1. Discuss your feelings about the production task: Please justify your responses:
Are you satisfied with your trailer? (i.e. did it turn out as well as you hoped?)
I am not completely satisfied with my trailer, mostly because I believe I could have done a lot better. It didn’t come out exactly the way that I hoped it had, and I could have improved my film if I had created a better and more detailed storyline. However, I felt a lot happier with the final draft, compared to the rough edit as I improved quite a bit.
Did the project require more/less time than you originally thought?
The project required a bit more time than I originally thought, particularly with the re-filming and editing. I thought that I would have to reshoot less and that it would take less time, however, I was still filming the day before it was due as I didn't have enough time. Also, I thought the editing would take less time, however, it took a lot longer than my previous tasks as I put a lot more effort into it and spent lots of time doing colour correction, etc.
Would you like to change or improve any aspects of your final film (storyline, shots, editing, etc.)?
I’d like to improve on my storyline as it was very basic and I feel that I could have made it more exciting and interesting. Also, I think that my film would have been a lot better if the storyline was more detailed and clear. I also could have improved on the music of the film, especially because it ends really badly and doesn’t fit at some parts. For my next assignment, I will look at creating my own background music so that it suits my film better.
If you could start the project again, what would you do differently?
If I could start the project again, I would have improved on my storyline and made it more interesting as this is one aspect that could have really improved the quality of my trailer. I would have also made sure all of my filming was done earlier so that I could get feedback on my rough edit earlier and therefore had more time to re-shoot the things that I needed to. Additionally, I would have made my own background music so that it was better suited to my film.
2. As this task focused on an individual character and genre, describe:
The specific narrative conventions, character type you included in the trailer?
The specific narrative conventions and character type that I used include the fact that it is very mysterious and full of suspense, with tension building throughout the trailer.
How you used specific shot types to convey your story?
I used specific shot types to convey my story, such as high angles to show the weakness of the boy (and the girl at the start), then used lower angles in the ending to show the power of the girl. Also, the shots of the boy were taken from a greater distance so that he is in less of the frame, meaning that he is a weaker character, and the shots of the girl were mostly taken from a closer distance to show that she is more powerful.
Whether the intended genre is depicted clearly or if this could be improved?
I believe that the intended genre of thriller was depicted quite clearly as it is pretty obvious that it is a thriller film. If I were to change anything to improve this, I would have used lighting more in order to create more shadows with hard-defined edges and to make it more suspenseful.
3. Reflecting upon your completed task, respond to the following points:
How did other people respond to your rough edit? Did you use their feedback to make changes to the film?
Most people understood the storyline, aside from the fact that they didn’t understand that the boy she murdered was another patient of the hospital. Therefore, I needed to make it more clear that he was another patient and I improved on this by including shots of them together in the cafeteria of the hospital before the shots of his murder are shown.
Did you use the planning and analysis tools effectively (ingredients list, storyboards, shot lists)?
I believe that I did use the planning tools effectively, especially the shot list. I made sure to finish all planning in detail before filming as this makes me a lot more organised when I am filming. In particular, I created the shot list with detail in every shot so that I knew exactly what I had to do when filming. This was very helpful and saved a lot of time, as well as the fact that I was able to get the rid amount of shots for the time limit.
Were there any problems or difficulties during filming and how did this affect your project? Difficulties may include; shooting, technical, time-management, teamwork, absences or editing, etc.
The first and only major problem that I had when filming was when I borrowed out a camera and tripod for my first filming session, but the quick release was missing from the tripod. I attempted to film the shots that I needed, however, they were all too shaky. This wasted a lot of time so it meant that I was a bit behind on filming, but I was able to catch up quickly. Aside from that, the only other major problem that I encountered was when I was unable to film/edit the day before the project was due. I needed a couple of shots of the boy and the girl in the hospital together. However, I was luckily able to receive an extension for this. From this, I have learnt to film everything a couple of days in advance and receive feedback as early as possible so I do not have to do much on the day before the project is due.
4. Identify one key design aspect and one key production aspect that you will choose to focus on for your next task and how you plan to make improvements? (For Design this could be narrative, characters, storyboarding, shot list, etc. For production this could be camera techniques, lighting, time-management, editing, etc.).
The key design aspect I will be focusing on for the next task is the storyline. I plan to improve this as it is a major part of the film, and it is what needs the most work in my films. I will improve this by coming up with a story earlier on, rather than later, and this will allow me to develop a more interesting film. I will also be putting a lot more thought into it and making it more complex, which will improve my entire film a lot. The key production aspect that I will be focusing on is lighting. In this task, I didn’t use lighting as much as I could, but I will be using it a lot more in the next task as it is a very important factor of film. I will be using it to reveal different things, etc. and I plan to make it a focus of my film.
