Friday, 28 September 2012
Thursday, 20 September 2012
Short film: First thoughts
Our group recently brought together initial ideas for our short film. We are planing to use a story in which a character is is exploring multiple outcomes of the situation he is about to enter into. Because of this narrative element, our group will have to overcome the challenge of making this element clear and understandable to the viewer. Since my role in the group will probably be visual effects and music, I will likely get a chance to work on the effects used to convey both passing of time and sequences of thought.
At it's current stage of development, the short film will contain a scene in which the passing of time (a couple of days) is noticeable. To visually stimulate the audience, I have suggested using a combination of time lapse photography, inverse cinemagraphs, and post processing. Cinemagraphs are a more recent creation which have become due to their presence as animated gifs across the web. The are comprised of one or more subjects which are subtly in looping motion, with the rest of the image as a still.
My initial idea is that the main character should be seen walking or sitting at a normal or slowed down pace, with the background scenery being a time lapse. Further post processing will allow us to animate the light level in the scene, to make it appear as if day is turning into night. We will experiment with this effect to make sure that it is the right choice of visual stimulent to use.
At it's current stage of development, the short film will contain a scene in which the passing of time (a couple of days) is noticeable. To visually stimulate the audience, I have suggested using a combination of time lapse photography, inverse cinemagraphs, and post processing. Cinemagraphs are a more recent creation which have become due to their presence as animated gifs across the web. The are comprised of one or more subjects which are subtly in looping motion, with the rest of the image as a still.
My initial idea is that the main character should be seen walking or sitting at a normal or slowed down pace, with the background scenery being a time lapse. Further post processing will allow us to animate the light level in the scene, to make it appear as if day is turning into night. We will experiment with this effect to make sure that it is the right choice of visual stimulent to use.
Thursday, 13 September 2012
Initial short film research
In today's lesson we began research into other A2 level short film projects. One example of another A2 film is "Prophecy", which tells the tail of an older brother realising his maltreatment of his younger brother.
An interesting and perhaps unconventional twist used by the film is the special effects occasionally used on the characters, which makes them appear as illusions or holograms, and keeps the reasonably simple and interesting.
The short film contains examples of both handheld and stationary camera work, however the latter is only used in a few shots at the beginning of the film. The camerawork is fairly well done and suitable for the genre of the film.
Prophecy's main strong point is the use of mise-en-scene to convey the bleak emotions of the plot. The main interior location is dully lit, featuring plain set pieces with often over bearing floral designs. To enhance the way lighting has been used, a strong cool blue grading and a vignette have been added in post processing stages.
The soundtrack features both piano and choral music as non diegetic sound, which is only present near the beginning and end. The music is suitable because it conveys the emotional aspects of the character. Diegetic sound is also present, with hyperbolic emphasis complimenting the special 'hologram' effect which occasionally is used on one of the characters. Whilst suitable, the soundtrack of the short film does not stand out from many of the others that we have watched.
A short film containing an example of a good and complimentary soundtrack is "El Diablo Pinata". Whilst the non dietetic music is not original ("Spanish Flea" springs to mind), the quirky choice of both blot and soundtrack go hand in hand to create something a little more memorable.
An interesting and perhaps unconventional twist used by the film is the special effects occasionally used on the characters, which makes them appear as illusions or holograms, and keeps the reasonably simple and interesting.
The short film contains examples of both handheld and stationary camera work, however the latter is only used in a few shots at the beginning of the film. The camerawork is fairly well done and suitable for the genre of the film.
Prophecy's main strong point is the use of mise-en-scene to convey the bleak emotions of the plot. The main interior location is dully lit, featuring plain set pieces with often over bearing floral designs. To enhance the way lighting has been used, a strong cool blue grading and a vignette have been added in post processing stages.
The soundtrack features both piano and choral music as non diegetic sound, which is only present near the beginning and end. The music is suitable because it conveys the emotional aspects of the character. Diegetic sound is also present, with hyperbolic emphasis complimenting the special 'hologram' effect which occasionally is used on one of the characters. Whilst suitable, the soundtrack of the short film does not stand out from many of the others that we have watched.
A short film containing an example of a good and complimentary soundtrack is "El Diablo Pinata". Whilst the non dietetic music is not original ("Spanish Flea" springs to mind), the quirky choice of both blot and soundtrack go hand in hand to create something a little more memorable.
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