This weeks major exercise had us split into groups of 10, that were in turn split again in 2 groups, an executive and support, which we would swap half way through the exercise. This exercise, when it was put forward to us on the Wednesday, felt a lot more like what we had done in Film TV1 than in this course so far, specifically in reference to the opportunity for pre-production. Unfortunately for us, we had very little pre-production done by Friday morning. This is mainly due to the fact that we didn’t have time, we were given the exercise Wednesday and were shooting on Friday first thing in the morning. Thankfully, Natalie had written up a rough shot list which she posted on the Facebook group we created for the exercise.

Friday morning we were missing a number of group members, although most arrived just in time for shooting. The other half of our group seemed more prepared and ready to go than ours so we jumped into filming. I was on sound which I feel quite confident with. Watching the other group work first gave me a better idea of what our limitations were, how I could work around these, as well as inspiring me get more out of our shoot. There were to major challenges I identified. The limitations of the space and our limited time frame. The time frame was the most obvious challenge, it affirmed my apprehension about spending too much time on individual shots, consequently the first group to shoot ended up having to scrap a shot, thankfully this was a non-essential cut away of the protagonists feet which ended up being of little consequence. The location was the most frustrating however, as it was a confined area with very little variety.

Natalie asked if I would like to direct, which I said I was happy to do. Despite directing being my preference, I initially decided to take a step back and give someone else the opportunity to do it if they felt strongly about it, which no one seemed to. Since we only had a shot list, and very limited time, I had to make quick decisions about were to place set-ups and how I would frame them. Expanding on this, I was always conscious of what Paul had said in a previous class, that we should weep overtime we look through the lens” because the shot is so good. While this is obviously hyperbole, I recognise the pressure and expectation as a legitimate challenge we should all be striving to achieve. I did not weep at any of the shots I framed. This is not to say that I don’t think that they were any good, it’s just that they were nothing special. One of my primary concerns was creating a sense of depth, opening up the shot so it didn’t feel amateur and restricted. I worked with the space I had and felt that what we did manage to capture was quality despite the locations confinement.

Everyone worked really well as a team, in both groups. It worked to my advantage that I had seen the other group shoot first. So far as concise epiphanies go, I would say that the biggest thing that jumped out at me, and something I am conscious of in my ‘method’ is the importance of pacing. Too many times on shoots there have been moments when people are standing around, getting bored and not knowing what they should be doing at a given time. As a director, it’s easy to get caught up with your own job and vision and forget that you have a crew of people waiting on you. With this in mind, I was extremely conscious of maintaining a solid working pace, as well as not dwelling too long on a single shot so that no one is ever bored or disinterested. This also improves the quality of the work, in regard to acting in particular. Giving an actor too long to dwell on there actions, or having too much time between takes breaks confidence and rhythm, which results in a weaker performance. We finished under time, which I took as a good thing, given that we had all the shots we set out to achieve. It did make me question if I had just done a rushed job, however I truly feel that I can recognise it as a positive quality of my directing style.

The first individual directing exercise we did on the Friday of week 3 was interesting and challenging on a number of levels. Since we had 6 people to get through, time was clearly the biggest issue. It is hard enough to articulate a vision to a crew and actors, especially if the actors have very little experience. The location we chose gave us a variety of choices, the building which served as the background for most of our scenes is an interesting old (possibly gothic) style building with lush green plants in garden beds along the side. This would help us ad depths and contrast without having to do anything too tricky with the camera. On top of the building, there are ledges/benches bordering the nearby lawn, which we used as seats for the actors as well as a platform we could (and did) use for the camera set-up.

This was also the first time this semester that we used the mixer for the microphone, so it could be said this is the first time we had used a “full” kit as a group, minus lights etc. Each time we shot a scene we would swap roles, which worked really well for us, I specifically remember Simone asking about the mixer and expressing an interest in working with it.

For my shot, the intention was to pan from a mid shot of one character placed in the left of the screen, to then pan across to the other character in mid on the right, then continue to pan as she walked away until eventually stopping at a long shot as she turns around to address the other character. The most difficult part of this was the panning itself, Jason had to pan the camera pretty much 90 degrees which made it difficult to control. The other issue with this shot was the pacing of the action, given that it is meant to be a smooth continuous pan. My direction was for Simone to wait 2 beats after Maddie delivered her line, to the stop at a spot I marked while blocking. The end product, which I only saw once in class the following week, I was actually really pleased with. I achieved a very rough sketch of the shot I had imagined in my mind, so mission accomplished I suppose.

Another revelation that came out of this exercise is that I noticed how much more comfortable people have become acting in front of the camera. While in the early weeks people would immediately express their reluctance to be in front of the camera, there is basically none of that now. People are even enjoying it. I did drama at a very young age and continued through my high school years, so I would consider myself a confident actor, despite not having really done it for a few years. I have felt a little uncomfortable doing it in these exercises, I think this is because there is a difference between playing with acting around actors and people that don’t want to do it. This is certainly changing, and I think this fact has been an invaluable lesson from this studio.

Possibly the most exciting thing that stuck out to me this week was just a comment by Paul about the course to come. While a week ago I had changed my preconception about the course, I still hadn’t completely comprehended the aim of the unit, beyond better understanding movie’s and movie making. In talking about the assignment which we are expected to articulate our work methodology and style, he mentioned that this was the primary aim of the course, to come up with our own method and style. While it’s obvious that this is expected, given that we are doing an outcome halfway through the semester in which we literally have to articulate this, I’m excited because this has been a source of some anxiety for me in the past. I am very much looking forward to discovering the bones of my creative pallet, the work I do on this unit will most likely have a dramatic impact on any future work that I do.

Already I have noticed, not just myself but all of my peers, getting more confident and fluid in the exercises tasked to us. I gain more confidence from the knowledge that these exercises will only become more challenging and exciting as we have the opportunity and forum to practice the technical skills necessary and grow creatively.

When I chose The Scene in Cinema to be my first preference in the studio ballot, I did so for two reasons. 1) I thought it was going to be like an intensive cinema studies class (which I do not have as my major) and 2) Paul and Robin were taking the studio. From the brief description, it basically just said that we would be looking at scenes, what makes scene work, and discussing this. However, given that Paul and Robin are taking the course, I was sure that there would be at least a small practical element.

I was very surprised to turn up to our first studio and find a stack of cameras and tripods in the corner. After a very short introduction, we were split into groups to start working on a scene. My preconception of the studio, while not incorrect, seemed to be a far cry from what we were actually doing. I am very excited for the course to come. What Paul has said about the main aim of the course being to develop our own method and style is inspiring and motivating.

Our first studio for The Scene in Cinema had us doing practical work right off the bat. We were split into groups and given a prompt with which we had to block and organise a scene with no pre-production planning. This was a fantastic way of giving us all a taste of what we could expect from the course in the semester to come.

The differences between our scene and the other, with the same prompt was vast. Our shot was basically just a pan to rest on the actors. While the other had the boss positioned in from of the camera OTS, while the employee comes into the right side of the shot, basically facing the camera. The difference in status is made immediately clear, giving the boss and imposing and almost ominous tone, while the employee looks small and weak in comparison; at his mercy. Should have recorded to see how ours look, as i was acting I didn’t really get a chance to reflect on framing.

The real scene which our prompt was ripped from was essentially a combination of both, with some differences and was lot more dynamic. The actress enters the scene, speaking to the boss off camera. Upon announcing her engagement, the boss enters the scene shaking her hand. The boss then moves from screen left to right, changing the dynamic of their relationships, making it much more comfortable and casual.