Construction Post 3: Reflections on our Main Shoot Session

Everyone contributed to the main shoot (both crew and cast) with enthusiasm and eagerness, leading to a very successful collection of footage. We managed to get all the shots that we needed and more to allow us to have a large selection to choose from when it came to editing the sequence together. Our main shoot went a lot better than our test shoot as we had more people to fill up the space and so it was less scarce, making the party scenes appear more upbeat. We also had the correct lighting equipment and so this helped to make our shots less grainy, if at all. Furthermore, the cast were all wearing the correct costume outfits that we asked of them, and this helped to create the right party vibe that we were looking for. After our rough cut we asked members of our target audience what we should add or improve in our main shoot to make it better/more realistic, and the majority responded with the idea that there should be more dance shots of a crowd to build up the party atmosphere and make it seem crowded. We took this advice on board and included more shots of the crowd in order to add a sense of excitement in the party.

A collection of some of our rushes from our main shoot

Construction Post 2: Our Post-production Kit

Each group was allocated an edit suite to work on the post-production for their opening sequence and we used the software Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5 to edit our rushes together. We were also given a Macbook in order to work on our titles, using the software LiveType.

Our LiveType screen

Aspects of LiveType

Construction Post 1: Our Production Kit

Contract

In order to take out the equipment required for out shoot, we had to all sign a contract form sating that we would look after the equipment and return it on time. Our parents, media teacher and media technician also had to sign this. We were then given the following equipment:

• Canon Legria HRD30
• Headphones
• Shotgun Microphone
• Clipboard
• Clapper Board
• Board Pen
• Board Wipe
• Tripod
• Tripod Shoe

Canon Camera

R+P Post 20: Reflections so far / looking ahead

As a group, so far we've worked well together and gotten things done on time, to ensure that we don't fall behind. We've all put forward good ideas to make our project even better and looking back we can see some of the changes we need to make for our main shoot. From our rough cut we can see that we need a lot more shots to make the montage sequence flow quickly and to make the party seem lively. As well as this, we need to have music playing in the background so that the actors feel more comfortable dancing and being natural on camera. Overall, I think we are making good progress and we are excited to film the main shoot.

R+P Post 19: Our Rough Cut

After we got all the footage required from our test shoot, we began editing our rushes together in the edit suite. We started by renaming the clips with shot numbers to correlate to our shootboard shot numbers and then we put them in sequence. We also had to go online and find the production and distribution clips so that we could add them in at the beginning. We then added in our sound track and sound effects at the end to complete our rough cut.

After watching it back, we noticed many errors that we had made and what could be changed to make it better, with some of the errors being that we broke the 180 degree and 30 degree rules. The main thing we realised is that we need a lot more shots to really create the fast pace and party atmosphere, so we will take more shots in our main shoot. We then made a list of all the things that need to be changed or added and we will bring it with us to the main shoot to ensure we follow through with all the things on the list.

R+P Post 18: Our Test Shoot

Before we were able to actually carry out our test shoot, we were given a lesson on how to set up, use and pack away the equipment that we would be provided with - this consisted of items such as the camera, tripod and batteries. After this, we had to make sure we got a form signed by both ourselves and our parents, ensuring that would take care of the equipment and face the repercussions if we failed to do so.

Next, we had to make sure that all actors knew the time and place we would be meeting and what their specific roles in the film would be (most of our actors are just extras to fill up the party). We decided that costume would not be required for the test shoot, but we explained what would be expected for the main shoot.

During our test shoot we encountered some issues, for example the lighting wasn't very good and the footage was coming out grainy which we wanted to avoid. So we discussed this with our media technician an decided that some extra lighting equipment might be necessary in order to get clear shots. This was our main problem, and other than that, we worked effectively to get all our shots taken. We recorded some behind the scene evidence. 

R+P Post 17: Our planned costumes and hair and make-up

We wanted to create a true party-feel to our opening sequence, and this meant that all our characters needed to wear accentuated party clothes such as short skirts and dresses, crop tops, and popular brands for teenagers (including Supreme, Adidas, Ralph Lauren and American Apparel). One thing we noted before the shoot was that many people were reflective garments nowadays and so we had to ask that no one came wearing this as the flash would catch their reflective clothes and this had the potential to ruin our footage.

Effy - some outfit choices

Adidas leggings

We looked at the outfits that the main character Effy wore in skins and saw that the costume designers chose bold statement outfits such as ripped tights and very short dresses, in order to show her outgoing, messy character. Trying to reciprocate this, we put myself (Lola) in fishnet tights and a short denim skirt.

The cast came with their own make-up on and we asked that the girls chose bold colours for their eye-shadow and dark eyeliner and mascara, to show that they were obviously at a party. For hair, we wanted some people to have their hair up and some down, to create a variety of looks, although it wasn't something we looked into majorly. For the guys, we suggested hair gel and hats as these seem common among teenagers.