When I began the studio, I had one clear goal in my sights and that was to create something I haven’t created before, go against the norm and challenge the typical norms of what fashion films are. In saying this my knowledge of what fashion film was, was quite scarce. However, after a few classes my understating started to become more clear and ideas of my own started to form. The progressiveness of the course was very helpful in determining what the final film would be like. We developed our skills week by week and although at times it seemed repetitive the constant reassurance made me more confident in my own skills that I acquired before coming into the studio. The biggest aspect of learning I did throughout the course was to effectively work in a team and be collaborative. My experiences up until now have always been in a group environment but we were always working on our own films and vision. However, in this instance we had to develop, implement and execute an idea as two minds. This I think overall worked effectively. Although, knowing how Claudia worked creatively and physically was a great advantage and it helped us further our working relationship even more.
Aside from the collaboration development I think another element of learning for me was understating the fashion film medium itself. My first thoughts were simply what you see on TV; commercialised brands trying to sell clothes. However, I have progressively learnt that it is so much more than that. Fashion film encompasses a huge amount of detail. It can be a documentary, a narrative, a feel, a look, a smell, the possibilities are endless. Knowing this we as a group and as individuals brought our background in film making and this new-found knowledge to produce an avant-garde piece of work that defied the common tropes surrounding fashion film.
Creating this film was truly a great experience. From the start, me and Claudia were very clear that we wanted it to be bold and to tell a story that actively involved the audience to think and reflect rather than just mindlessly consume. The most successful aspect of the film was our dedication to the project. After three years of producing by the book media and film we wanted to let our visions fly, particularly with colour, lighting and costuming. We have learnt and were encouraged again that pre-production was one of the most important aspects of filmmaking and I think this time we listened. I believe that the time we put in to understating our story as filmmakers and making sure that every action had purpose and meaning paid off in the end. We were both able to go into our shoot day confidently knowing what we wanted the film to look, feel and sound like. In addition, the organisation of props, cast, crew and lighting were very well planned and executed. I owe a huge amount of appreciation to Claudia as she did take charge of the project and was very efficient in getting jobs done. Her dedication to the creative vision was what helped get the project across the line.
When it came to the day of the shoot we felt calm but still a bit nervous as we wanted to get the perfect shots as we pictured them in our heads. The organisation of the day was well planned and we stuck to schedule as much as possible. As with most film projects there are always hiccups and the biggest thing I can take away from the shoot day was to have budgeted more time to get the shoot done. The few extra hours would have ensured that we got the perfect take of each shot. This is not to say that we didn’t get good takes because we did but for future this is a good learning curve. That if you want the shoot done to 100% satisfaction budget enough time. I think the reason we didn’t pick this up earlier was because we have always had ample time to get shoots done in the past so we thought we would have enough time. Although it was a one day shoot on a Sunday our jobs lasted all weekend but the professionalism of the nine plus cast and crew was a huge help. Everybody was on time and ready to work and I think this was one of the reasons it ran so smoothly.
Thanks to the nature of the film which was minimal shots the editing process was not that taxing. The hardest part was ensuring that our sound and atmos matched the story we were trying to tell. Again, thanks to the creative and perceptive eye of my team mate Claudia, we could troubleshoot through problems in the edit suite and produce a final film we were both proud of. Not only were we proud but it personally met my goal at the start of semester to create something I haven’t done before and a piece of work that questions the norms. I think the audience is captivated by the story and the experience of the film and they can consider what happened even after it is finished.
Overall, I think my performance in the studio has been personally good. I love how I could just be a bit creative and we were left to our own devices to create. Not many times in university are you allowed to just be creative and I think it has paid off because this was one of the best studios I have been a part of. I feel I have been an asset to my team logistically and creatively but I think I have also understood where my strengths lie. By understanding this, I have let others delve into their own strengths and together we have made a film we are proud of. The constant support from Christina and the other teachers throughout the course has been very helpful because they were not intrusive but were there when we needed help. Overall, a great experience and learning curve for myself as filmmaker and as a team player.