Overall we are progressing well with our project. We have re shot several interviews and are well underway with editing our rough cut for our final submission.

After our presentation some of the feedback we received included; advise to use steadier camera choices and to give more context to the story and video piece. Additionally in class Kim gave us some guidance in the way we may like to include a fuller soundscape and integrate more of the museum’s archives.

We intent to rework our piece with this feedback by using the sound tools discussed in my previous blogs and using more of the B-Roll footage we’ve previously captured at the museum. We also re-shot some of the interviews with a tripod. The initial intention behind not using a tripod was to create a hand-held piece that stylistically fitted the mood and atmosphere of the museum. Although I still do not believe it is one hundred percent necessary to use a tripod (as many modern films now do not), If I was going to make this choice again, I’d hire a Gimble to stabilise the shots.

One of the challenges we are currently facing from a technical perspective, is that the shot continuity and image flow are inconsistent. This is due to us alternating camera types and lighting environments between shoots. Kim has shown us a simple way to white balance these images which has been useful. We might also consider replacing lower quality images with B-Roll.

Another challenge we’ve faced was securing interview with the staff. This has been a learning curve for the four of us, we sat back for the first few weeks, we all agreed in retrospect we were too timid. In the future we’d make the subjects our priority, to introduce ourselves and request an interview straight away.

Over the next few weeks we need to refine our rough cut and collaborate closely with the museum to ensure they are happy with the way the museum has been represented.