Due to the terrible combination of my own disorganisation thus far in semester and being slightly time poor I haven’t really scouted a proper location. After I had initially written the idea concentrating on mood, I started to think of locations to shoot. In terms of convenience and the ability to set up shoot for an extended amount of time, I could only think of friend’s family homes. As I’m writing this I’m sitting in my own bedroom, a location I thought about for the first shot, and I realise there is very distinct difference between the aesthetics of a share house and a family home.

When writing initially I had this idealistic notion of a share house in mind. A place where the party never stops, discussion never falters and something is always happening. Obviously, I’ve never lived in a share house but that’s what I have imagined it to be like and that’s what I though about when exploring this idea. Family homes have a very different mood; they bear artefacts of childhood and are usually very idiosyncratic. In terms of a location I wanted something bare, utilitarian and uncluttered by history.

In terms of the first shot that came to mind, translating this to my own room works to an extent. However, the floor to ceiling window beside my bed makes my devised shot somewhat awkward. I’d be concerned I wouldn’t be able to get the smoke to blow out the window. In terms of composition I think having a smaller widow would allow for  more interesting lighting within the shot. Conversely having a frame within a frame could prove to be visually interesting and highlight the smoke as it drifts out of the window.

I believe that the location will have a fairly drastic impact on the creative process for one main reason. I feel that by shooting in my own home a story intended to raw and gritty would become bland and a little too warm (If that makes sense). I just know that as a director I would not believe this story could take place in a house like mine. This doubt would then become evident in my direction of actors in the space and also just how I shot the space. In opposition to his though, shooting in my own home would provide me with unlimited access to the location. I would be able to rehearse every scene meticulously and I would also have a greater knowledge of lighting conditions and spatial issues. However, these benefits do not sway my belief that I wouldn’t be able to shoot a share house drama in a family home. I guess I better start scoping friend’s houses for potential locations that I could take over for a weekend or so….