For our final fashion film we decided to have a series of profile videos of four different models, attempting to capture their individuality as naturally as we could. Emphasising fun and female empowerment, by not being afraid of wearing what you want to wear. The way we attempted to attain this individuality was by letting the models choose what they wore for the film only with the premise of “wear something you feel absolutely fabulous in.” As well as asking them their favourite location in Melbourne and projecting that behind them on the green screen. We then cut up the smaller profile videos with group shots to showcase female empowerment through individuality and collectivism. How their fashion individualises them but at the same time unites them.

Our film changed and evolved from what we first pitched. Although much of it stayed the same, for our group shots we originally planned to get as many girls as we could to a location, including our four models, and film them all walking around. This was to further exemplify our theme of female empowerment in our film. However, it proved more difficult than we had expected as not as many people wanted to participate as we thought and finding a location that would be ideal to film a massive group in was a struggle. We ended up just filming the four original models together in a laneway, in the city. We asked them to walk in a series of single lines across the camera, which I think turned out really well when cut and mixed in with the individual profiles. It was also great having the participation from the models, they were all excited and happy be in the film.

The main aspect of our film that worked really well was the actual filming. We managed to film every model in the green screen in one day. We didn’t need to ask any of them back for a reshoot as we got enough variations of different shots, that we could be selective of which ones we put in the film. I think that we achieved this by having two cameras on set, one which was set to a static wide shot on a tripod and another hand held camera, where we got close-ups and tracking shots. Our group also worked really efficiently together. We each filmed a different location for the models each, as well as dividing the editing equally. This meant we used our time competently, communicating in a proficient manner and overall reducing stress levels as we knew we could rely on each other to get the work we needed done. I thoroughly enjoyed editing this film as I have never used green screen before, so it was interesting to learn how to apply it and the different ways you could use it. At first we only had single shots of the models in their profiles but then after playing around we decided that it looked better to have a double up of them in one shot. I felt that having one close up shot and one wide shot of the model layered on top of each other gave it more depth and made it more interesting. We were also lucky in being able to find a royalty free song that fit so well with our final film. It lined up so that with each model the song changed a little bit and we didn’t even need to cut the song that much for it to line up.

Even though for the most of the making of this film went really smoothly, there were a few bumps in the road along the way. An aspect that was tricky was time management. Trying to organise a time for the group when all the girls were available on the same day at the same time was extremely difficult. Hence why having a massive group shot didn’t work out either. Although we did manage to find a day that worked for everyone, it meant we had to film later than we would have liked, throwing our schedule behind a bit. We also made a very simple mistake of not pressing record on some of the group shots. This happened because we were doing a test shot first to make sure the scene and the girls were in focus, however we forgot to press record again after this for a few takes. This did not affect our film too significantly because we had so many other great shots that we could use, but I have definitely learnt from this mistake, to double check the camera is actually recording. There were also some models who were more natural on camera than others. Two of the girls were definitely more extroverted and weren’t afraid to move and dance around, however two were far more introverted and were more shy in their movements. While filming we got a little concerned as we thought it may not work out, nevertheless in the editing process it turned out really well. We edited the film so the profiles mixed the introverts next to the extroverts and this only further made our point of individuality between each of the girls.

If I were to do this project again I think I would definitely plan out what kind of directions to give the models on the day. I found that we didn’t spend as much time on planning what kind of movements we wanted our models to have, or thinking about what would look better on screen. It still turned out really well but I think if we had more ideas and ways to motivate the more introverted models, we could of had a more diverse range of shots to select from. We were aiming to be quite experimental with our film, by using the green screen, however I feel like we could have taken it further. I would have liked to play around with adding more layers to the green screen, by making the footage of the model appear and disappear around all different parts of the screen, even adding an effect on the model footage could have added an extra element

In conclusion I further developed my learning in film making and editing skills. I gained inspiration from my own experience as a female from collaborating with women, and in some sense am more experimental with the clothes I choose to wear. Most importantly I learnt what is and how to make a fashion film within this process. It was interesting to think about film in new perspectives and now I can identify and think more deeply and broadly about fashion film when I see it within the media.