Previous to the class Sonic Materialities I had little sound or sound manipulation experience. Throughout my degree I have continuously struggled with the concept of sound and effectively implementing it into my other various projects throughout the course. Taking the sonic materialities studio will hopefully allow me to hone in on skills I am yet to develop and create a safe place for me to understand how to use sound.
The assignment was to create and produce an audio collage or a soundscape. What better way to begin this challenge other than learning a bit about the history, of soundscape and how sound works. Pierre Schaeffer is understood as one of leading professionals and composers that created the what is referred to as today as a soundscape. In 1948 Schaeffer produced the piece ‘Etude aux chemins de fer’, this music concrete was a combination of train sounds. For the assignment audio collage I took the idea of taking ordinary sounds like tapping away at a bin and creating a soundscape, exploring the idea that everyday surroundings arepossibly something musical.
The elements I chose to work with during this project were items around RMIT university. I chose to use a bin and a board as my entire sound piece and tap or scratch on these items to create different sounds. Taking into account Michel Chion’s 3 modes of listening I was able first casually listen to the objects I was using and recognise that the sounds origin. Through editing on audition i was able to make these sounds into a soundscape. As i am very new to the whole sound thing i decided the most editing i was going to do was to cut and control where i placed each sound piece. I was able to loop some of my sounds to create a form of a song.
during editing i found it really difficult to navigate the software, i gave up a few times even after watching and rewatching youtube tutorials on how to use it. Out of everything i have encountered during my degree this subject has definitely been the most complex so far. I have realised during this process that sound and editing in general is extremely hard for me to grasp. I plan to focus on it more in the hopes of getting more confident with the whole thing.
Im hoping that throughout this subject i am able to develop more skills, i feel at them moment that i have a lot of work to do especially in audition and learning how to navigate using all of the softwares tools.
The screenshot above is during the editing process of the soundscape.
Being introduced to the notion of sound was what this class was about. We spoke about how much we each individually know about sound and what we wanted to get out of the class.
for me I wanted to harness my sound and audio skills especially using the audition program because i have little to no with it before during my degree. For me this is the missing element to my skill set and something i want to get a good grasp on by the end of this semester.
sound is something we don’t think about so much because we use our sight first and foremost to decipher our surroundings. Thus this course will be interesting as i will be able to explore the concept of sound more.
I have set my goals:
be able to use the tools on Audition
be able to use microphones
be able to be a creative with sound and feel confident with what i produce in this class
The development of the sketch came from brainstorming different ideas that would make a fun sketch whilst also being a message or making a point for feminism.
Together we came up with some great smaller ideas, some of them were really good initially but lacked the meatiness of a great sketch because we couldn’t quite get the story to unfold. We did have one solid sketch idea, the premise of it was to make feminism a horror movie. The sketch would be set in the 1950s where the notion of modern day feminism (modern day 2019), would be a shock to the system for anyone in the 1950s let alone a man who couldn’t understand what feminism even was, he would be terrified of it. The notions of a women resembling a man and doing the things that he did would be the horror of the film. Throughout the development of this idea, Daisy the female character in this sketch was ‘born’ and would play the transforming role in the sketch. She would begin in as a women of her time periodfrightened of the notion of feminism too, however she would faint and be transported to a modernised world where she experiences feminism as a good thing. Her character upon waking up in the 1950s would have changed entirely and made her feminist. This character arc would push the male character John (her boyfriend) to faint as the ketch conclusion.The ending would showcase the complete1 role reversal of the two characters.Daisy’s vision of a feminist world makes her stronger and as a result of this John is weakened and made more feminine.
Together Georgia and I wrote the first draft of this script over various FaceTime sessions. We were so excited about the idea of this script and we were able to smash out the first draft quickly as we worked together really well, I found that our humour was somewhat similar and we were both good with communication when it came to being respectful of each others creative ideas. I have to admit that without Georgia I wouldn’t have been able to complete this assignment, she has been at the forefront of getting things done and been such a reliable person to work with, I am so grateful to have been paired up with such a smart person and I don’t think we would have gotten the results or incredible ideas without her input.
The first draft feedback I found to be a valuable experience that helped redevelop the script in a positive way. From the feedback we understood that our script was more of a short story and needed to jump right into the premise and stay on the premise. What I mean about this is that the Sketch was predominately about feminism being a horror movie, however with the vision that Daisy has transporting her to all these different places and locations the sketch became too long and sort of lost its humour along with it. We understood that the ending needed to have more of a bang element, either a good solid twist or one liner. With that we understood that honing in on the beginning and extending it would make the premise more pronounced. Creating a conversation between the two characters regarding what they had watched ‘the feminist horror’ would create content and make the sketch meatier in both humour and in relation to the theme feminism rather than jumping into Daisy’s vision which made the sketch to long.
When redeveloping our final script we chopped and changed to incorporate the feedback we had received. We took away the vision, we extended their conversation making it more about their reactions to feminism as a horror story which was the premise. We extended the fist bit adding in imagery that showcased feminism in the horror of it all instead of just using words. At the very end we used a punch line that we thought women wood resinate Wirth and find humour in to create our finishing off joke. We were able to create a sketch that held its premise wasn’t too lengthy, had meatier jokes and was able to get a message about feminism across.
Specifically we used exaggeration in our language and exaggerated gender stereotypes to enhance and develop the comedy itself. Ferguson offers the idea that exaggeration (Ferguson, 2010) is used as a device in comedy to accentuate certain ideas or create absurdities that the viewers will recognise as funny. Further I was watching a Buzzfeed video (If Women’s Roles In Movies Were Played By Men, Buzzfeed 2014) that replaced female characters with male characters in famous films. This showed me the value in role reversal as a technique for our sketch.
The sketch we developed focused specifically on gender roles prominent in the 1950s as well as in 2019. Through the concept of flipping gender roles or even exaggerating gender roles the sketch was able to make a point for feminism. Using gender roles as well as time period and showing the difference between the 1950s to our modern day and age we were able to create something that showcased the positives of what feminism has done for women. Through humour we were able to address these themes in a way that addressed feminism and the issues that women faced in the past. Our script taps into the psyche of a man and a women in the 1950s as well as showing truisms of what feminism was both then and now. Our ending for the script allows the audience t understand that although Daisy’s character was conditioned by her time and place she was no different to the women of today her line about holding in her fart allows us as an audience and me as a women too to resinate with her character and understand her on a feminist level.
Comedy is used in the script as a way to express our intended feminist message that, women then (the 1950s) and now in our modern age were not all that different and that we as a collective want the same things. By showing that feminism is a ‘ horror movie’ in the script we have been able to play on the notion that feminism is a huge wave of change and that it’s scary for the people ‘men’ it takes something away from. I think through comedy we have brushed on a topic that mostly society tries not to talk about and that is what happens to men if women can do all the same things just as well… No longer do we need men to pay the bills, do the handy work, run a country or even to an extent make families. I think through this sketch we touch on two ideas: one that women have really always wanted the same things, that is their own sense of self, power, independence and worth. Secondly, that men are afraid of this equality that it might be shockingly taking something away from them and that once it is gone what are they left with? The intended feminist message of the script is to showcase these two ideas and emphasise their impact on society through comedy as comedy is easy to digest when it grapples with such heavy worldly issues.
Ferguson, T. (2013). The cheeky monkey. Strawberry Hills, N.S.W.: Currency Press, p.9.
Buzzfeed Celeb, (2014). If Women’s Roles In Movies Were Played By Men. Youtube.
Saturday Night Live (SNL) is an American late night television show, famous for its comedic sketches which often relate contemporary culture and politics to its parodies. Interestingly these sketch comedies shed light on issues or make a point for social change, equality or justice.
SNLs sketch Hermione’s Growth Spurt is a five minute parody of Harry Potter, it follows the return of Hogwarts students Harry, Ron and Hermione after summer break. Hermione (played by Lindsey Lohan) is naive to her physical changes over the summer as she has undergone a “growth spurt”. Hermione doesn’t notice any difference to herself, however the male students, can’t help but notice and react to her change to the point of distraction. The Sketch uses comedy to present themes such as gender stereotypes and more precisely males behaviour in regards to how they react to women and their sexuality. By applying specific principles of comedy in conjunction with filmmaking codes and conventions, the sketch is effective in not only entertainment value but also shedding light on particular social issues, inequalities and injustices. Mary O’Hara a journalist who specialises in comedy said “humour is a form of psychological processing, a coping mechanism that helps people to deal with complex and contradictory messages” she highlights that comedy is used to address issues in a way in which it is easier to understand or easier to be told.
Comedy theorist Tim Ferguson developed specific examples and principles that work to understand and aid the creation of comedy.By examining the Sketch Hermione’s Growth Spurt, certain devices and techniques that Ferguson offers in his writings (Ferguson, 2010) can be found. These principles are used alongside filmmaking codes and conventions such as costume design, mise-en-scene, acting, camera angles and setting in order to manifest the parody.
Ferguson offers the idea that exaggeration is used as a device in comedy to accentuate certain ideas or create absurdities that the viewers will recognise as funny. The Sketch Hermione’s Growth Spurt uses this tool to create comedy. The sketch exaggerates (Ferguson, 2010) elements such as costume design: the costume for the character Hermione is made to emphasise her ‘newly grown’ breasts, exposing them enough to highlight or exaggerate her cleavage. Furthermore the rest of Hermione’s costume is tight and short exposing lots of skin. This costume design choice was put in place to exaggerate and ploy to the idea of promiscuity and is used to sexualise an otherwise un-sexual character. Furthermore, acting is used to exaggerate or point out the obviously without overtly saying it in the sketch. The male characters use exaggeration in their acting through boisterous body language ,extreme facial expressions as well as specific tone and pitch in their voices in order to obviously react to Hermione’s physical appearance in a way that the audience will pick up on her ‘growth spurt’ without overtly alluding to her physical change. Moreover, the acting of Hermione’s character is also used as an exaggeration in the sketch as she uses her positioning to accentuate her breasts continuously throughout the performance. For example, The way Hermione ‘casts spells’ is also designed to exaggerate her breasts, her movements throughout the sketch are always to emphasise them through squeezing her breast together or pushing them out by arching her back. Another example of Hermione’s exaggeration in acting is using props to accentuate her breasts too, in the part of the sketch where the character lifts the magnified glass to her chest in order to enlarge her breasts the audience is ployed to find humour in it . Camera angels are also used to help exaggerate certain points in the sketch too, for example on camera shots of Hermione the camera is always using close ups to be inclusive of her breasts and not too much else.
Ferguson also offers the idea of nonsense scenarios, the idea that applying “faulty logic to known absolutes and truisms”, will create humour because audiences will understand their “absurdities”. (Ferguson, 2010). The original Harry Potter series both in the films and the novels has as unique landscape, the setting in the sketch is still true to the original, however is add laughter backing tracks and the change of costume design to create humour. These are considered absurd by the viewer as they don’t conform with the original. The sketch plays with the original style so much but in a. Way that still reflects the norm of what audiences know, thus creating humour from this parody form of what they originally recognise.
Through the sketch Hermione’s Growth Spurt gender stereotypes are addressed and make a point for social change. the sketch uses comedy to bring awareness to gender roles on an exaggerated level. By accentuating the Hermione’s breasts audiences witness how the male characters react and treat Hermione. Throughout the narrative, Hermione is seriously attempting to stop Harry from being attacked by Lord Voldemort. However, she is not listened to by the male characters because they are distracted. With consistence innuendos throughout the sketch and objectifications of Hermione audiences learn two things. One, that women aren’t heard but are only there for their appearance and sexual value, and two that men are nothing more than slaves to their sexual urges. This is addressed comedically through funny facial expressions, stammering voices, sexual innuendos and Hermione’s obliviousness to her growth spurt. The Sketch uses comedy to highlight social issues that permeate society, it takes a real life situation of a teenage girl going through puberty and exaggerates it.
This sketch is able to bring awareness to the theme of gender stereotypes and gender roles in society. The sketch presents them in a way that makes them easier to digest, through comedic relief audiences can understand that the main incentive or intended message of this sketch was to challenge the ideas society has about the role of teenage girls and boys when faced with the notion of sexuality and puberty.
References:
Ferguson, T. (2013). The cheeky monkey. Strawberry Hills, N.S.W.: Currency Press, p.9.
Mary O’Hara (2016), How Comedy Makes us Better People. BBC Future.
Small Things was actually my first choice for studios this semester what intrigued me was the idea of putting small ideas into action and that was what interested me in the class all together. Before this studio i didn’t really have a grasp of the whole editing thing, was constantly hoping for the best and not really knowing how to use the correct software to edit, premiere pro that is. However, after completing this studio I have enhanced my skill set in the editing suite, i am able to navigate the software and use it in a much more professional way and my confidence has definitely grown with it. The most fantastic thing about the studio was that every class were learnt how to use different equipment properly how to set it up to put it away and how to use its functions to serve our purpose (for example, white balance and focusing). I had an idea of what the studio might be like before it commenced but i was pleasantly surprised that i got so much out of it, i learnt so many new skills that i will take away wiht me for life and that is an incredible outcome for someone who was using Imovie beforehand. Small things worked perfectly as it was easy to tackle small projects and hone in on my skills instead of being overwhelmed with a huge task and not developing my skills well incase the big task would have taken away from getting to know how to learn small functions. i think i would have never have been so successful in my learning had it been one massive film we were shooting the entire time. The course has shown me how meticulous and detailed everything is when it comes to production and didn’t like matching up the wild lines to the film footage was something i learnt within this course and something i never would have thought about previous, its effect was miraculous and so big on any project. What was also beautiful about this course was the idea of making perfect shots and not to shoot the shit out of something, to take the time to focus and get everything perfect so that time wasn’t wasted later. Teaching me patience and attention to detail. I feel like I have acquired so many skills, i am so much more organised in my post production now because of this course. its been an incredible opportunity to learn and develop this skill set.
Working in a team:
This assignment was such an experience learning to work well in a team was a component. we had our challenges when it came to communicating all the time as we all had so many commitments. So for example picking a time to shoot took a bit of time to organise so that it was a good time for everyone. Obviously everyone is different and has different personalities these sometimes clash or work well together, i’m lucky i was laced in a very cooperative group who wanted the best for everyone and for everyone to be heard and have a say. what i found is that it was easy to speak up and put froth my own creative ideas that were taken on for everyone in a group. We all learnt how to cooperate with each other through this journey, we learnt how to be flexible and understanding of each others needs whilst working together to get the project done. This group was lovely and there were no significant issues. It was hard to always be on the ball when it came to our online discussions, or to reorganise the reshoot was also difficult based on everyones availability and due to the lack of availability for one of the actors that created stress for the group.
reflection:
the aims of the production we had as a group:
As students we wanted to hone in on all the skills we were learning in the studio and implement them in our project like the audio and the function wiht the camera. This project was the time in the studio where we were really given the go to be creative and do something freely. Thus our aim was to take the skills and constraints we had previously in the class and do something special with them in our own terms.
Sound for our film:
it was important for us to finds music that represented the characters well. For example the superhero to have string loud music that accompanied the character while they were onscreen. What was also important was finding a a siren alarm to accompany the footage at the beginning. We found this naturally whilst out and about filming we were able to grab audio of a siren but also found an artificial siren to enhance the original in post production editing.
Camera:
on the day of shooting we were experiment in the fact that we tried movement to enhance the effect of the superhero flying. We wanted the audience to feel like they were moving too, that they were following the superhero closely enough hat they might even be about to fly. we mostly used the tripod in shot to create stability and ensure professionalism. And with the help of Aarons and his steady hands we also managed to shoot a few things hand held to enhance movement and create a sense of POV when necessary. I guess with the camera we were trying hard to make it look sturdy but also experimental at that same time, trail and error to see what would work best and to have enough material to choose from in editing. We used the story board on the day of shooting in order to run smoothy with the camera, then we knew what types of shot to set up, close ups, wide shots, mid shots, POV shots, Over the shoulder shots. Its was all mapped out for us. when it came to lighting in regards to the camera we used the filters when necessary to create light balance, we also adjusted exposure, focus and white balance to get the perfect shot.
Lighting:
was easy to set up we didn’t need to use too much artificial light, only in the inside scenes we used two LED lights to create definition and atmosphere in the footage, shot. otherwise we were lucky to shoot on a bright sunny day and use natural light in out filming. We used the sun as high key lighting in our out doors scenes. We ere also able to enhance and change the lighting up using colour grading in the editing post production.
Editing:
when it came to editing it was a big task:
there were two shoot and that meant sifting through two different folders and making sure i was super organised with premiere so none of the files would be unfindable. through meticulous organisation i was able to keep on tip of where everything was. I was able to match up or sync the audio with the dialogue in the footage by using our log sheet i was able to match up the correct sound to the correct footage. A skill i had learnt previously within the class.
in the editing suite i was able to make my own narrative out of the footage we had all shot together it was interesting to see what everyone came up with individually but using the same material. Really saw everyone in our teams own individuality when it came to creativity even within the collaboration.
During the editing there was one shot i wanted to use twice: the one of the friend being shocked to see the superhero. originally this shot was meant to be placed when the superhero was entering the elevator, but it wanted to use it before hand as well so i flipped it so i could use it for both the elevator moment and when the friend first makes eye contact with the superhero.
Colour grading was a huge part of our editing process, we wanted the footage to be bright and colourful to match the outfit/ costume of the superhero. Thus we enhanced all of the colour so that its was very dramatic and colourfully bright,. Further Because red was the theme colour of the narrative i in the editing used the colour grading to enhance any red throughout the footage to be much brighter than ay other colour, using it to enhance the title, and making the colour in the film almost a character in itself.
i struggled putting the titles in on the footage, as it was a skill i hadn’t learnt yet but learnt by watching youtube tutorials during the editing process. Not only that the team i was with was amazing when i had questions for them about how to do something whilst editing that i didn’t understand how to do they were there to help me and were so helpful during that process, as editing was definitely not my string suite coming into the class.
as a reflection, this class was amazing i enhanced my skills and learnt new ones i will take away wiht me forever.
In this final cut I strung together all of the clips from the vast range of footage we had produced in our filming.
I paired these shots with sound either using pre-made sound affects such as a siren or music to fit and enhance the footage, adding to the narrative of the film. I also used the audio captured using wild lines to make sure any of the dialogue in the film was clear and strong and didn’t sound muffled like it in the footage captured.
I also played around with colour grading for the film, to filter it. During pre- production as a tram we decided we wanted the film to be vibrant and colourful as in most superhero films the colours are more vibrant and artificial looking than in not superhero films. ITs almost like a signature filter for this sort of genre. So in the editing of my film i decided as the films predominant theme is red i would enhance the richness of the red in the footage.
through the various stages of editing this film together i was introduced to different things about how to use Premier Pro, there were things i wasn’t sure how to do or how to accomplish but through the use of online forums, youtube and the help of my amazing team i was able to learn and take on board new skills in the editing process. for example matching up audio and footage to make sure they link at the correct time was something i didn’t know how to accomplish but learnt during this process.
we attempted to get everything done one the first day but needed to reshoot some scenes for example we wanted to reshoot the scene withe character of the friend running up the stair case i think we didn’t frame the shot right and one of our crew members accidentally made it into a crucial part, however due to scheduling we weren’t able to reshot that scene as planned. Further the scene wasn’t lit well either we forgot to use the orange filter to balance the colour and lighting- big mistake but as a team we learnt from it. However other scenes were reshot with the character of the super hero and the team were able to also grab more material to play around with in the editing of the film such as different options for making it look like the super hero is flying at the end. Whether that was shooting just the feet, of making it look like its a POV shot through filming it through the eye mask that the character was wearing as a prop (miseenscene).
through the reshoots the team were also able to grab more wild lines and recording atmos of different environments for the editing as well.
On the shooting day, we arrived at the location 3 hours early than the actors. We planed the order of what to film and where setting up the equipment as we went. We rehearsed every shot before we even began so that we knew what we had to get done and didn’t waste any time. Organisation is key.We even practiced the light settings. the shoot ran pretty smoothly as we kept to plan getting everything done in what we thought was going to be on day of shooting. During the production is was in charge of lighting, set up, audio and the log sheet. We use two LED panel to use as the key light and fill light. We also use the bounce board at the outdoor scene in order to accentuate the sun light outside and make the most of the natural lighting.
here are some photos of we shot during production to capture the teams experience:
Pre Production began with getting into our groups and picking the script we wanted to work with all together. We decided t go with the script for the film : The Red Cape
the films plot was based on two characters, following the narrative that one was a duper hero planning to fly and the other a friend who thought that he couldn’t
Where to go to from here we put our heads together and worked through a checklist of things that needed to be done in order to produce, shoot and edit this film together. Firstly we had to make sure the script was in order: in our case the group wasn’t too happy with the ending and so as a team we discussed the best possible was to conclude the narrative and how we would be able to have a superhero ‘fly’ and have that come across on the screen without looking fake as challenging. We decided to film this through not actually showing the flying but simulating it through film the cape buoyant in the wind. Further we needed to find locations for where we wanted to shoot the narrative this meant going out and scouting the best spots and finding out if we could even use these places from the owners of these places, for example we had to find a car park location for the scene where the superhero takes flight, we chose one car park originally but the owner came back with permission only if we paid a large amount of money which we weren’t so willing to abide by. So the group conjured up the idea to use the RMIT car park on one of the days that it would be open. We also had to fins actors which meant writing up a casting call (attached below) and scouting actors from friends to online platforms such as star now in order to find our talent. we also had to story board what we wanted the film to somewhat look like, so once the locations were found we set out to take photos of the shot sequences we would shoot on the day (attached below). There was more on our checklist of things to do: for example making sure we booked out the right equipment and had it at the right time of our shooting too. Pre Production was actually very fun and interesting, we had to ,plan meticulously in order to make sure we had all the necessary things together to make sure our production ran smoothly. It was a good test of organisational skills and collaboration working with different people and different ideas and making sure everyone was content with the final decisions. Here are some of the documents we put together during pre production:
For this task we were set out to film the process of making the bed. Restrictions for this small clip included, a time frame between 20-40 seconds and that there was to be sound occurring within the clip but no music.
preproduction for this small project i decided to map out the type of shots i would use to insinuate myself making a bed without actually being in the shot itself. I wanted the idea that the audience would feel like they were experiencing the bed making process and not just observing it, with that in mind i decided I was going to concentrate on the fabric of my sheets as a sort of character in the clip and not just an object.
for lighting i decided to use only natural light that was coming through my bedroom widnow
i used my phone to capture the footage and the sound as i was not yet comfortable to capture my audio separately and sync the two materials together.
I didn’t like that i would have to use my phone for another project at home i think the phone doesn’t look so great once its edited together.
i filmed this using POV for every shot, i wanted no person to be in it i wanted the audience to feel like they were in it.
in editing i uploaded all the files to premiere and edited the sequence together.
reflection:
looking back at the clip, i don’t like it so much i wasn’t entirely happy with the way it turned out. the footage itself wasn’t to the standard i wanted it or envision and i think that is p to the fact that i didn’t not have a tripod, and that i filmed it on my phone. i also attempted to incorporate movement in the camera and experiment with it, but i decided i don’t like that because it makes it seem less professional. i think in the future i will take more time to plan pre production and determine which way is the best way to capture the project briefs i have been given. I will also take more shots during production to give myself more options when it comes to editing. I think i didn’t give myself enough time to complete this project with confidence and thus the clip lacked because of it. My take away from this small clip, is to do more set up and more planning to really know and understand what the aims for each project is.
Clip 2: Two line script:
for this project we began by developing a two line script: here we had to insinuate camera direction by writing in action for the narrative within the script. The limitation that the script was to have two lines. For my script i took the approach of minimalism i set this script in a bathroom between two sisters. It begins with one sister standing by the mirror, then the second one enters the room and asks the one in front of the mirror “is that my t-shirt?’, the sister in front of the mirror turns to look at the one in the doorway questioning her and replies “no”. I felt like the script could have lots of different shots within a small narrative. You could have your establishing shot in the bathroom introducing sister number 1 and then sister 2 would be introduced using a close up, her face would be frustrated because she’s annoyed at her sister she think she’s taken her t-shirt. The Dialogue could be captured using mid shots as it shows the characters.
In class we were split into groups and asked to choose a script to work with, our group decided to go with Jaie’s script which consisted with two lines: “Fine” and “good”.
we made a story board from the script illustrating what each shot in the scene would look like, for example our first shot being a wide shot establishing Sterling (character 1) being on the phone with Nathaniel (character 2). the next shot was to consist of a close up on Sterlings face as he says “good… fine”. the shot after that to be a close up on Nathaniel’s face as she says “fine” and hangs up the phone. the next shot was to be a close up on the phone Nathaniel puts down and then to focus on a dead body int he background of the shot. The last shot being a wide/ mid shot of Nathaniel dragging the dead body out of the cameras view and out of the shot.
we then made a audio list of all the things we were going to need to capture including the folly, the wild lines and the atmos. The atmos being predominately the sound of congestion of noise pollution throughout the university. to make the scene sound as if they are crowded. The wild lines would be the characters running the lines so that in editing we could sync the footage to the audio and have a much richer sound to accompany the footage. The folly sound would be the sound of the dead body dragging, we used my shoes against the ground to recreate this.
we were then given a shot list so that when we were filing we could match up the sound clips to each footage clip so that in editing we would be able to sync it easily. further we were instructed to clap before the take so that in editing it would be easier to sync everything together
Production:
we found our locations (stair cases)
during the filming setting up our equipment and filming was very easy for su we knew how to use the equipment and were confident in what we were doing when it came to white balance and focus.
we had a bit of trouble getting the audio to sound good on every take so we had to do that a few times.
also focusing the shot with the phone and then where the camera had to refocus on the body behind the phone was a little bit more complicated but we managed to get a great shot in the end
most difficult was setting up the perfect shot and having extraneous variables interfering, like sound from outside eg trams, and people trying to pass us and making us move our cameras, meaning we would have to reset up and refocus all of our shot all the time.
Editing:
I edited this video together with Grace in the editing suites
we both shared a similar vision for the way in which we wanted to edit the film and put it together which made it easy for us to work together
we struggled uploading and importing the files onto Premiere but got there in the end and just decided to go for it.
we also had difficulty in working out how to sync the footage with the audio files, not because of the shot sheet that was organised well and we knew which clips to match, it was more the process of doing it, like what to actually press to sync them up. Once we figured it out the process of editing ran really smoothly and we managed to conjure up a small film.
we named it : Don’t Stair
reflection:
upon looking back at the whole process i have to say at the beginning i thought i wouldn’t be Abel to understand how to match and sync up audio files with the footage. the idea of it scared me and i didnt know know to tackle it. Also the idea of even capturing seperate audio i didn’t understand the necessity of it i thought that the audio that comes with the clip would be enough. Now looking back, i am still unsure of hoe to actually use the equipment to capture the audio as i didn’t really get a chance to work with the equipment myself, i do however see the benefits of using audio above the audio that comes with the clip, it so much richer in sound and ads a whole layer of complexity to the final product. I have learnt how to manager the process of syncing footage and audio together in premiere during the editing, and i feel so much more confident with my skills now that i have tackled that.
The first shot in this sequence is wide long shot, it establishes the setting of the scene or narrative, in this instance it establishes a cottage that stands alone in field. This secludedness of the cottage suggests that it is set on a type of farm and the sound accompanying the footage is quiet Erie signifying a sense if seclusion. Further the Lighting within this first shot casts a shadow over the cottage almost foreshadowing a sort of darkness looming within the cottage and also a juxtaposition to the outside of the cottage which is bright and in the open. The first character (the dairy farmer) is introduced with an angel shot, the direction of this angel gives the perception that he is powerful as it is positioned below him. the scene goes on to introduce a woman who notices car coming in the distance this shot is accompanied by a piano/ western music piece, the music change also changes the pace of the sound, it goes from being pretty much silent and eire to faster paced and causes a panic which is reflected in the acting of both the dairy farmer and the woman as the farmer instructs her to go inside with her sisters and ‘hide’ so to speak. The dialogue is french and has english subtitles at the bottom of the screen. Having the actors speaking in french alerts the audience that this film is set in the French county side and also adds a layer of authenticity to the acting, allowing audiences to get ‘lost’ in the narrative and suspend their disbelief. Jumping to the point in the scene where the next main character is introduced, Hans Lander is introduced wearing a long leather coat and soldier uniform. His leather coat informs the audience that he is an officer and also informs the audience the setting time and place. For this gives away that this scene is set within WW2 France. Jumping the second setting within the opening sequence, we find that the characters have moved inside the cottage. This setting is established with chiaroscuro lighting signifying a sense of darkness and mystery perhaps even foreshadowing a sense of doom. from this establishing shot in the cottage the front door is in frame and the light from outside seeps through into the dark room, this also signifies a sense of entrapment within the cottage which is played out by the characters as well as the soldier Hans is questioning the dairy farmer. The props in this scene are meticulously placed in order to suggest things about the situation and the narrative. for example the glass of milk in this scene is left empty suggesting a bad situation and foreshadowing a sense of danger. further Hans smokes a trumpet, this large almost phallic symbol shows the audience or allows them to suggest that Hans is desperate to accentuate his power and needs to feel the most powerful in the room. From here the camera dollies around the table where both characters sit, this circling motion creates a a sense of entrapment, and accompanies the interrogation that is taking place as Hans questions the dairy farmer. The camera then cranes below the surface of the floor, and introduces us to our next character Shoshanna who is hiding underneath the floor boards. The narrative of this scene is Hans questioning the diary farmer about the location of where Shoshanna is and the dairy farmer doesn’t want to give it away that he is hiding her. The scene concludes with hans figuring out that Shoshanna is hiding and the scene escalates with the sound of drums and the sound of gun shots shooting at the floor trying to kill her. the closing shot of the scene is a long shot of Shoshanna running away into the distance and getting away, here the character Hans screams out after her. I chose this scene because inglorious bastards is one of my all time favourites films, director Tarantino meticulously places everything within the frame (miseenscene) so that it has purpose, he also directs the shots to establish character traits and signify the way the audience should be feeling about the narrative, i love that every frame, every prop and every element of the setting is placed there for a reason in this film.
