gg-filmmaking

[gg-filmmaking]

The result: 'Onion'

The feedback we received after the screening of our film was all very valid and something I would agree with. The first thing that stood out was Skippy’s actor’s accent which was hard to understand, and the film being dialogue focused, it impacted the narrative. The overall quality of the sound was not clear, and the music did not seem to match the mood at times. For the cinematography, the feedback I got was similar to what I had mentioned in earlier posts. Due to issues, they were not consistent in terms of position and lighting. The still shots in one position made them quite simple and prolonged. What I did not realise earlier, and was criticised, was the fact that along with the still shot right in front of the actors, the actors also had minimal movements. Which all together makes the shot less interesting and engaging. If one were more dynamic, the effect could have been different. I completely agreed with this feedback because I did not give thought to the action in the scene in regards to the camera shot. I need to put more focus on how the camera works with the characters in the scene rather than on its own. 

The overall quality of the film would have a better potential, but was held back due to the clarity in sound and dialogue. Moreover, the narrative’s engagement of the audience, although it is roughly perceived as a viewer, I believe, is not able to fully have an emotional impact. There does not seem to be enough time to connect with the characters to empathise with them. Nevertheless, it implies deeper emotional barriers within Ruth and the comfort built in the relationship between her and Skippy throughout the film. The simple yet warm intention of the film, I do believe, is still present and successfully achieved in the film. My first role as a DoP in 'Onion', I would say, was quite successful despite the setbacks from being unprepared. In the end, it was a memorable and great learning experience.

[gg-filmmaking]

Shoot Day 2

Day two’s weather was unexpected as it became cloudy and really cold for most of our scheduled shooting hours. It only appeared near the final shots for the day, creating a difference in lighting once again. Due to the cold, everyone was keen on finishing the shoot day as fast as possible. Also, during the set-up for each shot, the actors would rest in the transport car to keep warm, which meant I did not have a lot of time to have them as stand-ins. However, as the shots were not too complicated, this was not a major issue for me. However, this also meant the blocking of the actors kept changing because of the lack of rehearsal in the cold. Moreover, there was something I discovered too late, it was the fact that the shot appeared to be closer on the viewfinder than it was on the screen. As a result, the position of the camera was as I wanted when I saw through the viewfinder, but then after I saw the playback for the last shot, it was further than expected. Thus, causing inconsistency in the reverse shot of one character compared to the other. This would break the closeness with the characters as seen in the final film. Furthermore, we were not able to secure a steadicam, nor did we have a dolly, which meant we had to improvise for the running shot of Ruth. The 1st AC wanted to help put in and we decided that he would hold the camera and take horizontal steps to imitate a dolly and follow the actor running on the field. Although, I was happy with this shot, I do wish I had though about more creative shits to showcase the freedom felt during running, however as mentioned, the cold held me back. 

Besides that, I felt proud of some of the decisions that I made, such as changing a shot. There was one shot that was going to be taken from behind the actors, breaking the 180 rule. The intention was to show the view they were watching and see the actors as they face each other. However, the actors never really faced each other until they shared a hug, which made me realise that the shot from behind had less impact. Moreover, it was not adding much to the scene as the camera position was not too different from the shot in front of the actors. Therefore, after a quick suggestion, I chose to have a shot that was more cinematic and played with composition. So, I chose to set the camera on the ground with plants in the foreground and the actors in the background.

[gg-filmmaking]

Shoot Day 1

Day one began with a slow start and gave me enough time to set up and get the establishing shot. We were even able to try two different locations for the establishing shot. The rest of the shoot went quite smoothly with the great help I received from my 1st AC. Though I still felt I lacked skills and needed to ask my 1st AC to execute a type of shot that I had in mind. For example, I had somehow forgotten how to make to background blur, which I was later reminded was through the f-stop. This was quite discouraging, not to feel prepared as a DoP. Another issue that I had not kept in mind, even after it was mentioned as feedback in the pitch, was how to deal with the sun. There were multiple times the sun would be completely covered, and it would change the light on the actors drastically, and again, I was not prepared to mitigate that. Moreover, due to time, I had to keep working with the change in the sunlight. The only change I would make would be to the ND filter, I would lower it when the sun was covered for longer. A challenge I faced was seeing the camera screen in the sun, and due to the angles being waist high, I could not use the viewfinder. However, the solution my 1st AC found was covering myself with a black jacket, which would completely block the sunlight and make it much easier to see the screen.

[gg-filmmaking]

Storyboard, Shotlist and Tramlined script

Preparing for the shots for the film was a bit limiting because, first, due to a delay in the storyboard from the director, I offered to make the storyboard instead. We had a short meeting so that we are on the same page on what the shots would look like throughout each moment in the film. From there, I went to drawing the storyboard, but did not have enough time to discuss with the director for further improvements. As I was not able to visit the location site to get a good sense of the space, I also got a better idea of the space at the location site from the director, as she had seen it in person. This was still very unfortunate because even though I had pictures for reference of the space, being at a location would have benefited me to use the space effectively and more creatively. In the meeting, I informed and built my intentions with the shots. I wanted to begin by using more still shots, which would isolate Ruth in her space. I would introduce Ruth with both wide and close-up shots to enhance the isolation and give the idea that she was trapped in her mind/past. From there after the conversations with Skippy get more personal, the camera would be handheld but with minimal movement, to emphasise the seriousness of their conversation. Subsequently, for scene 2, almost all shots would be handheld to portray freedom and highlight the space around the characters. I was also planning to have a dolly movement, and we had an option for a steadicam, which was quite exciting. I also linked these shots with the references in the moodboard, to show the director what the vision I had in mind looked like before the storyboard. I shared the storyboard with the shotlist included. I also made a tramlined script, which worked with the shotlist and helped with the shooting schedule that the producer would create.

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Pitch

Initially, I  was a bit worried about the pitch because my team did not have a lot of meetings to discuss the plan. What I felt I needed more of was the motives from the film, and whether we were all on the same page in terms of our roles and the film. However, we had a meeting close to the pitch day to look at the drafts that we wrote. This was helpful because I was able to ask questions and refine anything that I had included to match the director and writer’s view of the film. Overall, the intention was to show how Ruth, who was fighting to feel free from the past that she is running away from, which is a church forcing people to be “straight”, finds comfort from Skippy who she is hitchhiking with. Skippy being much older and having an outspoken personality, gives that support to Ruth. They both connect with each other while eating burgers with onions, even though Ruth does not like onions. From this, I knew I wanted to incorporate both still and handheld shots, progressing from one to the other. Also, having wide isolating shots and close-ups.

My pitch statement was: 

Reading the script, I immediately imagined beautiful cinematography, closely focusing on the characters. Ruth fighting the past and finding acceptance by connecting with Skippy is a strong idea in the script. Ruth feels a range of emotions, for which I want to incorporate gradual change in the camerawork. I want to begin using still wide and close-up shots to isolate Ruth as she feels trapped in her mind. Skippy’s presence changes the atmosphere and adds more mid shots with movements. Then, when the two run into the field, we use more handheld shots, both close-up and wide, to feel the space with the characters and follow their movements and emotions. With this I want to illustrate Ruth’s progression from being closed off into feeling free and safe around skippy and the environment around. Overall, the shots will have natural lighting, except for the scenes near the restaurant, which will have lights shining over Ruth, especially. The Artificial lights from the restaurant and natural light will symbolise the dichotomy in Ruth’s emotions of feeling trapped and free at the same time. The rest of the scenes in natural light will enhance the time and the spacious mise-en-scène of a peaceful environment that the characters later embrace.

[gg-filmmaking]

Moodboard

The director for ‘Onion’ and I decided that we would both work on the moodboard and mix the ideas if they were different. In the end, the moodboard that we used for the pitch and as a reference for the storyboard was mine. I worked on the moodboard for the film using the film references given by the director and producer, and another film which I felt fit, called 'All the Bright Places' by Brett Haley. I chose different shot ideas from each film that would work for different scenes in our film. Making this storyboard was very helpful for me to get an idea of the pacing, tone and different moods that would be portrayed in ‘Onion’. The long, still shots that isolated characters were quite present in ‘Life is Sweet” and the same camera positions that were relevant were present in the others. Also, I got inspiration for the running on the field scene in ‘Onion’, for example, having the camera set at a low angle to give a sense of empowerment and freedom to the chargers as they embrace themselves and the space.

[gg-filmmaking]

Preparing to use a Camera

The steps I took towards refreshing my knowledge about using a camera were to look at how to set it up. I chose to look at the Sony FX6 camera because it was the one that was used on my previous film by the DoP. Therefore, I watched an online YouTube video and took notes. The next thing I did was read through the documents on camera and lightning that were provided on Moodle. Preparing for the shoot gave me more confidence in myself. On the other hand, in terms of lighting, I had observed and helped out on multiple shoots to get an idea about lighting tips and how to solve issues. Anyway, our shoot was outdoors, which reduced the concern about using artificial lights.

The youtube video I watched:

[gg-filmmaking]

'Haptic' film

The writer of 'Haptic' reached out to me and asked if I would like to direct her film, as she believed I had good communication in a team and presented interesting ideas during a team discussion for the colour exercise. I was really hoping to get a film I could direct after the ones I reached out to did not work out, therefore, I was happy to join the team. However, this unfortunately did not work out.

Reading the script of ‘Haptic’, I was drawn to the plot having a twist at the end of the story. However, the narrative was too long and complicated to fit in a 7-minute film. Therefore, I worked with the writer and DoP to make it more concise. The story begins with a love story focusing on two strangers who don’t speak the same language but become helpful to each other. Fredericke works in the police force but lives with a toxic boyfriend. She meets Casper, a German tourist who turns out to be the criminal in the case Fredericke has been working on. Casper removes her evidence and disappears, but leaves her cash from his robbery to help her choose a better life. 

After a couple of drafts were created, I was having difficulty understanding the focus of the film. The title of the script, ‘Haptic’, was decided due to the character’s communication with touch. However, the narrative lacked this, and Fredericke’s character was instead quite talkative. The basis became that she had Caspe, who listened to her as she could vent out her troubles regarding her toxic boyfriend Tucker. There were multiple location changes, and the pacing was quite fast, which moved away from the module’s task to create a “sense of place”.  I realised that Fredericke’s character spoke for the whole of the film, and I felt as if the film needed to slow down and take a moment with both her and Casper, as they feel comfortable without talking, and using “Haptic”. 

Our writer received feedback and was told to remove the element of Casper being a criminal, and instead only keep the focus towards the love story between the two characters. However, the updated draft with the changes to the narrative lost the logic in the story in terms of the intentions of the character. It additionally lacked an emotional connection between Fredericke and Casper, and disregarded the concept of “Haptic” communication. 

Therefore, after discussion and realising the difference in understanding of the script between me and the writer, we decided that I step down from the role of director and have the writer be the director as well. This is also because the pitch was only in a couple of days and I would have difficulty writing a director’s statement with a lack of connection to the script. 

[gg-filmmaking]

ASC article

This short article about Matthew Cheung's documentary 'A Balancing Act' talks about his process of filming Nathan Paulin, a slackliner. Cheung made this entire 10-minute documentary on his own while living with a host family. Hence, he made his own directorial, cinematographic and editing decisions to portray how Paulin balances his home and work life. Reading this I learned about verité-style filmmaking, which is basically observational filming, presenting true life. Also, how Cheung incorporated frame-within-a-frame (seen below) shots which was a new term for me.

There is a frame or a type of symmetrical bordering in the shot, the shot being the camera frame itself. Another cinematographic decision he makes is not using an ND filter. Which blocks light in the camera, neutralising the density of the shot and making it look more softer in a way. He does this to highlight the environment of Paulin as he slacklines, emphasising his verité-style filmmaking.

Overall, this accomplishment from a young and aspiring filmmaker is an inspiration and motivation for me and other students to not hold back from creating a film on their own.

[gg-filmmaking]

Exercise 2

For exercise 2, we were required to make a short film in which the identity of a character is only revealed at the end of the film.

This time, I wanted to be the DoP so that I could get practice for 'Onion'. As my team from exercise 1 has already chosen their DoP, I thought about finding a different group. After reaching out in the class group chat, one person contacted me to ask if I had found a group. After some talks, we decided to work together as she was also struggling to find a group she could direct the film for. As we couldn't find more people, we made sure to make our idea simple and feasible for two people. We had one meeting in which we developed a small idea which would initially mislead the audience into guessing the character, but then find out differently.

We decided to meet at the location (my flat) to storyboard the shots before the shoot. Also, to test out the phone camera app called 'Blackmagic Cam' that has settings that would be in a Blackmagic Camera. Planning beforehand and testing the shots was really helpful because it reduced the time it took on the shoot day.

Above is part of the storyboard, which we also annotated together.

Below is the final product, which had some issues with focus and the cuts in between, but otherwise, it went quite close to what we wanted it to turn out as.

After the screening, the feedback was quite positive. The film succeeded in revealing the identity only until the end of the film. Although the idea was to mislead and create an assumption that the character was a murderer instead of a surgeon, which not a lot of the audience had perceived. Instead, either they did not know what was going on in the narrative until the reveal at the end, or some even successfully got the impression of a surgeon beforehand. Moreover, we were told that the composition and production design gave effective clues into the character's personality, making it a good tip for future films. In addition, the colour choices of red being a motif through the film was another good use of what was learnt in class.

[gg-filmmaking]

Joining the team 'Onion'

The director of the film idea 'Onion', reached out to ask if I would be interested in being the DoP for them. They wanted to have female HODs and were not concerned about the skill level. I was very excited about this opportunity and although I am not experienced with using a camera, I was hoping to change that. Wanting to specialise in directing, I realised that learning to use a camera would be greatly beneficial in expanding my skills and creativity when it comes to cinematography. Therefore, I was keen on taking this role. However, first, I wanted to speak with the team to better understand their expectations of me and the film.

Our meeting was quite informal, and the team was very kind and encouraging. They did not have any specific expectations from me as long as I was enthusiastic about working on this project. I had already read through the script, which I was very impressed with, but I wanted to further understand their vision. They wanted to have a warm and slow tone to their film, shown through handheld shots as an example. I was told that the style they are inspired by can be seen in films like 'Blue Jean' by Georgia Oakley, "The End of the Fucking World' by Jonathan Entwistle and 'Life is Sweet (1991)' by Mike Leigh. So, as a note, I planned to watch the two films or at least get a good idea of the style to incorporate it into 'Onion'.

[gg-filmmaking]

Exercise 1

Exercise 1 was a task to make a short film with the requirements to have one silhouette created with natural light and one with artificial. As my team began working towards the idea for this exercise quite last minute, I quickly came up with a short comedy skit and also directed the film. It would hide the identity of two characters and show them through a silhouette, until they are both revealed at the end. Again, due to time, we used a camera that is meant more for photography rather than video recording. It would have been better to use a phone instead because there would have been a bigger quality difference. My ideas for the silhouette were different to what we had to do instead because of lighting issues. This was also mentioned in the feedback that was provided. The first silhouette in the film was created with a shadow of the character and can not truly be credited as a silhouette. My initial idea was to have light shine towards the actor from behind, which would illuminate the area behind the actor but keep the front of the actor completely dark. However, the light source we had was just a lamp, which was not able to produce that. The second silhouette was supposed to be similar to that, but with natural light behind the second actor. Yet again, we did not have enough sunlight or the correct location for this silhouette to be created, therefore, I had to figure out a different way on the shoot day. So, I used a reflection of the second actor instead, but this was appreciated as a silhouette in the feedback session. Finally, the narrative of the film was not translated to the audience; only one person understood it. After being given the context, the film made sense immediately. The feedback for this was the choice of actor, as we had an adult playing a child's character, which makes the context confusing for the audience. Overall, the exercise would have been better executed with better planning and practising more with light.

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Colour Exercise

An in-class exercise required each group to make a 6-shot (each 5 seconds) film highlighting the use of colour to tell a story. My group decided to choose one colour, red, as our main signifier of stress. The narrative followed a girl taking her exam in a dream when unexpectedly her surroundings keep changing. The colour red is used in objects such as her pen and books, and finally, her messy bag which is illuminating red.

Our character wears white and is also spot-lit with white light, while the area around her is pitch dark. This made her appear isolated in an unknown place. Having the area pitch dark brought great attention to any object in the frame, excluding the character. Therefore we were able to highlight objects in red that the character comes across in different shots.

As seen below, our last shot was a close-up shot of our actor's face that was lit up with red light, giving the impression of stress becoming overwhelming/overloading.

After the film was presented in class, the intention of our film was translated to the audience as well. Therefore, the colour red is successfully created as a signifier of stress and tells the story of a character being distressed by an exam.