Our Genre

We decided last night that our genre would be a Romantic Drama. We decided on this genre because we wanted to do something different and feel that this would be the best way in which we could show our creativity. We thought because Romantic Drama is ultimately the collaboration of the two genres Romantic and Drama, we would look in depth at both genres seperately. Find below wordles containing words relevant to each seperate genre.

As you can see from the above word clouds relevant to each genre, there are many ways in which they can be interlinked. Because drama is such a large genre, it is often divided into sub genres. Drama is mostly based on the events happening within a family or relationship, this therefore makes a romantic drama a good collaboration because we can focus on the vital parts of both genres.

Conclusion

WHAT ARE THE KEY LESSONS YOU HAVE LEARNED THAT WILL ENSURE SUCCESS IN YOUR MAIN PIECE?

We learned that unless care is taken, the 180 degree rule can be easily forgotten about and broken. We have learnt that unless it is successful the structure of our film can be a failure and look unprofessional. We also learnt a lot about continuity and how it contributes to the accomplished piece and that measures must be taken to ensure it it done the correct way. We now have an understanding of how to work Final Pro X, this will allow us to be able to use more advanced editing skills and allows us to edit films we make more efficiently. 

Editing

How did you manage continuity using editing software?When we first started filming I was very aware that this task would be centred around continuity and I was worried how we would be able to use varied shots and camera angles, yet still be able to keep the flow of the film. When it came to us using Final Cut Pro, it was revealed to me and maria that continuity wasn't actually that hard to achieve as it allowed you to cut the film at specific points and enter a new film at the same point where the action from the previous point was being repeated. Therefore, while it seemed initially it would be difficult, when you use the software, it is actually not as hard due to its precise nature. Did you encounter any problems in the editing stages of your production?We did encounter a few problems at the editing stages, I think this is partially down to the problem that neither of us had encountered Final Cut before, and therefore using tools within it was our first time. Such problems included the use of transitions, there were various places we thought that a transition would be ideal, but when we used final cut, when we inserted transitions we felt it gave quite a tacky touch to our film. Also, as I said above, where it allowed us to cut the film at precise points we had some problems, these were linked simply to our difficulty in working Final Cut, but obviously these difficulties will disappear the more practice we get with Final Cut. What new processes/techniques have you learned using new software and how has the use of software enhanced your production? I would have to say the big technique I learnt was the cutting the film at precise points, I knew that this was something that was able to be done, but I never thought I would understand how it works. I think this enhanced our production simply because it allowed us to be successful in our continuity which overall made a successful production. Another tool I learnt through Final Cut was the ability to crop frames within the video. At one stage during filming Maria accidentally came into the shot, we were able to cut her out via this tool therefore meaning we didn't have to get rid of a good shot. This meant that production time was quicker as we didn't have to go back and re-film. What successes and difficulties have you experienced during editing?Editing overall is quite a difficult area for me, even when writing about it and analysing the effect it has for the viewing audience. One particularly obvious difficulty I experienced with editing is my impatience, I wanted it to be done automatically, however to edit a film well you need to put time and effort into it, so this was a particular difficulty for me. Another difficulty I had was when I had specific ideas and didn't know how to do them. This then led me to play about with different features which maybe I didn't want to put into the film and therefore I had to go back each time I did it. I had trouble when working with the colours in the clip, in some clips the colours were darker than in others, this meant we had to get quite technical and neither of us really knew how to go about this. We therefore had to ask for assistance from Mr Tierney, and eventually we got there. We were quite successful with the use of slowmo and using music. I seemed to be able to pick up the skills required and had no real problems in this area. I particularly enjoyed being able to fade the music in and out of the clip, and this therefore was a quite successful area for me. Another successful area was the insertion of credits and titles. We chose very basic ones as we thought that this would contribute to the minimalist nature of the video. I enjoyed this area going through each title and seeing the different effects it had. Overall, this was definitely one of the more challenging areas. However, I would definitely say with my new experience with Final Cut Pro that my editing skills have definitely improved and therefore will help to contribute to successful final piece.

Filming

What was successful in your filming? Throughout our filming continuity was a success. At first we struggled with this, due to lighting and background noises. However, when we found these problems, re-filimg of specific scenes solved this problem. As well as this we made sure that costumes, characters hair styles and positions of props were all kept the same so that continuity throughout worked well. Did you use a variety of shots? What were you trying to achieve with certain shots and why do you think your choice of shot mattered? The majority of our clip was filmed with the use of a medium shot, we used this because it helped create a more natural feel to the interview and also made the scene more realistic. At the beginning of the clip a jump cut is used, this is used to draw attention to the constructed nature of the film and we decided to use it as it as it made the clip seem more like a normal situation for the viewer. Over the shoulder filming was also used, this made the conversation more interactive and flowing between the two characters. How well do you feel you are framing shots, positioning subject, using camera techniques? To improve the use of our camera techniques the use of a tripod was required, this allowed the camera to be held in a steady position through out and made the film seem more professional. The positing of subjects allowed us to focus in on the more important character and different parts of the film, this drew more focus to the character that was speaking and helped keep the attention of the audience. Continuity successes and difficulties? One frequent problem we found with the success of continuity was the positing of the box of pens on the table, filming on different days made it more difficult to keep its position exact and we found that this was often noticeable when we watch the scenes back. However, we solved this problem by looking back on previously filmed clips which allowed us to see the exact position. Another problem we encountered was the background noise of the air conditioning in the room, some days it was off and some days it was on, therefore it was very noticeable in filming. To solve this problem we re-filmed the effected scenes. Continuity was successful in regards to the appearances of the actors, which gave a more professional look to our film. Did you observe the 180 degree rule? We discovered that we had broken the 180 degree rule, this was a major problem and we knew we needed to solve it for the success of our film. So we edited and re-filmed scenes in order to solve this problem. How did you manage lighting, sound, mise en scene? Lighting became a problem as we filmed at different parts of different days meaning the amount of sunlight coming through the video. To solve this problem we simply closed the blinds and depended on artificial light in the room. Sound and mise en scene was successfully the same throughout the filming. Costumes remained the same which was a success. Background noise experienced problems but was edited to make it less noticeable.

Preliminary Evaluation - Planning

How well you managed to plan your storyboards, scripts and how you managed actors, location and props; Did you encounter any problems at various stages with theses? Did you make any changes to your original plans? Why? How did you overcome any difficulties? At the beginning we thought that planning our storyboards and scripts would be a relatively easy task, it was only when we attempted to begin filming we realised that it was a lot harder than we presumed and required us to go into a lot more depth than what we initially thought. We changed completely from our original storyboard and script. We did this because it was obvious when we began filming that our original idea would not work and was not substantial enough to make a good video. The actors we began with were ideal for the original roles however when it came to filming it was hard for them to take their roles seriously. I (Rachael) found it very hard to focus on the lines written in front of me while I was aware a camera was filming. Laith, the original boy actor we used could act the role but however when we attempted to film one day and he didn't turn up we knew that he wasn't reliable. Location for our original idea was also hard to come by in school, we had the idea of a boy and a girl on a date, this wouldn't work in school, therefore this idea after taking into account all factors such a storyboarding, filming, actors and location that this original idea would not work. Now we were back to the stage where we had no idea. Then Maria came up with the idea of a job interview, we still wanted to stay with our original genre idea which was comedy - we got this original idea after we first watched Ted where incidentally there is also a job interview. To further assist us, we typed funny inteviews into youtube and came across this - Awesome _26 Funny. Once we completed this area, we found it relatively easy to complete our script, and soon enough we began filming. The actress and actor we used were much better suited to this role. We used Orla Bradley as our girl, she is a drama student and therefore was at ease with the camera on her, she was able to carry out her actions and lines naturally therefore creating a natural aura overall. The actor we used was Christopher McLarnon. I first of all was quite wary of this, as I have grew up with Christopher my whole life and I know sometimes he can be a bit immature. However, with this role he completely felt comfortable, it allowed him to be humorous, but also to have serious moments, which reflects his personality. I think therefore actors in this instance were perfectly chosen and allowed us to create a sense of normality. Location was also easy to use in school because this idea would be set in an office, and this setting is abundant in a school, therefore we encountered no problems in this area. Because of the nature of our story props were not as big a deal, being dressed in uniform it was not hard to change costume, we simply gave Christopher a tie, and Orla changed her top and put a blazer on. In the room all we used was a box of pens and a page. This was all we felt was needed in order to make the scenario real, we took a minimalist approach. Overall, while we did encounter many problems at the beginning, as we got into it and began to realise what was suitable and what was not, we didn't find it as difficult, and in the end feel that the planning, and going through the failed ideas was what helped us to contribute to an overall successful end product.

Script

Fade in Mrs Sheenan walks down corridor and enters the room, Mr Conolly is already sitting at desk. Mrs Sheenan: Hiyah Mc Conolly: Welcome Mrs Sheenan, Eh, Im Mr Conolly and ill be holoding your interview today Mrs Sheenan: Ok, its nice to meet you Mr Conolly: Well ive been looking at your resumé and I'm very impressed. In fact your.. over qualified to be an accountant Mrs Sheenan: Oh thank you. thats good cause i wasn't planning on working very hard anyway Mr Conolly: oh really? Mrs Sheenan: absolutely, infact i only intend to show up when i feel like it Mr Conolly: (confused) oh.. hm.. ok.. so.. tell me a bit about yourself? Mrs Sheenan: Well ive got terrible hygiene and i have quite a few annoying personal habbits Mr Conolly: oh ok.. well i really don't think your suitable for this job Mrs Sheenan: thats ok, i quit Mr Conolly: you cant quit? you dont work here.. Mrs Sheenan: yeah i know, why would i work here? Mr Conolly: Like we would ever hire you and even if you did work here, you wouldnt get the chance to quit, because wed fire you first Mr Sheenan: