L3 Creative Media 18

With James we looked at the importance documentation such as risks assessments and shot logs. Risk assessments are really important as they minimise risk. They also show what control measures need to take place to minimise the risk from a potential hazard. They are used during the filming process - for example if a camera crew want to film a scene in a pool they will have to look at all the risks such as drowning and electrical hazards. Risk assessments are filled out on a risk assessment form, and you have to fill out things such as the severity, likelihood and risk factor of the hazard. Its vital that this documentation is in place before you shoot on location, as if any accident was to happen these documents would be very important in the process that would follow afterwards such as the legal process. They are also carried out as the production company have a duty of care to look after their crew and anybody else such as members of the public that could be affected by the potent...

With Tony we looked at the importance of opening sequences to a movie. We also disused on how we were going to create our own. First of all we had to watch 3 different opening sequences from movies to help give us inspiration and plan our own opening sequence. Drive (2011) I really like the use of the shot of the Los Angeles cityscape at 9:19 on this opening sequence, as it is quite dramatic and shows the vibrancy and night life of the city, which grabs the audiences attention. As my target audience is my class ( who are young) they should enjoy the vibrancy that this cityscape shows them. I also really like the font of the text on screen as it is wacky and is  really different to other movie text which makes it unique. Furthermore I think the soundtrack is fantastic to the opening sequence as the song 'Night Call' by Kavinsky, is upbeat and draws the audiences attention. I definitely want to ensure I have a cityscape shot so I can make my opening sequence quite dramatic an...

Media can represent people in many different ways. For example the media usually represents teenagers as lazy, and their appearance as a bit scruffy and wearing hoodies. Older people on the other hand are often represented as more well-dressed and often they may have important jobs. To get a more deeper understanding of media representation I had a look at a TV advert to see who it represented and and how it achieves this representation. The TV advert I have looked at is a 'Amazon Echo' advert entitled "Dad's Day". This advert is clearly trying to represent fathers, as the central character in the advert is a father with a young baby. One of the main way that this media product represents fathers is that they are usually a bit overwhelmed with the chaos of looking after their children on their own. We can clearly see this when the father is running with a push-chair in the rain to ensure his baby gets on her playdate on time. I would say this advert has q...

Our final project with Justin this half-term was quite a big one, we had a couple of hours to create a tutorial video. He asked me and my other group member, Alice, to create a tutorial video on how to set up three-point lighting. We need to try and demonstrate the micro-element skills, Justin had taught us such as different shot types and camera angles. I found this task quite difficult as time was very tight. We managed to create a tutorial video with numerous different shot types and camera angles, however I didn't have enough time to completely finish editing it, so the final video didn't quite work. For example we had recorded a voice over to narrate how you set up the three-point lighting but I didn't have enough time to put all the voice over audio in the correct place in relation to the video. Also I didn't have enough time to trim all the video clips so our end video ended being very long (around 9 minutes whereas with more time I could have made it a-lot m...

With James we looked at everything to do with things in editing beyond the timeline such as file types and the rendering process. Here are my notes: Resolution Different resolutions: (Height of the images) 360p - Youtube - 360 Lines 480p - Common for laptops and monitors 720p (HD) 1080p (HD) Video and audio file - they are separate on DVD (video and audio files are separate files - 2x files) video- .m2v                            -Timeline compression audio - .ac3 (Dolby 2.0)         -Timeline compression Video and audio audio -.mp3 video and audio - mp4 (Muxed) Codec code-decode (H. 264) - creates an .mp4 Rendering - Video rendering is the process by which a computer processes information from a coded data source and uses that information to produce and display an image. Lossy (smaller file e.g. mb) - is a compressed file - it cannot return or be reverted to ori...

With Justin we looked at the importance of continuity in editing. Continuity in editing is important because: It creates realism - the edit is invisible so the action appears real instead of it looking like its constructed It helps the viewer make sense of the action by implying spatial relationships and ensuring smooth flow from shot to shot Cutting shots to tell a story with narrative continuity There are 6 main rules to continuity: Eye-line match Establishing shot and re-establishing shot Cross-cutting Match on action Shot-reverse-shot 180 degree rule Eye-line match rule This rule is based on the premise that the viewers will want to see what the character they are watching on the screen is viewing. This means there will be a cut to show what is being looked at by the character on screen. It can be:  An object  A view Another character The eye-line match will begin with a character looking at something off-screen. It is then followed by a c...

These are the different elements of editing: Order of shots Transitions Pace and rhythm Order of shots The order in which shots are cut together can change the meaning of a sequence. If you put two shots together this can have a variety of effects, for example it can suggest a connection or emphasise a contrast which is known as a juxtaposition. The order of shots can communicate lots of information to an audience. For example a shot of a ear followed by a shot of a door can communicated that the character is listening. A shot of a smiling face followed by a shot of a nice sports car, shows the audience that this character is clearly happy or exited about the car. Transitions The definition of a transition used in movies is the process of moving from one shot to another. There are many different transitions used in movies, the most common one being the cut transition. The main transitions are: Fade- The preceding shot fades into black from which the f...

With James we looked at editing techniques for interviewing. James told us to use constant power to croustade the audio to an interview. You can use this by going to the project window, go to effects, then to croustade and then constant power. Then you drag and drop the constant power effect on the timeline. You use the constant power effect so the decibels remain the same. James also told us to ensure we don't sanitise the person being interviewed, for example if they have a stammer don't try and edit this out, as this is how the person speaks. You can link the audio and video together by clicking ctrl and link, so they move together when moving them on the timeline. James told us to try and avoid jump cuts by using the crossfade. There is an incoming and outgoing clip. There is also the head of a clip. How does it sound? You need a music layer and radio edit the voice layer. You need to make sure you have an organised timeline - for example on V1 you need t...

With Justin we looked at how to set up three-point lighting. First of all its important to note the three different light sources when setting up three point lighting: Key light: This is the main light source. It shines directly on the subject, usually from the front right or front left, and it establishes the overall look and feel of the shot. Fill light: The fill light provides balance to the key light by "filling in" the rest of the subject’s face with softer light. It should be positioned to the side that’s opposite the key light. Back light: The back light creates a flattering rim of light around the subject, separating him or her from the background. Sometimes the back light is called a rim light. How to set up three point lighting: Start in the dark. Begin with all your lights off, and as little other ambient light as possible. This will help you differentiate among the three lights you’ll be turning on. Turn on your key light. Your key light is the ...

With Justin we looked at the importance of mise-en- scène in communicating information and meaning to an audience. Here are the 5 elements of  mise-en- scène: Settings and props Setting plays an important part in film-making as it sets the scene - it tells the audience the location of where the scene is set and the props help bring the scene to life, for example in a romantic movie a prop may be a bottle of champagne and the setting may be a beach during the sunset with sets the romantic mood. Sets are either built from the scratch or they find a real setting. Props can be used to convey a general sense of the period that the film is set in. For example props such as alien blaster guns could tell the audience the movie genre is sci-fi and that the movie is set in the future. Costume, hair and makeup Costume, hair and makeup quickly indicates the characters personality, their job and status to the audience. For example if the movie was a period drama then the chara...