Our Show

Kennedy's Press Conference was a success! (Just wanted to start off my post with something happy!)

 

This whole week has been quite hectic due to the fact that we have all been scrambling about trying to piece our morning show together. Ever since last week, we all have been putting forth creative ideas that we believe will set our morning show apart from all the rest and truly be entertaining. However, with so many new ideas bouncing back and forth, we only succeeded in complicating the whole show although we had less than one week to prepare for it. I believe this was caused by all the excitement we all had since we have been waiting for this day ever since the first day of film I class back in 10th grade. Eventually we all settled down and came up with something quite simple yet fun and effective-a press conference.

 

Through the press conference, we were able to manipulate the order of the topics/segments while still maintaining a sense of mysteriousness as a method to prevent from saying too much about next year's show.

 

 

Spencer, Jachelle, and I were responsible for the script which was not as challenging as we first assumed. We first needed to gather all the information together and truly organize it so the script could flow easily rather than have it be a sloppy mess filled with all sorts of random information. As soon as we established the beginning, everything else seemed to flow and a few minor edits later, we had our very first morning show script.

 

Filming the actual show was also a bit harder though. We all quickly had to rearrange the tables and set aside all of our backpacks while others worked on designing the set. Other than a few minor complications, we managed pretty well and immediately began filming our show. Although there were mistakes made, (including me speaking too fast at times due to my jittery but happy nerves), we all got back on track and got through the whole show with little obstacles.

 

Today showed me just how much fun film class truly is because it offers so much. I honestly cannot wait until next year to create even more shows and captivate the Kennedy audience!

 

 

Twisted Minds

'Creative Minds' was suppose to be the title of our project; however, that all went down today--literally. Halfway during our live show, the letter that we so carefully strung up in the background somehow loosened and came tumbling down. Immediately, everyone became frantic and began to scramble towards the letters, desperately attempting to somehow reposition the letters. Yet, it proved to be a difficult task for the letters continued to fall and with the time against us, we simply decided it was not worth it. So we took down all the tape and the letters and set them aside and focused on the actual show instead. This little problem occurred halfway during the show...we had other difficulties before that.

 

 

As I was setting up my camera, I realized that my head set was not working. I first I thought it was a minor glitch until I kept trying and realized it just would not operate. Patricia, one of the floor managers, also tried to help in discovering what the actual problem was but it seemed to be out of our hands. When we informed Mr. Lemos about this small predicament, he suggested changing the batteries, which gave us hope of finding a solution. However, even after we changed the batteries, the head set still did not work and so I began to panic a bit more because then I would not have a method in which to communicate with my other group members. The situation could not be helped though and so I had manage my camera and whole show without a head set. Although it seemed like a big problem at first, it soon became very manageable because the shot list was well done and easy to follow or I simply looked over at Laura and Jose and took note of their own camera movements and their actions served like a guide.

 

 

Jose and I also had to switch cameras although such an action did not bother either of us because it was an easy task to tackle. We simply had to follow a new set of instructions but that was all right because we both already knew the workings of our show.

 

 

In the end, our live show was a bit more hectic and confusing than I thought it would be because there was so much going on. Although each of our group members knew what to do after careful practices and observations, it was still a bit of a challenge because it was our first time doing something so new and exciting. However, with further practices, I am sure we will all master this new setup and be completely prepared for next year!



Crazy Cameras

This week has been hectic because we have been learning so much in film class! However, I truly enjoy it because it's challenging that allows us to experience something new.

 

 In my case, since I am going to operate camera three, I will have the chance to learn how to follow a shot list that is out of order as I attempt to balance everything else. Although I am a bit nervous that I will somehow make a mistake, I am confident in my group members and they will help me if I ask.

 

Another part that I enjoyed about this week was all the new information about lighting and setting it up. Before, lighting was simply another tool that could easily help yet now it has taken a whole new meaning because now lighting is essential for conveying a certain message. It now helps to emphasize certain aspects in a project, or in this case, it will help to bring focus to the decorated set and other small tasks during close ups.

 

I also like this project because I will be operating a camera for the whole time which has never happened before because I am usually in charge of a job that is mainly aimed towards pre-production. However, with this project, I will have complete control and freedom (well, sort of) of the camera and I cannot wait for that because it's something that I have been looking forward to.

 

Our group has also agreed to get everything organized as soon as possible and rehearse before the our actual date so that we may have a good look at what we are doing exactly.

 

Overall, I am excited about this project and I hope everything turns out well!

 

 

 

 

 

P.S I like these chips but cookies are better.

New Adventure

This week in film class, we learned how to write a two column script for the first time. This new type of script was used to write out our "How To Video" treatment and make it more solid. Although I had heard about two column scripts before, I did not really have much experience with writing one until recently. At first, it was a bit challenging because I had never done this sort of task and so I kept wondering if I was doing it right or if I was completely off.

 

 Mostly, I worried about the length because I did not want it to be over the time limit. I kept adding dialogue and so I was concerned that the length of conversation would ultimately be too much but it was something that I needed to add because the conversation provided necessary explanations for the task at hand. But all my worries were mainly about the more technical elements involving the script rather than the actual writing part.

 

However, I enjoyed writing the dialogue because it was rather something easy to do considering that the conversation had to be natural and smooth as possible. Another aspect that was easy to complete were the needed steps that to be shown. Since we had already written our treatments with the steps, it was easy to then transfer them onto the script.

 

Another interesting part this week was learning how to shoot a live show using three cameras. There is so much work involved, yet it is quite exciting because it is something new and fun.

This new lesson has only made me realize how much I truly enjoy film class and so I cannot wait until next year when this lesson transforms into something normal and routine to be done every week. It feels that the last two years of film went by so quickly and now we have to be ready how to manage this new task.

 

I especially like the fact that this new project holds various components so that others can pick and choose what they want to do. Since each part, from talent to floor manager, is so different, it allows for each person to experience something new so it will never get boring or simple.

 

However, this also showed me the great importance of teamwork. Although there are several different elements to this new project, each part relies on another part to be completed. Due to this, each person must fully understand what he is responsible for and complete his job well.

 

This whole project relies heavily on teamwork but I believe in everyone so this project, and the whole of next year, will be amazing. 

Finn Readies for the Final Goodbye

It appears that I have officially developed a love-hate relationship with this project of ours.

 

I did not realize how difficult the whole process was actually going to be until we hit the 'record' button. From the start, we knew this was not going to be easy due to the amount of dialogue, the length of the movie, and the fact that our actors were also students and had previous engagements to attend to. However, I still held out hope that everything would turn out all right and it somehow did.

 

When Ms. Blake could not be our actress, we quickly sprung into action and found a solution by asking Mrs. Kreiselman if she would like to fill in the spot. Not only did Mrs. Kreiselman agree to be our much needed principal, but she also did a magnificent job, taking the role very seriously and memorizing her lines perfectly. This wonderful turn of events quietly brought me inspiration because it made me believe that a situation that seemed hopeless could actually be fixed and become quite extraordinary.

 

So as Mrs. Kreiselman as our principal, we managed to successfully shoot the remaining scenes in our movie. This time, everyone took their jobs seriously and so we were able to finished within an hour which I consider an accomplishment because the scene is an extremely important part in our movie. 

 

As we filmed the scene, I also noticed the fact that we all of us come up with new and bright ideas right on the spot. Although we already have a list of the shots and angles we need, as we film, we end up adding extra stuff. Whether it's a new angle we want to try, or an extra insert shot, we never disappoint ourselves regarding creativity. It is because of these little bits that I enjoy film so much. By working in a group, each member is able to learn all sorts of new tricks from others which only helps them. These impulses are the best because it's evidence that we all still love film in spite of the stress that comes along with it.

 

Sure, we all stayed for hours after school, filming and editing like crazy. Sure, my group all stayed at my house for hours :). Sure sometimes crumpled under the stress, but I believe it will all be worth it because I feel like our completed project will be wonderful. 

This Endless Tangled Web

I love our film.

I love the shots.

 I love the story.

 

I don't love how the shooting schedule constantly needs to be changed because unexpected and extremely unwanted events continue to occur.

 I didn't love how we needed to find other students outside our film class to be our actors.

 

I think the two major problems with this film are the actors and the dialogue. This is the first time we have had to do a film that had so much witty dialogue scene after scene and so we did not know what to expect exactly. We were all prepared but we simply did not think that the heavy amount of dialogue would be such an obstacle. Sound is very important but it is such a difficult element to control when the scenes are shot outside mixed with all the quick conversations being held. Due to this, I feel like the dialogue really slowed our group down considering a lot of the scenes needed to be shot again and again and again in order to correctly capture the dialogue.  

 

Another problem we encountered was the fact that we had a very difficult time finding reliable actors for our film. All the people we knew were also students and so they had their own classes and obligations to complete which sometimes set our film back. Although our actors did take the film seriously, there were times in which they had other compromises or other schoolwork to complete and so we would lose multiple chances to film. But this is not their fault, but it is simply the way the world works, in the life of the a typical high school student.

 

However, I would like it if the students from the actual class were allowed to be actors again because it would be so much easier for everyone. The problem of finding other outside reliable students constantly plagues our group in so many different ways, so I believe it would be so much easier if the actors were already familiar and easy to reach.  

 

Another major problem our group encountered was the hectic schedule of the principal, Ms. Blake. She was suppose to be our actor, yet she had some unexpected incidents and so we were unable to shoot the two important scenes that involved her. Due to this, our whole shooting schedule had to be rearranged but matters became worse when Ms. Blake was unable to film again in the same week. Once again, everything was pushed back a day or two back, which does not seem like a big deal, but truly is, considering the deadline is almost here.

 

In spite of all the problems our group has had to face, I am really proud of them. They are always there, every day after school, ready to film which takes true dedication because it means we had to sacrifice valuable time that could be spent doing other homework or being with family.

 

In the end, I have hope that everything will turn out all right.

 
After all, I love our film.

I love the shots.

 I love the story.

And the Web Spins....

Our group has continued to produce our movie although it is proving to be a bit more difficult than we originally thought. We were faced with a new challenge: we had to find actors outside of the class. We had never been told to find actors outside the classroom and so it was a bit hard trying to find people who would be willing to do it and truly commit to the project.

 

However, we were lucky enough to find some of our friends from the architecture strand that were willing to do it. Maricruz and Wolfgang, our actors, really liked our script and put all their effort in memorizing their lines and embracing the characters.

 

Yet, actually filming the movie was a bit harder because we did not realize how much work it was truly going to take. Although we had a much bigger group, we also had a much bigger movie with a lot of dialogue. We had not done a movie like that in a really long time and so we had to try to find our pace which was a challenging task.

 

In spite of this, we continued on and Jose, Jachelle, and I worked on the shot list. We also edited some of our script because we realized we needed to make some changes to make the story flow better.

 

To me, this proves that bigger groups are beneficial because more minds can then contribute to the project so that better ideas are formed.