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Final movie link

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Creative Critical Reflection

Please click on the link given below -

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Credits -

videography- Naysa Chhikara, Vihaan Mauskar, Ojasya Ulfat, Leah Syed

script- Naysa Chhikara, Ojasya Ulfat

voice over- Alok Ulfat

directing- Vihaan Mauskar, Ojasya Ulfat

acting- Naysa Chhikara (high school student) Vihaan Mauskar (high school student), Surrinder Yadav (auto driver), Rajeev Singh (business man), Aryan Suri (unwell teenager)

editor- Vihaan Mauskar

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My experience :

A Journey of Collaboration, Challenges, and Unforgettable Moments

Working on the short film with Ojasya, Vihaan, and Leah was an incredibly fulfilling experience. From the very first brainstorming session, there was an unmistakable sense of collaboration and excitement. Ojasya’s creativity brought unique and surprising ideas to the script, making it come alive in ways I hadn’t expected. Vihaan’s meticulous attention to detail ensured everything from lighting to sound to camera angles was executed flawlessly. Leah’s infectious energy and enthusiasm kept the mood light and motivated, even during the longest hours of shooting. Her ability to improvise and encourage the team helped make the process both smooth and enjoyable.

The natural chemistry among the group made everything flow effortlessly. We laughed, exchanged ideas, and learned from each other throughout the journey. Watching our hard work come together in the final product was a proud moment, knowing that each of us had contributed something special to the project. It was truly a fantastic collaboration, and the experience left me with lasting memories and a newfound appreciation for the power of teamwork and creativity.

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Our Social media

We opened our official social media account on Instagram to reach to our potential viewers and engage with our audience. Leah volunteered to become our social media manager and helped us create the perfect posts with our inputs and suggestions.

Follow the journey of our short film! 🎬 Created by our amazing team. Get ready for our posts, updates, and the final movie!

Here’s the link to our official Instagram account -

https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemeter?igsh=N3oycjMyY2Uzd2Zi

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Exploring the Subtle Power of Background Music

In our short movie, we added background music as it plays a vital role in shaping the emotional experience of the viewer. In class we learnt it’s a very important part when it comes to cinema as it sets the vibe for the scenes. For our film we used intense, suspenseful music to heighten tension in key scenes, drawing the audience deeper into the story and empathise with the main character (auto driver) Surrinder. As the film reaches its conclusion, we transition to a Coldplay song named “the scientist” offering a powerful emotional release to conclude the film. Their poignant melodies provide a beautiful contrast, evoking feelings of hope and reflection. This shift in music amplifies the emotional depth, leaving the audience with a lasting impact long after the film ends.

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The Impact of Colour Correction

One of the first things we learnt about post production editing is the tone and colour correction of the movie. The colours in a movie are used to show emotions, set tones as well as make the audience understand and perceive the movie in a certain way. So in our short film, we used colour correction to enhance the emotional tone and show the characters' distress. Vibrant, saturated colors like reds and blues heighten the tension, reflecting the character Surrinder’s inner turmoil. These intense hues draw the audience deeper into the story, making the emotions feel more immediate and overwhelming. As the film progresses, the colors shift, symbolizing changes in the emotional landscape, offering a sense of resolution or calm. Through this use of color, our aim was to create a more immersive and emotional experience for our audience.

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Surrinder’s Dubbing

In our short film’s opening, the dubbing of Surrinder’s voice provides an intimate glimpse into his life and struggles. Through his narration, we hear his thoughts, vulnerabilities, and frustrations, establishing a deep connection with the audience. His voice sets the emotional tone for the story, drawing viewers into his journey and building anticipation for what’s to come.

The dubbing was done with the help of our crew through our equipment and was edited into after in the final draft by Vihaan, our editor. The dubbing was done through a well equipped mic in a silent area to make sure there are no background noises or interruptions. We merged the background music and the voiceover together while focusing on the voiceover to make the audiences attention go to the words as well as set a mood for emotional understanding with the background music together.

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How Audio and Sound Transform Movie Experiences

Sound refers to various aspects when it comes to movies, it is all the auditory elements that are used to enhance the emotional impact and storytelling of a film. It includes sound effects, music, background music, dialogue, songs, and ambiance, which all work together to create a understanding and realistic experience for the viewers. Sound helps to convey feelings, build tension, and set the mood making it a very important aspect of filmmaking.

Sound is vital in our short film, with a microphone capturing clear dialogue through our takes and multiple takes taken to ensure the quality of the sound. We made that there was silence during dialogues and shooting to emphasise key moments. In post-production, we edited and layered sounds to blend seamlessly, enhancing the atmosphere. Background noise and subtle effects were added to match each scene's tone, ensuring the sound worked harmoniously with the visuals to elevate the emotional impact of the film.

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How important is Editing ?

Editing comes in post-production as it is done after the film has been successfully shot. It is the process of selecting, organizing, and modifying footage from the shoot to combine and make a final product. it also involves some tasks like arranging scenes, colour grading, adjusting audio, trimming, adding special effects and refining the clips to improve flow and continuity.

Since we all had a part to play, our teammate Vihaan, who has experience in editing, volunteered to edit our short film with his skills and the help of our inputs and opinions. While editing our short film, we focused on ensuring seamless continuity between scenes. Every cut was carefully crafted to maintain a smooth flow, preventing any overlap that could disrupt the audiences immersion. We paid close attention to details such as matching action, pacing, and transitions, ensuring each scene followed logically and consistently from the last. This meticulous editing process helped create a cohesive narrative, allowing the audience to stay engaged without distraction, and ensuring that the story unfolded naturally and with perfect rhythm.

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The final phase :

Post production

Post-production is the final part of the whole process which is done after the filming is over. Post-production involves editing, sound effects, colour grading, dubbing, visual effects and etc… After filming, the raw footage is edited to create the final version of the project. The editor cuts out anything that doesn’t work and puts the scenes in order to tell the story properly. In post-production, the editor also adds sound effects, music, and voiceovers to make the audio match what’s on screen. If needed, you add visual effects (VFX), like computer-generated imagery (CGI) or other effects that weren’t filmed. Color grading is also done here to make the visuals look how they’re supposed to, whether it’s bright and colorful or dark and moody. Finally, we also added titles and credits, and once everything’s approved, the final product was ready for release.

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Shoot day 4 and 5

On our shoot day 4, which was the supposed to be the last filming day, we were set to shoot the unwell teenager’s shots during evening to night time. We shot the building shots first and then the p.o.v shots of our character in around the same area to portray the feelings of distress and anxiety that our character was feeling. We were supposed to wrap up but a few shots were left which weren’t able to be shot because of time constrains. On day 5, the elevator and drop-off scenes, after making sure we got all the shots correctly. After all shots were taken and our day was over again, we then shortly after proceeded to officially end our filming after thanking and appreciating everyone’s efforts.

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Shoot day 2

On our shoot day 2. My friends and I gathered at a cafe near the shoot location to plan and discuss the shots and manage the time, we then later proceeded to go take to the location point to start with our shoot. We planned on shooting the business man’s shot on day 2. We started our shoot in the afternoon with his shots of coming out of the building ensuing the timing of the auto and him calling for it was perfect and then later proceeded to take his shots inside the auto while it was moving. As only 2 people could be present in the auto while it was in motion, to shoot the driving shots from the passanger seat with the business man in it only 2 people could be present in the auto, the other crew followed and came behind in a car. We later ended our shoot with his exiting scene while leaving a 500₹ note with the auto driver Surrinder emphasising how busy he was to not even notice something that was so meaningful and a big gesture to someone else.

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Shoot day 1

We shot our film in a total of 5 days, dividing it into 4 parts -

• Auto driver (Surrinder) introduction shots

• business man shots

• high school students shots

• unwell teenager shots

On shoot day 1, only Ojasya and Vihaan were able to go to the shoot location, they shot on the first day with mine and leah’s inputs as we weren’t able to be present there at the location on day 1. They started shooting with the auto drivers introduction, where we later on added his voiceover (dubbing) in post production. Our main focus was to get good shots as there was no audio present at the time that was to be focused upon so no mic or sound equipments were needed this day. The first shots were house scenes of Surender’s waking up, bathing, clothing, and puja scenes. Then later our crew went nearby to shoot the auto shots of him cleaning his auto with some additional shots of him driving to add in. With all our crew’s efforts and dedication we were able to end the shoot on time after a tiring day of work.

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The Role of Production in Creating Films

Production is the second part of the whole process when the actual filming and recording is conducted by the whole crew. Production is when everything that was planned comes to life. It involves activities like recording, directing, lighting, acting and etc… The director works with the crew to make sure the scenes are shot the way they were planned. The cinematographer is in charge of the camera angles, lighting, and making sure everything looks good on screen. The actors perform their scenes, and the sound team records the dialogue and any other sounds needed for the project. It’s a busy time, with lots of work on set, but it’s also the most exciting part because it’s where everything gets filmed and the story starts to unfold. The costumes and set designs also come into play here to make sure the look is just right. It’s all about capturing the footage needed to tell the story.

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How a Recce Before a Short Film Shoot Helps Identify Challenges and Optimize Location Use

We decided to do a rekey before our shoot to ensure that there were no problems with the location and could decide the shots and angles that were possible to be shot in the environment that we were shooting in. The recce process for the house of Surrinder was done in the actual house of the actor, surrounding roads, and the auto focused on breaking down the script's details to create an authentic, immersive setting. My teammates examined the house's condition, layout, and minimal furnishings to reflect the characters' struggles. The house fit our actual needs of a area with narrow, congested roads and local shops, ensuring it matched the script's description. The auto rickshaw, chosen to blend into the environment, added local flavor to the scene. Logistics, such as camera placement, lighting, and sound, were carefully planned to navigate the cramped spaces. Permits and coordination with the local community ensured a smooth shoot without disrupting daily life.

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Essential Steps in Planning our Short Film to Ensure a Successful Production."

The planning of the short film “Behind the Meter” involved meticulous preparation to ensure a smooth five-day shoot. The process began with developing the script, which was carefully refined to create an engaging narrative. A detailed recce of the house helped break down each scene, identifying required props, locations, and technical needs which informed the shooting schedule. Location, scouting, and casting were integral to the process, ensuring the film's characters and settings aligned with the vision. We decided to have a set budget constraining us from using our equipments, crew and time to fit to our needs and instead made us learn to handle such a process under a specific budget and timeframe. All of us worked very hard to play our own set roles as we assembled key roles for everyone including directors, producers, cinematographers, and actors, while also scheduling and planning for post-production. This thorough planning helped us prevent any possible unforeseen challenges or problems, ensuring our shoot to proceed as smoothly as possible.