CHANGE THE WORLD FINISHED CUT

Overall I believe we succeeded in fulfilling the brief whilst also displaying some technical ability. Were I to change anything a second time around however, I would certainly strive to use a better camera and to make sure that each shot is perfectly focused and exposed along with shooting enough footage to cover any mishaps should anything go wrong during the editing stage. 

CHANGE THE WORLD EDITING PROCESS AND INITIAL FEEDBACK

One of the biggest problems we faced during the editing process was transferring the tape data onto the Mac. Due to the camera we used being tape based, this caused a problem from the start and the transfer time took longer than we anticipated.

Once we transferred the footage however, we were then able to begin the edit. The initial structure of this piece as stated before, was to show some of the establishing shots whilst the interview audio played over the top, then revealing the interviewee. This i felt would achieve the piece to flow smoothly while also making it clearer to the viewer the progression of the interviews.

Another problem arose during the edit stage as due to the poor quality of the camera viewfinder, our focus was not quite as perfect as we had hoped which led to a few of our clips being deemed unusable. This was pointed out to us during our presentations and so we came up with the idea of incorporating some stop motion as a means of displaying a different visual format aside from film. This would be done to also add visual references as to what the interviewees were describing, in this case putting money in a savings account and letting it generate interest. 

For the whole of this project, no definitive roles were given and we worked entirely as a group during each stage, though there may have been certain issues with the amount of construction each individual gave. The edit process was completed by Jordan, Nick and myself along with the sound whilst the music was done completely by Nick.

'LIFE LESSONS' BY MARTIN SCORSESE FROM 'NEW YORK STORIES'

Throughout the film, music plays a crucial part of adding depth and further meaning to each scene. This is evident within the first scene as Nick Nolte's Lionel Dobie paces round his studio seemingly frustrated. During this Procal Harum's ' A Whiter Shade of Pale' non diegetically plays. There are various interpretations of the lyrical meaning behind this song, however one which I believe is applicable here is that it is a reference to death and this in turn is used in the film to foreshadow the death of Lionel's relationship with his assistant Paulette, the title itself referring to the colour of a corpse. The other possible connection may also be that the title may link to Paulette's spiritual imagery as she is introduced, cut between the hazes of smoke from Lionel's cigarette. 

The songs in question which are used throughout the film also carry a theme of a very independent lifestyle such as Bob Dylan's 'Like a Rolling Stone', here a clear reference to Lionel's state of mind with him being an artist and focusing upon the abstract approach to painting. 

The editing within this film also aids in conveying various meanings and symbols. The rapid cuts used during any flash photography, not only reflect the speed at which the photographers must act in order to get a good shot, but also sybolise Lionel's flurry of emotions which he may be feeling as Paulette has left and he is without an assistant. The swift cuts may also be used to contrast with the smooth slow shots in the previous scene. The constant freeze frames after each photograph may also be used to contrast with the previous scene in which Lionel is painting frantically due to his anger at Paulette.


During the basketball scene, 'A Whiter Shade Of Pale' is used again, this time diegetically, and the jump cuts are almost perfectly in time with the music. The shots of him shooting the basketball are taken from a high angle and track down as the ball falls through the hoop each time. This short sequence is cut up so that as soon as the ball falls through the hoop, it returns to Lionel as he takes another shot, giving a much speedier and rhythmic tempo. The shots also cut as the basketball hits the floor, most notably when Paulette slams her pillow down in anger at the volume of the music.

THELMA SCHOOMAKER

Thelma Schoonmaker, renowned for her work as editor usually in close collaboration with Martin Scorsese, talks about being a recipient of the Cannes Golden Lion Award for lifetime achievement. She also goes on to explain how editing is now beginning to receive more of the true recognition which it deserves as she explains how editing can ruin a movie or make it better. 

She then goes on to talk about how she knew nothing of editing until she was taught by Martin Scorsese and how this has led to them almost becoming one mind when they work on a film, how they do not always agree on certain choices and so screen one version then the other and have the viewers pick which they preferred. 'Raging Bull' is her most favourite piece which she worked on as it was her first feature film to edit, citing that everything about the production was golden, from the performances to the script to the footage itself. 

Regarding any advice she would give to young film makers, she explains how an editor must have great patience and discipline, similar traits which are used when learning an instrument and describes it as a rhythm. Along with this she also recommends to stay away from cliche and sentimentality, but to lay down humanity and strong emotion whilst avoiding sentimentality. 

CHANGE THE WORLD FILMING LOCATIONS

When deciding upon locations for the project, we already decided to try and keep it within the city but not entirely within the university. We decided also upon trying to get a range of age groups so as to broaden our audience and make it less like a student orientated film. Our first interview which was conducted was of tutor Annie Watson whom we felt would display a different approach opposed to filming just students within the university.

Another person we interviewed was a woman representing the Women's International League for Peace at the winter gardens. This we felt was unbelievably lucky as we had not planned upon even filming in the winter gardens, however this allowed us to get some establishing shots both outside and inside the location. By using this woman's interview, it would allow our piece to expand past the university based stereotype.

The answers to the questions were also varied with some being the obvious and giving to charity, whilst others were more inventive and such as buying seeds which would then grow into trees and allow many others to reap the benefits. Due to the length of these interviews, we then decided upon during the edit that we would utilise the asymmetric trimming method which we learnt in an earlier edit session. 

We did however encounter problems whilst filming, one of these being the camera which we used. The Sony HVR Z1E is a tape based camera and so caused problems from the beginning. The focus I found particularly difficult to correct due to the small viewfinder. The camera in question would also prove difficult to use when coming to the editing stage.

CHANGE THE WORLD FILM PROJECT: INITIAL IDEA

For our change the world project, our initial idea was to create a film which would begin with one person doing a good deed to another such as giving them money or offering them directions and we would then follow them as they would go on to receive a good deed from someone else and a chain would be created. 

Due to the fact that this would require many actors and good weather, this idea unfortunately had to be changed and so instead we decided upon filming a documentary style piece, combining interviews with a range of establishing shots. This we felt would allow us to demonstrate our audio skills and fine tune our camera work, while also include various editing techniques which we have not yet displayed. 

The general structure of this piece will consist of an establishing shot, followed by footage of the interview itself. Whilst the interview audio is playing, we will also splice in some shots of the location in question in order to give more scope to where the interview is taking place as well as allowing us to display our editing skills. Titles will also be used in order to make it clear what our objective is and what we are asking the interviewees. The two questions which we shall use will be "With £5 how would you change the world?" and "How would you destroy the world?" This questions I believe link to the brief as it does not specify whether the change should be good or bad and so will display both sides of the objective whilst also allowing a range of opinions to be collected. 

EXPERIMENTING WITH PRO TOOLS

In a recent session, we were tasked with creating an audio track lasting between two and three minutes. For my piece I aimed to create a brief atmospheric track, incorporating various stereo audio clips available on media composer. We also learnt how to utilise the audio EQ mixer which allows you to alter the pitch and tone of any sound file. This aids in creating a unique sound to each person. 

We also learnt how to achieve a fade up and fade out which can also add to the atmosphere which you are hoping to create with your audio piece. This is especially useful when you wish to overlap your audio and is an effective way to connect your sounds. 

Pro Tools screenshot: Audio EQ Mixer

Pro Tools screenshot: manipulating the volume levels.

 

ANALYSING THE FEATURES OF POST PRODUCTION IN DOCUMENTARY AND DRAMA NOVEMBER 28TH

As part of Fridays session as well as discovering Walter Murch's rule of 6 and experimenting with the titles feature on media composer, we also analysed two different films, one a drama the other a documentary. For the documentary aspect, we watched a 16 minute film, encompassing the making of Francis Ford Coppola's 1979 War drama 'Apocalypse Now'. 

One of the key features of the film which I noticed was the related use of visual references used to aid the viewer. A prime example of this was during Coppola's narration of the filming of the infamous Nung River assault. He explained that they had filmed enough footage to create a feature length film just from this scene. During this narration we see a shot of the room in which the footage is stored with reels and reels of film upon shelves. Layered over this shot is then the actual scene being discussed from the film, giving a clear visual references for the audience.

The use of visual references is repeated throughout, once again during Coppola's discussion of the editing process for his film and how he instead of assigning a single editor for one scene, he let each editor edit the scene so that all possible edits could be contributed and completed. While he narrates, visual symbolism is shown as the Nung River assault plays under and at the exact moment Coppola explains how this editing process drove his editors 'crazy', we see a grenade being thrown into a helicopter and exploding.

The film under the drama genre was Milos Formans 1984 biographical drama 'Amadeus'. In this film, sound in general is used to great effect along with imagery to create a juxtaposition. This is notable during the first scene in which Salieri attempts suicide. Up until his bedroom door is opened, dialogue is the only audio heard, yet at the very second one of his servants breaks down the door, the drama is elevated significantly. As a non diegetic orchestral score rises up to an extremely high volume and we see Salieri lying on the floor writhing in a white nightshirt with bright red blood running down it. 

This is continued as he is carried on a stretcher through the streets and he looks up toward a building where we then see a hall filled with people dancing to Mozart as we cut back to Salieri's cold face. This juxtaposition is used in order to create and display the contrast between Mozart and Salieri and also suggest symbolically that it is Mozart who has driven Salieri to attempt suicide.

The editing is also used to great effect when Salieri is remenising about his time as a composer. A sound bridge is used as Salieri raises his hands as if to conduct an orchestra and we cut to a flashback of a much younger Salieri conducting. As the piece finishes, the younger Salieri freezes whilst posing we cut back to an older Salieri holding the exact same pose within the from. This I feel was done to blur the line between the past and present and to display how vivid the memories are for Salieri himself.

THE FEATURES OF POST PRODUCTION: NOVEMBER 28TH

In our last session, we covered the topic of post production and the various effects and meanings which can be conveyed within it. Renowned editor and sound designer Walter Murch constructed a general rule for post production which lists the various feature of post production in the order of their importance;

The first and most important part of post production to be considered is the emotion of the film and to make sure that it flows naturally in the correct way the director wishes. Murch adds that this is most important during post production as each cut must preserve the emotion, rather than distract the audience from it instead.

The second most important feature is the story. Naturally this will be an important feature as the piece you are editing has to make sense but also has to advance the story in a meaningful way. The key to editing the story is to make sure that you cut out any footage which may distract the audience from the story altogether. 

Rhythm is the third important feature in Murch's eyes and rightly so as when editing, if your films pace jumps around from swift to slow, then the film itself shall become to complex for your audience to engage with, leading to them becoming bored and eventually disengaging with it entirely. 

Alongside reading up on Murch's rules of post production, we also experimented with using titles on media composer, allowing us to improve our future pieces further.