Looking back at your preliminary task (the continuity editing task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
In the following I will look at the similarities and differences of my pre-lim task and my final opening scene. I shall also talk about what i have learned in the process.
Below are both of the films, the first being the pre-lim: Sweet Potato, a film revolving around a man in love with a potato. The second The Disciples: Back On The Block, the story of 2 singers struggles of making it big again.
How did you find the preliminary task and what was the hardest thing to overcome?
My preliminary task was difficult for me because i had little to no practice using cameras or editing software. This left me to figure out what looked good and worked well. It was evident that the pr-lim would have to focus around one character due to the time limits otherwise the audience may become confused with the plot. The pre-lim also faired difficult due to the lack of locations we had access to film in. I feel the camera shots we did eventually get worked well but compared to our movie opening they are weak. The hardest thing to overcome was without doubt getting to grips with all of the equipment and software that we were required to use. For example the cameras uploading time was painfully slow on the Mac's but experience taught us to upload the footage to the normal computers first and transfer it via USB.
Where you happy with the pre-lim task?
Where you happy with the pre-lim task?
I would say all in all i was happy with the pre-lim, despite the stresses. Compared to my editing on Back On The Block, Sweet Potato lacked in graphic effects as i had not researched some good effects to use. I would say that Sweet Potato also lacked in scene variation due to the fact we didn't have access to a lounge in order to create the first scene. The main mistake in my pre-lim task was ridiculous as i managed to mix the names up. This meant that my character had the same name as my colleague, Issak's character, which meant the film was extremely difficult to grasp. I made sure i did not make this mistake again.
How is your final scene better than your pre-lim?
My final scene was a great improvement due to the time and effort that i put into the planning, the shots, and the editing. I also took time to find the best settings for Premier, making the film widescreen at a 16:9 aspect ratio to cater for bigger screens. I was also happy with the pitched film due to its frequent indoor setting as this eliminated the problem with lack of winter daylight.
Shot Comparison:
First Scene:
The first shot of my pre-lim was a still, introducing the characters with no sound. This seems fairly bizarre looking back now as i gave no background to the characters.
This differs to a graphical entrance in Back On The Block, with exciting music and fast paced media. This really created a great cinematic experience due to a number of things: I scouted the sound effects better, i made the titles more prominent and i made sure the film was recorded at a better quality.
Second Scene:
I am proud of Sweet Potato's second scene as we used a difficult match-on-action shot. This created a sense of movement for the character and required alot of preparation an editing in order for it to look correct.
The second scene of Back On The Block slowed the pace down from the first shot, due to its dramatic nature. It contrasted well due to its shot of inanimate objects that meant alot to the character. The mise en scene was also very well planned as it effectively contrasted with the character, giving him emotional depth. One being white and pure (a bathroom) and one being dark and tainted (C.Dot).
Third Scene:
How is your final scene better than your pre-lim?
My final scene was a great improvement due to the time and effort that i put into the planning, the shots, and the editing. I also took time to find the best settings for Premier, making the film widescreen at a 16:9 aspect ratio to cater for bigger screens. I was also happy with the pitched film due to its frequent indoor setting as this eliminated the problem with lack of winter daylight.
Shot Comparison:
First Scene:
The first shot of my pre-lim was a still, introducing the characters with no sound. This seems fairly bizarre looking back now as i gave no background to the characters.
This differs to a graphical entrance in Back On The Block, with exciting music and fast paced media. This really created a great cinematic experience due to a number of things: I scouted the sound effects better, i made the titles more prominent and i made sure the film was recorded at a better quality.
Second Scene:
I am proud of Sweet Potato's second scene as we used a difficult match-on-action shot. This created a sense of movement for the character and required alot of preparation an editing in order for it to look correct.
The second scene of Back On The Block slowed the pace down from the first shot, due to its dramatic nature. It contrasted well due to its shot of inanimate objects that meant alot to the character. The mise en scene was also very well planned as it effectively contrasted with the character, giving him emotional depth. One being white and pure (a bathroom) and one being dark and tainted (C.Dot).
Third Scene:
The third scene on Sweet Potato is the running scene in which close ups of the character can be seen, this aids to give personality traits to him, mainly him being unhealthy, relating to the couch potato comment early from the other character. This is fast paced and a..... interesting scene.
Back On The Block's third scene is without doubt the best in the movie. It took a enormous amount of time to create but without it, i feel the film would have never reached its potential. With majority effects and little filming, it really set the seen for the music industry side of the film.
Final Scenes:
There is only one other scene in Sweet Potato, the dramatic ending, this features a close up and a potato bite. It then ends with the Titanic film music and crying scene along with the title of the film.
Back On The Blocks has many more scenes indicating its faster pace than Sweet Potato, i feel this works well as it keeps the audience engaged. The interviews are very important as it really shows some personality behind the characters, along with short performances from the pair.
Final Scenes:
There is only one other scene in Sweet Potato, the dramatic ending, this features a close up and a potato bite. It then ends with the Titanic film music and crying scene along with the title of the film.
Back On The Blocks has many more scenes indicating its faster pace than Sweet Potato, i feel this works well as it keeps the audience engaged. The interviews are very important as it really shows some personality behind the characters, along with short performances from the pair.