Month: March 2018

wk6 Assignment 2 Relfection

During the process of A2, there were so much feelings.Includes the embarrassing of how to express what I try to say, what I missed in filming,and how to fill up the blank when it’s already too late to film more. Even, before i started editing, there were plenty situations. I will talk about them all here:

Firstly, Check all the devices before recording :

My group which involves me and Vera, we actually finished our interview not too late,  which was on Monday week 4, and we interviewed again for more answers on Wednesday. But unfortunately, we didn’t receive anymore materials this time because we got bad recording effect — by microphone.

Check videos immediately after recording:

Our interviewee refused to answer questions that made me have no idea how to start editing, it was my fault that didn’t check video immediately that I had to film again with new people which already pretty late.

Therefore I carefully think about the questions that I really want to know, and ask my new interviewee before I film her. Luckily, the second time of interview went well with pleasant atmosphere.

I see my first version of work as a patch work.

The idea of first work came out with “trailer”, I was thinking about  “what kind of effect that I can make in 1 minute?”  I noticed that “trailer s” always impressed me, then I left some blanks attentively, and use her laughing as opening since i want to left an good impression of her to audience before she start to talk.

Yet, The first work starting with plenty of confusing, that I spent half day to think how i supposed to start. Spend another half day to browsing the world and works from internet. In the end, I decided to use one music as a clue to lead out my work’s flow. Still came up with no idea, therefore I just started to cut all my work in pieces and put on timeline in the same sequence as how it is in the recording. Then I realized i do need more materials but it was too late to film already, I had to search some “free stock video/music/sound” related to topic and put in my work.

It’s pretty “original”. Because it’s a “most rushing work”, I didn’t realised that I should add any effect or colour, all I struggled was about :

– Relate materials with content

– complete a whole sentence

– and how come people can come out those great clips!

This is my least favourite one.

 

 

The second one comes out as a “telling story” style. i like the music because it fits the country she mentioned — Japan, and it feels like a music of “journey” which is also related to my content. 

The idea of second work also following the flow of music,  I tried to make a different feelings to audience so i considered the style that I want to try. i watched a video which is about “journey to Japan”, and its pretty peaceful, i enjoyed the whole rhythm, and the way it jump from people to sight are so smart that without feeling of sudden. I tried but i felt like the color of images/ interview doesn’t fit to the music, so i reduced showing interviewee’s s image.

This version intends to make images stand out, and left a mystery impression of her to my audience.But i know it still need more cutaway and materials, or it just feels so dry.

 

 

The idea of third version is based on first two works. I tried to make differences on music : i use the opening sound effect to attract attention, and i considered more about how to connect two countries to show what my interviewee mentioned in her answers.

So i tried to change the color of image to show that what life she missed and what life she had to accept. I also mixed more interview part with materials, to show an interaction. Moreover, using second part of music, in my feelings is to bring up another story. i hope it shows a good effect.

There are so many that i still want to write about my works, I think the most obviously problem is what’s difference during three of them?  how to make idea clear but still in a fluent sequence?

The biggest problem for this time in my work is the effect after it output is not great, it looks like waves on screen.  But after doing each work, i felt i found more clear idea in the editing, also what i need to do is prepared everything ahead.

 

 

 

 

wk4– representing Blind’s life by VR

Notes on blindness is the most beautiful doco that i have seen ( although i only watched few doco in my past 20 years).it is a story of writer, theologian John Hull turned blind just before the birth of his son.  In order to make sense of the upheaval in his life, he began keeping a diary on audio cassette. It includes dreams, memory and imaginative life, excavating the interior world of blindness.  It is a great doco watch with coffee. To myself, though the image is so beautiful, it’s still a bit of sad and depressed after watching. Director used fine and smooth shots to show Hull’s life, it seems like he has accompanied Hull for his long and hard time, because it gives me a feeling that he is truly invisible in the film– There is no interview (stilled conversation), the full story is connected by Hull’s sentences.

Some people may not accept the change and choose fighting or revolt. But people like Hull determine to accept and make it better, he records his reading story for his son, and he still keep learning which shows on he inviting people to read the material for him. I don’t know how i would adopt to the accident in my life, since i usually take a long time to walk out of the sadness, whenever is grandma’s pass or broke up with boyfriend.  I think i am the type of people who always in to one circle, i know there is thousands of way to innovate or be new, i can’t; i don’t mind how much have changed to my best friend, i always accept.I guess i am cowardly, caring too much on how people see me.  So in my eyes, Hull is really brave.

 

 

wk3 — Importance of light

Recently, i am interested in the effect of light in film, as a fresh man of filming, it is important to update knowledge. Than i have learned that , light are divided into several classes, which is soft light , harsh light diffused light and specular light, each kind of light left different feeling to audience.

To differentiate light , we can see the sharpness of the shadow； when the shadow is blurred (even so blurred that can’t see its shape )then light is soft; sharp shadow usually can told by hard light. soft light help to create feeling of romantic and warm. Hard light usually applied for danger and scared in the movie. Any light can be soft and hard, it only depends on two things: the size of the subject and the distances between the light and subject.

Conclude : Soft light = large source plus bring it closer ; hard light = small source and take it far.

Specular light is a kind of light that concentrate at center and taper off the edge, the make up mirror usually attached with this kind of light. And if we want to diffused light, we need to use a layer of diffusion material to spread the light.

Excepting the light mentioned above, there are available light and combination light as well. Available light, in my understanding is light without processing, which helps to express a sense of real. Therefore it usually be adapted in the documentary. Combination light, i guess i see it utilized more on the stage, it helps turn out a sense of colorful and abundant.

 

wk4–Several tips of filming and editing

We usually can see through the camera images taken out the photographer’s intentions, because from it the theme of the film and the change of the picture, we are able to feel the content  in photographer’s lens. It is called “my lens talks”, which is “lens language”.

To most of the beginner, they are just at the baby stage of “learning to speak”, so audience can’t understand pretty clear, but if i learn more about the language of camera,i would be better on expressing.  So i did some research about it. But during the researching, i found some interest points about Michael Bay， who is director of Transformers. there are some good and bad opinion about his movie , and here is conclusion of his style :

– he is more focus on the utilizing of technique,dazzling sports shots, sharp editing style, and hot special effects scenes are all on display in the latest transformers series, but he gradually lose the  logical of story. Mr. Bay’s narrative skills are changing, and getting worse.Stories are perfunctory, characters are facile, logic is flawed, all of which make show-off technology more and more annoying.

– Also,a lot of people see  advertising are coded into the movie without logical, it’s too commercialism.

– Slow motion.To be fair, it’s a great idea to use slow motion to show intense action scenes.
But Mr.Bay have been used too much that everyone can use it.

– Intemperance: it is normal. The film was made too long.For all the car chases, explosions, slow motion pictures, special effects, Michael bay doesn’t mind making the movie too long.
“Pearl Harbor” published in 2001 which is 183 minutes , 2014, “transformers” 4 which is 166 minutes, “bad boys” in 2003 was action movie that based on the background of urban street  incredibly can also shoot out of 143 minutes.

That’s some opinions from audience about his style and skill. Yet i still enjoy his action movies, overall, movies are made for entertainment that there is not necessary to consider it too seriously. i see the comments as a reminding for myself that always refresh myself and always do self-reflecting.

 

wk3 –Le hérisson — Value of Being and Death

 

Le hérisson is a movie published in 2009, the whole story surrounds by  — a little girl who thinks she could never break through her family’s concept so that wants to suicide instead of living without meaning. She wants to make a film before she dead, and we gradually see a ironic socity under her camera .

“Poursuivre les etoiles, no pas finir comme un possion dans un bocal “

 

The movie highlight the order in the society : how a kid from upper class family sepposed to be and how a guard supposed to be. Identity determines their behavior. The two main females in the movie are living in this order with a miserable feeling, the little girl wishes showing her rejection by suicide; the guard tries to fit in this identity although she is totally different.  Two of them have their own spirit world and enjoy it secretly until a Japanese man come into this apartment and break the order.

He is different from others, he is so exquisite that quickly be aware of two female’s unusual. He is an outcomer, who might doesn’t know the order at all or he may know it well. Unlike others, the first time while he met the guard that he showed same respect to her. And they got same taste on literature and film, i think that’s a important element why she gradually be open-mind to him.

the most important thing is not death but what you are doing at that moment.

the value of being and death : Renee saved Paloma from death

Renee live under her disguise for ages, she is self-abasement and afriad to accept love neither to love. This man came into her life and found out her soft heart, but the other day when she finally decided to love,she died in the car accident. How come i said she saved Paloma?  Paloma turned attitude of death : have to die –> understand the heart break when facing death of love. There is foreshadow in the sotry:  She feed her sister’s fish with hypnotics, the fish is washed away by toilet, but Renee found it lively in her toilet, after she dead, Paloma saw it and keept it later on.

Shots : the whole movie folllowed Paloma’s recording, and fill up with other shots to complete story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

wk2 Time traveler (Initiative)

Recently, i watched some videos about “time traveler”, which said a man who is in 19th century fell in a faint and met the people in the 3200s. They told him what would happen in 21th century (they didn’t say anything happen in 20th century because they do not hope him have changed the history). He wrote it down in his journal after he woke up ,and passed it down to his favorite student after he passwed out a few years later. This student studied German from him and spend half lifetime to translate the gentleman’s notes. Whether it is true, as the video saying, the notes still passed down to someone.

To me, there is a doubt on the creditability of the story, but it is pretty interesting how it said about world goes after we (this generation) gone from the earth.As it said, people immigrant to Mars because of our harmful earth , but after experiencing the tragedy on the Mars they come back but faces big wash for human being under awful enviroment.Human are wiped out from the world.

Homo Sapiens come out after years, unlike us, they are more focus on inner self improvement, therefore there is no measure of wealth but reputation. Everyone obey rules consiciously, this generation archived a higher siprit level.

There are some feelings  after i watched the video. :

– Nature is much powerful than human expected.  I have heard many tales religionary, a lot of masters have predicted that world would damaged bacause of what human have done to the wolrd. Karma would show as we can see. The more as we killed, the worse that human are wiping out. As long as we respect , feel fear in front of nature, we are able to survive.

– The emerging of homo sapiens showed a highest level of a peaceful world, that it is a dream of one world (although people still keep national consciousness). without war, without killing, without greedy,without dark side of human nature. In my opinion, that’s quiet religionary as awell, because most of religions, as i know,vigorously advocate people to be good. For instance, Buddism advote people to put down the persistent, which means as long as you stop seeing wealth as the most important or stop forcing a person who dosen’t love you, just letting go , you life will be much easier and happier.

That’s what i see from the video, which called out my feelings strongly. Whether the story is real or not, the main ideas that it bring up is: to refelct ourselves’ behavier in the wolrd, one person can not change the world but one person still can make its own influence to the wolrd.  As i observed, people usually complain about the badness of the society but they still act the same when they think no one would know.  We can not blame these people, because that’s how the world is, what we can do is affect my friends, family, people around us positively, they wil realize how good it feels when they stay with good people. To the bad, we say no.

 

Wk1 (workshop + reading)- the difference on shared value cause a tragedy in family (workshop notes)

in the workshop, i learned something related to preparation before camrema filiming.  We mostly focus on the permission that we need to get from our interviewers. Only if they permit to publish their words then we are able to interview/ film them in our video.

Protecting the people we film / protect ourselves:

litigation may occur : if a participant feels we have misrepresented them. Defamed them or they haven’t given informed consent.

 

sign on the letter that we are give at the begin or a few days before start to filming.  And upload it with the work.

 

And even :

Use of biographical information

Exclusively

Story rights / life rights.

 

I am able to understand the rule, because everyone has their right of image, that is they decide whether they want to be showed on screen or not.

 

We also discussed the reading and related it to the film “Wolfpack”, some people made many guesses about their parents. On the one side, the mom loves them so much but she also “helped” their father to poison children. Becaue she is too weak/ scared of the father to make any rebeling action. In my eyes, i agree that the mom loves her children a lot, but there isn’t pretty sure about their feeings between each other. becasue there’s big difference on shared value : one is only care about the immediate things like what they would eat for tomorrow, apparently another one has a further thinking on their life condition; it also showed on their own dream which reflect on their children (the dad wants to keep children around him, but mom was living in famr so she hope her kids would run in the wild feild). i was wonder how did they come over all of the value difference to stay with each other for half life time, one possible reason is they love each so much; another reason is they do not love each other at all.

 

Wk 2 (workshop + reading) — workshop

This week we talked about the preparation for our interview, basically  surrounding with the elements of camera: white balance, focus, exposure, shutter speed, framing, microphone setting. all the things above is what i have never tried before, so it is pretty useful to me (although some of my friends already learned from the other classes).

Starting from white balance : as him mentioned , it is not allowed to use auto setting, therefore we have to set one-push from the menu of white balance.

White balance icons ：

– No auto setting

– custom white balance / one-push

Focus :

Basically, it is supposed to focus on the eye of the object/people firstly, then camera would know the distance from itself to object.

Exposure ：

when we are  using cameras, we supposed to keep ISO as low as possible with the available light.

Aperture/ Iris :

The amount of light allowed to the chip/ sensor by the lens is expressed in F STOP numbers.

 

Shutter speed :

– PAL is Australian Broadcast standard

– traditional  shutter  speed is 180 degrees

and the speed supposed to control around 1/50th of a second.

 

NDFilter : which is good at adjusting the colour of image, good at  balancing the  colour.

Frame：Rule of thirds. Using grid, arranging the object / people at the second grid (either from left or right ), left enough space for interviewer.

 

Shooting cutaways on iphone

Filmis PRo is an app to assit you with focus, exprosure and white balance, it overrides many iphones

 

Microphone :

Book another microphone

Use lapel mic for interview ;

Directional mic for the location sound ;

If you an input for have both, use both.

 

In the end we have a practice interview with classmates, i remember i did the same practice in my first  semester in the first year of studio, but this time it was quiet different. we actually learned more pro skill utilizing in the interview this time, throw back and saw my first video, i still have a lot needed to improved.

 

Reading :

i watched the Tabloid this week, which talks about a girl named Joyce Mckinney,who is accused of  kidnapping and raping a mormon missionary who named Kirk Anderson.

this doco is totally different style from last week’s. Errol filmed some interview video, also add in some animaiton / other images help to consistent the whole story.  It is an old English style that shows on music, imgae, the way story tells. However the floating subtitle is quiet modern.

As we discussed in class, Chrsitian said that he had 3 ways to see the story, which are “Joyce forced Kirk to have sex”, “They will marry but Mormon brain washed Kirk”, “Kirk did want to stop sex, but he didn’t.”  In my opinion, i think the story can see in 2 versions: one is Joyce changed the whole story, the second one is she didn’t. As a girl, i could understand how romantic people would be in a relationship, and that is the feeling i got from her. I think she was a naive girl who just wanted to satified her feeling. As we know, Kirk is a Mormon missinary who is not allowed to have sex before marring. She might just wanted help  him break through those unstandable rules. However, we did see the comment on her which is “over reacting”,”too dramatic”. Than should we believe what she said or not ?