Creative Critical Reflection

CCR - 'The Betrayal'

Week 2 - Final Cut

Final Cut - Film Opening

The necessary changes that were made to our film opening were based off of minor imbalances that we discovered through the peer reviews. The first thing that we adjusted was the noise imbalances throughout the film opening, where the volume would be extremely loud in one scene and extremely quiet in the next, as scene with the piercing noise in the scene of us opening the gate, and the very hard to hear following scene was then adjusted as well. Besides these volume edits, we also shortened the time of the 'One Year Later' scene and changed the text to 'One Week Later', so that the film opening would be more logical and easier to follow. Lastly, we made the credit scene shorter where the cast and contributors names were projected, as well as cropping the music with the scene so that they would both be more concise.

Week 1 - First Film Cut

First Cut - Film Opening

Week 7 - Editing

- Our group has not yet come up with a title of the film, but the fonts that we are using are basic and not too eccentric, being that the focus of our film is the actual shots. 

- We are not sure if we want to use video effects in our film opening yet, as most of the effects we need are sound, and we will most likely not need any artificial video effects otherwise. 

- Our video transitions are for now, just relaying into a black screen at the beginning of the movie, but as the film progresses we may decide to use more complex transitions in accordance to whatever fits between two shots. 

- Sound effects are going to play an important role in our film, as they will be able to convey sounds that we would otherwise not be able to have in our film, such as the noise that frightens the victim of murder (me) to start running, and then the sound of me falling onto the ground with a loud crack of my head.

- Our biggest problem in editing was trying to decide the timing of placing our different shots in relation to one another, because in some places the timing of transitions was awkward and we had to figure out a way around that. 

- Although there is no concrete solution to that problem since it is a matter of opinion, we took a group vote as to what we thought looked the best. 

- This week, we only needed to spend Friday editing because our goal this week was only to have two of the storyboard shots done in our filming, which we were able to accomplish in one day. 

- Lenka is our main editor since she has the most editing skills and knowledge, but we also helped make decisions and we were learning from what she was doing as she was explaining the process. 

Week 6 - Filming Process

In this picture, Chris is playing the role of the friend that discovers the key that their deceased friend had left in the building last year. He is using the camera to create a viewpoint of the key and put emphasis on it, and we plan to use ketchup or red food coloring to mimic blood from when the friend died.

Here, we are trying to create a different lighting in the building that the cast is walking through again in order to make a more mysterious mood that makes the watchers notice that it is not an upbeat experience or film opening.

In this picture, Lenka is concerned while looking at the key and is using her phone in order to first take a picture of it to post on social media, so that other people can know that there are other mementos of the friend's death, and possibly learn more about the murderer.

We did not have many complications this week while attempting a run through at our film opening by taking pictures during the process. The only thing that we found troubling within our group was how we would convey the storyboard and what changes that we should make to the storyboard. We did not know if we should just strictly follow our storyboard that we had originally made, or if we should make some changes to make our film opening more feasible.

Week 5 - Filming Process

Here, Chris is shown trying to find the best camera angle for a certain angle that we were trying to convey.

Here, we are shown running and Chris had tripped and fallen. We were running after Miranda had gotten killed and we were panicking and running for our lives. 

In this photo, Trent is shown trying to get a high angle shot of Chris, who is laying on the ground. We are using this shot so that we have a variety of camera angles. 

Here, we used an eye level shot to convey the fear in our eyes when we are running after Miranda had gotten killed. Chris had gotten back up from falling and is running along with us in fear. 

In this photo, we were all discussing how we would take the shot of us staring at the bloody key on the ground that Miranda had dropped one year ago after she had tripped and died from a harsh fall. 

In this photo, Chris is shown touching the key to assure that it is Miranda’s and so that we would be able to bring it back to her parents who hadn’t had much of her remaining after her death. 

Here, we are all in shock from finding one of Miranda’s last belongings and Chris is in such shock that we found her key that he is attempting to get a closer look at it. 

Shown here is the process in which we were attempting to show Miranda’s harsh fall after someone had mysteriously rolled a water bottle onto the floor, causing her harsh fall and eventual death. 

Here, the process is shown where we are attempting to roll the water bottle in front of Miranda’s feet so that she can trip. This was not easy in getting down the right timing and roll. 

In all, we did experience some difficulties which mainly surrounded our storyboard. We weren’t sure if our storyboard was sound in the filming process and therefore felt as if we needed to change a few little things that would make our film opening a bit more believable and plausible. But, we learned that it is good to have an exact storyboard that we are able to follow in the filming process so that we can all be on the same page and not distracted with alternative ideas that don’t follow. Lastly, a problem that we encountered was that we all had different interpretations of the storyboard and we all thought that certain scenes meant something different from what they actually were. His meant that we had to converse and make sure that we did enough talking and figuring out the storyboard so that we could come up with a concrete plan to make the best storyboard possible. 

Preparing to Film

Actors- Chris, Trent, Lenka, and I are going to play the main and only characters which is the group of friends that is going through the school.

Costumes- We will not be needing any special costumes for our film opening since we are playing the characters of a group of friends that are in a school and are teenagers, which is how we will already be dressed.

Props- The only props that will be necessary in filming is a bloody ring that belonged to the friend who died in the school and the phone that one actor will be using.

Locations- We are going to film in the hallways of school since the story line and setting of the film opening take place in a school.

Dates and Times- Our group will be filming during this class period throughout the next 2-3 weeks.

Scripts- We are still working on writing the script.

Film Equipment- We are going to use the school equipment available in the classroom, such as the portable camera and the microphone for our recording process, and the school computers here for editing our film opening.

Storyboard

As a group, we discussed how we would incorporate both action and mystery into our film opening, which we decided to do by having characteristics of both. At first, our group was discussing various action techniques that we had seen in real movies and in the example, but we then decided to use our own unique twist on the genre and add aspects of a mystery film to the film opening. We then began to expand upon our original ideas and brainstorming to come up with a plot similar to that of the movie, "Until Dawn". Our film is going to be centered around the mystery of who set the ceiling trap that killed one of the friends in the friend group. The group of friends have many suspenseful moments, which is a characteristic to both the action and mystery genre, for example, when they are running around the school in fear for their lives, that is an action packed scene based around a mystery. By having both action and mystery in our film, we hope to maximize the overall strength of our film tohave it be extremely engaging to the audience, and a film opening that could later be developed into an entire movie.

Film Opening Notes

- Name of production and main characters is shown in the film opening.
- Music helps set the tone of the film.
- A variety of camera angle shots helps establish different characters.
- Genre of movie is shown through early shots.
- Setting of film is shown through surrounding environment and the people in the area.
- Tempo of film is set through movement of characters and music.
- Can start in current time and then relay into the past and something that had happened before, or the other way around.
- Close up camera shots can often establish one's character and the role that they will play in the film.
- Main character can often be shown in a situation where they have an inkling that something isn't completely normal.
- Possessions of a character can be shown in order to create a better understanding of who they are and how that characteristic may later affect the film.
- A filter or the natural lighting of the area can help establish an overall mood of the film.
- An environment that is generally said to be unsafe can build suspicion among viewers and characters.
- Body language of characters can often foreshadow what may occur in the future.
- Animations that are made through the computer can add certain effects to the mood of the film.
- A narration by a main character signifies that they are of great importance to the film and that the film will likely be through their perspective and point of view.
- A random encounter with a new character can imply that they will play a big role in the future of the film.

Film Opening - What Inspired Me

For the second semester film opening project, my group and I chose to work with the mystery genre which is in all of our best interest. The mystery genre has always struck my interest because it is able to capture my attention so effectively due to the many great factors that are often displayed within movies with a central genre of mystery. Mystery movies are able to convey not only a mystery, but they can also mix in other genres such as comedy and action along the plot of the movie. The Scooby Doo series is a perfect example of a mystery genre where comedy also contributes so heavily to the audience's perception of the filming. The Scooby Doo movies are centralized as animated mystery movies in which the team is working to solve a crime or mystery, but within the movie there are many aspects of comedy from the team that highlights the movie as a whole and adds a special feature to the movie. Films such as the Batman movie series are another example of a multi genre film. The Batman movies, based around the superhero Batman, are built around a major mystery that Batman is involved in and often is responsible for in the prevention of an enemy. In these movies, the action genre is also very prominent due to the many battle scenes that play a major role in showing Batman fighting against a major threat in the movie. Furthermore, the mystery genre has always captured me to be the best genre because it is so action packed and entertaining. The genre as a whole is not restricted to solely solving a mystery because there are several other factors that go into the making of the film that are not mandatory, but can be great additions. Mystery films are also so appealing to me because they add suspense to the film viewing that is not seen in all film genres. I enjoy having a sense of suspense while watching a movie because it keeps my interest and makes me want to know what happens next. One important quality of a movie in my eyes is that there is a series of events that are all connected in some way. Many action movies do not have a set plot, but rather they have a random series of events that are occurring one after another yet have no real connection or contribution to the film's overall plot. The majority of mystery films do a great job on having relevant scenes that give the audience something to think about or determine. These scenes may include investigations where suspects or alibis are established and discovered in great depth in order to allow the audience or characters in the film to build more knowledge and intel on the conflict of the movie. Lastly, the mystery genre is so interesting to me because the major conflict within the movie is often very moving and can be found in real life. Many murder mysteries are very interesting because they often occur in real life and are of great importance in the movie as well as in our everyday world.

My Film Opening Project - Genre & Group Members

I will be working with Trent Fetzer, Chris Charlestin, and Lenka Okenkova and we will be doing the mystery genre.