FILM MAKING PRACTICE(2) LEARNING OUTCOMES

 This was a lot of fun but the cherry on top for this activity was the vast range of things we learnt from this shooting. As we used a variety of shot sizes and angles and different camera movements, we first handedly experienced the effect of these little techniques in the film. Teamwork and co operation was another thing, working with such smart and amazing people made the experience so much more fun and I decided after this that i was going to work for the foundation portfolio in a group.

FILM PRACTICE(2)(EDITING)

 After we were done shooting we had around 9 shots which we wanted to join together to make the short movie. We used Adobe Premiere to edit the movie. Earlier in one of the classes we learnt how to connect one clip to another my dragging and then pasting them together so this wasn't a hard task, However we wanted to add the dialogues we used while shooting but because of the background disturbance of the school we had to add a background music and we used subtitles to convey what the characters were saying as we couldn't do voiceover at that moment.

Filming Practice(2) (Shooting)

 After we were done discussing we started to shoot when the lab was empty. I helped with the camera handling as Azwa and Habiba had their scene first. As we were shooting everyone contributed by giving different shot ideas and which dialogues to be used. We were able to complete the shooting in a day and submitted it to sir by the end of the day. Below I'll be pasting some pictures from the scene:

Filming Practice (2)( Pre Production)

 This week sir created random groups of four and gave all groups a script which we had to shoot ad edit and then submit to him. I was working with my classmates and really good friends, Azwa, Habiba and Alishba. We first decided the setting which was the computer lab as we needed to show a workplace so we used the lab desk and computer to make it look like an office. Alishba is good at editing so she agreed to edit the video. I , Azwa and Alishba decided to star as actors and decided who takes which role. We decided all the shots which we wanted to use. I decided to handle the camera when It wasn't my scene.

IDEA AND NARRARTIVE CONSTRUCTION FOR FILM MAKIN PRACTICE(2)

 We were divided into random groups of 5 and were supposed to make a film(for practice) so sir did tell us that this narrative should be simple and we should focus more on the cinematography i.e. the camera movements, shot sizes, editing skills, lighting, mise-en-scene, etc. So we made a small story in which a teenager(character 1) asks his father if he can go on a trip with his friends , the father won't allow but the kid pesters the father and keeps smothering him with requests due to which he finally agree on one condition that he can only go if his younger brother also goes. This is where it ends as we wanted to make this funny so the younger brother is shown as a sassy, annoying child due to which the older brother screams at the end.

FILM DESTRUCTION (FILM OPENING ANALYSIS)

 One of my favorite movie opening will have to be the opening scene of the Film  'It'(2017).This opening scene has amazing cinematography and such impressing techniques and storyline is constructed to create enigma for the audience. It starts with Georgie(the child in yellow coat which adds to the Mise-en-scene) running out of his house on a rainy day to float his boat. Here the camera is tilting down so his house is shown which also establishes the setting. Georgie waves at something above him then  his brother is shown in the window in a mid shot. The environment shown around him his dark and it's raining which gives an eerie vibe but the light and magical BG music combined with Georgie's giggles give out a happy aura. Along with the sound of his giggles the diegetic synchronous sound of the rain and his feet splashing in the water can also be heard. A tracking shot is used to show the boat floating in the rain water along Georgie running. Then the camera shows Georgie from the front using a very long shot. This movie shows age representation as two characters are shown: one is a toddler while the other one is a teen-ager, the teen-ager is shown to be more responsible and is worrying over his younger brother, Whereas Georgie, the younger brother is shown as conventionally kids are shown in media, innocent and playful. Then a birdview shot shows him running and his boat floating, this shot makes him look very small and alone and no one else is shown in the shot, This is where the eeriness can be felt by the audience. Georgie  continues running until his head hits a wooden stand, here the background music comes to a stop. Georgie's paper boat  floats away , this is shown using a crab shot.   Then Georgie gets up and runs after the boat, again tracking shot is used here. Again camera tilts down to show Georgie running and  focuses on the sign which mentions the street's name: Jackson St. Here the background music changes to somewhat suspenseful and melancholic and a dialogue (synchronous and diegetic) is also used which is Georgie screaming ''No'' after which he also says: " Bill's gonna kill me", This introduces the second character's name, his older brother. Then Georgie is shown sitting in front of the sewer where two eyes pop out of the dark and a clown comes into sight, here a mid shot is used to show the clown. This is a jump scare. Georgie lets out a little scream. The clown also speaks:" Hiya Georgie What a nice boat, Do you want it back?".  The clown offers him a balloon, to which he says he's not supposed to take stuff from the strangers. The clown introduces himself as ' Pennywise the dancing clown'. Here the opening scene ends. The genre of the film is established by the creepy background sound, the colour palette of the scene and the showcasing of the creepy clown who is also introduced as the antagonist of the movie. The pace of editing is fast as the boats is continuously floating and the child is running behind it .The continuity of the scene is really good due to good invisible editing. 

Film Making (practice 1)

 Today we did a film making assignment in school in our Media Study’s  Lesson. We were each divided into partners of 4 and we were given a small story line based on which we were supposed to shoot a film but the catch was that we had use different camera angles and movements. We used the behind the shoulder view, 180 degree shot, a crab shot and many different ones like we positioned the camera below eye level to make the character appear more stronger and dominant.It was a very fun experience and we also got to practically imply what we had learned in our class previously. This is definitely improving our shooting and camera handling skills along with giving us a remarkable and joyful experience. I'll be sharing the link below to one of the edited clips of our practice:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-MBwaM7qt8u6tsjogcmGNzSoxB22K1Od/view?usp=share_link

REPRESENTATION IN FILM OPENINGS

 All film usually circle around one of the social groups and some may even have 2 or 3 shown at the same time. In the opening scene of It the age representation is shown, Th e older child tells the younger one to be careful and is shown more responsible whereas the younger is shown to be playful and innocent as he goes outside to play and then is manipulated by the evil clown to take back his boat but the clown attacks and takes him. 13th is another example of film opening which shows the different races and black race discrimination. Age, Race, social class and gender are the most common social groups which are represented in the films and their openings but other social groups are also sometimes represented in openings.

FAVORITE FILM OPENINGS

I love watching movies, especially horror movies due to which i have a lot of favorite film opening scene, But my top ones have to be Scream, The enigma created in its opening scene is so good, the weird man calling the girl and then his tone changing from normal to creepy and the change of the whole environment  from normal to dangerous is so smooth. I also really like the movie opening of Joker. It starts with a dialogue, an anchor telling about the weather and conditions if the country, along with it the joker is shown sitting in front of the mirror, using a midshot which shows his face as well as his costume, He's trying to fake a smile while tears are pouring down his eyes, I really like the background dialogues going on I really want to do a background sound similar to this in my opening. Another splendid film opening has to be of 'It' (2017). It represents age and uses so many varieties of shots and camera movements such as crabshot, birdview shot, tracking shot, tilt and pan movements which add to the cinematography of the film.

SOME GENRES AND THEIR CONVENTIONAL FILM OPENINGS

Almost all film openings start with the logo of the production house a nd institutions that made the film and then gives titles of the starred actors(main), producer, writer and director, etc.

A horror film usually starts with a scene in which a character encounters the evil supernatural entity and may even die or goes missing. A jump scare is also usually used to scare the audience. This introduces the genre of the film and also introduces the villain of the movie i.e. is evil entity. In addition the visible editing which is the credits and titles have a spooky font in the opening which also tell about the movie genre. The opening scene has a dull and dark colour palette to add to the eerie scene and the weather is mostly rainy and stormy. The sound used is also creepy and high pitched which adds to the uneasy feeling. 

An action movie often starts with an action scene, e.g. cars racing, two people fighting, etc. Slow motion is usually used to introduce the hero and a  heroic, loud sound is added to the background too add to the main character's personality. The pace of editing takes drastic changes between fast and slow. The hero is shown to win whatever race or fight he was taking part in, This is done to show him as strong and brave. The opening sometimes is shown as the present but the movie goes to a flashback to tell the hero's story.

An action movie usually starts with a funny scene and has a silly sound added to the background, to introduce the genre. It may show a character falling or cracking a joke to make the audience laugh. A lot of animated sound effects and sound of people laughing to enhance the humor. The pace of editing is slow and steady as the movie is based on normal, everyday life.

FILM OPENING

 What is a Film Opening?

The opening scene of a film is like an introduction to the film. It might introduce the setting and time and even the age (Retro, current etc.) the film is based on. Furthermore, It sets the mood and the genre of the film, e.g. if it is a comedy film it will start with something funny and the opening sound track will be quirky, however if it is an action film it may start with an action scene and the opening music will also indicate the genre. In addition, the main characters will also be introduced in the opening. The opening scene is the most important scene as it gives the audience the idea of what the story is about and if they want to continue watching it or not. The opening scene should be intriguing and should create enigma so the audience wants to watch further. The opening is also a title sequence so it introduces the whole team behind the camera, the name of the movie and the cast of the movie.

READING FILM GENRES

Genre are the categories that define movies based on their narrative or stylistic elements. Genre can help determine the characters, plot, setting, tone of the film. Every movie has a genre and every genre has its own conventions which help to identify it. Some of the major genres in film are:

• Action: A film with action genre might start with an action scene, the pace of editing will be fast and there might be a lot of jump cuts. The setting shown will be intense. It will be a disturbed one with an unbalanced social environment which may give rise to a conflict. A hero and a villain will be shown. Villain might be shown more strong and dominant and a dueling hierarchies might be shown.  loads of fighting and chasing scenes and slow-motion shots. High drum beats and intense music will be used especially in fighting scenes to create the sense of danger. A lot of bomb blasts and dust will add to the Mise-en-scene of the film.
• Horror: A lot of unique and unusual angles to create a sense of dread in the audience. The lighting  is dark with a lot of shadows to make the audience feel on edge. Furthermore the use of high pitched  and creepy sounds creates a sense of alarm. Sounds like hushed footsteps, doors and floorboards creaking are also used to make the audience feel the presence of something unknown. A lot of jump scares after to a thin high pitched tune to create enigma are used to scare the audience. The pace of editing is fast and has lots of cuts to make the audience feel distressed and uneasy.
• Sci-Fi: plots of such conventions are based on researches such as aliens, time travel and include things such as spaceships, spacesuits, space and astronauts. Filk music is the conventional sound used in Sci-fi movies. The colour tones used are neon and bright. The pace of editing is fast here as this may have some fast scene such as a spaceship landing.
• Mystery: A murder takes place and the killer is unknown. A detective is present who takes up the case. Suspects are shown. Essential details/hints are given in a way that they seem unimportant. Suspenseful music is used to create a sense of curiosity. Misdirection and twists like the person who seems least likely to be the murderer ends up being the murderer. Pace of editing is slow. Colour tones used are dull like brown and green. The detective wears a coat and has a hat, smokes a cigar(e.g. Sherlock Holmes).
• Comedy: Often starts with a comedy scene. The plot can be any typical setting such as a village, city or even a school. Every character, action and scene is humorously exaggerated. They are mostly every day-to day lives shown of the main characters and the funny blunders that they make. They usually have a happy ending. A lot of establishing shots to show changing locations, characters, new themes, etc. Lots of mid close ups and mid shots to show the characters in a conversation. Light and natural colour scheme to link with having a normal life. Often a whole family is shown as a main characters or a group of friends.

EDITING TECHNIQUES

Smooth editing techniques can be used to make the movie more natural and help the audience dissolve in the movie without distracting them with a good continuity, Furthermore it makes your project more entertaining. Below are some of the basic editing techniques used in filmmaking:

• Standard cut: This is the most basic cut , it connects two clips by joining the last frame of one clip to the beginning of another clip. This is the most common cut and doesn't really invoke any feelings or meanings as others do.
• Jump cut: This cut is used to skip or push forward the time i.e. a jump cut is an edit to a single, sequential scene which makes the action leap forward in time e.g. if a person is shown young at a place but then shown older at the same place.
• Montage: A montage is an editing technique that, again, signifies the passage of time or helps to give an overall context to the story with quick cuts e.g. You will often see athletes training or preparing for a big match in montages.
• Fade In/Out: In this you fade out one clip and fade in the other. This eases a viewer into a particular scene, shows disparate imagery back to back (more of a “dip” in/out), or most often implies a passage of time.  This can be a night-to-day switch or someone falling asleep but can be a bit jarring if not used properly. Nearly every modern movie trailer employs this fade in/out technique. It’s a way to push a story forward and increase the drama without showing every detail, bouncing around between various visual elements of the story.
• J or L cut: J and L cuts are incredibly common. They get their names from how the clips line up in the editing software. n L cut is used when you want audio from clip A to continue when clip B comes in. The  J cut is the opposite, where the audio from clip B comes in when we’re still seeing clip A.
• Action cut: You cut at the point of action because that’s what our eyes and brains naturally expect. For instance if a man is shown firing a bullet the scene will skip to another man getting shot instead of the bullet flying in the air.
• Cutaway shots: cutaways are shots that take viewers away from the main characters or action. They give extra context to the scene and can create more tension and foreshadowing.
• Cross cut/ Parallel editing: This type of editing is when you cut between two different scenes that are happening at the same time in different places. It can be great for adding tension in a scene e.g. a thief breaking in a bank and a guard walking towards their location.
• Match Cut: A match cut is an edit that gives context and continuity to the scene and pushes it in a certain direction without disorienting the viewer. You use it to either move between scenes or move around a space while keeping everything coherent.  A very basic version is shooting someone opening a door from behind and then cutting to the opposite side as they walk through it.
• Sound Bridge:  this utilizes audio to start or end a transition rather than visually manipulating the video layers in the timeline. Sound bridges can be music, sound effects, or even dialogue that “bridges” the gap between shots or scenes.