresh faced at 9 ready to do animation...... I'm happy with my animation but the webdesign could have been so much better. I need to sort out my flash skills over the christmas holiday...... this is a little preview of the banner.....
I'm trying to get my animation on youtube but theres a problem with it being an ABSOLUTLEY MASSIVE FILE ! when i've got time i'll re-render it and make it smaller, but not now..... I've just been landed the bombshell of presenting it tomorrow aswell, shit laugh.
Animation Review
So, my animation is currently rendering on the computer next to me. I've got mixed feelings about it. Once again two words come to mind, as they do around this stage of every piece of coursework i've ever done. Time Management. I really need to sort this out, i shouldn't be rendering my work two hours for the deadline, what happens if something goes horribly wrong now ? (touch wood) Or what if the computer crashes, which is has been doing, and i loose everything. This isn't second year behavior, i said i was going to sort this out. It's got 11 minutes left to completion. Just enough to do this........ I'm quite excited about seeing my animation actually. It all started with the brief (as most courseworks do) create an ident for channel 27. Straight away i thought of a house. TV = House. So i decided to create a house for my character to sit in, then i started to think bigger and bigger until before i knew it i had a whole street for him to live on. Then soon a street became a block with flats, fields, fences, alley-ways and lamp-posts. I have given my camera a personality in my animation. Inspired by the work of David Fincher who uses animated camera-work to perfection (ie : Fight Club / Panic Room), my camera flies down the street, through the alley-way and then arrives at the house where the character is changing around on the channels. AND SOMETHING HAS GOT HORRIBLY WRONG !! i've rendered the WRONG prespective !! so unless i want my animation viewed from an arial perspective i'm gonna have to do it again !! No need to worry ! only going to take me RIDICULOUSLY close to the deadline i think i could pass out.... anyway, where was i ? Yeah, using Fincher inspired camera shots we come to our character. Who's changing the channels, stopping on channel 27. I created the sound of the TV by using sound forge and recording different programs of youtube....
I am semi-happy with my animation. I think there is a lot more i could do to it if i had of managed my time better. The funny thing is i did honestly put the time into it. I worked on it every day for two and a half weeks, it was just learning 3ds max again and getting to grips with a new side of the program. I kept the actual animation to a minimum in my ident. I concentrated more on modelling to keep it looking more professional. My next piece of coursework will have more animation in it...... Hopefully with some practise over the christmas holiday on 3ds max i can learn how to animation smoothy. Direction is my only work over the holiday so i think i will have plenty of time to brush up on my 3ds max skills.
2 hours and 31 minutes til render completion. Now two new words come into my head.....
I'm screwed.
I am semi-happy with my animation. I think there is a lot more i could do to it if i had of managed my time better. The funny thing is i did honestly put the time into it. I worked on it every day for two and a half weeks, it was just learning 3ds max again and getting to grips with a new side of the program. I kept the actual animation to a minimum in my ident. I concentrated more on modelling to keep it looking more professional. My next piece of coursework will have more animation in it...... Hopefully with some practise over the christmas holiday on 3ds max i can learn how to animation smoothy. Direction is my only work over the holiday so i think i will have plenty of time to brush up on my 3ds max skills.
2 hours and 31 minutes til render completion. Now two new words come into my head.....
I'm screwed.
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