Preliminary Filming Project Evaluation

1. Editing and camera techniques

For our preliminary opening, we used the following techniques:
• We used titles to display the criteria needed for exam board. This included the title of the task, iur school name and its centre number, the name of our film and our own individual names and our candidate numbers.
• We overlaid our names on the final shot of our opening using the title designer in Adobe Premier Elements.
• We used the time stretch tool to prolong the shot. Also, we used the razor tool to cut the shots to right time. This was also in Adobe Premier Elements.
• We used the 180 degree rule, shot/reverse shot and match on action shots while filming. Also, we used a panning, birds eye, ECU’s, Over the shoulder and a high angle shots. These choices of camera angles and techniques help our audience to understand the action as they indicate where in the shot each character is, even if they are not visible in that shit. This can be explained for when the two characters are typing at their computers. The character 'Robert' faces from left to right of the camera shot, where as character 'Steve' faces from right to left of the damera shot. Therefore proving the shot/ reverse shot to be effective. Also match on action shot is used to assist the audience as a close up shot is inserted after each character have typed their dialogue, so the reader understands the dialogue that is being exchanged between each character and what the character is experiencing from their own individual perspective. The high angle shot of both characters typing at their computers is effective and each action that the characters are performing can be viewed simultaneously for increased audience awareness of each character.

2. New techniques that we used in the production of our opening

In the creation of our film in this task, we used many new programs in the creation of our production. These included Youtube to post the final cut, Adobe Premiere Elements to edit and compose this final cut, the digital video camera to shoot the scenes needed and the social networking site Blogger to evaluate and display our final production and post any planning we have done.

When using the camera, it was difficult to keep it steady when creating tracking shots, therefore we found it useful to use a tripod. When shooting the over the shoulder shots, the dialogue wasn't very clear so an extra close up shot had to be added in to clarify this dialogue. It would have been effective to have all this action in one shot rather than disect it. Also, the quality of the camera could have been better to create a more professional look. When working with Adobe Premiere Elements, we found it difficult to change the sound levels to create the right suspense and blending the sounds to make it sound natural rather than having loud voices for one shot and dead silence for another. Finally, we went to book a camera for the date we set to film, we often found that the cameras were all booked up, or had low battery. This created a problem as we had to wait an extra two weeks before we started filming and when we were filming, we had to be considerate towards the length of time we took when filming individual shots and shooting time overall. So increased skill of camera work and efficiency to comlete the task was of higher demand at times when filming. Also due to the camera being on low battery, we had to have the camera on a charger that was attatched to the wall. This limited camera movement and creativity and experiment of our shooting.

One of the many strengths of our production is the many shot types used in the sequence. Also, we worked well as a group by sharing ideas and the production roles in the shooting of the film and that we were actively communicating with each other about the planning, about how to create the look we were after for our film.

3. How successful was the final product against the brief set?

The brief that was set for our production consisted of the following the following:
• The inclusion of a shot of a hand opening a door and two or more people having a conversation. Once this has happened, one of the characters must leave the room.
• To include three different types of shots within the film. These must be the 180 degree rule, match on action and the shot/reverse shot.

We believe that our production matched all the criteria needed from the exam board. We decided to apply the dialogue in a unique way. We did this by using MSN Messenger to produce the dialogue between the two male characters, using the following shooting techniques to support this method:
We used the 180 rule throughout the films by keeping to one side of the room when filming. Also, the match on action when using the over the shoulder shots by having the two characters in the same frame, one typing the dialogue (vieved from over his shoulder)and the other who was recieving the dialogue using his computer and facing in the direction of the camera, ready to recieve this dialogue and return further dialogue over the next couple of shots in the sequence. Finally, we used the shot/reverse shot when the two characters were receiving the messages from each other. We showed this shows both actors in the shot, using the same principle that we used for the match on action technique.