Entry #29

May 25

Today we started the Criterion B part for our Wong Kar Wai. First we got back our grades. In total I got 4-5 marks off, which is a little bit more than I was expecting but I'll live with. I was happy with my chase scene mark so all is well. 

The scripts that were chosen were Andy's, Jeff's, Adrian's, Joyce's and mine. We were all de facto leaders. I was hoping to work with Jeff and Andy because we're all good friends and we work well and I wanted this last unit to be really enjoyable but since we were all leaders it wasn't possible. I was willing to work with anyone anyway so it doesn't really matter. In the end the group that I formed is comprised of Ashley, Louise, Catherine and Ella. It'd be interesting and a challenge since we never worked with each other in this semester of film, and we don't really know each other's abilities or personalities all that well, but I'm sure we'll manage.

We started off slow, expectingly since everyone had to read and familiarize themselves with the script. I wrote mine kind of novel-ish so I think they all got a clear understanding after one read. They didn't have any questions about the plot or dialogue or anything so I guess that's a good sign.

We immediately started off thinking of roles, cast, equipment, locations, and storyboards/shot list. Here are the roles we allotted:

Director: Me

Sound Director: Louise

Cameraperson: Ashley

Editor: Ella

Producer: Catherine

The director is me since it was my script so it was basically automatic. Louise is the sound director because it's a role she hasn't done before and since we are allowed to use copyrighted material for this project, she can share her good music taste with the world. The cameraperson is Ashley since she has never done this role before, and I believe she has a good vision as well as taste on how a shot should look like. Originally Catherine was going to be the editor but because she is very busy with Prom as well as other things, we'd thought it'd be best to give the job to Ella. Ella was I believe the editor for the chase scene project so at least she has experience in using Final Cut Pro, so we are in good hands. The producer may seem like a cushy job, but there's a lot of things to handle such as getting the locations down, the cast down, costumes, etc. Because she is organizing the prom, I believe her organization skills will come in handy. Hopefully it won't be too much of an obstacle.

 In my script there are 4 main characters: Lydia, Danny,  Larry and Lauren. Lydia and Danny appear for the majority of the movie while Larry and Lauren finishes it off. While I was writing I did keep in mind that my script has the possibility of getting chosen so I had already thought of actors. Here is my list and my reasons.

Lydia = Katrina. I know Katrina of being a theatrically as well as musically talented. She takes Drama extended has worked with Ella before, so Ella has first hand knowledge on how good she is. I have heard her sing (during some classes) and it's pretty good. She also can be very expressive with her face, at the same time be subtle. Also this role requires some Cantonese speaking, which she can also do. I think she'll be great for this role.

Danny = Nathan. Frankly I think I was being too idealistic in my decision for Nathan to be Danny. He does take Drama extended, and I have no doubts on his work ethic. I just don't know if he can act or do the character Danny that much justice simply because of his personality. I think that I will have to work with him like I did with Andy and Medora in the film noir so that he can understand the character and will be able to perform the emotional scenes we have in store for him. The main reason I wanted Nathan is because of his look. He does look old and has a fast growing beard. He is also American, which is what Danny is. Also some of his playful and light-heartedness in his personality may become helpful too. I also kept in mind the chemistry that needs to be sustained with him and Lydia (Katrina) I think that he and Katrina are pretty good friends, so I'm not concerned about the atmosphere of the film being too awkward.

Larry = Chris. We already confirmed Chris is playing this role. I thought he acted well in his film noir, and I think he is a good naturalistic actor. Also his voice is deep, which is necessary for Larry's voice overs to be effective. I'm quite confident in my choice with him and I think he'll deliver.

Lauren = Asia. Lauren is a really small role so I wasn't too concerned with who should play this part. I just need someone Chinese and won't slow down the production stage. Asia seems to fit.

Ashley already organized what equipment we need: HD Camera, Boom mike, lights, stand, dollies, the whole 9 yards. She is currently working on the storyboards; a grueling task, which I appreciate her doing. I thin Louise will have a fun time picking songs.

There are two main things I'm worried about: 1) Time, 2) Locations. We only have less than 3 weeks left until school ends, and we have less than that time considering of all of our obligations. I think that we can film the reservoir scene this week if the weather improves, the restaurant/bar scene some time next week along with the apartment scenes. Since I have Final Cut pro at home, I'll probably be having Ella over a lot to edit. The main problem is that she lives in Kowloon, so I don't think the visits will be too frequent.

The locations are a problem. I don't think there will be a bar or hospital that would let us film. For the bar, we changed it to a restaurant. In Catherine's chase scene they used the local restaurant down Braemer Hill, so we'll probably use that. It's still Wong Kar Wai since it is a local Hong Kong restaurant. 

For the hospital scene, we'll either change the script so that Larry beings Lauren back to her house, or we use a clinic (if we can get one). Or (Ms Wong suggested this) we get an establishing shot of a hospital, and decorate a room so that it looks like a waiting room. I think that would be hard but it's the most possible solution we can do without compromising too much.

By the end of the day, I'd be lying to say that I wasn't worried. Hopefully I'm being overly paranoid, but already this project seems complicated. But I have confidence in my group as I think today was a productive session. Next class we'll get Chris' voice overs and some more organizational work.

I was an IB Learner because:

Communicated: Discussed options with group and explained to them my ideas and choices

Balanced: Discussed the roles everyone wanted to do as well as changing them according to their personal interests.

Open minded: I was willing to modify the script in accordance to practicality reasons.

Entry #28

May 20

We had part 2 of our test today.

Entry #27

May 18

We had a test today on Wong Kar Wai and briefly about editing. It relates to our script. 

Above is the image I used to write my script.

Entry #26

May 6

We watched Hannah's group's film. My notes are below.

Blanche

Overall:

-Confusing, underdeveloped concept/script

-Deeper meaning is not conveyed well and not really effective

-Dragged in the end

-Cinematography was okay, nothing special but nothing bad.

-It just didn't made sense. Would've been much better if more time was spent in creating a narrative.

-The pace was too consistent throughout. Felt slow even though there was a lot of chases.

-Portals? Only one really good one, which was the bathroom one.

Sound: 

-Music was appropriate but it felt as if the song was monotonous. I think it's mainly to do with the script not having any climaxes or peaks and didn't help the song. Also, near the end of the movie, the volume of the song decreased quite randomly. It was more of a disruption and ruined the illusion of a movie. 

-Just did not work with the movie that much.

We then moved on to our next unit, which we will be dealing with Wong Kar Wai. I learned a lot this class not only about Wong Kar Wai but of making montages. It's certainly one of the exclusive aspects film has over other art forms.

Although the concept of montages aren't new to me, I had no idea there were different types of montages: metric, intellectual, rhythmic, tonal, and overtonal. They can help enhance either the story telling, the atmosphere, or even the symbolism. 

The most interesting thing I learned today was the Kuleshov Experiment as well as an explanation by Alfred Hitchcock. It is where there are two cuts, a close up of the person's eyes, and another shot. You can substitute the second shot and convey different opinions and emotions towards either the person or the film itself. I thought it was a really interesting and clever technique/experiment.

We learned about Eisenstein and his belief that 'editing could be used for more than just showing a scene. The collision of shots could be used to manipulate the emotions of the audience and create film metaphors". 

From the movies I've seen, I've seen plenty of montages, usually from sports movies that shows either the player or team working out (i.e. Rocky). But there are a few movies that uses montages very effectively. "The Departed" by Martin Scorsece uses a lot, but my favorite in particular is the one where the title finally appears, and Leonardo DiCaprio is in prison while Matt Damon is enjoying his new home. Click here and go to 9:50 in the video. Another one is from the Godfather and its famous scene with the murder of the 5 families. Click here. And there are other movies that have montages like American Gangster, The Dark Knight, Snatch, etc. 

I think I'm pretty familiar with Wong Kar Wai even though I've only watched 3 of his movies: My Blueberry Nights, Days of Being Wild, and In the Mood for Love. I liked the first two. In the Mood for Love was probably only for devout WKW fans.

His style is needless to say unique, probably under the 'artsy' film genre. His kinds of movies are generally hard to appreciate because they are so unconventional and slow. We gathered from watching his movies that his style is disjointed, vague story line, ambivalent plot, and sporadic appearances from characters, which all defies the audience's expectations and makes viewers conscious that they are watching a film. This made me wonder why WKW is so critically acclaimed because he basically just does everything your not supposed to do in making a movie.

I think it works because of two things: his very stylized, beautiful cinematography and framework, and his 'poetic' approach in making films. Even though it makes it very difficult to understand and appreciate WKW, if/when we do, the reward is much sweeter. 

For the next task we are to write a script based on any image. The script needs to incorporate WKW style. 

I was an IB Learner: 

Communicative: discussed my opinions about WKW and the film

Reflective: Reflected on the pros and cons of Blanche.

Inquirer: Curious about WKW and montage editing.

Entry #25

May 4

Today was screening day for our portal movies. Here are my notes for each besides Hannah's since we didn't have time to get to that. I'll focus on the sound portion of each film since I played as sound director. I'll also include a brief self-criticism.

Say Cheese

Overall:

First minute was pretty good. There was genuine suspense.

Bernice randomly appeared.

Sarah was just there.

I don't really buy a person in crutches as a serial killer.

I wasn't really scared because it was just underdeveloped as a plot.

Needs to watch Silent Hill gameplay to learn how to build suspense and how to scare someone

Sound:

Don't like the music. I think it's from some 80s action TV show. Also the music doesn't seem to contribute to the suspense or really flow with the movie; as if it was a separate entity.

I think that for a thriller, the use of silence and diegetic sound would be really useful. Although there were a few diegetic sounds, it didn't help and were kind of useless.

The sound in the beginning were great with the crutches as well as the beeping with the camera. I thought silence was going to be a motif in the film but it wasn't and I was pretty disappointed when the music came on.

Babooshka (I think that's how you spell it)

Overall:

Plot didn't really make sense and underdeveloped.

Not many portals.

Sounds

Overall it's pretty flawed. The music, the song, I thought was good but inappropriate for this task.

The diegetic sound did no help at all, and if anything made it worse. For one, the scene where Chris was walking towards the camera, the sound made it seem like he was walking towards a camera (quiet when far away, louder when near), and it broke the illusion for me. Also, the scene with Xiang Yi running we can hear Camille's flip flops.

The sounds just seem flawed.

High Octane

Overall

"high artistic awareness". Really had a style.

pretty good story, maybe a bit underdeveloped.

The chase scenes weren't really thrilling.

Just a cool movie.

Sound:

Music appropriateness maybe could've been better.

Abstractness worked

I like the breathing sound and the zip

Overall pretty seamless

Clean sound at least.

Wabbit Hunt (self evaluation)

Overall (based on peer reaction and criticisms):

-Funny, a lot of good moments and a lot of laughter.

-"Good artistic awareness" in terms of emulating the Charlie Chaplin style.

-Subtitles were okay but maybe a bit unclear. Video quality maybe got in the way

-Overall concept (in terms of teleportation) was good. Simple and well executed.
-actors were good but debatable whether it could have maintained the humor if the audience didn't know who they were

Sound:
-some unnecessary sound effects
-inconsistency between silent scene and 'normal' scenes sometimes were weird but worked in the end
-music worked very well with the scenes; added the Charlie Chaplin effect
-some effects were too fake
-other sound effects were good; abstract and comedic

I was an IB learner:

Open Minded: Accepted criticism from peers about my work
Communicator: Communicated and discussed my thoughts about my peer's work
Reflective: Evaluated my own work fairly and honestly with plenty of justification

Top Ten Movies

10) The Fountain

Maybe not the greatest love story but the most magical and unique. Stunning visuals and music with powerful performances, it's probably the most epic artsy movie ever made. It's too bad it didn't receive that much attention or money. 

9) Goodfellas

In my opinion, the best Martin Scorsece film (maybe the exception of Raging Bull), though you can't really go wrong with any of his movies. It's one of the pioneers in gangster movies and sparked a trend in wise-guy films. Joe Pesci deserves his Oscar and creates a niche for himself as the ultimate wise guy. Other mentions to Robert De Niro and Ray Liotta. Dialogue and conversations were never so entertaining. 

8) Sideways

Paul Giamatti was snubbed for an Oscar nomination. You learn a lot about wine as well as the miserable parts of love (works well together I guess). It's depressingly funny in the sense that you will laugh a lot at the jokes but would feel the same melancholy the character feels. This is the story of the good guy that finishes last. Finally.

7) The Dark Knight

Need I say more? It earned every cent it received. It's the most epic movie ever made, and every dollar of its $180 million budget was used wisely and was compensated enormously. With an outstanding cast and a rising director (Christopher Nolan), it's not only the best comic book movie ever made, it was arguably the best movie of 2008. And Heath Ledger gives the best acting job of that year too. The fastest 2h 30 min movie ever made.

6) Slumdog Millionaire

When everyone though the Dark Knight was so good, along came this movie. It's pretty much the anti-Dark Knight. Its heroes are poor, its city undeveloped, but in no way the story is any less incredible. It seems like your typical love story: Boy loves girl, girl loves boy, obstacles in the way, boy finds girl. Why then when you watch it are you constantly surprised? It's definitely the most beautiful, elegant love story of the last decade. And during these economic troubles, this movie brings hope and how life can still be valuable without any money. It's the movie that definitely should represent the year 2008 (winning best picture).

5) There Will Be Blood

My favorite director, Paul Thomas Anderson, makes his 4th feature film, this time with Daniel Day Lewis; the perfect combination. It's such a dark film that discusses traditional themes of greed, business, and family. It's cinematography brings forth so subtly and effectively the calculating mind of Daniel Plainview. Lewis gives another Best Actor performance, saying lines brilliantly adapted by Anderson (from the book Oil!). 

4) The Godfather

(see the Godfather Part II)

3) Lost in Translation

I've always felt like this movie is a sequel of Groundhog Day, except 20 years after that February 2nd, and that the news Producer Bill Murray ended up became his wife. Murray doesn't really use the same sarcasm or cynicism, but something more mature and intimate as he meets a much younger girl in the unfamiliar streets of Tokyo. With clever, charming dialogue written by Sofia Coppola, this film managed to acquire chemistry between two very different actors of two very different generations. It's heart breaking, it's heart lifting. It doesn't need anything grandeur, but uses the intimate, personal emotions of the characters utterly lost in their lives, but finding themselves within each other. Fantastic.

2) Children of Men

I saw the trailer for this movie and I remember really wanting to watch it. Months later, I acquired a DVD copy of it. Sometimes I would watch movies to sleep, but in this case, how could I? So many moments I just had to sit up and be in awe because I couldn't believe what I was watching. In this dystopian world where women are infertile, it seems very real on what would happen. War, famine, deportation, etc., etc. Really, I think this movie is based on what's happening now, just a mild caricature. It's more than another "What-if" scenario, and its not really a fantasy, sci-fi flick. It's too real to be true. This is the most compelling, visionary movie I have ever watched. My only regret in life is that I didn't watch this in a cinema room.

1) The Godfather Part II

The reason why I didn't say the Godfather trilogy is because of Part III, and the reason why I split between Part I and Part II is because they are different movies. Part I is still brilliant and for the same reasons. I think the reason that Part II is better than Part I is really Michael Corleone. Everyone hates him as a good guy. He's not as interesting or compelling pre-murdering Sollozzo. And really, since Apollonia died, Michael has not smiled once until Part III. 

Francis Ford Coppolla, Mario Puzo, Robert De Niro, Marlon Brando, and Al Pacino teams up and creates the original gangster film. The difference is that these gangsters don't want to be gangsters, but is looking for legitimacy in society but without mitigating any of their success. Because of this they lost their families and their sanity.

Everything is just perfect in these two movies. Great story, the most memorable dialogue (I'll make him an offer he can't refuse), great cast and acting, great everything. It's really not a surprise this makes number 1 for many top tens. It says family is the most important value, and how business can turn you into an evil, cold creature. Every shot is basically a photograph, and the whole thing is simply a piece of art. Put is simply, this is the best movie ever made.

*Outside Looking In: Fight Club, Moulin Rouge, Scarface, Princess Mononoke, Malcolm X, Kill Bill Vol. 2, Groundhog Day, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Film Review: Requiem For a Dream

Directed by: Darren Aronofsky

Released: March 2001

Cast: Jared Leto, Ellen Burstyn, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans

There are many films that discuss the fall of a person because of drug use, like Henry Hill in Goodfellas, or Jim Carrol in The Basketball diaries. But Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem For A Dream represents both the consequences and the experience of drug usage. Yes, this film is like no other.

            The story follows the lives of four characters, Sara Goldfarb (Ellen Burstyn), Sara’s son, Harry Goldfard (Jared Leto), Harry’s friend, Tyrone C. Love (Marlon Wayans), and Harry’s girlfriend, Marion Silver (Jennifer Connelly). Moreover, we follow their addictions. For the entirety of the movie, we witness the fall of their lives from Harry and Marian’s heroin use, to Tyrone’s drug dealership, and Sara’s enslavement to television.

            Similar to people experimenting with drugs, Aronofsky experiments with montages, split screens, and rapid editing. Despite using about 2000 cuts, it was not over done, as it was necessary to express the perspectives of the characters.

            The four main characters were not overshadowed by the director’s vision however. Their portrayal’s of troubled, paranoid junkies penetrates into the viewer’s minds, and reverberates even after the ending. A special mention has to go to Ellen Burstyn, who’s role of a lonely widow intensified the already chest burdening scenes. A well deserved Academy Award Nomination (Julia Roberts won that year with her role as Erin Brokovich).

            A special mention must also go to the Kronos Quartet with their haunting theme that has been adapted for films like Lord of the Rings: the Two Towers. Their work in this movie was under received, but nevertheless as powerful and significant as the directing and acting.

            When watching this movie, it would be reasonable to walk out halfway into it. It is a heavy, relentless hour and forty minutes with dots of graphic, fast paced scenes. But every second is used to its potential, and the vision of the director grasps the attention and breath of the audience. Perhaps the director should allow some moments of peace so we can survive the whole movie. But perhaps that would mitigate the theme, which is the essence of the film.

            Although this film would not be popular or a blockbuster movie (grossing about 7 million dollars USD it establishes the unique style of Aronofsky, and places him among directors such as Baz Lurhmann, Quentin Tarantino, and Tim Burton, who has an identifiable approach of filmmaking.

Film Review: The Exorcist vs Blair Witch Project (How to make a scary movie)

"The Exorcist" 

Directed by William Friedkin

Written by William Peter Blatty

1973 

"Blair Witch Project"

Directed by Daniel Myrick & Eduardo Sanchez

Written by Daniel Myrick & Eduardo Sanchez

The two scariest movies I've seen are The Exorcist and Blair Witch Project. Actually, the only two movies that actually scared me are those two movies. But those two movies are legitimately scary because it doesn't use any cheap thrills. They instill genuine fear into the viewer, and manages to maintain suspense. You can scare anyone easily; just sneak up on them and yell suddenly. That's the trick most horror movies use, and it's stupid. The Exorcist and BWP however gives you a good reason to be scared for 2 hours.

The Exorcist starts pretty slowly and boring until Regan pees on the carpet in front of everybody and predicts someone's death, which became a classic scene unfortunately subject to numerous of parodies. Then there's the desecration of a statue of Virgin Mary. That's when the creepiness sets in and starts to build.

Then the first actual scary part; Father Karris's dream. It's almost completely silent except a very eerie white noise. And in that dream, there's the cut of Karris' mother that only lasts for a split second, then the dream continues. Then there's another sudden cut, but instead of his mother, there's a demonic face that is probably the most subtle scare I've ever seen.

There's just so many good moments in this movie. For example, the first time the bed shakes, which is a really simple image, but is very effective in telling the audience that they are dealing with something supernatural and something violent. 

Then the first time the demon exposes itself; when Regan's throat inflates like a frog, and her skin becomes dead-pale and her voice changes into a monster's. 

I could go on and on.

The Blair Witch Project deals with something also supernatural. It uses a documentary style, and you would certainly believe that it is real, factual footage until you wikipedia it. 

On a $30 000 USD budget, what can you do to make a scary movie with that? BWP has so many night scenes and terrific, naturalistic acting that is probably one of the main reasons why the film is so scary. It also uses so many unconventional tricks such as intentionally messing up the sound (for example, using a microphone from another camera, which is a meters apart since the camera used for the footage on screen doesn't have an in built microphone), and adding psychological themes, such as the trio being angry at each other, scared with each other, etc. Also, the scary moments are very believable such as seeing weird rock piles surrounding their tents, hanging dolls made out of hay, etc. It messes with your mind. 

It also has the scariest ending I have ever seen. I won't spoil it since I've already revealed a lot.

For those who want to make a scary movie, here are the do-s and don'ts, starting out with the don'ts:

Don't:

Use cheap thrills: A monster jumping out of a closet? Things like that have become so cliche and predictable and ultimately wastes the audience's time and insults their intelligence.

Have a plot twist or a ridiculous explanation: M. Night Shylaman is a devout user of plot twists. I guess it worked with The Sixth Sense, but that's it. I'm not going to reveal the ending for the Sixth Sense, but I will for the other movies because it's so stupid. 

Signs: The aliens can't tolerate water. If you pour water on the aliens, they will die because of the water. 

The Village: It actually isn't a time piece. The village is actually just a home for scared people that have been isolated from modern society. The monsters are people disguised. 

The Happening: It's the plants. Yes, the plants are killing us because they are angry at us. Seriously.

Anyway, those are the movies by Shylaman I've watched, and hopefully I won't watch another one. Plot twists can be really stupid and ridiculous and makes the audience feel like they've wasted 2 hours. And plus, it'd probably make people look it up and learn about the explanation on wikipedia before watching the movie. And rightfully so.

Have totally unrelated themes: Sometimes a horror movie doesn't seem to have the intent to scare you. They also sometimes have a side-love story, some humor, etc. Why? See the Happening with its blatant attempt for an anti-global warming ad. 

Do: 

Fear than scare: The Exorcist doesn't have the demon chasing people. In fact it stays tied down in bed for the majority of the movie. And in BWP, you never see the witch. That is genuine fear; that fear you get when walking in an empty 3 story house at midnight without any lights. The fear of a monster even though there isn't any. 

Good script: I love the game Silent Hill so I was excited for the movie version. I was very disappointed. Although it used a few scenes from the game, the script was just so bad, it was distracting. The director did a good job in creating the Silent Hill world, but the side story with the husband trying to find the wife didn't work, the dialogue was horrible, and the same psychological fear the game had on the player wasn't conveyed at all in the movie. The Exorcist had a great script, and was even nominated for an Oscar. BWP wasn't as memorable as the Exorcist, but was very appropriate for a documentary style, and it still had scenes like walking in straight line but going in circles (doesn't make sense I know but watch the film). 

Have the characters scared: In Silent Hill, the protagonist was fairly confident which made the audience confident and not scared. In the Exorcist and BWP, all the characters were petrified. How can you convince the audience to be scared if you can't even convince your own characters? This also calls for some good acting.

Anyway that's all I can come up for now. If you're making a horror flick, at least obey these rules and watch the Exorcist and BWP.

Entry #24

April 29

We didn't screen today because we watched the YR 12 drama extended production of Closer.

I watched the film version for it and I thought the drama performance was great. I guess I'm a little biased to the film version since it has actors I like: Natalie Portman, Clive Owen, Jude Law, and Julia Roberts. It was surprised that the actress who played Alice Ayres did not watch the film version because I thought she played Alice very well and rivals Portman's performance as well. 

Entry #23

April 27

Today we officially finished the film. I found a sound for Justin's hungry stomach. I found it on youtube then just deleted the visual part. I also had another layer for it with a sound Justin managed to find in a website. I have to thank him for that.

I also used a 3-part audio filter which allowed me to minimize the white noise by lowering the mid gain noise and raising the bass and treble to compensate. It made somewhat of a difference, but fortunately didn't change any voices so it still seems normal. But it didn't remove the white noise completely, but it was better than it was before.

I also added a glass-breaking sound when Justin drops the device because Joyce thinks that it wasn't clear enough to the audience that the device was broken. 

Other than the changes mentioned above, the film is pretty much the same. And we think the film is finally ready for screening.

I was an IB leaner: 

Communicator: constantly discussed with group members on how to improve the film

Open minded: Accepted criticism to the sounds.

Reflective: Self-criticized the sounds and my contribution to the film,. 

Entry #22

April 22

I haven't found any stomach sounds  I like though I made some changes to the music since Justin edited the film to make it shorter. He cut out a bit of the auditorium scene and tied some strings between some cuts which made the film overall about 30 seconds shorter.

I didn't change any songs but I had to make some songs shorter which disrupted the transitions. I cut a bit of a few songs and modified it to some extent for transitions. But overall I didn't change much, because I didn't need to.

I did change the barking sound effect to a low growl. At first it just sounded like a dog, which it was from, so I slowed down the speed to make it lower, and added a lot of reverberation so that it sounds as if it was a monster in a cave. I didn't want it to make this stomach sound too realistic, in fact I want it to be abstract to add a comedic sense to it. The barking was too much. 

I still need to find a sound effect for Justin's hunger sound but I don't think it'll be too much of a problem.

I was an IB learner:

Open-minded: Adapted to Justin's changes

Reflective: Criticized the sounds I used.

Entry #21

April 20

Over the holiday we finished a huge bulk of the editing. We're practically done aside from a few minor changes. 

Justin came over to my house where I have Final Cut Pro on my computer. It made the difference. Although he only had a few days since he went to the Eastern Europe school trip, he stayed for several hours each time and made full use of the time. I worked alongside with him with the music and sound to make the timings right.

I also helped him with editing since he's pretty new to the software but after a while he got the hang of it. So we developed this routine where he would edit a scene and I would place the music, then he would move on to the next scene and I would place the music and sounds for that scene.

But as the sound director I will focus on my role.

Freeplaymusic.com was my main resource for music. The website had tons of classical music. But honestly I'm not familiar with classical music so choosing the songs were pretty much trial and error. I must have downloaded more than a dozen songs (legally). 

But I had an idea on the progression of music. For example, for the beginning I wanted a light, playful, upbeat piano piece, so I first looked for piano sonatas. Eventually I choose Beethoven Piano Sonata 25 for the first 30 seconds since it worked well and set the tone appropriately. 

The reason why it only lasts that short is because of the transition from a peaceful piece to a loud, kind of hectic song when Justin runs out of the DT lab. I chose a symphony piece for that, one by Tchaikovsky. I also needed a kind of choir, angelic piece for when there a close up for the microphone so I had a choir piece by Handel for a second. 

The Tchaikovsky piece worked really well so I decided to have that as a musical motif. It appears four other times in the film: one where Justin goes to the sixth floor, one in the multimedia lab, one in cafeteria, and one where the teacher returns to school. It works because it has a peaceful section and a hectic section so the transitions are very smooth. 

But to transition between different songs, I would end the piece with the 'whoosh' sound effect that represents the teleportation. I feel that ending the songs this way not only emphasizes the teleportation, the suddenness in transition is less obvious or seems intentional.  

I chose specific pieces for the scenes with Daniel, the first real chase in the playground, and the auditorium scene. The pieces for those scenes are relatively similar; loud, fast paced, layers of instruments, etc. For Daniel's scene I wanted something with more percussion for more suspense and busyness. The other two I just needed it to be loud and triumphant to fit the mood. 

As for the ending bit, I felt that after Justin edited it, it wasn't conclusive enough, but there wasn't much footage to work with so Justin did the best he could. The reason why it didn't seem conclusive is because the pace needed to slow down, but there wasn't much to the scene that allowed the film to slow down. But after I added the music, I felt that it helped a lot. I used "Bach Air on a G String" for the final bit. It's actually quite a famous piece, and I have a vague recollection in hearing this piece in some movies, but I just never knew the name of the song. I had to cut a lot of the song since it lasted a few minutes whereas the scene was about 30 seconds, but it wasn't that much of a problem since I was already used to cutting songs for other scenes. And each piece seemed to have some sort of a hook, so transitions where pretty easy that way.

For music that's pretty much it.

For sound effects there wasn't much. I had a flush sound for the bathroom, a blunt click when Justin presses the button for the first time, a beeping-android-like sound for when the device works, a whoosh sound for the teleportation, etc. I'm not completely done with the sound though. For Justin's stomach, there was a barking sound that represents his stomach. It's really risky, but it'd be effective if people got the joke. I also haven't found a sound yet for when Justin's stomach is upset.

The film also has some silent scenes and some talking scenes. The beginning bit until the cafeteria scene is silent. The first spoken words is by Lucas when he asks Colin where Justin is. Also I didn't cut out the background sound of the cafeteria because if it was silent or if there was music the transition wouldn't be good. And also, the music that coincides with Justin's entrance contrasts with the diegetic sound and has a comedic effect to it.

And for some scenes I included the diegetic sound for menial sounds like footsteps, door closing, etc. The scene that I haven't really modified any of the diegetic sound is Daniel's scene since speaking itself is the joke. Also in the end, when Justin enters the bathroom and victoriously says "Yess", I didn't cut that out for storytelling purposes as well as the water splashing on his face.

I have two main concerns. One is that stomach sounds, which I'll probably figure out later. The other is that I wonder if the inconsistency of silent scenes and 'noisy' scenes would work. 

After coming back from Easter we conferred with Joyce and Elliot. They seem to like it. Ms Wong did point out the inconsistency of the silent and 'sound' scenes. Although she didn't really like the inconsistency, she reluctantly agreed that it did somewhat work. I think it's the indecisiveness in pre-production that lead to this, but in the end I think it worked.

Joyce pointed out the errors that needed to be fix in terms of editing (polishing the film), but it can be fixed quickly and smoothly.

I was an IB-learner because: 

Thinkers: Had to consider which parts of the song to cut out in order for it to be most effective and usable. 

Communicator: Worked closely with Justin in editing; constantly discussed with him. 

Risk-taker: Played and experimented with sound effects and music.

Reflective: Often criticized the film and how effective the music and the sound was.

Film Review: The Fountain

"The Fountain"

Directed by Darren Aronofski

2005

The consensus on the greatest love story ever told is Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. Since then there has been so many depictions of love and very few has been convincing. The English Patient? The Notebook? A Walk to Remember? Sure, they're not bad, but it basically has the same plot as a sports story: like how either they lose or win the big game, the girl (only the girl, never the guy) would either continue living or die at the end. But ultimately it doesn't matter because both endings are cliches now. 

The standards for romance have been raised. There have been so many romantic comedies done, that it's hard to convince today's generation of audiences of true love ("How to lose a guy in 10 days" is not love.) The question aptly imposed by Shakespeare In Love "Can true love be depicted through stage?" We have yet to find an answer since Romeo and Juliet written 400 years ago.

Then Darren Aronofsky wrote the Fountain.

It's hard to give a synopsis of the Fountain. It merges Sci-fi with real life with a time piece. It goes to space, to the living room, to the deep forests of South America in the 16th century. In short though, it's a love story. Hugh Jackman plays a husband-scientist, a monk-like space traveler (I wouldn't say astronaut because there are no spaceships or rockets but a ball with a tree in it) and a Spanish conquistador. Rachael Weiz plays the wife-cancer patient and the Queen of Spain. It is 3 stories in one.

I guess the main story is about a scientist trying to find out the cure for cancer as his wife has as tumor that gets worse as time progresses. It sounds like the typical love story I just mentioned; how the girl either lives or dies. But it's far, far more complex and sophisticated than that, that it needs 3 different stories in 3 different time periods and in 3 totally different contexts. 

It's as if Aronofsky views love as no one else does; something so complex and sophisticated that one simple story line will not do it any justice. The movie is profuse with visual as well as spoken metaphors and imagery. While most movies can be condensed into a novel, the only adaptation this can be is poetry. 

The writing is incredible. The story is complex and beautiful while the dialogue keeps you intrigued all the way. There aren't really any memorable or catch phrases, but everything is so subtle and, well, poetic. The line "Together we shall live forever" repeated throughout the movie would usually be used in some corny, sappy love song. Never has that line been said with so much conviction.

Of course that could not have been done without powerful acting. The movie is willed through by Hugh Jackman (who I keep forgetting is Australian), and one of my favorite actresses, Rachel Weiz. Both of them give career performances, displaying so much emotion that, even though we only know these characters for 2 hours, it seems like they've been in love for an eternity.

As for the visuals and imagery, it's as if each frame is like a painting. It shows that Aronofsky evidently had a vision while writing this movie. And when it's on only a $35 million budget, I wonder how much better it could've been if more attention by the studios were given. 

The music for this film is flawless. Clint Mansell, who also composed music for Requiem for a Dream (he wrote the famous piece, Requiem for a Dream, which was used for Lord of the Rings the Two Towers). It contributes so much to the already poignant movie. People sometimes say that silence is a sound. In The Fountain, without the music, it would've been so much lesser as a movie. Performed by the Kronos Quartet, each note sounds so ethereal and surreal, like an omniscient voice.

And finally, the directing. Aronofsky proves to be one of the most visionary directors of our generation. Each shot is beautifully and meticulously executed, it's pretty much perfect. 

The one flaw of the movie? It's hard to watch. There is not one moment where the audience will laugh. There is no comic relief or joke throughout the entire movie. And that may be a problem. For what it an hour and a half feature may seem a much longer experience. You'd have to be really attentive and really captivated in order to appreciate the movie in its entirety, and perhaps watch it 2 or 3 times. But that's not really a problem. 

So in the end, in all aspects, the Fountain was a brilliant movie, and the complexities and profoundness of love is finally captures through a medium. This is not an ordinary love story.  

Entry #20

April 8

We finished filming today, which is very fantastic. All of the footage has also been uploaded and put in Justin's and my hard drives so that when Justin gets back from Europe we can edit it using my home computer, which has Final Cut Pro.

The important scene we finished was the ending scene where Justin gets cornered by the girl, the Nerd, and the teacher. Other than that, we basically filmed gaps, like a close up of the device getting dropped, the eating scene, etc.

As for sound  I am very lucky that freeplaymusic.com has classical music. It's just going to be difficult to cut it and match it with the clips. We'll see though.

Entry #19

April 6

We got a bulk of the filming done over the weekend. At this moment we have only a few more in school scenes to do, which is basically running around a lot, as well as Lucas's scenes.

We got the more complex/important scenes done. We filmed the part where Justin drops the device (and it breaks), accidentally goes in the girl's bathroom, and get chased by the teacher and the girl around the 4th and 6th floor. 

We spent a really long time in the bathroom, which honestly I wasn't too happy about since it was a very simple scene to do, yet we spent about an hour in it. I didn't have to worry about sound since the boom make is sensitive enough that we don't need to put it close to anything. I'll probably just have to learn how to remove the white noise.

One continuity problem; I forgot to bring a hat. But Joyce says it'll be fine so, we'll see when it comes to editing time. If it's really bad then we'll probably just re-film then.

We filmed in the auditorium, which was very confusing. It was our first time analyzing the Grimm's Tale set, so we had to plan out for quite a long time on what we're going to do. There was a lot of discussion between our editor and cameraperson, which I guess is a good sign that everyone's proactive. 

Since it was only Justin and I doing the chase, we planned out on what we wanted to do. Joyce wanted a long scene so we had to run around a lot. Maybe it was too long but I think we can cut some parts in editing; hopefully. 

We also filmed a scene where Justin will dive into the seats and that's how he teleports. I'm a little uneasy about it but we did it anyway just in case.

And we also filmed a part where Justin goes into pillars and that's how he teleports. Again I'm uneasy about that but I don't think we're going to use it. The script is long as it is already.

Those are pretty much the important/complex scenes we filmed. The order in how he filmed is like Memento: all over the place with the pieces put together in the end (editing). 

After school today we filmed the DT scene, which was very easy compared to the scenes we filmed last weekend. I didn't really have to pay attention the sound because the boom works and it's sensitive enough to capture a lot of the sound.

We also filmed the scene that follows the DT scene, which is when Justin comes out of the common room and crashes into the lockers. The crashing sound when Justin crashes into the lockers is great. I'll probably use that to contrast the DT scene.

Today was one of the more efficient days. To me that is a great improvement.

I was an IB learner:

 

Communicator: Discussed intensely and especially with Justin on how to approach the auditorium scene.

Entry #18

April 1

There's a new system for checking out the cameras, which might be a problem for us if we're not organized. We have to reserve the cameras 2 days in advance and plan out how long we're going to use them. Hopefully since it's a new system we have some leniency for now, but I'm sure in the near future it's going to be a problem. 

We did some filming today. During class we filmed the part where Justin portals to the classroom as he tries to uncover the rules of the portal device. 

Sound wise there wasn't much to consider. There was the sound of the door and the sound of Justin crashing to the floor, but this scene is probably going to be music reliant. 

For continuity it was pretty tricky. When Justin leaves the classroom, we also had to have a shot of the door opening but with no one there. To do this, Joyce hid behind the door and opened it. I'm not entirely sure on how we're going to edit this, but this small action would probably help in the end.

Then we filmed the Cafeteria scene which was surprisingly difficult. There are a lot of distraction with people interrupting the scenes. We got Lucas and Colin to act for us. Lucas has already agreed to play the Nerd so obviously we used him. Colin is more of an extra.

We had Justin running out of the kitchen. At this point, it looks like anything far from magnificent or cool. Justin's going to have to make it interesting.

Then there was an eating scene which I didn't understand. What was the importance of Justin eating? I found out it's because the next destination for him is the bathroom and that's really where the chase starts. 

I figured it was similar to Joyce's and Justin's film Stratagem where the male protagonist and the femme fatale were waiting in the car. The main criticism was that it was too comedic for a film noir. I guess it could work for this. 

The main issues I probably have to face is the a lot of chatter noise from the Cafeteria. I made sure that the dialogue from Lucas could be heard as well as Justin's footsteps. 

We're probably going to re-film the eating scene because of the distractions.

I was an IB learner today:

Communicator: Communicated ideas with group members

Entry #17

March 30

We filmed for the first time yesterday (March 29) at Justin's house. The costume I wore was a hat, a tie (tied on intentionally poorly), baggy pants, and a blue, baggy shirt, I'll upload a picture when I can.

We were filming Daniel's scene that day. Daniel plays this angry, stereotypical Cantonese man. The two of us, Justin and I, accidentally teleported to his house and he does not appreciate it one bit, so he chases us around the house. 

I feel that yesterday was just a prelude on what's to come on the later filming sessions. It will be long, complex, exhausting, with the sense of satisfaction coming in the editing room, hopefully. There was quite a lot of confusion in coming in and out of doors, which one did Justin come in, which one he will come out, etc. I give so much credit to Joyce and Elliot as their roles, especially in this project, require so much patience, care and detail. Despite that I think that it could have been a more efficient filming session, we could tell that in the end of it all, we got some good footage. The one bite I have on Elliot is that judging from his handling of the camera, there is much more stationary footage then him moving around. Also from the distance he's positioning the camera at, maybe there are not enough close ups. But since we are filming a Chaplin style film, then it is quite successful. 

As for sound, I think this will probably be one of the only scenes where it won't be silent or won't rely totally on the music. Daniel's voice is hilarious and I must show that on our final product.

I also recorded some mundane, diegetic sound like Daniel's game controller and the fridge doors. 

I was an IB learner today because

Communicator: Constantly discussed about film with group members.

Open-Minded: Appreciated everyone's assigned roles and let them expand their own creativity and ideas.

Entry #16

March 25

Today we officially discussed our film noir films.  Below are my impressions of each film, including a self-evaluation, that are focused on the screenplays and writing since I was the writer of my group's film. This also includes Jeff's film, which was actually viewed in the class after this one, but I included it in this entry just for coherence. 

Natalia

My overall impression of the film is that it could have been much better. It started out well with a good monologue. It was very scant and blunt and was delivered well by Elliot. It set the mood very well. 

But it was the best part of the film. The rest was in a plateau lower than the opening 30 seconds. The setting for one seemed like someone's house, and the lighting did not have much contrast, it was just dim. 

The dialogue between the protagonist and the femme fatale wasn't really witty although the attempt and idea was there. The dialogue was dedicated to giving a background of the plot, but how could you solidify and establish the plot only through dialogue? It's a very difficult thing to do. I don't blame them for trying though. A film noir usually has a complex story line, and it's hard to squeeze it in a 5 minute production. But it felt cramped in and unsuccessfully established and developed, especially when trying to introduce his father's murder. We never find out who the femme fatale is, and will never know. The sense of moral ambiguity is unclear since the dialogue was too focused on the plot, and the banter fell flat.

Stratagem

It was hard to believe this was a film noir. There was an attempt to have quick, witty conversation but as soon as the lines

"I was under the impression you wanted me at 7:30. It's 7:20"

was heard, it just gave me a very bad impression on the dialogue. It seems like something comedic than something serious. The dialogue didn't get any better, neither did it get any worse.

The plot was so simple, too simple. I guess it could have worked, but the delivery was unsuccessful (staking out in a car, a plastic bag as the murder weapon, etc.). And the development of each character was non-existent. Each character was the same, even with the same intentions. 

There was also no effort in making high contrasting lights, and the music only added to the unintentional comedic effect the film exuded.

Pulse

Screenplay wise it was good. It was a romantic-centered piece with the protagonist having to choose between his girlfriend and a girl he was having an affair with. 

I think what this film did was that it relied on tricks and gimmicks. For example, when the femme fatale took off her underwear there was two separate shots that showed that. Sure it was edgy, especially for the classroom, but I felt it blatantly abused it, kind of like "we're the cool kids on the block" sort of thing. Though it did express the 'sinful' and 'temptation' aspects of the affair. But it could've been done perhaps more gracefully; with more style, and perhaps limit it to only one cut.

The first time I watched Pulse I didn't understand what happened in the end when the protagonist says to his girlfriend "don't wait up on me". I didn't understand it the second time, but it was just me. Apparently the protagonist was going to go with his secret lover. I thought it was just fine as an ending; it wasn't anything special, and it didn't really change my view on the film. Basically, I was affected the same amount when I didn't know the ending compared to after I found out what happened in the end. 

The dialogue was quite good though nothing special or memorable.

The tape recorder bit was, again, just fine. It was used in Michael Clayton, though I'm not sure if that was the inspiration. I didn't really like it in Michael Clayton, but I thought it was better used there. 

I think what made the script not as good as it should be was the presentation of it. I thought that the shot with Ella, or the protagonist's girlfriend, was so bright, colorful, and cheerful, that it disrupted the film's mood. I thought that either that shot should be cut out, or done in a darker tone, though the idea was there (contrast with his secret life). But why introduce a character for a 10 second shot? 

Also the lighting was too grainy and dark. There were some shadows but that was all. It was just dark most of the time.

Plunge

The screenplay, I felt, was more of a novel than a screenplay. Only people would pay attention and listen attentively to the dialogue can appreciate it and understand it fully. The thing is, there's a lot of long paragraphs and speeches from each character. The content was good but slowed the pace down dramatically. Also, there wasn't much action or anything a novel can't describe as well. 

The main criticism was that the film could have been a lot tighter; that it felt as if it was part of something larger. Apparently it was; it as an adaptation of a feature length film screenplay Jeff was working as a side project. The idea was great, then just wasn't adapted elegantly. But overall it was a good screenplay. 

The Broken Beautiful (self-evaluation)

I didn't receive much criticism for the screenplay. I was glad that some people gathered that it was inspired by Sin City and Moulin Rouge, which were the actual inspirations I used while writing the script; falling in love with a prostitute, and how futile it was. 

It was good because the story of this dark romance was intriguing. The pace was fast (or at least in check), and the dialogue was tight and interesting. Of course it could have been better, perhaps better dialogue, better lines, etc. Overall though I was pleased with it. 

I have to give a lot of credit to my group members, Bernice, Medora and Andy for putting a lot of effort in to understanding my screenplay and figuring out the best way to display it on screen, which they did very successfully. 

I was an IB learner: 

Communicator: Communicated my opinions and shared it with the rest of the class

Open-minded: Open to the comments toward my film as well as other interpretations of the other films. 

Entry #15

March 23

Today we discussed the script and Joyce's vision, as well as plan filming days. I read the script more thoroughly than last time. It's a bit confusing but after Joyce's explanation it became clearer. 

I can't really do much with the sound right now except predict or guess what the sounds or music will be. I'm sticking with the Chaplin theme but it may change as anything can happen. Today's session was more focused on the visuals and the staging of the film. 

There were a few modifications to the script. For one, instead of the Student going through the Teacher's legs to reach the door, the Student will push the teacher through the door so that both of them will go through the portal and teleport. 

That was essentially the only modification we came up today.

As for filming dates, we'll probably going to film this weekend (for all of the outer school locations) and probably Monday and Wednesday next week for all of the inner school scenes. Next class we will rehearse all of the inner school scenes.  

Entry #14

March 18

Bugs Bunny

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WM5Gwzk3Vfc

Charlie Chaplin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxCuXGCR8TE

The two videos above are the best examples when music is most effective. They coincide with the actions of the actors and produce a very comedic, funny effect. It is one of Bugs Bunny's trademarks as well as Charlie Chaplin's; utilizing music to for the best comedic effect.

How am I going to incorporate it into a chase scene, I have no idea. How am I going to compose something like that, I have no idea. I have some experience in music, and with garageband. I spent two semesters in Computer Music in Year 9, where I learned how to use Garageband as well as Logic Pro. But that was a long time ago.

Today I re-familiarized myself with Garageband. I read the script Joyce wrote and it seems good, at least for a Chase Scene. She's very organized with the script, naming all the characters as well as the places. We need to go scouting soon. 

While Elliot, Joyce and Justin were discussing the script, I was playing around with Garageband and see what I can do. For the first few minutes I was just playing around. I developed one quite catchy melody but I'm afraid that it would become more annoying that memorable. I then made another melody in case for an intimidating scene, perhaps when the Teacher spots the student. I made two of them; one for that exact moment, and one for the ensuing chase.

Not really confident in the pieces I made, I played around with the native loops of Garageband. I combined two loops and made a rock instrumental. I showed it to the rest of my group and they said I should continue working on the catchy melodies rather than turning the music into a rock theme.

I then created a melody that's very happy and light-hearted. It's incredibly happy. It'll be great for the scene with Daniel yelling at the student in Cantonese (contrast). 

The reality is though I can't really create the most appropriate music for the film until after filming and I can get a sense, and know when and what music to provide. What I did today in class was familiarize myself with music software, and create potential pieces for the film. I will continue watching Chaplin and Bugs. Even after this project of course.

I was an IB Learner:

Communicator: Talked with group mates about music pieces.

Thinkers: Thought on how to maximize the use of music and sounds into a Chase scene.

RIsk-Taker: Not the most experienced, best person in composing songs, but still am trying to compose original music.

Reflective: Concerned about the potential annoyance some melodies might cause. 

Film Noir Evaluation

March 18 

1) How your idea came about and your contribution to this, in terms of Screenwriting.

 

            The idea for this film noir project was influenced by many stories and movies. First here is a summary of the story. The protagonist, Man, is walking on the streets until he meets a Woman. They converse and he learns that she is a prostitute. They talk about the morality, and whether a drunkard is higher than a prostitute, or visa versa. The Man then expresses love for the prostitute, but she dismisses it as something conjured up by alcohol. The Man then tells the prostitute that he had a previous experience with one. He says that the woman he slept with was named Daisies. The Woman pulls a gun and aims it towards him. Apparently Daises’ name was Jennifer, and she was her sister, which the Man murdered. The Man, knowing that he is going to die, simply tells the Woman that he did love her and because of his own flaw of getting drunk, killed her sister. The Woman ignores any sympathy. She kills him. The final shot, the Man is lying, dying. But his final sight is his love, Daisies, lying next to him, as dead as he is.

            Within the script I also used flashbacks to give the storyline more depth without disrupting the flow and coherence of the film. It also makes the film extend to something other than what is currently happening; another dimension if you will.

            The title of the film was based on a line written in the middle of the script. For a while it was untitled. It was only after I finished writing it did I come up with the title.

            The two main inspirations were Moulin Rouge and Sin City. Moulin Rouge gave me the idea of falling in love with a prostitute, and how dark, yet romantic it could be. Sin City gave me the idea for the ending. The story, “the Hard Goodbye” with Marv and Goldie ends with both of them lying dead together in the same bed, in this case, it was the Man and Daisies. Goldie is, coincidentally, a prostitute, and Marv does fall in love with her. Those two films gave me the idea for the story.

            There were other influences that helped me write lines. Songs by Radiohead helped me. “Paranoid Android”, with the lines “Rain down/Rain down/ Come on rain down on me/From a great height/From a great height” gave me the lines “I felt rain coming down on my face but everything was clear” in the script. It is used as an omen for what is coming next; his death. The song “Reckoner” also by Radiohead helped me. The song is about destiny and how unfortunate but inevitable it can be. The lines “Reckoner/Dare not speak its name/Dedicated to all human beings” helped me develop the fate of these three characters, as if death and murder is inevitable. Also, its haunting melody helped me create the atmosphere of the script.  

            I wanted to use Nancy Sinatra’s song “Bang, Bang” but because of copyright, could not use it. I tried incorporating music into the script by using the line  “I hear a guitar weeping”, but we could not use the song and so I changed it to “I hear her (Daisies) weeping”.

            I also took advice from Quentin Tarintino. In an interview, he says that in watching a movie, if he does not understand what is going on, he immediately stops watching, because what is the point of watching something you do not understand, and, it would be impossible to appreciate it. It told me to keep the story clear, elegant, and coherent, especially for a short film.

My group members also did not like the line “Tease”. The Woman says it. It’s a response to the Man’s line “Ten thousand dollars for one night, you’re right, I can’t afford it.” So I removed it.

            Aside from that the script was convenient in the sense that it allowed our cameraperson envision each scene clearly. The atmosphere of the script allows the cameraperson to create the frame perfect for each line. Also, the plot is very organized, which facilitate the Editor’s job.

            Again with the atmosphere, it facilitates the Sound Director’s job to find songs that fit the mood, as well as allow creativity; using sound as dramatic devices such as reverberating footsteps as the Woman leaves the scene.

            This was how my idea was conceived and how it contributed to the project.

 

2) How did you plan as a group and your contribution to pre-production?

           

            We planned what to film first and what to film last. We decided to film the meeting between the Man and the Woman first, the Flashbacks next, then the Walking Scenes last. The conversation was the main bulk of the script. The Flashbacks were shorter, but still important. It had an interior setting, which was the main reason why we chose to film it on a separate day. The walking scenes were filmed on a separately day because we also though it would be ideal to film any reshoot since we were out filming. We were confident that we would not make a mistake because walking scenes were simple to do.

            During classes I worked with Andy and Medora – the actors – to develop their character. I felt that even though acting was not the priority, bad acting could distract the audience from the point of the movie as well as the cinematic elements to it. I did everything I could for Andy and Medora understand their character, and develop their own nuances and subtleties so that it would seem natural on screen.

            The advice I gave them were sometimes specific, at other times ambiguous. The intent is to have them create the character on their own perception; my job was just to nurture that perception. At times, when they were rehearsing their lines, I would say “darker”, “sadder”, etc., ambiguous lines like that because I did not want them to think to much and confuse them. I also did not want to say the lines because I did not want them to do an imitation of me. Other times, I would give them a whole background of the character, but again, not going into the habit and tell them how I would do it. This again led to naturalistic performances.

            I followed the advice of

3) What was your contribution during the actual production stage?

 

            During filming, I was basically the consultant and co-director with the Cameraperson. If the actor had trouble knowing a line, I would tell them since I know the script inside out. Also sometimes the Cameraperson would not understand the point of the scene, so I would explain what the mood should be and what the frame should express, which is usually the character’s mentality. And because while writing it I had a vision of what each scene looked like, I also would be the safety net. The Cameraperson would tell me a potential idea and I would explain why it would or would not work. And if the Cameraperson were having trouble developing the shot, I would be of assistance. In short, I would be the safety net and the problem solver of the group.

 

4) How did you work as a group I the post-production? What was your contribution to this?

 

            During post-production, I was mainly helping the Editor. I would tell him the shots that need to be used to coincide with the script, and the shots that are unnecessary. Similar to the production stage, I was the safety net, but instead of the Cameraperson, it was for the Editor. If the Editor missed something or cut something out by accident, I would usually be the first person to notice. I was there to ensure that the plot was expressed. Also, the Editor dealt with the color of the film. I had to make sure that he did not mitigate any atmosphere or did not express the character’s emotions effectively.

            Similar with the Sound Director, I was there to make sure that the songs and sound effects were appropriate. There were two sounds we had trouble with; a gunshot and the Flashback effect. The gunshots we found seemed too fake, and eventually had to edit it ourselves by decreasing the reverberation and making it higher pitched as well as a shorter length. For the Flashback sound, it was a ‘whoosh’, and each sound we found seemed too fake as well. Eventually we found an appropriate one, but decreased the volume so that it was not too obvious.

            In short, I was the safety net, making sure that the ideas by each group member would benefit the film without ruining its substance and meaning the script provides.

5) Evaluation of the final product. How successful were you in achieving your goal? How did you perform your designated role? How did you work together as group? What feedback did you receive as a group and as an individual? How can you improve, both as a group and as an individual?

 

            The final product was successful. It was coherent, effective in expressing the character’s emotions, and expressed the themes of the moral dilemma of loving a prostitute effectively. The film received praise from our peers and teacher so we knew that it turned out well, with the quote from Ms Wong “it set the bar high”.

            In terms of my role, I thought I performed well. The class immediately after the class we began, I already wrote a draft, which, aside from a few cut lines, was the one we used. My group all thought that the script was great and very film noir-esque. The script allowed imagination flow through my group mates, which made their jobs easier. It also provided tasks for each role, so that no one would be left out and everyone would have something to do.

            Some people outside my group read my script and had no complaints. They understood the plot and agreed it exemplified the film noir style.

            I did not receive any criticisms with the script and I have asked people. Although the script may not need any improvements, I may need to improve as a screenwriter. Perhaps I can write an even better one with a different, better, more developed story without having to rely on flashbacks, as well as wittier dialogue with more memorable lines. 

            As a group, we could have been more efficient during the production stages. For each filming session we took literally hours. We ended up tired and exhausted, but still determined to finish what we planned to finish, even though it went into overtime. We should have been more realistic in planning out our time and schedule. But our commitment to the project is what made our final product what it is; the Broken Beautiful.

Entry #13

March 16

Today we just went straight to our next unit. We will discuss the film noir project next class.

Our next project is creating a short film inspired by Twilight Zone. It is a chase scene. 

My group members are Justin, Joyce and Elliot.

Justin: Editor

Joyce: Writer

Elliot: Cameraperson

Me: Sound Director.

We ended up using my idea of a teacher chasing a student who has a device that allows him to transport wherever he wants to, but in the midst of chasing, the device malfunctions and either takes him places he doesn't want to be or only places a few meters away from his original destination. It will be difficult but effective if done properly.

I want it to be something like a Charlie Chaplin film, though more high-tec. I want the atmosphere of it. Also, I want to use the old school text, though it may not work. It depends what script Joyce produced.

We came up with a lot of potential scenes, like the student ending up in a bedroom where two lovers are making out. And the student ending up in family dinner with the father yelling at him. And a Scooby Doo-like scenario, where one person enters a room but exits another. There will probably be a fugitive-like scene where the student is on the ledge of a cliff with the teacher cornering him. And then he jumps but teleports in mid air. 

As sound director I will probably think of a theme song to compose. I'll probably do something light hearted and catchy, like a Super Mario game. I'll probably use Garageband since I'm most familiar with that software. 

I was an IB learner:

Caring: Showed empathy, compassion, and respect towards the needs and feelings of others.

Open-minded: Listened to my peer's ideas.

Communicator: Expressed own ideas.

Entry #12

March 11

Today is screening day.

We didn't do much editing, just included the credits. 

Andy adjusted the saturation but left a tinge of color to create the film noir effect but without abusing it. Adding some color is, we find, more effective, especially with the audience we are dealing with. But that was how he achieved the effect shown in our film.

He also managed to imitate Sin City's style, which uses red as the sole color. It involves isolating the color from the rest, and therefore desaturating other colors while leaving the red there.

He managed to finish all of the editing.

For music we used Kevin Mcleod pieces. Our beginning theme is called 'Turn for the Worse". In the middle we used another song by him; a delicate piano. It worked for our film uncannily well. 

For the ending went ahead and used Christie's vocals. Medora also included a guitar introduction so that Andy's death is more dramatic. 

Our film was screen first and these were my thoughts on it:

-it wasn't like how it was on Quicktime with our computer. I thought that the one that was screened was missing some bits, and made the ending too rushed, and missed out on the final line which has Andy saying "Daisies". I was a bit disappointed with that. 

-it was 7 minutes, but felt like 2 minutes. That's a good sign.

-Music helped us greatly

-captivating visuals coincided with the dialogue greatly

-fast paced but without skipping any background information. Simple, allowed the audience to understand it.

Our film had a good reception, Ms Wong saying that ours set the bar high. I was greatly relieved that people enjoyed our film, and was well received. 

Here are my thoughts on the other films in terms of the screenplay (since it relates to my roll):

Elliot's group:

-Clever, succinct dialogue. The first person voice over was effective. The sexuality element was, I felt, abused, especially when Elliot ran his hand across Ashley's bare leg. Also, I didn't buy that the gestures Ashley did was sensual. I also thought that the story of the death of Elliot's dad was very underdeveloped. And we never know how Ashley knows about it so well. It's a scene of something much larger instead of a short film. Story line should have been tighter.

Adrian's group:

Liked the introduction, using the First Person narration effectively. Liked the simplicity of the story: Femme fatale vs Protagonist and Girlfriend. The dialogue was great; clever, witty, and effective. The phone bit was the best, where the sounds of the ringing was intimidating (his girlfriend calling). But what happened in the end? No conclusion, or at least one the audience can understand. I asked Andy what happened, but he also does not know. 

I also felt that the screenplay used so many ideas but did not consider the difficulty in putting so many ideas on screen. It should have been tighter, more focused and would have been elegantly portrayed. It could have been a much better film.

Joyce's group:

Dialogue is cumbersome, i.e. "I was under the impression you wanted me to be here at 7:30. It's 7:20." Is that supposed to be witty? It sure was memorable. 

The story line is overly simple; guy and femme fatale teaming up against girlfriend. Nothing really happens in the plot. The guy and femme fatale meets up and kills the girlfriend, though before, the girlfriend was supposed to team up with the femme fatale and kill the guy. One or two events occurred.

No character uniqueness at all. Each character was the same; same expression, same intent, same dialogue, same everything. 

The waiting scene was unnecessary and definitely not film noir, more of a comedy.

Using a plastic bag to kill someone? A plastic bag from a supermarket? Really?

The plot and dialogue should have been more sophisticated. The intent was there but was not successful.

Jeff's Group:

Very vivid in expressing the theme of moral ambiguity. Story line is simple and well executed. It was much more dialogue driven than plot. No femme fatale, but wasn't the point. There was the 'home' girlfriend, but is overshadowed by the frustration of the protagonist. Even though it sets up as something apocalyptic (I think it was something unnecessary, because it does seem like part of something much larger instead of a short film), it seems more like a love story even though it doesn't include the girl at all. 

The immense and philosophical dialogue was great and did capture attention though at some points it did drag on. When Julien shot Chris (their characters), that was the best part, and was evident that it was the climax. I thought maybe it was too Quentin Tarintino with the dialogue. It seemed repetitive at points, but was still interesting nevertheless. 

It would have worked without the post-apocalyptic setting, though it did set the mood very well. 

I was an IB leaner:

Reflective: Gave thoughtful consideration to my own learning and experience. Reflected on each group's film as well as my own. 

Communicator: Expressed my opinions and queries to peers.

Entry #11

March 9

On Friday the reshots and filming were much smoother since we already knew what to do with the scene, and the walking scenes were very straightforward since it was only Andy walking. We use lights from cars that passed by since it created a cool, film noirish effect. 

We also played around with some scenes, like the church scene. It is a scene where Andy walks by a Church, looks at it, and it seems the Church is condemning him or judging him, but he doesn't care and continues walking. We probably won't end up using it because it disrupts the script and it's unnecessary.

We also used a bottle, where the car lights would go through it and create a somewhat kaleidoscopic effect. It's really cool, needless to say.

The final thing we shot was Medora stalking Andy. But what I was thinking, to make it more elegant, was that instead of showing Medora walking behind Andy, it is just different angles of Medora that portrays her looking, monitoring Andy as he walks. It is simple and effective if done properly, that may also express her inner pain. 

The final product is due Wednesday. 

*Side note

After school day, Andy continued to edit. After 90 minutes of solid editing, he tells me that he is nearly done. He not only has it all organized, but has most of it in the correct saturation. He is confident that he can meet the deadline, and just needs about 2 more hours of solid editing. I will be there tomorrow for the final major edits.

I was an IB learner: 

Inquirer: Developing natural curiosity. I explored and experimented with different film ideas and techniques to produce effective story telling.

Communicator: Expressed ideas.

Risk-takers: Experimentation of shots and angles. 

Entry #10

March 4

Andy continued editing. He's been editing nonstop, which I appreciate.

He pointed out some problems such as the boom shadow in one scene. That was basically the only scene we had to reshoot. 

Andy is still organizing the clips. I would occasionally help him when he needs consultation, like deciding which clip to choose from, or if we should move the frame a little up or down. 

We are going to film the rest of the shots on Thursday unless the weather is unfriendly, which in this case, we will film on Friday, no matter what.

I was an IB learner today:

Communicator: Expressed ideas.

Entry #9

March 2

We finished filming, aside from potential reshoots and other filming. We shot in the alleyway by Ventris Road and Broadwood Road in Happy Valley on Friday, and shot in Bernice/Medora's house. 

Medora, Bernice, and Andy were all great. They wore the make up, costumes, and sacrificed their own comfort to contribute to the film. I felt very tyrannical at some points so I had to keep a low profile and speak when needed.

We planned the whole schedule beforehand of course. I would bring all of the equipment to my house, which included the dolly, HD camera, Boom/Boom handle, and stand. We didn't really use the stand or the dolly since they were more of a hindrance than a practical tool. The camera wasn't too shaky, and if it was, we simply reshot. 

All of us would eventually meet at my house and revise the plan. Then we'd bring all of the equipment to the location; a 2 minute walk. 

We had some problems with the costumes. I thought Andy dressed very nicely at first, so I made him change his belt. We experiment with a few shirts but ended up going with the original one. We also ditched the tie because it looked too forced upon when Andy wore it. We also ditched the black jacket, but he still would hold it otherwise there would be too much white. 

For Medora I told her to bring a light colored scarf. She told us that she was going to wear a black dress, which is nice but seemed too funeral like. She is after all playing a prostitute. She ended up bringing a green scarf, which looks fantastic. 

We filmed and encountered few, minor problems such as the boom getting in the way, or not getting the camera movement timed properly. 

We decided to film the alley scene first and the walking scenes some other day next week. 

When we were in Bernice/Medora's house, it was Bernice acting. She wore something different, still black, but with a black cardigan and more eyeliner. Her hair was also curly/curlier. On Saturday we filmed all of the flashback scenes, which involved Bernice. We had to make it surreal so we played around a lot with lighting and even used a fan to get the heavenly effect with her hair. 

While filming, Andy said that there was a hole in the script; why does he kill Bernice? I improvised with ideas and came up that Bernice stole his wallet, and during a struggle, Bernice pulls out her gun but Andy grabs it from her and shoots her. It's plausible and makes sense. 

Obviously there were some problems while shooting the flashbacks. We could not film Andy and Medora physically touching lips, so we used their shadow. The important part isn't the physicalness, but the intimacy; how could we express their intimacy, and prove that he was in love with her to the audience? 

I think that we portrayed that but it comes down to editing.

I already uploaded all of the clips into my computer and downloaded into my hard drive so we saved time. We had troubles with Final Cut Pro because the setting between my and the school's computer were different. But eventually we sorted it out, so we didn't have to render.

Today we couldn't get much done since Andy needs to delete all of the flawed bits, which would take a while. He would also need to organize the timeline to have the film in the order it was in the script. 

Next time on filming day I would try to keep track of the time more strictly. On both days we filmed an hour later than we wanted. We should be more efficient in filming. But our commitment and desire to produce a quality film was what helped us get through.

While the files were being transferred to the computer (it was 3 GB, so it took 20 minutes), we finished the Voice Overs. It went very smoothly. We used a practice room. Medora captured the voice and it was clear. She compiled it with garageband. 

I was an IB learner because: 

Inquirer: While filming we improvised with shots. I found myself giving suggestions such as 'closer angles' or 'lower angles' to Bernice; shots that made the frame more interesting. And because for most of us this was a new experience, we learned a lot in how to capture a cool shot and how to make each frame effective.

Knowledgeable: Explored concepts, ideas. Acquired in-depth knowledge and understanding across a broad and balanced range of disciplines.

Thinkers: Exercised initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively. I applied techniques I learned from film class as well as from shots from movies I have seen. I also was a follower of the Rule of Thirds. I found that very effective. 

Communicators: Said my ideas even though in some cases, was not my responsibility (I am not the cameraperson).

Open-Minded: Did not control the whole set. Let Bernice be the cameraperson she is. 

Risk-Takers: Experimented with costumes.