Last semester I decided to voyage solo for my final project. It was both out of necessity and preference; I was shooting on my phone and it was about my subjective response to stimuli. I am hesitant to work with other people (something I need to overcome), and was originally reluctant to work in a group this semester. However, I can say it was the right decision, and on reflection, has resulted in a work that I consider my best so far.

Each member of my group (Kerry & Kate) probably had little differences on our overall approach, but the crux of it was the same. It was to meet at a location, shoot something based on improvisation, edit it, reflect upon it, go back to the location, etc, and keep refining until you have what you want. I found this to be an incredibly rewarding way to work (if you have the patience) as your final work is something that is truly personal. Don’t think about the final product; it’s about the process and making gradual improvements.

For me, the magic really happened while editing. After my second shoot (of about 4) I edited the footage together, and made my own narrative of it based on my response. From thereon I had a clear idea of what I wanted to achieve, and it was about using my original moments of improvisation as a foundation to refine them into more technical and polished results.

While Kate and Kerry didn’t create a work ‘together’ – I feel as though each of our works was only possible through the way we explored our processes and interacted with one another. Working in small, intimate groups and having a shared approach is something that I highly recommend and will be the process in which I adopt for a new short film I am hoping to create.

I prefer shooting on tape. I would absolutely prefer to shoot on film but that’s unrealistic. I find digital to be aesthetically repulsive; the current shows on Netflix etc are gross to look at, everything about them tells me that they are so concerned with perfecting every aspect, and it makes the work feel disingenuous.

On a pure aesthetic level, I love grain that tape produces. It’s closer to film than what a new digital camera creates, though tape in itself is its own thing. When editing the contrasts are shaper and thus more interesting, and the lo-fi aspect makes the work feel more personal.

I like working with tape in that I have to get it right. There’s only so much tape, it’s not like digital where I can delete and start over; it gives me more incentive to get things right which subsequently makes me more alert and careful.

Though with saying this, I am looking to transition into digital. I feel I’ve done what I can with tape (of course I can do more) but maybe it’s time to see if I can find my own aesthetic on some fancy digital camera. Progress!

So this is it, my final product.

• After showing Paul my draft I decided to add in a bass-y sound, it’s me sampling a broken cassette that emits a purely droney sound. I think it works with the what the film is trying to achieve.
• The colour grading took some time; it’s really my first time I’ve done it properly. Paul wanted to “blacks to be blacker” and the “whites whiter” and it made perfect sense. There’s some moments that are over-exposed, though I couldn’t fix them in while editing because hey, I shot with a camcorder.
• I like how natural every frame feels. It is not at all contrived (you may disagree), I gave Kerry a lot of freedom and he was a joy to work with.

• Not colour graded
• Sound draft (may or may not add something/remove something)
• Happy with the length and take of each shot

• Not colour graded
• No sound

After reviewing my footage from the first shoot (what worked and what didn’t), I had a strong urge to return to the cemetery to refine my ideas.

The first shot was a mere experiment is zooms and close-ups. I’m not really sure about the angle, but to me, it was never about whether it was right or wrong. Only on reflection through editing did I realise that I could take some of the foundations of the shot and create something more evocative.

The second shot is something that I’ve been working on for a while. We did about 5 takes, all pretty unsuccessful because of the tripod I was using. For the last shoot this wasn’t a problem; I was using Kerry’s tripod and the pan was smooth. However, this tripod was borrowed from Uni, and I had some problems with the smoothness of the pan. I also wanted to end the shot with a slow zoom out as Kerry walks towards the camera, and though I tried it, it was hard to achieve to a satisfactory level.

The framing of the beginning of the third shot is probably my favourite. The shot works quite nicely though I didn’t have an ending that worked, so it is cut prematurely.

The final shot was me shooting Kerry walking back to his mark at the beginning of the second shot without his permission. It’s okay, probably not something I would do again.

After editing, I realised the main problems overall were the panning, and the headroom. Though I began to craft a narrative and the shots began to make sense. I will be going back to the cemetery to (hopefully) refine (again) these shots, to try something different, and to make something more cohesive.

Paul said “why can’t production be the pre-production”, or vice-versa, and that is the approach I am taking with my project.

Too much of my time is spent trying to figure out the film; each shot, what is involved, etc, when really, taking out your camera and just shooting is the best thing to do. That’s not to say don’t come prepared, but trusting and acting upon your first instincts allows you to learn more and more crucially, have a clear understanding of what you’re trying to do.

We went to the cemetery, and I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. We found a spot under a tree, surrounded by narrow rows and columns of graves, and I asked Kerry to just walk. We did a few takes, none were outstanding, but I fell in love with its potential. It looked so nice on the camcorder; looking through the viewfinder (which is black and white) made me realise that this must be just that.

The main problems with the shot were that I didn’t really think about headroom (there is far too much), and my panning ability was pretty poor. Though to be fair, camcorders are especially shaky. I knew with a few more attempts, I could get the shot how I wanted it to be. We decided we would return to cemetery in a week or so.

Over the next few days I asked myself why I wanted Kerry to just walk. It made me think of Philippe Garrel’s films, in which nearly all of them involve shots of character’s walking. I came to the realisation that Garrel had as much as an impact on me as a filmmaker than pretty much anyone else.

I could analyse one particular shot on walking from his films, but to me, the above videos all demonstrate Garrel’s ability show walking as so much more than just a simple everyday act involving movement.

I think there is a level of self clarity and inner peace that is established from walking; it’s an opportunity for the mind to wander and/or to reflect. It’s therapeutic in nature; you are alone with your thoughts and sometimes the very act of walking can help maintain a level of focus.

To me, Garrel’s use of walking is an experiment in mood and atmosphere. First and foremost, it reveals the inner conflict of the subject in a subtle way. Much can be found and understood of the character by merely taking notice of their facial expression, or the manner and shape in which their body moves. It’s pure cinema. Secondly, the black and white photography (in his more recent films), and the often narrow space in which the character wanders through enhances feeling (often isolation), which establishes this mood and atmosphere.

Following my recent obsession with long takes, walking and zooms, I crafted this scene by giving little direction to the actors, letting them follow instinct, and allowing the camera to ‘follow’ and work spontaneously.

Let me preface this by talking about two of the elements; the lighting and the sound. Firstly, the lighting for both shots is pretty poor. I’m not great when it comes to shooting outside and finding the right balance. We shot on a balcony, and while the space on the left side (with the concrete and shadows) came out okay, the right side, with the backdrop of sky and distant buildings, was too overexposed. Secondly, the sound was a disaster. It was a windy day, and to be honest, the crew members were not fully focussed on their role. It was also difficult considering the distance between the mic and actors, but it still could have been a lot better.

To me, the first shot is okay. The first six seconds is fine, but there is probably a bit too much headroom. As the shot goes on I improvised with the zoom, and I probably went more ‘out’ than I should have. I really like the blocking (not my doing) when they first interact; I just wish there wasn’t so much space is the background.

The second shot is far worse. The exposure level is more distracting, the zoom is too long and ends too far away, and it overall, it doesn’t have the same sense of urgency as the first shot.

Overall, this was a pretty fun exercise. I like making these mistakes as I honestly believe they make me a better filmmaker. I wish we did it again, but it was ultimately a pretty fulfilling experience.

Yesterday Kate, Kerry and I went to Melbourne General Cemetery. It was our first meeting, and a very successful day.

I went into the day with no real idea of what I wanted to shoot, other than some shots of walking. Our approach to this project is really about getting a sense of location, and trying to work with the space.

I brought my Camcorder, and after 20 or so minutes of walking around, understanding the space, and keeping an eye out for any potential staff/mourners (this was guerrilla filmmaking after all), whipped it out and placed it on a tripod.

I instructed Kerry to walk along an aisle of graves; slowly, meticulously, and I (the camera) would follow him. We did about 2-3 shots and each one was better than the last. The footage looked fantastic on the camcorder. Kerry was wearing a white t-shirt and a hat, and it made the shot(s) so much more powerful by the sheer simplicity of it all. Unfortunately my camcorder died after this.

I shot another scene, this time directing Kate to pick up some flowers, walk and throw them one-by-one as she passed graves. I had to shoot on her DSLR and it didn’t work; the pan isn’t very nice, it’s not an interesting picture, and I had to use a manual zoom as opposed to an auto which was good for practice but not what I wanted.

Since leaving yesterday, all I can think about is the incredible nature of the space. I am desperate to go back there and re-shoot my shots.