Personal Profile Preparations.

Oh the joys of being a film student.


Alrighty, the following images are some of my early prep work in creating a small promotional film about a student at S.I.T...
AT random (drawn out of a hat) each film kid selected a different department at S.I.T. to conduct an interview type situation that promotes that students work and the S.I.T. facilities as well.
I was given the task to find someone in the "Fashion" department to co-operate and work with me.  Fortunately over the previous holidays i had worked with a pre-entry fashion student Tumanako, to which we became good friends at the end of it. Tumanako was my first choice to work with, but unfortunately his time at the course has ended (due to being only a half year long subject) and he has returned home up north.
However he was eager and able to lend me some names of people in the course that would be keen to help out.

One of those was Lenon Wakuwa. one of the friendliest people i have ever met. he has a definite charisma thats going to work out wonderfully with being in front of a camera.

Now i planned to stage 3 different shoots to complete this project. 

1)  Being the interview itself. held in an upstage theatre with a black backdrop. i will have various props such as posters and clothing that promote Lenon's works and the S.I.T. course too.

2)  I thought it would be an awesome idea (since its 'Fashion" that i get to do) if we staged a small catwalk scene. i mean what better way to show of his work than to actually have them modeled and strutted around in right!!RIGHT!

3)  And lastly i would like to collect little segments of B-roll. for instance i would get Lenon working with materials and show the process from start to finish. i would like to see Sketches, prepping, materials, pinning, cutting, sowing, making adjustments on a model etc. all that sort of jazz. 

so anyway heres my prep work:

New term, New thing's

 A couple of weeks ago I completed a script for a class assessment.
what started out with the ideals of equality for gay civil rights (Not in a preachy kinda way) slowly manifested itself into an overall equality issue with my Antagonist promoting total Nazism.

Basically:

Our protagonist Joel lives in a hyper reality. similar to our own. where minorities who don't fit a specific attraction (Eg: white skinned and gorgeous) are severely marginalised.
these ideals have been transported into a relatable High school type scenario, where the goal is simply to make it to the "prom"

but what happens when the rights to go to prom are removed for those that don't fit the stereotype? -unfair right, I mean everyone's allowed to go to prom! what do they do?

And to top it all off, Joel's best friends happen to be a black young woman and a gay young man?

the ideals being that "Prom" represents equality in the forms of movements such as gay/black civil rights. the idea that everyone has a right to be equal apposed to a selected few who hunger for power.


- well that was the initial idea anyway. whether or not that was pulled off in the script...probably not.  However today some useful feed back was received which id like to share.

1-perhaps toning back the Nazism concentrate and focus on one equality issue instead of trying to tackle a whole bunch of them.
- I agree, in the sense that hopefully targeting just ONE (I'm going to choose gay civil rights) with provide a much thorough and deeper meaning into my story.

2-rethink the concept. keeping the themes in mind.
- the dilemma in being I am a very poor poor low budget student.....and for some reason I decided it was good idea to make a Prom scene.......hmmm well if I do keep it at least its a challenge right? haha

3- some depth to Joel's character needed. he has no motives, only his friends do really.
- so what if, perhaps if Joel was gay? and he was the sole attraction of being marginalised? maybe?
 or if I don't choose to go down that path, what are HIS motives, not his friends?

4- and lastly. to find its own NZ voice.
- as I am Kiwi, reading the script leaves you with a somewhat western feel to it. (American) which to be fair, when I wrote the script it defiantly was an imitation , almost a mockery of how American High schools are portrayed.
now this is the feedback that stumps me the most. If I wrote it with an American style, how do I evolve this to a NZ type thing.
obviously im going to end up with actors who hold a new Zealand accent when it comes into production. so that might help out.

But preferably I think I would like to give it the American vibe. and if I wish to make it a mockery perhaps play up those elements and make it clearer or harsher?

hmmm, ohwell. at the end of it I guess I have a bit of rewriting to do .......:)

 This task is a homework piece that was due a very very very long time ago. (apologies).

Basically our classes assigned task was to compose a variety of shots using a range of lenses to compare each effect that each lens created. using only two compositions; close up and mid shots.
 the five different lens types are as follows
                                                                                                         

  

  18mm
  35 mm
  50mm
  75mm
  105mm

the photographs lining the left side of the page appear in the consecutive order as labelled above for the close ups and the mid shots. as you can see the 18mm give my (object/focus/ wonderful flatmate for letting me take unattractive photos of her)  a warped appearance. while allowing us greater perspective of depth in the background and foreground of the image, it becomes unflattering to the human eye. Dramaticising peculiar angles and shapes.

 generally the longer the lens the more appealing the image created. (well that the belief anyway). however my personal opinion in regards to the pictures shown; is that the 35mm and the 50mm are much nicer to the eye. this may have occurred due to the slightly different nature of each shit. for example: notice that the object stature may have slightly changed from smiling beautifully to having a small nap. other factors include lighting changes and slight angle variations. some shots appear at a higher angle than others (automatically making it more appealing than lower angles)

Rialto 48 Hours reflection!

With every passing year that I have entered the Rialto 48 Hour Film Competition, which is now a grand total of Two times, I have learnt many lessons. Some for the good, and many a lesson learnt from the bad. But that’s more or less what these times are for. Friendly competition that can further our experiences in the field of filmmaking. Using a system of trial and error I believe that in the next years competition we can perform something even better. Stepping our game up every time.

In our very first year of study at S.I.T (2013), our class decided to enter in a team (RAW). No one in our team had ever been involved with the Rialto 48 Hour Film Competition before. So as expected we were ill prepared. When the text came in just after 7pm everyone was in a frazzle. By trying to come up with a GREAT story our plot became lost and confusing. We had differed away from our assigned genre slightly and no one was on the same page. Progressing forward from these foundations was even more difficult, in the sense it’s hard to film a story that you don’t really understand in the first place. In simple terms, our staring had a domino effect around the team’s function for the remainder of the weekend. Disappointingly, We did not end up producing the film that we wanted.

Going forward from our previous experience aided majority of our decisions this year. (2014).  My classmate Brogan and I decided at the close of last year, that we would like to take a project with our sole control. So there would be a definite sense of leadership and direction. As a result she produced, and I ended up directing the short film under the team name “Umbrella Fortress”. The two of us spent many hours agonizing over things to get us ready and organized for the weekend. Our aim was to have a small crew with specific jobs (in the end we only brought along Kimberly-sound and Matt- gaffer).  An easy flowing weekend schedule so crew could have breaks and decent rest, actors secured, food sorted. And lastly we had drawn up a variation of 5-6 different scripts that could be manipulated into several genres.

We were prepared; there is no doubt about that.

As a result, when we received the message around 7pm on Friday 4^th of April, there were only three people in the room working on the scripting process. Brogan, Kimberly and I, (opposed to confusing room of 10-13 people all pitching in ideas). This system worked. It was far easier for people to pitch ideas, listen and discuss appropriately. Having the preparations and foundation in place made for a great start in our hectic weekend. Because we ran through the script fairly quickly, Brogan, Kim and I ended up leaving relatively early (11Pm) and getting a nice big sleep before shooting commenced at 9am the following morning.

I personally had prepared a quick rough shot list of what I wanted for the shoot, meanwhile Brogan had been organizing last minute props and making sure there was plenty of food around to suffice.

Overall the shots were powered through surprisingly quickly. Only getting caught up over one particular shot from our “dolly”. Which is merely an acquired shopping trolley, I found difficulty to keep the shot leveled due to the unsteady carpet of the floor I was rolling it over. Aside from that particular shot we ran through the action fairly quickly.

We even stopped partway through the day for a massive lunch break (longer than scheduled for) partly due to the fact we had been so quick. Shooting was completed at 8pm Saturday night, which is a stark contrast to the year before. At this time I estimate we were only halfway, perhaps ¾ done with our shoot. We still had a night sequence to put together and on top of that I had to keep resending the crew out to do pick ups of important details that they had missed. A process that continually delayed our progress further and further behind.

I ended up staying until 12:30am the Saturday night putting together a rough edit of “Who Stole the Cookie from the Cookie Jar”, while Brogan edited up our intro sequence and credits. Then heading home for another large rest, not returning to the edit suite until 9am. The amount of sleep received this year was a major blessing. We did not change our sleeping patterns for the sake of the competition and were very well rested compared to others. In 2013 I would say I received an estimate of 4 hours sleep the entire weekend. From the Friday morning until leaving for home Sunday night.

Our editing system was far improved from the year before. Brogan and I had found that our editor from the year before wasn’t “up to scratch”, in the sense that unfortunately they were not fast enough to cope with the hectic rush and pressure of editing. With that in mind we decided to elect myself as the editor, I feel comfortable and confident in majority of my editing skills. And I’m quick enough to power through it. Though one major error occurred in this process. Halfway through creating the rough, the computer completely froze. As a result we waited 30mins –an hour to see if the computer would fix itself. It didn’t. As a result I disappointingly lost half of the rough edit and had to spend an extra Hour re-doing what had been deleted.

In the end the edit was graded, and finished exporting around 5.45pm on the Sunday afternoon. Leaving us 1-hour spare of the deadline, only having to send the Wrap Up Forms.

In conclusion I found our efforts paid off having the vast amount of preparation that we did, a definite improvement from the year before. Even though our film did not end up a “blockbuster” and wasn’t particularly well received by the judges. I still feel proud of the product that we created and I am impressed with the effort and atmosphere that all contributed towards it.

Wreck-It-Ralph

two nights ago I re-watched "Wreck-It-Ralph", and in all honesty I had forgotten what a great movie it is. for those that don't know:

"Wreck-It-Ralph" is a Disney film that was released in 2012.  It follows the lives of Arcade game characters, in particular, Ralph. He's been stuck in a situation for the last 30years as playing the "bad guy" in his arcade game. And he finds himself looking to be the hero for a change. But of course on his quest he finds himself looking for the deeper meanings of life, Causing havoc and basically disrupting the entire arcade's system.

"Wreck-It-Ralph' is one of those rare films that can be watched over and over again and still be as enjoyable as the first time you watched it. The concept is well thought out, the script: well structured and believable, the characters are memorable and the animation differences between the eras of games has just polished it off.

My emotional response to the film was relativly good. i mean, even though the events that occur during this film are totally unrelated to my type of life. i was still drawn in almost immediatly, i was involved in this world that Disney had created. it was thouroughly well done

the Lead character Ralph is a totally relatable character. dealing with insecurites and overall just looking for acceptance for who he is as apposed to what he is (a bad guy with a generous heart). my favourite moment with this character, when we truely see how much he has evolved. Occurs in the climax of the film, when Ralph realises what is important in his life. and on his journey to "make friendships" with the characters of his game he has formed a very real friendship with Venelope. and acts as such. (soory about the brief explanation i did not wish to spoil the film for others)

moments that engagaed me the most generally involved his emerging friendship with a young Candyland girl called Venelope. my Favourite incident has been mentioned above, but another compeling moment  is Ralphs "all is lost" stage in the film. where he has been presented with an aweful challenge but must do a very wrong thing for the right reasons. .. tears were shed.

at no moment of time was i disengaged. i followed the story smoothly from begining to end without interuption of any kind.

 

Blake Snyder, practical Beat Sheet test.

our assigned work this week was to mark a film using Blake Synder's beat sheet process.  to evaluate whether or not it is practical in majority of all films. for my example i chose to review "Wreck-It-Ralph", A disney animation released in 2012.... (if you haven't seen this film yet you need to go out and get it!... its Amazing)

SPOILERS!! the follow work is literally a play by play of what happens on screen. So if you don't want to ruin it for yourself don't read any further.

here is my working out for it.

STORY BEAT SHEET

1. Opening Image (1):scene opens on an arcade game. With old animations (pixels) and is then absorbed into the games reality.

2. Theme Stated (5): feels under appreciated, lonely. Wanting more from life.

3. Set-Up (1-10): in all aspects in arcade land. He is treated like the bad guy. “Just because you’re the “bad guy” it doesn’t make you a bad, guy”

4. Catalyst (12):story accelerates when an argument with the nice landers ensues. –ralph can win a medal if he wants too.

5. Debate (12-25): goes to pub. Drunken soldier tells him they win medals that literally say “hero”. Ralph game jumps to a new fast action game. (Hero’s Duty)

6. Act Two Plot Point (25) Ralph does get the medal but in the process wakes all of the virus Bugs. one is in his escape pod when he bounds round. Through game central station and into a candy race game called Sugar Rush.

7. B Story (30): Cue Vanellope. a cute, annoying little girl that happens to be a "glitch". She steals Ralph's medal to enter a race. Much to everyone’s distaste. Characters from the game destroy her homemade kart in efforts to quell her ambitions.

-plot note: in order to get Ralph's medal back she has to win the race.

8. Fun and Games (30-55): the break into the factory and bake there own Kart. Lots of fun follows as he teaches her to drive. More is found out about each others lives.

9. Midpoint (55): Due to Ralph's lack of appearance in his own game they have been closed down. Felix (the hero in “fix-it Felix’) has gone to look for him with the help of the strong female from Hero’s Duty. (Who is looking for the bug that Ralph's brought with him into Sugar rush.)

10. Bad Guys Close In (55-75): the bugs have been multiplying under ground. King Candy gives convincing opinion as to why Vanellope can’t race. In return he gives Ralph his Medal back.

11. All Is Lost (75): he destroys her kart. (very sad) and returns home. Only to find it set to be unplugged. Everyone has left. Felix has been captured in sugar rush looking for Him. His Medal has a very hollow victory.

12. Dark Night of the Soul (75-85):????

13. Act Three Plot Point (85): looking outside he can see a picture of Vanellope on the side of her game. (Which means she must be a lead character right? And not a rejected glitch, as she has been treated.) he goes back to sugar rush. Frees Felix, Gets him to fix the Kart and makes sure she gets in the race.

14. Finale (85-110): Bugs awaken halfway through the race, destroying everything. King candy turns out to be this super evil dude from another game. A bug eats him and they merger into a super evil king bug guy. Ralph sacrifices himself to save Vanellope and her world …. (but he doesn’t die.)

15. Final Image (110): New life order is restored. Ralph has friends and is treated well in his own game life. Vanellope resets her game and is no longer rejected and plagued by bullies. Yup… happily ever after.

upon reflection, (in specific regards to this film,) i found the Blake Snyder's Beat sheet to be fairly accurate. the only step that i feel i couldn't fill was step 12: Dark night of the soul. If i was to fill it in i would feel as though i am bending the story to fit the Snyder structure. which just isn't truthful to the film itself.

However majority of the Beat sheet fits smoothly with the sequence of the the film structure. perhaps length of certain beats may differentiate from the practical film. But that would be the only nit pick that i would have to comment on.

"Fear Photography"

Last week we were given the weekly assignment to photograph an image that empowered "FEAR".  One of the first actions i took towards this was to ask questions. What makes us scared?  After interrogating a few of my friends with the usual results, (spiders, death, kidnapped, creepy men and even clowns) I decided to make a more Internal approach.

I fear Helplessness. Forced into a situation in which you have no control of what is being done to you or any means of escaping.

rough draft of scene/setting

^^This is the first rough concept Idea. Using Chains and other rough materials the subject would be bound in a small dark enclosure. The idea being to allow the shadows of the image to play with the imagination of its audience. Free to interpretation. Torture tools displayed to increase the feelings of unease and gore. I had even planned for there to be dog bowls and dog collars to enhance the "Helplessness" and lack of control our subject has.

This is a NOT the final product merely showing off the set design and make up of our subject. Due to physical limitations we could not acquire the type of metal chains I had envisioned. However we made do with what we had and I believe it paid off.  An on set decision I had to "gruff up" the scene even more was to gather Dirt and literally throw it all over the set, and our subject. Almost instantly gave the scene a much darker turn. The tools menacingly placed in a view that can be easily spotted by the viewer.      >>

^^ This is the FINAL Image (no editing apart from taking the image in black and white) Just to clarify the original image is actually a lot darker than the uploaded version. Keeping that in mind, I'm very happy with the final product. ( i really wish this came out properly... so you'll just have to use your imagination to make it far more shadowed in the dungeon.)