hcafilm19

[hcafilm19]

Bloomsbury Festival Screening

Here are some photos from our public screening at Bloomsbury Festival!

[hcafilm19]

Londoners premiere at Somerset House

Here are some photos of our final screening at Somerset House!

Photos by Ibrahim

[hcafilm19]

Our final film, ‘Londoners’ is now live!

And check out our behind-the-scenes film documenting the process

[hcafilm19]

Rio - Silver Award - Unit 1 Part D

Describe what art-forms you are interested in?

Film, music, drawing

Describe the kind of people or careers involved in these art-forms?

In the film industry, there are directors, producers, boom operations, DOP’s DOC’s, actors etc

In music, there are producers, music directors, musicians, mixers

In drawing there are artists, painters, illustrators, graphic designers

What kind of places might they work in?

Film: Cinemas, galleries

Music: Itunes, spotify, youtube, music venues such as the roundhouse

Drawing: galleries, websites, magazines

Rhea Storr’s 16mm film workshop

At Somerset house, we went to a workshop by Rhea Store where we 16 mm film reels that we incorporated into our documentary.  We made this through physically cutting and drawing on film reels, for this we used pens, feathers and all kinds of material to drastically alter film reels into our own. It was really fun and we made about 3 seconds of footage each. We drew over a video about animals and there different survival habits. We also meed with sound as there was a black line next to the footage that controlled audio.

Dartmouth Films Talk

We also had a Q and A with two representatives from Dartmouth films, a documentary production company. They talked to us about different documentaries they make, a good portion related to identity. 

They then asked us about our own film and gave us some pointers on how we should go about it. Pablo and I then went up on the stage and pitched the idea to them.  I enjoyed the talk as it gave me an insight into the documentary making process, and set the bar for what was to come.

National Theatre Backstage Tour

When I went to the National Theatre Backstage tour, we saw how they make certain shows, I went here due to my association with the 1A Arts Centre, of which I had been attending for a year or so by then. I found out more about how much work goes into the drama business, as well as how many roles and how much time is put into it. I have a few videos to show that I was at the theatre as well as a picture. I found out a lot about the history and architecture of the building, for example, I didn’t know about the massive rotating elevator underneath the main stage that’s used to strand port people, props and set pieces. This furthered my understanding of plays I’ve seen at the venue in the past including Macbeth and king Lear. This has influenced me to have a more open and deeper understanding when watching drama.

Here we were were in the main auditorium where we received a talk about the stage and unique seating arrangement. 

Going to the ��Spike is 60′ event

When I went to the ‘Spike is 60' event, I saw a talk as well as signing from the man himself. I got involved with the event through my Aunty Evette. She invited me and my dad to the event during mid-2017. 

Spike told me about possible ways of getting into the industry as well as different ways to improve my film-making skills, he told me this after I asked the question “What advice would you give to an aspiring filmmaker who wants to convey a powerful message through film like your-self?”. 

After this he told me that I should always write down my ideas, and always make films. Practice make perseverance and perseverance strives into perfection. 

Afterwards he signed my journal with a personalised message. This has influenced me to further my interest in a career in film, hopefully this will be shown through my work in the future.

[hcafilm19]

Rio - Silver Award - Unit 1 Part C

On June 15th I went to the ‘Get up Stand up Now’ exhibit at Somerset House with others from the 1A Arts film course. At the exhibit there was a showcase of pieces made by black artists, this being films, sculptures, interactive pieces, photos and paintings. 

It was made in the memory to Horace Ove, the first ever black British director, in fact one of the first ever black directors in the world as well as other old and upcoming artists the exhibit showed scenes from Horace’s work.  These were showcased in different rooms, some with there own films and some not being correlated at all. I’ve seen a lot of exhibits like this before, celebrating culture and diversity through the means of art. I’ve also made a few paintings and drawings to do with culture and identity for various arts and DT projects in the past.  

In this picture we were looking stamps that an artist had laid out - they allowed you to look at them closeup. The artist was encouraging us to look closely at the propaganda associated with each stamp and identity of ‘entire’ counties.

I saw things that were more of a surprise as to how abstract they were rather then them being unexpected. I enjoyed how they got different aspects of black culture and how it affect white British people. mainly the introduction of carnival and food from there own cultures of Caribbean and African origin. I didn’t dislike anything from the event. i’ve learnt more about the culture that black people brought over from there countries and how they’ve embedded them into British culture, swell as learning about the director Horace Ove. 

Here is a some information which explains the context of the exhibition:

I’ve taken away how culture and identity can be expressed through different types of media and art. Things that stood out to me where the Rhea Storr’s film on carnival and the introduction of black culture, and the Horace Ove film pressure, with depicts a mix race posh boy who lives in a Jamaican community, and how he’s torn between two worlds. 

The Rhea Storr’s film was about the use of carnival to express feelings and culture, mainly as a celebration of the black community. It also talks about how it is now used a lot by the white community in Britain, (examples being Nottinghill), it also talked about masculinity in the black community, mainly commenting on a group of black men standing on top a bus stop, meanwhile the black women watching from below with the white people. 

Stills from Rhea’s film

The Horace Ove film ‘Pressure’ was relatable for me, as I am a mix race boy of whom gets to a private school yet lives in a black community. The film is mainly about how there is also segregation witting the black community swell as society itself. 

Film still from ‘Pressure’

I participated in a discussion where I shared my thoughts about the exhibition:

[hcafilm19]

Rio - Silver Award - Unit 1  Part B - Reflection 4

Reflection 4

Date: 19.08.19

Event: Youth Film Academy

Notes:

To further my knowledge and experience I joined the young film academy residential course, that my mum found through her friends. At young film academy residential, I did the cinematography and camera operations for our film ‘Like an Olive Tree’ which was 5 minutes long. This developed my skills through the  course through using various pieces of equipment such as lights like blondies and redheads, tracks and the c400 camera I used on set. I found some shots challenging, for example the bridge scene because it was raining. 

I got round these with help from my fellow crew members. I had to slightly adjust my plans to get round certain challenges, this being due to the  time and space that we had to work with.

Link to behind the scenes film of the project:

Link to final film:

[hcafilm19]

Pablo - Silver - Unit 1 Part B

Reflection 3:

09/08/19

In terms of editing sound I have also developed my skills. I have been editing sound in Premiere Pro so that it sounds natural and stays constant across different shots, which originally came with different sounds, by using the wild track. I have also been doing some more experimental editing using Garage Band to create rhythms out of the sounds recorded at Farringdon Station. This was quite a challenge as the sounds didn’t immediately lend themselves a rhythm or tune, and Garage Band does not have very sophisticated editing of timing.

Another challenge was that some of the wild tracks we had recorded at Farringdon and Somerset House were interfered with by the wind as we did not take proper precautions to protect the mic from wind such as a mic cover or dead cat. Therefore, if I could do it again I would use these precautions in order to ensure that we had more usable sounds. 

recording wild track on the Tascam, without a cover or the dead cat!

A screen grab of the Garage Band project that involved repeating sounds from Farringdon Station, as well as changing their pitch to create different notes. The main rhythm came from repeating the oyster card tap sound in different pitches.

[hcafilm19]

Francesca - Silver Award Unit 2 - Part E

WHAT LEADERSHIP SKILLS HAVE YOU DEVELOPED?

Throughout my time working on the project i have improved my editing skills , through my continual and persistent work on the Premier Pro software.

I used my existing knowledge, along with new found knowledge, obtained from those sharing tasks, to create and edit footage and sound for the overall fluidity of the film.

I learned how to utilise the skills of others, appreciating the skills they have honed, but taking advice and learning for yourself as a tool to add to your toolbox of editing and improve your active participation. 

WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED ABOUT BEING A GOOD LEADER?

Through undertaking this course I have gained insight into the workings of others, and when collaborative working is necessary, and when independent solo work is to the benefit of the group.

I have seen first hand what listening and basing decisions on the views of the majority grants the group an advantage as the majority are contented by there inclusion. Less heated debate about the subject ensues leading to a more work centred environment.

REFER BACK TO YOU ORIGINAL PROJECT PLAN.DID ANYTHING HAPPEN DIFFERENTLY TO WHAT YOU ORIGINALLY PLANNED.

Originally I envisaged the project as running a much smoother course with far fewer hiccups and bumps. however this wasn't the set up that was achieved, in spite of this we managed to achieve.

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU'D DO DIFFERENTLY IF YOU WHERE TO COMPLETE THE PROJECT AGAIN?

Yes, i would as well as undertaking a different Challenge, work differently in what tasks i was completing within the process. for example within editing I focused on the script of the interviews as opposed to the narrative character scenes as they felt more leading than the narrative acting scenes.

WHAT PARTS OF YOUR PROJECT PLAN WORKED WELL?

The project plan worked well as it primarily entailed my improvement in an editing capacity.I feel this was achieved with help from Chloe , the course leader and Jack , also a course leader.

I also achieved my goals in Editing in the quality of the overall product.

WAS THERE ANYTHING THAT DIDN'T WORK WELL?

Throughout the process we found several hurdles, mainly based around how best to work with others. Problems generally arose regarding differences of opinion and thought as opposed to technical challenges. in spite of this technical challenges did arise, most of these involving selecting footage

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVOURITE PART OF THE LEADERSHIP PROJECT?

The highlight of the leadership project for me was working in partnership with Pueblo to edit together footage and create.

WHICH THINGS DID YOU FIND MOST CHALLENGING?

The overall challenge for me was the monotonous nature of the editing process.When editing even if running through the most engaging footage,    there soon comes a time when the interest naturally wains,                              and pushing through that boredom was a struggle even when faced with a deadline. 

WHAT WAS THE FEEDBACK FROM OTHER PEOPLE ABOUT YOUR ROLE AS LEADER?

Most within the group actively valued my leadership qualities for example FILLIP who said of my leadership 

“you work collaboratively and your not afraid to ask others opinions of what your doing and evolve your work for the groups overall consensus.”

I received further support from KEWEN who also had comments relating to my leadership 

“You take what we say into account and actively try to improve your work based upon our concerns.”

Chloe: You have successfully taken a lead in editing the film, going through the necessary steps to select and combine footage to contribute to the narrative. You have worked well with others and had a good vision for the story you wanted to tell. 

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THIS FEEDBACK?

I value it highly and try to respond effectively to feedback be it a positive or a negative, the feedback i received from both the participants was constructive ,not, critical and thus of much benefit to me throughout the process.

overseeing content and throwing in suggestions based around the showcasing of the interviews.

[hcafilm19]

Francesca - Silver Award - Unit 2 Part C - Effective Arts Leadership

reflection 3 9/8/19

Following the initial editing, I continued to lead a section of the editing by taking lead on the montage, choosing clips and slicing together footage to show as our final piece of work.

I worked alongside others often giving insight into my plans for the film and taking decisions both singularly and collaboratively.

Because of this collaborative working, challenges arose surrounding continuity, these however were easily put to rest by means of pooling minds and resources in order to remain within themes established early on within the project.

the project plan has faced many an amendment, specifically relating to its length. Often when forgetting time constraints  

me yet again editing more of the film.

[hcafilm19]

Francesca - Silver Award - Unit 2 Part C - Effective Arts Leadership

Reflection 2  5th August 2019

Selecting and highlighting from the transcript:

My role involved raking through the lengthly transcript and from that combing through in search of relevant information and text that holds up and is of both relevance and interest to those who see it.

I undertook the challenge of editing the transcript, making the amendments to the amount of content in order to best inform, engage and to consolidate its recurring theme, London. 

I have developed my ability to work independently and take responsibility for a task.

I realised that when running through the transcript, one cannot appreciate the idiosyncrasies of a persons speech pattern so I must make allowances in relation to time and not compromising of the fluidity of the person’s dialectic patterns. 

I’ve had no health and safety issues at this point in the project. 

[hcafilm19]

Francesca - Unit 2 Part C Effective Arts Leadership

Reflection 1

2nd August - Interview Cutting

On Friday we (the creative editing team) focused on filleting out dead space between interviewees answers and questions to create a more concise timeline,this is done as it achieves a clear and approachable narrative.

Specific times where you’ve shown leadership

I took leadership by working as lead editor to trim and cut the source material.The role i have undertaken involves my interpretation of the source material and how it correlates with the overriding themes of the piece. 

How you’ve developed the leadership qualities you set out in your plan

In my plan, one of my leadership qualities was to develop my editing skills.

I have developed these leadership qualities by taking initiative and self setting goals such as, developing my knowledge of shortcuts e.g. C for ‘cutting’ and V for regular pointer.

Have you had any leadership opportunities you weren’t originally expecting?

Leadership challenges were planned in advance, obviously, but i wasn't expecting such contradiction in the structure of different footage.

Have you had to amend your project plan?

  Not in its bare bones, as there were not many hiccups ,though unexpected ones continually cropped up mainly base around the availability of computers and Macs’.

Any other health and safety issues you’ve had to think about 

Various repetitive strain injuries were avoided, carpel tunnel among them.

Constant typing and editing led to eyes gazing at screens, becoming dry and itchy in an already flustered environment. As thing progressed, we found that numbing and pins and needle inflicted feet where avoidable with regular breaks and water.

me editing, trying not to exhaust my eyes by gazing upon the camera.

[hcafilm19]

Francesca - Silver Award - Unit 2 Part C - Reflection 1 & 2

REFLECTION 1

Date: 3 Aug 2019

GIVE AN EXAMPLE OF HOW YOU'VE WORKED WITH OTHER PEOPLE DURING THE PROJECT.

Throughout the project I worked with both my fellow film makers and fellow lead editor Pablo and the course leaders.This involved reviewing previous work completed by both myself and other members of the group to edit or improve upon already existing material obtained in shoot week.

WHY WERE YOU WORKING/COMMUNICATING WITH THEM?

When working on the short film it was important to work collaboratively to ensure that all parts of the film , as they had multiple directors and editor, flowed and fitted together without any noticeable jolts into a different style.another benefit to working collaboratively is gaining knowledge from others on subjects not well versed in. Especially in things learned from course leaders.

WHAT DID YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE?DID YOU MANAGE IT?

What I hoped to achieve from this was a gained insight and knowledge into the film making process.I feel I have achieved this since undertaking the film project and am grateful for the opportunity that has been granted too me.I wanted to improve my editing which I believe I have done. Furthermore I see my part on working on the editing team of the short film, to be a testament to that.

DID YOU HAVE  TO RESOLVE ANY ISSUES YOU HADN'T  PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT ABOUT?

Throughout we did run into several issues , mainly based around continuity of editing, I had not envisaged there to be any issues there, however these problems were easily ironed out, through collaborative working,(yet again another reason why working with others was so vital for the film to run smoothly.)

Working with Pablo - my fellow lead editor

----------------------

Reflection 2

Date: 

GIVE AN EXAMPLE OF HOW YOU WORKED WITH OTHER PEOPLE IN THE PROJECT

I worked specifically with Jack to edit and trim the script in order to ascertain the most relevant and pertinent soundbites from the interviews, and to punctuate the lines of dialogue given by interviewees, with other "punchy" soundbites that interested the audience.Together, Jack and I worked out in what order the sound bites best fitted and created a narrative that fitted the theme of the film , the theme being London’s inhabitants. We worked endlessly to convey the narrative of a city based on difference, not division, but struggling none the less with the problems that arise in a diverse city of such contrasts.

WHY WHERE YOU WORKING/COMMUNICATING WITH THEM?

I worked with Jack as he was overseeing much of the editing work as course leader, and as i was taking a lead role in editing , found him a useful person, full of insight, to discuss and decide with.This was also true of Chloe, who worked advising us throughout the process to achieve a watchable film and provided the upmost guidance to all of her subordinates.

WHAT DID YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE, DID YOU MANAGE TO ACHIEVE IT?

My main objective was to isolate and locate the most telling quotes that really represented Londoners from the interviews. Honestly that was it , and I feel that I have to the best of my abilities achieved that.I wanted the interview segments to be telling of how Londoners feel, abrupt when necessary, yet overidingly positive of both the city, and her inhabitants.

DID YOU HAVE TO RESOLVE ANY ISSUES YOU HADN'T THOUGHT ABOUT?

Yes. I had not planned for so much conflicting material to exist within the interviews.mostly trying to keep gender and racial balance in the interviews, less a problem with representation of minorities a very large problem among gender and the equal representation of women's voices, of the group only three were women including myself.It is a challenge when met with such a large huddle of views to focus on the ones that most align with your own world view, however not resorting to bias was important as Londoners focused on the discrepancies and variety , not a resounding one size fits all dogma.

Me and Jack working together to edit.

[hcafilm19]

Kaia - Silver - Unit 2 Part D - Reflection 1

Reflection 1

Date: Saturday 13th July 2019

Give an example of how you’ve worked with other people during the project?

I have worked with my peers when I was presenting my first edit of the logo design to them, which I had made on the app PicsArt, using my sketches as a draft.

Why were you working/ communicating with them?

I was communicating with the group in order to show my ideas and receive feedback from them on what they liked or didn’t like about it, as well as opinions on the colours of the logo.

What did you want to achieve? Did you manage to achieve it?

I wanted to find out about what my peers’ opinions were, so that I could alter the logo design accordingly, ready to upload onto social media channels. I did manage to achieve this.

Did you have to resolve any issues you hadn’t previously thought about?

I had not thought about the fact that the app Photoshop requires a licence to use, which I do not have, but I overcame this by using an app called PicsArt, which is very similar.

The first photo is of the first draft, and the second photo, is after I had changed it according to an idea that one of my peers, Rio, had.

Here is a photo of me presenting one of the first drafts of my logo design to the group.

[hcafilm19]

Halima - Silver - Unit 2 Part C - Reflection 3

Date: 2/8/19

Today I was on BTS by myself, taking both photos and videos the whole morning.

How are your leadership developing?

Our plan changed for the day as only a few of us went out to film so we had bigger jobs than usual which I wasn’t expecting. This also meant I had more responsibility to capture everything on both the DSLR and handy cam. I was also a lot more independent as I was confident in operating both cameras.

Have you had any leadership opportunities you weren’t originally expecting?

I have as I’d also taken the responsibility of doing BTS photography as well as film because today there was a shortage of people.

Have you had to amend your project plan?

I have as BTS photography wasn’t originally part of my leadership project but this wasn’t a problem. I enjoy taking the photos more on the DSLR so I did a bit more of that than film, but seeing as we already had a lot of footage from previous days, tonnes of footage from this day wasn’t necessary.

Were there any other health and safety issues you’ve had to think about?

There were no health and safety issues I’ve had to think about today, everything went smoothly and today was a lot more calm than other days of shoot week.

Here are a couple photos I took during shoot week.

[hcafilm19]

Halima - Silver - Unit 2 Part E

REVIEW YOUR LEADERSHIP PROJECT

What leadership skills have you developed?

I have developed the leadership skills to work well with others and communicate well and I have become more responsible and independent. 

What have you learnt about being a good leader?

I have learnt that being a good leader can be hard work and consists of a lot of things such as communicating well, having your voice heard and delegating roles.

Refer back to your original project plan. Did anything happen differently to what you originally planned? If so, what and how?

Nothing really changed from my original plan, I did everything I mentioned and I think I have developed the leadership skills I talked about. However I achieved my time frames earlier in some steps.

Is there anything you’d do differently in the future if you were to run the project again?

I would have tried to film a bit less and have more control over how much I film and perhaps get some more interviews with people.

What parts of your project plan worked well?

Things that went well were that I finished things earlier so I was on track and we got some great footage - both funny and professional. 

Was there anything that didn’t work so well?

The only issue was the amount of footage we had to import, we started doing this at the end of shoot week so it would save editing time.

What was your favourite part of the leadership project?

My favourite part was taking the BTS photos on the DSLR because I have never taken professional photos on a professional camera before.

Which things did you find most challenging?

I didn’t find anything particularly challenging, however waiting for the footage to import was inconvenient as it delayed the editing process.

What have you learnt about working with other people?

I’ve learnt that working with others effectively can get a job done much quicker and it makes it a whole lot easier. Working with others can also make a job more fun and enjoyable however in order to work with others effectively, good communication skills are required and you have to make sure your voice is heard amongst people.

What was the feedback from other people about your project and your role as a leader?

Kaia - “ Your BTS filming was great, you seemed very experienced.”

Ishaaq - ‘’ Your work on BTS was excellent and you captured some really good clips. ‘’

Ibrahim - ‘’ I like how you took both funny clips but also captured more serious scenes.’’

Chloe - “I think you managed the BTS filming really well, given the group size and variety of filming environments! You developed your communication skills by working with others to direct the process, capturing the key moments in the project. Next time the BTS team should try and capture at least 3 interviews per day with participants perhaps in a quiet environment so they can be used in the edit and to help drive the story. Also a good tip is to review the footage every day to find out what you are missing. But overall - Well done!”

What do you think of this feedback?

I think this feedback was great and constructive, I’m also glad there wasn’t any negative comments!

[hcafilm19]

Halima - Silver - Unit 2 Part D - Reflection 2

Date: 31/7/19

Give an example of how you've worked with other people during the project

I have worked with other people when I was interviewing them whilst they were shooting during shoot week. 

Why were you working/communicating with them?

I was communicating with them because I needed to have some talking scenes in the BTS film to explain what was going on better, other than just having tonnes of silent footage.

What did you want to achieve? Did you manage to achieve it?

I wanted to make the film more lively and funny, I think we did achieve that but we also had a mix of more professional and serious footage of us in shoot week.

Did you have to resolve any issues you hadn't previously thought about?

No, I had prepared interview questions before hand whilst doing my BTS plan so I knew what I was going to ask and I just went with the flow.

These are the interview questions I had thought of a week before shooting.

This is a screenshot of the part of the BTS film where I was interviewing our actor before filming the first shot.

[hcafilm19]

Halima - Silver - Unit 1 Part B - Review

REVIEW YOUR ARTS CHALLENGE

Did you achieve your arts challenge?

I feel I have improved in editing over the course of edit week, however I think there is still room for further improvement.

Did you have to change your action plan or your challenge in any way? If so, what changed and why?

There were no major changes however I needed more help editing than I expected as I wasn’t very experienced at first.

What went well? Why?

I prefered editing on the BTS film because it had a completely different vibe to the main film as it was more relaxed and comedic which I liked. The editing of this film was also a lot easier and didn’t require as much technique and analysis of content as the main film.

What was more challenging? Why?

Editing on the main film was much more challenging because there was a lot more to do and perfect. It was also much more professional and is a much longer process. However, for the BTS we shot a lot more footage and therefore had a very difficult job of editing down hours of footage into a 6 minute film.

What have you learnt from doing your arts challenge?

I have learnt more about using premier pro and that editing is a very complex and time consuming job.

What would you do differently another time?

I would spend more time getting to grips with the editing software beforehand, so I could get on with the task quicker and get more done when the process started.

What art skills would you like to develop next?

If I were to do this challenge again I would choose camera operation because I now have used a professional camera many times and I would like to improve in that area further.

What did other people think of your arts challenge?

Ibrahim - ‘’ You made the right decisions over which clips to use for the BTS film’’

Kaia - ‘’ You were skilled in editing and it seemed like you learnt a lot from the course, the end product of your editing was very impressive.’’

Indy - ‘’ Your selection of videos was very good.’’

Chloe - “You developed the key skills needed to edit the behind-the-scenes film, gaining knowledge and practice collating material into bins and using tools such to cut and order footage as well as add titles and effects. The finished film is fun and creates a lovely portrayal of the project! Well done!”