Below you will find my responses to a series of questions relating to things discussed recently in class.

1. In the lighting lecture there were several different aspects of lighting covered. Firstly there was an introduction to some of the different sorts of lights available to us. We also learnt about a little about how to technically operate them as well as some key safety pointers such as managing cords, heat from the lights etc. Other things covered were the colour of light from various sources (blue light from the sun, yellow light from the lights in the lecture theatre) and how to deal with the colour light various sources omit to achieve the best result. Finally we learnt a bit about how to act professionally while using lighting equiptment eg. ensure that you say “light on” before turning on a light in an actors face!

2. From week 6 I found the reading on developing a crew particularly interesting and relevant. The section of this reading on “crew member temperaments” didn’t necesserily excite me but it was something that I believe is essential to be considered. There is nearly always conflict that arises when working within a small group and the crew for our short films definitely fall under this category. It was interesting to read the traits to beware of and also those that are valued when working on a film set as I feel personally I was able to assess these things and adapt my own behaviour to ensure I am a valued member. Another thing from this reading that excited me was reading the section about the role of the director. As director for my film I found it really interesting and valuable to read the suggested personal traits that make a good director and really try to addopt these qualities in preparation for my own shoot day.

3. Through watching the scene from the 1966 film Blow Up there were numerous things to note. The actors were choreographed to make great use of the space available and the us of the wooden frames in the studio to frame many of the shots was very effective. The accents and tones used by the actors gave more insight into the background and relationship between the characters and the body language used by each of the characters during moments without dialogue were essential in distingusihing mood. Moments such as the one where the male character dives behind a chair in order to reach the phone and the manner in which he goes about answering it work significantly to build information about him and the staging of the woman in the reflection as he holds the phone over the chair is a very effective and simple way of covering the moment. I feel like something the Antonioni would really have to considering when directing the actors and the camera would be the 180 degree rule are the interation between the two characters in this scene is shot from many different angles around the same small space and it would be easy to confuse the shot. Another thing he would need to consider would be the use of space and the room available for the actors to work with given the various positions of the camera within a relatively small area.

Notes on Lighting:

In previous filmmaking experiences I have had, lighting was not something that much attention was paid to despite it’s importance. I found it really interesting in the lecture to learn about the different ways in which various scenes can be lit to create different effects and the ways in which the best results can be achieved. It was also really beneficial to learn about the different sorts of lights that were available for us to use and which ones you would choose to use in different situations, such as taking into consideration the colour of the light that might already exist in the environment you are shooting in. I feel that I have a lot more to learn and discover about lighting, but I now definitely have a greater appreciation for its role in filmmaking.

The “Lenny” – as practice for the actually shooting of our short film we were given the script of a short scene involving the character of “Lenny” to film during class.

I think that the main thing that I learnt from the experience of shooting the Lenny was the importance of being highly organised given the amount of time that it can take to achieve a single shot. Setting up each shot can take a considerable amount of time and you need to ensure you are as clear with the actors as possible with what you want them to do otherwise you spend time repeating shots for minor hiccups, therefore using more precious time.

Follow the following link to view my group’s Lenny scene – https://vimeo.com/92120715#at=0 

In the film Clown Train how does sound contribute to the atmosphere of this film? Describe what you heard? Can you make reference to another genre film and how they utilise sound to create tension and a unique filmic space?

The sound in this film contributed greatly to the atmosphere of this film as there was an effective balance of diegetic and non-diegetic sounds as well as moments of silence which contributed to building and deciding the level of tension in different sections of the film. The the dull, buzzing long notes which were played as music in the background at times to built up at times to determine the moments of greatest tension and yet the combination of silence and the electrical sounds of flickering lights and the train also worked effectively build tension in not know what to expect next. The sound used in the film worked to produce a spooky, horror like genre whereas in a genre such a drama although tension is also built through building music, the type of music usually varies (less minor notes used), silence is as common and dialogue can tend to play much more of a role.

Select from one of the readings, up to but not including Week 5, and briefly describe two points that you have taken from it. Points that excite you, something that was completely new to you. 

I found the reading from week two on script layout to be really interesting because script writing is something that I have never really attempted so although I have read various scrpits in the past I wouldn’t have much of an idea of where to begin with layout when writing my own. Firstly I learnt how to write a proper scene title and that you have to include the scene numer, whether it is inside or outside and the time of day. Another thing that I found interesting was that you are able to place description in brackets above dialogue, for example the word “whispering”, I had previously assumed that this went in the scene description.

In the tute we screened a short film called Rolling – a film made in Film-TV1 a few years ago.

I found this film effective in that it was entertaining and I connected well with it and understood what was going on. It had a simple but engaging and amusing storyline and a strong character was created thorugh the main male role through effective script writing, casting and acting. I can’t remember specific details but there were some small technical aspects I thought at the time of viewing could have been improved but overall I thought the film was put together very well. I really liked the setting of the supermarket finding it worked perfectly for the unravelling, awkward crush conversation that was portrayed and I found that the incorperation of toilet paper made the piece both a little unexpected but highly amusing. I feel that this past student film served to give me a taste of the level of work that I could be capable of producing by the end of the semester.

Beginning the new class of Film & TV 1 this week below are a few questions I have answered which look into what I have taken from the first week and also what I eventually hope to take away from the course. 

Q1: In 200 words or less please outline your goals, desires – what you want to get out of this semester. You will review this later in the course. Many will rethink this dramatically – this is a good thing.

A1: This semester my main goal is to produce something that exceeds my expectation of what I currently think I am capable of. I hope to do this through learning about and practicing all of the aspects and roles that go into producing a film. There are several things that I wish to get out of the semester and these include trying roles that I am not comfortable with, learning to work in the most effective way as a team, building good working relationships with my classmates/group members and finally, I hope that I am able to have fun throughout this course!

Q2: Consider Jasmine’s lecture on Screenwriting and briefly describe one point that you have taken from it. A point that excites you, something that was completely new to you, perplexes you or even one you take issue with.

A2: A point that particularly stood out to me this week in Jasmine’s lecture on screenwriting was her information on character and creating characters. Although not all of the information that she gave about character was new to me, she did introduce the concept of creating the protagonist for your story before actually determining what the story is itself. Throughout high school when story writing I had never taken this approach, but now thinking about this method and also trialing it in tutorials this week I learnt that it was a very effective way of coming up with story ideas (especially if you are given no particular topic to write inside).

Q3: Select from one of the readings from week 1 or 2 and briefly describe two points that you have taken from that reading. Points that excite you, something that was completely new to you

A3: From the week 1 reading, “Narratives” (Branston, G. and Stafford, R.), one point that particularly interested me was when it was identified that many ads effectively make use of short little narratives. This made me think about certain ads that I had seen on TV recently and I immediately noticed that the advertisements that came to mind were the ones that used narrative form successfully for example the AMMI ads featuring Katut and Rhonda. Another point taken from this reading that I hadn’t spent a lot of time thinking about was the idea that there are different ways to portray narrative across different mediums. This meaning that how you depict something through a medium such as film could actually vary vastly using something such as radio or photography. How you might need to change the way in which narrative is told is also relevant across different cultures.