Nearing the end CDV 103

I am now nearing the end of my project. I have now film my whole film and edited most of it. In my opinion, I directed the film terribly. A lot of it was rushed and so mistakes were made. I'd like to say this was made up for in post production but this may not be the case as the sound production is a bit 'iffy' (if you know what i mean). I have yet to add music to my film so there is still a chance for salvation.
For my written work I have devised a to-do-list which should ensure that I get all of the documentation done in time. In fact, after I finish this blog entry I will be able to tick it off of today's list :D.
I have four and a half hours left of editing so I hope I can complete a half decent film and get a pass in that time. I have a feeling I will have to record all of my music on Monday night and add it to my film on the Tuesday because I will need to book out the Digital Audio Recorder again.

The current situation - CDV 103

OK, i am near to panicking but i think i will be able to complete this module. I completed a lot of filming at the weekend and yesterday i managed to creatively solve a problem with some character design and a big multi-media risk (you'll see). I have decided (due to the short amount of time we have left to complete the projects and the fact that nearly everyone i know is either busy completing their own projects or revising for exams) to use cartoons in the dream scenes of my film rather than use actors. I am fully aware that this may look shit, but with a bit of sound mixing and atmosphere i could pull it of.
There are literally two scenarios in my head... one is that it turns out really good and atmospheric and the second is that it looks like some crappy drawing with some bloke talking over the top...
I'm really hoping for the first one =D.

The Beginning/ a little after the beginning - CDV 103

Hello, I'm back to update you with my project so far. Here's how it went:
I began my ideas by firstly listing all the themes that were present in my previous films. I decided on using the theme of 'life and death' because it gave me a lot of leeway with narratives. Once this was done, i drew a spider diagram. This helped me get some basic ideas down. Once i latched onto one of the emerging ideas, i bullet pointed a plot and developed the idea. Now that the ball was rolling i got right on with the storyline and after this a began the storyboards.
Some of the shots designed in the storyboard required the HDV camera from college. I really wanted to shoot early to avoid and to prepare for any difficulties so i needed to get the script completed so as to develope a shooting schedule so i knew when to book the camera out from college.

DAMN!!! CDV 102

I went in to edit today to do some finishing touches and found that all of my work was offline, meaning i forgot to render it all the last time i edited :'(. Yes, VERY depressing. I don't have nearly enough time to re-edit this film before the deadline so i will have to submit it in the summer. Really F***ing annoying!
I can tell you now, 'Always render your project' will be going in my evaluation!! *cry* lol.

This Week... CDV 102

This week i made my prop. It was great fun, got the girlfriend round to help out. It turned out well, maybe a little too big but I'll see what i can do. It is also very cartoony :D.

That same day we did some shooting. This involved us going around my back garden looking for different types of surfaces. We got some fairly good ones. It's surprising what you can find in a back garden...

I have to write the rest of my scipt between now and friday. I'm struggling to find the time, but I'v booked out a digital sound recorder and the edit sweet for friday so i don't have a choice now. I'm sure I'l manage... I always do :/.

Stress!! CDV 102

This week i have done a lot of work. The folder work is going absolutely fine but the filming and the editing is getting me stressed out. Especially the editing.
Today i had the morning to edit, it was all going fine. Then as soon as i do the first lot of colour keying it decided that blue is the same colour as grey (you may be thinking 'maybe it was the same shade blah blah blah') it wasn't the same shade at all. They were completely different colours i swear!
So if that wasn't enough, the same thing happened with two other shots although they were arguably the same shade. I worked around it though and after a mind numbing two hours i got the shots to look fairly decent.

Right! CDV 102

I have tested the idea I explained in my last blog (colour keying etc) and it worked with flying colours. I was very suprized that it worked as well as it did.
I decided to experement some more with locations and materials i could use for the set by taking photos of them and then editing them on Adobe Photoshop to see if they give the right effect.
I am going to try using rocks, grass, stones, fabrick and anything else i can think of to try to give the effect and image of deserts, mountains and anything else that they might be able to resemble.