Alex Bryant

Third edit!

2012-03-04T01:44:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was pretty busy filming outside for my visual projection. I have spent a long time editing my previous film and adding new footage. I have concentrated adding new textures since Dominic advised this. I have also cut out some random footage previosuly in my film, however have still kept some sequences other lecturers are not keen on. I think they go well in my film.For example some did not agree with having the fire sequence in my film however I thought it went quite well how the ripples changed into fire and lips. It keeps the random obscure sense to it. However I have cut out some transitions and scenes such as the logs which did not really fit as well.

Second edit to Visual Projection

2012-03-02T09:28:00.000-08:00

Today Dominic and the lecturers saw my second edit and gave me some important points I need to take on board for my final edit! The main points are that I need to keep with the obscurity and surreal feeling of the visual projection. By doing this I am going to cut out strong transitions such as white box with the candles, my actual face whilst doing movement and the wellies with the puddles. Tomorrow I am going out to film. I have been advised to add more textures to the film and so I will film more repetitive patterns.

My second edit is this:

With the advice from my lecturers I will hopefully improve this edit and have a decent projection!

editing visual projection

2012-02-28T12:06:00.001-08:00

Recently, I have been pretty busy editing my Visual Projection....it seems to be taking a hell of a long time! I had my first edit presentation a couple of weeks ago and Debra and Danny Kaye explained where I could improve and explained what they would change personally. However in my last piece of work I got criticised for paying too much attention to feedback and so this time I have I have only changed what I have felt is necessary.
The main criticism of my first edit was that the lectures felt there was too much going on in my film. Even though there are strong themes running through my film such as movement, repetition and reflection, there was just too much going on. And so the main task recently for me was to cut a lot of the sequences out however exchanging them for others since this piece has to last a certain amount of time. I have repeated more sequences I felt have worked well in the film and have included more reflection and ripples. I am showing my next edit on Friday so fingers crossed they will find it an improvement!

First edit:

Visual Projection more footage!

2012-02-04T12:40:00.000-08:00

This weekend I have been filming for my film getting more ideas and trying to keep the video fresh since it lasts four minutes which has an impact on my filming. The problem can be that it turns too repetitive and so the audience will find it boring. However I have put a sequence of jpeg images to create symmetry and I have put quirky experimental clips in to keep the sequence exciting. I have gone from clips of fires to clips of snow.

It looks quite boring here however I have added after effects to these clips!

Putting ideas together for DP3, Visual Projection.

2012-01-26T13:17:00.000-08:00

Today I went around Nottingham City centre to film. I came up with a few ideas and put them together using my mac.

I created a sequence to see what worked and what doesn't. Even though the camera work is slightly wobbly, I think it works:

More ideas for visual projection, Theme= MOVEMENT

2012-01-26T02:45:00.000-08:00

I have been researching online to help give me some ideas for different sequences I can use in the visual projection film. I am going to film some moving escalators. Here is an idea which I can speed up and add effects.

Piano:

Week 3: Finalised Ideas on Visual Projection

2012-01-22T12:26:00.000-08:00

I have decided to go along with the first idea I had which was the most abstract experimental idea I created in which needed putting into a THEME. The theme thought out is all about movement entwining with some repetition, however using effects to create abstract visuals. For example footsteps walking, dominoes gong down one by one. Also I will film being in a tram and add effects.
Here is an example of movement on a tram:

I will also involve roller coaster effects, dancing and footsteps. I will try to link each sequence to each other, for example from a zip opening from a jacket to cut to moving down a track on a railway line. I will try to synchronise each sequence to run in continuity.
Here is a dancing effect which have given me a few ideas I can use in the track:

Examples for filming repetition.

Second Term, DP3 Visual Ideas

2012-01-19T13:06:00.000-08:00

For my next project I am to create a visual piece lasting between minutes. I have a pitch to discuss tomorrow on three different ideas what I am going to do for my visuals.

IDEA 1:

The first idea I have come up with is to be completely abstract by having random images and sequences through the track. However there is a theme in which when one item displays on screen there will be lots of them. For example one sequence will be lots of candles lit up with a birds eye view.

Then the next would be a collection of shoes being shown in a line one by one at a fast pace.

I would also use text in my video and use a sparkler repeated through the video. Here is an example I could get as close to my idea.

Also in parts throughout the track there will be a close up of a face which would have an x-ray effect with dark lips singing a few lyrics.
Other ideas in the video would be lights being switched on in a large room, flocks of birds flying, and collections of makeup, jewelry and skeleton faces.
My aim is to try and make the visual as quirky and experimental as possible.

SECOND IDEA:

My second idea involves cartoons, cuttings out a white board and black board. Throughout the track strange images, patterns etc would be drawn to synchronise with the track. I would then have cartoons performing strange dance moves and cuttings out of newpapers and magazines coming to life using motion or after effects.

whiteboard:

blackboard:

3RD IDEA:

My third idea involves different plants and flowers growing throughout the tracks. Also I would have insects changing for example caterpillar developing into a butterfly. Another could be the sunrising and sunsetting. The theme would be representing TIME and LIFE.
Here is an example of flowers going.

Music Projection On Bulidings....Other ideas

My Treatment to Say Something Political...'Addicted'

2011-11-03T07:04:00.000-07:00

Treatment for 30 Second Advert: ‘Say Something Political’

Title of Advert: Addicted.

Dates of proposed filming: 5/ 7/8 November 2011

Times: 10am- 4pm

Outline and justification of Ideas: A 30 second advert with the title ‘Addicted’. The aim of the advert is to represent that there is more to life than media technology. This includes phones, the internet, social network sites, game software and electronic technology that will be included in the advert such as a TV Remote. I am to represent that the public have forgotten to appreciate the natural world we live in, and we now choose to be cooped up using technology from the start of our day to the end. That it has come to over power our life. Instead of just making the statement in an advert that there is more to life than just media technology, I have created a ‘gust concept’. I have used a slogan, which can be taken in two different ways in which I will discuss.

The start of my advert will focus on a girl waking up in bed. The camera will zoom out slowly and her alarm (use of media technology…phone) will go off. The advert will tell a story of her day from morning to evening. The advert will reflect that her life is isolated since her life is cooped up and she is continuously on networking sties, watching tv, etc. The camera will have lots of close up shots throughout the advert of her typing (using the internet, twitter, facebook, using her phone, tv remote and zooming in focusing on her fingers). The advert will be energetic; fast paced then will slow towards the end. This is when a shot will be shown of an amazing view of the world panning left to right. It will contrast from all of the other shots I have used previously in the advert since they are close up and fast paced. This shot will include a written phrase underneath saying Give it a rest. Then immediately after this, the background will fade to black and the slogan will say…”There is more to life than ‘hand jobs’. Therefore throughout my advert I will really have to pay special attention to the use of hands otherwise my advert will not work. I can help to achieve this my manually changing the focus by focusing on her hands to make it obvious to the audience. By my character constantly using her fingers to use the technology the slogan will work.

Here, I will be using GENERATE INNOVATIVE NOVEL IDEAS. I am aiming to make the camera work/editing of a high skill exploring a variety of techniques. My advert is slightly abstract and experimental and so I will use quirky angles when filming. The whole of my advert will be set in black and white apart from when the amazing view of the world is shown in colour. This will give the advert contrast. I will be paying special attention to eye contact and pace of movement in the film.

Resource list: Camera woman 1, lighting woman, director, producer, sound engineer, one character, video camera, tripod, anti-glare guard for the camera. A bedroom with a bed, lamp, homely possessions. Media appliances include, blackberry, television, x box, remote, ipod, laptop and internet.

Location: At my student house in Nottingham.

A real world budget: Price of actress for the day can be negotiable. An actress from an agency who is not well known can be from forty pounds an hour. However employing somebody with very high rank and status for example Jennifer Anniston could cost fifty thousand pounds to film over three days. Since no lines have to be learnt and it involves no nudity famous actresses are cheap.

I am able to film my advert in my house however if I was to rent a studio for three days filming, it could cost in the region of £375-885 for Waterloo Studios in London. However you can hire out a studio for fifty five pounds for the day. Studio 101 in London is an example.

To hire out camera and filming kit is quite expensive, if you do not own equipment yourself.

Other pricing I have fund through online research:

Complete Shooting Packages:

Lighting Cameraman, Broadcast Camera Kit, Sound & Lighting - £500
Steadicam + Operator & Assistant with all kit - £1000
includes EFP Steadicam, directors monitor & all accessories
Cameraman, Sound Recordist, Director & all kit - £1200
Cameraman & Sound Recordist with all kit - £800

My crew would cost:

Camera Operator alone - £275
Steadicam Operator alone - £350 - £500
Camera Operator (when booked with OB unit) - £200
OB/Multicam Engineer (when booked with OB unit) - £250
Sound Recordist with kit - £240
Steadicam / Camera Assistant - £250
Stills Photographer - £275

My actress is actually my friend so I will not have to pay her. However if she was not then I would have to pay for her travel and expenses. She lives in Stoke-On-Trent and her train ticket to Nottingham would cost thirty pounds return.

I will be downloading final cut pro to edit my film. However in the real world it would cost £180 to download the software onto my mac. Since I am doing this for my degree, we have the access and resources to use edit facilities at the University.

Strengths: Knowing the character is reliable and trustworthy. Location is local (in my house) and so I am not limited to filming time in that respect. However I will need to film from the morning since it is about a girl filming her throughout the day. Therefore if I film her waking up at 6pm then it will b obvious to the audience that it is night when it is supposed to be morning.

Weaknesses. I wanted to get the chance of filming this advert by myself , so I can get some experience behind the camera. This may be a weakness since I could have asked someone with better skill and experience. And so it may be a weakness, since I may be able to produce a better outcome. Also I have not made an advert before and so I am inexperienced.

Conclusion: I think my advert will be a success, since I am well equipped, prepared and I have done lots of research. I have amended my story board three times. I only have one character to rely on to turn up.

Amended Storyboard

2011-11-01T05:34:00.001-07:00

Finalised storyboard

2011-10-31T15:08:00.000-07:00

The other day I had to pitch a ten minute presentation to show my class three different ideas I had for "say something political". And so they came up with a few suggestions to improve my film.

1. I am going to go with the first idea, (there is more to life than handjobs)

2. Instead of having clips of extreme close ups of typing, playing games etc I am going to have a story line, however I have to stick to the close ups of the hand typing etc otherwise, there will be no point to my slogan! And so The film will start with an alarm going off very loud, and a boy climbing out of bed. I am going to reflect his life revolves around media and social technology. This will give the advert a PROGRESSION instead of just random clips sequenced together.

3. The advert will in black and white apart from shot 9 where this will in colour to reflect that there is more to life than technology. This will hopefully give the advert CONTRAST and a bit of variety and will be totally unique.

4. The music, I have not quite decided yet! But i am thinking about joining the music with the pace of the advert to create movement.

Context 2, Network Diagram

2011-10-24T09:14:00.000-07:00

Mood Board...say something political

2011-10-24T04:15:00.000-07:00

Third idea

2011-10-21T00:59:00.000-07:00

I have been having a look on third ideas for my advert, by doing a helpline phone call to people who are addicted to facebook. I cam acroos this short film that helped give me the idea.

Introducing Celtx...

2011-10-18T13:00:00.000-07:00

I have hand drawn my storyboard but i have also produced a story board on Celtx just for higher quality image! It is all pretty new to me so im still learning! Here is a screen shot of my work...

Storyboard No2

2011-10-18T11:42:00.000-07:00

I have also made this storyboard for a back up however I am confident that my first idea will work, and I have made use of the "Gust Concept" in my idea. However, here is my second storyboard.

Moving Image...Story Boards

2011-10-18T11:39:00.000-07:00

Well today I have been busy drawing my story boards, I have made the over all decision to make my advert about being somewhat addicted to media technology/social networks. The idea I am more pushing to is the idea of having a comical punch line, and instead of making the statement that too many people spend to much time time on the internet etc there is a slight "twist"

Here is the story board I think I am going to go with. On the show and tell on friday I will hopefully get some more ideas to improve my advert.

COLOUR

BLACK AND WHITE

The first remote control ever invented.

2011-10-18T06:21:00.001-07:00

pretty immense!

2011-10-18T06:20:00.000-07:00

A nice little weekend in London...

2011-10-17T12:31:00.000-07:00

This weekend I went down for a trip to London to see the boyfriend and weather was amazing! Had a great time down there and Im thinking of moving there once i have finished my course! Most directing jobs are pretty much down there anyway, it will be a great experience!

Just a couple of pictures I took whilst walking around Kensington......

Malak, Introduction Project

2011-10-13T07:08:00.000-07:00

Today we did a show and tell of our group film and it went well. We had a few location and organisational problems however we ended up with a decent comical outcome. More work on the camera shots and frames would have lead to a more professional look, however our members of the group worked well together as a team.

I thought the project was significant before we start our own films because it has refreshed our memeorys on using the camera, editing etc.

Here are a few pics of the production being filmed!

Brain storm of ideas for :Say something Political:

2011-10-12T11:50:00.000-07:00

well at the moment I am in a dilema! I have had a few ideas on what I am going to do for the advert and originally i was going to do about the student fees going up but i think quite a lot of people are going to do that! And so I had a rethink.
I thought it could be an idea to do about UK internet service providers (ISP) are being made to block access to sites which are considered to have an unlawful content. So this will stop illegal file sharing accessing porn etc. Therefore there is a large argument on the fact that it stops basic rights/freedoms of customers.
However I am pretty stuck on what I could actually film so I may go down the women's rights in Afgan and compare British women over here and make a dramatic advert. Tomorrow during the seminar I will have a final decision!

building up some contacts...

2011-10-10T11:52:00.000-07:00

Tonight I managed to speak to the producer of film@bradley and he gave me some feed back into becoming a directer in which i can help use in my report of contacts. He has told me to email some of my stuff to him in which i will do tomorrow! the website is

http://bradley.tv/video-production-company/

Context 2, Getting some contacts!

2011-10-10T10:15:00.000-07:00

Today I have been busy ringing up Moving Image Companies in order to start building up some contacts for my report for the first coursework. Tomorrow morning i am going to be emailing MPC which is a pretty cool company in London for some work experience and to see if they can give me some feedback. A small company I will be contacting is Daylight which is also a moving image company located in Manchester said also to write to them to help me.

Since I need to be thinking about building up a portfolio i have rang up the National Film and Tv school since they need a production assistant to help film in London for a few days in October. I am also going to try and get some experience at easter too. I really want to end up becoming a directer for television programmes and so thought it wise to start at going down the production assistant route!

Idea for Say Something Political!

2011-10-09T11:57:00.000-07:00

hmmm well this week I have been researching and having a look what I could possibly do for this assignment and have decided on going down the student fees route since it is pretty current and already have a significant amount of knowledge on the subject. For location wise I can film in Nottingham and I am surrounded by students who will hopefully be willing to be in my advertisement. However I have got to get a few people to help me with camera work etc. I will be basing the film on why students should have to pay so much money to compensate for the governments downfall. I have the idea of showing a more well off student and another student who cannot possibly afford to go to uni since its gone up to 9 grand.

And so it begins....second year!

2011-10-04T10:32:00.000-07:00

Blimey, the summer has flown I really have had a great one! I have been away travelling to Cambodia and Thailand however i became very ill and ended up in Portugal to recover! Today I had my first lecture/seminar for moving image, my chosen pathway choice. Our first project for DP3 is to produce a short sequence called MALac. I have offered to be directer for this short script that has been written to get us back into the role of uni! Our first major project is to make an advertisement...."Say something political" which should be interesting! I am pretty happy we are to work independently on this project to give me the chance to improve my skills especially in the camera and editing department....I am absolutely hopeless at it.
This week my goals are to...
>Come up with some fresh ideas for MALac
>Get thinking about ideas for my advertisement.

500 word evaluation for ANIMATION and video!

2011-05-17T10:51:00.000-07:00

The brief of the project was to create 3 scare scenes for a haunted ride. My ideas and intentions were to do this, however it didn’t turn out exactly how I thought it would! As seen on my blog my mood board, storyboard and sketches included more of a grave- yard approach that entailed witches, bats, ghosts and haunted babies. However even though the ideas were there, putting it into practice was another story.

My design layout was much more basic than I first anticipated however I think my project is a lot better than my first animation project last term. This reflects that I have obviously made a lot of progress since then at least. And so I changed my original theme into a “warehouse for haunted props”. And so there is still a sense of my ride being gloomy dark and scary but Iv scattered different props around the ride to give it a warehouse feeling. For example there are random candles hanging above coffins.

Overall I am actually quite happy with my animation since I managed to use over fifteen different textures and managed them to apply them to different objects I had made. I managed to include a tree, stairs, a tomb candles, coffins and other props.

You cannot really see my cart in the ride however, I was happy with this and managed to modify it and change its shape to make it look more realistic and not quite so basic. I received quite a lot of help, which I needed. I managed also to put in different lighting with tints to give the ride a scary feel. Once I had rendered my animation it was one minute however when I came to export it in premier pro unfortunately it was only 50 seconds long which is odd. I could then not change it. I have learnt so much during these five weeks but unfortunately I haven’t had time to go back and add sound and make it more complex because it was last in the carousel for my projects.

I did experience problems with the soft ware and it crashed a lot of the time. When I came to render I don’t think it did it properly since my overall video is a little jumpy however I ran out of time to re render.

I have learnt it is so significant to produce a decent project not only to have great creative ideas otherwise it is useless. There are a lot of areas for improvement for example I would have liked to add sound techniques and sort out the slight jumpiness of the camera. However the jumpiness may fit in quite well since t is supposed to be scary! I would also add more complex props and learn how to make different objects however I managed to do the task in the end…just!

I do not think a new project would come out of this one since I really do not enjoy the software, I enjoyed coming up with the ideas, drawing and scenes but has completely solidified my choice next year to do moving image!

Cart...

2011-04-18T05:45:00.000-07:00

I have currently built a cart however need to edit it to create something like this:

Other props in my haunted castle ride include....

Because 3d max pro is new to me I doubt i will be able to create amazing props however I will have a go!

Haunted Ride Entrance

2011-04-18T04:40:00.000-07:00

This is a sketch of my haunted castle ride entrance. By achieving this I think i will have to create 3d boxes and clone them to then be able to build an archway:

I have been doing some research on the internet for textures that i can use for my haunted ride. This will give the project verisimilitude.

I want to include these kind of colours.

Animation Progress

2011-04-18T04:26:00.000-07:00

Currently I am about to go in my third week of animation and i am finding it very difficult! I am managing to do it after hours of reading tutorials but it is starting to come together now at last. Here are a few snap shots of my work currently using 3d max pro.

This is a snap shot of my cart I have designed. Tomorrow when I have my next seminar I will get on with the textures to create a spooky ride look.

Track design

2011-04-18T04:19:00.000-07:00

To help me design the track to see it flows fluidly I have sketched it on a theatre map of the Waverly building.

Story board to animation Haunted Ride

2011-03-29T15:37:00.000-07:00

Today I did a storyboard which includes props that I hope to use in my ride. Even though the ride itself is basic I am going to try and put quite a few props to give the ride that "spooky" feeling.

MOOD BOARD

2011-03-29T11:05:00.000-07:00

To help give me some ideas to help me create the haunted castle ride I have designed a mood board to give me some inspiration!

Virtual Environments-Week one

2011-03-23T11:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my first seminar into making my track for my haunted castle ride! I managed to do the first task okay with some help!! Iv decided to keep my track simple because I am hopeless with animation and do not want to complicate it more than I have to. Friday I will be designing my cart etc so we shall see how it goes.

INTERACTIVE 500 WORD EVALUATION

2011-03-20T06:38:00.000-07:00

For my interactive project I had to design a website portfolio about myself which I did achieve. My outcome still has a quirky vibe, which I wanted in the first place. However, the design layout was much more basic than I anticipated in the first place. I had the ideas to design but what I found difficult was using HTML and Dreamweaver and putting it into practice. As time progressed I was able to pick it up more but I still found it quite a challenge.

I designed a splash page, which took a lot of time up.

I used Photoshop to do this. I used a normal photograph I had used travelling and I re edited it. I had a picture of myself and added quirky drawn images. I employed quite a few Photoshop techniques for example the magic wand, quick selection button and paints etc. I really enjoyed the designing aspect of interactive. However I found it difficult to link the splash page to the others for some reason. But was able to use hot spots and do it this way.

I also was able to incorporate a web gallery in my website which include photos I had taken through travelling. This was to show that I am obviously interested in this area. I also had a few problems with this. I managed to create the gallery using flash instead of HTML. I followed numerous tutorials on the Internet but could not actually get my gallery to load up on the page. And so I had to re do it in HTML but Shaun helped me. In the end it worked! I did find the interactive project really interesting and engaging I just found it frustrating using HTML.

My portfolio seems to work efficiently it has six pages with numerous videos, pictures, fonts, writing and images used. Navigation is very simple but adequate to use. It is also colour coordinated mainly using black, pink and grey.

I used the template on NOW to help me but yet I changed some of it and added an extra splash page. It is basic however even though I enjoyed interactive I will be choosing moving image next year since I love film. I have learnt a lot during this project the basic principles of designing a website and also that being creative plays a crucial role into designing a portfolio. To be honest if I had not had Dreamweaver to help me I would have been completely stuck. However I have never designed a portfolio before so I knew I wouldn’t be a genius at it.

I could have added more content I think if I had more time for example more written work it just took time learning how to use Dreamweaver! I have aimed at a young audience since my design is very quirky for example numerous fonts and weird images are used. My portfolio is a promotional tool about myself because it mainly reflects I am into photography shown through my gallery. I admit it does not reflect an exceptional design flair but it is creative and works.

webpage!

2011-03-15T10:41:00.000-07:00

Recently I have being using photoshop to create my splash page and adding hotspots. However....i am struggling on dreamweaver at the minute programming! I need some serious help tomorrow in order for me to get this done!

My website is turning out differently from my wire frame, however I am using a quirky vibe as shown throughout my website. My portfolio is quite arty and will contain a selection of travelling pictures and videos from my work.

Wire frame

2011-03-01T08:32:00.000-08:00

I have been having a good think about what the content of my portfolio will be in order to come up with an effective wire frame. My design I think will be based on black and white so that the content stands out. For my home page I think I will have half of me in the left hand corner then options to view my portfolio on the right. For example:

These are ideas I have been doodling..........

I have been thinking about content and I love photography so I am going to focus on that in my website. I also enjoy drama so will content for that. A few websites I have visit such as Jack Johnson, Paulo Nutini have incorporated cool illustration so I may do the same in my website. For example I was once in the play My Fair Lady and may illustrate this. Today I have doodled and I may use this some how.......

Other collages I have come up with I may use in my gallery to reflect an arty side.....

Mood-Board

2011-02-17T11:54:00.000-08:00

Today I had my first Interactive seminar in which we were thinking about the concept of design. I have designed my own Mood-board using Photoshop to give me a spring board into ideas I can use for my website. As reflected I have used a broad range of ideas but I have kept to a certain style. These reflect my personal interests and preferences. My personal branding has a quirky vibe which i want to portray into my website.

Bring on Interactive Space!

2011-02-16T07:42:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow I am looking forward to starting my new project. Moving Image is now completed, however I want to re edit the sound myself.
I took a look today at the interactive brief and it looks really fun and interesting! I am not a brilliant artist however I enjoy design work and coming up with ideas I just tend to struggle on putting it into practice!......the software I really do not like!

Evaluation of Group Film TICKET

2011-02-15T13:05:00.000-08:00

I thoroughly enjoyed the moving image project and I am planning on doing it next year. Our project title was called Interpretation. Once given our script- Ticket we had to interpret it into our own vision. It was based on the genre Romance, since my role was being the Director this was my job, my aim was to try and make sure the film was creatively produced and brought together. I interpreted the script to the best of my ability but found it quite difficult since I didn’t take to the dialogue and if given the opportunity would have changed it quite dramatically. I held responsibility for the structure of the film creating an awkward “quirky” vibe portrayed mainly through the characters tone and camera work.

In the first couple of weeks I researched on genre’s romance themes, etc. I came up with the idea of putting the film into black and white and found the French New Wave (La Nouvelle Vague) – late 1950s and 60s. I thought this fit well into our film and gave it a raw, edgy outcome. This then meant the film had character, which was lacking! I also based the theme on the French film Breathless (1960) directed by Jean-Luc-Godard. I tried to interpret the film so we could apply it to our own.

This was too in black and white but had major influence on our film in for example camera angles, edits-quite dysfunctional. Also a very valid point to make is French wave films were on a low budget approach- like ours and it helped filmmakers get at the essential art form and find out was a more comfortable and honest form of production. Having this in the back of mind helped me see what was really needed in our film. I also had the idea of using French music using a piano that was used repetitively throughout the film to produce structure.

One advantage of me being the actress is that I could really try and put over to the audience that the girl was quite mysterious filled with tension and nervousness. Tim the male actor found it quite difficult to act but maybe this was good because it just created even more of an awkward atmosphere in the film. It took two separate attempts to film but it was a slight struggle since it was very cold and windy!

I also delivered a short treatment at the beginning just to give the group some basis to what we were aiming to achieve in the film. The overall outcome of our film was decent. If given the chance to make improvements to our film I would have done more rehearsals and given the actor more time to read the script because to be fair the acting was quite poor. However, he was not to blame since the male actor dropped out and so we used my flat mate last minute. Also I had arranged a female actress that also couldn’t make it so I stepped into the role of Lisa! Since I was director this was the last thing I wanted to do since I had limited control to how the camera shots were used, angles techniques etc and other factors involved.

Through doing this project I now have a greater understanding to the moving image production process. I have learnt more about how location and mise-en-scene is so important in portraying the mood/ tone of a film. Our film was located on a bench n a park-naturally where people meet and chat. I have learnt such small details such as a missing button on a shirt, wrong lightening are in fact very necessary details that must be considered. Also Phil was a great deal of help showing us other short films and is great to be taught by someone in the industry! Our film is quite weird and slightly disjointed in the fact that it doesn't all run smoothy for example the camera techniques aren't smooth. They are quite edgy. But this was supposed to happen to make the film a bit more unique and interesting. Also we could have improved our film by using some close ups on the male actor and I. Another thing is that even though we produced a film some members could have been slightly more committed to turning up to seminars and filming in order for our film to run smoothly. Even though I had a directer's role I stepped in other positions such as sound and being the actress. I am very much looking forward to doing it next year! Here is the film:

"Ticket" Group Edit from Samantha Freeman on Vimeo.

Amazing background music iv found!!

2011-02-13T09:14:00.000-08:00

We really needed some sound techniques and so i have been trying to find a perfect song i think suit the film however i will use this when trying to re-edit the sound! I thought the tone and the lyrics suited the film well and here they are:

Also this video has given me an idea into some shots we could have added to our film if given more time in the future,,,,,,

Film nearly finished!

2011-02-13T08:59:00.000-08:00

It took us a couple of attempts to get the filming done! As well as being the directer I was Lisa the character because unfortunately our female actress could not make it! Also our male one couldn't but i managed to get a back up! Here are a few pictures of us filming in the wind!

Film Techniques, ideas

2011-02-01T12:45:00.000-08:00

Through researching on the internet I have come up with the idea that our theme should have something a bit different about it and so I have been researching the French New Wave (La Nouvelle Vague) which was around in the late 1950s and 1960s. It was influenced by Italian Neorealism and classical Hollywood cinema.

The films were on low budget helped filmmakers get at the essential art form and find what was, to them, a much more comfortable and honest form of production.

Film Techniques consisted of long tracking shots improvised dialogue, rapid changes of scene, and shots that go beyond the common 180º axis and principles of strong narrative. I took a look at Jean-Luc Godard New Wave film Breathless (1960)

I thought we could use some of the camera techniques as shown on this film. Also I had the idea that when we edit we can change it into black and white. It will give it some "quirky" edge as reflected the female character will be.

location, location, location!

2011-01-31T15:05:00.000-08:00

well with our film, Ticket we have had a few difficulties in where we will be filming because of permissions etc. It would have been very difficult if we had filmed on a train/tram or bus since we have to ask for permission beforehand and could take a few weeks to get back to us. And so we have decided to film in a public park. We shall be filming on Wednesday fingers crossed!!

Narrative assignment...800inc.

2011-01-24T08:27:00.000-08:00

For our assignment I have chosen to write about my dads company 8000inc.....

The Brand was started form scratch so it was all ideas then put into fact. The Brand is not just the clothes, the clothes are part of the Brand and are used to market the company as well as be products. So the company is in itself a project.

The Brand is not only clothes, but investment, sports projects - Athletics, AAAB (Amateur Athletics Association of Barbados) – Golf (Barbados Golf Association) – Football (AC Milan).

These projects keep the company in the public eye, provide media coverage and news, embedding the name 8000inc in the market and the public.

All different types of clothing is made however using the same logo, same brand.

Preparation Timetable....

2011-01-21T06:59:00.000-08:00

Things that need to be done	Who’s going to do it	By..(date)	Done?
Film Production Roles	The group	Week 1
Treatment	Alex	Week 2
Images of Location	Alex	Week 2
Description of characters	Stephanie	Week 2
Images of costumes and props	Lauren	Week 2
Sound treatment	Alyssa	Week 2
Examples of Visual type	Sam	Week 2
Timetable	Charis	Week 2
Storyboard	Charis	Week 2
Presentation	The group	Week 2
Risk assessment	Charis	Week 3
Check permissions	Charis	Week 3
Risk assessment check by tutor	Sam	Week 3
Summary of presentation	The group	Week 2
Plan filming	The group	Week

Group Roles

2011-01-21T06:57:00.000-08:00

Charis is the producer since she finds it easy to organise post production and get everything ready.

I'm the director, Alyssa is doing sound and production design, Sam is going to be doing the editing, Steph is on the camera and our new edition Lauren will be doing lighting and camera assistant.

Todays and yesterdays session have gone quite well, last night each one of us wrote down ideas and discussed them today. We have a lot of strong ideas and are quite certain as a group on what we want.

Treatment for Ticket......

2011-01-18T06:18:00.000-08:00

Treatment for Short Film
Title of Short Film: Ticket

Outline of Ideas: A short film with two characters exploring relationships/interaction/communication. Aim to make the camera work/editing of a high skill exploring a variety of techniques. So the group can reflect skills with camera work. To carry out the same high skill with sound editing and creative ideas. Idea to incorporate the public into the film to give it a sense of VERISIMILITUDE. We will be filming outside Victoria bus station maybe on a bench. Also may change script slightly. Because the film will be around three minutes we are aiming to carry out a professional outcome.

Resource list: Camera woman 1 and 2, lighting woman, director, producer, sound engineer, two characters, video camera. A set time without being in a rush. No real props needed apart from bus ticket.

Justification of ideas in relation to chosen genre and existing texts
To reflect how time passes away in the film, we will fast-forward some of the footage whilst people are walking past in the mise-en-scene whilst keeping the main character perfectly still. The character Sam wil be quite a cool, loud good looking guy. Lisa is more fragile and shy. She acts as though she has a secret. Sam likes this and seems very interested. We will be using detail on how people interact with one another without using so much dialogue, paying special attention to eye contact and pace of movement in the film.

Strengths: Knowing the characters, location is local having the correct amount of time. Not needing so many props using natural settings. We can visit there before and make notes on more ideas.

Weaknesses: Not knowing if the people in our group have been provided the correct roles and so we all have to work together on this one. The weather could also be an issue since we will be filming outside so will be more of an inconvenience if it rains/snows or is very cold.

Conclusion: I think our film will work well making sure we are organized and have researched adequately in preparation to film.

Ideas into filming Ticket.

2011-01-14T06:16:00.000-08:00

Researching camera technique ideas.......

2011-01-14T03:29:00.000-08:00

Since we are supposed to be using a bus in our film, I quite like the beginning of use of the camera here.

Lecture 1: Introduction to Threshold Concepts and ExistenZ

2011-01-13T14:10:00.000-08:00

I didn't make the first lecture since I was on the plane back from Barbados, however this evening I have looked at the powerpoint to Threshold Concepts. I think I have got the just.....basically it represents a transformed way of understanding, looking at different concepts in an unusual way. Also in which the concept can be interpreted.

Apparently we have to look at the film ExistenZ and apply the three

Narrative

Interactivity

Convergence

I researched these to find that narrative is a chain of events in a cause effect relationship. It's planned lay out not just strung together.

Interactivity is video gaming presented using full motion video

The last Convergence has a number of definitions however the one we will be looking at is video that shares resources and interact with each other, synergistically creating new efficiencies.

Applying this to the film ExistenZ was quite strange because to be honest its the weirdest film i have watched. However this film was about interpreting trying to get the human mind around consensual concepts in the film.

The concept of the film was decent. It portrayed an image of what future gaming may be like now. Th film was made in 1999 and since then technology has progressed rapidly. Recently, the xbox kinect that has been released that allows you to control your character via a camera that detects movement. And so you can link this within the film because the game users are in the game itself!

The gamepod was apparently biologically influenced however this could not really be done in real life however looking at threshold concepts.....it may be possible??

The narrative was obviously there, the directer had a very intelligent idea with the film and put it together i just think not everybody gets it and may be for a smaller audience that enjoyed the film because it is very different.

A start to 2011!

2011-01-13T13:27:00.000-08:00

It was my first day back at uni today and iv found out my first project is film! very happy about that one already dreading animation! We have been put into groups and ours is all girls in which I am the Director which shall be interesting! Our script we have been given seems alright it may change a bit we shall see. Next week i will be looking at ideas for short films to give our group some new inspirational ideas on camera work etc. We will be creating story boards etc too! I ll be having a look at the following key terms too:

script breakdown, film production roles, pre- production, treatments, pitching,

Interactive Space Project: Making Maps

2010-12-07T13:32:00.000-08:00

Finally my interactive project has been uploaded to making maps. I am very happy with my project. I made the theme prominent, ie, study vs party and seemed to have worked well .There is a narrative in my project in the fact that if you party with no work then your going to fail. However, on the other hand if you work hard and study, you will reap rewards. This is shown in my interactive space project.
   To be honest, at fist I thought HTML was impossible to use! I found it extremely difficult even when I had both lecturers being extremely patient with me......I still didn't have a clue! And so the next day I went into uni and taught it myself eventually after a ridiculous amount of time I seemed to have got the hang and I got it done! Once I learnt how it worked I found it quite simple, just time consuming.
   If I got the opportunity to make another project then it would be of a much higher level because I now understand more clearly what I am doing.
   I also enjoyed taking the pictures used in my project. I edited them on my mac computer. I used different effects to create a certain ambience in the project. For example, with the studying pictures I edited them to black and white to make them slightly more dull than the coloured bright pictures used. With the party pictures they were the opposite. It was common sense really in the fact that naturally when people think to do work it is usually a negative feeling, on the other hand going out is exciting. And so I tried to employ that in the project. I found choosing the pictures the easiet part whilst using dreamweaver more difficult. I tried to use some techniques in my photography, for example, I blurred the edges on a picture:

Here is my final Interactive Project:

I did this to take the focus off the picture to concentrate more on the A* pass.

I also used other techniques to improve the pictures enhancing them etc. I have much preferred this project than the animation project because I found it so difficult. But I understand practice makes perfect!

http://makingnewmaps.com/

My Own Edit to One Shot Film

2010-12-07T12:47:00.000-08:00

Finally I have edited my own film REVERSE as we did as a group previously. I enjoyed editing it and used a variety of music techniques to bring the film to life and give it depth and texture. It took me a while to synchronise the timing of music parts with the film. The text used also correlates well with the music as seen. I am happy with this and i think it is a much better improvement from our group edit. I prefer this film in colour its more interesting....and here it is:

editing pictures for interactive space project

2010-11-28T10:06:00.000-08:00

Today I have planned what pictures I am going to put in my project and I have edited them to suit the mood of each picture. I have pretty much been stereotypical in how i have edited my pictures. For example my story is based on going out to a party or choosing to stay in to do work. The work pictures are in black and white and the party pics are bright and colourful. I have used blurred effects and distorted a couple of the images. I shall be putting them together on Tues to come up with my space!

Interactive space seminar--IDEAS

2010-11-25T07:19:00.000-08:00

In our seminar, to help with our interactice space project, I found this very interesting and very realistic. Even though I will be ony using photographs in my project this you-tube obviously uses video footage is much more complex. It gives you choices throughout the video as I will be doing in my interactive space project. Lots of camera techniques are used and the mans face is not seen thorughout the video which is quiter unusual. there are also lots of closeups in which detail can be used however, the format is small.
This has helped me in giving me ideas in the way I will be taking pictures in my project.

HTML????????????

2010-11-25T07:04:00.001-08:00

Im finding HTML rather confusing right now -linking, hotspots etc, however I am sure iIwill get the hang of it with some practice. I also am still not 100% positive what my interactive space project is going to contain!

interactive space seminar

2010-11-25T07:03:00.000-08:00

SPACES/ZONES....

Architectual Wayfinding. I learnt that there are 5 primary elements to architectual wayfinding.

1 paths
2 markers
3 nodes...
4 edges
5 zones
These are the design criera for highly legible and comprehsible urban enviroments.

I also learnt the circulation system is the key organising element of a site or buliding. People use circulation systems to develo a mental map.
There are difeerent spaces that contain diffeent zones. The way the space is designed is created so a use can be performed. They all vary.
We transition to different spaces. Eg in bathroom we take our clothes off or bedroom, however you don't do that once you walk out the room.
Eg the square in Nottingham. The square is very common to have events eg xmas stalls, etc...
Or in Australia Brisbon, eg China Town there is a street there you drive on the oppoisite side of road in China Town to reflect the Chinese laws.

This seminar gave me more of an insight that bulidings are bulit to function accordingly.

Ideas for interactive space

2010-11-17T09:03:00.000-08:00

A second practice I did was something very basic, cleaning up my room:

Interactive space

2010-11-17T08:28:00.000-08:00

think this will be my most favourite project so far. We have been set the task to take some pictures and create a narrative. I could perhaps use it in my final project. However I have decided already what I shall be doing. Tonight I am going out and my project will be based on this.

Today I have been busy taking pictures and experimenting to create a narrative. Just by using simple techniques.

The first is simple making a drink:

One Shot Group Edit- REVERSE

2010-11-15T09:03:00.000-08:00

This is our final film. We attempted to be as inventive and creative as possible. I thought we came up with a strong film which worked well. We had Dan Cody going forward in time, whilst the rest of us went backwards. I enjoyed making this film. We spent a lot of time discussing how we were going to perform in the film but we just ended up doing our own thing. I thought it worked quite well and looks relatively clever. Mark set up the camera composition whilst Nadjet and I chose the spot. It is quite quirky and the mise-en-scene also works well. We also managed to include everyone in our group inside the mise-en-scene.
Negative points about our film included Dan Cody not being in the centre of the frame. It took it a little offside which didn't ruin the film, but put damper on it.
At the end of the film Dan is shouting ACTION however it is backwards (reverse footage) .
And, here it is:

One Shot Group Edit from Mark Boam on Vimeo.

Ideas for one shot film

2010-11-15T06:12:00.000-08:00

Our group came up with the idea that if we reversed our footage then we could come up with an inventive, intelligent idea. We used you-tube to grab some ideas. Here is an example I looked on you-tube to give me some inspiration.

Through looking at this video we came up with our final film.

One shot film Practice!

2010-11-06T15:19:00.000-07:00

For my second project of multimedia we were to get in groups to produce a one shot film. We did that and were given the opportunity to experiment and have a practice using the title, 'you decide'. We planned what we were going, I was poorly when we came to shoot so unfortunately missed it! This is how the film came out in the end:

One Shot Original Footage from Mark Boam on Vimeo.

For our test shot, we also experimented again, however this was not long enough. We came up the idea of reversing footage which worked well and so decided we would use this technique in our final group film.

One shot test shot from Mark Boam on Vimeo.

My Station Ident

2010-10-25T06:27:00.000-07:00

Recently for my first project, I had to design a Station Ident using 3D Max Studio. To be honest I found this one quite a challenge. This was because I have never used this software before, the closest to it-photoshop which is no comparison. I found it interesting and had the opportunity to design anything I wished. When practicing and learning how to use 3D max I learnt how to create "jumping jellies".
This is a rendered still frame:

By learning how to 'wind up and snap' I used this knowledge in my final station ident and also added a twist and changed the name. I changed the colours and added audio also.

My station ident turned out like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogMivIGQlxU

My audio is not in perfect sync with the video however I think it worked in a way. I also created a flower in my station ident which I found interesting and learnt how to clone objects. Since our station ident was to be based on ourselves I used my name and created a flower since poppy is my middle name. Yes it is basic however was all I could manage at this stage. Hopefully I won't find the other two projects as difficult as this one was. And may be able to design something more complex.

However, these three weeks have given me an insight into animation but I don't think I will be wanting to do it in my future career. What I am beginning to become interested in is screen writing for media. I have been doing some back ground research and it looks very interesting.

I did some other research into station idents and came to the conclusion that the signifiers are the colours, logos, theme and audio put into the making of the ident producing a type of brand. Many of them don't really stay in the public eye for long, they dye off. Exceptions do occur as an example the Nokia theme tune ident. In my station ident I am obviously not trying to sell anything however it is a reflection of me and would look acceptable on social networking such as twitter, facebook or even fliker. The semiotics included in my ident were feminine and light hearted. The signs were obvioulsy the wording, ALEX and the flying flower. Semiotics were not complex, they were rather basic. Roland Barthes was actually the person who influenced and designed the conception- semiotics in the late 1960s which is a broad term used. However, in my station ident I do not have a lot of semiotics used and my sound is also basic using two types of 'Boing' used to give the ident a bit of depth and character.

My station ident does not have a noticeable genre, I think it is more of a social construct if it was to be put into a genre category. Obviously does not have a horror/thriller/romance/adventure etc. My ident is what it is really. Through more practice and time I am sure I would be able to grasp 3D max and produce a better station ident but was great introductory project in which i received help from my animation teacher.

My Mulitmedia

2010-10-14T05:31:00.000-07:00

A piece of multimedia technology im interested in at the moment is the iPad. Yes it is just one giant ipod however it is much more complex and great to use for social networking. In which I am on face book a lot of the time!!
The iPad is designed to suit a broad range of users since people can choose what applications they want to download. The iPad is not designed to be essentially a computer to do all work on every day, but are great to use for bussiness and social.
People meeting up in cafes for meetings can use the iPad to demonstrate and show representations and ideas. On the other hand people can use the iPad to play games and generally entertain themselves whilst talking to others online.

I think it is a fantastic invention as well as listening to music, and placing your photos albums on it too. A neat creation as like on the i phone is that you can turn around the Ipad to suit either portrait or landscape view- depending what your looking at. The speed of the internet is pretty impressive to wiht wi-fi network and optional 3G networking. Yoe can even download books and read them on the iPad. They are great organisers too with notes sections/ calender/ calculater etc. It really is a decent mulitmedia invention.

Some people think they are a waste of time saying we can just use laptops/ ipods/iphones etc. But it depends on the person. Off the internet i have downloaded a picture of the iPad.

Whiteboard Animation

2010-10-11T05:19:00.000-07:00

As part of my introduction to multimedia, I had the opportunity of taking part in making a interactive drawing film!.....and so I have seen, it is now up on you-tube! I quite enjoyed making this since it gave me an insight into what factors are intwined with multimedia.

Sketching

2010-10-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I throughly enjoyed the drawing lesson that took place. I didn't realise we were going to be having lessons in drawing, however my first project set is on animation. I felt yesterday that having lectures on sketching is essential in creating my station ident to help me design it.

Our lecturer advised to start drawing anything frequently and so today I sat and drew a Jack Wills bag in my room. Since our station ident is about ourselves,- I am interested in fashion so thought this is relevant to my animation project. Since I have no qualifications in art, I thought this would be a good place to start! I have incorporated it into my blog as follows.

Today, I also had my tutorial in which I found very useful, because I now know what Im doing in my coursework! The most challenging part of the course so far is learning how to use the animation software, but i'm sure I will get the hang of it! Tomorrow I am going to start researching for assignment one. So far I am taken to Reverse Engineering and Market Research-however I have a lot of studying to do!

My Design Process

2010-10-07T09:01:00.000-07:00

During my A levels for my media A2 coursework, I produced a short film documentary genre. I did a lot of research analysing other short film documentaries. I found the BBC channel useful for this. I studied documentaries such as Eel Girl. I also studied sequences from feature films such as Mr and Mrs Smith, Parent Trap to get an idea of lighting, mise-en-scene etc. With the production of my short film I also had to design a poster. And so I also studied and analysed other documentary posters to gather information and ideas eg, The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane. In order to film at The Public I had to produce a Location Recce to confirm it was suitable to film at The Public.

Here are two shots of the exterior and interior of the building:

I decided to film in The Public in West Bromwich. This gave me an insight into design in which a lot of research and planning was needed. In order to design my film I needed to produce a storyboard. I have uploaded my storyboard onto blogger:

I found the storyboard vital in that I could lay out my ideas and so I could get a clear idea what my film was going to include. I could therefore plan, virtualise and produce a narrative.

In order to develop my ideas I wrote three different treatments. This was to include, outline of ideas, resource list, strengths, weaknesses and a conclusion. I also got ten people to fill out a questionnaire in what kind of films they find entertaining and interesting to watch. This helped me choose what to put into my film. For example, asking if it would be ideal to have one presenter throughout the film, what people find boring about documentaries etc.

Even though my film was only five minutes long in total, I recorded over 90 minutes of footage so that it gave me the opportunity to choose what was going to be the final product. I had three drafts in total and used Final Cut to produce the film. I learnt so much from this project not just design but underlying theoretical significant information in filming. Learning how to use a camera, using professional software such as final cut was a challenge however a useful introduction to studying multimedia as a degree. I have taken my a level in media as background knowledge into what is essential to know as a multimedia
student.

test post

2010-09-28T04:55:00.001-07:00

is it working?????