Crew Roles
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| 28/9/17 |
Brainstorming Ideas
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| 04/10/17 |
The image above provides a written log of our thoughts as we brainstormed ideas for our drama project. We had unanimously decided that the emotion we wanted to represent was that of fear; not in a traditional filmic horror sense, but rather through a sense of paranoia and trauma. More specifically, we intended to explore the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): a psychiatric disorder that sometimes occurs after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening or traumatic event. We researched into the disorder and found that it is often triggered by certain objects or sounds that remind the victim of the traumatic event. Subsequently, our very first idea (not seen in the image) was someone suffering from the disorder driving their car, with the surrounding environment triggering traumatic flashbacks. The traumatic event in question we had not decided on, though we were mostly considering some kind of war trauma. However, we came to the conclusion that war trauma was typically the form of PTSD that was represented the most in the media, and so we decided to focus on a different form of traumatic event that often does not get as much attention, but could still potentially have psychological impacts just as severe, if not greater so. The form of trauma we ultimately decided on was being the victim of kidnapping. Our initial idea in this regard was a person being held hostage. After establishing this basic premise, we then began to brainstorm possible motives for the crime such as for ransom or to satisfy the kidnappers obsession (seen in image). We also began to consider certain shooting styles such as the hostage scene being filmed in the style of a found-footage film; footage that, in the diegesis of the film, was being reviewed by police investigators.
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| Hamblen, J., PhD, & Barnett, E., PhD. (2016, February 23). PTSD in Children and Adolescents. Retrieved October 04, 2017, from https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/treatment/children/ptsd_in_children_and_adolescents_overview_for_professionals.asp |
While we were brainstorming ideas, I underwent some further research and found an online article (part of which can be seen above) that suggested that children are affected differently by PTSD than adults. Specifically, I found that a strange symptom of PTSD in children and some adolescents is that they may attempt to re-enact the traumatic event in some way such as through play or through drawings; though doing so provides no comfort. For example the article suggests that a child may undergo "an increase in shooting games after exposure to a school shooting"; coining the term "post-traumatic play". A young child may exhibit this kind of behaviour even into their adolescence and potentially, although uncommon, into their adulthood. This was the concept that gave us our first solid idea: a person that had been the victim of a kidnapping as a child and, although they were able to escape, were psychologically damaged by the event. The child proceeds to re-enact the events of the kidnapping through his play; a trait that slowly evolves into an obsession as he grows older. He feels as though the kidnapping took part of his identity, and begins to believe that acting out the same heinous crime as an adult may allow him to reconnect with his childhood years.
Legal Problems with Filming Children
Since it is almost certain that we will be casting a child within our film, we felt it was imperative to research into potential legal difficulties that doing so can bring about, as well as how to make sure that we were behaving and operating within the parameters of the law. The image below is a screenshot taken from a government website detailing the circumstances under which a special licence must be obtained from the local council before any official filming of children can take place.
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| https://www.gov.uk/child-employment/performance-licences-for-children |
However, we later found that l there are certain circumstances under which Sheffield's local council will grant filmmakers an exemption from requiring a licence. They can be seen in the image below. It should be noted that we have been able to arrange a child-actor of sorts, though they are not explicitly being employed. More specifically, we are planning to use Ami-Lee's younger brother Harvey; who we hope to be exempt from requiring a licence. We have managed to finalise arrangements that satisfy all the criteria of licence exemption: Harvey is not being legally employed and so will not be paid, he will suffer no absence from school as we have arranged for shooting to take place during a school holiday, he will perform hopefully only on a single day and will receive regular breaks if necessary, we have the consent of both Harvey and his parents to take part in the film, and finally his parents will both be present throughout the entire filming process. We are yet to contact Sheffield's council to enquire whether or not they believe we will need a licence, though we find it unlikely that one will be necessary.
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| https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/childreninentertainment |
Pitching our 2-Minute Film
It should be clarified that we have adopted an unusual approach with regards to the relationship between our 2 and 10-minute projects. While it is true that the two should be interconnected in terms of some mutual emotion or concept, we intend to feature our 2-minute project within our 10-minute project. To elaborate, the 2-minute project consists of a young boy being abducted from his home by a hooded assailant. He escapes from the back of the van while it is moving at speed; receiving a concussion in the process. The boy finds himself lost in a seemingly never-ending forest, with the film ending of a shot of him slowly walking away into the treeline. Our 10-minute film takes place around 7 years later, after the boy (now in his late teens) has become accustomed to life withing the bowels of the forest; dwelling within a cave with basic survival supplies he has scavenged and hunted from the surrounding woodland. His traumatic past returns to haunt him however when he becomes convinced that a mysterious hooded figure resembling his childhood kidnapper is watching him through the trees; causing his suppressed memories of his kidnapping to resurface after many years alone. As suggested, the 2-minute film exists as a flashback within the diegesis of the 10-minute film.
Establishing a Timeline
Before we began work on shot-lists, scripts, treatments and the like, we felt it would be a good idea to establish a timeline of the film's events to act as a solid basis for any subsequent work we undergo. This timeline does not present the events of the film specifically in chronological order, but rather the order they would be seen by the viewer. It can be seen here. The first series of bullet points represent the 2-minute film, which will also act as the opening sequence of the 10-minute film. It is clearly evident that the timeline is not particularly detailed in terms of cinematography, sound design, editing, or indeed mise-en-scene. However, this is not the intention; it is simply a tool to allow us to gather a shared and comprehensive view of the events of the film before we undergo any subsequent work. By doing so, we assure that we are all working towards what is more or less the same vision, thereby negating most potential confusion that could arise through our collaboration.
Fleshing Out the Idea
After establishing our core idea and timeline, we began to expand upon it by adding more details. The video above shows a scene from "Room" (Lenny Abrahamson, 2015), in which Jack escapes from his captor, Old Nick, following a plan devised by his mother to sneak him out of 'The Room' by faking his death and hiding him inside a rolled up carpet. Although thematically and narratively the scene differs from ours, in terms of cinematography, it is almost identical to what we have in mind for Tom's kidnapping. This scene utilises elements such as handheld shots, POV shots, shallow focus, and a variety of editing speeds - all of which we intend to utilise to some degree during Tom's kidnapping scene. Handheld shots will be especially prominent as this style cinematography creates a chaotic and disorientating effect; allowing us to project Tom's emotions upon the viewer. In addition, we also intend to make use of varying degrees of lighting in order to augment this chaotic atmosphere, specifically with the use of swaying overhead light creating uneven illumination. The alternating editing speeds is also an interesting technique we intend to employ in order to act as a metaphor for not only Tom's emotions, but also the corruption of his psychology. We intend to juxtapose the frantically edited chaotic shots inside the van with several slowly edited long-takes on the exterior, with the intention of intensifying the former's emotional and sensory impact. It should be clarified that tonally, the scene's of Room and our film do differ, in that the former is composed with the intention of creating a triumphant yet gripping escape, and the latter with the intention of creating an unnerving and grisly capture. Nonetheless, the scene will no doubt prove useful as a source of inspiration towards our film; especially considering our intentions to emulate its cinematography to a certain degree.
10-Minute Film Pitch
Above is the presentation we used to aid our explanation of our plans for our 10-minute project. Given the greater importance of this project over the other, this presentation is written in greater detail that the 2-minute presentation, though our verbal explanations were still important. Overall, we are more satisfied with this presentation over the previous one; especially since this time it was written and planned with much more detail and focus, allowing us to deliver a far more comprehensive and informative insight into our intentions for the film, allowing for more specific and constructive feedback. Admittedly, our presentation could have benefited from a little more rehearsal since our verbal delivery was a little sloppy in places. Nonetheless, we were able to gather some useful feedback, many of which centred around providing a little more depth to Tom's character; such as Tom reverting to paranoid animalistic tendencies while in the woods, or suffering from OCD despite his obvious lack of cleanliness or hygiene (meaning he would notice immediately if something was out of place). Furthermore, people suggested that perhaps Tom has developed certain spiritual tendencies during his time in the woods, such as surrounding his cave with rocks in a circular pattern as a means to ward off malevolent spirits. Thankfully, our peers were mostly congruent with our intentions in a more stylistic sense with regards to cinematography, editing and sound design; meaning that our intended design for the film is effective in conveying its mood and themes; hopefully implying that little should need to changed in this regard.
We have completed the first draft of our 10-minute film's treatment and have received some constructive feedback and new ideas. The treatment can be viewed here. The main criticism our treatment received was that the synopsis was a little too analytical of the film, and that its correct intention is purely a description of the events of the film - a written representation of what the viewer will see, in the order they will see it. It was suggested that we research into some examples of successful film treatments so that we can more accurately and effectively achieve the intended format and content of a treatment. It was also suggested that we implement some of the suggestions from our pitch into the treatment in order to provide more depth to Tom's character; such as Tom suffering from OCD, his spiritualistic and animalistic tendencies, and whether or not he really wants to leave the forest and return to civilisation.
First Treatment Draft
Trip to Grindleford
In order to do some location scouting for the forest scenes of our 10-minute film, we arranged a short trip to Grindleford: a small village in Northern Derbyshire famous for its open moorland and woodland river valleys; potentially making it an ideal shooting location. The above images are four of the several images we took whilst there. Each of these locations are within close proximity to one another, and each detail a particular use the location may have. The top-left image shows an open woodland area. Many areas of Grindleford's forests consist of narrow paths that could prove difficult, and indeed potentially dangerous to shoot upon. Consequently, a wide-open space such as this will not only allow us to gather some wider shots to express the vastness of Tom's forest, but also allow us to operate in a safer filming environment. On the top-right, the image shows a narrower, more rocky pathway that could easily be used during scenes such as Tom hunting, searching for materials to add to his 'home', and chasing the hooded figure. The benefit of this area is that the stone pathway, although artificially designed, still seems natural enough to maintain the illusion of an area that is completely devoid of any remnants of civilised society. The bottom-left image depicts a makeshift shelter made entirely from fallen sticks from the surrounding woodlands, several more of which can be found in the area. Theoretically, we could easily convert one of these already existing shelters into usable set-piece for Tom's home. For example, we could easily make the shelter seen in the image more homely by creating a roof out of foliage and moss, and could also demonstrate Tom's OCD and spirituality by surrounding the structure with a circle of stones. Admittedly, it may prove somewhat of a challenge to erect some more complex structures, such as a stand/shrine for Tom's photograph, although the degree of sophistication in the quality required for these structures is unlikely to be anything too strenuous given the resources available to Tom. Finally, the image in the lower-right depicts stream running along the centre of the valley. Although a little cramped, it could still provide a suitable location for the scenes of Tom hunting by and drinking from the river when the enigmatic figure beings to appear. We will need to exercise caution when filming here however, as slippages present a hazard to both ourselves and our equipment. I feel as though our trip to Grindleford was very beneficial towards my understanding of the project, as I now have a more comprehensive vision of our shooting location, allowing for more specific and accurate shot design.
Storyboards
Below is a series of storyboards detailing the events of our 5-10 minute project. I have created them using an online storyboarding software called StoryboardThat.com. Though they are indeed a little crude, as the software is not enormously sophisticated, they are successful in providing a more detailed and definitive account of the events of the film. Moreover, given that the storyboards provide a visual representation of the events of the film, as opposed to merely a written description; our group is able to access a more tangible vision of the film, allowing us to produce subsequent work in a more focused and synergised fashion. Our trip to Grindleford was particularly useful when crafting the storyboards as it allowed me to make more informed decisions with regards to what would and would not be possible with regards to the shooting environment, and adjust the storyboards accordingly.
The storyboards are grouped into cells of six and are read horizontally. They can be magnified by clicking on them.
2-Minute Film Script
We have completed the script for our 2-Minute film project. It can be viewed here. Though admittedly writing a screenplay with no dialogue whatsoever was a rather alien concept to me, the group was very satisfied overall with the script. In truth, it is debatable that the usefulness of a script could be impeded by the film's lack of dialogue; serving instead mostly as a written representation of the events of the film, with additional details of certain shots, sounds, and editing techniques. However, the script will serve as our first solid and detailed basis of the overall events of the film 2-minute film; our original timeline being significantly less detailed. Subsequently, we should be able to use this script not only to form the foundation of any ensuing work (e.g. - shot lists, sound lists), but also to act as a precursor to our 10-minute project, to which this 2-minute script will provide the first 2 pages of screenplay.
Second Treatment
We have made a second attempt at the treatment for our 5-10 minute project which can be seen here. We have made several improvements in response to peer feedback such as limiting our synopsis to purely a written representation of our story, spacing out our formatting into smaller paragraphs so that they are easier on the viewer, and adding references to films we have watched as research. Furthermore, we also researched into the specific way in which film treatments are written by researching some real examples, such as the one seen here. Although this article by Marilyn Horowitz is undoubtedly geared more towards feature films as opposed to short films, the concepts and ideas it presents still maintain their value, such as structuring a synopsis in the form of a three-act structure, or writing in short, but compelling sentences.
Shot-List
I have been able to complete a rather comprehensive shot list for our 5-10 minute film, which can be seen here. Our treatment and storyboards, as well as our trip to Grindleford, allowed me to make considerably more informed decisions concerning cinematography. The treatment proved useful in terms of detailing our stylistic approach to the film. Subsequently, I was able to design our cinematography to be complimentary towards our intentions of creating a sense of paranoia and fear; emulated in cinematography through the use of handheld shots and close-ups (among other things) to create a sense of panic and claustrophobia that is congruent to our proposed style. The storyboards were useful in providing a visual representation of the events of the film from which my visually-orientated mind could operate more effectively. They allowed me to understand the spacial orientation of the scenes and locations; allowing me to plan my cinematography more accurately with regards to the shooting location. In addition, our trip to Grindleford proved useful towards my visual understanding of the filmic space by providing me with a physical location from which I could plan shots with reference to a real and specific shooting location; allowing me to take into account the benefits and limitations of the shooting locations and enabling me to adjust accordingly.
Finding Actors
For the forest scenes of our film, we needed to find two actors: a man to play the older Tom, and a woman to play the figure. We therefore decided to place an advert onto the online talent-searching website StarNow.com. Within the space of just a couple of days, we had already received two replies, which can be seen below.
Planning the Script
Before I began work on writing the script for our longer project, I decided that it would be good to research into the fundamentals of story-writing so that I may gather a more comprehensive grasp on the concept of screenwriting. I began by researching into narrative structure, where I found that our previously established timeline fits rather comfortably with the three act structure. I also found a particularly helpful book that goes into considerable detail on the three-act structure, allowing me to consider the events of our film more comprehensively. An extract explaining the meaning of the Act 1 can be seen below.
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| Selbo, J. (2016). Screenplay building story through character (pp. 22.), (Second ed.). New York, New York: Routledge. |
Selbo recommends doing 5 particular things within Act 1: setting up genre and tone, setting up the protagonist's 'normal life', setting up the protagonist's needs, creating the inciting incident, and creating plot-point 1.
Genre/Tone: - Our film is predominantly a drama, though it also contains elements of psychological horror also. This will be immediately obvious from the beginning of the film via the flashback of Tom's kidnapping; the fast-paced editing and deliberately shaky cinematography creating an uneasy feeling that immediately connotes towards elements of drama and horror. The remainder of the film also maintains this tone, but not to such an extreme.
Normal Life: - This is basically providing exposition. Tom will be immediately established as the main character of the film, beginning with the flashback and confirmed by subsequent scenes in the forest. His daily activities, as well as the film's setting, will be established in the scenes immediately following the flashback. Tom will be seen leaving his shelter within the bowels of the forest. From there, he proceeds to undergo activities such as hunting small woodland animals and crafting tools. These scenes will not only reveal Tom's daily activities, but also the nature of the setting: a seemingly infinite forest with no signs of society whatsoever. The film's lack of dialogue will also force visual exposition, which is often better than the spoken alternative regardless.
Protagonist's Needs: - The protagonist's immediate goal(s) and, more importantly, their emotional need. In Tom's case, his immediate goals within the forest are mostly ambiguous. He doesn't seem to have any intentions to return to society and has mostly adjusted to his new life. It could therefore be argued that his goal is to do the opposite: isolate himself from society in peaceful solitude; away from his past traumas, away from the world he wished to forget. In terms of his emotional need, the need that is not as immediately obvious, Tom desires companionship. Whether he himself is aware of this need is unclear. However, it is evidenced through his small size compared to the vastness of the forest and his tendency to keep mementos of his past life, such as the photograph. For years, Tom has avoided all contact with other people, presumably due to feelings of paranoia and mistrust brought about by his past traumas. However, he finds that his isolation is not sufficient to escape the traumas. His meeting with Jane at the film's conclusion marks the moment at which this need is met; thereby concluding not only the film, but also Tom's emotional arc.
Inciting Incident: - An early incident that sparks a change in the protagonist. For Tom, this could arguably be one of two events. Either his kidnapping as a child, or his sightings of the figure within the forest. In either case, these incidents spark an emotional change in Tom in that they provoke feelings of trauma; the former creating them and the latter revitalising them. These traumas are what provoke Tom's paranoia and restlessness throughout a majority of the film; eventually leading to his underlying desire for companionship.
Plot Point 1: - The point at which the story reaches a pivotal moment. It therefore seems likely that Tom's first encounter with the figure would fit more closely with this as opposed to an inciting incident. Tom's brief sighting of the figure by the lake acts as the catalyst through which his traumas finally catch up with him. The figure's resemblance to his childhood kidnapper provokes Tom's repressed childhood memories back into life, leading to his entire life within the forest to become destabilised, and Tom to seek a solution. Or rather, to try and escape.
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| Selbo, J. (2016). Screenplay building story through character (pp. 24.), (Second ed.). New York, New York: Routledge. |
New World: - The protagonist being introduced to a 'new world' is not necessarily done literally. It simply means placing the protagonist in a situation they have never found themselves in before. In our film, this is done after Tom's first sighting of the figure in the forest, following which his world begins to slowly fall apart as memories of his traumatic past return to haunt him once more. The forest he has lived in for almost a decade suddenly seems frightening and unfamiliar.
Increasing the Stakes: - Although the term sounds rather dramatic, it can be rather simplistic depending on the context of the film. In our case, this occurs when the figure intrudes upon Tom's shelter. By invading Tom's personal sanctuary the figure's activity becomes a lot more personal and significant, leading to a drastic escalation in Tom's traumatic flashbacks and delusions.
Obstacles and Reversals: - The ups and downs of the protagonist's journey. This occurs throughout our second act. It is mostly done through the form of Tom's traumatic episodes as their intensity fluctuates following certain events that either exacerbate them or subdue them.
Mid-Point: - Another twist in the story. It is a point at which new information or a new challenge comes to light. In our case, the midpoint coincides with 'increasing the stakes' in that it occurs when Tom returns to his shelter after his first encounter with the figure to find that someone has been inside. Here, the figure's invasion becomes much more personal; exacerbating Tom's anxiousness and traumatic episodes.
Plot-Point 2: - Typically comes at the end of second act. This is usually the point at which the protagonist reaches their weakest point, either physically or emotionally, or both. For Tom, this occurs after he wakes up the day following the figure's invasion, and his traumatic panicking is worse that it has ever been; he subsequently struggles to do the simplest of tasks. It intends to act as a bridge into the climax in the third act in which Tom finds and give chase to the figure.
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| Selbo, J. (2016). Screenplay building story through character (pp. 26.), (Second ed.). New York, New York: Routledge. |
Climax: - The highest and most intense point of the narrative. It is the final confrontation with the film's antagonist (whether the antagonist is a tangible entity or not). In our film, Tom finds the figure and chases them through the forest in some kind of primal fury; presumably in an attempt to confront the demons that have been haunting him for years. During this chase, his traumatic flashbacks are the most intense he's ever experienced, though it doesn't seem to deter him.
Resolution: - The main issue of the film is concluded and the protagonist faces the consequences of their actions, good or bad. In our film, this occurs when Tom finally catches up to the figure, revealing it to in fact be a young woman and not his childhood kidnapper. Here, Tom is finally given closure on his trauma and the identity of the figure as the flashbacks subsequently fade. This brings an end to his arc throughout the film.
Sense of future: - A glimpse into what the future holds for the protagonist and/or the world they inhabit. This can be positive or negative. In our case, a sense of future is derived from Tom's confrontation with Jane, the true identity of the figure. She hands him the photograph that she had taken from his shelter previously (the same photograph Tom had when he was kidnapped). We have considered possibly having Tom saying 'thank you'; the only spoken utterance in the film, though we are currently unsure if it will be implemented. In either case, Tom's confrontation with Jane marks his first step at becoming reintegrated into society and learning to trust people again. Though what becomes of him after the film's conclusion is largely ambiguous, it can be inferred that he will no longer live in fear in the bowels of the forest and will finally being to open up again after so many years alone.
I also underwent some research into characterisation, and found that a useful technique that writers use to craft their characters in a unique and constant way is a method known as the 'character diamond'. It is a diamond with the character's name written in the centre. Then, four of their most significant characteristics are written in each corner. To elaborate, they are categorised into 'Primary Strengths', 'Fatal Flaw', 'Shadow Trait', and 'Supporting Trait'.
Primary Strengths: - These are the character's most immediate characteristics; the ones that are the most obvious to the viewer. and can be positive or negative. In a protagonist, these might include things such as outgoing, loyal, compassionate, resourceful; among many others. These traits are typically the ones that define the character on the most basic level.
Supporting Traits: - These are usually less important, but still valuable characteristics that provide a little more depth. They are generally some kind of attitude or value that supports their primary strengths such as optimistic, pragmatic, enthusiastic, or impulsive. Similarly, these traits can also be positive or negative, or a combination of the two.
Fatal Flaw: - These are typically the personal issues plaguing the character; the part(s) of their personality that cause them problems, and are subsequently predominantly negative. They can also be some other virtue of their personality carried to an extreme, such as being overly independent (meaning they can't work with others), or being affectionate to the point at which it becomes obsessive.
Shadow Trait: - A part of the character's personality that they attempt to suppress or ignore for various reasons. This is often the trait that gives the most depth for a character and allows them to grow and change throughout the narrative. Narratives are often shaped in a way that the character is forced to confront or deal with this part of themselves, successfully or otherwise.
With these ideas in mind, I constructed a character diamond for Tom, our film's protagonist. I intend to use it, as well as my research into the three-act structure, to act as a guide for our script to ensure it holds character consistency and a sound narrative structure. The diamond can be seen below.
10-Minute Film Script
I have completed the script for our longer 5-10 minute project. It can be viewed here. Although admittedly, the script is only 5 pages long (which in screenplay terms denotes to approximately 5-minutes of film), we largely put this down to the film's complete lack of dialogue; which would normally take up a considerable amount of space. On the subject of dialogue, a script completely devoid of dialogue is an unusual concept as it breaks the conventions of typical screenplay formatting. Nonetheless, we are satisfied with how the script has turned out, and have been able to deliver the narrative in much more detail than previously possible; even adding a few extra elements such as Tom's OCD. As would be expected, we intend to use this script in combination with our shot-list during the production phase of our film. Despite a complete lack of dialogue, the script is indeed still an incredibly useful tool to act as a basis for our actions during the production stage.
Cinematography Equipment
Given this project's favourability towards close-ups and handheld shots, I felt that it would be necessary to utilise a camera that would be capable of both (often simultaneously) without being detrimental to the shot's cinematic quality. The camera would need to have a large (and adjustable) aperture to allow me to implement shallow focus, and possibly the ability to adjust the frame-rate so that slow motion can be implemented more easily. The camera that we selected for the task was the Canon EOS 5D Mark III DSLR, along with a Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM lens, both of which can be seen below.
Although more specifically geared towards photography, DSLR cameras have recently begun to transition into moving image due to their far less cumbersome size, adaptability (due to lenses), and their ability to produce cinematic images at a fraction of the cost of a professional film camera. We have opted to use a DSLR for mostly the same reasons. Its relatively small size will allow the camera more mobility, which will be especially useful for handheld shots where precise and speedy movements are important. The camera's versatility with regards to lenses will also prove useful, as it will allow us to use whatever lens is most appropriate for the shooting environment and image subject. Predominantly, we plan on using the aforementioned 100mm lens as its large aperture, combined with the camera's flexibility, will allow us to create the shallow focus handheld close-ups that will create the claustrophobic and unnerving cinematography that will emulate our desired emotion.
Battery Problems
We recently took our first trip to Grindleford along with our actor, Alex Dickenson. We planned to have a full day recording both visuals and sound, and were aiming to complete at least the first half of the film before it started to get dark at around 4-5pm. However, upon opening our camera bag, we realised that our camera had not been supplied with any batteries; meaning that it could not be used, and the entire trip had been a fruitless endeavour. This was, regardless of perspective, at least partially our own fault. We should have checked that all of our equipment was present and functioning correctly before we made an efforts to start a day of shooting. As a result of our carelessness, we were unable to utilise one of the few days that our actor was available. Subsequently, when we finally were able to shoot, we found ourselves more than a week behind schedule. This issues provides some insight into how easily things can go awry in film production; how such a small problem such as this can have severe consequences. In future, we will be certain to thoroughly check our equipment before making any journeys to guarantee against instances such as this.
First (successful) Shooting Day
We have recently completed our first shoot at Grindleford; this time refusing to leave University without being absolutely certain that all our equipment is present and properly functional to avoid a repeat of our previous mistake. We managed to cover just over half of our shot list by the end of the day, which I believe to be very good progress. All members of the group (our actor included) collaborated very effectively, and were therefore able to effectively and efficiently manage the workload. As seen in one of the images below, we decided to use Alex Dickenson as our actor as we felt that the others were not suitable for the role. Despite his inexperience professionally, he proved to be a very competent actor that was able to follow instructions and take suggestions very well. Unfortunately, we have not been able to make contact with any female actors. Given that, due to clash of arrangements, our shoot next week will need to be last, we were forced to have Ami play the unhooded figure. Despite this minor setback, filming mostly went ahead with little trouble; implying a good degree of positive interdependence.
Snow Problems
Due to the aforementioned clash of arrangements, the 10th of December was the only day (and the final day) that we were able to shoot the remaining parts of the film. However, we discovered the night previously that on that day, Britain was due to be hit with some moderate snowfall (see news article link below). Unsure of the intensity of this snowfall on Grindleford (and considering we had no other options), we were forced to go ahead with the shoot regardless. The snowfall proved to be thicker than we had anticipated, meaning that any shots we took would have noticeable continuity errors with the ones we had gathered previously; which was especially a problem considering we needed to do some re-shoots. Since most of the remaining shots took place later within the film's narrative, we thought that perhaps we could shoot them in a way that made it seem as though it had started snowing as Tom was returning to his shelter (which is where is we had left the previous shoot). However, post-production revealed that our efforts were not enough, as the film was still plagued with continuity errors; especially the final scene, since we were forced to shoot it the previous week. Subsequently, we were forced to restructure the film's narrative to accommodate for this issue. While there is still a focus on paranoia; it is now delivered more through Tom's childlike imagination. We came up with the idea of the snow being imaginary, simply being part of Tom's childlike perspective. This would offer an explanantion as to why it seemingly vanishes between shots; we alternate between reality and imagination. It's as if Tom is living inside a snowglobe; a fantasy that the arrival of the figure disrupts. I fear this new narrative may not have the same level of emotional impact, since our research and the shots we had previously taken were all gathered for another purpose. Regardless, this is most likely our best option.
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| https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/updated-forecast-when-you-can-expect-snowfall-hour-by-hour-in-sheffield-1-8902358 |
Final Presentation
Note that some of the information in this presentation may be slightly out of date as some of it was written before we were forced to reimagine our narrative.
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