Fruity Loops Studio 7
Finally managed to get my head around the Fruity Loops interface and figure out the basics. Although I still haven't progressed to the stage where I'm able to make my own DnB tunes I have been playing around with various sounds and controls and figured out how to manipulate sounds to the desired effect. This has been very useful for my film as I wasn't completely sure where to find or how to create some of the sound effects I require.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Friday, May 16, 2008
Filming issues = Alter Script
Although I was originally quite pleased with my script certain difficulties with filming have lead me to alter it slightly...
Although I was originally quite pleased with my script certain difficulties with filming have lead me to alter it slightly...
- Unavailability of actors - Looking back now I realise that at the time of writing my script, I intended the primary source of entermainment to be the main character Barry; the film did not involve much action or mystery or tension etc. but was basically a comedy about the conflict between a violent but loveable drunk and a peaceful though schizophrenic hippy; therefore the success of the film relied on the script and fine acting rather than clever shots and effects. Although the part of Sean was easily replaceable, finding a replacement for Barry wasn't. Unfortunately my actor friend Tom (Barry) ain't the most reliable or organised of people, and after weeks of forgetting his lines and calling off filming it has come so close to the deadline that I had to drop him and play the part myself. On top of this the part of Sean has changed 3 times as well due to other priorities. I have managed to complete the first scene with me as Barry but I'm not the best of actors and my performance really doesn't have quite the same impact or character that it did when filming Tom; therefore I decided the film would need to add a something extra to the film to make it more entertaining.
- Over-running 6 minute limit/Boring shots - My second issue was thetime limit we had been given. Even after filming the first two scenes and ruthlessly editing them the film was over 4 minutes. I also felt that many shots in scenes 2,3 and 4 were very bland and boring though crucial to the plot flow....another reason to edit the script.
- Location/Prop issues - My first problem was with the set of Scene 2 where I needed to use an artist's bedroom and his painting as a prop. Unfortunately this room is not always available for use, plus I wasn't too sure how to make it look like I had destroyed his painting without actually damaging his work, therefore I thought it best to find an alternative solution. My second issue involved health and safety issues in scene 3 as it involved violence and carrying weapons in public places.
I have begun working on a slightly different version of the script which follows the same story but with a horror twist rather than being realistic; I am finding this a lot more enjoyable to film and am quite pleased with what I have produced.
Below are various production stills and outtake clips from my previous failed film shoots:
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Visual Special Effects Techniques
To kick off my visual special effects research here is some information and examples of various effects used in film. To read more here is the link to the Wikipedia article.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_effects
Miniature effect
The miniature effect is a special effect generated by the use of scale models. Scale models are often combined with high speed photography to make gravitational and other effects scale properly.
Where a miniature appears in the foreground of a shot, this is often very close to the camera lens - for example when matte painted backgrounds are used. Since the exposure is set to the object being filmed so the actors appear well lit, the miniature must be over-lit in order to balance the exposure and eliminate any depth of field differences that would otherwise be visible. This foreground miniature usage is referred to as forced perspective.
Use of scale models in the creation of visual effects by the entertainment industry dates back to the earliest days of cinema. Models and miniatures are copies of people, animals, buildings, settings and objects. Miniatures or models are used to represent things that do not really exist, or that are too expensive or difficult to film in reality, such as explosions, floods or fires.
Ghostbusters (1984)
Stop motion effect
Stop motion (or frame-by-frame) animation is an animation technique which makes a physically manipulated object appear to move on its own. The object is moved by extremely small amounts between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames are played as a continuous sequence. Clay figures are often used in stop motion animations, known as claymation, for their ease of repositioning. Software applications such as Stop Motion Pro, istopmotion and monkeyjam have made the technique popular among young filmmakers.
The Terminator (1984)
Dolls (1987)
Dolly zoom/Vertigo effect
The dolly zoom is an unsettling in-camera special effect that appears to undermine normal visual perception in film.
The effect is achieved by using the setting of a zoom lens to adjust the angle of view (often referred to as field of view) while the camera dollies (or moves) towards or away from the subject in such a way as to keep the subject the same size in the frame throughout. In its classic form, the camera is pulled away from a subject whilst the lens zooms in, or vice-versa. Thus, during the zoom, there is a continuous perspective distortion, the most directly noticeable feature being that the background appears to change size relative to the subject.
As the human visual system uses both size and perspective cues to judge the relative sizes of objects, seeing a perspective change without a size change is a highly unsettling effect, and the emotional impact of this effect is greater than the description above can suggest. The visual appearance for the viewer is that either the background suddenly grows in size and detail overwhelming the foreground; or the foreground becomes immense and dominates its previous setting, depending on which way the dolly zoom is executed.
Vertigo, Jaws, Poltergeist, Goodfellas, and LOTR vertigo effect compilation
Prosthetic makeup
Prosthetic makeup is the process of using prosthetic sculpting, molding and casting techniques to create advanced cosmetic effects.
This technique is often used in horror to create monsters/aliens/deformities etc. as well as in other films to make a character to look older or fatter etc.
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
The Nutty Professor (1996)
Wire Removal
Wire removal is a visual effects technique used to remove wires in films, usually to simulate flying in actors or miniatures.
Wire removal can be partly automated through various forms of keying, or each frame can be edited manually. First, the live action plates of actors or models suspended on wires are filmed in front of a green screen. Editors can then erase the wires frame by frame, without worrying about erasing the backdrop, which will be added later. This can be accomplished automatically with a computer. If the sequence is not filmed in front of a green-screen a digital editor must hand-paint the lines out. This can be an arduous task.
Howard the Duck (1986)
Optical effects/Compositing
Widely employed in film and video motion picture production, compositing is the combining of visual elements from separate sources into single images, often to create the illusion that all those elements are parts of the same scene. Live-action shooting for compositing is variously called “blue screen,” “green screen,” “chroma key,” and other names. Today, most though not all compositing is achieved through digital image manipulation.
Superman II (1980)
To kick off my visual special effects research here is some information and examples of various effects used in film. To read more here is the link to the Wikipedia article.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_effects
Miniature effect
The miniature effect is a special effect generated by the use of scale models. Scale models are often combined with high speed photography to make gravitational and other effects scale properly.
Where a miniature appears in the foreground of a shot, this is often very close to the camera lens - for example when matte painted backgrounds are used. Since the exposure is set to the object being filmed so the actors appear well lit, the miniature must be over-lit in order to balance the exposure and eliminate any depth of field differences that would otherwise be visible. This foreground miniature usage is referred to as forced perspective.
Use of scale models in the creation of visual effects by the entertainment industry dates back to the earliest days of cinema. Models and miniatures are copies of people, animals, buildings, settings and objects. Miniatures or models are used to represent things that do not really exist, or that are too expensive or difficult to film in reality, such as explosions, floods or fires.
Ghostbusters (1984)
Stop motion effect
Stop motion (or frame-by-frame) animation is an animation technique which makes a physically manipulated object appear to move on its own. The object is moved by extremely small amounts between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames are played as a continuous sequence. Clay figures are often used in stop motion animations, known as claymation, for their ease of repositioning. Software applications such as Stop Motion Pro, istopmotion and monkeyjam have made the technique popular among young filmmakers.
The Terminator (1984)
Dolls (1987)
Dolly zoom/Vertigo effect
The dolly zoom is an unsettling in-camera special effect that appears to undermine normal visual perception in film.
The effect is achieved by using the setting of a zoom lens to adjust the angle of view (often referred to as field of view) while the camera dollies (or moves) towards or away from the subject in such a way as to keep the subject the same size in the frame throughout. In its classic form, the camera is pulled away from a subject whilst the lens zooms in, or vice-versa. Thus, during the zoom, there is a continuous perspective distortion, the most directly noticeable feature being that the background appears to change size relative to the subject.
As the human visual system uses both size and perspective cues to judge the relative sizes of objects, seeing a perspective change without a size change is a highly unsettling effect, and the emotional impact of this effect is greater than the description above can suggest. The visual appearance for the viewer is that either the background suddenly grows in size and detail overwhelming the foreground; or the foreground becomes immense and dominates its previous setting, depending on which way the dolly zoom is executed.
Vertigo, Jaws, Poltergeist, Goodfellas, and LOTR vertigo effect compilation
Prosthetic makeup
Prosthetic makeup is the process of using prosthetic sculpting, molding and casting techniques to create advanced cosmetic effects.
This technique is often used in horror to create monsters/aliens/deformities etc. as well as in other films to make a character to look older or fatter etc.
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
The Nutty Professor (1996)
Wire Removal
Wire removal is a visual effects technique used to remove wires in films, usually to simulate flying in actors or miniatures.
Wire removal can be partly automated through various forms of keying, or each frame can be edited manually. First, the live action plates of actors or models suspended on wires are filmed in front of a green screen. Editors can then erase the wires frame by frame, without worrying about erasing the backdrop, which will be added later. This can be accomplished automatically with a computer. If the sequence is not filmed in front of a green-screen a digital editor must hand-paint the lines out. This can be an arduous task.
Howard the Duck (1986)
Optical effects/Compositing
Widely employed in film and video motion picture production, compositing is the combining of visual elements from separate sources into single images, often to create the illusion that all those elements are parts of the same scene. Live-action shooting for compositing is variously called “blue screen,” “green screen,” “chroma key,” and other names. Today, most though not all compositing is achieved through digital image manipulation.
Superman II (1980)
Review week - Finding a focus point
This didn't go too well because didn't really do any of the stuff I was told to do but managed to find an area of Multimedia audiovisual design to focus on. Decided to spend my spare time studying special effects and art production in films starting with learning to use Adobe After Effects, will be looking to expand my knowledge to various other artistic/graphical design programs as well as non-digital effects and costumes/set design etc. Will then hopefully transfer these skills into my final year project, at the moment looking to do a documentary on the underground music scene in Nottingham, or maybe West Midlands Safari Park/some other zoo; so will hope to create a documentary with an artistic twist.
I am going to make a more in depth analysis on and study films I feel make exceptional or interesting use of special effects/art production (may also take a look at the scripts as screen writing interests me too) :
Sin City (2005)
Planet Terror (2007)
Natural Born Killers (1994)
Ghost Busters (1984)
This didn't go too well because didn't really do any of the stuff I was told to do but managed to find an area of Multimedia audiovisual design to focus on. Decided to spend my spare time studying special effects and art production in films starting with learning to use Adobe After Effects, will be looking to expand my knowledge to various other artistic/graphical design programs as well as non-digital effects and costumes/set design etc. Will then hopefully transfer these skills into my final year project, at the moment looking to do a documentary on the underground music scene in Nottingham, or maybe West Midlands Safari Park/some other zoo; so will hope to create a documentary with an artistic twist.
I am going to make a more in depth analysis on and study films I feel make exceptional or interesting use of special effects/art production (may also take a look at the scripts as screen writing interests me too) :
Sin City (2005)
Planet Terror (2007)
Natural Born Killers (1994)
Ghost Busters (1984)
Adobe After Effects - Sin City effect
Been trying out a few more tutorials on After Effects, this one teaches you how to apply the artistic and atmospheric effect used in the film Sin City, it basically uses a black and white background but can pick out specific objects from the shot to remain in colour. My attempt is a little shoddy in places, this is partly due to not planning the shot properly and not knowing how to use the program that well. Been trying to do as many as these tutorials as possible but for some reason my computer's sound keeps cutting out when playing flash movies. Having a lot of trouble doing the sky replacement one so going to ask about in AVT surgery.
Been trying out a few more tutorials on After Effects, this one teaches you how to apply the artistic and atmospheric effect used in the film Sin City, it basically uses a black and white background but can pick out specific objects from the shot to remain in colour. My attempt is a little shoddy in places, this is partly due to not planning the shot properly and not knowing how to use the program that well. Been trying to do as many as these tutorials as possible but for some reason my computer's sound keeps cutting out when playing flash movies. Having a lot of trouble doing the sky replacement one so going to ask about in AVT surgery.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Team Dynamics
As one of my review assessment tasks I have been asked to read up about team dynamics so to find the most effective method of working in a team. Here is a useful article explaining how team dynamics work: http://pages.prodigy.net/slaurent/CreatPosTeamDyn.doc.
Everyone in a team has their own different skills, interests and approaches to working in a team, in order to achieve successful team dynamics you need to assess each team members values and allocate tasks to them rationally to form a successful combination of values that the team supports aswell as meeting individual needs, so that each team understands them for the benefits for the entire team.
As one of my review assessment tasks I have been asked to read up about team dynamics so to find the most effective method of working in a team. Here is a useful article explaining how team dynamics work: http://pages.prodigy.net/slaurent/CreatPosTeamDyn.doc.
Everyone in a team has their own different skills, interests and approaches to working in a team, in order to achieve successful team dynamics you need to assess each team members values and allocate tasks to them rationally to form a successful combination of values that the team supports aswell as meeting individual needs, so that each team understands them for the benefits for the entire team.
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Adobe Aftereffects - Demon Face Warp
Had a go at doing one of the tutorial exercises from the video co-pilot website. Chose the demon face warp as it looked the most fun and is relevant to my interest in horror. Result is ok, need a bit more experimentation to get more interesting effects but overall taught me the basics of how to use After effects, will attempt a few more exercises soon.
Had a go at doing one of the tutorial exercises from the video co-pilot website. Chose the demon face warp as it looked the most fun and is relevant to my interest in horror. Result is ok, need a bit more experimentation to get more interesting effects but overall taught me the basics of how to use After effects, will attempt a few more exercises soon.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Shooting the film
So far have been having a pretty hard time getting this done partly due to general lack of organisation but mainly because of unreliable actors. Both the actors I am using to play my two main characters Barry and Sean are definitely perfect for the parts; my friend Tom Carter (Barry) is a drama student at NCN college in Nottingham who has much acting experience as well as not being a whole lot different from Barry himself, is absolutely perfect for the part giving a whole new dimension to the character. However he is also the most unreliable forgetful person I've ever known; so finding a convenient time to film is fairly difficult, and when I do he has problems remembering his lines.
The part of Sean is being played by Steve Biggs from Nottingham Uni who although is not an actor,is literally a hippy and considering the part does not consist of many lines, I felt this would be fine. Problem is Steve can't do filming during the daytime due to a busy course timetable and can only do weekend daytime filming.....which seems to be a very difficult time to hire equipment out.
So currently still have a fuck loada work to do although should have enough basic footage to produce the 40-second pilot for next week to give a basic feel for the film. Meant to have filmed all footage by now so contemplating whether to just find a replacement actor for Sean who is more readily available or to wait until after Easter to film when daylight lasts longer.
So far have been having a pretty hard time getting this done partly due to general lack of organisation but mainly because of unreliable actors. Both the actors I am using to play my two main characters Barry and Sean are definitely perfect for the parts; my friend Tom Carter (Barry) is a drama student at NCN college in Nottingham who has much acting experience as well as not being a whole lot different from Barry himself, is absolutely perfect for the part giving a whole new dimension to the character. However he is also the most unreliable forgetful person I've ever known; so finding a convenient time to film is fairly difficult, and when I do he has problems remembering his lines.
The part of Sean is being played by Steve Biggs from Nottingham Uni who although is not an actor,is literally a hippy and considering the part does not consist of many lines, I felt this would be fine. Problem is Steve can't do filming during the daytime due to a busy course timetable and can only do weekend daytime filming.....which seems to be a very difficult time to hire equipment out.
So currently still have a fuck loada work to do although should have enough basic footage to produce the 40-second pilot for next week to give a basic feel for the film. Meant to have filmed all footage by now so contemplating whether to just find a replacement actor for Sean who is more readily available or to wait until after Easter to film when daylight lasts longer.
Frameforge
I found this program fairly useful in visualising what my film would look like and getting a feel for how camera set-up and sets should look before filming. However I was only able to get a copy of a basic version so what I was able to do was a bit limited as there are nowhere near as many props and materials available, as well as being much harder to use than the newer version. Here are some keyframe visualisations from each scene.
Storyboard
Found this extremely tedious to do even though my drawings were very basic, drawing the same picture over and over again was very boring, however having a storyboard has proved to be an extremely helpful aid for reference when filming. May do these again using Frameforge now that I know how to use it properly.
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Final Script
After weeks of procrastination I have finally settled on a final script and managed to figure out exactly what I need to film. I found the seminars Dena and Chris extremely useful in generating ideas and making my story more interesting and meaningful. I managed to successfully update the script with these ideas to create a narrative which I was generally much happier with. However as I began filming my first scene last week it became apparent that the film was likely to nearly double the 6 minute limit I was given for this project; also my supposed deadline for filming was near; therefore temporary sacrifices had to be made to the script.
It is still pretty much the same story,but ends a bit more abruptly.Really not liking these time limit restrictions, have to sacrifice quality for no apparent reason,but then I suppose TV shows have to do the same.
After weeks of procrastination I have finally settled on a final script and managed to figure out exactly what I need to film. I found the seminars Dena and Chris extremely useful in generating ideas and making my story more interesting and meaningful. I managed to successfully update the script with these ideas to create a narrative which I was generally much happier with. However as I began filming my first scene last week it became apparent that the film was likely to nearly double the 6 minute limit I was given for this project; also my supposed deadline for filming was near; therefore temporary sacrifices had to be made to the script.
It is still pretty much the same story,but ends a bit more abruptly.Really not liking these time limit restrictions, have to sacrifice quality for no apparent reason,but then I suppose TV shows have to do the same.
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Screenplay Treatment
Barry & Sean (working title) by Alex Morgan-Townley
The story begins with Sean relaxing in his living room/kitchen.
Sean is in his 20s and has long hair, a beard and a lean skinny build. He wears brightly coloured tie-dyed clothing, though he is fairly well kempt for a hippy. He is a quiet peaceful man who enjoys the more side spiritual things in life but also has a sense of goal and direction. He is a fine art student in his final year who aspires to be a painter/teacher.
He sits on the floor and begins to meditate, however his state of tranquility is soon destroyed by the entry of Barry, Sean's flatmate and oldest friend.
Barry is also in his 20s and has short shaven hair and a stocky build, he wears smart/casual clothing consisting of a black leather jacket and black jeans. He is a loud and rowdy though jolly man with a love for alcohol however is lacking in manners and a perception of right and wrong. Barry went to school and studied art with Sean however chose the commercial pathway and was offered a job in graphic design for an advertising firm when he left school.
Barry stumbles into the living room drunk and right across Sean before collapsing into a chair completely oblivious to his destruction of Sean's peacful night. Sean is slightly angry but tries his best to hold it in for sake of politeness and avoiding conflict. Barry begins to animately reminisce of his drunken and violent antics from his night out to a bemused Sean while continuing to drink beer and snort cocaine. Eventually Sean becomes tired and offended by Barry's banter and goes to bed to work on his art project due for submission to art college the next day.
Sean awakens in his bedroom and applies the finishing touches to his painting. He is pleased with his work and his spirits are high. His phone rings and he briefly conversates with his girlfriend/fellow art student before going out to buy some weed. Meanwhile Barry enters Sean's room looking for some cigarettes and manages to fall over and knock himself unconscious and wreck Sean's painting.
Barry awakens to find a furious Sean standing over him, although Barry is apolegetic, Sean goes crazy and chases him out of the flat and into the park with a standing knife. After managing to catch up with Barry, Sean tells Barry how much he dislikes him and that he never wants to see him again. Sean walks off by himself and is confronted by three thugs who attack him and beat him to the ground. Barry comes out of nowhere and defeats Sean's attackers. Although Sean appreciates Barry saving him, he still can't forget about the painting and walks off home.
Barry enters the flat to find a happy Sean who is astounded by how good his painting now looks from the beer which was poured over it. He hugs Barry and apologises. They're best friends again.
Barry & Sean (working title) by Alex Morgan-Townley
The story begins with Sean relaxing in his living room/kitchen.
Sean is in his 20s and has long hair, a beard and a lean skinny build. He wears brightly coloured tie-dyed clothing, though he is fairly well kempt for a hippy. He is a quiet peaceful man who enjoys the more side spiritual things in life but also has a sense of goal and direction. He is a fine art student in his final year who aspires to be a painter/teacher.
He sits on the floor and begins to meditate, however his state of tranquility is soon destroyed by the entry of Barry, Sean's flatmate and oldest friend.
Barry is also in his 20s and has short shaven hair and a stocky build, he wears smart/casual clothing consisting of a black leather jacket and black jeans. He is a loud and rowdy though jolly man with a love for alcohol however is lacking in manners and a perception of right and wrong. Barry went to school and studied art with Sean however chose the commercial pathway and was offered a job in graphic design for an advertising firm when he left school.
Barry stumbles into the living room drunk and right across Sean before collapsing into a chair completely oblivious to his destruction of Sean's peacful night. Sean is slightly angry but tries his best to hold it in for sake of politeness and avoiding conflict. Barry begins to animately reminisce of his drunken and violent antics from his night out to a bemused Sean while continuing to drink beer and snort cocaine. Eventually Sean becomes tired and offended by Barry's banter and goes to bed to work on his art project due for submission to art college the next day.
Sean awakens in his bedroom and applies the finishing touches to his painting. He is pleased with his work and his spirits are high. His phone rings and he briefly conversates with his girlfriend/fellow art student before going out to buy some weed. Meanwhile Barry enters Sean's room looking for some cigarettes and manages to fall over and knock himself unconscious and wreck Sean's painting.
Barry awakens to find a furious Sean standing over him, although Barry is apolegetic, Sean goes crazy and chases him out of the flat and into the park with a standing knife. After managing to catch up with Barry, Sean tells Barry how much he dislikes him and that he never wants to see him again. Sean walks off by himself and is confronted by three thugs who attack him and beat him to the ground. Barry comes out of nowhere and defeats Sean's attackers. Although Sean appreciates Barry saving him, he still can't forget about the painting and walks off home.
Barry enters the flat to find a happy Sean who is astounded by how good his painting now looks from the beer which was poured over it. He hugs Barry and apologises. They're best friends again.
Monday, February 04, 2008
Hippy and Lout Character Research
Considering my two main characters are to be a fairly stereotypical hippy and lout I thought it would be best to look at similar characters from other films to help inspire me and craft the characters for when it comes writing the script and character study.Here are some video clips of similar characters.
The Young Ones - Neil
The Big Lebowski - The Dude
Cheech and Chong Up in Smoke - Chong
Trainspotting - Franco Begbie
Only Fools and Horses - Delboy
Football Factory - Billy
Considering my two main characters are to be a fairly stereotypical hippy and lout I thought it would be best to look at similar characters from other films to help inspire me and craft the characters for when it comes writing the script and character study.Here are some video clips of similar characters.
The Young Ones - Neil
The Big Lebowski - The Dude
Cheech and Chong Up in Smoke - Chong
Trainspotting - Franco Begbie
Only Fools and Horses - Delboy
Football Factory - Billy
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Odd Couple/Character Conflict Movies
Now that I had decided on the premise for my film I decided to start looking at other films where the story revolves around unlikely partnerships/'odd couples'. I find these kind of films fun to watch as the character conflict brought about by crossong together to completely different extremes often leads to very interesting and entertaining antics mainly due to continuous conflict.Here are some video clips showing basic examples of these odd couples.
The Odd Couple - Felix and Oscar
Batman Forever - Two Face and The Riddler
Rush Hour - Inspector Lee and Detective Carter
The Lion King - Timon and Pumba
Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle - Harold and Kumar
Now that I had decided on the premise for my film I decided to start looking at other films where the story revolves around unlikely partnerships/'odd couples'. I find these kind of films fun to watch as the character conflict brought about by crossong together to completely different extremes often leads to very interesting and entertaining antics mainly due to continuous conflict.Here are some video clips showing basic examples of these odd couples.
The Odd Couple - Felix and Oscar
Batman Forever - Two Face and The Riddler
Rush Hour - Inspector Lee and Detective Carter
The Lion King - Timon and Pumba
Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle - Harold and Kumar
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