Category: Uncategorized

WK11 Post

Started from the beginning of this whole progress, I have been stuck on the next step for pretty long time, I was been in a period of unsure about if I am in the right track. Since I didn’t apply any scenes of interview and seems likely I have totally different style from others , I felt so hard to connect each shots together. It lack of the sense of consistent. The opening took me one night to think out the feeling I want, but I stopped and couldn’t think anything for the rest of the story. I used to believe the idea will come out naturally, but it doesn’t work that way. So I think if I want to make a film I need to think out all the elements then the work will be fluent on feelings , atmosphere and story .

Another big challenge for me is I have been sick for several days already and can’t record the interview, which means there is no main line in the film. I couldn’t control how long each part takes,so that I can’t go further in the progress now.

Therefore, I planed to put something on the track as a start. I recorded my voice even though it sounds terrible. Then I will focus on the image. If there are something miss or not match then I can figure out how to film / express by camera. Usually I got Plan A and Plan B for every part what is missing image recently. The Plan A is to use the old one. The Plan B is the new version of it but I will try to film it until It doesn’t looks good. After I tried this way, I got a rough image of the whole story ,and the rest of the work will be thinking and fixed little by little for a better effect. Hope it will work well.

Wk12 Post

 

For my project, I was aim to create an atmosphere of literary and artistic. I was thinking about to present the content I said in the voice-over by using replacement and metaphor. But I could’t think out any thing I can film in short time. Then I had to find out the old photos to fill up.

My favorite potion in the film is the first 1 minute, which is the scene of sky changes and mix with running. It looks anxious and unstable. And I like the topic , which I adapted the effect of hollow out, so you will see the letter looks like floating.

I’ve seen a lot of other’s work this week, there are several points that I really like and inspired me for improving in my work :

  • Images and shots totally match the sound track / background music. Which helps images more look more rhythmic, such as the scenes and crowds, and make the shots more interesting.
  • I think I could being more brave on ideas developing. It’s really important for a media student to keep eyes on the corners of the city and the details of life, so that we are able to find out great material. To get inspiration on how to shoot ,what the best angle is and how to use props to express feelings.
  • I did see someone uses a very close shot to film a cooking process so I rethink about my process of filming the food to see why it doesn’t look so nice. It’s because I didn’t put the point in the right position of a image, it turns out messy.

What I could have done better :

  • The fluency of video. Actually, start from 1 minute of the film, I felt guilty since I think the content still haven’t achieved the level of consistent that I expected. I am not sure if people see it is not harmonious.
  • I could have tries to use multiple angle to film.

Lastly, I have been learnt a lot from this semester of food. Initially, I may have stereotype on doco of food, I used to believe every documentary related to food will be like The taste of China. But after watching the doco displayed in class. They are quiet fun and abundant on content. I think food can be related to a lot of topics, even the film of food doesn’t have to show any food.

Wk10 Post

So far, my project have been through a big change. I have been cutting what I had from week 7 & 8, also revised the original ideas of opening. After I tried and I watched over and over again,I felt it wasn’t the exactly style I want , even I feel shame to show the work to others. So I couldn’t make any rough cut and have been in a very lost period.

I think the problem I having now is the approach of expressing my story, also I want to make something which is really my own style. So that it will not be the only me talking through the video chat, instead, It doesn’t have to have me in the screen but only my voice -over. Therefore audience will hear interview and watch relevant material at same time, they won’t feel bored when the image is all about me. As I think deeply, I noticed that I can’t change the sequence of a story. I can tell a story as a opening so that audience would like to keep watching. Audience may by curious “How does it connect to food? “Then I will tell more in the later.

So I started all over again and sort the material to see what I can use. It turns out nothing. Hence, to make something new , I need to filming more. This time, I do more focus on the feelings expression,and the world from my eyes. Instead of people seeing me from the screen, I think I can try to take audience into my vision. I think it will works better.

About footage : since the limited of location I won’t be able to film in China, I went to Box Hill and tried to film some Chinese elements. Then it will be fit into the part I was talking about the difference of China and out of country. Also I try to use replacement and metaphor to fill the deficiency.

WK9 – Post

Sequence are the results of shots’ comportment, and shots are made up by scenes.

In this week’s reading, it mentioned some technique of editing. It covered how to organize the raw material as an editor , which is using log to record the material, or mark and archive each potential footage. It requires the editor are sensible to the aims and approach, and even be able to create a fresh perspective. This asks for a great coordination between the editor and the director.

The common documentary we are watching now mainly are expository documentary , which is the film contains voice-over or interview-based soundtrack along with the supplement imagery (B-Roll and archival material ) placed into the visual track illustrate what it said.  What we can do for using to express feelings is the background music. (p221,Fox 2018). Furthermore, I think to present detailed the psychological changes on people can improve the sympathy of audience so that it could get better effects. What we can do is to refined the scene of space and time. Just like the director Wiseman mentioned in the reading, He spend over days to record the scene, and he take several angles — like the interview and action at the same time, to maintain a sense of observational continuity and formal transparency in each location. I think that’s what I suppose to think and try, because my work so far are only single angle, if I adapt it, my work would be much closer to audience and much abundant than now.

After I started to film my own project, I found out that I still need to watch more films to improve my aesthetic , to gain the sense of artistic so that I can truly achieve my aims of this project.

 Fox, B. (2018). Documentary media. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge, pp.213-250.

WK7 -Post

 

scene+breakdown+documemtary(1) 

After I watched the video of 3000 miles in the class, I feel so touched and I was thinking to make a film that is similar to this style. That’s why I am consist to make a film of my own story, since I am the only person who is able to express my feelings by leading audience to see the world of mine. I said that I must make it out.

In this week’s pitch, I got a great suggestion from teachers. One of the Suggestion said that it will be interesting if I make video chat. And that was what I have been thinking about to adapted into my video, audience will know this story from the third perspective, It can be very artistic or it will be full of affection. It helped me to conveyed my idea which is to convinced my parents to accept my way of diet.

But in this way, the expression could be a challenge because it will be like a letter to my parents which is I used to feel “disgusting” — since I have never say anything like this to my parents. Overall It is just an original idea, everything could be fixed or refined after I tried.  Now I feel excited of filming  and look forward how it will be like.

This week’s reading are quiet focus on the word of style, if there’s no style, it will all be like interviewing and image . like like it said “These emulations usually either favor the expository mode (with staid talking-head interviews and voice-overs) or a shaking, handheld observational camera.” (p110, Fox 2018) Style prevent most of work from being the same and boring. To make conspicuous on styling, what a director can do is improving on visual designing. For an instance, the Aspect Ratio. As it said “Shooting a documentary for the 16:9 or 1.77 aspect ratio of many HD televisions … ” Also color and framing. Audience is able to catch the point from a film if director present it clear enough.

This chapter talks about every elements in the filming process so detailed and clear, It worth to read over and over again.

 Fox, B. (2018). Documentary media. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge, pp.111-144.

Wk2 post

If I make a film about food of different area, I would like to adapt the Interactive mode and Essayistic mode. As the reading mentioned : in the essayistic mode doco , the art of a great written or documentary essay hinges upon artfully weaving personal experience, history, cultural analysis, and multiple viewpoints with a sense of structural progression and care.

In my eyes, it is the best way to present the history and relevant folk story of a typical food. And the Interactive mode which can be used in the part of Foodspotting. So that it can present the food from different place around the world.  

I think the taste of China is a typical doco which used essayistic mode. It introduces the culture , history , character to audiences. While audience watch the film, within the sound, the close shot of description of the food, It makes audiences want to eat this food so much. But also a deeper understanding of each dish, I remember there is an episode talks about the food from my city, I felt so proud after watching it. Overall, a sense full of culture or knowledge deposit is also the reason why it became so successful.

For my own project ,I decided to make a film relevant to my own story, so that I am thinking about the autobiography. As reading mentioned “Baring oneself to a public is at the heart of the autobiographical mode. The emotional and personal life experiences of the producer become the documented reality.” (p57,Fox 2018)

At its best, the autobiographical mode not only closes the gap between producer and subject but also the space between maker and audience members, who are invited to see and know the eye and the “I” behind the camera. I would like to tell audience the story by showing footage which is according the content. Hope it will not be too abstract.

 

 Fox, B. (2018). Documentary media. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge, pp.27-72.

Wk 8

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Choose a scene from a food doco and write about all the sounds that are used and the effect they create, and b) write about the sounds you can record in your documentary and what they will convey.

As in any film form, sound is crucial for creating a sense of reality for the viewer, the sense of ‘being there’.

This film talks about the process of making a meatball by hand, but also talks about family — emphasis on inheritance. This film , we can see that it put much effort on recording the original sound of hitting the meat.  As a crucial process of  making this dish, the sound shows how much power is needed for it. For example, started from 7 mins, the master is hitting the meat with the drumbeat in background music. It presents the harmony of hand made and music, but also it arouse excitement of audience. In the 15 mins, the master is making the roasting duck. There is a subtle point is that, seeing the close up of the image of duck what is full of oil and roasted in the fire, we can hear and the sound of burning, and it help create a illusion of  — “we seem to hear oil dripping into the fire” (which is the effect of image and sound of atmosphere).

As reading mentioned microphone helps catch the sound we might not notice in the normal life. It helped to construct the sense of reality(p290, Fox 2018). In this film, not a sense of isolation, cold, independence, it presents the atmosphere of market, a kind of normal in daily life. We see the market and we can hear yo-heave-ho, even thought we can only see on way through the market followed by the bicycle, we seems likely have seen the wheelbarrowcarries the rice to pass through from the side, all kinds of stalls, even the image of children playing around. How wonderful is it ! That’s the function of the sound effect and charisma. 

Fox, B. (2018). Documentary media. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge, pp.288-297.

Wk 5 post

After reading,there are several points needed to be noticed to make a high qualified documentary. Before the formal interview, we may have an basic understanding of the interviewee, observe the best way to relaxed interviewee and know what can make him tell the story in a best / natural  way.  If it’s necessary, we can also invite the others as long as  the presence of other is assist to show the personality.

And thinking back what we have done in the class practice, there are some aspects still needed to be improved. Firstly, we didn’t set up well when we trying to get the angle and background. In the practice of vox pop, we applied hand held camera to shoot. Then I found out that the image is quiet unstable and baseline is not in the horizontal position. Even, one of the interviewee didn’t look at the direction toward the camera, instead, he was looking at the direction where staff who is give the question.  It was a hard work when I tried to editing, I wish we did have mobile phone help to shoot variety angle so at least we are able to select better one during editing.

In my final project, I think the hardest part would be that I am going to interview myself , ps: it’s going to be English speaking. So I would be need to write script and check the grammar first, then I will try to invite someone seat in front of me to reduce the embarrassment. And I will find a model when I am setting the camera to make sure the light and angle is good enough.

Wk6 post

EVERYTHING SPEAKS FOR ITSELF 

In most of documentary,there are much portion are filling up with interviews and explanation. But also, there are silenced film produced as well. I remember I did talked about same thing last year, I watched several documentary without word and arouse the all kinds of feeling from the button of my heart.

(Example from previous one)

At that time, I wasn’t able to appreciated more in the film. All I remembered is sense of shock that hit on me from this religious.  Another film what is called Note on Blindness also made me impressed me so much. It didn’t left too many scientific / theoretical words in the film, rather it allots  perfect time for words and picture, so that audience are able to be slowed and relaxed in the created atmosphere of the film. At that moment, I was able to understand the power from wordless scene. It’s more than a pause from listening.

How might you convey some of your central idea, arguments, or narrative elements using image or no words ?

If me using no words to convey my central ideas, arguments and some narrative elements, I would like to create a central / core line for my story ,and it has to be very clear to the audience about what does the film try to convey. Related to my won project, I am planing to make a documentary of me being vegetarian and what kind of challenge I have meet in the relationship of my family. I may apply for 15 seconds of no words, for example, the image of me sink in the swimming pool and with a stressed face, to show the tension and my anxiety (with sound effects — pause of previous talking and music). Further more, I will not opening with fast paced words, instead, I prefer left a few second for audience to watched my diet, so that people will not feel too busy at the beginning.

I suppose the amount of words dose much help on creating imagination, that’s why the aesthetic of film are always changeable. The space of no word make people more focus on the image and started to create a world of own. To me, as long as the film has conveyed what director try to convey, then that will be the goal and true meaning of the film production.