Coursework people

So for the AS Level coursework piece I'm working with Ami Lawrence and Conor Taylor. Both of them did this year's stuff before so in theory, I picked a really good group. Let's see how that works out... Such fun!

Preliminary Task Evaluation Screenshots

This is our match on action example sequence. This is a seamless movement from one side of the door to the other side, into the corridor where the main part of the piece takes place. The close up shows the beginning of the action and, combined with the second shot, makes it clear that they are the same actino but from different angles.

This is our shot reverse shot example while observing the 180 degree rule. The close-up shots of the talking person's face allows a clearer view of their immediate reactions and their face gestures as they talk. The camera switched positions with the dialogue according to who is talking.

Preliminary Task Evaluation

Before we begin our coursework piece, we were asked to create a short video demonstrating our understanding of basic filming concepts. These were match on action and shot reverse shot while observing the 180 degree rule. To prepare for the task we made a storyboard of our piece, showing the rules as they would usually be seen.

We filmed the match on action sequence of me walking through a door first. We began with a long shot of me approaching the door before cutting to a close-up of my hand on the handle. We finished filming it with a medium shot of me coming through the other side of the door.
The shot reverse shot and 180 degree rule was shot using over the shoulder shots of the person talking.
This would clearly show the person's immediate reaction and expressions as they talk. As the camera stayed on one side of both people, out stopped any confusion as to who was where.

Overall, I was happy with the final result. We used editing to cover up when the door wasn't closed behind us in one shot and was in the next by adding the sound effect of a closing door when it wasn't in the shot. This gave the impression that the door closed while the camera looked away, helping the continuity of the piece. However, there was a continuity error that we would have liked to cover up more in editing. This was my hand placement when opening the door. From one side, my hand opened the door from the side of the handle but on the other side my hand was on the top. This couldn't be fully covered up in editing without cutting out the other half of the match on action sequence or having a cut mid shot.
On the whole the piece worked well with fluid and steady camera movement and appropriate switching of position in the shot reverse shot sequence in time with dialogue.

I feel confident in the basics of using the camera to film and iMovie to edit.

Christopher Nolan

christopher nolan by rmurphymedia on GoAnimate

Animated Presentations - Powered by GoAnimate.

My interview with Christopher Nolan, the genius behind the Batman franchise, Inception, Memento and Insomnia. For some reason he sounds like Mr Bullock off of American Dad and I'm American. Hmmm...

Psycho Stills homework

The mid shot of a shadow behind the shower curtain adds tension to the scene. It also keeps the identity of the 'psycho' hidden, giving the audience a mystery. While the film is in black and white, there is sill an idea of light and dark and the darkness of the shadow pushes the negative idea of the shadow.

This extreme close-up of the victim's hand clinging on to the curtain is symbolic of her clinging on to life. The light is high in this shot, possibly to underpin the idea of the victim or innocence. The rest of the shot is blurred out, drawing focus to the hand and away from the possibly gruesome scene behind it.