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Week Six and Seven
In Weeks 6 and 7 of my Final Major Project, I firstly focused on completing my Planning Experimentation. I looked into Casting Actors, finding different methods for this as I knew it would be detrimental to conveying the message I’m showcasing in my film and ultimately, it makes my project complex as well. I also experimented with Storyboards, as I found throughout my Process Research Report that these were the most important parts of Planning. Lastly, I worked through all the Planning Documents that were needed to move into Production, this included: Finalising the Ideas, Script, Shot Lists, Storyboards, Production Schedules, Location Recces, Equipment List and Risk and Release Forms.
The first target I set myself to focus on for this week was improving the layout of the Script. The Script was an important, if not the most important document of planning, especially for the actors and if they was not laid out correctly, it could confuse them and potentially lose interest in wanting to play a part in my Short Film. I am pleased to say I have sorted out the layout within my Script, making it much more organised and easy to understand. I asked my college mate, Ez, for help with this as she is something specialising in Screenwriting so, I trust her opinion the most.
The last target I set for myself this week was to plan out what I am completing throughout the Week, to ensure I stay on track and keep consistent, with an area I stated I have underperformed in throughout the Year, Time Management. I have successfully completed this target I set by creating a word document at the start of the week stating what I aim to complete and the time I aim to achieve this by. I also colour-coded each one to state the completion level of it so I could keep on track and ensure they are all green, meaning completed, by the end of the week!
Feelings
I was feeling excited and ready to go with the second week of Planning, the previous week went successful for the most part and I was happy with the progress I made, this gave me confidence when it came to the sixth week as I saw the potential my film has and I made a solid start to the documents already. I enjoyed fleshing my out idea, and it was really nice seeing it go for a small idea to a full narrative. When it came to Storyboarding I felt a lack of motivation however, remembering what I learnt in my Process Report about how important these can be, I pushed through this and finalised my Storyboards to the best of my ability. I had a really relaxed time working on the other Planning Documents, I did encounter some minor issues on the way but nothing that was overly worth stressing about as I had ways to resolve these except for a mistake I made when Location Scouting. I completely forget to respond to Rod, the Reverend of Bocking Church, this slightly had me stressed for a day as I was looking forward to using his Church but thankfully, this was all resolved shortly after.
Evaluation - The Script
I completed both the first and second draft of the script in Week 6 of Planning. I was really proud with my first takes on the Screenplay, what I feel went really well in particular was how successfully I managed to build suspense throughout the film. The way I structured the narrative was key, I chose to add plot twists as I found out in my Contextual Research Report that plot twists ‘create suspense and tension, and add an element of surprise’. This is exactly the response I wanted to achieve, creating that element of surprise in the end of my film was key to showcasing the pivotal message of ‘Suicide doesn’t end the pain, it just passes it onto someone else.’
I was very surprised with the time it took me to complete my Final Script. In the past, my scripts haven’t been anywhere close to this long and they took me two weeks to complete only one draft attempt. However, within Week 6 of Planning I completed Draft One and Two to a high standard, the content wasn’t rushed. I believe it was because my Planning beforehand has been more sufficient than the previous year, starting with the Pitch was smart as this fleshed out my idea effectively beforehand. This gave me a headstart when working on the Script as I only needed to fill in specific details.
Where I found the dialogue in the first half of my Script to have gone successful, it felt like it flowed well and sounded natural as I stated in my previous Reflective Log. When it came to the final scene, I found it rather difficult to keep that same flowing conversation between my protagonist and therapist which was frustrating. It was ashame because the dialouge was going smoothly up until this final scene of my Short Film. However, I don’t think is an area i am going to look to improving on for the upcoming weeks as I will be heading into Production potentially next week or the week after. Instead, I know the dialogue contains the correct content it just doesn’t sound fluid and natural so, I will keep what I have so far, give the script to my actors and have a few experimental runs with them as I believe they could do a better job naturally speaking it out.
Shot Lists
The Shot Lists were a vital document to me, as someone who specialises in Cinematography I needed my planning to focus on the visual aspect and where my artistic skills are very underdeveloped, Storyboards were not something I would like to be taking on set with me. I knew planning Shot Lists were going to be important as I found in my Process Research Report that ‘planning is the most important element for successful productions.’ This quote was stated in a book by Steve Cartwright. What I feel went well about the Shot Lists was how organised I made them. It was easy to tell what was happening in the shot and what scene it correlated too as it was all in order.
Additionally in Week 7, when I figured out the Final Production Schedule I went back to the Shot List and added a colour code to this. I thought this was an element in particular that went well with the Shot Lists as this made it easier one, for me to figure out what shots I need to shoot each day and to ensure I don’t miss any and two, it would help my actors become prepared when it came to Production Days so they knew what sections they needed to revise beforehand. This was all shown in the Production Schedule however, the shot list gives more details as too what specific scenes are being filmed that day. It also states which scene each shot is, which makes it easier to find a certain part in the script.
When it comes to the Shot Lists, there is very little I have issues with. The only thing that I have noticed at the end of Week 7, now every other Planning Document is finalised, is the Storyboard Reference Numbers in the Shot List, don’t match up to the Storyboard Numbers in the actual Storyboard. However, as I stated above due to my underdeveloped artistic skills, I was not going to take my Storyboards on set with me so this no issue at all. It didn’t affect the Shot List in any way.
Storyboards
I started off the Storyboards perfectly fine, then when I was around a quarter way through making them I decided to work on the Shot Lists as I felt this would be easier to work off a Shot List, than use the Storyboard to make the Shot List. However, after completing the Shot List I had hardly any motivation to want to complete the Storyboards as I felt the Shot Lists were sufficient enough. However, I remember a quote I found in my Process Research Report ‘The most important part of pre-production will always be your scripting and storyboarding.’ I stated so often in my Process Report the importance of Storyboards so it would be hypocritical to miss this element of Planning out, so I pushed through the lack of motivation.
In particular, when it comes to the visual aspect of the Storyboards what went well was how I mapped out Natural Light, a lighting technique I thoroughly experimented with. At first glance, it may seem like the sun was placed there to detail the drawing however, this was not the case. I placed it specifically there to map the direction of where it was shining, to create a glow on a specific part of my character. This is what I found most useful about my Storyboards, as Lighting was a key element of my Techniques within the Contextual Research Report and later on in my Experimentation, I knew I needed to find the best way to plan this out and I believe Storyboards showcase it perfectly.
This was one of the only positives I could see in my Storyboards though even after listening to what I stated in my Process Research Report about the importance of Storyboards, I still feel Shot Lists will help me achieve a certain shot more effectively. The first area that didn’t go well when it came to Storyboarding was the framing. If we take Shot #11 and Shot #12 for example, the shots are rather similar for the framing, and the characters are about the same size. However, I have stated that Shot #11 is a wide shot yet Shot #12 is a mid-angle shot. This is an area that definitely could have been improved and I feel if I was making Storyboards for someone else they would undoubtedly have gotten confused but, because the Storyboards are just for personal use, I knew what I meant beforehand so it isn’t a dealbreaker.
Throughout college and even back in secondary school, I always used to suffer with terrible handwriting which is another part of the Storyboards that hasn’t gone well. Being able to read what you write is something that should be the bare minimum when it comes to Storyboarding and with a couple of mine, I am unsuccessful with it.
Production Schedules
When the planning stage commenced I started on a Project Proposal and throughout the rationale area of the Proposal, I stated the importance of Production Planning as Time Management is an area I’ve been unsuccessful with in the last two years on Film and TV. So, I felt creating a Production Schedule was necessary to have a smooth Production Week ensuring I could film everything I wanted, without forgetting parts.
What went well with creating the Production Schedules was just like my Shot Lists, the layout was well-organised and easy to read. This was useful in particular, as it means when it comes to Production Week I wouldn’t get in a mess finding what scenes were supposed to be shot on each day.
Something that didn’t go well in the finalised Production Schedules was stating every location we were shooting at. I could go back and add this now, but I have already been in contact with the actors about locations so they are aware of where each scene is being filmed so to me, this seems pointless.
Location Recces
Location Scouting was a big element of my Planning as I wanted to ensure I could make this Project complex, by gathering permits for external locations instead of just using Houses or Public Land. In Week 6, I got in contact with Rod, the Reverend of Bocking Church, I explained to him the plot of my film and why I needed the church for my film. He was a really nice guy and was keen for me to shoot my Short Film there. We arranged to meet the week after so I could take a look around the Church to see if it would be a suitable venue.
So in Week 7, I headed to Bocking with my friend Thomas to scout out this beautiful Church. I loved this location from the first minute I walked through the door, I also accquired some photos of this church to make my Location Recce visual-based. Towards the end of Week 7, I finally found a suitable station for my Film. I didn’t head to Hatifled Peverel Station beforehand however, the photos I found online were enough for me as I could tell that this was going to be the perfect station for me. On the same day, I was given permission from my Grandad to use his house in my Short Film. I used his house last year and I was really keen to use it again.
What went well about the Location Scouting firstly, was how well and quick the response was from Rod to my email. I believe this was due to the fact that I sounded professional and polite. Being polite is something that gets you so far nowadays and you could clearly see Rod respected this a lot. Rod really liked the sound of my film idea and when I was speaking to him in person he even stated that he likes acting in a film every now and then, so another thing that went well about this Location Scout is out of all the churches in Braintree, I most certainly picked the best one when it comes to filming.
Scouting out and seeing what shots could work when it comes to my Short Film is another part of the Location Scouting that went well. I took a few shots of the Church that I believed could be used in my film and this is an area I will look to incorporate within my Shot Lists and Storyboards when I get around to making them. I know that this will play a big factor in improving my workflow when it comes to Storyboarding and especially Production. It will save a lot of time getting to the location and scouting for every shot when instead, I can have a few ideas in mind already.
An issue I had that could’ve ruined having the church as a location was keeping my email notifications off. Typically I get a lot of spam emails, so I decided it was best for me to turn my notifications off. However, where I was texting Rod back and forth I became busy one day and completely forgot I emailed him. I then went a few days completely forgetting to respond back to his email which could’ve resulted in him losing interest and deciding to shut down the offer. I apologised to him and thankfully he was completely fine about this.
I also had troubles on the way to the Church where I got stuck in heavy traffic on the other side of Braintree when I needed to get to Bocking. I got my mate Thomas to email him and apologise for the troubles and again, Rod was perfectly fine with this.
Equipment List
The Equipment List was a fairly straightforward document that stated what Equipment I was planning to bring onto the set and additionally, I added why I wanted to bring this certain equipment with me.
What went well about the Equipment list is updating my original draft as I remembered about the Reflector, which I spoke about in the Theories and Techniques section to my Contextual Research Report. I am glad that remembered these as it was a piece of lighting gear that really interested me whilst researching about it. It was apparent that the Equipment List was useful to ensure that I don’t forget anything when it comes to Production Time.
Risk and Release Forms
These documents were in place to ensure that I can not get sued for either, something that goes wrong on set or publishing my film online with their face included in it.
What went well about these was I was successfully able to outline every hazard, in the Risk Assessment case, that could go wrong. In previous projects before, I have used different Risk Assessment documents that didn’t contain all the potential hazards in my film. But with this pre-made document, it had every hazard that had a chance of going wrong for my Short Film, which made my time much easier.
The Model Release forms were something that are fairly new to me as this is the first time I have used external actors, instead of my friends or family who could I quite certainly say wouldn’t sue me. But these went well, they were quite self-explanatory and didn’t require much more than changing a few lines to fit my Production.
Planning Experimentation - Casting Actors
Initially, finding external wasn’t something I had high hopes for. I felt as a student, people would very much overlook these posts as you don't acquire that on-set experience playing a part in a Student Film, that you would by going into a high-budget feature film. However, I felt it was worth experimenting with as I wanted to obtain people that have experience with acting to present a serious message to my audience. The first method I used to try and locate actors was putting Casting Calls out. These were posts on I put out on Social Media such as Facebook or Instagram, explaining about the film and characters and seeing if anyone is interested in playing a part. The second method I went about trying to find actors was contacting local agencies or stage schools to see if anyone would be interested in playing a part in my film.
What went well about this Planning Experimentation is how I completely proved myself wrong and it how much this benefited me by doing this. I stated in my Experimentation that "I am glad that I experimented with these beforehand as without this experimentation I would have been more likely to just stick with the agencies and not think about posting Casting Calls on Social Media." This really shows how important my Experimentation with Actors was. If it wasn’t for this Experimentation, I would not have thought about posting Casting Calls on Social Media which would’ve resulted in me failing to find any external actors, so my family and friends would’ve played the parts instead. My friends and family typically do a good job but, I don’t think the message would have the same effect on my audience if played by them. I found many external actors from the Experimentation and it would’ve been a shame to miss out on them with a silly judgement I made before experimenting with it.
Leading on from above, what clearly didn’t go well was finding any actors from agencies. This wasn’t the end of the world as my other method was a success but, it was a shame to have not received a single response. I am glad I experimented with this though, I was routing on this method being much more successful, yet after completing the Experimentation I have been proven entirely wrong.
As agencies were a complete disaster, I feel something I could’ve implemented at the time to improve the Experimentation was an extra method of finding actors. I had barely anything to compare the two as one was unsuccessful so it could’ve been better if I found another method to have a fairer comparison with Casting Calls. Nevertheless, one of the methods I experimented with was hugely successful, so the Experimentation process was still a vital part of my Final Major Project
Another element that went well with the Planning Experimentation, the Casting Calls specifically, was the design I had created in Photoshop. I had received feedback from my friend Jacob, someone who specializes in marketing and design, and he said the design was clean and sure to attract the attention of actors as it was laid out and presented well.
Planning Experimentation - Storyboards
What went well about the Storyboarding Experimentation was it completely changed my perspective on Picture Storyboarding. Initially hearing about Picture Storyboards crossed my mind, as someone who specialises in Cinematography, as a useful concept. However, after putting it to the test against Hand Drawn Ones, my ideology around this method changed completely. After completing the experimentation, I am certain that Hand Drawn Storyboards will be the only method I use, Picture Storyboards proved themself as a waste of time, especially with the short amount of time we get to plan our Final Major Projects.
What could’ve gone better when it came to experimenting with Storyboards was implementing it within my Final Major Project just like I did with my Casting Calls. My Casting Experimentation was directly used to experiment for the Casting in my Film whereas my Storyboard Experimentation, was just generalised and had nothing to do with the Shots in my film. I could’ve used a scene from my film to Storyboard out, which would’ve saved me time when it came to Storyboarding the entire film however, even after doing this I’m certain my conclusion would have stayed the exact same.
Conclusion
To conclude Week 6 and 7 of Planning, I was so pleased with how the Planning went for my Short Film. I knew I planned sufficiently enough to begin Experimenting and especially, use these documents when it gets around to Production Days. I am eager to put all my planning into action as I believe this will be by far my greatest production.
Action Plan
Going into next week, I would like to set myself a target of keeping the complexity consistent. Where I have experimented these weeks with Casting Calls, an element of Planning that I had never thought of doing before, I want to ensure that the Practical Experimentation showcases something I haven’t or rarely done in the past such as the techniques I researched in my Contextual Research, making sure I hit the grade criteria with complexity in my Project to achieve a distinction.
Problem Solving
An issue I had when trying to put the finished Proposal onto WIX was instead of the scrolling issue I had in the previous week, every time you click to scroll on the Bibliography it lets you scroll but, it deletes itself and you are unable to read any of the citations. This is a huge issue as Citations are a massive part of achieving a merit let alone a distinction, so with the examiners being unable to read this I could not achieve a high grade.
So, to solve this issue I could not find any way to fix it within the Proposal Form itself, I tried remaking the form, changing the size of the Biblography but every time you scrolled on it, they disappeared. Instead, I provided a separate page on my WIX site just underneath the Proposal Form with the bibliographies on it so they can be read perfectly fine.
To ensure this does not happen again, I will make sure I create a separate document in the first place, for all the Citations to go.
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