The Shoot

Edale lived up to expectations by being pretty chilly and damp. However, all was good as the shoot itself went pretty much according to plan, and we had hand warmers.

As we were unable to do a location reccie before hand, we were very lucky with how easy it was to find locations; pretty much everywhere you turned had postcard potential. We also found a beautiful little stream which we used that I think will look great. Steve managed to get hold of the front of a TV which was great because it will massively improve the look of the piece. 

As said, all went well. Until the camera screen packed up within the first hour of shooting. Still, despite the fact that the view finder makes it a lot harder to correctly expose and focus our image, it could have been a lot lot worse. 

If we were to do the whole thing again, I think I would definitely have gone for an actor in the piece instead of myself. Even though the nature of our film meant that I could still have just as much input the shots, there were occasions in which, to match up two shots, I had to remain in position. This meant that for a couple of shots, I was unable to check the camera, which is a little annoying. 

Edale

A few pictures I took on the day of the shoot

Shot List

Because we want our film to be simple, we are keeping the shots simple. We want there to be a rhythm and similarity in the different shots used for each 'channel' or scene. So, here is the shot list..

Intro/Channel 1
Close up from behind person.
Mid shot, TV in view
Wide, countryside view dominates screen, puts person/TV into perspective, situation looks ridiculous
Mid, person changes channel

Channel 2
Mid, person and TV
wide, countryside
close up of remote
Mid, change channel
Close up of TV, viewer can see view of what is on the 'screen'

Channel 3
close up TV, match cut here
mid, person and TV
wide, countryside
mid, change channel

Channel 4
mid, person and TV
wide, view of scenery
close up of TV, see view
mid, Tv turn off
close up of TV turning off

Edale Plan

Deciding to have at least three - preferably four, but depends on how good the locations are - different scenes or 'channels'  in the film. Each is going to be a different postcard view, with individual watching TV in the corner. Plan is to keep it simple, with basic wide, mid and close ups:

Also thinking of Escape to the Country as a working title...

Sea Change

By Rosie Pedlow and Joe King

This short film is based in a caravan park. It traces it through day and night, with a seemingly never ending tracking short. The place changes with the changing light, managing to go from bleak and desolate to warm and atmospheric. 

I love the way the film begins with the camera pointed to the right, all you can see is fields of the countryside, and a boy gets on his bike. The camera and audience then follow him through this park and cross many more very human things in the natural environment. At one point, a balloon floats in front of the camera, at another, some cars drive towards the camera. I think what the film is commenting on is made clearest by the first and final shots. The last shot is of a tree, with pylon wires going into it. The camera pauses here for a minute. From this, for me, the film is talking about the impact of this caravan park - which seems pretty permanent - on this natural space. I think the film shows a negative view of it, which is enhanced by the pausing of the last shot; as the rest of the film has been moving image, this is something that really stands out. The shot simply shows a permanent human imprint on this part of countryside. However, I do think that this is a piece that is open to a lot of interpretation, simply because of its minimalist approach.

I think in our short film, it would be great if we managed to achieve a similar affect. We are also doing something very simple but something that we hope will be open to a bit of interpretation. 

Portrait of Place

For our first film project, we have to come up with a three minute piece that is an interpretation of 'portrait of place'. Our initial thoughts are to do something exploring the idea that nowadays people stay in doors, are 'couch potatoes' and are generally a wee bit more lazy than they used to be. As our project is going to be set in Edale, a beautiful place in the Peak District, we thought we could toy with this idea and have an individual looking through a TV, watching the environment their in. In other words, they would rather look at it through a TV than look around them. I think it will also be nice way to do a literal portrait of the place.

But Edale!! Did some online research to see what the place is like  -

Looks pretty idilic and postcard perfect. I think for our idea, this could work out pretty well as the frame of the TV can act almost like a picture frame. It would be good to get some sheep included too!

Skin Deep

Skin Deep is a powerful short film. Directed by Yousaf Ali Khan it is a film primarily about identity but it also explores racism and the influence of group mentality. I think that fact that the main character is a teenage boy, really makes a difference, being a similar age myself, as those feelings of wanting to belong are still really easy to identify. It makes the story so believable (the use of pov shorts really helps with this as well). And I think that is why I was so moved by it. I completely believed in Romo's pain and frustration and his anger.

I think the fact that Romo has a younger sister, who he has to look after and walk to and from school makes the story all the more horrible to watch. It is her innocence contrasted with Romo's anger, and the  choices he make - such as joining in with a group of racist gang in threatening a young Asian man, despite the fact that he is mixed race himself - that makes his actions so much more awful.

The film begins and ends with Romo looking at himself in the mirror, shouting racist abuse at his refection. The second time we see Romo do this at the end of the film, for me is the climax. The anger and hatred that Romo subjects himself to is hard to watch and one can't help remembering the title of the film. The shot ends with Romo seeing his younger sister in the mirror standing behind him. This works so well because it is a reminder of who he really is, where he as come from. It emphasises how wrong his actions are.

Overall, I think that Skin Deep is a really interesting piece of work and if it the aim of a film is to provoke you, emotionally involve you, make you think, then I'd say it does a pretty good job of it.