Editing Blog: Opening Scene

     We started editing yesterday. We started editing our first scene since that is majority of what we have filmed. My group mate does the bulk of the editing. This is mostly because she likes editing more and i like filming more. I usually put my input in on what she should edit though and how. There is a scene where our main actress is trying to turn off her alarm. The footage of this was one minute long so we had to cut it a lot. I said we should cut it when her hand goes out of frame so it looks unnoticeable. We then realized our actress never fully put her hand out of the shot so we had to find another way. I suggested that when she covers the camera with her hand that's where we cut it. There was another part that looked weird so I suggested we cut that completely out. We were also going to edit another scene we filmed. This was a scene in which are main was walking to school. We had a continuation of that scene where the main looks down and it switches to her POV. When watching the footage my partner realized my feet could be viewed in the shot. I suggested we just refilm it instead of trying to edit it weird. This can be seen as somewhat good as we don't have to edit as much. This is because when the camera switches to the main actress's POV it is supposed to show her listening to the song playing over the scene. We still haven't decided on a song so now instead of editing the right song on the phone we can just film it correctly with the right song.

Filming Blog: Opening scene

     This Sunday we finally started filming. Originally, we planned to film on Saturday but my group mate and our main actress could not make it. We changed the day to Sunday at 2pm. We started with the opening scene. I set the alarm that would play and filmed it appearing on the phone. We had to refilm the opening scene multiple times. Since we are all friends we had trouble being quiet while filming. Also, we would laugh because of the awkward silence which could be heard in the footage. We had our main actor film herself at times so the shots from the POV of the phone were more realistic. That also caused us to refilm since she is an amateur. As the director, I told her where to move and what her expression should be. We then had to film the sounds of her getting ready. My groupmate and I both had the same idea to have the actress audio record the sounds of her getting ready. Next, we decided to move outside. This was not a wise decision as we would not have time for the kitchen scene so we will have to film that later. Filming outside was dangerous since we wanted a wide shot and had to be close to a busy street. Fortunately we had an adult close by in case anything were to happen. We finished filming outside faster than inside since there were less scenes. Although, we still did not have enough time to film a scene in the kitchen so we decided to do film it at a later date. Filming this Sunday gave me a glimpse at what real directors and actors have to go through which was really cool.

Filming Blog: Schedule Disrupted

     On Saturday we planned to film the opening scenes of the movie. Unfortunately, we were unable to film. This is because of two main reasons. Firstly, my group member had an event to go to the day of filming. Therefore, she was unable to make it on the planned day of filming. Secondly, I got sick the day we were supposed to film. Even though I am not in the movie my house was the planned location of filming. I also was sick the rest of the weekend and half of the week. Filming would not be good for my health. Also, there would be a high risk for the actor and my other group member to get sick. This could cause filming to be delayed even more. So, it was in everyone's best interest to delay filming until the following Saturday. This could be seen as a good thing as it gives us more time to prepare. An example of this would be our actor having time to learn their lines. Since our actor is just a regular student it is beneficial for them to have extra time to prepare. I am saddened that we were unable to film though. The faster we get done filming the more time we have for editing and reshooting. I think it is important to leave extra time in case something goes wrong. Also, filming is a fun and great learning experience. Even though we had a minor set back we will get back on track and create an amazing movie.

Planning: Storyboard

     We had to plan out our storyboard. We needed to do ten pages since each box is two seconds long. We split the pages up so we can do five pages each. We used our shooting script and our sound script as a reference when we were writing out the storyboard. While we were writing our storyboard, we came up with more ideas. We thought they were more creative than the ones we thought of before. There were a few parts in the scenes where we changed some aspects of it. We changed parts to fit in certain shots and editing needed for the project. We changed the scene where Isabelle is walking in the neighborhood to fit an action match. We also changed the scene where the friend group meets up to fit an establishing shot. Our storyboard helped to solidify our plan for what we were filming.

Planning Blog: Location, Particiapants, Health, and Schedule

     The main location we will be filming at is a house and at school. We're gonna film in the general neighborhood. All of the participants are Alicia, Audrey, Theodore, Isabelle, Balkis, Gen and Sam. Alicia is being our lead director and producer in the film. Audrey is an executive producer and actor. Everyone else is an actor or an extra. For our well being, we're trying to make the filming process as safe as possible for everyone. Alicia, Audrey, and Isabelle are the only ones needed in the first two scenes. It's unnecessary for the other actors to come for a scene they aren't in. The house we're filming at is in a gated community. We will have parental supervision at all times to ensure our safety. The rest of the movie will be filmed during school hours. We would film in a class with a teacher that is able to watch over us. We'll also film in front of the library where security guards will be on patrol. For our schedule, we're trying to get as much done as fast as possible. We're gonna film the first few scenes on Saturday since we need to film the rest at school. We're gonna edit that footage on Sunday so we don't have to worry about it when we film the rest of the opening sequence. We're gonna film on Monday and Tuesday and then film on Wednesday. If we're missing any footage needed we're gonna use Thursday to gather the rest. We'll finish editing everything on Friday.

Planning Blog: Title Design

     Our titles were in either Calibri light or Microsoft Gothic Neo. The fonts range from size 14 to 28. The titles are in black or white depending on the background in the particular scene. The titles that are the most different are the studio, production company, and film title. The rest of the titles are the same but just appear on screen at different times. The studio, production company, and actors appear in the first scene. The movie title comes after and then the rest of the titles appear spread out through the rest of the opening. The production company, studio, and film title are all in white. They also appear on black screen and are usually the main thing onscreen. We think our titles work for our movie.

Planning Blog: Shooting Script

     We wrote our shooting script today. It is all the action that takes place in the movie. In total we have five scenes. We have multiple shots and angles in our films opening. It is harder to picture what the angles are since the movie is filmed from the main character's and phone camera's point of view. We originally stated in our pitch that the movie was filmed from a phone camera's point of view but it is also from the main character's. The reason for this is to show not only social media itself but the immediate reactions from the main character. This lets the audience get a deeper connection by seeing the characters physical emotions. When the screen cuts to black it is usually to represent the phone being put in the main characters pocket. We think our film will show the audience a different perspective on teens relationship with social media.

Planning Blog: Sound Script

     Our assignment was to write out all the sounds happening in the film. There wasn't much sound in the first few scenes. It was mainly background or ambient noise. There wasn't much dialogue in those scenes. There would be parts where the sound would become muffled. Towards the end, there's a group of friends hanging out and it eventually gets more hectic. The actors are talking over and gossiping with each other. We were planning to use the actual school bell in our film. We didn't want to edit in the bell so it would be more realistic. The sound is very important in the film since it's being filmed by the main character's phone's point of view. It indicates the action happening by letting you hear it than see it since the phone is mostly in the pocket.