Preliminary Video Task

My idea for our media piece a discussion, the discussion is about the lives of both characters. The discussion briefly describes various events in the lives of both characters and particular events that took place in their lives. The discussion will begin with one of the characters entering the room; the camera will follow his movements until he sits down at the chair facing the other character that is sitting down at the table.

Character 1:  (awkward silence before talking) how have you been?

Character 2:  (waits before responding) fine.

Character 1: it’s been so long

(Another silence), character 2 doesn’t respond)

Character 1: I’ve travelled. I’ve seen so much since I last saw you; I’ve travelled the world and met people so different to us.  I’ve seen places that are incomprehensible and verbally impossible to describe, there’s so much beauty in the world and there is so much to see.

Character 1: (calmly asks) where were you?

Character 1: you missed everything…

Character 1: (voice raises) where have you been?

Character 2: I was busy

Character 1: Busy? We had plans. We had so many plans

Character 2: I’m sorry; there was nothing I could do. If I could, I would change everything. Buts it’s done. That time has passed and we have both moved on with our lives. I can’t change what happened and neither can you

Character 1: you could have tried

Character 2: I did, I really tried

Character 1: I don’t believe you

Character 2: it’s the truth

Character 1: (silence)

Character 2: you have to believe me

Character 1: (silence)

Character 2: I would never abandon the plan

Character 2: we were going to see so much, the plans came at the wrong time. It’s not my fault and it isn’t yours

Character 2: there was nothing I could do or you could do, to change what happened

Character 1: (silence)

Character 2: (silence)

Character 2: I saw him/her before he/she left

Character 1: (silence before dialogue) I don’t care

Cjaracter 2: you do. He/she changed everthing.

Character 1: silence

Character 2: they stopped the plans...

–      Camera operator- Callum

–      Location scout-Patryk

–    Story board-Callum

–    Actor scout-Josh

–      Movie editor(s)-Josh

–      Director/final plot-Patryk

In the end, our group mutually decided that my script would not be used and instead we decided we would use Patryk’s script. We decided against mine because it was more serious compared to the other scripts-it was too serious.  The script would deter the other actor’s performance, they wouldn’t enjoy playing a more serious role. The other script we decided to use was less serious and more topical, the actors and the behind-the-scenes will prefer working on something they can enjoy. 

The idea we chose is about the American presidential debate, two characters who support either republican or democrat are debating on who would make the better president, the idea incorporates real life examples in the script to relate with the audience- it makes the script more believable.  The script follows:

Interview- Election season

Interviewer takes the side of one candidate as the interviewee argues for their candidate turning the interview hostile as the two argue for their candidate.

1= Host

2= Trump supporter

3= Clinton supporter

1: Good morning and welcome to the show, I’m (insert name here) and today we’re going to discuss last night’s presidential debate.  Joining me today is Donald Trump supporter, (insert name here) and Democratic supporter (insert name here) 

2 and 3:  Thank you (insert name here).

1: So who do you think won last nights debate?

2: Obviously it was a huge victory for Trump. He pushed crooked Hilary on tough subjects like ISIS and she had no plan. Clearly Trump is the only one who can make America great again.

3: That’s wrong on every level. Hilary was far more presidential in nature and focused on real issues compared to Trump's large focus on conservationism.

1: May we slow down and try to be civil about this (pause as if you're thinking for a appropriate word) controversial.

3: Well could we discuss the recent uncovering of some of Mr Trumps indecent comments about women, I want to see what (inset name) thinks about his comments.

2: So I see what you'll be trying to bring up today, you're just bringing up things Mr Trump said out of character that he said as a joke and not actually saying what he truly believes.

3: Nothing changes the fact that Donald has shown throughout his life that he has very little respect and care for what he says about women,

2: I thought we were going to talk about the subject of the debates and not the personal lives of our candidates. If we're doing it this way than I would love to talk about the e-mail scandal that your beloved Hilary is facing no repercussions from.

1: Please, lets calm down, its only 7:30 lets not get too worked up alright. Lets keep on topic and keep it calm and civil, please.

3: Mhmm, can we talk about Donald's claim that he refuses to accept the outcome of the final vote in November.

2: That could be due to fact that Hilary has a history of rigging results and cheating the system with her powerful and corrupt connections that have sometimes ended with people mysteriously disappearing

3: (interrupting) Ok I think we'll end it right here. Thank you for watching NF morning talks on political matters for the first time, (quieter) and the last, lets change to Debby for dinner ideas.

Analysis 

for this task, our groups were instructed to create a short media video based on any idea of our choosing. the video required specific features which included a match on action shot, a person entering a room through a door, dialogue, shot reverse shot and other various media video techniques. Throughout filming, we included most of the required elements which made our task mostly successful. However, during filming we encountered some issues which lowered the quality of the video

The video we had produced was very successful, part of the reason was because of the different camera angles. Throughout the filing, we tried to vary the angles to create a professional looking media video. The angles were used to vary the video so nothing looked completely the same to the viewer, these camera angles included high, low and a middle angle. In addition, the varying angles created an atmosphere to the video. For example, during the presenter’s scenes a low angle shot was used. This represents the power that the presenter has over the audience and the political panellists featured on his show. The low angle was used to represent the presenter’s authority and control.

Another reason why our video task was successful was because there were no continuity errors. This was achieved by shooting the majority of our video in one day, we kept all the actors in the same positions and kept the set the same throughout filming. We considered this to be essential during filming which is why we tried to avoid errors. We tried to avoid continuity errors because it would make the video more believable, the audience has to believe the video to keep them interested and immersed in the production.

The actors and the acting also contributed to the success of our project. Although it was not the most important requirement of the project, it still helped make the project appear more professional. The acting helped because it immerses the audience in the video, it makes the video more believable and maintains the audience’s interest. One reason for the acting's success was because the actors were very emotive when they spoke, this makes the piece more interesting and keeps the audience interested in what they are viewing.

On the other hand, there were still negative aspects to our production. First, the lighting.  Without realisation, the lighting was too low and made the video appear very dark. This would have made it hard for the audience to see characters or the background. However, when editing we improved this by increasing the lighting through Premiere. This lowered the resolution of the video however, it made the task easier to watch for the audience.  

In addition, our group failed in perfecting the sound. The soundscape in our task was inaudible in places and was very hard for our audience to hear. The dysgenic sound, particularly the dialogue, was very hard to hear and couldn't be understood in places. Through review, our group understands that this can be improved by using a H1 recorder. The use of this equipment would improve the sound quality and make the diegetic sounds clearer to the audience. Furthermore, the sound could be improved by adding non-diegetic sounds. The storyboards state that non-diegetic sounds need to be added such as applause, cheering, booing and the show’s opening/closing soundtrack. The inclusion of this would make the production more believable, the audience would believe that they are watching a talk show instead of a college production.

The technical aspects of this production were very important and our video wouldn't have been made without any of these film devices. Firstly, the camera was very important in our production. The camera was used to film our idea and it was used to capture the footage so we could edit it later. The other important technical element in our production was the software. For this project, we used Adobe Premiere to edit and refine everything we had filmed. We used premiere to adjust the lighting and make the footage look brighter so it was easier to see for the audience. Premiere also allowed us to cut the unnecessary parts from the film and put together the individual clips to form a short video project. The software was very important because it’s what pieced together the film. However, we could improve the film by using another technical element- a H1 recorder. The H1 would make the audio clearer so we wouldn't have to increase the volume of the project through premiere.

In planning the video, we required a script and storyboard which were necessary in the final production. The script detailed the lines that the actors had to say, it helped them remember their lines and also provided us with a dialogue for the video piece. The storyboard showed us the order of events, it told us the positioning of the camera and its angle. It also informed the cameraman of who was in what shot, the sound which would be used-both diegetic and non-diegetic and the type of transition which would be used. The storyboards for our video shoot are below

Include:

•       Strong points from the video task

Acting, different angles (high and low), no continuity errors,

•       Technical learning, what technical and software elements were important in the production and editing of the preliminary task. 

A camera, premiere pro

•       Planning, How important was the planning of the video, state what elements were helpful and describe why. 

The script, the storyboard 

•       Does the production fit into a film genre, describe…

Talk show, discussion 

•       Are there any elements of the final video production and editing that you would change… if so why?   Think of camera operation, editing, story, direction… 

the audio (background noise), use audio device to make audio sound clearer, include a match on action shot (the door scene), make some scenes louder, reshoot some scenes in focus