DO'B/JB/ EH: Preliminary Task

For our preliminary task, we had to ensure that our short included a shot/reverse shot scene between two people and several lines of dialogue - ensuring we did not break the 180 degree rule.

Due to time constraints on shooting (we had about 40 minutes), we chose to set our dialogue scenes inside an unused DT classroom. As with our Wilderness Woods short ‘PLAY’, we shot on the Canon 700D, with a 50mm f1.8 lens and the Rode VideoMic Pro. Ideally, we would have used a tripod also as some of our shots came out shaky when they could have been static. We also had to attempt to stabilise our final shot inside Premiere Pro using the ‘Warp Stabilizer’ tool, which reduced a significant amount of shake yet did not quite leave us with what we wanted.

The largest issue we had with production was probably not bringing the standard 18-55mm kit lens with us also, as we couldn’t get the long shot of the front of the classroom that we wanted, even after standing outside! We also could have benefitted potentially from a multi-camera setup of the conversation, so we could intercut them with greater precision as dialogue would be spoken at the same time on both of them.

The music we chose fitted well with the timing of our cuts preceding the conversation, and our second choice further reinforced the ‘thug life’ attitude we were trying to put across, and through our editing session we successfully applied a colour grade to our short too - with a change in colour temperature as Elliot embraces the ‘thug life’.

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DO'B: Production Log - Wilderness Woods

What role did you take in the group?  What did you do?
I assumed the role of scriptwriter which I hadn't done before, this was a continuous process and required multiple edits due to different factors. I was also assigned lead actor and director during the production of our short film ‘PLAY’, developing the narrative in front of and behind the camera. As well as this I assisted in elements of post production such as audio and a small amount of editing.

What did we learn from the filming experience?
During this process I took on roles I haven't done before, I have learnt how to develop ideas as a group and how to convey them.  I have gained massively from the knowledge of my group members who have helped my understanding of editing and grading software.


What challenges did you overcome?
Whilst on the shoot it began to rain which would have affected continuity, whilst it was raining we found shelter and took time to further plan our narrative until the rain ceased. This time was well used as once we had finished out further planning the weather had returned to the conditions we had filmed in and we had many ideas as to what to do next.

What didn’t work as well?
Due to a small time frame for shooting, we were forced to come away with less footage than we had hoped. Despite this we have produced a horror opening of a good length using the footage we had shot.

How has this experience influenced your production?
Overall I feel that our short film was produced to a good standard. Our planning made it easier to film and our solutions to our problems have created an unpredictable narrative. I have learnt to plan in greater detail, factoring in uncontrollable situations such as the turn of the weather and the appearance of the public on set. This project gave me the chance to explore the world of pro-filmic effects, having recorded sound to accompany the film, and having control over when the shots should be cut and consequently where they should go. I have also learnt that when we come to produce our final piece it will be important to plan for the unlikely and that it is necessary to get more footage than you could imagine needing.
   

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EH: Production Log - Wilderness Woods

What role did you take in the group?  What did you do?

The main roles that I fulfilled in the production of ‘PLAY’ were Camera Operator, as I filmed half of the shots for the final outcome, Co-Editor, as I significantly contributed into cropping the clips needed and determining the time of fade to black transitions. Finally, I had the role of Colour Grader, and I altered the visual appearance of each shot to make the short film seem more visually appealing, while also incorporating the general conventions of horror, such as adding a blue tint to the shadowy areas.

What did I learn from the filming experience?
Many of the production methods that we undertook I had not conducted before, and thus I learnt how to perform continuity editing with a narrative in Adobe Premiere Pro CC2015, while also advanced colour grading techniques. I also now have experience in filming with a camera attached to a monopod, a camera attached to a jib,  filming with a GoPro on my head for a POV shot and filming a tracking shot.

What were we most pleased with?

I was primarily very pleased with the high-quality shots that I was able film, with a variety of different types of shot. Also in the editing, I was greatly pleased with my colour grading, and below can be seen some before and after examples which highlight the dramatic effect my colour grading had on the film.

What challenges did you overcome?

It was difficult to work in rainy conditions such as when filming with the GoPro, as at one point in the footage, (which was cut out) a rain drop appeared on the lens and blurred the clip. We also didn’t fully know the plot when we arrived at the location as we didn’t know what kind of set we might have to offer us, and therefore had to adapt. I personally also had of my camera running out of battery, and thus next time I need to have greater levels of preparation.

What didn’t work as well?

We didn’t fully explore the location into the further areas, and thus we might have missed some more desireable locations to film in. Additionally, we had 30 mins of leftover time at the end of our filming period, (in which we consolidated our filmed footage) however we could have improved our time management skills and shot more scenes and footage.

How has this experience influenced your production?

We have become more experienced with the software of Adobe Premiere Pro CC2015 used to edit, thus enabling me to next time be quicker and more confident with the program, causing less wasted time working out how to edit effectively. We also improved our skill to work together in a group to produce a short film, which thus enables us to further utilise this teamwork in our production. I also leant what shots were most effective from the filming of ‘PLAY’, and also how to effectively colour grade to ensure that the colour of the different scenes don’t look too different, unless specifically intended.

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JB: Production Log - Wilderness Woods

What role did you take in the group?  What did you do?

I supplied the majority of the equipment we used in the group, filmed some of our shots on my DSLR and managed the storage and backup (both locally and remotely) of our working files to reduce the risk of data loss or memory media damage. I also edited some of the footage in Premiere Pro, and applied any tweaks required to the shots (e.g. cropping a shot to remove Elliot’s hands with the GoPro in the tent scene).

What did you learn from the filming experience?

I improved my group work skills, since most filming that I have done in the past has been individual rather than with others, and I gained a greater understanding of the other members of my group and what our strengths are so that we can maximise the potential of our final piece. I also gained knowledge of the new equipment I had purchased prior to the trip, such as the Rode VideoMic Pro.

What were you most pleased with?

I was impressed that we managed to get a variety of shots, but also that we gained knowledge of our equipment and what we would do differently next time - such as not always using the 50mm lens despite its unique look as it restricts us massively when working in confined areas.

What challenges did you overcome?

The weather conditions and time constraints were our biggest challenges, yet as we planned what shots we wanted we reduced the amount of time spent deciding at the last minute and made use of lunch breaks and when weather was bad to plan for later in the day.

What didn’t work as well?

We weren't quite prepared for the wet weather during the afternoon, thus we had to try and find a safe way to cover our equipment and not damage any of it.

How has this experience influenced your production?

I believe that this experience has introduced us to the process of working as a group, and an expectation that not everything will necessarily go as planned the first time around! In our final production, we may benefit from utilising the multiple cameras we had at our disposal to film the same shots from different angles so that we can cut between them, or try out different shots when editing. We would also benefit from colour grading all our shots to be equal first, then colour grading them as a whole (then fine tweaking), rather than each shot individually - which lead to some changes in lighting that could have been more professional.

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DO'B/JB/ EH: Wilderness Woods Short - PLAY

Our primary footage was shot on a Canon 700D with a 50mm f1.8 lens, with audio from a Rode VideoMic Pro, and secondary footage was shot on a GoPro Hero 3+ Black.

After a lesson of editing our footage in Adobe Premiere Pro CC 2015, we had chosen the shots we felt best suited our short and compiled these on the timeline in the order we wanted, and had our first rough cut finished. This edit was missing the majority of sound, and featured only initial colour grading attempts.

Our timeline at this stage in Premiere Pro. (Layers 4-9 are for our director's commentary)

• Selecting the most appropriate shots filmed at Wilderness Woods and then dragging these clips into the timeline in chronological order.
• The clips were then cut with In & Out points to exclude any unnecessarily long takes whilst also cutting out any unwanted footage, for example cropping out a hand shaking the bauble at the start of that clip.
• We also adjusted the scale of some clips to remove crew and equipment that were present in the shot, such as Elliot’s hand appearing in the side of the shot by the tent.
• Some of the diegetic sound was removed and replaced with sound clips that resembled diegetic sound, such as the rustling past a christmas tree, which we recorded on location. We then added in non-diegetic music throughout the whole audio timeline to create a frightening atmosphere, with asynchronous music being ominously happy.
• We then colour graded the the shots using Lumetri colour, adjusting various values such as contrast, exposure, highlights and saturation.We also included a blue tint to the shadows in many shots such as the jars and forest, as the colour is highly iconic of the supernatural horror genre. In the future we would benefit from matching the initial look of the shots before applying an overall grade to all of the shots and then making minor adjustments where necessary.
• We then intercut the shots walking through the forest  and walking to tent footage to create parallel lines of action, which further helped to make the longer take of the forest scene more appealing.
• A transition fading to black was used after the initial establishing shot depicting a bauble.
• Titles were then added as an overlay onto the swinging tire , and credits were added after the play sign shot, using a cross dissolve transition.

 



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DO'B/JB/ EH: Call Sheet & Risk Assessment - Wilderness Woods

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EH: Analysis of Title Sequence - Crimson Peak (Toro,2015)

Crimson Peak Title Sequence Video

	Produced by GUILLERMO DEL TORO
	written by GUILLERMO DEL TORO & MATTHEW ROBBINS
	produced by THOMAS TULL p.g.a
	produced by JON JASHNI p.g.a
	produced by CALLUM GREENE p.g.a
	executive producer JILLIAN SHARE
	director of photography DAN LAUSTEN d.f.f
	production designer TOM SANDERS
	film editor BERNAT VILAPLANA
	costume designer KATE HAWLEY
	music by FERNANDO VELAQUEZ
	sound designer RANDY THOM
	visual effects supervisor DENNIS BERARDI
	casting by ROBIN D.COOK c.s.a
	MIA WASIKOWSKA
	JESSICA CHASTAIN
	TOM HIDDLESTON
	CHARLIE HUNNAM
	JIM BEAVER
	BURN GORMAN LESLIE HOPE JONATHAN HYDE DOUG JONES
	a LEGENDARY PICTURES and UNIVERSAL PICTURES presentation
	a LEGENDARY PICTURES / DDY production
	a GUILLERMO DEL TORO FILM
	CRIMSON PEAK

The most important roles are first displayed on screen, which then becomes less important names as the title sequence continues, ending then with more impotant figures once more in the actors’ names, production studios and ending with the director’s name, the most important title.

The font is somewhat transparent and slightly shimmers in the white and rustic font, giving a pale and ghostly appearance as the font fades in and out of the frame.

Crimson Peak (Toro, 2015) is a supernatural horror film set in a haunted gothic mansion, with the animated title sequence displaying the rustic appearance to the integral setting to the plot. The text does not interact directly with the visuals, and fades into the frame, separate from the physical visuals of the house, until the last shot, where the title of ‘Crimson Peak’ is presented as the title of a book.

In my own title of ‘PLAY’ I have chosen an ornate font which is fading away into clouds and fog, giving the impression of a supernatural theme in which the ghost is unseen, while also giving the background a mysterious tone with the hint of blue. I have chosen to use an overlay of a scratchy grunge texture, which gives a weathered and unsettling theme that is iconic of horror.

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JB: Analysis of Title Sequence - The Conjuring (Wan, 2013)

The Conjuring is a 2013 American supernatural horror film that was directed by James Wan that was produced on a budget of $20 million and made $318 million at the box office.

The titles begin by showing the two prominent families that we presume feature in the film itself. These are both shown with fades in and out before the main titles start.

The Director, James Wan’s title fades onto the screen with the visual of a house, and fades to black into the next. The shots that follow are preceded by a live-action shot revealing an overhead projector with transparency film layers.

These titles are added into the scene through the placement of a layer under the projector in an unconventional way.

All of the crew and cast titles that follow this follow a similar style - usually with some kind of news article being placed under the projector, or occasionally with the text being revealed by a further layer placed on top.

The final title before the film starts is that of the film, before a closing shot of the overhead projector again and a cut to black.

This title sequences makes use of a Sans Serif font, with the names of those credited in a large typeface than their role in the production. Cast members are sometimes listed through the use of multiple lines that are indented (such as at 01:32) or placed on the next line. The font used contrasts with the serif ‘Times New Roman’ style font of the newspaper background, and appears to be much more modern than it.

Still	Start Timecode	Text
	00:01	The Perrons
	00:10	The Warrens
	00:17	Directed by James Wan
	00:27	Written by Chad Hayes & Carey W. Hayes
	00:33	Produced by Tony DeRosa-Grund, Peter Safran, Rob Cowan
	00:39	Executive Producers Walter Hamada, Dave Neustadter
	00:42	Director of Photography John R. Leonetti, ASC
	00:52	Production Designer Julie Berghoff
	00:58	Edited by Kirk Morri
	01:04	Patrick Wilson
	01:08	Vera Farmiga
	01:16	Ron Livingston
	01:22	and Lili Taylor
	01:32	Joey King, Shanley Caswell, Hayley McFarland, Mackenzie Foy
	01:36	Shannon Kook, John Brotherton, Sterling Jerins
	01:45	Casting by Anne McCarthy and Kellie Gesell
	01:48	Costumes designed by Kristin M. Burke
	01:57	Music by Joseph Bishara
	02:01	A New Line Cinema presentation
	02:09	A Safran Company / Evergreen Media Group production
	02:14	A James Wan film
	02:19	The Conjuring

I used Adobe Photoshop CC 2015 to create some simple title mock-ups based on our short film, PLAY.

I decided to try multiple styles that convey different moods - with some sans serif, and some serif fonts.

The fonts that appear more handwritten (such as that in the ‘Stonehenge’ - top right and ‘Copperplate Gothic’ - centre bottom) fit the horror genre better than the bolder text (such as ‘Bebas Neue’ - bottom left)

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Video Credits:

Client: Warner Bros., New Line Cinema, Evergreen Media Group, The Safran Company

Director: James Wan

Live Action Direction, Design, Animation, Compositing, VFX, Production: Aaron Becker

Additional Design & Animation: Matthew Darnell

Additional Research: Richard Kroll

Produced By: Becker Design

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Background image (text design): © HDWALLPAPERSNEW.NET

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