Final Evaluation and Reflection

 

 

INTRODUCTION

 

 

·       What was the project task?

 

The project task was to create an opening scene for a film ,we had to come up with all the ideas and plan it out as best we could. The scene had to incorporate lots of Foley and sound design. The opening scene had to be 1-2 minutes long and be full of all kinds of sound design and recorded Foley all made by me.

 

·       What did you plan to produce for the project?

 

I planned to make an opening scene that was just over 1 minute long and that mostly evolved around a bounty hunter who started off in his office but then receives a phone call and suddenly has to go rushing out on his dirt bike. Most of the sound design I will use is when the driver (Harry Smith) is getting ready and the bike with the kickstand, Kickstarter helmet etc, there will also be lots of Foley when the bike is being driven. I planned to use Parallel music to the visuals and went with the song by Elton John, Saturday Nights Alright for Fighting.  I did this to ensure my scene stayed fast-paced which is what I had envisioned at the start and that it was very quick and snappy which I like as I feel it gives off a professional engaging look to keep the audience interested.

 

RESEARCH

 

 

·       What research did you conduct?

 

I conducted lots of research, to start off with I began by finding eight different opening scenes from all film genres and types. I then analyzed them to find similarities with the way they used sound, what sounded the best and just generally the sound design they had used in the scenes this helped me with my opening scene as I already knew what I liked the sound of. I then researched Saul Bass and Jack Foley to get some background knowledge of where Foley originated from and who came up with the idea that has revolutionized the way we view films today. Then I began looking into the way filmmakers use certain music in certain situations to give off a certain feeling or vibe which I liked and chose to do this in my film. Next, we did some experimental research we began by getting a clip from Baby Driver that had no sound along with a folder full of Foley we then had to add in the Foley to the scene where we thought it would sound the best. We were also given a clip from Venom but this time we had to make the sounds to fill in the silence ourselves. I felt this was a very good way of helping me learn how important sound is and how to edit along with how to record it. I then went on and researched sound design job adverts available in the industry and the job descriptions to find out what the industry expects of a sound designer and what the pay would be like. This was helpful at giving some more background knowledge of what we were learning. 

 

·       How useful was your research for the development of the project?   

 

I found my research extremely useful as it meant I could come up with lots of ideas of what to do and I would also know how to do them to the best possible standard. I found the analysing of the opening scenes was the most useful research I did as it really helped me understand what goes into a good opening scene and how to use music, visuals and sound all in parallel and in sync. The experimental research we did I found was also extremely helpful though as well, as it meant I had some experience on how to edit sound in adobe. It also meant I had experience with recording Foley and what I would need (equipment wise) to do it effectively and professionally.

 

·       In what way could you improve the research that you carried out and what impact do you think this may have had on the project?

 

I feel I could have improved the research I did about Saul Bass and Jack Foley as I don’t feel I went into enough detail. I went over the basics of what they did and how it changed the industry but I feel I could have gone deeper and found out more about films they worked on, production company’s they worked with etc. However, I don’t feel this would have had a huge effect on my film. If I had done this it would have made me more knowledgeable about the topic which may have in turn given me even more inspiration for my film. Lastly, I feel I could have researched into recording Foley more as all though we did a fair amount on it I feel I could have still done with a bit more to ensure my work was at the high standard possible and in the future I will make sure I’m fully comfortable and confident before starting to record. I feel if I had more experience before we started, my end film would have been a lot smoother. Also the sound would have been better and more professional, it would also seem more planned out so I would know how I would do each sound and if I would need it in my film. I do still think though that the sounds/Foley I made were perfectly fine for my film.

 

FINISHED PRODUCT

 

 

·      Who was your opening scene designed for?

 

My opening scene was designed for people of both genders, but mainly obviously due to what’s in the film you need to enjoy dirt bikes, fast action and all the general codes and conventions that come with it. Lastly, I would say I would target my film at a 12A audience this is due to the light violence you would see later on in the film, after my opening.

 

·       How well received was your sound design following the screening?

 

I thought my opening scene was very well received with both positive and negative feedback, which I will talk more about below. In addition, most people who watched it in the room where very positive about it more so than negative which is always good and is reflected in the feedback I received. 

 

·       What feedback did you receive? Do you agree?

 

I received lots of positive feedback as well as negative but I will start with the positives. The class said that my Foley/sounds were well put together and synced, which I agree with as I spent lots of time making sure they were as synced up as possible. They also said my cinematography was really good especially the opening tracking shot and the ending following shot which again I agree with as they were the two shots that took the longest to get right so you would hope someone would notice. Lastly, people said my choice of music and title was good and fitted in very well with the visuals on screen which again I agree with as that was the aim in the beginning and that feedback shows it was seen. Next, I will move on to the negative feedback, someone said the shot in the hallway looked very oversaturated which I strongly agree with and even spent hours trying to fix this in post but in the end just had to get it as good as I could. This was all caused by my camera settings being wrong on filming day so that is a huge lesson to always check settings before filming. A few people also said I could have had more transitions between music and visuals which I do agree with for the music as I feel that needed a better transition when fading in. However, the visuals I thought had perfectly adequate transitions in between. Lastly, someone said I should have added in some more atmospheric sounds when filming outside which again I strongly agree with and the main reason I didn’t is because I had to film over so many different days it all became very full-on and I just never had time, but in any future projects, I will do this.

 

·       How could you make improvements based on the feedback received?

 

I feel based on the feedback I received I could improve my transitioning between the music as this could have done with a few more minor tweaks to improve it, but the outcome if I made the tweaks would have looked a lot more professional and well put together. I also think I could have added in some atmospheric sounds when we were filming outside to help give the scene some life and character and if I had done this, my end film would have sounded much more professional. Lastly, I would make sure that when filming my camera is set up properly so I don’t have footage like the hallway scene that needs to be played around with so much to get it looking usable that it stands out from everything else as over-edited.

 

·       What impact would these improvements have on the audience?

 

I feel altogether these improvements would have had a fairly big impact on the audience as the film would have just looked more professional and would have been to a slightly higher standard. I personally think that the thing that would have stood out the most is if the hallway shot wasn’t as orange and over saturated as it was. As I feel this makes the film look rushed even though it wasn’t, it was just a mistake I made when filming. In addition I feel some atmospheric sounds would have been good in the outdoor shots to really enhance the Foley and what you are hearing it would have made my film sound just that little bit better and put together and it wouldn’t have taken much to do either. I will take all of this into account when we make our next film to ensure I do not make any of these mistakes again but by far what I need to take from this is to always check my camera settings when filming.

 

 

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

 

 

·       What areas have you improved on throughout this project -  carrying out research, analysing research findings, using research to develop your ideas, planning, organisation and time management, filming, editing, writing, directing, Wix website building, writing production diaries, etc?

 

I feel I have improved in many different areas but mostly in filming and writing a script. With me getting more and more experience in filming intern has led me to improve in the area. But I have also improved in Foley recording how to do it and what to use. As Joe gave me a little tutorial on how to write a script, I felt this was a huge area I progressed in as before I was rubbish with scriptwriting but with the help of Joe and some software, I managed to get the hang of it. Lastly, I feel my directing skills are getting better as the more films I make the more experience and confidence I build to direct and shoot my films the way I want to.

 

·       What programmes, tools and processes have you learned to use?

 

I have learned to use Celtx when writing my scripts as it is a really simple way to format a script correctly and quickly. Furthermore, I have learned a bit more about how to use Adobe After Effects to create some basic titles that move along the screen. In addition, I have got even better with Adobe Premier Pro as I have had more experience and with more experience comes more knowledge. I have also learned to always shoot at least two perfect shots of a scene in case something goes wrong in post. Lastly, I learned how to use the TamCam sound records to record effective high-quality Foley and what in could use to make these Foley sounds.

 

·       What challenges did you have and how did you overcome them?

 

I was faced with a few challenges throughout the production process, to begin with, I found the hallway in my house that I had planned to shoot in was horrible to shoot in and was extremely difficult to get it to look right as the orange glare reflected everywhere. However, I did manage to overcome this by decreasing the saturation, vibrance and many other color settings in Premiere Pro. In one shot I also had a very overexposed window that I hadn’t noticed when filming which I couldn’t really do anything about without a reshoot which I didn’t have time for. I tried messing around with masks as well as adjusting the blacks and whites but nothing really looked right so I ended up just having to leave it in the end film as it was. My final few problems I had all merged in together, the actor I had chosen for my film was really good at everything else but turns out he couldn’t ride a dirt bike like he said he could which meant the amount of time wasted from sorting that out lead to it going dark meaning we couldn’t shoot anymore so the next day I had to get some people to film me as I did the scene myself as I didn’t have much time left to get it done with the original actor. But in the end, I think it turned out fine and nobody noticed the actor had changed anyway.

 

·       Which skills do you feel you need to develop further?

 

I feel I mostly need to work on my directing and editing skills. I feel my directing needs some work as I’m not always clear when explaining to an actor what they need to do and how I want them to do it but with experience, I’m sure I will get better at this and it won’t be a problem anymore. Lastly, my editing skills need some work as although I can do all the basics in Premier Pro there are still things that I have to ask for help with which shows I need to learn the areas of Premier so I can do it all on my own. It would also be handy if I could learn more about how to use After Effects as although again, I can do the very basics there is lots I don’t know how to do that I would like to learn to help improve my future films.

 

·       How could the new skills and knowledge developed throughout this project help you with your future education and career.

 

I feel the scriptwriting skills I have developed will really help me when I move on to new projects as a professional script is always a good start to a production this will also help me when we make our next college project as I will be able to format the script correctly. I also feel the sound recording techniques and information I learned will be very useful when making my next film as I will know what sounds good and what sounds give of what emotions (e.g. sound bridging, contrapuntal sound, and parallel sound)      as well as having the knowledge to do it and record it myself.

 

·       Discuss your overall project - what went well and how would you improve it if you had more time or an opportunity to start it again?

 

I feel my overall project went really well there were a few issues but I think the positives outweigh the negatives. I feel my opening shot was really clean and smooth which I really like. I also thought that the close-ups in the garage looked pretty good as well. Lastly, I found that my research went really well and I managed to get through a lot, quickly. My planning and production diary I felt where quite good as well I felt like I did everything I could for them and bulked them up as much as possible to. However, if I had the opportunity to start again, I would make sure the hallway shot was shot correctly with the right settings selected on the camera, I would also make sure when the door comes into shot it isn’t to overexposed like it is now. In addition, I would have spent more time working with my actor to get all the close-up shots perfect and how I wanted them as I feel I could have made the end film slightly better that way. For example when he kickstarts the bike that shot looks a bit messy as I had to cut it down in order for it not to be too long. Finally, I feel I could have spent more time working on the Zenom experimental research task because due to us not having enough Foley just with the Foley we recorded I couldn’t get it finished and I feel if I got it finished I would have had a better understanding of recording Foley.