Film-TV1- Analysis/Reflection 4 – Question 8

Please insert the link for your Lenny Exercise 2 here.

List the things that you learnt from this experience – this could be things that went well or not so well. 

Overall the Lenny Exercise 2 was a great learning experience as introduction to the future weeks major production. It gave the whole group a chance to experience their roles and to understand the flow of the production process. Here are some key things I learnt from the experience:

Lesson 1 – Time is the enemy

There will never be enough time and we could have easily spent all day experimenting with shots, but we only had an hour. Learning how to plan and shoot in relation to time constraints was key. Furthermore, it was interesting to see how once the group got into the process of shooting we became more confident and began to work quicker without realising.

Lesson 2 – Weather is unpredictable

It’s pretty obvious that weather is always unpredictable, but Melbourne weather is the epitome of unpredictable. The day we shot our exercise it was overcast and raining every couple of minutes. This meant we needed a designated umbrella holder to hold over the camera equipment while we shot scenes. Weather constraints is something we will need to be prepared for in our major production with the likelihood of rain present on our shooting day.

Lesson 3 – Takes, takes and more takes

Quite simply, the more takes, the more material. During the shoot we never shot a scene only once, but covered it from a variety of different angles, in multiple takes. This gave us the opportunity to decide in the edit suites, and decision is the most valuable tool in production as it can separate a good film from a great one. Therefore, when in doubt do another take.

Lesson 4 – Plan

Planning is the sword to slaying the beast of the production. In the Lenny Exercise we had decided on a location, mapped out our shots and designated our roles. However, we still wasted time at the start trying to organise ourselves on how we would approach the whole exercise. In our major production we will have to be really organised in order to get straight into shooting and not waste those precious minutes.

Lesson 5 – The other perspective

For our Lenny I acted as Sharon (noting that I also helped out acting for another Lenny production – apologies for Sharon saturation of the Lenny production market). This was probably the best experience from the whole exercise as I could understand the shoot from the perspective of the actor. It helped me fathom what our casted actors will need in terms of communication, direction and assurance from our crew in the major production. Something as simple as reassurance the actors are doing a good job can have a big impact on their confidence for ongoing shots.

Film-TV1- Analysis/Reflection 4 – Question 7

Please outline some points that you took away from the Lighting Lecture. Points that excite you, something that was completely new to you, perplexes you or even one you take issue with. 

The lecture raised the question, why are we lighting in the first place? It was really interesting to understand the reasonings behind lighting a part from the obvious answer of exposure. We light for continuity over the whole scene, something that may not be consistent if there is a reliance on natural light. Light also provides spatial continuity to make shots match. And lastly it provides perspective, as we need control over the image in order to superimpose aesthetics, influencing the mood and look of the film for example.

What was completely new to me was that the lecture helped me realise just how important lighting is in scenes. When we were shown the example of the kids sitting on the rocks in the Australian sun, I assumed the scene was naturally lit; to learn it was made up of constructed light was really eye opening. I’ve always thought of lighting in terms of using natural light to your advantage, but this lecture made me understand that natural light can always be manipulated to achieve better aesthetic qualities.

The one perplexing part of the lecture was understand the transition of the sun. I was a bit confused at the start but when explained that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, going north, it made me realise how important this knowledge is for our major productions; it will help create lighting continuity across scenes and plan shooting.

One of the most important points on lighting was that it’s all about relationships – the relationship between lighting and exposure, the relationship between the camera’s position and the subject – and how these are all used to create contrast.

Below list some key lighting terminology defined in the lecture:

Key light – principle light source for the scene

Fill light – light that fills that scene

Back light/Rim light – light with a rim or hard edge

Eye light – gleam light in someone’s eyes

Film-TV1- Analysis/Reflection 3 – Question 3

From the week 4 lecture describe at least two reasons why we ‘shoot to edit’?

We ‘shoot to edit’ so that scenes can be shot out of order and in a methodical way. For example, this may mean shooting all your exterior shots and then all your interior shots. This also allows efficiency as priority shots, due to time or location restraints, can be done first.

Secondly, by ‘shooting to edit’ we shoot a range of takes. This certifies that when we get to the editing stage there is a variety of material to make a desired decision. More footage means more options; therefore we have to be mindful when shooting to do such things as roll the camera a few seconds at the start and end of the shot.

Integrated Media 01 – Film Essay – Nostalgia

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Korsakow Film: Nostalgia, 2010

Makers: Clare Anderson, Laura Stephens and Wichaya Kim Jensen

Nostalgia: a sentimental longing or wistful affection for a period in the past. So how do you construct thoughts or memories when the way a person remembers is never the exact way something occurred? This ideal can be seen in the student Korsakow project film Nostalgia, which creates a haphazard collection of emotions in a way that would be remembered. Unlike a narrative, what David Bordwell would define as, “a chain of events in cause-effect relationship occurring in time and space,” Nostalgia presents time and space as an ideal rather than an occurrence. The project has no pre-established order to look through the clips and after a while you find yourself unravelling the interweaving of what it is to remember.

The work relies on the pattern of emotion to drive the piece forward. It uses the style of film and content to link some pieces as we see blurry shot clips link to each other, rain and water shots link to the beach and ocean, and more sombre shadowed clips link together.

FilmEssay_Pic_2There is also the existence of SNUs that are not a common occurrence having only one ‘in’ link, for example a stuffed horse toy with the caption, “Were you real?” This technique keeps the piece fresh and a constant discovery.

Closely under the main pane, text is sharply contrasted in white against the black background. The content of the text is not a direct reflection of what is happening in the clip, but it does form some relationship; for example when the text states, “Maybe there was something there,” we see a blurry shot we can’t clearly make out.

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Furthermore, the lines of text also begin to form a collection of feelings, ideals and emotions. For example, “Just waiting patiently trying to conform,” could relate to acceptance, “I wonder if you’ll still shine like you did before,” hope, “I found it hard to draw the line between the chaos outside myself and the chaos within,” the constant struggle of the human psyche. Ian Bogost emphasises the importance of lists as they, “remind us that no matter how fluidly a system may operate, its members nevertheless remain isolated, mutual aliens.” In the piece the text explains an emotion of the moment and isolates it from any other feeling.

As Adrian notes in his write up on the project, the ability to click away from the opening credits and get started on watching the film shows an, “awareness of the user as a consequence.” It not only makes the piece driven on the audience’s character (as some will not have the patience to wait; while others will happily ponder) but also makes the audience feel like they have more control over the project. The main video pane is housed in the middle of the screen, with a line of text closely under and four smaller linking thumbnails below. The interface is well balanced and the centrality creates a direct user experience therefore commanding attention to the main screen. There is a simplicity and neatness which makes navigation of the interface seamless, providing a juxtaposition of an ordered image to an unmethodical collection of thoughts and emotions portrayed in the work. It’s also interesting to note that clips do not repeat after they have been played or begin to play when you hover your mouse over the linking SNU. This serves the ideal of capturing something in a moment; in life you don’t get the option to relive something exactly over again so it wouldn’t seem appropriate to here.

Nostalgia uses a black background with a geometric square pattern graphic symmetrically placed on each side of the main player as a canvas for the project. The graphics provide a frame for the work, directing the viewers’ attention and also adding depth. The effect is almost a filtered look as the squares fall down the page to get smaller and smaller, this could relate metaphorically to the formation of links in the Korsakow project as it begins broadly and then becomes more and more connected, or it could relate to water as it looks like rain falling.

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A main theme throughout the piece is the subject matter of water – a universal code for youth and life’s beginning – it not only emotes the feeling of nostalgia but adds a rhythm in its fluidity. Water is also commented on in the text, as “Drowning without being submerged,” and “Too many tears,” plays on the ideal. In the project, the manner in which different shots are filmed elicits different emotional ploys, such as the adjusting focus shot of, “The light renders the ground below me,” creating the effect of just waking up to the beginning of something.

The shots are very poetic and most of the time they never show content in full view, always being parts of objects; like feet or a pier. There is also a lack of people in the shots or more so not a focus on them, this allows a more personal experience with the work and also emphasises shots like, “I searched for comfort in other people’s faces.” In this shot we see people but don’t connect with them as they simply pass by, establishing a sense of isolation.

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Music is crucial to the piece, with a different track played with each clip. The music is un-lyrical which allows it and the text to form a relation in creating some sort of song. Adrian does question whether a single continuous soundtrack would have been more effective, and even though it does get a little clunky having to wait for the new music to start and videos to load, it’s worth it as each track asks for a different emotional response from the viewer, drawing them into this evolution of thought and feeling. Music is also used to evoke emotion, for example piano music used in more sombre clips of the piece.

Throughout the work the average duration of clips is not long, relating to the idea of memories not encompassing long sequences but when accessed in our thoughts are simply snippets of moments. After thorough navigation of the piece you realise there is no ending SNU, the clips loop on infinitely; as a mind would. All these techniques promote the idea of the project representing the evolution of thought and memories, but I believe the film is trying to represent the more sombre; the ideal of nostalgia not being able to bring back moments but simply redefine loneliness.

References

Anderson, Clare; Jensen, Kim and Stephens, Laura. “Nostalgia.” Korsakow. 2010: http://vogmae.net.au/classworks/media/2010/kfilms/nostalgia/, March 2014. (screen shots and text quotes)

[Extract] Bogost, Ian. Alien Phenomenology, or What It’s Like to Be a Thing. Minneapolis: University Press of Minnesota, 2012. Print.

Bordwell, David and Kristin Thompson. Film Art: An Introduction. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill, 2013. Print.

Miles, Adrian. “Nostalgia.” Classworks – Interactive online video work by media undergrads. 2010: http://vogmae.net.au/classworks/2010/Nostalgia.html, March 2014.