CCR 3
Transcript:
Q- Would you say that your production skills have developed throughout the project?
Definitely, throughout the process of producing my opening sequence I was able to greatly develop my skills in terms of both physically shooting scenes and editing the final product.
I initially began this AS-level media studies course with a very brief knowledge of both shooting and editing but I have progressed with the assistance of my peers, my teacher and tutorial videos.
Q- First of all, how would you say your editing skills have progressed?
I started off the course using iMovie to edit my preliminary task. This meant that I had more limits to how I would be able to edit my opening sequence. After identifying this issue I decided to use Premier Pro. As a beginner to the software, I started with a more basic knowledge such as importing and trimming clips to compile them. After experimentation and practice using Premiere Pro, I became able to use more intricate processes such as stabilizing, transitions, sound adjustments and I learnt how to place the text behind a subject for the title to allow the end product to appear as more sophisticated and professional.
Q- In terms of the actual shooting of your project, what developments have you made in order to improve your opening sequence?
From my preliminary task, I identified an issue with the audio as I had initially used the same device that I recorded the visuals on to record the audio. This was a big problem as, especially because I filmed in a relatively noisy environment, the dialogue wasn’t always clear and the background noises were distracting due to the distance between the phone and the actors. In order to fix this problem, I decided to use a second device to record the audio that I would use rather than using the audio that I captured on my camera. This would allow the dialogue to be more crisp and clear.
To actually capture the video footage I initially used a samsung s10 and an iphone 11 to capture the two angles but the quality itself was quite poor and visually differed between the two devices. As I wasn’t going to utilise shot-reverse-shot sequences as there isn’t any major dialogue, I only needed one device and so I used a Canon EOS R to capture my film. Alongside this I also used a tripod as my shots from the preliminary task were excessively shaky and weren't appealing.
As I became more confident with my filming abilities I also included a wider range of shot types and framing and transitions within my opening sequence to make it more exciting and interesting.
Q- What changes did you make to improve the conceptualising stages of the production?
When actually coming up with the storyline, I used a shooting script for my preliminary task. Although this did provide a clear indication to what I intended to do and what I had to do to achieve this, I much preferred planning the sequence using a storyboard as it reminded me of my initial vision visually, alongside stating the technical elements of each cut as I was able to include much more detail whilst also leaving room for creative freedom whilst actually filming the shots.
I also believe that my screenplay writing greatly progressed after doing the online course and using the resources provided by my teacher to highlight relevant factors such as the layout of the script. I began with more cliche and basic dialogue within my preliminary task but my opening sequence contains more sophisticated language in the voice over as well as simple and realistic dialogue within the conversations.
Q- A big factor in producing a media text is research, how has this aspect developed throughout your process?
Through the use of both primary and secondary research, I was able to produce a product that I believe would suit the needs of my target audience as well as satisfy the criteria for a film within the fantasy genre. The use of research enabled me to ensure that all the details I used were relevant to my aim rather than basing it off of my own experiences to ensure that I appeal to a wider audience rather than basing it on assumptions.
In terms of the contents of my opening sequence when compared to my preliminary task, I believe that I exhibit a greater amount of creativity that came with understanding the conventions of the film along with understanding what I actually wanted to produce as, even though I was greatly interested within the fantasy genre, I initially believed that it would be difficult to produce an exciting opening sequence with my level of skill and technological limitations before I was able to come up with a concept that was both entirely possible and interesting.
