Filming Diary - Day 1 - Saturday 29th Dec

Today I had arranged to meet with my friend Kekezza so I could start filming some parts of my video. She arrived at my house at 10:30 and after I had briefed her on what I was planning to do and done hair, make-up and costume we were ready to leave and start filming on location.
Since neither of us are able to drive we had to walk to my chosen location for the day. It took 15 minutes to walk there and set up. I had chosen to film some outside scenes on the riverbank today because I had been checking the weather and I knew that it was not meant to rain, therefore I wanted to take advantage of the good weather. However, even though it has not been raining today it was yesterday, and therefore I knew that it would be very muddy. I decided that it would be a good idea to take some wellies with us when filming, just in case.
We had been filming for about an hour when all of a sudden, quite a lot of dog walkers started to appear. Some walkers did not have their dogs on leads to I thought it would be best if I packed up the camera and tripod while they passed, just incase the animals damaged any equipment. After they had passed we got a couple more shots but by this point Kezza and I were freezing, I had to go to work in an hour and had to get ready and, as we were on the riverbank and the wind had picked up significantly, we decided to go home. I got quite a lot of shots filmed today which I am happy with. I would have liked to stay longer or filmed some more in a different location but due to other commitments I only had a couple of hours available to film. I am already looking into when I have a morning or afternoon off work when I can film again.

These are some pictures of Kezza experimenting with costume before we left to film. We decided to go with the second option.

Communication & Organisation

Here is a screen shot of a conversation between my main cast member and I. We have been keeping up to date with any changes to timings or costumes through different communication methods such as text and FaceBook Messenger. It is important to keep my performer up to date with information because it will save time on the day of filming.

 

Album Covers and Promotional Poster Research

When researching album covers and prmotional posters of existing artists I thought it would be useful to research the existing artist of the song. Using this research will help me to identify what is conventional in the genre. I can see from looking at these images the way in which this artist is presented.
Laura Mulvey's 'Male Gaze Theory' that is usually applied to artists is not seen here as the artist is not displayed in a way that pleases men. Although she is still the focus of the covers, the photographic editing is the thing that is most interesting and intruiging.

Prop List

I think it is important to plan ahead and think about what I will need on my day of filming. By thinking about what props I will need I am able to prepare in time and make the most of the time I have on the day for filming.

- Old Photos
- Dried Leaves
- Computer
- Mobile Phone

- Pillow

- Pen

- Pencil

- Boxes

- Suit

- Jacket

- Dog/s

Weather Forecast - Filming Day

Just like I did for my last filming day, I have researched into what the weather forecasts are for the day I am planning to do some outside filming on. Doing this research will enable me to plan the day in relation to when would be most appropriate for outide filming, for example, when it is the lightest and the warmest.

Animatic

Storyboard

My Costume Options

Here I have picked out some costume options from my own wardrobe that fit with the theme and mood of my video. The video has two different moods and I want the costume that my actor wears to reflect the mood as colours and styles often carry heavy connotations, therefore I want to make sure I choose an appropriate outfit.

 

The clothes in the picture above I picked from my wardrobe as possibilities for the music video. I chose these garments because they are all darker and muted colours which reflect the more sombre tone of my video.

As I will be filming some of my scenes outside I thought it was important to put an outfit together that again reflected the mood of the video but was appropriate for different weathers and kept my actor warm and comfortable. Therefore the outfit above includes a jacket. I picked this jacket from my wardrobe because it is distressed and older looking which links to the mood of the video.

This next picture is another variation of a costume I could put my actor in for outside scenes. I again have kept the colours darker to reflect the mood of the video.

As there are two distinct parts to my video that reflect two different moods and lives I wanted to create a strong contrast that really shows the viewers the two different parts. The colours of the clothes I have picked in this picture are a lot brighter and happier therefore they should portray more positive connotations.

Planning My Filming Day (Test Shots) - Weather Forecast

I think that it is very important to plan ahead for my filming day as I want to make the most of the time that I have with my cast on the day. Therefore I have looked into what the weather will be like on my chosen day of filming. I am planning to film quite a lot of scenes outside and want to make sure that I won't get stuck in a storm and have to reschedule everything.
This is the BBC Weather Forecast for my postcode on my chosen filming day.

 

As it is now darker nights I know I will have to take advantage of the daylight hours. Looking at this forecast I now know that I should make preparations before 10 O'Clock so I am ready to start filming when it is light enough.

This is the BBC Forecast Summary:

Forecast Summary

• Saturday

  Outbreaks of rain are expected to continue through the morning before drier conditions spread in during the afternoon with winds becoming lighter later. Mild at first but becoming colder later.

Audience Profile

Health & Safety Grid

Here I have produced a grid to show the possible dangers that could arise during filming. It is important to understand the hazards that could potentially cause injury. Knowing how to keep safe and deal with the situtation is important because although getting the shots for my video is important the saftey of my cast and myself is the most important thing. Understanding how each shoot could pose a risk helps me to plan ahead and make sure that I can put my control measures in place to ensure the saftey of myself and others.

Video Techniques & Influences

Communication With My Cast

Here I have taken screen shots of the messages sent between my friend Phoebe (who is going to be filming some test shots) and I. These messages show how I am organising times to film and attempting to overcome problems.

Where Will My Video Feature?

Costume, Hair & Make-Up Ideas

Visual Representations of Lyrics

Cast List

Kekezza Viant - Aged 17

I have asked my friend Kekezza to play the part of my main character in my video. Kezza is one of my closest friends and was willing to play the part. We have helped each other in school/college projects before and have always been happy with the outcome, therefore I thought I would ask Kezza again. Kezza is a confident person, who has had exprience with performance before, we both had parts in a high school production and she has also had dance training which is helpful for my video. I know that Kez understands that this project is an important part of my grade and therefore will take it seriously and help me as much as she can!

Test Shot (1)



Recently I took my own camera and tripod out to a location that I am planning to film at. Once I had a bit of footage I used the editing software on my laptop 'Window's Movie Maker' to experiment with how I wanted to edit the shots together. I used a simple 'crossfade' transition to show the progression of the walk down the road.

Results of Audience Research