#I didn't write on it I just drew interpretations of what the scripts said

[neunhofferart]

Do you know if Sammy has a canon sexuality? Obviously she's sapphic but like does she have a specific identity? If not, can you say what your headcanon would be?

I don't think the writers really gave any of the campers specific romantic preferences. In an earlier draft of Yaz's coming out episode I think she was more clearly implied to be bi, but that's about it. While on the show I did latch onto the headcanon/soft canon of Yaz being bi (because I'm also bi as well as demi so being unsure of labels was very relatable to me). As for Sammy, she's more of a mystery to me! I think whatever you read into characters and headcanon yourself is completely valid.

[katiejaynefilms]

Fiction Project- Critical Reflection

I found it fantastic working in group 6 on our dialogue driven short film ‘Lift Break’. I hadn't worked with any of my group members before so it was brilliant to get to see new people’s way of thinking and working style. When the project started Jack pitched his idea to the group, which he had already written a much longer screenplay for, and we were all keen to develop it. I really enjoy writing, especially dialogue and would like to improve and develop my style as much as I can, so I asked to work on the script. 

When it came to research for the screenplay I re-watched dialogue from ‘Normal People’ as I think, especially with relationships and break ups on screen, most of the communication isn’t said, as you are trying to translate such an emotional bond. I like the naturalistic dialogue normal people uses and the its portrayal of miscommunication. Another group member also showed the argument scene from ‘Marriage Story’ which was a useful reference for when the argument kicks off within our film, as the emotion builds similarly. I haven’t cowritten anything before so that was a useful experience about maintaining balance when working on someone else's idea, and helpful when it comes to noticing what does and doesn’t work. I tried to work on the time jumps as individual segments as well as how they effected the whole script. I think the screenplay was very good although perhaps a little bit too on the nose at certain moments. After we finished writing I drew some concept art for fun to demonstrate visually how I was imagining the situation, which the group responded positively too.

Concept art: https://katiejaynefilms.tumblr.com/post/645118952321728512/film-narrative-2-some-sketches-i-didvisual

One way the group worked together well is that we had quite a few calls where we discussed ideas together. Near the beginning of the project we went through and created the beat sheet together which made sure we were all on the same wave length. The roles got quite blurred in my opinion because when we were having discussions everyone would make suggestions  and contribute areas towards all areas. This allowed the film to be a much more collaborative and creative project, although one downside is that some people didn’t always seem clear on what they should be doing because everyone was chipping in. I wasn't supposed to be part of the camera team but after working on the script I had come up with some ideas that  as I wanted it to feel quite claustrophobic and awkward, as though the audience is boxed in with them and imposing on their conversation, which is why is why I suggested restricting the camera to the front three walls of the lift until the ending. I also felt that we should have the same opening shot for each time jump, just with them in different positions or a worsened state, for the audiences clarity and also hopefully a humorous tone. 

As a group the visuals we came up were strong in my opinion. The costume and set design document Peer created were my favourite piece of work and they definitely fed into my roles, in terms of colour and styling. La La land was a reference here which I think is clear from the colour palate.  Deciding to make it more ‘retro’ really enhanced the film, adding warmth, which contrasts with the cold conversation, compared to a modern setting where it could of become bland. The relationship of the characters wasn’t smooth sailing so creating visual confusion with contrast in their outfits,  between the setting and dialogue and camera movements demonstrates this  I created a playlist based on his work especially, I included quite jazzy ‘elevator’ sounding music, older songs and also some R&B, which I thought captured the mood and flowed from vintage and modern. 

Working remotely was very difficult in some ways. Inconsistencies definitely appeared as people would go and work very independently on tasks after our discussions but ask for feedback or if they needed help, which isn’t the same experience as working together in one space. I did ask if their was anything I could help with and I hope I contributed enough. The group calls where we would look at stuff together definitely helped. I think our teams story board was also really strong, Jenny and James co-operated very well on that. 

In the crit, as well as the through the trimester, the feedback has been very fair and useful. I’m glad my concept art was complimented, usually I do it for myself but I’m definitely going to continue into into future projects. I agree that the production design document was definitely the highlight, and the mood boards were also positively received. We know now though to add more explanations with our visual choices, and we should of explored lighting. More attention to detail was needed as it was pointed out that the shot list and marked up script didn't match each other which was an oversight and likely due to not having a producer set in stone to make sure everything matched. The other group in our crit had put together a call sheet and I really admired their organisation. Their character profiles were a stand out for me, it gave me a deeper understanding of the script.

For the post production exercise our group struggled. I did try and follow what was going on but I have no prior experience with avid or protools and it was a bit overwhelming. I had a go at editing the scene in lumafusion just focusing on the principles of editing. James did the post production work for our group which I though he did a brilliant job. He worked very independently and asked for group feedback sometimes and I wish I had been more helpful but I wasn't really sure how to be other than to give my opinion when he asked. As we move on I will try and find a way to offer more support for the people working on this area. The scene definitely needed sound work, which unfortunately didn’t work out. Ideally we would of added room tone, and at points the synch was off. As well as fixing the knock on the mic and adding in sound effects like the bessheets ruffling to make it feel more immersive. 

All out pre-production documents: https://href.li/?https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Bt2zk9QszdiEGWGqTXiFQ0CfdBU_ewaT